She had always been fascinated by time. How it flowed and changed, how it shaped and molded everything in its path. How it could be measured and manipulated, but never stopped or reversed.
She had made groundbreaking discoveries in the science of time. She had spent her life unraveling the enigmas of time, to reveal its secrets and master its power. She had built a machine, a device that could create a bubble of distorted time around itself. A timescape, she called it.
She had tested it on small objects, on plants and animals. She had observed the effects of speeding up or slowing down time within the bubble of creating temporal anomalies and paradoxes. She had seen the wonders and horrors of time manipulation, the beauty and the danger.
She was ready for the final experiment. She was going to enter the timescape herself, to experience firsthand what it was like to be in control of time. She had set the parameters carefully, calibrated the machine precisely. She had picked a place far from any human presence, a secluded desert where she could work in peace and solitude.
She turned on the device and observed as a glowing orb of light formed around it. She felt a wave of thrill and wonder tinged with a touch of fear and uncertainty. She grabbed her backpack, which contained some supplies and instruments and stepped into the timescape.
She felt a weird feeling, as if she was passing a boundary into another realm. She looked around and saw that everything inside the bubble was frozen in time. The sand, the rocks, the plants, the insects, all were still and quiet. She felt a thrill of awe and wonder.
She walked towards the device, which was at the center of the bubble. She reached out and touched a dial on its surface. She turned it slightly and saw that time began to move again inside the timescape. But not at the same rate as outside. She had adjusted the temporal frequency, making time flow faster or slower within the bubble.
She experimented with different settings, observing how everything changed according to her whim. She made time run backwards, and watched as everything reversed its course. She made time stop completely and enjoyed the feeling of being in absolute control. She made time run faster than normal and saw how everything aged and decayed rapidly.
She was having fun, playing with time like a toy. She felt powerful and free. She forgot about everything else, about her life outside the timescape, about her responsibilities and obligations about her colleagues and friends.
She lost track of time.
She didn’t notice the warning signs. The device was not designed to run for so long, to handle such extreme fluctuations of time. It was overheating, malfunctioning, breaking down. It was emitting sparks and smoke, making loud noises and vibrations.
She didn’t hear the alarm. She was too involved in her own world, too drawn by her own experiments. She didn’t see the danger. She was too blind to the consequences, too naive to the risks.
She didn’t feel the explosion. She was too late to react, too slow to escape. She didn’t know what happened. She was too confused to understand, too shocked to comprehend.
She was thrown out of the timescape, along with fragments of the device and debris of the environment. She landed on the ground, outside the bubble, which had burst and vanished. She was injured and bleeding, but still alive.
She scanned the surroundings and discovered that everything had altered. The desert had changed into a wasteland. The sand was darkened and burned, the rocks were smashed and melted, the plants were flamed and wilted, the insects were deceased and roasted. The sky was cloudy and dark, the air was fiery and toxic, the sun was red and dim.
She realized that she had caused a disaster. She had altered time so much that she had created a temporal rift, a tear in the fabric of reality. She had unleashed a wave of temporal energy that had destroyed everything in its path. She had turned a paradise into a hell.
She felt a surge of horror and guilt, mixed with a hint of regret and sorrow. She had ruined everything, she had wasted her life. She had played with time like a toy, and she had paid the price.
She shouted for help, but no one noticed her. No one came to rescue her. No one had any idea of her location or her actions.
She was alone.
On the ground she lay, suffering and despondent. She looked at the device, which was a pile of twisted metal and wires. She extended her hand and pressed a button on its facade. She pressed it hoping to undo what she had done to reverse time and fix everything.
But nothing happened. The device was dead beyond repair. It was powerless, useless and aimless. It was useless, like her.
She gave up hope. She gave up hope and let her eyes fall as death approached. She longed for a past that was free of the timescape, the machine and the obsession with time.
But it was too late. Time had run out for her.
The End.
Step by step work of photo collage, I made it for my story:
Images used to form it: Pixabay
https://pixabay.com/illustrations/woman-female-beauty-model-portrait-2223508/
https://pixabay.com/photos/wormhole-time-travel-portal-vortex-2514312/
https://pixabay.com/photos/fantasy-portrait-clock-time-2790666/