Binary Echoes

This is also the backstory for the video game Lerp.

Introduction

Sol approached the device with trepidation, mesmerized by the multidimensional dance of hues and patterns. He raised his hand to touch it, but hesitated just inches away.

“By the stars,” he whispered, “the essence of reality itself interwoven inside of this.”

Nova slowly walked toward it, “It’s captivating, it must contain information about past revelations!”

With his eyes locked on Nova, Sol’s voice lowered, “Be careful, Nova. The consequences of activating it are uncertain.” His voice reverberated throughout the abandoned, overgrown laboratory.

Nova felt the weight of the uncertainty ahead. But she also knew they had come too far to back down. “But we’ve come all this way! We owe it to ourselves, to those before us and to those after us to see this through.”

The Orb, named Apatia, was a glowing sphere about two meters in diameter floating above a lapis lazuli pedestal. The entity didn’t seem to belong to this world or any other Nova and Sol had ever known.

Its surface was a radiant manifestation of dynamic and soothing animations. Within its lustrous, translucent boundary, it held a crystalline structure resembling a tesseract, the four-dimensional analogue of the cube, with its geometries constantly shifting and folding onto themselves.

It moved in an ever-changing spectrum of colors that appeared to bleed into one another, like watching a rainbow aurora within a transparent globe. Zeo’s expertise had led them to this point, but offered no guidance on the next steps. In the face of their final goal they found themselves at a loss. 

Sol felt a magnetic pull to the Orb that resonated in his core. His heart pounded relentlessly in his chest. Taking a deep breath, he summoned a quiet determination he didn’t know he possessed. He raised his hand toward the Orb, his eyes never straying from its brilliance. His fingertips tingled, the sensation creeping up his arm and feeding his intrigue.

A moment of hesitation crept in as he neared the surface of the Orb, casting surreal reflections in his eyes. He glanced back at Nova, seeking strength in her presence. Her eyes held an unspoken mix of emotions: fear, hope, uncertainty, and a fierce determination that matched his own. Then, with a deep, steadying breath, Sol extended his arm and reached out to touch the Orb.

The moment his fingertips grazed its misty surface, an inexplicable force surged through both Sol and Nova. They were lifted off the ground as though an invisible hand swept beneath them and hoisted them up into the air.