“Let me sleep, mom.” Daniel said when his mom told him to get up.
“It’s already 7:15, hurry up now!” his mom said.
Daniel dragged himself out of the bed and started brushing his teeth.
Daniel went to search for his towel only to find it in his dog’s mouth.
“Give me the towel, Mac!”
Daniel chased him around the house and finally got his towel. Daniel took a bath,ate his breakfast and rushed out. He ran to the bus stand only to look at the bus go away in the distance.
“Oh, damn it!” Daniel sighed.
He had to walk to college now. He was late and the Professor scolded him.Daniel’s day didn’t go really well.
During dinner, his mom asked him about his test score.
“N-No, the Professor has not told us yet.” Daniel said.
“Will you tell me your score or should I call the Professor and ask him myself?” His mom said.
“No need to do that mom. I’ll tell you. I scored 10 out of 50.” Daniel replied in a frightened voice.
“What? You scored so low? Enough! No video games and TV for a week now. You’ll spend the entire next week studying.”
“Ok, mom.” Daniel said disappointedly.
After dinner, he went straight to bed.
Life in the past times must’ve been so cool.People were taught awesome things like sword-fighting and horse-riding back then. Not super boring things like economics, Daniel thought as he lay on his bed.
The next morning, Daniel woke up late as it was a Saturday.
“Good morning, mom.”
“Good morning, honey. Hey, why don’t you complete your painting today?” His mom said.
“I can’t complete it on weekdays due to my college and I feel like relaxing on weekends.”
“You’ve got really good talent. Don’t waste it.”
“The art contest is in August mom. There’s still a couple of months left.”
“So what? Finishing it earlier is the best. Now, I don’t want to hear any more excuses.”
“Ok, I’ll do it.”
Despite telling his mom that he’ll paint, he read comics till noon. He started with his brush strokes and within two hours, his painting was almost done.
I can add some more details but I don’t feel like doing it. I’ll tell mom it’s finished.
“It’s marvellous, Dan! You’re an incredible artist!” Daniel’s mom was in awe after looking at the painting.
“How much time did it take?” his mom asked.
“About two hours.”
“Really? Just two hours? You’re incredibly gifted Daniel. I’ll show it to your dad once he gets home from work.”
She showed the painting to his dad after he came home and he praised him as well.
Later that night, Daniel got a phone call from his friend Liam, asking him about going cycling to Beaver Lake on Sunday. Daniel decided to go.
It was Sunday morning, butit didn’t look like it was in the Edwards house. That’s because Daniel was up at 7. Daniel left the house at 9:30 and reached Segal’s Market before 10 where he met the group.
They reached the Beaver Lake till noon. There was quite a rush because it was a Sunday.Daniel and his friends lied down on the grass and began chatting. All Ethan and Liam could talk about was Daniel’s embarrassing moments. Daniel grew tired and decided to go for a walk.
“Look, he’s gone because of you two.” Layla said angrily.
“Don’t worry,he’ll be back.” Liam said.
Daniel wanted to be alone for a while. There was a little forestnear the lake. He decided to go there.
Everyone thinks I’m a loser. No one respects me and my feelings,Daniel thought while he was wandering around in the forest.
Suddenly, he heard the sound of a watch ticking. He saw a strange looking watch lying on the ground with a page next to it. He picked both the things up.The watch was heavy andit had a tiny compass attached to it. The watch had four dials. The page was half tore.
This guy’s handwriting is worse than mine, Daniel thought while trying to read what was written on the page.
seems to be a technical error I’ve not been able to fix. For some reason, I’m not able to find a way to keep the coordinates constant. The board members ganged up on me during yesterday’s meeting. I told them I need more time. For the time being, the watch is not of much use. It may take a person back to the Stone Age but it can drop a person right into the ocean. Just text me when you get this Robert. Don’t mind my handwriting. I’m writing with a pen after a really long time. I had to because the board….
It was discontinued.
Daniel had never seen a watch like this one. He decided to wear it.
This watch looks so cool. I’ll have to return it to the owner though. The name Robert is mentioned in this note.
