The farther mankind goes in time, the less it knows about
its origins and past, let alone the history of the universe.
However, with every human stride in science, new
possibilities appear that may be linked to the dawn of all
existence. Such is the science of Astrophysics and
Astronomy.
Yet, every discovery leads to another question. Every answer
leads to another mystery. And as time goes by, evidence
grows short, and the questions become harder to answer. Is
there ever an end to this cycle? A final answer?
There is.
And luckily for us, we will find it just in time.

"My friends and colleagues, I am very glad to be here
today." Said Albert Chapman at a scientific convention,
which was covered by media from around the world. "As you
all know, XLII will return today, after a seven years voyage
to the Great Ripple. Today we will get to see, for the first
time, images and video clips of the Ripple." He said. It
showed he was very excited, as were the many representatives
in the hall.
A few years ago, the Great Ripple was found. It was an
enormous irregularity, which seemed to link to an ancient
time - a time so precedent, that some portrayed it as being
the time before time.
Others believed the Ripple was like a window, which will
reflect the most elementary thing from which the universe is
made on the other side. Like a place that didn't move along
in time, and just remained the way the universe was at the
beginning. In the long run, these believers were right.
"R-XLII will drop in about an hour into the ocean. A team is
already waiting to disassemble it and send us the news and
data at once." Albert said. "Dear friends, we may be on the
verge of solving the riddle of existence! So many answers
can be had today, or during the following months, that I
can't even begin to imagine how different our children's
lives will be."
Albert Chapman was already a grandfather. The discovery of
the Ripple was made by his son - Morris, almost two decades
back. Morris, by the way, was just getting comfortable in a
little rubber boat, a few meters away from a large sea
vessel, amid the wide ocean. The honor of retrieving XLII
from the sea was his.

"I see it!" Morris said suddenly, pointing a little bright
dot in the sunny sky.
"Estimated impact in fifty seconds," A fellow crewman said.

A few seconds have quickly gone by, and the bright dot in
the sky was growing steadily.
"Divers! Get ready!" Morris yelled. A large team of divers
quickly dropped into the water, laying out some odd
devices.
The dot was now as big as a large circle. A few seconds
after that, the massive fireball exploded in mid-air, and
only a little box remained falling quietly in Morris's
direction.
He too jumped into the water, as debris was falling all
around. XLII crashed but a few meters away into the ocean,
raising a rather loud splash. The divers were busy with some
of the falling debris.
"At last!" Morris said, swimming as fast as his limbs
allowed him to. He reached the little box that by then
managed to float back to the surface. He carried it back to
the ship, as all the reporters and cameras followed him.
He took it apart rapidly and without much care.
From inside XLII he took some electronic device, which
contained all the data acquired in the journey through
space.
"Here it is!" He lifted it high in the air, showcasing it to
the press. His father was watching him as well from the
conventions hall on land.
Morris took the device and plugged it into some sort of
computer. The entire world was watching him on that very
moment - everybody was following his as he turned on the
screen.
And then, all they could see was static. The screen showed
nothing but it, and the speakers produced some ugly, blatant
noise.
Morris stared at the screen, and so did everybody else, for
a long while. Nothing happened. Just static and occasional
electronic stripes, of the kind that possesses old video
tapes.
"Well then!" Morris said. "We'll take the data and analyze
it in a proper laboratory." He packed the equipment and made
a hasty leave.

The proper laboratory proved that the only thing that was
captured on film was static disturbances on all video and
sound channels; however, in one of the clips, the static
didn't cover the entire frame. In that shot it seemed as if
something frames the static, as if it was covered by
something else or it just stopped somewhere. They assumed
that a regular picture of space was overlapping the frame.
"This isn't that bad. We can always send another robot."
Said Albert. "Right, Son? We're not defeated yet."
"We are not," Morris replied, keeping his eyes on the many
screens that displayed the white and black dancing dots. He
felt as if they were mocking him. "We are not going to send
another robot."
"Why is that?"
"We will send a manned vessel. And I have to be on it."
"Morris, Son, you know that's impossible... Do not make
hasty decisions based on your feelings right now." The
father said.
"My decision is not based on feelings at all, father. It is
based on horrible speculations. There is only one phenomenon
in the universe that can cause XLII's camera to film static.
I must go and observe the Great Ripple so that I can prove
my speculation is wrong."
"What? I never knew anything could affect our camera. I
thought it to be perfectly built for the assignment. What is
that phenomenon you speak of?"
"Whether I will tell you or not depends on what I find
myself."

One year later, a space shuttle took off from some god
forsaken desert facility. Its goal: to reach the place in
space from which XLII filmed the Ripple. Both Morris and
Albert were on that shuttle, along with a handful of
international men as a crew. They were expecting a very long
voyage, which was made a lot longer by the forces of
curiosity, excitement and expectations.
Deep in space, time seems meaningless. The silence in space
is eternal and absolute, and could drive a person insane.
Sanity also seems meaningless in space. Actually, mostly
everything seems meaningless in space; everything but music.
Music, for some reason, after heard in space, seems to be
meaningless everywhere else.
Time crawled by. Slowly.

At long last, the crew has nearly arrived to the exact spot
from which XLII taped the static.
"Are you ready, friends?" Albert said with great
excitement. "In just a few moments, we will be able to see
the Great Ripple! A glimpse at the dawn of existence, a look
into the meaning of the universe and its secrets!" His eyes
sparkled.
The ship contained an observation room - a little room, of
which one of the walls was completely transparent, and
allowed the crew to look outside safely without leaving the
ship. The small team gathered there.
"I think I can see something..." Said Morris. Slowly, in an
unmatched distance, the space began splitting in two. It
seemed like a rip in space, which was outlined by thin
bright lines.
"Yes, I can see it." Albert said. "Start recording."
The ship went on, nearing XLII's former post. Once it got
there, the crew turned the ship so that the Ripple could be
seen from the observation room.
Everybody held their breath, as they were turning to see
it.
And then they did. Their eyes widened, their mouths
gaping.
"I was right." Morris said while shaking his head in
disbelief.

Directly in front of them they could see the Great Ripple.
It was like a tear in space, outlined by those familiar
thin, bright lines. Within the Ripple itself, all that was
visible was simply bright, glistering, brutal static, on
which lines traveled from time to time, of the kind that
possesses old video tapes.

The farther mankind goes in time, the less it knows about
its origins and past, let alone the history of the universe.
However, with every human stride in science, new
possibilities appear that may be linked to the dawn of all
existence.
Every discovery leads to another question. Every answer
leads to another mystery. And as time goes by, evidence
grows short, and the questions become harder to answer. Is
there ever an end to this cycle? A final answer?
There is.
But it isn't pretty.