Anna, Part 1
Bureau of Defense Research Office, Downtown Constantinople - November 28, 1977, 9:00 PM
Mihailo Princip, Hans Hansen, Conrad Humboldt, and three generals sat at a table, listening to Walter’s demonstration.
“Our success thus far should serve as an example of our ability to achieve that which most can't even imagine,” Walter said, “What you must understand is that, as scientists, we must embrace every possibility. No limitations. No boundaries. There is no reason for them. Gentlemen... I would like you to take a look at this.”
He handed Mihailo a flip phone.
“And what would this be?” Mihailo asked.
“It's a mobile telephone,” Walter said, “It can be made much smaller, I assure you. Maybe even the buttons could be replaced by a touchscreen.”
“Does it work?” Conrad said.
“Not here, not yet,” Walter said, “This phone is digital, not analog, and depends on a highly sophisticated satellite network to connect with other phones. It'll take us at least thirty years to get up to speed. I didn't invent it. I wish I had.”
“Dr. Humboldt, we were under the impression Wilhelm Tesla would be with us this evening,” Hans said.
“I'm afraid that's not possible,” Walter said, “Dr. Tesla is in India. But I am here, so I can answer any questions you may have.”
“Dr. Humboldt, is this Russian technology?” Mihailo asked.
“It is not,” Walter said, “It is definitely Roman, but it is technology from another universe, another Reich. A parallel universe just like ours, but more advanced in some areas.”
“Are you suggesting you visited this parallel universe and acquired this advanced technology?” Conrad said, suddenly very interested.
“No,” Walter said, “It is theoretically impossible to get there.”
Hans looked at Conrad and held back a grin.
“Then how did you come to possess this?” he said.
“I copied it,” Walter said, “If you’ll follow me.”
They walked up to the roof of the building, where they could see the busy streets and skyscrapers of downtown Constantinople around them. Walter’s assistant Carla stood next to a clear, large flat screen device on a pedestal.
“For the last several years, Wilhelm and I have been conducting various experiments regarding this other universe,” Walter said, “So based on our findings, we developed a window of sorts, a way of looking into this neighboring world. And that is why we are asking for more funding. This is my assistant, Dr. Carla Werner.”
Carla waved. “Evening, sirs.”
“This window works by capturing errant photons from the other universe,” Walter said, “The window essentially stretches the membrane between our worlds and allows us to see them from our side.”
“You're going to make an alternate Constantinople appear?” Mihailo said.
“It's already there, Megas Domestikos,” Walter said, "Doctor Werner. At all times, right in front of our eyes. We just can't see it.”
Carla activated the device and pointed it at the World Trade Center. In the window, they watched as a zeppelin approached the towers, preparing to dock.
“I’m sure you know the World Trade Centers were never docking stations, for zeppelins no less,” Walter said, “Gentlemen, you are looking through a window into another world.”
A hotel, Constantinople - January 24, 2010, 3:00 AM
Angela answered the knock on her door and found Walter outside.
“Uncle Walter, what are you doing up at this time?” Angela said.
“You left me no choice,” Walter said, “You wouldn't answer your telephone, return my messages. I tried to communicate.”
“It’s the middle of the night,” Angela said, “I need time, okay? I don't even know... how to begin to work this out.”
“I think I do,” Walter said, “Please, Angie, I need to explain. And if you wouldn't mind, I could use a sip of something, myself.”
Angela sighed and let him inside, handing him a bottle of water.
“Have you told Kurtz or your father?” Walter said.
“No,” Angela said, “But to be honest, that doesn't mean that I won’t once I fly back."
“I always knew one day I'd have to pay the price for my deception,” Walter said.
“Well, we're not really sure what the cost is yet, are we?” Angela said.
“No,” Walter said, “I suppose not. I invented this after Wilhelm and I learned that we had doubles on the other side, or more specifically I did. Or maybe it was before. I can't remember. It's a window to the other universe. I was a different man then. I was going to change the world. But you see, after Anna became sick, none of that seemed to matter. The illness was genetic. Savage. Wasting. I tried everything. There was simply no hope. At least not on this side. But over there they're more technologically advanced. If the alternate Anna was also sick over there, then wouldn't her father be equally motivated to find a cure? He was. God help me...he was.”
