The Secret Life of Time Machines
In a quaint little town named Elmsville, not too far from the mega city, lived an old brilliant scientist named Dr. Cornelius. He was well-respected yet enigmatic, known in whispers and rumors as the 'Einstein of Elmsville', working on inconceivably complex theories and inventions. His latest obsession was a machine that could control time and travel across the temporal dimension.
Dr. Cornelius worked laboriously day in and day out in his cluttered basement cum laboratory, filled with gadgets and contraptions that the common folk could only dream of understanding. He was primarily fascinated with time – the unseen, untamed, and intangible nature of it, hence working tirelessly on a machine capable of exploring this vast frontier.
In his isolation, he found a companion named Edison, a mechanical parrot powered by steam with an exoskeleton of intricately detailed brass and steel, another of his ingenious creations. He gave Edison his voice, his most precious possession – the complete knowledge of his mind. With an aim to give a part of himself to his creation.
Edison did not only assist Cornelius in his trials and experiments; he was also his friend, rounding off the harsh edges of his solitary existence.
One stormy night, the lightning illuminated Dr. Cornelius's lab as he brought to life his ultimate invention – a time machine. Edison, perched on his shoulder, peered curiously at the spectacle.
The machine was a magnificent sight. It was his life's work, a blend of intricate steam-punk machinery, and modern technology. Cogs whirred, steam billowed, and lights flickered, creating an atmosphere of mystery and awe.
For weeks, they tested the machine, traveling back and forth, inserting themselves into various windows of time. However, the strangest occurrence was that wherever they traveled, they found the town had an identical version of their time machine. This peculiarity vexed Cornelius.
Eventually, Cornelius realized a shocking truth. They were not traveling across the fourth dimension, but rather creating parallel universes, identical with minute differences to their own. Each universe bestowed them with a clone of the time machine.
This revelation rocked him to his core. Fearing the implications of meddling with such powerful forces, and the potential annihilation of their own world, he decided to destroy his invention. But it wasn't that simple. The copies of the machine from parallel universes could not be destroyed without causing a catastrophic chain effect across dimensions.
Meanwhile, the town's folks grew suspicious about the scientist's ominous house that never stopped buzzing and humming. Word spread, and it began attracting unintended attention, including from the government.
In the pursuit of safeguarding his creation from falling into wrong hands and to avoid harming innocent lives, Cornelius and Edison embarked on an arduous journey. They needed to eliminate all time machines from every parallel universe and carefully undo the fabric they had split.
Their journey across different dimensions was fraught with perils, encounters with different versions of themselves, and unimaginable sights and experiences. The bond between the scientist and his mechanical companion grew stronger, their allegiance solidified in their lengthy struggles and battles.
When they finally disarmed all the machines, they realized that their own universe was last on the list. A bitter realization set in that removing the final device meant erasing every memory and knowledge of these events, while reverting, Edison would go back to being just a mechanical parrot.
With a heavy heart, Cornelius embraced his creation, thanking Edison for their beautiful albeit challenging journey. He activated the final shutdown, and a blinding light engulfed them. Everything went silent.
Cornelius woke up in his study, the designs for the time machine lying in front of him. He had no memory of the concept, let alone building and traveling with it. As he looked around, his eye fell on Edison. The mechanical parrot cocked its head and uttered, 'No need to worry about that one, sir, it's too much trouble.'
Dr. Cornelius chuckled, unaware of the profound journey they had shared, thankfully safe in their home world, their secret locked within Edison's mechanical heart. But Edison, having retained the knowledge, held the secrets of the universe within him, forever treasuring their adventure across time and dimensions.