Writing for Fun
November 2018
The Experiment - Bob Wendelkin
Professor Rushmore stood looking at the white board where she had been working on a Space/Time equation; she was certain that there was something missing. All the past scientists, even Einstein, had finished this equation with a constant to make it look complete. She was certain that the constant had other components that if she could unravel would lead to a whole new branch of science. Then, as she looked, in a flash she could see that the missing element in the equation was the absence of anti-matter; the equation would balance if the equation was repeated only this time where anti-matter was on the other side. Include anti-matter in the equation and C the speed of light, although unobtainable in our universe, would become possible with the prospect of time travel.
Just then the phone rang, it was from a friend who was working with the Large Hadron Collider.
‘Joan,’ he said, ‘I think I have created some Anti-Matter in a recent experiment.’
‘That’s fantastic, do you think you could send me a few pounds of the stuff,’ she said jokingly.
She was taken totally by surprised with his answer.
‘That’s the surprising thing I can contain it, I never in my wildest dreams ever thought I could do that, I thought it would only exist for a fraction of a second in our Universe. I’ll send you some, but mind your fingers,’ was his reply. ‘Why do you want it?’
‘With it I think I can jump over the barrier into the anti-matter world then I should be able to travel in time on our side of the Space Time barrier,’ Joan replied.
‘Good God woman, do be very careful as if you succeed you might not get back to us, and I for one would be very sorry to lose you.’
‘Don’t worry I’ll be alright.’
As she put the ‘phone down she could see how the anti-matter could be used. Over the next few weeks Joan began to assemble the Time Machine in her lab. In some respects it was very similar to those models that often appeared in the Movies. Except in this machine the power source would be from Anti-matter, its conversion into energy would happen on the negative side of the equation and she thought it would drag the machine into another time zone.
Once the machine was completed Joan began to experiment, at first sending back a clock that not only could tell time but also had a calendar, when it returned the time was often many hours different and the date had changed often by many days.
She decided that she would send a movie camera back to record pictures and sounds of what was on the other side. When the camera returned she looked at the pictures. She couldn’t be certain if she was looking at the future or the past as it was just a country scene.
Her next experiment was to send a rabbit back and to see if living things can survive the journey. When the rabbit returned, Joan could see that it had aged and had lost quite a lot of weight. So she knew that if she went herself she needed to take some sandwiches with her.
She carried out some more experiments which showed that it was safe to go and come back but there could be a change in age; this was a risk she was prepared to take. Her friend sent her some more Anti-matter which she put in the travel compartment on the machine.
Finally the great day came and she prepared herself for the run, she had packed her sandwiches and some gold coins just in case she needed them on the other side and she felt certain that gold would be tradable at any time.
She sat in the machine and, after wrestling with her fears, she finally pressed the button that set the machine in motion.
The machine just vibrated gently but outside her immediate zone the light began to flash as the days flashed from night to day and back. The room where the machine stood crumbled away, trees grew and died, then Joan started to fly over the ground, then quite soon she was flying over the sea; she couldn’t be certain if she was in the past or the future. As she flew into her sight a sailing ship began to grow larger Joan found that by shifting her weight she could steer the time-machine towards the ship.
Joan was able to circle the ship and she could see there was some room on the deck for her to land. A few more body wobbles and she landed on the deck of the ship. Some of the braver members of the crew rushed up to the machine, the like of which they had never seen; others of the crew had rushed away to hide. Joan could hear that they were speaking English albeit with an accent.
Joan stood up and raised her hand in a greeting. ‘Hello, don’t be afraid I will not harm you, I’m just a visitor from another time,’ not expecting them to understand the idea of time travel.
The Ship’s Captain came up to her followed by members of his crew. ‘What are doing on my Ship?’ he asked.
‘What ship is this?’ asked Joan in a courteous manner.
How did you, a woman, get here?’ replied the Captain not answering her question.
Joan could see that she had gone into the past. The crew began to gather round and Joan could see that some of them seemed quite unwell.
‘What is wrong with your crew?’ asked Joan of the Captain.
‘We have an illness on board that has taken the life of several of the crew and below deck I have a number who are also in the process of leaving this world. We have reached that point that if we run into any stormy weather there aren’t enough of us to save the ship,’ replied the Captain.
‘If you wish I could take you and your men to a time where the medical profession should be able to save them,’ said Joan as she looked at the sailors.
‘We cannot leave our ship, our duty is to save it if we can,’ said the Captain as he started to cough and spit blood into his handkerchief.
‘I can see that you will not live long enough to finish the voyage. Your best chance for you and the crew is to come with me.’
A number of the crew started to murmur that they would prefer to go with Joan to a hospital.
‘I will take all of you or none, you all must make up your mind. As I don’t want any of you to talk about me coming to your ship. All or none,’ said Joan with a determination in her voice.
After coughing up some more blood the Captain agreed that they would all leave the ship.
Joan insisted that they brought all the sick members of the crew who where down below. She had decided she would take them to a time in her future. She made them all gather around the Time-machine and hold on to it. She climbed back into the control seat and after warning the sailors of what will happen she pressed the start button but first she flew around the ship where she saw that the ship’s name. Once more the light began to flash light and dark as the days flashed by.
Eventually Joan thought enough time had passed and she was far enough in her future to stop the machine. Pressing the stop button the machine was no longer over the sea but was over a great city. In the centre of the city Joan could see a building with a large H on its roof. She steered the machine to land with its passengers in the middle of the H. She told the sailors to disembark as a group of people started to run towards them. Pressing the button once again she started her journey through time. Now she thought she would go back to a time close to her own time perhaps some weeks in her future. A plan was hatching in her mind. Once the machine landed she took out her laptop and called up the a history of Lottery Ticket numbers, with these numbers safely written down she once more pressed the button and after a few flashes she found herself back in her laboratory, with enough numbers to pay for all the experiments she ever wanted to do in the future without the need to go cap in hand for a government grant. She wondered how many men would have thought of that.
As she started to eat her sandwiches she reflected I’m the only one in this time who knows what really happened to the crew of the Marie Celeste.