Finally, the time for Adam to travel through time as agreed with Adam B had arrived. It was this Friday. Adam was eager to share his recent discoveries and understanding of time travel with Adam B. Although he couldn't grasp all the mysteries yet, he knew time was running out, and he needed to explore them together with Adam B's abilities.
On this Friday, Lily had taken a day off, so Adam found the laboratory empty. He set up the equipment, adjusted the parameters, and opened the wormhole, traveling to the same date one year ago. Although it was the same season, it was raining outside on that day one year ago, and the laboratory felt desolate without anyone around.
Adam sat down and started editing files on the computer, writing down what he wanted to share with Adam B. Time flew by, and over an hour had passed unnoticed. Adam stood up to stretch and relax, his hand brushing against the rabbit decoration hanging on the wall, which Lily had put there to make their laboratory more lively a year ago. Adam had found it somewhat obstructive at the time, but now he couldn't help but find it cute, and a smile appeared on his face.
Suddenly, the experimental machine started vibrating, and another person emerged from the wormhole—it was Lily. She had forgotten her wallet in the laboratory and had come back to retrieve it, only to find the wormhole open. Out of curiosity, she reached out and was drawn into the time vortex, arriving in the present time.
Lily widened her eyes and exclaimed, "What's going on? Is this...?"
Adam hadn't anticipated this turn of events. "How did you come back here?" he asked.
"I came back to the lab to get something. Adam, did you discover the wormhole? Where are we now?" Lily asked excitedly. She hadn't expected their experiment to lead to such a result.
Adam realized that the secret was impossible to hide now. "Yes, actually, after I adjusted the experimental parameters recently, I discovered this result. But I believe it's still unstable at the moment, and we can't determine its principles yet. That's why I haven't shared and discussed it with you."
Lily became even more excited, realizing her own speculations were true. "Oh my, Adam, do you know what a significant scientific discovery this is? We've been working so hard all this time, and the lab director thought we were wasting resources on our experiment. Now everything has yielded results."
Adam was concerned that Lily might make everything public, hindering their progress in saving Emilia. He quickly dissuaded her, saying, "Before we can verify the validity of everything, it's not the right time to announce it to the world. You know as well as I do that such a discovery has its pros and cons. If it's exploited, it could lead to irreversible consequences."
Lily was awakened to the risks. Indeed, before all the negative implications were clear, releasing this achievement to the public could cause significant social problems and potentially impact the trajectory of the entire world's development. "I understand what you mean, Adam. This matter should be kept between us. But I hope I can be involved in your discovery and continue conducting experiments and research together."
Adam knew that Lily's involvement would provide much-needed assistance in his time-constrained research. However, he needed to come up with a better plan on how to handle the task of saving Emilia cautiously. But Lily wasn't a simple-minded girl; she paused for a moment and asked, "So, which time is this? The future or the past?"
Adam replied, "It's one year earlier than our current time, and it perfectly aligns."
Lily asked a question she already knew the answer to, "Do you know if Emilia is still here in this timeline?"
"Yes," Adam answered without elaborating further.
Lily asked again, considering the possibility of encountering oneself in two different timelines, which could violate the rules of temporal stability, "Have you met your counterpart in this timeline?"
"No, that's another reason why I don't want to disclose this discovery. I don't want to disturb the stability of the timeline. I'm still exploring, and until everything can be clearly understood, any reckless actions are inadvisable," Adam replied earnestly.
Lily agreed and nodded. Suddenly, she realized that Adam had been actively working in the laboratory these past few days, and it felt like there was more at stake than just a scientific discovery. She tested the waters and asked, "Have you thought about trying to change things that have already happened, like the campus shooting incident?"
Adam fell silent, refusing to answer. To Lily, his silence was confirmation enough.
And so, the two remained silent for a while. Lily finally spoke again, "I'll go back now. I don't want to disrupt the current state of the timeline. In case I encounter myself again." Without looking back, she entered the wormhole once more.
Adam watched her leave,feeling a mixture of relief and concern. He knew that Lily had a keen mind and a strong sense of responsibility, but he also understood the allure of the possibilities that lay within the wormhole. He couldn't help but wonder what would happen if he and Adam B were to explore those possibilities together.
But for now, Adam decided to focus on his original mission—to save Emilia. He needed to devise a plan that would maximize their chances of success while minimizing any potential risks. He returned to his notes, reviewing his theories and calculations, searching for any potential flaws or oversights.
As he delved deeper into his research, Adam couldn't shake the feeling that time itself was pressing against him, urging him to act quickly. He knew he had to make a decision soon, and he couldn't afford to make any mistakes.
With renewed determination, Adam continued his work, driven by the hope that he could find a way to alter the past and bring Emilia back. The journey ahead was uncertain and full of challenges, but he was prepared to face them head-on.
Little did Adam know that his actions would have far-reaching consequences, not only for himself and Emilia but for the very fabric of time itself. The path he was about to embark on would test his limits, challenge his beliefs, and force him to confront the true nature of time and its complexities.
But for now, Adam focused on the task at hand, preparing himself for the next step in his journey—a step that would take him closer to rescuing Emilia and unraveling the mysteries of time travel.