Dark Link
Morituri te salutant
This is a short story I wrote for a psychology class a long time ago when we were talking about the human psyche. The question came up, what would happen if you relived the same day over and over again....
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The Time Crisis: a short story by Franco Zani
Welcome to Hell.
You may not believe this, hell you just might, I doubt it will matter soon anyway, But for me it's been the same day for three and a half years... Pfft, I can already tell that you don't believe me. It's alright, no one really does. Everyday, it's been the same thing. I wake up, the same things happen around me, I go to bed and the cycle continues the next day. If you're interested, I'll tell you my story. By the end of it maybe you'll believe me. You might even wake up one day seeing the same things happen... Maybe then you'll begin to believe...
Like any other day, the smell of morning coffee drew me out of my peaceful slumber. As I awoke, I was greeted by my clock chirping “It's six o'clock, time to wake up!” and a peaceful scene flowing on my wall screen. A peaceful forest, with a small brook running through it. My doctor had always said that the sounds were good to relieve the stress of work. As I slowly got up, I shut off the clock and followed my same morning ritual. Dress, eat breakfast and read the paper, then leave for work. It was when I opened the paper that I noticed something odd for the headline.
“Scientists Break Time Travel Paradox.”
Intrigued by this, I had to continue reading on.
“Scientists at the New America Time Research Laboratories have broken the time travel paradox, local sources have stated. Lead scientist Gregor Estivich, has reported that he and fellow scientists have successfully broken the paradox using complex mathematical calculations based on the works of Einstein and Hawking. When asked to comment, Dr. Estivich said 'This is a great day for humanity since the birth of Artificial Intelligence. With this Calculation, we have already assembled a machine that we believe will send a person back into time.' The President of the New United States, Janet Janille has been rumored to have given her blessing to the scientists to continue their research and for immediate testing of the device. Unfortunately, Personnel from the White House has not stepped forward to confirm or deny this rumor. As expected, not everyone is happy about this new breakthrough. Protesters outside of the New America labs hold signs that have slogans like 'Time travel, kills the present' and 'Father time not Parenting time'. Dr. Estivich and others have already given their thumbs up on the project and expect the first 'Chrononaut' to be sent out by the end of the day.”
I don't remember what I was thinking, but I believe it was something like, “With this step forward, man will finally master the world.” With that thought, I laid the paper down, finished the coffee, which was beginning to taste a bit like congealed slime and left for work.
Now I work for, or at least used to work for, the largest legal firm on the planet, “Titan Industries”. You've probably heard of it. We have several sister corporations all over the galaxy, including Mars, Alpha Centauri and Arcturus VII. They're a severe stickler if you're even a millisecond late. But hey, work is work and you've got to get your money somehow right? Heh, yeah, that's what I thought too... I greeted my fellow co-workers as I stepped into my six by six foot cubicle. I was already dreading the massive amount of paperwork that would compile itself on my desk. Lets see.. If I was dreading the work then it had to be around 9-9:15am. Yeah, it was around 9:15 because Johnson, our anal prick of a supervisor, had yet to come around and give us his “Morning report.” Now the Morning Report was just another way for him to keep tabs on who was working hard and who was slacking off. Yours truly, as usual, was on his list of supposed slackers. After Stony gave give report, the slot under my “In” box opened up, and what must have been a hundred reports piled themselves high. I guess that was their way of saying that I needed to work harder.
It was around Lunch time that the regular gossip about current events had started. Everyone was gathered around the view screen to watch the scientists give a lecture. Everyone was so fixated on this going back in time stuff. Everyone had their own idea about what was going to happen. A few people had started a rumor that the scientists were going to go back in time and increase their fortunes, others believed they would change past events completely destroying this timeline. I just shrugged it off. I was never the kind to believe in any gossip. After what seemed like a lifetime, scientists could drag a lecture on for hours, the work bell rang. As we returned to our cubicles, I began to wonder what would truly happen. “Would we change time to better ourselves at the cost of others?” Before I knew it, the bell rang and work was finished, And I still hadn't finished my stack of paperwork.
As I jumped into my car I was getting the sense that something wasn't right. As I started my car and initiated the “home” program, I sat back and watched my little news screen. Again, it was all about Dr. Estivich and his new formulas. I just wished all this would end well..
Just as I thought that, it happened. 8:30 PM, I'll never forget that time.
You could heard the screams over the view screen. The voices shouting. People screaming about how the formual as wrong and the need to shut it down, but by then it was to late. I looked just in time to see the machine become a huge ball of light before it exploded. You could feel the shock wave no matter where you were. All I remember from there was thinking “I knew this would happen.” Then everything was a sea of blue and I was just floating there on it. It was like I was light as a feather. Suddenly a loud sound pieced the quite serenity of the blue... And I sat up in my bed.
I had to sit there for a minute to reassure myself of where I was. After a minute of just sitting there I was sure. “Was it... Just all a dream?” I thought. Shutting off my alarm I went over and picked up the paper. I was greeted with a horrible sense of Deja Vu.
“Scientists Break Time Travel Paradox.”
