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Hudson tried to open his eyes. He desperately needed a cup of coffee... all night long was working without a minute stop, at the computer to finish his program about some last adjustments in the procedures of doctor Livingston's machine. For the last three months he was working really hard! Doesn't have to say that he was practically living in there!
The laboratory was just behind Russell Square that was past the A4200 roadway. His home was near the river of Thames close to London Bridge, so he had to take the Underground to go to the Laboratory.


Doctor Livingston's project was strictly confidential except from Hudson and Sparklees, the hamster. Doctor Liv used to have a diary with full descriptions of all of his experiments that have to do with his secret machine. As far as everybody knew, the machine was a big black box. But the truth is that the machine was a time machine or at list doctor Liv hoped to be one day...
The doctor also known as the crazy scientist of Russell Square was a genius but he wasn't so communicated personality. He liked to work alone. His personal secretary Nicole, was trying to won his attention (romantically that is) but Doctor Liv was living in his self and at his world there wasn't such a thing as women.
Today is the last day to test the machine. Doctor Liv wasn't sure if the machine works perfect and he was very nervous. Fortunately, the last test that took place an hour ago was a big success and that mend that they were just a step before the Nobel. The crucial last step was to perform a time travel with evidence. And the only way to do that was to send a human being to travel with the time machine.
Hudson opens Doctor Liv's diary.

London Friday 13 July 2007, 09:17

Test No. 68. Today we performed the last test about the "M". Test subject number 69 was successfully traveled at the year of 1832 and also returned. I am very satisfied; I believe that later in the day we will perform the "big journey".

Hudson read the diary twice.
We could say that a tear appear is his eyes but it wasn't from excitement. It was due to the fact that he hadn't wash his face yet... He was in the laboratory from yesterday morning, over 24 hours.
When there was a lot of work, Hudson use to take his personal things in a bag and spend all day in the lab, taking a nap in the small sofa in the reception, in front of Miss Nicole's office.
Coffee was ready now. The best moment of the day (one teaspoon coffee, two sugar and a little milk-low fat), his coffee. Maybe this coffee was the last coffee of his life. It had to be perfect.
You see, Hudson was not a typical Englishman, so he didn't have to drink tea! He was born in London but his mother was from Poland and his father was Greek. What a combination! When he took his degree in Computer Science, he left home and went to live by himself in a small attic close to London Bridge, his favorite place.
He already knew doctor Liv from University and when he learned that he was looking for an assistant, he volunteered to work with him. No one else wanted to work with the creasy scientist that was always arguing and shouting and nobody really knew what his research was about.
Now it's lunchtime for the hamster.

• - My friend Sparklees, you should eat now that you can because I am not sure if we are going to have dinner tonight...

Sparklees was the official test subject of Doctor Liv.
In fact it was Sparklees the 69^th.
The past 68 hamsters traveled through time but none of them came back to say that the test was successful. If a hamster could ever speak to confirm such an assertion...
Every time Miss Nicole was crying for every hamster disappearing.
The time has come...
Hudson washed his face, shaved, ware his lucky underwear (those that he wear in the last date with Pamela) and Arsenal's scarf and he looked out from the window the clouding London.
Suddenly, with a glimpse in his eyes, he returned to Sparklees cage, he took a big knife, he held it very determinately and with a fast move he cut down................................
................................................................................................................a donut in two pieces.

• - Every real hero deserves a good donut! Would you like a byte, my friend Sparklees?

Also, all people convicted to death, had the right to smoke a cigar. Hudson was not a smoker but when you are about to travel with a time machine, well, you may smoke a cigar, right?
Hudson went to the reception, where Miss Nicole's office were, and opened the upper drawer to find her cigarettes. Under the packet, Miss Nicole was keeping a photo of doctor Liv. The one from his awarding from Science Academy. You know, that one that he was wearing the orange shirt, perfectly matching his carrot-color hair!
He took the cigarettes and he came back to the laboratory. Just in time. His boss was just entering the laboratory.

• - Well Hudson, are you ready for the afternoon? Are we going to do that trip today?
• - Hi boss. Are you completely sure that we have to do it? OK, we have already sent Sparklees but is it necessary to go by ourselves too? And let us say that we finally do it... Are you sure that we'll be able to come back on Sunday? Because on Sunday there is the football game between Arsenal and Chelsea. I have tickets! I can't miss this game!