Daniel started looking at the watch closely. By mistake, he pressed a button.
“Whoa! Wh-What’s happening?” Daniel screamed.
He suddenly felt his body getting lighter. He blacked out.
Daniel slowly regained consciousness. He found himself lying on the floor of a dark room. The room was filled with barrels. Daniel slowly got up to his feet.
Where am I? I was at Beaver Lake with my friends.
He saw a green light. It was coming from the watch he was wearing.
What’s happening? I remember picking up and wearing this watch. What is this green light?
He tried to read what was written on the screen.
Year-1778, Location-English Channel.
Daniel’s face grew pale with fear. He was now able to make sense of that note.
T-This is a t-time travel watch.
He suddenly felt that the room was not stationary. It was shaking tremendously. There were sounds of cannons. He realized he was in a ship. Not a normal ship. A warship.
Daniel tried to press the same button on the watch. He thought maybe it could take him back to the present. Nothing happened.
Damn it. Stupid watch.
Suddenly the door to his right opened. Daniel dived behind the barrels.
“Who’s in there? You better come out.” The person shouted.
Daniel didn’t move. He heard the person walking towards him. He pulled Daniel out from behind the barrels.
“You’re a terrible hider. Who’re you? Are you a French spy?” The man asked.
He was a really giantman. He was wearing a battle outfit.
“Please don’t hurt me. I’m not your enemy. I’m from the future.” Daniel panicked.
“You’re from what?” The man seemed puzzled.
“I have travelled back in time accidentally. This is a time travel watch.”
“Hahaha, you’re from the future? What rubbish.”
“Yes, I can prove it to you. Look at my clothes. People from this time don’t wear these clothes. Look at my jeans, my sneakers.”
“I don’t know whether you’re from the future or not but one thing’s for certain,you’re not the enemy’s spy. They won’t send a fool like you to spy on us.”
“I haven’t spent ten minutes in this timeline and people are already making fun of me, great.” Daniel murmured.
“What’d you say?”
“Nothing. Here, look at this. This will prove that I’m from the future.”
Daniel handed him his smartphone.
“What is this object?”
“It’s a smartphone. Using this you can call anyone, browse the internet, click photos.”
“What?”
“Look, it has a torch too.”
“So, it’s a lantern?”
“Forget it. In simple words, it’s a device that doesn’t exist in your time.”
“Fine. Let’s assume you’re from the future but what’re you doing here?”
“I was with my friends. I saw this watch and I pressed this button on it and it landed me here.”
“So, which year are you from?”
“2021.”
“Oh, so you’re from a different millennium.”
“Yes, I am. This is 1778, right? This watch is saying so.”
“Yes. There’s a war going on between us and the French.”
“What was that sound that came a while ago?”
“We just drowned a French ship.”
“Oh, that sounds so cool. This must be very thrilling.”
“There’s nothing thrilling about war. People lose their lives. Country’s economy drops down. People should be able to live peacefully and resolve issues by talking, not fighting. Are there any wars happening in your time?”
“No there aren’t.”
“That’s great!”
“I don’t get it. If you hate war so much then why are you fighting?”
“We don’t have a choice. Each family has to send a son to the war. No one cares whether you like the idea of the war or not. I haven’t seen my family for months because of this war.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know that. It must be pretty hard, staying away from your family and all.”
“You just have to follow the orders, that’s all.”
“You aren’t interested in war. So, what do you want to do?”
“I have always wanted to become an artist. I’m really passionate about art.”
“Really? I paint myself.”
“That’s nice, we have a common interest. Sadly, I will only get to paint after this war ends. As for you, I assume you might spend a lot of time on the canvas, do you?”
“Y-Yes I do.” Daniel stammered.
“Great!”
There was a thunderstorm raging across the sea. There were huge waves in the sea.
“Looks like there’s a storm headed our way. Now would be a good time for you to go back to the future.”
“It would have been great if I knew how to go back.”
“You mean you can’t go back?”
“I have been trying but I don’t know how this watch works.”
“So, it means you’re stuck here?”
