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Dr. Gantz�On Trial By Mitchell Moss My name is Dr. Gantz, and I am a doctor from the future. I am learning a lost art called magic, from a friend who I met 6 months ago. Unfortunately, my friends are in trouble with the mob, and to make matters worse, a time cop has arrived to return me to my time, and stand trial. He has permitted me one half hour to say goodbye to my friends. I approached Arthur, my magician friend, and told him, �I�m sorry, but I have to leave. I am needed back home. I really wish to thank you for all of your magic lessons.� Arthur replied, �I understand. I knew this would happen sooner or later. I will really miss you, since I think of you like family. By the way, which world are you from?� I was surprised when he asked that question, but remained calm �I don�t know what you mean. I�ve told you before that I am from New Jersey.� He replied, �You can�t fool me. You seemed to be well educated about our history, but you had no practical knowledge. You didn�t know how to drive a car, use a VCR, or microwave. You also had some difficulty making a sandwich. I especially became suspicious when you didn�t know who David Copperfield was. My suspicions were confirmed when I had my heart attack. You palmed something, manipulated it, and my body tingled. I then felt better than I�d felt in years. You can�t deny that you were palming something. Remember, I taught you that move. You also didn�t palm it as well as you usually do.� I then told him that I was from another world, but did not tell him any details. I sadly hugged him and Amanda, and tearfully said my goodbyes. I will miss them more than anyone else I have ever known. I wondered why I didn�t palm my medical devices very well. My concentration was on saving his life, but I only had to do some simple adjustments, nothing that would take much attention. I wondered if I did it because I wanted to be caught. Maybe I thought that it would impress Amanda. In my time, doctors rarely had trouble dating beautiful women. Maybe she would have liked me if she realized that I was a doctor. I�ll never know, since she will have been dead for over a thousand years, when I return to my time. The time cop and I returned to our time. I was placed in temporary quarters, while awaiting trial. I went to the food replicator, and asked for spaghetti. I have always loved spaghetti, but this stuff tasted awful. I was spoiled by Amanda�s home cooking. Replicated food had always tasted good, until I had eaten freshly cooked food. There was no comparison. Finally, I was taken to my trial. My lawyer was from Newton, and was one of the best. Unfortunately, the prosecutor was also from my home planet, and also one of the best. The trial began, and the lawyers made their arguments, as the Emperor and council watched and listened. My lawyer stated that I saved the lives of Emperor Campbell, his ancestors, and descendants. The prosecutor argued that it did not excuse me from remaining there after I completed my mission. I may have altered the timeline. My lawyer then argued that I had remained hidden, and stayed with people who were not historically significant. The prosecutor rebutted that over a thousand years, the most insignificant change could become significant. People could have important descendants, who may have been changed, or lost due to a time traveler. The arguments continued. The lawyers argued temporal law, political law, and many other things. I looked at the reactions of the Emperor and his council, and knew that my lawyer was losing. I realized that I had one choice if I was to win. I remembered an old story called, �The Devil and Daniel Webster,� in which a lawyer defeated the devil�s own court, by appealing to emotions, rather than arguments. Maybe I can do the same. I spoke with my lawyer, and he announced, �Your majesty, and council. My client asks permission to approach the court.� I entered the center of the court, and bowed low before the emperor. Then I said, �Your Majesty, and council, I most humbly ask permission to do a demonstration that would illustrate my case. Unfortunately, I will need to bring a young lady from the past for this demonstration. After the demonstration, I can remove this event from her memory, and return her to her time. It was decided that I may return to the past for three hours, in order to bring her. I would not be allowed to bring any technological devices. We would have to return to a prearranged spot at the assigned time, where we would be sent back to my time. I arrived at a warehouse, and recognized it immediately. It was Arthur�s warehouse, where he kept most of his illusion equipment. I heard voices, and looked through a crack in a door. I saw Arthur and Amanda, who were being held at gunpoint by three thugs, one of which was Amanda�s ex-boyfriend. An old wooden crate was nearby, and I knew that this was the Selbit sawing box that the mob wanted. A plan began to form in my mind. Arthur�s car was nearby. I opened the hood, and quickly removed the battery. I carried it into the back section of the warehouse, and placed it inside the zig zag box. I connected wires to each pole in the battery. I attached one wire to the shelf on the left of the midsection. I attached the other end to the left side of the midsection, and also connected that wire to the metal strip at the bottom of the midsection. I also connected wires from the bottom metal strip to the door latch. |
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