Backtrack

Chapter 2

        No, not a different place. I realize this quickly. I'm in another time. Judging by the attire of the people around me, I'd guess the 1700's. I must have gone insane. This isn't possible. After a while of slapping and pinching myself, I get the idea that I should stop. Weird stares aren't exactly something I need right now...

        People watch skeptically from a distance as a man cautiously approaches me.

        "Sir... May I ask who you are?" He says hesitantly.

        "Oh, um..." I start. Should I come up with a code name? That would be the coolest! I decide against this. "I'm Ryan." I answer instead. The man doesn't seem convinced. A crowd has started to form around me. Their whispers are making me feel self-conscious. I need to get out of here, and figure out what exactly happened. There's no respectable way to get out of a situation like this, so I make a run for it. Just as I take off running, I hear screams. I immediately worry. So much for my grand escape plan... I stop and turn around to see what is causing the distress. I am horrified to find that the cries were directed at me. Four young girls are staring directly into my eyes as they shriek and percussively thrash about. There are calls from the crowd. "They are being attacked!" "There is a witch in our presence!" "Where is she?" At this remark, all four girls point in my direction. What? They think I'm a- Why?! In a matter of moments, I'm besieged by a hoard of enraged townsfolk.

                                *                        *                        *

        I don't like courtrooms. At all. I didn't always hate them. In fact, I never gave them a second thought until today. However, now I have very strong feelings about them.

        Those four girls with their erroneous accusations are sitting together at a bench near the front of the room. The rest of the mob from earlier is scattered across the other seats, and I'm isolated on a podium. Succeeding an excessively long stretch of awkward silence, the man who I believe to be the prosecutor starts questioning me.

        "What is your name?" He asks.

        "Ryan," I say, half-heartidly.

        "You have been accused of witchcraft. There is solid evidence supporting this allegation. Are you or are you not a witch?" 

        "I'd like to see this 'solid evidence' that you're talking about. And aren't witches supposed to be girls?" I retorted.

        There are murmurs through out the council.

        The prosecutor pauses for a moment, then asks slowly, "Ryan, what is your gender?"

        I stare for a moment. He's dead serious. "Isn't that obvious? I'm a guy!"

        The four girls screech as I say this. I think I'll call them the Shrieking Banshees. The crowd reacts fanatically to the girls' outburst. The judge motions for silence.

        "Answer me again. Are you female?" The prosecutor asked me.

        "No, I'm not!"

        More cries from the "Shrieking Banshees"

        The prosecutor's tone hardens. "This is your last chance. If you lie one more time, you will be found guilty. Now tell me the truth!"

        This is pathetic! "Oh my god, fine! Sure, I'm a woman! Are you happy now?!" It seems that he's satisfied with my answer. He addresses the crowd.

        "This witch has used magic to disguise herself as a young boy. She admitted it herself that she did so. I believe this is enough evidence." He turns to me. "How do you plea?"

        This is the most screwed-up trial I've ever heard of.  "Not guilty!" I yell.

       "If you confess, you will have God's forgiveness. If you continue to plea 'not guilty' and we find that you are, indeed, guilty, you are condemned to the death sentence."

        No way! This is totally unfair! 

        "I am not guilty! And you can't get me to confess!"

        ...This is one of the times that I want to punch my pride in the face. Just then, I feel a buzzing in my back pocket. My cell phone? I pull it out and unlock it. There are overly-expressive gasps from all over the room as I do so. I have a notification from Backtrack:

        "Oops! We glitched out. Our calibration was slightly off. We apologize for any inconvenience. We'll take you back to your time so we can try again. Press here to continue..."

        Now I'm really confused. Is the app what sent me back in time?

        Shouts of "Witchcraft!" ring in the court. Personally, I'd rather not be hanged, so I take my chances with the app. I tap the designated area, and I feel lightheaded as a stream of lights spiral around me.

        Once I regain my senses, I take a look around. And it would seem that the impossible has occurred again.