“I’m not sure you completely understand the possible ramifications of this decision.” Keri shook her head at her husband of sixty years as she tucked their five-year-old granddaughter into her containment pod for an afternoon nap.

She gave the child a kiss on the forehead and wished her sweet dreams, then followed her husband to the park-here. She passed by their other eight grandchildren; all conceived in test tubes, but well-loved none-the-less. The nine were staying with them while the parents took a much-needed expat. Ages ten to seventeen, they sat cross-legged on the floor of the OverPod, headsets in place, huddled together in front of the Viewer; each lost in someone else’s imagination.

When she entered the park-here, Keri frowned at the hundreds of tiny, unfinished, handheld mechanisms littering their work space. Thousands more were packed into the boxes that almost completely filled the area.

Both husband and wife had been keeping their magneticons on the tarmac for months waiting impatiently for the day all current orders were fulfilled and the Intergalactic Courier Service would show up for the second time. They would load their ships with the recent orders, and deliver the long-awaited, finished product to more recipients throughout the galaxy. Orders had been coming in for weeks and the first shipments had gone out only a few days earlier.

“Our Spanner Scanner is going to do so much good in this world, and others,” Maxwell said. “Not to mention the money we’ll make so we can pay back our investors before they come after us. I’m surprised at how patient they’ve been. Besides, you and I have both already used the device with great success. Why are you having second thoughts now?”

Keri sighed as she plopped down on a bench next to one of the sealed boxes. “It’s too risky, Max. You and I have more degrees between us than Saturn has moons. We were smart and careful, and look at what we caused.” She glanced toward the OverPod where their family engaged in mind-numbing recreation, blissfully unaware that the grandparents had risked everything on a questionable invention. “We have so much to lose if anything goes wrong.”

“But that’s the beauty of our invention.” He reached for her hand and pulled her into his embrace. “Anything that gets messed up we can go back and fix. Just like we already did. Don’t you trust me?”

Keri reached her arms around his back as she laid her head against his chest. “More than anyone or anything. It’s all the others who have purchased the device that worry me.”

The two separated as an ICS ship landed on their block. Three droids lumbered out onto the tarmac, waiting for instructions. Max pointed them toward the taped and addressed boxes and the droids made short work of the loading. Max was handed a bill of lading and the ship soon disappeared into the clouds.

Keri turned to head inside to check on the kids, calling over her shoulder to Max, “I’m afraid that allowing anyone in the galaxy who has enough credits to purchase their own personal time travel device is going to prove to be a grave mistake.”

“You should have more faith in us Lifelings,” her husband said. “I’m sure all who use it will have only the best interest of others at heart.”

Within seconds, Keri’s scream reverberated throughout the OverPod, then faded just as quickly. Max sprinted down the path she’d taken, but exploded into mist before he reached the door to the OverPod.

Keri was correct that selling time travel devices to all who could afford them would prove to be poor business, as well as a horrible idea. Turns out loan sharks never practice patience when it comes to waiting for their investment funds to be returned along with 100% interest. Making an example of those who default on their loan is still thought to be the best solution.

Max and Keri had made that job much easier by selling their device to everyone with enough credits to make the purchase. Including a certain inter-galactic loan shark.

Only one problem. Eliminating the source of the invention also eliminates the invention.

The entire known galaxy abruptly went silent as all Lifelings disappeared into mist.