I was somewhat scared now. I had never had a dream that realistic. Something about it just didn't seem right, but I shrugged it off. It had to have been a dream. As I looked at the clock I realized I was going to be late unless I hauled ass. Jumping into my car with seconds to spare I headed to work.
When I got to “Titan Industries” I was shocked with how much I remembered. Everything seemed like a giant Deja Vu globe spinning around my head. As I sat down in my cubicle “Stony Brows” came and gave his normal “Morning report”. I sat in disbelief as a heard the same names called, I even began to say them before him just to check my suspicion. As he finished I had to chase after him. “Mr Crowley!” I called out “Wasn't that the same report you gave yesterday?” He just looked at me with an odd expression. “No Frank it wasn't. I gave a totally different one yesterday. But I'll bet you were asleep weren't you...” he trailed off as he turned and walked away. Now I knew something wasn't right. As I went back to my cubicle I saw that my in box was filled and many of the names were the same... actually they were dead on matches.
I decided to ride out the day, but i was beginning to feel a bit sick. It was like something within me was beginning to tighten. As lunch rolled around I began to hear much of the same conversation. I even started quoting some people before they would say anything. Now was the point where I was scared. I just ran the rest of the day as usual and went home as fast as I could. As soon as I got to my car I felt the shake and soon again I was floating in a sea of blue. As I finally got comfortable with my new surroundings, I heard an awful noise. And I sat up in my bed again.
Retaining full memory, I ran over to the newspaper and tore it open. The same headline stared me in the face. With that, it finally hit me. I was reliving the same day. And no matter what I tried to do for the next three months, I would still wake up in that bed at 6:30 in the morning to a smell of coffee and the sounds of wind and water. I think after the first month, my mind began to crack. I tried suicide a few times... Hell I tried it out for a whole month before I gave up. But I just wake up at 6:30 and start the day again. There's nothing I can do, My mind is shattered and I'm sure I'm beginning to go somewhat mad. I've even tried warning those crackpot scientists that their formulas were wrong, but nothing works. Oh, and before you ask, I've already tried to kill those scientists. After spending a few months getting shot by security over and over again, I managed to figure out the best way to get inside. Unfortunetly, The program is on a countdown timer with no abort sequence... An insurance policy created to ensure that the program runs.
What's that, It's already 8:00? Well my friend, I'll know I will see you tomorrow. Until then, enjoy your ignorance. It comes at the price of many a sane man. Hopefully, one day, you will wake up and have that same feeling. Then, you will understand the true meaning of this story... Ah! you feel that rumble? It's beginning again. Like I said before.
Welcome to Hell.
_________________________________________________________________
The Time Crisis: a short story by Franco Zani
Welcome to Hell.
You may not believe this, hell you just might, I doubt it will matter soon anyway, But for me it's been the same day for three and a half years... Pfft, I can already tell that you don't believe me. It's alright, no one really does. Everyday, it's been the same thing. I wake up, the same things happen around me, I go to bed and the cycle continues the next day. If you're interested, I'll tell you my story. By the end of it maybe you'll believe me. You might even wake up one day seeing the same things happen... Maybe then you'll begin to believe...
Like any other day, the smell of morning coffee drew me out of my peaceful slumber. As I awoke, I was greeted by my clock chirping “It's six o'clock, time to wake up!” and a peaceful scene flowing on my wall screen. A peaceful forest, with a small brook running through it. My doctor had always said that the sounds were good to relieve the stress of work. As I slowly got up, I shut off the clock and followed my same morning ritual. Dress, eat breakfast and read the paper, then leave for work. It was when I opened the paper that I noticed something odd for the headline.
“Scientists Break Time Travel Paradox.”
Intrigued by this, I had to continue reading on.
“Scientists at the New America Time Research Laboratories have broken the time travel paradox, local sources have stated. Lead scientist Gregor Estivich, has reported that he and fellow scientists have successfully broken the paradox using complex mathematical calculations based on the works of Einstein and Hawking. When asked to comment, Dr. Estivich said 'This is a great day for humanity since the birth of Artificial Intelligence. With this Calculation, we have already assembled a machine that we believe will send a person back into time.' The President of the New United States, Janet Janille has been rumored to have given her blessing to the scientists to continue their research and for immediate testing of the device. Unfortunately, Personnel from the White House has not stepped forward to confirm or deny this rumor. As expected, not everyone is happy about this new breakthrough. Protesters outside of the New America labs hold signs that have slogans like 'Time travel, kills the present' and 'Father time not Parenting time'. Dr. Estivich and others have already given their thumbs up on the project and expect the first 'Chrononaut' to be sent out by the end of the day.”
I don't remember what I was thinking, but I believe it was something like, “With this step forward, man will finally master the world.” With that thought, I laid the paper down, finished the coffee, which was beginning to taste a bit like congealed slime and left for work.
