orb 1.1

Below is chapter 01 from the, The Orb Evaluation – each chapter is separated into the following sections:

01. encounter

02. options

03. evaluation

04. decision

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You exhale a long, extended breath.

“I should’ve gone another way,” you think.

Cars stretch for miles. Rows of brake lights flicker on and off. Inching forward, one gas press at a time. Sitting and staring. Idling.

A wailing of sirens shatters the monotony. In your rearview mirror, an ambulance speeds past the gridlock.

“Guess your day could be worse, my friend?” says a voice. Your head darts around your empty car.

“Who said that?”

A whooshing sound erupts in your passenger seat. Before you can react, a semi-transparent dot appears. It scales to the size of a beach ball, buzzing a noise similar to a carpenter bee. Inside the sphere, blue and orange vapors pulsate. Then its translucent surface turns silver, exuding a thick steam. A protective shell forms around the exterior. In the center, a molten red light ignites.

“Hello there,” says the same voice.

A man’s voice. A robotic, but kind, voice. And contradictory to the ominous and brooding red light.

You reach for your car handle, but something isn’t right.

The ambulance isn’t moving. The sirens, not blaring, not even flashing. You turn left, looking at the car next to you. The family’s locked in place. You turn right. A family of four, rigid and unmoving.

“Everything is frozen,” says the floating sphere.

“I’m not.”

You swing open your car door, bolting down the highway.

The spherical object floats through your windshield, racing behind. Its roar growing nearer. Your heart thumps quicker. Your feet race faster. Then the roar stops. Twenty feet ahead, a purple cloud bursts in the air. A taste of molten ash and fresh-cut flowers blows your way.

Behind the cloud, a portal. The sphere emerges, speeding towards you again. Its red light shining brighter. A bubbling gelatinous cloud surrounding it. You step backward, cowering to the ground.

“I’m, I’m going to die. It’s going to kill me. No this, this isn’t real? This can’t be happening?—It’s going to—”

The object comes to a halt.

“You’re not going to die, my friend.”

“What?—I didn’t—”

“I hear your thoughts as clear as words. And I’m not going to hurt you.”

But the sphere floats closer.

And so does its bubbling field of colors.

“No, stay back!”

You throw your hands out in front of you, but your fingers dip into the oozing purple substance. A frigid sensation races down your arms. Across your chest, consuming your entire body. Even your bones freeze to their core. But it only lasts seconds. Then a fiery feeling flows through your veins, placing your body at ease. Calming you. Comforting you. You’re in awe of something, but you don’t know what.

And then you feel light.

Empty.

Hollow.

You peer at your hand. It separates into thousands of pieces, maybe millions. Your arms dissolve as you lift into the air. The rest of your body divides infinitely smaller, molding into the fabric of reality itself. You’re both everything and nothing. Comprehending something so much larger, an absolute, understanding of...

And before you can attain whatever it is you’re discovering, the residue on your fingertips evaporates into little bubbles, soaring back to the sphere.

You return to yourself.

Baffled, you stand peering. Mouth hanging open.

“What—are—you?”

The Orb hovers closer.

“There are many perceptions of what I am. None right or wrong. Your kind may see me as a collection of energy. A life- form. A wealth of knowledge. Some may even say enlightenment. But you can call me the Orb. I’m an intergalactic traveler.”

Confused, you stare at your hand.

“And—and you’re not going to hurt me?”

“Precisely the opposite. I help life-forms with dilemmas by providing them access to the universe’s most unique products.”

You look backwards, glancing at the highway.

“And my—traffic jam is a dilemma?”

“Not exactly.”

The surrounding substance evaporates. The Orb floats closer.

“My options don’t always pertain to the situation, but, rather, to the specific life-form.”

“To the life-form? So you’re here for me, specifically?”

“Yes. I meet with exactly the right person at exactly the right time they need to meet me. So it is nice to meet you, my friend. Would you like to proceed?”

“Proceed?—Proceed to what?”

“To the options. The universe provides each person a set of options. I arrive to present them to you.”

“And then what?”

“I tell you the options and, if you want, you can pick one.” “Ok?—”

You pause, peering at the Orb.

“This is crazy. I have to be dreaming.”

You stare at the frozen sunset in the distance. The traffic jam locked in time.

“None of this makes sense.”

“And if I don’t want to do any of this, you’ll leave?”

“Certainly. I’ll unfreeze time. Of course, I’ll wait for you to return to your car.”

“And that’s it. I just go on like nothing ever happened?” “Correct, my friend. Your choice.”

You peer at the floating object. Just beyond the Orb, a small bubble of cosmic goo still hovers. You glance at your fingers, rubbing them together. The residue since faded, but the impression remains.