Walter’s lab, Strasburg - November 29, 1977, 3:00 PM
Walter sat in front of the window, watching his counterpart write down notes on a chalkboard and mix chemicals in flasks. Carla walked over to him.
“Any progress?” she asked.
“He's synthesizing a new compound now,” Walter said, “He's using cobalt and magnesium.”
“Any idea yet how he's selecting the filtering compounds?” Carla said.
“Random, I think,” Walter said, “Chance, fate, luck of the draw. I've given him a name, Carla."
“What is it?” Carla said.
“Walternierend,” Walter said, “Walternate. A fitting name.”
“Alternating between what?” Carla said.
“Eh, I just picked the closest-sounding name,” Walter said, “The only other options are Wandere and Anders, and one is already taken.”
Walternate mixed another compound and watched as it changed color.
“That is it,” Walter said, “This should be the reaction.”
The compound changed color again.
“Damn,” he said, “No cure.”
He crossed out another line on his own chalkboard. “Perhaps with a higher iodine purification.”
He heard the phone ringing and walked to the office to pick it up.
“Humboldt,” he said.
“Walter?” Elisabeth said.
“Elisabeth,” Walter said, “Is she…”
“She’s fine,” Elisabeth said, “She’s alright right now. But, um…”
“What?” Walter said.
“I think you should come home now, Walter,” Elisabeth said, “I think it's time you came home.”
Conrad’s house, Mainz - 6:00 PM
Walter walked through the door and found Elisabeth sitting on the stairs, her head in her hands.
“She looks worse,” Elisabeth said, “Keeps asking for you. It's not like before."
“What is it like?” Walter said.
“It's different,” Elisabeth said, “She keeps saying she wants to talk to you. She says she's worried she won't be able to.”
Walter loaded a vinyl record onto the phonograph. Somber jazz music wafted from the speakers.
“I just can't bear it when you're not here,” Elisabeth said, “Anders too. He already left with Conrad to Vienna.”
“You know what I'm doing,” Walter said, “You know where I am twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.”
“Yes,” Elisabeth said, “That’s too much. You might be a scientist, but you are also her father.”
“I won't give up,” Walter said, “I lost one daughter, and I’m not losing another. I can do this. I need you not to doubt me.”
He walked upstairs and found Anna resting in her bed, flipping her favorite silver mark over in her hands.
“You're supposed to be getting some rest, Anna,” Walter said.
“Dad?” Anna said.
“Yes?” Walter said.
“I almost got it,” Anna said, trying to flip the coin over each finger.
“Oh,” Walter said, taking the coin, “Let me show you. Now slowly watch, one finger at a time.”
He flipped the coin over each of his fingers and smiled, handing it back to Anna.
“Now you show me,” Walter said.
Anna tried again, and this time she did the trick correctly. Walter clapped once.
“Very good,” he said.
“I want you to have it, my lucky silver mark, if I die,” Anna said.
“Anna…” Walter said.
“It’s okay,” Anna said, “I’m not scared.”
“Nothing's going to happen to you,” Walter said, “I promise. You're going to be just fine. Okay? Now get some rest.”
“Okay,” Anna said, “Will you wake me for dinner? I don't want miss it. I want to show Anders and Grandpa this trick.”
“You’re not going to miss anything,” Walter said.
He leaned over and hugged Anna, but at that moment, she went limp in her arms. He looked at Anna’s face and saw she had stopped breathing.
A cemetery - December 14, 1977, 3:00 PM
They buried Anna in a small ceremony. Only Walter, Elisabeth, Carla, and Mina were there to see Anna being lowered into her grave. Anders and Conrad didn’t attend. Not even the Hansens were invited. They weren’t even told. Nobody was. As soon as the grave was covered, everybody made their way back to the cars.
“You know how much Wilhelm wanted to be here,” Mina said, “But with the meetings in Delhi... I don't need to tell you how important they are for both of you. He wanted me to make sure that you know how terrible he feels. She was his niece, you know.”
