"I Understand How It Travels Through the Generations"

IN A PREVIOUS POST John Brunner had some fun with the concept of time travel. In today's story, our author takes a different tone—a very different tone. Perhaps you've heard of the grandfather paradox; if you combine that with daddy issues, you might get something exactly like . . .

"Regeneration."

By Rory Harper (born 1950; Wikipedia HERE; the ISFDb HERE; and the SFE HERE).

Illustrated by Ron Lindahn (ISFDb HERE).

First appearance: Aboriginal SF, December 1986.

Reprints page (ISFDb HERE).

Reprinted in Aboriginal Science Fiction Annual Anthology, May 1988 (today's text).

Short short short story (4 pages).

Online at Archive.org (HERE).

(Parental caution: Graphic violence.)

   "Coming back and killing you is expensive. But it’s worth every dollar . . ."

"What goes around comes around." Sure, it's a cliché, but it has this disturbing habit of often being true . . .

Principal characters:

~ Levi ("I wish you’d quit hurting me, Pop"), Pop ("Real sorry for yourself, ain’t you?"), and Jacob ("You shouldn’t take this personally. You’re not real, you know").

Resource:

- George H. Smith's "Paradox Lost" also deals with time travel snarls (HERE).

Unless otherwise noted, all bibliographical data are derived from The FictionMags Index created by William G. Contento & edited by Phil Stephensen-Payne.

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