[ WP ] You are Microsoft 's lead physicist and the company has just turned on its $ 40 billion wormhole machine for the first time . As soon as it powers on , it spits out a message from the future . `` STOP . ''

The tension in the control room was palpable. A room chock-full of renowned mathematicians, engineers, and physicists, and not a one of us knew what was about to happen. All we knew was we were about to make or break history. 
 
 My eyes flicked from the button to my mentor and closest friend, Johann Friedman, and back to the button. A line of sweat fell from my temple onto my lab coat. 
 
 “ On my count, ” Dr. Friedman said, a mix of excitement and nervousness drawn all over his face. We all knew actual time travel was still a science fiction fantasy, but this data-transfer wormhole could, considering the internet still exists in its present form in the year 2317, theoretically allow us to make contact with the future. 
 
 This moment was nearly a decade in the making. Years of hypothesizing and checking and testing and peer-reviewing all boiled down to this precise moment. 
 
 “ Three. ” Dr. Friedman reached out and turned the first key. He placed his hands behind his back, signaling his job was done. 
 
 “ Two. ” My colleague, Dr. Fred Nagas, an Astrophysics Professor at MIT turned the second key. Just minutes ago, he had called this experiment the first baby step toward the creation of a full-scale wormhole. Of course, the end-goal is time travel, but you must create a passageway through space-time before you can traverse it. 
 “ One. ” My hand lowered onto the beautiful red button, as though pushed, or rather pulled, by gravity itself. 
 
 “ **C O M M E N C I N G... ** ” The bright green letters displayed on the screen like a hacker ’ s computer terminal in a cheesy 90s flick. “ **.... S U C C E S S! G A T E W A Y B R I D G E E S T A B L I S H E D... ** ” 
 
 Nobody cheered. Nobody would cheer until actual contact was made. 
 
 They waited in silence for my signal. A voice—my voice, which seemed to speak on its own without my consent—said, “ Send the test signal. ” 
 
 “ Test signal submitted, ” said Dr. Clemens. He leaned forward in his seat, keeping his eyes steady on the projector screen. 
 
 “ **M E S S A G E S U B M I T T E D... ** ” 
 
 Before we could congratulate ourselves, another line appeared. 
 
 “ **M E S S A G E R E C E I V E D... ** ” 
 
 A round of gasps began and were cut off as the message appeared on the screen. 
 
 > [ 10:52 am 1/11/2317 dQw4w9WgXcQ ]: STOP. 
 
 We had established communication with the future, but the forceful nature of the message gave us pause. 
 
 “ Stop? ” Dr. Clemens said. He scratched his white beard and looked at me like a toddler put in time-out. “ What do we do? ” 
 
 I wiped my face and gave Dr. Friedman the same look. 
 
 Dr. Friedman chuckled. “ Looks like they ’ re running out of usernames in the future. ” Nervous laughter followed from the rest of us. “ Probing questions, Dr. Clemens. ” 
 
 > [ 10:54 am 1/11/2017 W-holeTestAcct ]: Stop what, might I ask? 
 
 -- - 
 “ **M E S S A G E R E C E I V E D... ** ” 
 
 > [ 10:55 am 1/11/2317 dQw4w9WgXcQ ]: DROP. SHUT ‘ EM DOWN, OPEN UP SHOP. 
 
 > [ 10:55 am 1/11/2317 HelixFelix ]: democracy 
 
 
 > [ 10:55 am 1/11/2317 HarambeBless009877 ]: LOOOOOOL 
 
 > [ 10:55 am 1/11/2317 Bwanosideas15 ]: GOT EEM 
 
 > [ 10:55 am 1/11/2317 XxsinicalboixX ]: lmao -.- 
 
 > [ 10:55 am 1/11/2317 JohnCenaluvU ]: THE FUTURE SUCKS BRO DON ’ T COME HERE K 
 
 > [ 10:55 am 1/11/2317 velmadaphne ]: holy they live on earth! whatss good earthlings 
 
 > [ 10:55 am 1/11/2317 14fcaligurl ]: YOU KILLED BOWIE 
 
 > [ 10:55 am 1/11/2317 4444444444444444 ]: this is 2 funny 
 
 > [ 10:55 am 1/11/2317 HelixFelix ]: democracy 
 
 > [ 10:56 am 1/11/2317 gotthevaccine ]: did u tell em stop? 
 
 > [ 10:56 am 1/11/2317 HarambeBless009877 ]: DESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESUDESU DESU DESU DESU DESU 
 
 > [ 10:56 am 1/11/2317 anononmars ] W-hole? wtf is w-hole? 
 
 > [ 10:56 am 1/11/2317 FartBart99 ] anyone catch simpsons last night? Show isn ’ t funny anymore 

