London 1917
It was three days after this first meeting with my great great grandparents and Keanu Reeves (before he was a famous actor) that great great grandma Esther met with a sudden, unexpected accident.
I heard the details of the story from the boy in the market. Remember, when I first arrived in 1917 in the market, the barrow boy who bumped into me and then drew a crowd by pointing out my futuristic footwear? He'd followed me and Morris to the house and then hung around outside, watching as Reeves arrived. His curiosity and suspicion had been aroused, so he'd continued spying on us over the course of the next few days, skiving off work in the market whenever he could.
Apparently Esther had been walking down the Whitechapel road seemingly in a great deal of hurry, distraction and agitation. She'd stepped out into the road without looking, to cross over Commercial Street when she was hit by a carriage travelling at some speed. The driver hadn't been looking where he was going. Apparently he was looking at his mobile phone.
The driver of the vehichle, who's face was mostly covered with a heavy scarf and who wore a bowler hat, ran away from the scene in panic. The boy from the market says he can't be sure, but he's fairly certain it was Reeves.
A brief history of the Timephone
The discovery and proof of subatomic, quantum particles that could exist in two places at the same time gave rise to the real possibility of the creation of a Timephone. At the same time other particles were also discovered with equally astounding properties - such as being able to influence each other instantaneously across vast distances - or being able to move minutely forwards or backwards in Time.
It took several years for the first successful transmitter/receiver to be created and a message was sent into the past. It was scientifically recorded that the first message sent across Time - the message itself consisting of two zeroes and a one - was received three nanoseconds before it was sent.
What was not scientifically recorded at the time was that three minutes before the experiment was about to take place, the main creator of the of the transmitter/receiver got a message on his mobile phone. He didn't pay it much attention. It was from an unknown number and it merely said 'Congratulations!' His phone, incidentally (or not) was a Galaxy S3 Neo.
Not a lot of people know this, but the Galaxy S3 Neo is the most ultimate smartphone ever made. It is the most reliable and long lasting of all the mobile phones, including all subsequent ones from Samsung, Apple and all other makers. That is because it has secretly incorporated in its circuitry very advanced technology, from a distant dimension. It is also the only phone ever to have been mass produced to include a Timechip. Of course, the executives at Sumsung didn't know about this. At least not all of them.
A design for the chip was anonymously sent by email to a young design technician at the Samsung laboratories who was working on part of the graphics card, developing intelligent filters for photo enhancement. She tested it on a virtual model and found it to be far more efficient than anything previously used, and capable of many new features. She assumed it had been sent by rivals at Apple. Since it worked so well (though she couldn't exactly understand how) she decided to take the credit for it herself and hence earn herself a promotion. Really, people would do almost anything to get off the factory floor at some of these mobile phone manufacturers (often even suicide) so what she did is quite understandable.
That was the Timechip. Designed by beings from a distant dimension, made by computer controlled robots at the Samsung factory, and hidden inside the graphics circuitry of the Galaxy S3 Neo. Other improvements were also added here and there, in similar fashion, though nothing to make it appear too obvious that this obscure sub-model of the Galaxy S3 family was in fact the most advance communication device ever made on Earth. That's why it's the chosen means of communication for Time travellers.
Quickly, from the time of the first successful test of the transmitter/receiver, the technology improved. It was the new space race, or arms race (often one and the same) to see which superpower could send a message furthest into the future or past. It was not long before it was possible to send a long message (about as long as a Tweet) a full fifteen minutes into the future or past. Enough to attain any economic or military victory, because of the ability to warn of (and hence avoid or change the outcome of) any attack or unexpected event.
This had the sudden and unforeseen consequence of putting an end to all wars (they became completely farcical) and also causing the complete collapse of world economies. After that, things are kind of a blur. I'm not really a scientist or a historian. I've pieced together my understanding of history by talking to other Time travellers, and I've discovered that it's really difficult to get the story straight. Everyone seems to have a different version of events. Things can vary a lot from one dimension to the next, especially the further you stray from the original one you came from.
Back at Esther and Morris's kitchen, we were still 'enjoying' our uneasy tea-time. Morris, Reeves and me, eyeing each other warily as we devoured Esther's legendary cake. Esther looking pale and not touching hers.
After three quarters of the cake was gone and the pot of tea was empty, the men sat back in our chairs rubbing our bellies in satisfaction while Esther cleared the table, went to wash the plates and prepare more tea. I think she was glad of the excuse to leave the table.
'So let's see it then Reeves', said Morris, leaning forward with an eager look in his eye. 'I trust you brought it with you.'
'Oh no', Reeves replied in all seriousness. 'I gave it to the hotel clerk to look after. I didn't want to lose it.'
'What!!?' Morris shouted, literally jumping out of his chair. 'You gave it to the hotel clerk? What are you thinking, man? Do you even know him?'
'Well, he seemed like a good fellow,' said Reeves with a very straight face. 'Although now that you mention it, there was something funny about the way he looked at it when I gave it to him.'
'You mean, you let him see what it was? Are you mad?!!' Morris had grabbed at his own hair and was pulling it frantically.
'Well, I didn't think he'd know, did I?', said Reeves in all innocence. 'But, now that I think about it, he did seem to know...'
'Right! We're going there now.' said Morris, beginning to march about the room in great agitation. 'Get your coat Reeves. You too Gideon. Actually I'll get you one of mine. And some shoes too. We don't want to draw attention. Come on! There's no time to lose. What's the name of the hotel? Is it far from here?'
But Reeves didn't move. Instead, he started laughing. A deep, bellyful laugh. 'Relax old man', he said jovially. 'I'm just joshing with you. Come and sit down. I've got it here.'
From out of his jacket's inside pocket he took out the rectangle object, about the shape and size of an early 21st century mobile phone, which is what it was. Though it was greatly scratched and battered and its screen was cracked, I recognised it straight away as a Galaxy S3. I don't know so much about mobile phone brands and models, but I recognise that one because I've got the same phone. I've had it for years. Very reliable phone. Someone gave it to me when they upgraded and it just seems to go on working forever.
It is also no coincidence that the character played by Keeanu Reeves in the Matrix series happens to be called Neo.
In case you missed it and you're following the series - here's parts 1 - 11
You can read parts 1 to 10 here...
https://steemit.com/story/@stillgideon/hatman-my-adventures-in-time-travel-parts-1-to-10