After all these years, we know there were no WMDs in Iraq, but there was something much worse, and we invaded the country to find that thing.
I can’t introduce myself, because if I do, I’ll be immediately imprisoned or killed by secret services. I’m a scientist, primarily working with subatomic particles and physics. I was employed at NASA, but I often had to work with the CIA or other secret organizations I can’t mention, because their existence is already a secret. So yeah, overall, I’ve worked on tons of shady experiments in my career, but this one was… different.
I was surprised when I got a call from a CIA agent one morning in 2003. He told me I had to go to Iraq for some secret project he couldn’t talk about on the phone. I didn’t want to go there, I already had a family in the US, but I didn’t have a choice. The guy told me I HAD to go there.
“Don’t worry,” he said. “It won’t last longer than a few months.”
So, I agreed, said goodbye to my family, then went to Washington, where I was greeted by a high-ranking officer. Let’s call him general Ronald. That wasn’t his name, and he wasn’t a general, but I’m afraid they’ll find me if I give away too much information. But after a second thought, it doesn’t even matter. They’ll find me through my IP, I can’t escape it. I’ll be dead hours after I post this.
“So, one of your people told me about a secret project,” I started the conversation as soon as we sat down in his office.
“Exactly. I’ll be short, you need to get there as soon as possible. There’s an anomaly in Iraq, we finally managed to capture the lab it was contained in. We don’t understand what it is yet. They told us it’s a hole in reality.”
“A hole in reality?” I asked, not understanding what he meant. I was confused. “Like a mine, or a tunnel?”
“Not exactly. It’s more like a black hole, but at the same time, it’s completely different. I can’t really explain it, you have to see it yourself.”
“Okay, so that’s it?”
“You can’t talk about this to anyone who’s not part of the CIA, or not an elite member of the military. You can’t tell this to your family or friends. Nobody should know about this anomaly, except those you’ll meet there. Got it?”
“Got it.”
“Good. You can go now.”
Two soldiers escorted me to a military transport plane, which took off immediately. They gave me great food during the flight, it was a great experience while it lasted. When we landed in Iraq, I was escorted to a hotel. A young soldier told me to stay there for a night, I had 9 hours until another soldier would take me to my destination. I think the young man didn’t know about the anomaly, so I just nodded and wished him a good night.
The following day I woke up early to have breakfast. The soldier arrived exactly at 8 AM. I got in the car, and in about 10 minutes, I was already at the underground lab. The soldiers at the entrance checked my ID before letting me in.
Down there I was greeted by an old guy called Dr. Anderson. I followed him into an elevator, which took me down to the lowest level. Before he opened the elevator door, he looked at me.
“Please be careful,” he said. “We still don’t understand this anomaly, it may be unsafe. Some people experienced hallucinations when they got too close.”
“I understand.”
Anderson opened the doors, and I could just stand there for a minute before I could do anything, the sight shocked me. It was a large cave, maybe it was a mine before. The place was full of scientists in white clothes, and there were some soldiers and CIA agents.
And in the middle of the tunnel, there was the anomaly. A large, vantablack sphere, around the size of an elephant. The general was right, it really looked like a black hole, but at the same time, it behaved completely differently. There was no extreme gravity, no light or time distortion, it was just a floating black sphere.
“Isn’t it amazing?” Anderson asked. “You’ll get used to it.”
“Wow…”
“So, I was talking about these hallucinations,” he continued. “I’m curious if you can experience these, too. Walk closer to the anomaly.”
As I walked closer to the sphere, I felt strange. I started to hear some noises. Sounds I’ve never heard before. When I was about a foot from the anomaly, these sounds became even louder. I can’t even describe what I’ve heard. Those voices were unearthly. I felt like they were calling to me. I felt like I had to go inside the sphere.
Then I realized the anomaly itself wasn’t black. It was transparent, and whatever was inside it… or on the other side of it, was black. The sphere was a hole on our three-dimensional world.
“So?” Anderson walked behind me. “Do you experience anything? Strange sounds or visions?”
“I hear things. No visions.”
“Seems like it’s different for everyone. For example, I don’t experience any of these things, but there were a few subjects who saw some strange non-humanoid lifeforms inside the anomaly.”
“Do we know what’s inside?” I asked.
“No, we found reports about an Iraqi who threw a cigarette inside, and it disappeared, but we still don’t know anything significant about it.”
“I want to go inside the anomaly,” I said confidently. I still don’t know why I did that. It was a stupid thing. I think the sphere forced me to do it.
“I don’t recommend it. First, we have to send in some drones to make sure it’s safe.”
As Anderson talking, I just walked one step closer to the sphere. Then another step. Then another.
“Hey, what are you doing?” Anderson reached out to grab me, but it was too late. I jumped inside the hole.
I immediately regretted it. I could hear those terrifying sounds from the otherworld. I opened my eyes as I was floating in darkness. I still don’t know what was that place, but it wasn’t three-dimensional. There were at least four or five dimensions. I had to close my eyes, my brain just couldn’t comprehend what I was seeing.
I heard some noises, like someone was moving. I had to open my eyes again, and I saw this thing. I think it was something- some living creature. I can’t describe it, but it was colossal. It looked at me with its gigantic eyes. Oh god, those eyes were bigger than a skyscraper.
Then somehow, something dragged my shoulder, and in a matter of seconds, I was back in the tunnel where the anomaly was. I looked around confused, my perspective still changing between 3D and whatever it was on the other side. I didn’t see Anderson there. I didn’t see any US soldiers. But I saw Iraqis.
“The scientist who went missing in 2003,” said one of them with a strong accent. “So it’s true. And you are alive still.”
“Where are the US forces?” I asked.
“The Americans are not here anymore. Since 2011.”
“2011? I- It was 2003 just a minute before.”
“It’s 2013,” the Iraqi said. “That confirms the theory that there’s no time and space on the other side. Anyway, you’re free to leave this place and go back to America. But only after you give us a detailed report about what you saw.”
“I want to stay,” I said. “I want to work on this anomaly. I want to know what it is.”
And now I’m working there. I’m not that useful for them, since I’m still unable to see in 3D, and we still haven’t sent another human inside the anomaly. I still want to return to my family, but there’s no point anymore. I’m sure they already forgot about me. I’m writing this post because I want the world to know about this. Maybe we’re not living in a reality anymore. And if we are, then there’s a hole in it. Now I press this button and wait for them to kill me for revealing this secret.