Axel's vision blurred as the last echoes of the transition faded. His body ached as if it had been stretched and compressed at once, a nauseating sensation that refused to fade quickly. Astrais floated in absolute stillness, the ship's sensors struggling to process the sudden change in environment.
"CHM-002, report."
A moment of silence, then the AI's voice—calm, but with an edge of uncertainty.
"Warning: Spatial displacement confirmed. Current location—outer solar system, proximal to planet Uranus. Unable to verify universe consistency. Star chart comparison in progress."
Axel exhaled slowly, his fingers flexing over the controls.
"The solar system? My solar system?"
He pulled up the external camera feed, and there it was—the blue-green sphere of Uranus, its rings shimmering faintly against the backdrop of endless night. The sight sent a chill down his spine.
He was back.
Or at least, he thought he was.
The unsettling question lingered in his mind—was this truly his original universe, or merely a similar one?
Axel's instincts kicked in. The anomaly had dragged him here with a force beyond anything he could counteract, meaning something, or someone, had guided his arrival. If this was his solar system, there would be eyes watching the outer planets—automated probes, deep-space observatories, or even classified military installations.
He had no idea who or what might be scanning this sector of space, but one thing was certain: Astrais had to disappear.
"CHM-002, initiate stealth protocols. Cut all active transmissions. Adjust our orbit to avoid detection."
"Acknowledged. Engaging low-emission mode. Rerouting trajectory to maintain minimal radar footprint."
Astrais' engines dimmed, its energy output reduced to a fraction of its normal levels. The ship became a shadow, blending into the cosmic background noise.
Axel exhaled, pushing away his rising unease. One thing at a time. First, he had to confirm if this truly was his universe. Then, he had to figure out if anything had changed during his absence—if he even had a home to return to.
The ship's star chart analysis had been running in the background, and after a few minutes, the results arrived.
"Star pattern analysis complete. Probability of match with prior universe: 87.4%."
Axel frowned. Not 100%. That meant something was off.
"What's different?"
"Multiple celestial bodies exhibit minor deviations in orbital alignment. Possible explanations include gravitational anomalies, long-term cosmic drift, or interference from unknown sources. Further data required for conclusive results."
Axel leaned back, exhaling through his nose. It was close to his universe, but not perfect. That meant he couldn't assume anything.
He had no idea if Earth still followed the same timeline, if the nations were the same, or if this was a world where humanity had taken an entirely different course.
He needed more information.
"CHM-002, scan for any transmissions or data signals within range. Civilian, military, anything."
"Executing spectrum analysis."
The moments stretched as Astrais' systems worked. Then—
"Signal detected. Source: Earth-based transmission. Message appears to be historical data, originating from early 2000s."
Axel's breath hitched.
"The 2000s? Are you saying this is the past?"
"Unclear. Signal characteristics indicate a delay due to deep-space transmission drift. Further analysis required."
The possibility stunned him. If he was truly in the past, that changed everything. His knowledge of future events could be either an advantage or a curse, depending on how he handled the situation.
But more importantly—what about the anomaly?
"CHM-002, scan for gravitational distortions, energy signatures—anything resembling what pulled us here."
The AI processed the request, then returned a result that left Axel cold.
"No anomalies detected. No gravitational distortions present in current proximity or recorded in recent cosmic activity logs."
Axel stared at the screen.
The anomaly was gone.
His mind raced. He had assumed the anomaly had dragged him here for a reason—but if there was no trace of it, then what did that mean?
Had it vanished after bringing him here? Had it existed in his original universe but not in this one?
And the most unsettling thought of all—had he simply been dropped into a version of reality where the anomaly had never existed?
If that was true, then that meant something even bigger:
This universe had never encountered any alien activity.
Axel's fingers tightened over the console.
In his old world, humanity had already started uncovering the mysteries of space—there were signs, hints, whispers of something beyond. But here… nothing.
No warnings. No hidden transmissions about unidentified threats. No classified signals buried in military archives.
Just a normal, untouched world, sitting quietly in the vastness of space.
His jaw clenched. This was wrong.
Something had changed. Or something had been erased.
The Next Move
Axel turned his attention back to Astrais' systems.
If he had truly gone back to the 2000s—or a version of it—then humanity had no idea what was coming.
The anomaly may have disappeared, but that didn't mean he was safe.
If something had the power to alter timelines, remove threats, or selectively erase events—he needed to find out why.
More importantly, he needed to decide what he was going to do.
Revealing himself to humanity wasn't an option. Not yet.
But one thing was certain—he was here for a reason.
And he wasn't going to stop until he found out what it was.