The Reluctant Time Traveler

Chance traveled to this decade against his will. Yes, he'd complained plenty about how fucked up everything was in his own time. He'd pointed to a number of examples of how society had been better before and that the whole country was doomed if we didn't get our shit together. But the last time he checked, it was still a free country. He could complain all he wanted. It didn't mean he actually wanted to teleport back to the past.

How was he to know his wife was building a time machine in their basement just to shut him up?

Yesterday Once More

Dr. Billows pressed Go on his time machine. Inside the vessel nothing happened. But through the window, everything in his lab stretched and distorted into a brilliant mixture of light and darkness, indicating he was tunneling into space time. His calculations had been correct, at least the first part.

As quickly as the journey began, it ended. After checking the console and confirming the date at his destination, he unsealed the hatch.

He emerged into his laboratory exactly one day earlier. Confronted with his past self, he told himself not to ask Dr. Morgan on a date later that night.

Paradoxically

The time machine had come with many instructions, disclaimers, and warnings. Multiple signatures were required, acknowledging no one could be held liable for what was about to happen other than himself. His lawyers advised against proceeding. His priest refused to absolve him of his sins, both past and future. His children cried.

He steps inside.

He didn't bother explaining that everything they feared had already happened. He died before he was born. The reality they knew and cherished was not the reality they had known and cherished. They paradoxically clung to an existence that never was and always would be.

A Scorned Woman

You must realize my darling, that men have more immediate needs than a woman? Allowances should be made for us. You women don’t have to contend with an unruly member when it gets a whiff of a beautiful woman, especially if she smiles back.

You truly don’t have to do this. Please let me out. If you send me back, I’ll not ever be able to return. Please, please, Ruthie, I swear to you I won’t ever stray again. It’s the only time-machine in existence, and I’m much too fat to run from the dinosaurs at my time of life.

From Guest Contributor Len Mooring

The War Of Walls 2

One Hundred years in the future a time machine is built to enlist war troops. After the resistance, America was angry as the resistance killed. The Americans hijacked a plane, so the English grabbed an attack plane. The American General said, 'We can't shoot it down!' His Major had an idea.

The Major said, 'Go above the plane and drop soldiers on it!' The General said to the Major, 'You are right.' As the hijacked plane flew he pushed the Major onto the attack plane. The Major's team took out all of the enemy and both war planes landed safely.

From Guest Contributor Bayley Kelly

The War Of Walls

One hundred years in the future a time machine is built. Scientists send the machine back to get Native Americans, cowboys and dragons.

The English side with the Native Americans and the Americans with the cowboys. The English build a wall. Using jeeps, tanks, and planes they fight for six years. The cowboys break the wall, but lose the war.

After the war a resistance forms and is sent to New York to disable the tanks controlling the security building which houses the president. Some get away, some are killed.

The President's last personal, best fighter is promoted to General.

From Guest Contributor Bayley Kelly

Jim Bridger Watching The Revenant For The First Time

Jim Bridger stood up after the show and spat a great stream of tobacco on the ground. He would generally have aimed at the spittoon, but this theater didn't have one.

"What did you think?"

Bridger considered a few moments before answering. "It weren't anything like what really happened."

"But did it at least capture the general atmosphere?"

"No." The producers huddled nervously, expecting Bridger would say more.

"If it's all the same to you I'd like to go back now."

"But we went through all the effort to build a time machine and bring you here."

Bridger just shrugged.

No More Sequels, Please

As she awaited death, memories of her many poor life choices channel-surfed through her mind. Jennifer couldn't help but think that her life too closely resembled a science fiction novel.

There was the time she'd been scooped up by aliens and narrowly averted the destruction of the Earth. Or the time machine that sent her back to colonial times where she accidentally killed George Washington. Or there was the trip to the outer rim on board the pirate ship, where she was sold into slavery.

Now that she looked back, Jennifer realized her life story was more of a trilogy.

Dreams

He dreamed of realities that could never be. He dreamed of being an Olympian. He dreamed of winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. He dreamed of traveling to Mars and back or building a time machine. He dreamed he had the power to grant every wish. He dreamed of immortality. He dreamed he was the Creator and this entire world was a figment of his own imagination. He dreamed of true love.

Because of all these impossible dreams, he never achieved any of his dreams that were actually attainable. They all seemed pointless when compared to what was impossible.

Dr. Herzog's Wind Clock

Ever since Einstein, scientists have understood the relative nature of time. But Dr. Theodore Herzog was the first one to commoditize time. He realized the principle of the conservation of energy was applicable to time as well. If time is sped up in one place, it must be met with a corresponding slow down of time elsewhere.

Dr. Herzog managed to commercialize his findings so that he could sell people time. Unfortunately, his wind clock never made it to market. A future version of himself came back to the present and murdered him, erasing him from the timeline all together.