“Yes, until I figure out how to get back.”
“Well, that’s not good. I’d love to stay and talk but I’ve got to go check on some injured soldiers. You can stay here for now or you can come with me if you want.”
“Thanks, I didn’t get your name.”
“David, yours?”
“Daniel.”
“Daniel from 2021, nice to meet you.”
“Hah, nice to meet you too.”
“Would your fellow soldiers attack me if I came out?”
“No, they won’t if the captain of the ship orders them not to.”
“So, will you tell the captain that I’m not their enemy?”
“Haven’t you told already?” He said gesturing towards himself.
“You’re the captain?”
“The last time I checked, I was.”
“That’s awesome! I’m friends with the captain of the ship so I’m in no danger now.”
“That’s correct. Follow me.”
At first, Daniel hesitated to come out because of the storm but David insisted. He finally gathered the courage to go out. There were a lot of sailors on the ship.The storm was violent. Sailors were trying very hard to control the sails.
“Hey! Everyone except sails! Gather here!” David shouted.
“Aye captain!” The sailors shouted and gathered around him.
All the sailors started looking at Daniel.
“We need to wait for this bloody storm to slow down. We have no choice. We’re heading in the direction of the enemy’s fleet once this storm slows down. We got their route from the French sailor we interrogated. They don’t know we’re coming so it’ll be easy for us to take them down.”
“Aye-Aye, captain!” Everyone shouted.
“Captain, who’s this boy?” one sailor asked.
“His name is Daniel. He’s from the future.” David replied.
“He’s from what?” the sailor said.
“You heard me. He’s from the future.”
“How do you know he’s from the future?” another sailor asked.
“Well, he told me so Eddy.”
“How can you believe a stranger, captain? He could be a French spy in disguise.” Eddy asked.
“No, he’s not. I believe this boy is telling the truth. He told me that he got to this time period by accident. Unfortunately, he doesn’t know how to go back to his time. So, until he figures out a way to get back to the future, he’ll be staying with us. You all will take care of him and not cause him any trouble. This is an order.”
“Aye-Aye, captain!” Everyone shouted.
“Alright then, get back to your work.” David ordered.
Everyone went back to what they were doing.
“Thank you so much captain! Thank you so much for helping me out. This really means a lot.” Daniel said.
“You’re welcome! I have some work to do so why don’t you join Benjamin and his group over here.”
Benjamin and the others were charting the course.
“Daniel this is Benjamin. Ben, I’m leaving Daniel with you as I’ve got some work to do.”
“Sure, captain.”
David walked away.
“Take a seat, Daniel.” Benjamin said.
“Thanks.”
They were busy discussing the course. Daniel meanwhile tried to figure out how the watch worked. He tried rotating the dials on the watch and pressed some buttons but to no avail. The screen still displayed the same message, the year and the location. After trying for a while and seeing nothing’s happening, Daniel started hearing what they were discussing.
“We’re not sure about the coordinates, but we know that the fleet is to the north-east of this island over here.”A sailor said.
“Yes Patrick, but we need the element of surprise and we can’t approach them casually.” Benjamin said.
Daniel looked at the map. He tried to understand what they were discussing.
“If only we had a closer map of the area.” Benjamin said.
“Hey! Why don’t you use the world map that’s saved on my phone? You can enlarge it to a great extent.” Daniel said.
“What are you saying, kid?” Benjamin asked.
Daniel took out his phone and opened the world map.
Daniel took a closer look at their map.
“Hmm, this is the location I think, yes.”
Daniel showed them the location on his phone.
“See, you can enlarge it.”
“Yes, this is the exact same location but what is this thing?” Benjamin asked.
“It’s a smartphone.”
“This thing is incredible!” Patrick said.
“That’s really nice. Now, we can see that there are a few islands over here. We can use them as cover while approaching the fleet. Can you give us this thing for some time, boy?” Benjamin asked.
“Yeah, sure.”
“Thanks, so as I was saying, we now need to work on a route which takes into consideration all these factors.”
