[ WP ] You 're a time traveller who has gone back five years in time to amass a fortune by placing bets . Life is good until one day you are paid a visit by the FBI .

`` Am I under arrest, *officer*?'' 
 
 I stressed the last word, knowing that it would get a rise. Agent Lassiter looked at me hard. 
 
 `` Agent. Police are officers, I'm an agent.'' 
 
 `` Right,'Agent'. Anyway, if you're not going to arrest me, then....'' 
 
 `` You know, once upon a time, before I went into law enforcement, I went to college. Iowa State University. You know what I studied there?'' 
 
 `` No, what.'' I answered as bored as I could. Play their game, keep asking to leave. They've got nothing. 
 
 `` Physics. Iowa State actually has a very good physics department, not many people know that. Ranked # 50 in the country by US News and World Reports.'' 
 
 `` Uh huh.'' 
 
 `` I was interested in astronomy, see. Always loved looking at the stars. My old man would take me out to the country when I was young, away from the lights of Mason City - that's where I grew up, Mason City, Iowa - anyway, with this nice 12-inch telescope he had, and we'd find Mars, look at Saturn, and stuff.'' 
 
 Stall tactic. He's trying to get me off guard, hoping I'll say or do something. `` Listen, Agent Lassiter, that's fascinating and all, but I....'' 
 
 `` As it turns out, astronomy was n't for me. The math got to be too much for me, I never could get my head around calculus. But I did enjoy the physics classes that I took, especially the General Physics courses we took, which hit on a variety of subjects. Including time travel.'' 
 
 Shit. Wait, there's no way he can know. My ID is rock solid. I've got nothing on me tying me to the future. I planned this down to making sure my wallet is vintage. He's just trying to keep me talking. `` Agent....'' 
 
 `` Time travel was fascinating to me, especially travelling back in time. The Grandfather Paradox. Butterfly Effect. Stuff like that. Is that something you're familiar with?'' 
 
 `` Agent Lassiter, unless you are placing me under arrest, I'm going to get up and leave now.'' The door was locked. Shit. 
 
 `` See, the Butterfly Effect says that even minute changes you might make in the past, could have drastic consequences in the future. A butterfly beats it's wings in Japan, and a storm hits in Chicago, that kind of thing. But with time, right? So you travel back in time, and... oh, I do n't know... bet $ 100k on the Lions to win the Super Bowl.'' 
 
 I sat back down. `` If anyone can hear me, I am officially asking to leave, since as far as I know I am not under arrest. It appears that I am being held against my will. I would like to speak to an attorney, and I am going to excercise my right to remain silent.'' 
 
 `` But when you make a bet, you do n't make that bet in a vacuum, right? Bookmakers constantly shift the betting lines based on the action they are getting. So if you make a large bet on a long shot, that might slightly shift the odds. Not much, mind you, maybe just a point. But if that line shifts, other books might shift as well. And this shift might encourage others to bet, further shifting the line.'' 
 
 OK, Agent Lassiter, now you're interesting. I have to admit, this is something I had not considered during planning. `` But money tends to come in on both sides when a betting line moves. Unless there is known information, like a QB getting hurt or whatever, any movement usually ends up correcting itself.'' 
 
 Lassiter's eyes sparkled. Shit, why did I engage? Stupid, stupid, stupid. `` That's right, it would. But it's interesting you bring up'known information'. Because that's true as well; if some piece of information is made public that would affect the outcomes of games, the lines swing dramatically. If the information is important enough, the odds are taken down entirely.'' 
 
 I tried my best to look disinterested, and I'm sure faily miserably. Where was he going with this? 
 
 `` And that's just for information related to the game itself. Injuries and what not. It makes you wonder, what would happen if really shocking information got out? Something that would call into question the integrity of sports betting itself? Something like, you know, a time traveller coming back and placing bets based on future knowledge?'' 
 
 No. This ca n't be happening. He ca n't know; he's fishing. So why am I the one crapping my pants? `` What....what.....'' 
 
 `` It would shut down sports betting alltogether, I'd wager. Every bet of any significance would be questioned. Lines would swing wildly as people chased bets with their own money. It would start affecting the games themselves. If big money came in on the Lions to win the Super Bowl before the season even started, the Lions would figure'Hey, we're gon na win the Super Bowl!' and play differently. It would also affect the play of other teams.'' 
 
 `` You.....No....No one would believe you!'' 
 
 `` It's a wild tale for sure, I'd need proof. Proof like a certain individual that no one remembers meeting until a few months ago placing many large wagers in many different Vegas casinos, for example. Those cameras in the ceiling see everything, you know. Every person walking in the doors. Every bet placed at every window at the book. All nice and time coded and in full HD, just waiting to be found by some poor junior agent. It's not definitive proof, of course... maybe you really are just incredibly lucky. But it's enough to get the idea out there into the public. And once it's out there, it's never going away, right? You know how people love a good conspiracy theory.'' 
 
 I feel like Wile E. Coyote with a tiny umbrella, under a looming shadow. 
 
 `` And that's not even the worst part, is it? If people are coming to the past to bet on sports, what else are they doing? Are they playing the stock market with future knowledge? Are the subtly influencing elections? Are they bringing future tech back with them and giving it to certain world leaders, or terrorists? The implications would be devastating.'' 
 
 Now I've got a little sign that says `` Help''. 
 
 `` Imagine the effect that would have on the future as well. Never mind the Butterfly Effect, this is fucking Godzilla tearing up the entire world. Nothing would be the same. Millions, perhaps even billions of people would never exist. Anyone going back to such a future, even if he still existed, would be going back to an entirely different future.'' 
 
 Crunch. This man has just outlined how he can utterly destroy me by throwing a couple of rookie agents into a windowless room with a bunch of video tapes. He probably does n't even know how right he is; in retrospect, I ca n't believe how sloppy I've been. It would be childs play for him to do exactly as says. Doing this would potentially throw this timeline in chaos as well, it's difficult to believe he would actually do this, even if he really believes any of it. But there's no way I can take the chance. Everyone I've ever known, my entire family.... 
 
 `` Uh....what would you say if I told you I have a sudden and overwhelming desire to return... home?'' 
 
 `` I'd say click your heels together, Dorthy.''