And he threw the scarf to his back.
Doctor Liv sent a deadly look to Hudson.

• - Hudson. Science demands sacrifices.
• - That means that I will miss the game, yes?

Well, Hudson was really disappointed.

• - What ever you say boss. If it is to be, let it be... Lets make the last adjustments. OK?

Doctor Liv and Hudson start working. The time machine is almost ready. They had to adjust the size. Sparklees cabinet was not big enough to carry two adults! They needed a much bigger cabinet, but the mechanism was the same. Once they entered the machine's chamber, the machine would start rotating with a very high speed, approximately light speed, powered by a radioactive material. Then, they would enter to the machine's computer the date in time that they would travel. Doctor Liv had decided to visit the 18^th century and take some evidences when coming back, to prove the time travel to the scientific community. The year is decided to be 1779.
Doctor Liv makes an entry to his diary:

London Friday 13 July 2007, 12:28

Test No. 69 starts. "M" is ready. Data: year 1779, month July, date 13, time 12:30. Test subjects: Daffy Livingston, aged 35, Hudson Papas-Kowalski, aged 23. Duration: 6 weeks.

Miss Nicole is looking them from the glass between reception and the laboratory. She does not know what they are up to.

• - Hey, Nicole, could you bring us some donuts? Sparklees ate all of them with his coffee!
• - Are you crazy Hudson? You gave Sparklees coffee? Poor animal!
• - Miss Spenser, please, go to the cantina and bring the... that thing the test subject eats, please...
• - Yes Doctor Livingston, right way!
• - Hm, hm... Boss, Nicole likes you!
• - Hudson! Who is Nicole?
• - For Heavens sake, boss, Nicole is Miss Spenser!!!
• - We are loosing time Hudson! We have to do it now that we are alone!
• - Just a minute boss! I need to smoke my cigar!
• - Hudson, how many times have I told you to quit your bad habits?
• - You mean bungee jumping boss?

Hudson lighted the cigarette and tried to smoke but he immediately stared coughing. He left the cigarette on the table and he entered the machine's cabinet with doctor Liv and Sparklees. Have you ever heard about Merfi's Law? When something is to go wrong, it will go wrong... Friday the 13^th? The cigarette felled on the recycle bin. The recycle bin was full of papers. The fire started in a few seconds...
While doctor Liv was making the data entry in the machine, the fire was spreading all over the laboratory. Very soon the flames reached the machine. The last thing Hudson realized was that the place was full of smoke and the cabinet was shaking. Doctor Liv had almost entered the year when they felt a violent tremble, the machine stared rotating and everything became black...
Miss Nicole saw the smoke coming from the laboratory. She started shouting. The fire alarm stared to ring. People from the other laboratories came out to see what was happening. Nicole finally managed to open the laboratory's door. Doctor Liv, Hudson and the hamster had disappeared. The machine had also disappeared. Just before the flames destroy everything in there, Nicole took the laptop of doctor Liv and run to the exit... After a while, she was setting on the pavement in front of the building. The fire brigade had put out the fire. But it was too late. The laboratory was destroyed. Hudson tried to open his eyes. Where was he? Slowly the subject around him became clear. Doctor Liv was unconscious with his face on the computer and poor Sparklees had throw up on the floor of the cabinet.

• - Oups... Sparklees, those donuts were not that good, yes? Boss, boss, wake up! Where are we?

Doctor Liv opened his eyes. He had hit his head on the computer. He looked on the control table of the machine.

• - Don't shout Hudson. My head is going to blow up. Lets see where we are. OK. 12:30. 13^th. OK. July. Thank God. 0079. What? It had to be 1779!!!

They looked at each other. Then Hudson looked at Sparklees. Then they both looked at the control table. The date was there. 13^th of July 79 AC. Probably the shaking of the machine when doctor Liv was entering the data had caused a mistyping. That was bad. That was very bad!

• - Where are we, boss?
• - As I can see here, we are on Latitude 40°49'17"N and Longitude 14°25'34"E.
• - This information don't help me much boss...
• - Please Hudson, hadn't you ever a geography lesson? This place has to be somewhere in northeastern Europe...
• - Now I'm going to miss the game. I will definitely miss it Sparklees.

To be continued