They started discussing the details of the route. Daniel took a look at his watch and he saw a new message being displayed.
Battery low. Please plug the watch in to prevent getting back to your time period.
Daniel was delighted upon reading that message. He started jumping with joy.
“What happened, kid?” Patrick asked.
“I’ve figured out a way to go back.”
“That’s great news!” Patrick said.
Daniel turned on the battery indicator somehow by rotating some dials. The battery was 10%.
Yes! That’s really good. Come on, drain up!
David came back after a while.
“Hey, have you finalised the route yet?” David asked.
“We’re on it. Daniel helped us out.” Benjamin said.
“Really?”
“Yes, he gave us this thing which has the map of the whole world and you can magnify it as much as you want.” Benjamin said.
“Oh, that’s the same thing you showed me, right?”
“Yes, it is.” Daniel replied.
“It is very useful.” David said.
“Yes indeed, captain. We were struggling with the route but thanks to this boy’s help we are now able to plan the route really well.”
“Thanks a ton, boy.”
“Mention not. Well, there’s one more good news. I’ve found a way to go back.”
“Really? That’s incredible!”
“I’ll have to wait for it though. I will go back automatically once this watch’s battery finishes up.”
“Oh, I’m so happy for you.”
“Thanks, captain.”
They started discussing the route with David. The storm slowly started to slow down. The waves of the ocean began to calm down. An hour passed and the battery was now 9%.After their long discussion, they got up and started leaving.
“Hey, Daniel, how much time will you require?” David asked.
“Well, it’s battery life seems to be very good so it looks like it’ll take some hours.”
“It’s night time now and you’re saying it’ll take some hours, so, I’ll give you a room. We have a few rooms empty.”
“Thanks, captain.”
Daniel followed David to the room.
“I guess this is the last time we’re seeing each other, so good bye!” David said.
“Good bye, captain!” Daniel replied.
“Our meeting was for a small time, but I really enjoyed it and I will never forget it.”
“I won’t as well, captain. This was an experience of a lifetime. I got a taste of life from this time. Thanks for being so helpful, captain.”
“Mention not. Thanks to you for helping us with the course.”
“You’re welcome.”
“You must be missing your friends and family, right?”
“Yes. I realized how much I love my parents and how much they love me. When you’re with them, you take them for granted. It is when you’re away, when you understand their true value.”
“I agree. Goodnight, boy.”
“Goodnight, captain.”
David walked away and Daniel closed the door. Daniel went straight to bed. He looked at the watch. The battery was now 7%. He was alone now. There was silence all around the room. This silence was painful. He suddenly realized that he’s away from his family. Not away, in a different timeline. He remembered his friends. He missed his dog. He remembered the daily life which was sometimes filled with happiness and sometimes with troubles. Earlier,it seemed very normal and nothing valuable. It now seemed the most precious. There were tears in his eyes.A lot of questions were coming in his mind.
What if I won’t be able to go back?
Will I ever get to see my mom and dad again?
How long will this battery take to die down?
Daniel took out a photo of his mom and dad from his wallet. He couldn’t control his tears. An idea which seemed very appealing to him in movies was completely devastating in real life. He could do only one thing,wait. He kept looking at the screen, waiting for the battery to drain up. After a while, he fell asleep.
He woke up to the noise of sailors shouting.
“What time is it? Mom?”
There was no reply. He looked around him. It wasn’t his room. The reality struck him. He looked at his watch. The battery was 3%.
Why in the hell is the battery life so good?
There was a knock at the door.
“You’re still here? Captain said you would’ve gone by now.” The sailor asked.
“I thought I would but it’ll take some more time.”
“Well, this isn’t good. Follow me, I’ll take you to the captain.”
David was busy talking with some sailors.
“Captain, sorry for disturbing you but this boy is still here.”
“Daniel?” David looked surprised.
“It’s taking longer than I expected.”
“Well, that’s bad news. We’ll be approaching the enemy today and it will get dangerous for you.”
“Oh, I didn’t know that. So, I-I, what would I, I mean-“
“Stay calm. How much time will it take?”
