THE MOMENT
Dr. Clyde Forecastle was exactly where he wanted to be. In public; in a coffee shop during a busy morning. He kept glancing at his watch as he watched patrons come in and out with the door jingling every time. Seconds felt like hours. When he began his career he never would have imagined what he would learn. The things he'd discovered weren't new at all; that was the first and harshest lesson he had to overcome. Nothing he'd done in his whole life was new. Even now, what was about to happen was not going to happen for the first time. But, it was the first time for him, and he was practically vibrating with excitement. Then, almost all at once, a hush fell over the atmosphere as the news began on every TV in the shop. They all wanted to hear the message. He couldn't have planned it better.
"With Area 51 opened to the public, a shocking discovery has been made. Scientists have proven that free will does not exist. A trove of evidence discovered on-site at Area 51 has made the claim and so far, top scientists around the world agree with the conclusion. We'll have more on this story as things develop. In other news....," a few chuckles spread through the morning crowd and the background murmur grew to drown out the news again. Clyde grinned to himself. He was about to leave when a stranger took the seat in front of him. She was a red-headed woman with blue glasses and a familiar face. He'd never met her before; but, Clyde prided himself on his mental agility. And, he had an educated assumption.
"No such thing as free will, huh?" she asked him with a smile. "That's quite a claim."
"I admit, I expected to meet other versions of myself," Clyde nodded at her with a neutral expression. "But, how did you find me? I'm assuming you're my Zero from another universe?" he said.
"Dr. Claudia Fore," she nodded and extended her hand across the table.
"Dr. Clyde Forecastle," he accepted her greeting and shook her hand.
"You won 'Science is Rad'," she said. "I'm kind of surprised I'm the first one of us to meet you," she added.
"You're not," he shook his head. "If you want to join my team of... US,, there's a waiting list now. "
"Really?" Claudia perked up and leaned across the table. "How many approached you before me?"
"I haven't vetted them all yet," he shrugged. "Over a hundred so far."
"Whoa, nice!" she said. That was unexpected and Clyde tilted his head.
"How so?" he asked.
"I'm not here to join you as much as I'm inviting you.. and the rest of us that work with you, to join me. Honestly, I love what you've done here...," she gestured at the coffee shop around them. "But, I think my group can help you scale it up even more. More trials is more learning, right?" she grinned.
"A larger scale?" He asked. "You know what Rad Industries gave me, right?"
"Yeah, a single shoddy Earth," Claudia giggled. "Io's plan, Io is my boss, her plan is going to give us a whole multiverse to work with. If you think you can open your mind that much," she smirked.
Clyde's eyes went wide just by attempting to wrap his head around the offer. Given the things he'd learned, he knew what she was saying was possible. Maybe even probable, but if it could happen, what did that mean exactly? That was the real question he wanted an answer to.
"Okay," he nodded. "What's my part in it?" he asked.
"I just need an 'Okay' for now," she said. "Keep going through the motions here; we don't want to waste Turbo's generosity entirely. But, start considering the next step. I'll have a more definite plan for you and the rest of us next week."
"I will, thank you," Clyde nodded.
"I have to say it though....," Claudia giggled as she looked around the restaurant and took in the variety of patrons. "....you're one of the more boring versions of me I've met. When I tried it, I threw in a little more chaos." Clyde was surprised; but, only for a moment. He caught up quickly. She was another version of him, so it made sense she would do the same tests. And, if Io's promises were true it also made sense that Claudia had tried what he was doing.
"Boring, maybe. But, it was a very deliberate test," he said. "I wanted to leave no room for doubt. If I left the chance open for any of them to react, it would have left me unsure when they did," he chuckled and shook his head. "It's a better demonstration, I think. To my mind, if they have no free will, why would they reject the idea that they didn't?"
"Because it's boring," Claudia giggled again as she stood up and a black portal opened next to her. "We'll be in contact soon."