The Man Who Knew to Much

The Man Who Knew To Much

Suzanne Marsh

“Max Lee and Cathy Muir will remain after class.” A rather cryptic way to start a day, Max thought to himself, wondering what Doctor “C” has in store for us. Dr. Nick Carpathian smiled to himself as he began his lecture on time and space.

“Today, we stand on the threshold of discovery in time travel. Is it possible? Yes, first let’s

look into the International Space Station. Time is slightly slower than on Earth

due to its high orbital speed. Once they return to Earth, they are milliseconds younger

than they were when they boarded the space station. The principle is clear:

MOVE FAST ENOUGH, AND YOU CAN LEAP FORWARD OR BACKWARD

IN TIME.

“Wormholes are hypothetical tunnels through spacetime, connecting different points in time. Have you

thought about how a wormhole works?” Think about this for a moment: if one mouth of a

wormhole could be accelerated close to the speed of light and brought back to its original

position, relativistic time dilation would mean the two ends of the wormhole are now at

different points in time. This idea is not new; in 1935, Albert Einstein and physicist Nathan

Rosen.”

“Thus concludes today’s lecture.”

Doctor “C” spun on his heel and strode into his office, where Max and Cathy awaited him. He smiled at them as he continued into the interior of his office, motioning them to follow.

“Close the door, Max.” Doctor “C” motioned them to sit down. Max glanced at Cathy, who shrugged her shoulders.

“I know this seems rather odd to you both, but I wanted to run this by you two: I have an

opportunity for three people to go to the International Space Station. I hope you don’t

think this is presumptuous of me to ask you to give up classes for six months, but it

is a fantastic opportunity to experience space.” Max and Cathy, without waiting, replied in unison: “We would be honored to go, thank you, Doctor “C”. Doctor “C” smiled:

“We will be leaving for Cape Kennedy, the rocket will carry us to the International Space

Station. While we are in space, we will be doing several experiments with wormholes.”

This was more than either Max or Cathy had ever hoped for. Two days later, they were all fitted with their space gear. Friday was the day for the launch; they made their way to the launch pad. The space capsule was in orbit, with the coordinates programmed into the onboard computer, directing it to the space station.

Max was a serious student of history; he was also a relative of General George Patton’s, whom he greatly respected. Max hoped to go back in time to stop the traffic accident that took Patton’s life.

“Doctor C, since we are experimenting with wormholes, I would like to volunteer to

Return to 1945, I have a conspiracy theory about the assassination of General George S.

Patton.”

Doctor “C” turned to face Max.

“Max, do you know what you are asking? These experiments are not a quest for you to

stop anything, but we will try. 1945 is not that far back in time.”

“Thanks, Doctor C”, I owe you. When can we start?”

Doctor Carpathian smiled:

“Is forty-five minutes soon enough, Max?”

Max worked feverishly, setting up the first experiment. The wormhole seemed as if it were an answer to a prayer; he hoped that he would be able to stop Patton from being killed. He wondered if he would have the opportunity to meet the General himself. His pet theory was that Stalin ordered the KGB to murder Patton to stop him from invading Russia.

The first experiment included the Alcubierre Warp Drive theory: spacetime is contracted in front of the spacecraft and expanded behind the spacecraft. If Doctor “C” created negative energy densities, he could create and sustain a Warp Bubble, which would keep the wormhole tunnel intact while they journeyed back in time. Doctor “C” began the experiment, and a wormhole was present in their grid. Sergei Tomnov, the director of the International Space Station, was at the controls:

“Are you ready, Nickoli? We must time the experiment to be sure all three of you leave

the Space Station at the same time. In theory, you will all return at the same time, DA?

Nick Carpathian was impressed with Sergei Tomnov, the man was a true scientist, he cared about the Space Station and those on board.

“Ready when you are, Sergei.”

“Very well, the wormhole is opening, good luck.

Nick Carpathian smiled, then the three climbed into the small shuttle. The shuttle was programmed to the grid of the wormhole. The three watched in fascination as the wormhole opened in the front of the spacecraft. The winding tunnel zoomed past them, as they watched. The wormhole became smaller on the other end, and they found themselves in a bubble. They stepped out onto German soil; American soldiers stared at the three. Doctor Carpathian realized they were dressed in clothes from the twenty-first century, not the twentieth century. He noticed a bombed-out department store, motioned Max and Cathy to stop:

“Let’s check out this store, we can’t go around looking like space invaders.”