The battery was 2% now.
“It has reduced. That’s good. Judging from the rate at which the battery has dropped, I think it’ll take 2-3 hours.”
“Well, if you’re right, then that’s really good because it’ll take us nearly 4 hours to get to the enemy at the speed we’re going.” David said.
“Oh, that’s nice.” Daniel said with a sigh of relief.
“Charlie, give him something to eat, will ya?”
“Right, captain.”
Daniel was really hungry. He pounced on that chicken sandwich. Afterwards, Charlie took him to where he was working.
“Sit down, Daniel.” Charlie said.
The battery was now only 1%.
Only 1% remaining. Yes!
“Hurry up with the work. We’ll be reaching the enemy within one and a half hour.” Charlie shouted.
One hour passed and 1% battery still remained. Daniel was feeling very anxious now. Charlie saw Daniel sitting and looking at the watch.
“Wait! You’re still here? We’re reaching the enemy anytime now.”
“It’s taking so long. I can’t do anything.”
“I’ll take you to the captain. He’ll decide what to do now. Hurry.”
Charlie rushed him to the captain who was looking at a chart of what looked like a battleship.
“Here is their weak point-”
“Captain, this boy’s still here.” Charlie said.
“Daniel? You said you needed 2-3 hours. What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know. This stupid watch has completely ruined my life. It’s still stuck on 1%.”
Daniel was crying.
“Quit crying and listen to me carefully. If the battle begins and you’re still on this ship, then you head out to the door over there and take the stairs. You go down to the room at the bottom. There, you’ll get the maximum time you can get. Even if our ship gets swarmed by enemy soldiers, they’ll not be able to break into that room quickly.”
“Thank you so much, captain. You’re really an angel.”
“Alright, stay here for now.”
After a few minutes, Daniel saw a message on the watch.
The watch will turn off in sixty seconds. Please plug the watch in to prevent getting back to your time period.
Daniel ran towards David.
“Captain, I’m going back! It says I’m going back in sixty seconds.” Daniel shouted.
“Amazing! Just in time. We’re approaching the enemy.” David said pointing towards the enemy ship.
“Goodluck with the battle, captain.”
“Thanks. Goodluck kid. I hope you have a great life!”
Daniel could see the enemy ship. It was now at a close distance. He suddenly started getting that strange feeling again. He felt his body getting lighter. He blacked out.
Whenhe came back to his senses, he found himself lying on leaves. He saw trees above him. He slowly got up to his feet. He had a look around himself.
“This is the same place from where I picked up this watch. 3:30 pm, Sunday. Wait, I was here at around this time only. So, it means that I got back to the same location and same time. It means no time has passed in this timeline. I thought my parents and friends would’ve gotten worried but that’s not an issue anymore. That’s great!”
Daniel quickly removed the watch from his wrist and dropped it on the ground. He ran to the Beaver Lake where he saw his friends sitting on the grass and talking.
“Hey fellas! What’s up?” Daniel shouted while running towards them.
“I told you he’d be back soon.” Liam said.
“Daniel, why’re you shouting?” Layla said.
“I’m so lucky to have friends like you. Sometimes, you behave like jerks but you’re all my best friends and I’m grateful to have all of you in my life.” Daniel said and gave them all a hug.
“What’s going on, Dan? Have you got a screw loose or something?” Ethan said.
“Yeah, I might.”
“Your mood has completely changed after going for a walk. What’s going on?” Layla asked.
“It was a really refreshing walk.” Daniel replied.
Daniel enjoyed the rest of the day with his friends. When he got home, he hugged his mom and dad.
“I love you a lot, mom and dad.”
“Well, we love you too honey.” his mom said.
“I missed you guys a lot!”
“Missed us? You were not away for that long.” His dad said.
“It seemed really long.” Daniel replied.
Mac came wagging his tail as soon as he saw Daniel.
“Hey, how’re you, my boy? I’m back.”
After dinner, Daniel went to his room and started working on the finer details of his painting. What was an empty warship in the sea, now had an entire crew on it with the captain in the middle.