“Yes,” Walter said, “I understand. I'm glad you came.”
Conrad’s house - 4:00 PM
Walter and Elisabeth stood in Anna’s empty room, looking at her few belongings still lying where she last put them.
“We didn't give her a good life,” Elisabeth said, wiping away tears, “She practically never got out of the house.”
“She was always too sick,” Walter said.
“She didn't go to a proper school,” Elisabeth said, “She didn't have any proper friends. She had no family but us, we kept her away from the Hansens too much. We kept her so well, we never let anyone else get to know her.”
Walter sat down and sighed. “We did the best we could. We dealt with what we were given. She knew she was loved. Didn't she?”
11:00 PM
Walter roused Elisabeth awake, and she opened her eyes.
“Walter, what's wrong?” she said. “You're cold. Have you been outside?”
“Come with me,” Walter said.
He led Elisabeth back to Anna’s room, where he had set up the window. He turned it on, revealing the alternate Anna lying on her bed, very much alive. Annie sat next to her, reading a story from a book.
“How's this possible?” Elisabeth said. “How are you doing this?”
“What I've been working on, Elisabeth, it's a window to another universe,” Walter said, “Like ours but different.”
Walter turned it off, but Elisabeth grabbed his arm.
“Please,” she said, “Please turn it back on again. Please turn it on. I want to see her again! I want to see her and Annie!”
“Elisabeth, I am telling you this because I want you to know somewhere Anna and Annie will grow up, somewhere they will lead a proper life, somewhere they will be happy, but just not here with us,” Walter said, “And we must take comfort in this. And we must begin to move on.”
Walter’s lab - December 15, 1977, 8:00 AM
Walter sipped from a cup of coffee while he watched the window, observing as Walternate mixed more compounds for potential cures. He recognized a pattern in the compounds Walternate was using for his tests.
“Not random at all,” he said.
Behind Walternate, Wilhelm entered the lab. Walternate turned away from his desk and started talking to him, not noticing his latest compound turning the right color. He had found a cure.
“Yes!” Walter shouted. “You did it! By God, you did it!”
The cure turned dark black without Walternate noticing. Wilhelm, looking panicked, ran out of the lab, and Walternate sat back down at his desk. He crossed out that compound’s name on his chalkboard and tossed the compound away, shaking his head.
“No!” Walter shouted. “You had it, the cure. All you have to do is stabilize the compound, and you can save her. You can save her!”
But Walternate didn’t do that. He started testing another compound. Enraged and distraught, Walter threw his coffee cup at the window, shattering it.
Frankfort, Holy Roman Empire - 3:00 PM
Raphael and Uriel walked out of the theater, still holding bottles of soda.
“This soda is just great,” Raphael said.
“I’ve tasted better,” Uriel said, “This place just doesn’t know how to make a good soda.”
“I really liked what they did to Starkrieg, don’t you think?” Raphael said.
“Personally, I’m not a fan of making Luke the hero,” Uriel said, “He’s just so whiny and bland.”
“Sarah would agree with you,” Raphael said.
Wilhelm materialized next to them.
“Frak, frak, frak,” he said, “I made a terrible mistake.”
“Yeah, Sarah told us,” Raphael said, “What did you do? Get old Claudius to nuke Mali? Accidentally activate Sentinel?”
“Dr. Humboldt, the one here, was about to develop a cure for his daughter,” Wilhelm said, “It’s a fixed point in time. I accidentally revealed myself, and he wanted to talk. He missed the cure.”
“Oh, Father,” Raphael said, “This is not good. Not good. You changed the future.”
“We’re not technically tethered to time,” Wilhelm said.
“But changing timelines is a big no-no,” Uriel said, “Especially after what happened when you helped out Friedrich the Great.”
“It was justified because you all were screwing over that universe,” Wilhelm said.
“Yeah, well we’re not screwing over either universe now,” Uriel said, “You just doomed a little girl to a painful death. You know how important she was?”
“About as important as Elisabeth Alexandra Hansen and Alexander Humboldt-Frank,” Raphael said, “That’s how important she is.”
