THE MOMENT
Fred stood on the street corner wearing rags and minding his own business. He was bored more than anything, along with minor frustration. He was technically the richest man in the world, he just didn't know how to access any of his money, nor where it was. He was sure the genie's magic worked. He now had the knowledge that his bank account, wherever it may be, was completely happy.
Wealth was his third wish, but he'd also improved his personal health and capabilities to Superhuman levels with the first two. He wouldn't starve to death, nor get sick. And he could easily defend himself if he needed to while living on the street. Fred didn't have to quit his job, or he could've easily found even more lucrative opportunities with his enhanced abilities. But, it was the principle of the thing. His wish for money was a desire for the freedom that came with it. The money would've let him flaunt his carefree life more. Considering what he knew now, and his magic-boosted health, it would've been a bonus at that point. He leaned on the side of a diner and watched the flow of commuters driving by or gathering at the bus stop. It was a cool Fall morning with a crisp breeze, and colored leaves floating down from the trees. They all had somewhere to be, and he didn't. It was kind of nice.
"Mr. Fredrick Santos?" Fred had been admiring the morning sun and the sudden voice startled him. He turned to see a handsome man in a blue suit with a polished chrome tie.
"I don't know you," Fred answered. It was odd that the stranger knew his name.
"My name's Orion, I represent a company named Chroma Corp." Orion smiled and nodded at Fred.
"Mr. Santos, did you recently interact with a magical genie?"
"Yeah. Wait. What?" Fred answered the question honestly without considering how random it seemed to be. "How did you know that?"
"You're the richest man in the world," Orion smiled as he offered Fred a clear glass card. "Not this world, unfortunately. But, it's a simple matter of relocating you to the right one. You can come with me if you like, or learn how to use that node in your own time and find your way there," he nodded at the card.
"What's going on ... exactly?" Fred looked at, through the card. It was perfectly transparent except for digital gold numbers displaying the time. "How do you know any of this?"
"It's an involved tale," Orion smiled and shook his head. "I am unfortunately too busy to explain too much, but I can give you a quick overview to help you decide. You made some wishes with a genie. One of those wishes was to be the richest man in the world. Due to the way that wish was granted, you are the richest man in an alternate world."
"Where do you come in?" Fred asked. Thanks to his increased intelligence, he had already surmised that much from the interaction, but he wanted to know more details.
"Again, in the spirit of keeping it brief, someone wished that Chroma Corp. would help someone. You're our lucky winner," Orion smiled.
"Someone wished for you to help me??" Fred asked. "How? Who? Why??"
"You know what, you're smart enough to figure out the node," Orion replied. "I'll answer your questions, and then I have to move on. You'll find all the answers you need in that device," he said.
"Fine, give me the answers," Fred nodded. Other realities were too much to process right now, and he wanted simple explanations.
"The 'how' is, as I stated, a wish," Orion said. "As for the 'Who', we have a lovely young woman named Barley on the project. Whenever she finds a genie, she'll usually give up a wish or two by asking Chroma Corp. to help someone. And the 'Why' is simple. It's solely to help spread goodwill wherever we can."
"And this will teach me to get to the Earth with my money, right?" Fred asked for a concrete confirmation while his mind worked overtime on everything else.
"It'll allow you to Traverse to alternate universes in general, and quite a bit more. The particular Earth currently holding your funds is saved as a location," Orion replied.
"Thank you for your time," Fred decided to let Orion continue his work. The well-dressed gentleman smiled, then disappeared through a black portal that opened and closed just fast enough for him to step in.
"Wow...," Fred touched the node and his natural inclination was to swipe up like a smartphone. Doing so revealed a black home screen with several golden icons, including one labeled 'Tutorial'. Despite the timing of the utterance, it wasn't a result of the advanced technology. He was genuinely impressed by the apparent kindness he'd just experienced. Some unknown stranger gave up a world-altering wish to help another stranger.
He didn't even need the help, not really. He was on the way to realizing how little he needed unlimited wealth when he had his other wishes. But, it did open his eyes to a bigger picture.
There were countless universes out there. One of them had his money, but more importantly. Some of them also had people like Chroma Corp. and Barley, who were out trying to make the multiverse a better place. He could be like that too, if he wanted. He leaned against the diner again and watched the world happen.
Fred stood on the street corner wearing rags and wondering how to help someone. He was inspired more than anything, along with minor frustration. He was technically the richest man in the world, and still didn't know where his money was, exactly. He was sure the node would work whenever he decided to work with it. For now, he had the knowledge that his future, wherever it may be, was completely perfect.