The Sea of Quanta, Kevin
The Sea of Quanta.
A realm few in the current era had explored. Both Schicksal and Anti-Entropy had, or would, dedicate vast resources to its study, each achieving significant, yet distinct, breakthroughs.
Their findings were "distinct" not only due to their rivalry and lack of collaboration, but also because their descriptions of the Sea of Quanta seemed to describe two entirely different things.
Years later, beneath the ruins of Eye of the Deep, Einstein would describe her understanding of the Sea of Quanta to Bronya and Theresa:
"Everything in the universe is made of quanta, and quanta are uncertain. When observed, they collapse from a superposition of countless possible states, across different times and spaces, into a single, definite universe – the one we perceive. The energy overflowing from these countless similar yet different universes converges like water, forming a dimension that exists between these parallel worlds. That is the Sea of Quanta…"
However, years earlier, Otto, explaining the Sea of Quanta to a young Durandal before her first expedition, had offered a different theory:
"The Sea of Quanta exists outside of known spacetime, parallel to the real world, a vast collection of fragmented, unstable pocket dimensions. Even fundamental physical constants fluctuate wildly across this fractured landscape. Worlds are as fragile as soap bubbles, constantly forming and collapsing. But within this chaotic expanse, there exist stable 'bubble universes,' anchored by 'ether anchors'…"
Otto, having located such a bubble universe, had sent Durandal and Rita to find its ether anchor, hoping to confirm his theory. That expedition had forged them into the formidable Valkyries they were today.
Even without their personal rivalry, their conflicting theories alone would have been enough to spark a heated debate.
But who was right, and who was wrong?
Perhaps neither, and perhaps both. Because during her expedition, Durandal had encountered Dr. Schrödinger, who offered a third explanation:
"The Sea of Quanta is the foundation of all universes, a medium capable of supporting countless possible worlds, existing across all eleven dimensions. 'Ether,' the substance of the Sea of Quanta, forms 'membranes' within its cyclical energy tides. These spontaneously formed bubble universes inherit different dimensions and laws from the ether. Our world, for example, is a membrane extending infinitely across four dimensions, with seven dimensions curled up, its physical constants consistent with our everyday experience."
"When two stable membranes are sufficiently similar, the 'distance' between them decreases, allowing for the transfer of matter and energy from the smaller membrane to the larger one. This can cause the smaller membrane to degrade, becoming more susceptible to influence from other membranes, eventually forming a 'projected' membrane. In such projected membranes, only the areas influenced by other membranes remain stable; the rest dissipates."
The bubble universe Durandal had explored was such a projected membrane.
It was a complex concept, but essentially a synthesis of Otto and Einstein's theories. Countless worlds existed within the Sea of Quanta, interacting and influencing each other, exchanging – or leaking – energy and matter.
"Anchored" membranes formed isolated systems, less susceptible to external influence, creating stable worlds, or bubble universes.
These were the conclusions reached by the current civilization. Did the Previous Era have their own, more complete understanding?
Yes, they did.
Dr. MEI had patiently explained her research to a certain simple-minded, white-haired warrior. Unfortunately, Kevin hadn't understood, only staring at her beautiful face with a lovestruck smile.
Later, the smiles faded, but he still listened attentively, his apparent calm masking his confusion, absorbing her words, even if he couldn't grasp their meaning.
MEI, despite her brilliance, was exasperated. But she persisted, knowing he would remember everything she said, trusting him to eventually understand.
She had unwavering faith in the man she'd chosen.
"MEI, do you think… in some bubble universe, born from our world, there might be another you, or another me?" Kevin had asked one day, his usual cheerful demeanor replaced by a quiet thoughtfulness. "If so, wouldn't they be… lonely?"
MEI was surprised by his unexpected question. She smiled. "Perhaps, once. But not anymore."
"Why?"
