Eu estou olhando para encontrar uma velha história de ficção científica que eu li em uma antologia há muitos anos (provavelmente nos anos 60) chamada 'What Time Is It?'
O ISFDB lista quatro histórias por esse título, incluindo histórias de Isaac Asimov , Jack C. Haldeman, II , e Rita Lamb , mas o único você está procurando é "Que horas são?" por Richard M. Elam, Jr. .
É sobre um grupo de garotos do ensino médio ou universitário
Dois garotos do ensino médio:
"A college engineering teacher's pay must be good these days," quipped Chuck Parker, as they walked up the winding flagstone path to the house.
Tom, who was tall with wavy blond hair, looked down on his shorter, freckle-faced companion. "A professor's pay couldn't afford this, Chuck. Dr. Haley's one of the outstanding scientists in the country. It's his great inventions in electronics that have brought him the extra cash."
"Wonder what he wants to see a couple of high-school goofs like us for?" Chuck muttered.
que entram na máquina do tempo do professor
A pedido dele. Ele não estava planejando enviar os meninos através do tempo, ele só queria que eles consertassem um interruptor defeituoso, mas eles acidentalmente começaram:
It was a tight fit for the two of them. Tom handed Chuck a screw driver and showed him what he wanted. Chuck lifted the spring, but it popped back into his face. Chuck swung his arm back, startled.
And then it happened.
The boys' eyes suddenly became blurry, and they felt as though they were going down in a whirlpool. Their knees buckled, and they alternately felt terrible heat and icy cold. Then they blacked out . . .
e acabar no passado lutando contra os índios
Na verdade, a primeira parada foi no Pleistoceno: sabertooths, glyptodons, etc. A próxima parada deles é conhecer índios:
"The ancient Canal Builders!" Tom said suddenly. "This is six or seven hundred years before our time. Some of the race's artifacts were recovered on the northwest corner of the campus last year—just about the spot where that village is!"
Nossos meninos não brigam, mas estão no meio de uma briga indiana vs. indiana:
Down the slope the attackers plunged, obviously heading for the village. They appeared unaware of the cringing youths and their curious machine. In a moment Tom knew they would be on top of them.
He yanked the fear-paralyzed Chuck into the Traveler. An arrow from the village defenders skimmed so close to Tom he could see the turkey-feathered shaft. His hands trembling, he seized the lever and shoved it forward. Once again they were hurled into the stream of time. . .
e, em seguida, pule para o futuro, onde todos os carros são em forma de lágrima.
The windows were huge long rectangles that were crystal clear. The boys decided that these must be a kind of Plexiglas. They looked out one of the windows and gasped at what they saw.
It was definitely the future. The air was full of low winking lights that turned out to be helicopters. It seemed as though nearly every family in the city must own one. There were a number of triple-decked highway trestles, completely lighted, over which sped teardrop-shaped automobiles.