Mark Elver, a terminally ill doctor, agrees to be the first time traveler with a destination
some four centuries in the future. His first contact upon arrival is with a pair of children,
but the world has more beyond them.
The birthplace of time-travel, a collection of huts huddled together well away from the
main campus, did not look impressive. A cheap sign nailed to the paint-hungry door stated
‘Dept., of Physics—Project Four’, below that a thumb-tacked notice, the lettering
faded added a little more information: ‘Go away. If you must, ring bell.’