THE MOMENT
"My god...," Commander Zimmer recognized the shape now; but, he couldn't believe his eyes. A human-shaped body sat against a wall just inside the cave ahead of him. It was slumped over with his head lolled forward and to the side. He was at least unconscious; but, more likely dead. The man's lack of a spacesuit seemed like an obvious culprit; but, it only led to more questions. The unknown man wore a once-white suit that was now covered in red dust and almost looked pink. As Commander Zimmer drew closer, the man's features were impossible to make out due to decay. He continued forward to assess the situation and learn what he could.
"Uh oh," Commande Zimmer froze. An extended, high-pitched beep sounded once he was two steps into the mouth of the cave. It almost sounded like some sort of alarm. His first instinct was to step outside of the cave to see if the sound stopped; but, it did anyway as soon as he turned around.
"You're trespassing on private property," a tan woman with violet hair stood there. She wore a long white duster and crossed her arms to block his exit. "Why?" she asked.
"You've got a dead body here!" Commander Zimmer moved to show off the corpse behind him. He didn't know what she meant by private property, who she was, nor how she was there without a space suit. But, he was able to think quickly and deflect her question while he tried to process his own. She looked past him, then sighed with slumped shoulders.
"Oh, no wonder Mike hasn't reported to work...," the woman said. She walked past Commander Zimmer. She knelt next to the corpse and drew out a red, translucent glass card out of her duster. She touched it to the head and the device flashed with a beep. The screen changed to a white background with red text. Commander Zimmer wasn't close enough to make it out; but, he was impressed with the technology. It looked like a smartphone but thin as a credit card. "Okay, poor Mike," the woman nodded to herself, patted the corpse on the shoulder, then stood up again. "He was a nice guy," she shrugged as a black hole opened beneath the body and swallowed it before disappearing again.
"So, thanks for bringing that to my attention," she said. "You're not supposed to be here. Mike's death kind of explains how you're here; but, please leave and don't come back."
"I'm sorry, what?" Commander Zimmer had a little bit of time to consider things. "I'm gonna need a lot more explanation than that. First of all, how and why do you keep referring to this cave as private property? Who are you and what gives you that right?" She grinned and shook her head.
"It's not the cave," she said. "Mars is private property owned by Sharp Development. Mike's job was to keep any missions from coming to Mars. The idiot probably wanted to see it for himself and didn't prepare properly," she rolled her eyes playfully.
"You can't own a planet...," Commander Zimmer shook his head.
"Oh, it's not just one," she smiled. "Sharp Development owns millions of alternate Earths and every alternate version of Mars is exclusively ours," she said.
"Alternate Earths... and Mars..? You're talking about a multiverse?"
"Correct," she nodded. "Specifically the multiverse run by Sharp Development."
"I've never even heard of this company you keep mentioning...," Commander Zimmer said. "What you're claiming... it's impossible...,"
"I'm standing here without a suit," she giggled. "There are things that are true even without you knowing them."
"Wait...," the Commander had a late realization. "When you said, 'leave and don't come back'... you meant Mars?" he asked. Up until that moment, he was still under the impression she meant the cave. She nodded. "... and if I don't?"
"You will," she winked at him. "One way or another." The Commander had a reputation for being quick-witted. By now, he had a firm grasp of the situation, even if he didn't understand it. That was a clear threat; but, it still left him unsure. He couldn't return home with this knowledge. He couldn't report it to anyone, and there was no one he was close enough with personally to share it. He often found a moment to regret his career choices; but, he found just as many moments where he felt he made the right decisions. This was one of those times he was glad there was no one at home for him. He could do the brave thing. The 'right' thing and stand his ground. But, he also had a third option.
"Does it count if I leave with you?" he asked. The woman looked at him up and down, then shrugged.
"I'm Victoria. What's your name?" she asked.
"Comman-," he shook his head. The title didn't mean anything anymore. "Michael Zimmer," he said.
"Ha!" Victoria gave a sudden guffaw, but she recovered quickly and shook her head. "Yeah, I think we can find a spot for you," she said. She cocked her head to the side to gesture at a solid red hole that opened. It resembled the black portal that swallowed the body.
"What's so funny?" Michael asked. He at least wanted that answer before he stepped through the hole.
"It's just funny how things work out," she said. "We lost a Mike and the universe gave us another one."
"I mean... it's a popular name...," Michael replied.
"Yeah, you're probably right," she said. "I'm sure there are a million other Mike Zimmers across the multiverse."
"His name was Mike Zimmer?" That was a little too coincidental for him.
"Zimmerman," she nodded. She stood by the portal waiting for him to go first; but, he was still hesitating.
"Those are two totally different names...," Michael argued. Victoria nodded.
"I know, I just think it's a funny coincidence," she said. "Anyway, I do have other work to be doing," she gestured toward the portal again. But, if we hurry I can get you set up and in an office today."
"I get my own office?" Michael decided to go along for the adventure and walked into the red portal. Victoria followed behind with her own comment before it closed and vanished.
"You can use Mike's," she said. "It's already decorated with pictures of you; more or less.”