Encased in £25,386,956 of processors, wire, and measuring devices, she died. Her sarcophagus of senors relaying endless data visualising their outputs to her colleagues stationed outside of the vacuum-sealed chamber. Her death would be hailed as the “Most significant death of the 23rd century,” which whilst true, still evoked distaste in the students that read about her in their textbooks. “Holy Shit,” the shorter colleague muttered shaking his head, “check this out”. The taller of the pair rolled across from their station to look at the monitor. They stared in silence for 28 seconds, unsure of how to proceed. How should one react to a new fundamental force of the universe being discovered? When most people think of death, they imagine it as a binary event: on and off. However, like most natural events, death is a process as varied and unique as those it claims. In a “natural” death, the heart will stop first causing the respiratory system to cease its pumping of the blood around the body. As the body stops receiving oxygen, the process of death continues as each organ begins to fail. The kidneys, the liver, and eventually the brain are claimed by entropy. The speed of this process depends on a number of factors, and as many scientific journals claimed later, begins shortly after we complete our adolescence. What the monitor showed was her body shrouded in blue with particles of something flowing out of her as each organ failed. These particles flowed upwards collecting about a metre above her, rotating around each other creating a cloud-like thing. “Sensors read no mass, heat, or well…anything” “I’m not getting anything on my end either” “What the hell are we looking at?” “She was right, she’s been right this whole time” The next morning, the more scientifically minded papers reported “Scientists discover new particle: could information truly be the building blocks of the universe?” The tabloids shouted, “Scientists prove existence of a soul!” This, of course, changed everything. Her name forever recorded in the annals of physics next to Faraday, Newton, and Einstein. Our understanding of life, death, and the universe irrevocably fractured until, years later, someone won a Nobel Prize and made everything make sense again. ------------ The shorter one and the taller one had agreed to exchange the gold medallion bearing Alfred Nobel’s silhouetted face each year. A celebration of their life’s work and, as they had gotten older, an easy excuse to spend some time alone with an old friend. Whilst she had made the discovery, the pair had found a way to read, process, and communicate with the information that left the body. After many fruitless attempts at getting their machine to work, they had run out of things to say. So settled on the classic, “Mr Watson, come here - I want to see you”. The irony of that phrase being the second time it signified a historical event was not lost on them. 15 minutes later, they received a reply. “VERY FUNNY” “Holy shit” The pair once again found themselves huddled around a monitor, having not learned their lesson of how to process a world-shattering scientific discovery. “What do we do now?” “We do science” They started with the basics: “What can you see/hear/taste/touch/smell?” The response was received 26 minutes later. “NOTHING, I FEEL LIKE I AM…ACCELERATING” They continued their conversation focussing on absolutes, the responses becoming further and further apart. Eventually concluding that no insights on death (or more accurately) the physical process of could be gleaned. The two celebrated their discovery with a bottle of reasonably priced bourbon. After three glasses, the shorter one could no longer maintain his scientific facade and asked, “What do you remember?” 27 hours later a response emerged. “I REMEMBER LOOKING AT THE TWO OF YOU THROUGH THE GLASS WINDOW AND THINKING ‘I’M GLAD THAT I’VE GOT THE TWO OF YOU IN MY LIFE.’ WE HAD A LONG JOURNEY TO GET TO THAT POINT AND WHILST I WAS SAD THAT MY PART OF THE JOURNEY WAS COMING TO AN END, I WAS OVERJOYED THAT I GOT TO SPEND IT WITH THE TWO OF YOU”. 58 hours later. “YOU HAVE AGREED TO HELP ME WITH MY RESEARCH. WE’RE FINALLY WORKING TOGETHER ON SOMETHING THAT COULD POTENTIALLY CHANGE THE WORLD. MY HEART SWELLS AND I CRY IN FRONT OF BOTH OF YOU. I AM IN AWE OF WHAT EACH OF YOU HAS ACHIEVED ALREADY AND KNOW THAT YOU’RE WORKING WITH ME BECAUSE OF YOUR PASSION FOR THE RESEARCH AND YOUR OWN SKILL. THERE IS NO SENSE OF DUTY OR OBLIGATION JUST EXCITEMENT THAT WE’RE A TEAM.” 118 hours later. “THE PAIR OF YOU HAD COMPLETED YOUR PHDS. I WAS SO PROUD OF BOTH OF YOU. THE LONG NIGHTS AND ALL THE FRUSTRATED PHONE CALLS HAD FINALLY PAID OFF. I REMEMBER MY PHONE RINGING AT 3AM AND HEARING THE TWO OF YOU TELLING ME WHAT YOU WERE GOING TO DO NEXT AND HOW EXCITED YOU WERE TO START THE NEXT STAGE OF YOUR CAREERS.” Each message further apart, each message delving deeper into their past. In the intervals of each message the pair worked on explaining the how, the why, and the what. The messages had to be from her, who else could know such intimate information about their lives. The lab was shielded from all known forms of radiation, from waves, and yet this information was getting through. “I don’t know, the messages feel like they’re part of one congruent idea,” The shorter one said, rubbing his tired screen-strained eyes, “but each ‘transmission’ we receive takes double the amount of time to reach us. She said she feels like she’s ‘accelerating’... what if…” “She’s transmitting them all at once but getting further away!” “Exactly” “...” “...” “Special relativity!” The two shouted in unison. Their embrace was interrupted as another transmission was received. “I WAS SO HAPPY WHEN YOU WERE BORN. YOUR BIG BROTHER WAS SO CURIOUS, HE KEPT CALLING YOU ‘CARROT FINGERS’. I ALMOST CRIED WHEN YOU TOLD ME THAT YOU’D ALWAYS PROTECT HIM.” -------------- “How long will it take for our messages to reach her?” “I have no idea, we’re in uncharted territory here mate. In theory, assuming she’s traveling faster than the speed of light, she should already receive the messages. I’ve been toying with the idea that she’s some quantumly entangled to our machines but that’s just an idea.” “So, what should we ask her next?” The shorter one wheeled over to the console and typed the same message that he had so often sent to his own children: “We love you. Be safe” 14/07/[[2022]]