The Space Between Worlds

The chapter is preceded by a quote from Briane Greene’s The Hidden Reality, which outlines the “many-worlds” interpretation of quantum mechanics and emphasizes that in an infinite multiverse, many doppelgängers of each individual exist, walking their own unique paths based upon their individual decisions. Some mirror this reality closely, while others do not.

As Chapter 1 officially begins, the first-person narrator, Cara, makes it clear that the novel is set in a future where society is divided between the walled, technologically advanced Wiley City and impoverished wastelands like Ashtown, which lies beyond its borders. The Eldridge Institute in “ Earth Zero” controls multiverse travel entirely, adhering to the restriction that a traveler between worlds—a “traverser”—cannot visit a world in which their counterpart is still alive, as doing so would cause the universe itself to shatter the traverser’s body, causing their death. Cara also explains that such travel leaves physical marks, known as Nyame’s kiss, after the goddess that some believe judges traversers. There are 382 known Earths that resonate closely with Earth Zero, and Cara is dead on 372 of them.

While collecting data on Earth 197, traverser Caramenta, who goes by “Cara,” is recalled to Earth Zero by her watcher, Dell.