A Hitch in Time: A Time Traveler’s Fatal Decision

Thom Ra risks everything for a single chance at a better life. To earn the citizenship rank that will allow him to marry the woman he loves, he accepts a mission few travelers survive: journey into the deep past and uncover the truth behind the legendary War of Annihilation.

The past is supposed to be untouchable. Change even a small event and the traveler becomes stranded forever in a new branch of time. Yet when Ra arrives at the decisive moment of the war, the weapon before him does not match the records that survived into his era. What begins as careful observation quickly turns into chaos, and a split-second decision forces him to act.

Now Ra must decide whether to follow the rules drilled into every chronistic scholar or repair the damage he has already caused. Surrounded by suspicious soldiers and a weapon capable of wiping out a planet, he faces a terrible choice. If he refuses to interfere, history may collapse. If he helps them, he may doom everything that once gave his life meaning.

Frederik Pohl’s “A Hitch in Time” delivers a sharp and unforgettable time-travel paradox. The story combines high-stakes science fiction with the human cost of changing events that were never meant to be touched.

Frederik Pohl (1919–2013) was one of the most influential figures in science fiction. As both writer and editor, he helped shape the genre for decades. Pohl edited the magazines Galaxy Science Fiction and If, winning multiple Hugo Awards for his editorial work. As an author he produced landmark novels such as The Space Merchants (with C. M. Kornbluth), Gateway, and the Heechee series. His shorter fiction appeared in magazines including Astounding Science Fiction, Galaxy, and Amazing Stories, where stories like “A Hitch in Time” showcased his talent for combining speculative ideas with devastating twists.