The box beyond time

A mystery best left unsolved.

There is an idea. An idea that there is some greater being that holds ultimate control over us humans. A person, or creature that will one day reach forth from it's astral plane to show us the true reality of the universe, and life itself. This idea has been hanging over our heads since the dawn of time. Teasing us with it's possibilities, and uncertainty, tearing us apart. Disputes, arguments, conflicts, wars, death, judgement, hate, all symptoms of this plague of a thought. We've spent an eternity fighting over why, when, how or who this Godly being is, and worrying what might happen when, or if They ever do return to us to evoke whatever wrath They may have on us. But what if I told you that it wasn't so much a case of Them revealing Themselves to us, but instead, It has been waiting for us to find Them? I know it's true. I've seen it with my own eyes, and I can't understand it. I'm leaving you this message, along with my story to pass on what I've learned. I can't ever come back, but maybe, just maybe, I don't have to...

Project Casey

Mission: Reach the Galactic core.

Day 246, Year 32

At this rate, I think I'm going to lose my mind. Sam won't stop playing crappy orchestral music, and Jeff is insisting that he is the commander of this expedition, when I'm supposed to be the one in charge. I swear, if NASA could get people out here to replace these guys before we reach the core, I would take that in a heartbeat.

Project Casey

Mission: Reach the Galactic core.

Day 363, Year 32

We're coming up on the end of our 32nd year of Project Casey, and we're just a few months away from the core. I miss having the windows open, but I guess this beats dying due to radiation, and it's not like we'd be able to see anything anyway. The light pollution here is almost as bad as it was back on Earth. Almost.

Project Cxsey

Mission: Rexch the Gxlactic core.

Dxy 52, Yexr 33

On our xpproxch to the core, our speed hxs been picking up xt incredible speeds. I suppose the grxvity of the core is stronger thxn we first thought, xnd the electron xnd ion levels hxve xlso been increxsing xt xlxrming rxtes. So much so thxt our systems xre stxrting to mxlfunction. This isn't good...

Proj#ct Cxsey

Miss!on: Rexch the Gxla%tic core.

Dxy ##, Yexr ##################

Xlert! We hxve l0st contr-l of th& compu^t%rs mxinfr>me! Repext! We hxv% Lo** #ont&&l @f 6!# /||t#ms mx!nf&xm%

H***o? I* my v*ice com*ng thro*gh? Hello? There we go.

To whoever may find this, I am the last remaining survivor of Project Casey, a NASA created mission back on Earth. I was sent with my two co-pilots, Jeff Skjonnemand and Sam Murdock, both of which did not survive the impact... After looking back over the ships log files, I've realised that the final logs I recorded were affected by the ion field we were in, so I suppose I should explain what happened.

As the Casey began to reach what should have been a few months away from the core, we began to be severely affected by the gravitational field coming from it. Our ship started to accelerate after that. We had planned out every moment of this journey, including being affected by the core's gravity, but we could never have predicted just how much would have accelerated by. Shortly after feeling the first effects of the gravitational pull, the ship began to lose power as we flew through the electromagnetic waves that were being given off by the core. We were in a critical state of panic for approximately two days, before making contact with the core's supermassive black hole.

I'm alive, I believe...but I'm on the other side of a black hole, something that's never been documented before, let along have it be the black hole in the centre of the galaxy. I'm finding it hard to describe my surroundings, besides the inside of the ship, which is fairly intact, despite the rough journey it's been through. I'm also confused as to how I survived. A black hole bends light, and even time around it, but time is relative. I wouldn't feel the effects of slowing down, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't still be ripped atom from atom...it doesn't add up...

I'm going to explore outside of the ship. I'll continue to document my discoveries.

I've been here for what feels like 4 hours, and I can't find much.The cave doesn't appear to be made of any sort of rock found on Earth, and is of a deep black colour. It gently reflects the light of my flashlight, so I can see where I'm going to an extent, but it's unnerving. I'm afraid to wander too far from the ship, but I'll never find something just from staying here. There isn't enough space in this cave to launch the ship, but maybe it can still be useful to me.

I've taken one of the ship's micro-batteries and fashioned myself a portable data log. This way, I can document my findings as they come.

Okay. As of now I've walked down the shaft in front of the ship for three hours straight now. As I walk, I can tell there is something off about the end of the tunnel, but I can't wrap my head around what it is. It will be a while before I get there, but I'll note what I find when I get there.

Well...I got to the end of the cave, and it just drops off. Not even that, the cave just ends completely. It's like I'm on the end of the world or something, because when I lean out to look up or down, the rock continues up, and down as far as my light will reach. I guess I'll just have to walk bac- wait... I hear something... I hear a deep, bellowing noise coming from somewhere out in the darkness. If I had to say where, I would say it was slightly above, but out from my current position.

There is something about that sound that is so soothing, I can't explain it. How long have I been sitting here? Everything in my body is telling me not to follow the sound, but the sound itself feels like it's calling me to it... It sounds alone...

The sound is getting louder in my head. I've been listening to it for so long, I actually think I hear voices in it. What are they saying though? I'm scared out of my mind, but I'm not shaking at all. Have I gone insane? I don't think I care anymore.

That's it. I've made up my mind. I'm going to die in here, and the voice is luring me to it. It sounds so alone, so sad. I'm going to take a running leap of faith out in to the darkness. If I die here, I just hope that someone will find this someday so I can be remembered. Here goes nothi-...

It's cold. No time passes. I'm trapped here forever. I was alone, but now I have you. Please, wake up...