Dr. Shreya Merchant was alone in her lab, her eyes fixed on the pulsating, alien artifact she had unearthed. It was supposed to be a breakthrough—a device capable of erasing time. She activated it, feeling the air hum around her.
Instantly, she found herself in a world where time seemed frozen. People were like statues, their movements paused in mid-stride. Amelia tried to scream, but no sound came out. Panic set in as she realized she had erased herself from time.
Desperate, she searched the lifeless streets for answers. In a dusty old bookshop, she found an old journal, its pages filled with entries from her future self. Each entry detailed her attempts to fix the device and return to her time.
The final entry read, "The artifact can only be reversed by a personal sacrifice. To reset the timeline, one must willingly erase their existence."
Amelia's heart pounded. She returned to the lab and set the artifact to reverse. As the device powered up, she saw her reflection in its surface, a ghostly image fading away. Tears streamed down her face as she whispered, "I'm sorry."
The world snapped back to life, but Amelia was gone. The artifact lay dormant, waiting.🌌