“So we need to fix this, then,” Wilhelm said.
“Otherwise you’ll accelerate the convergence,” Uriel said, “Your precious universe, smashed into another and blown up. We wouldn’t want that, would we?”
“Okay, I’ll fix the timeline, then,” Wilhelm said.
“Yeah, good luck with that, Barry Allen,” Raphael said, “If you need us, we’ll be in 1980 to see how the Annionas did The Republic Strikes Back. Heard it was called Empire Strikes Back or some nonsense like that.”
“If you miss us, we’ll probably be in 2018 to watch Crisis on Infinite Earths,” Uriel said, “You shouldn’t miss it, there’s a two month window between the release and when the nukes fly.”
Raphael and Uriel teleported away.
Walter’s lab, Strasburg, the Reich - December 16, 1977, 3:00 AM
Carla walked into the lab and found Walter still sitting at his desk, working on the cure.
“Walter?” she asked.
“Dr. Werner,” Walter said.
“Have you been here all night?” Carla said.
Walter looked up. “I’ve been working.”
“Working on what?” Carla said.
“This,” Walter said, holding up the cure, “Walternate found a cure. He found a cure for Anna, and, and it works, Carla. It's not too late. I can save her.”
“Walter, Anna is dead,” Carla said.
“I know,” Walter said, “Of course I know that! I'm not talking about my Anna. I'm talking about the other Anna, the one on the other side. He missed it. The other me. He, he missed it and, you know, it was right there in front of him, and, and he didn't see it. He was distracted by the man.”
“What man?” Carla said.
“The old-fashioned man in the lab,” Walter said, “He was distracted. And, and when he returned, the positive result had failed, and so he moved on.”
“Maybe he'll realize what he missed, and he'll go back,” Carla said.
“Carla, he is me,” Walter said, “I wouldn't look back, and neither will he. He didn't see the compound, but I did. And I've reproduced it. It just needed minor modifications. Without this, Anna will die. She'll die all over again. Which is why I have to go over there."
“What?” Carla said.
“The Casimir Effect should produce a thinner, more porous region of space-time,” Walter said, pointing at blueprints lying on the desk, "I only need to affect the area for long enough to cross over to the other side with a vial of the cure. And, and then, of course, recreate the effect to cross back again after curing her.”
“Walter, you're trying to create a door into another universe?” Carla said.
“Yes!” Walter said. "I think I just said that. Where's my map? When I looked into her room on the other side, I saw Elisabeth had already packed her suitcase for Reiden Lake, just like we do every year for Christmas. That's where we need to find a location to set up."
“Walter, I'm sorry, but you can’t,” Carla said.
“Yes, I think I can,” Walter said.
“No, Walter, I mean you can’t,” Carla said, “Shattering the wall between universes would rupture the fundamental constants of nature.”
“It's a theory,” Walter said, "We don't know that to be true.”
“It's a good theory,” Carla said, “It is why we have been lying to the military, telling them it's impossible. Walter, there has to be a line somewhere. There has to be a line we can't cross.”
“I always considered you as a scientist first, Dr. Werner, despite your counterintuitive personal needs for religious claptrap,” Walter said, “I see I was wrong.”
“'I am become death, Destroyer of Worlds’,” Carla said.
“Don't you quote Neumann to me,” Walter said.
“Knowledge cannot be pursued without morality,” Carla said.
“You sound like a pious sanctimonious preacher!” Walter said.
“I may go to church every Sunday, Walter, but I also have three degrees in theoretical physics, and I am telling you you cannot do this,” Carla said, “We both know the amount of energy required to create a portal will break both universes. For the sake of one life, you will destroy this world and the other one. Some things are not ours to tamper with. Some things are God’s."
“My first daughter is likely dead, and my second daughter is dead, Dr. Werner,” Walter said, “I will not allow Anna to die again. There's only room for one God in this lab, and it's not yours. The lake. It's perfect. The water will absorb the excess energy. And I won't be needing your assistance any further today or tonight, Doctor Werner."
“Walter!” Carla shouted.
Walter packed up his blueprints and the cure and walked out the door. “That will be all!”