"Because the 'you' or 'me' in that bubble universe would know that somewhere out there, in another world, there's another version of them, thinking of them. How could they be lonely, knowing that?"
"…Sorry, I don't understand," Kevin said, shaking his head.
MEI reached out to touch his face, but he turned away, avoiding her touch. She smiled gently. "You'll understand someday."
"But I hope… you never have to."
...
Fifty millennia later, Kevin understood. He'd learned to be a leader, a strategist, not just a warrior, carrying out the impossible tasks they'd entrusted to him. But…
MEI's "not anymore lonely" wasn't about the absence of loneliness, but about sharing it… he thought, a flicker of vulnerability in his usually stoic expression.
But he couldn't afford to be vulnerable. He pushed the thought aside.
"Hmm?" He sensed a ripple from the direction of the real world, a disturbance in the quantum tides.
Has the connection been opened? he wondered. Has the world's Imaginary energy grown strong enough to withstand the quantum ether? Time flies…
Only a world with sufficient energy could pierce the membrane separating it from the Sea of Quanta without being consumed by the quantum tides.
And that surge of energy meant…
It's time.
He stood up, preparing to return to that familiar yet alien world, to resume his duty.
"Hmm?" He noticed something unusual about the rift, pausing mid-stride. This isn't what I expected…
...
Deep within the abyss, at the Eye of the Deep.
The change came faster, and slower, than anyone expected.
As the device absorbed the energy, it activated, its glow intensifying, rising from its platform, hovering in mid-air, its wing-like structures unfolding, rotating slowly, like a living thing taking a breath.
The entire ruin lit up, the barrier shimmering with renewed energy, illuminating the surrounding ocean.
Tesla, Einstein, and even Cocolia held their breath, anticipating the next phase. But nothing happened.
The scientists relaxed slightly.
"Increase the energy flow!" Cocolia yelled, refusing to believe it would end so anticlimactically.
More Honkai beast remains were fed into the furnace, converted into raw energy and channeled into the device.
"Hum…" There was no earth-shattering explosion, no tremors.
The blue pillar hummed softly, then emitted a beam of pure, silent energy, connecting with the base below, piercing through it, reaching the bottom of the ruins.
The beam intensified, its light blinding.
Dozens of smaller beams radiated outwards from the base, refracting, intersecting, weaving a complex web of light, a dazzling, impenetrable sphere.
"Crack!" A sound like shattering porcelain startled them.
A deep, dark gateway opened at the center of the light, its frame shimmering with energy. Like a giant's eye opening in the abyss, a breathtaking sight.
"Mophead!" Tesla yelled.
Einstein, anticipating this, had already activated all her recording equipment, capturing every possible data point.
"Ein, analysis mode!" She connected her AI assistant to the system, immersing herself in her work.
She wasn't quite ready to die for knowledge, but since the damage was done, she might as well learn something from it. This was far more informative than her previous, theoretical research.
"Hahahaha!" Cocolia laughed triumphantly, then casually pointed at a nearby mech. "You, go through. See what's on the other side!" She needed firsthand information to claim the credit for this discovery.
"Ms. Cocolia, please reconsider!" Einstein urged. "You've already succeeded! There's no need to take further risks!"
"Hmph, don't tell me what to do." Cocolia ignored her, still basking in her triumph.
Einstein watched helplessly as the mech stepped through the gateway, disappearing into the unknown. Even its heavy footsteps faded away.
One second, two seconds, three seconds…
They waited, holding their breath.
"Clunk, clunk, clunk…" The familiar footsteps returned. The mech had completed its mission.
"Excellent! Report…" Cocolia's excitement turned to alarm as she noticed something behind the returning mech.
"Clunk, clunk, clunk, clunk…" More footsteps, chaotic and disorganized, echoed from the gateway, growing louder.
How is this possible?
She'd only sent one mech. And it had returned. These new footsteps could only mean…
Before she could process the thought, several strangely colored mechs emerged from the gateway, pouncing on the unsuspecting Anti-Entropy mech.