Now I work for, or at least used to work for, the largest legal firm on the planet, “Titan Industries”. You've probably heard of it. We have several sister corporations all over the galaxy, including Mars, Alpha Centauri and Arcturus VII. They're a severe stickler if you're even a millisecond late. But hey, work is work and you've got to get your money somehow right? Heh, yeah, that's what I thought too... I greeted my fellow co-workers as I stepped into my six by six foot cubicle. I was already dreading the massive amount of paperwork that would compile itself on my desk. Lets see.. If I was dreading the work then it had to be around 9-9:15am. Yeah, it was around 9:15 because Johnson, our anal prick of a supervisor, had yet to come around and give us his “Morning report.” Now the Morning Report was just another way for him to keep tabs on who was working hard and who was slacking off. Yours truly, as usual, was on his list of supposed slackers. After Stony gave give report, the slot under my “In” box opened up, and what must have been a hundred reports piled themselves high. I guess that was their way of saying that I needed to work harder.
It was around Lunch time that the regular gossip about current events had started. Everyone was gathered around the view screen to watch the scientists give a lecture. Everyone was so fixated on this going back in time stuff. Everyone had their own idea about what was going to happen. A few people had started a rumor that the scientists were going to go back in time and increase their fortunes, others believed they would change past events completely destroying this timeline. I just shrugged it off. I was never the kind to believe in any gossip. After what seemed like a lifetime, scientists could drag a lecture on for hours, the work bell rang. As we returned to our cubicles, I began to wonder what would truly happen. “Would we change time to better ourselves at the cost of others?” Before I knew it, the bell rang and work was finished, And I still hadn't finished my stack of paperwork.
As I jumped into my car I was getting the sense that something wasn't right. As I started my car and initiated the “home” program, I sat back and watched my little news screen. Again, it was all about Dr. Estivich and his new formulas. I just wished all this would end well..
Just as I thought that, it happened. 8:30 PM, I'll never forget that time.
You could heard the screams over the view screen. The voices shouting. People screaming about how the formual as wrong and the need to shut it down, but by then it was to late. I looked just in time to see the machine become a huge ball of light before it exploded. You could feel the shock wave no matter where you were. All I remember from there was thinking “I knew this would happen.” Then everything was a sea of blue and I was just floating there on it. It was like I was light as a feather. Suddenly a loud sound pieced the quite serenity of the blue... And I sat up in my bed.
I had to sit there for a minute to reassure myself of where I was. After a minute of just sitting there I was sure. “Was it... Just all a dream?” I thought. Shutting off my alarm I went over and picked up the paper. I was greeted with a horrible sense of Deja Vu.
“Scientists Break Time Travel Paradox.”
I was somewhat scared now. I had never had a dream that realistic. Something about it just didn't seem right, but I shrugged it off. It had to have been a dream. As I looked at the clock I realized I was going to be late unless I hauled ass. Jumping into my car with seconds to spare I headed to work.
When I got to “Titan Industries” I was shocked with how much I remembered. Everything seemed like a giant Deja Vu globe spinning around my head. As I sat down in my cubicle “Stony Brows” came and gave his normal “Morning report”. I sat in disbelief as a heard the same names called, I even began to say them before him just to check my suspicion. As he finished I had to chase after him. “Mr Crowley!” I called out “Wasn't that the same report you gave yesterday?” He just looked at me with an odd expression. “No Frank it wasn't. I gave a totally different one yesterday. But I'll bet you were asleep weren't you...” he trailed off as he turned and walked away. Now I knew something wasn't right. As I went back to my cubicle I saw that my in box was filled and many of the names were the same... actually they were dead on matches.
I decided to ride out the day, but i was beginning to feel a bit sick. It was like something within me was beginning to tighten. As lunch rolled around I began to hear much of the same conversation. I even started quoting some people before they would say anything. Now was the point where I was scared. I just ran the rest of the day as usual and went home as fast as I could. As soon as I got to my car I felt the shake and soon again I was floating in a sea of blue. As I finally got comfortable with my new surroundings, I heard an awful noise. And I sat up in my bed again.
Retaining full memory, I ran over to the newspaper and tore it open. The same headline stared me in the face. With that, it finally hit me. I was reliving the same day. And no matter what I tried to do for the next three months, I would still wake up in that bed at 6:30 in the morning to a smell of coffee and the sounds of wind and water. I think after the first month, my mind began to crack. I tried suicide a few times... Hell I tried it out for a whole month before I gave up. But I just wake up at 6:30 and start the day again. There's nothing I can do, My mind is shattered and I'm sure I'm beginning to go somewhat mad. I've even tried warning those crackpot scientists that their formulas were wrong, but nothing works. Oh, and before you ask, I've already tried to kill those scientists. After spending a few months getting shot by security over and over again, I managed to figure out the best way to get inside. Unfortunetly, The program is on a countdown timer with no abort sequence... An insurance policy created to ensure that the program runs.
What's that, It's already 8:00? Well my friend, I'll know I will see you tomorrow. Until then, enjoy your ignorance. It comes at the price of many a sane man. Hopefully, one day, you will wake up and have that same feeling. Then, you will understand the true meaning of this story... Ah! you feel that rumble? It's beginning again. Like I said before.
Welcome to Hell.