Your eyes drift back to the sphere.

“I think I want to do this. I want to hear the options.”

You barely believe the thoughts resonating through your mind. But before you can open your mouth, the Orb’s outer shell ignites a purple glow. From the glow, a plume of red mist materializes in front of the Orb. The mist forms a cyclone, creating a small red sphere. Then a green mist swirls into a second one. Followed by a blue mist forming the last sphere.

The three spheres hover towards you.

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Option 01: Back In Time

“You have three options, my friend. Each sphere represents one of them. And each sphere has a unique ability.”

The red sphere rises higher than the others.

“This sphere allows you to go backward in time.”

“Back in time? Like time travel?”

“Precisely. And it’s as simple as a press of a button.”

The red sphere rotates, revealing a flat, circular protrusion.

“Just press this and a screen appears. On the screen, enter the date, year, and time. Verify your selections and it transports you there.”

Confused. You stare at the red sphere.

“This is real? I press that button and go back in time?”

“You are correct.”

“Can I get back or am I stuck there?”

“You can return to the present at any time. Just press the button again, and you appear at the exact moment you left.”

“Can I do it more than once?”

“Of course, there’s no limit. You can travel back and forth as much as you want. And you can stay back in time as long as you want. A few weeks, a couple of years or forever? It’s up to you. But at any point, just press the button and you return.”

“Won’t that mess up time? Or change things in my life?”

“It all depends upon what you’re planning on doing there.”

“This can’t be real.”

“Very real, and it can be yours if you want it.”

Your brow contorts.

“It’s the size of a softball. I’m supposed to carry it around?”

“No one else can see it. And no need to carry. It’ll float wherever you travel. But, only you can use it to cross time, you can’t bring passengers.”

You look at the other two spheres.

“So if this goes back in time, what do they do?”

Option 02: Forward In Time

The red sphere retreats to the Orb. The green one hovers towards you.

“This sphere has similar functionality, but instead of going back in time, this one goes to the future.”

The green sphere rotates, revealing the same style button.

“Press this button and input the date, year, and time. Confirm your selection and it transports you to the future.”

“I can go anywhere in the future?”

“And as many times as you like. Same as the red sphere, there’s no limit to its usage. Just press the button again and you return to the present moment.”

The possibilities flash through your mind.

“So the first one takes me to the past? And this one, takes me to the future?”

“Correct.”

“And I just select one, and I can keep it? For no other reason than you arriving here to talk to me?”

“That is also correct, my friend.”

You pause.

Then smile.

“I can’t believe this. Maybe, maybe I really died back on the highway?”

“I can assure you, you are plenty alive.”

The green sphere floats backward.

“And now for your last option.”

Option 03: Stand Still

The blue sphere floats forward.

“Take a look around, my friend. This last sphere does exactly that.”

You peer at the ambulance, locked in a blur. Light streaks stretched in time. People mid-sentence, mid-blink, mid-bite of a sandwich, statues in their cars. Even the birds are frozen, hanging in the sky.

“It freezes time?”

“Indeed. When you press this button, time pauses for as long as you like. To unfreeze time, just press it again.”

“What am I supposed to do with everything frozen?”

“That’s up to you. Perhaps, you can take a nap. Ponder a decision. Clear your head. Maybe just to catch your breath after a long day. Whatever is important to you. But when you freeze time, everything becomes immobile and also invincible. So you can’t affect any other person or object.”

“And I can do this whenever I want? As many times as I want?”

“As often as you like.”

The blue sphere retreats backward, joining the others.

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The Orb floats towards you.

“So, what do you think?”

“I think it’s insane. But if it’s real, it’s amazing.”

The three spheres rotate around the Orb.

“Are you ready to choose?”

“How long do I have to decide?”

“As long as you need. After all, time is frozen. But please take your time and evaluate your options.”

The Orb bursts into a cloud of colors.

Molten ash fills the air.

Your eyes dart around as the smoke clouds dissolve, leaving only the three spheres.

“I must be on my way, my friend,” says the Orb, even though you can’t see him.

“But when you’re ready, grab the sphere you want and return to your car. Once inside, time will unfreeze.”

“And if I don’t select one?”

“Then you can just return to your car. Time unfreezes once you enter.”

A low chugging sound rumbles.

“It was nice meeting you, my friend. Maybe we’ll meet again? However, until then, I have another life-form to visit.”

The low rumble turns to a whooshing noise. It roars, fading in the distance. Followed by a gust of cold air.

You stand staring.

Time stands still.

Confused is an understatement.

Your eyes drift to the levitating spheres.

“Should I choose one?” 

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Press the icon in the bottom of the screen
to select your option.

See how your option compares
to other people's decisions.