"Boom!" The mech exploded.
The strange mechs, identical in design to their own, vanished instantly, as if they'd never been there.
Then, they reappeared, surrounding Cocolia's mech.
"Wh…" She was stunned.
The shadowy mechs vanished again, except for one, which attacked her.
"That's… quantum teleportation!" Einstein recognized the phenomenon, analyzing the data. "That's not a real mech! It's a quantum entity, collapsed from a superposition!"
"What?!" Cocolia, dodging the mech's attacks, narrowly avoiding a critical hit thanks to her escorts, yelled, "You're saying it's just… energy?!"
"Matter and energy are interchangeable, Ms. Cocolia," Einstein replied calmly. "That entity likely interacted with your mech in the Sea of Quanta, absorbing its information, then materialized in our world. Think of it as… a shadow of a physical object in the quantum realm." Her tone turned serious. "You've made a mistake, Ms. Cocolia. We shouldn't have rushed into this."
"Shut up!" Cocolia snapped, ordering her mechs to attack. They surrounded the "quantum mech," targeting its core, a dark, swirling sphere.
The mech didn't explode, but simply dissolved, like a popped bubble.
Cocolia watched it vanish, relieved, but she tried to sound dismissive. "Hmph, quantum shadows… nothing to be afraid of."
Einstein wasn't so optimistic. The energy readings were steadily rising. This was just the beginning.
More footsteps echoed from the gateway. A second quantum mech emerged, then a third, a fourth…
"Damn it!" Cocolia ordered her forces to attack, but the quantum mechs seemed endless, pouring through the gateway, their numbers increasing, their speed accelerating.
They teleported at will, appearing and disappearing, multiplying into identical copies, launching coordinated attacks from multiple directions.
The Anti-Entropy mechs, unprepared for such unconventional tactics, struggled to cope.
Tesla, her eyes wide with fascination, frantically recorded the data, already envisioning new mechs designed to counter these quantum entities.
"Ms. Cocolia, I urge you again – shut down the device, close the gateway, while you still can!" Einstein pleaded. The influx of quantum energy was increasing, the risk of a catastrophic chain reaction growing exponentially.
Cocolia hesitated. She didn't want to give in to these two… observers.
Then, the situation changed again. New types of quantum mechs began to emerge, mirroring the Anti-Entropy mechs on the battlefield.
"This is bad," Einstein said grimly. "The Sea of Quanta is influencing our reality!"
The initial quantum mech had been a single type, based on the one that had crossed the gateway. The appearance of new types meant the two worlds were merging, the quantum energy interacting with their reality.
It seemed like a positive development, but it also meant their world's isolation was being breached, its energy interacting with another, potentially far more powerful, realm.
Who would ultimately be assimilated in such an exchange?
The gateway widened, the influx of quantum mechs increasing, a veritable flood of quantum shadows.
And among them, she saw… Honkai beasts.
"Ms. Cocolia!" Einstein's voice was sharp with warning. "This is getting out of control! We'll all die if this continues! You won't achieve anything!"
Cocolia knew she was right.
But dying here with these two wasn't part of her plan. She made a quick decision.
"Shut down the engine!"
Nothing happened. The device continued to operate normally.
"What's going on?! Why aren't they obeying?!" She looked back and felt a chill of dread. The mechs guarding the engine were overwhelmed by quantum shadows, unable to carry out her orders.
"Damn it!" she cursed, then, ignoring the quantum mech attacking her, turned her mech's weapons on the thick energy cable connecting the engine to the device.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!" The cable was engulfed in flames.
"Tch!" A quantum mech struck her mech, sparks flying in the cockpit, a shard of metal slicing her forehead. Her escorts intervened, saving her from a fatal blow.
"Boom!" The severed cable exploded, releasing a surge of energy that shook the ground.