They entered the ruins of the store. The date was December 8th, 1945, one day before General Patton’s accident or assassination, depending on what Max heard and read. They were in Berlin, and they noted the bombed-out homes and shops. They also noted Russian soldiers interspersed with German soldiers. Max noted the hate in the Russians' eyes when they saw German uniforms. Max found a Fedora: “Hey Doc, “C” what do you think of this hat?” Nick laughed at Max:

“Max, that is Fedora, cock it at an angle. Cathy tried on several suits before deciding on a red one; that brought out the green in her eyes. “Doctor C” what do you?”

“Cathy, you look lovely.” Doc “C” dressed in clothing similar to Max. They strode toward the tram station. Trams were not running on schedule due to tracks that had been bombed. They found a young man in the ticket sale window: “Three tickets to Heidelberg please.” “Sir, the tram is running late,

have a seat, I will let you know when the tram arrives.” Max wanted to shout: “We must be on our way, I have to stop General Patton from going hunting tomorrow.” He knew that would not bode well, he went over and sat down next to Doctor “C” and Cathy.

Two hours later, they heard a whistle, the clerk motioned them out on the platform:

“Your tram is coming into the station now, have a nice trip.”

The tram stopped and the three boarded, it remained on a side track while a freight tram carrying tanks returning to American soil, the war over. The tram lurched as it was diverted to the correct track. The tram stopped in Heidelberg, the trio walked to the closest hotel, Max hoped to get a glimpse of his great grandfather, General George S. Patton. Max needed a plan, ‘what should I say to the general? I can’t just blurt out that I am his great grandson, that I am from the twenty-first century. That sounds crazy even to me, maybe I should ask Doctor “C”; he thought.

“Doctor “C” what should I say to the general?”

Nick turned to face his student:

“The truth, the sooner the better. Do you have all the facts. Prevent Patton from himself is not

an easy job.”

They located Patton’s headquarters in Heidelberg, they could here the general all the way down

the street:

“I have no particular desire to understand them except in how much lead or iron it takes

to kill them.” Max was surprised to hear the voice, it was a higher pitch than he had thought.

Max knocked on the door, a captain answered:

“What can I do you for sir?”

“I need to speak to General Patton.”

“The general is preparing for his hunting trip, wait here.”

The captain turned, closing the door. Max knocked again, he had to warn Patton. Max was convinced that it was a conspiracy by either the OSS or the Russians. He thought about how the GMC truck had veered into the general’s Cadillac, it was no simple accident. The captain returned:

“The general will see you now.” He glanced at Max again, as if there were something familiar about him: “Are you related to the general, you bear a striking resemblance to him.” Max squirmed, he couldn’t explain that the general was his great grandfather, that he knew what was going to happen.

Patton, alone in his office stood as the trio strode in. Patton stared at Max:

“Son, do I know you? You remind me of myself when I was your age.”

Max almost chocked:

“No sir I don’t know you but I am here to warn you. You are in grave danger, your car has an

accident, you are paralyzed from the neck down. General, you can’t go on that hunting trip

tomorrow.”

Patton snickered:

“I am going pheasant hunting tomorrow, you are wasting my time and yours.”

Max, began:

“I am your great grandson, I am from the twenty-first century, these are my friends, we

want to keep you alive.”

Patton ran fingers through his white hair, sighed: “If I listened to ever rumor in this man’s army I

would not be here now, no I am going hunting in the morning.”

Max resigned himself to the fate that awaited his great grandfather:

“Please, listen to what I am saying, I know you want to stop the Russian now before they have

a chance to claim any more countries than they already have. The cold war, won’t exist, the

the Russian’s won’t build nuclear bombs. Stalin, and his successors won’t have the money

to rule. They won’t bury us for our stupidity.”

That got Patton’s attention:

“I can’t stop fate son, if I am destined to die, then so be it. I have paper work to finish.

Captain, show these people out.”

Max had thoughts of a flat tire, it would hopefully be enough to keep the general from going on his hunting trip.

December 9, 1945 was a glorious day, the sun was shining perfect for pheasant hunting. Patton, urged his driver to continue on toward a open field. His chief of staff and hunting partner was with him. Highway thirty-eight was busy, a GMC army truck was coming from the other direction, it hit the general’s car head on. Patton was thrown against the window barrier. He was paralyzed from the neck down, he died on December twenty-first. The question remains was it an accident or an assassination attempt by either the OSS or the KGB.