Traveling

It was a tiny, almost invisible revolution. Dr Mitchum had developed a unit that could transport a human back in time. There were two snags: the traveler would cease to exist in the first time line, and could only go back five seconds. Quickly the market for such a device became clear. It could easily be adapted to fix sporting matches.

Two years later the Knicks were improbably up in the second quarter of the playoff finals. Meiner, the team’s master-engineer, controlled the majority of action. Each player was electronically tagged, and could be ‘lifted’ and moved back at any moment. This enabled plays, shots and passes to be redone until perfected. Any form of violation could be removed. Ten-seconds were cut in half. Traveling was a thing of the past. Crucially, nobody had any memory of the first time line from the point each new one came into being. Things were going swimmingly for Meiner, until a strange elderly gent materialized before him.

“Step away from the console” came this oddity’s demand. “I’m armed with devices that don’t even exist yet.”

“I have a job to do, old timer. Who are you anyway?” Meiner barked, motionless.

“Mitchum, PhD. Ring any bells? I’ve traveled a long time to be here.” He flicked his wrist, and a tiny laser beam struck Meiner on the shoulder, propelling him backward. “Ten years from now I’ll develop a device which can send travelers back to any time, so I’m here to fix this situation.”

“Anything you want, its yours. Any amount. I just need to get to the console, or we can’t win. They can’t play the regular way anymore” pleaded Meiner.

“This has nothing to do with money”. stated Mitchum, wryly. “See, in the future-“ he stopped to cough “I’m a Lakers fan.”

Word Count: 300