The explosion was the final straw. The gateway ripped open, the giant's eye transforming into a gaping maw, unleashing a torrent of quantum entities.
Thousands upon thousands of quantum shadows flooded the ruins, effortlessly passing through the barrier, spreading in all directions like tendrils of quantum energy, dissipating only after reaching a certain distance – a distance that was rapidly expanding.
"We're doomed!" Tesla muttered, trapped amidst the swarm of quantum shadows. "If only that stubborn idiot Joachim were here…" She slumped back in her chair, her voice filled with sadness. "He'll be so lonely, all alone…"
...
In the Sea of Quanta.
Kevin watched the ripple from the real world intensify, transforming into a swirling vortex. He understood.
"It's not time yet," he murmured, his expression as cold and unchanging as a glacier. "But it's close. You need to hurry, SU."
He casually kicked something out of his shadow, then turned away, sitting back down beneath the cherry blossom tree, closing his eyes, ignoring the real world, revisiting his painful memories.
The object he'd kicked soared towards the real world, a silent projectile, piercing the vortex, revealing its true form – a massive, monstrous creature, wedged firmly in the gateway between the two worlds.
Tlaloc, the supreme god of rain and storms in some mythology that he encountered when he traveled the world in early days of new civilization. He brings forth both life-giving rain and destructive storms.
Kevin had given it that name after encountering and subduing the quantum shadow of the creature shortly after arriving in the Sea of Quanta. He had witnessed and remembered many things during his travels, including these, in his opinion, rather foolish myths and legends.
"Civilization begins in ignorance, like a seed sprouting from the earth," SU had told him. He had watched, a silent observer, a passing traveler, an outsider.
Just as he now watched the world he loved from beyond its reach, saving it once again, in secret.
He could have easily destroyed the creature, but he'd been surprised to find that it was influenced by his will, willing to obey him.
He wasn't particularly interested in it, but he hadn't refused, storing it within his shadow. It might be useful someday.
And now, it was. The premature connection between the real world and the Sea of Quanta needed to be sealed.
Fifty millennia ago, he might have congratulated himself on his cleverness, boasting to his friends, enjoying their praise or their eye-rolls. But he no longer had the energy for such frivolous pursuits.
It was a small thing, a minor inconvenience. A man burdened with the fate of the world didn't dwell on such trivialities.
...
Tlaloc, its massive body half in the Sea of Quanta, half in the real world, effectively plugged the rift, stemming the flow of quantum energy.
"Roar!" It raised its colossal arms, larger than skyscrapers, and slammed them down.
"Boom!!" The impact resonated through the water, sending shockwaves in all directions. The ruins trembled, the seabed shook.
The quantum shadows, both inside and outside the ruins, dissolved, their energy absorbed by the shockwave, amplifying its power.
"Boom!!!" The shockwave traveled through the water, through the trenches, deep into the earth, awakening slumbering creatures, stirring them from their ancient sleep. They emerged from the depths, a massive horde, following the receding energy wave.
It was like a repeat of the previous disaster.
But Tlaloc didn't care. That wasn't its purpose.
The Eye of the Deep had been deactivated, and the rift, torn open by the quantum energy, began to close, albeit reluctantly.
The scientists and Cocolia, unconscious from the shockwave, missed the spectacle. They also missed the sight that would have filled the scientists with both shame and despair.
Tlaloc ignored them. It had no interest in these insignificant humans, as long as they didn't interfere with its task.
With the immediate crisis averted, its continued presence was preventing the rift from closing completely. It retreated into the Sea of Quanta, its massive form still partially blocking the gateway, preventing further leakage.
The rift slowly sealed, but a small fissure remained, a reminder of what had transpired, leaking traces of quantum energy, subtly altering the surrounding environment.
But finally, with the battle over, silence returned to the abyss, leaving only the brightly lit ruins, a shimmering underwater palace, suspended in the eternal darkness.
Just as it had been, fifty millennia ago.