A Hard Fork In Time: Tesla's Departure (Part 1)
“Come in. Sit down.”
A tall figure with dark hair and light eyes entered the room. He was silent as he closed the heavy, ornately carved oak door behind him. It creaked and then closed with a thud. Though he appeared gangly and awkward, an aura of cool confidence encompassed him.
“You summoned me, Mr. Edison?” he asked in a thick Serbian accent.
“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. Tesla” Edison remarked cordially.
“I do believe we have met before,” Tesla replied.
Edison winced. He had expected a simple urbane reply like “The pleasure is mine, Mr. Edison,” or at the very least “Thank you. It’s a pleasure to meet you, too.” Instead, he feared, he was going to have to listen to a long drawn-out account of an inconsequential meeting on the factory floor or at some dinner party.
His intuition was correct.
“I was the Parisian who stayed up all night repairing the dynamos on the Oregon.” Tesla continued, exaggerating his accent for effect. He paused for a moment to allow his sarcasm to sink in.
Edison knew at once that he was dealing with a man who would not be intimidated by intellectual prowess. Indeed, Tesla was at least his equal in that regard. Perhaps an appeal to his vanity?
“Ahh! Nikola, right?” Edison tried to sound like he hadn’t studied up on the man before calling him in. “You really got us out of a jam that night! I’ve said it before, but it I think it bears repeating: Tesla, you’re a damned good man. It is no wonder that you came so highly recommended by Batchelor.”
Nikola Tesla stared back unwaveringly. “You summoned me,” he paused for a split second, “Mr. Edison?”
Thomas Edison paused for a moment trying to assess the situation. He wasn’t accustomed to having to work so hard for a deal. Most men bent to his will like red hot iron under the smith’s hammer, but Nikola Tesla was not “most men”. This negotiation was going to require a more direct approach.
“Let’s get down to the brass tacks, Mr. Tesla.” He began. “I have a problem, and I believe you are the best man to solve it.”
“I’m listening, Mr. Edison. What is the job?”
“Undoubtedly, you are familiar with my direct current electric generator.”
“Inferior as they are,” Tesla muttered under his breath.
“Pardon?”
“Carry on, Mr. Edison.”
“As I was saying, I am having some efficiency problems with a series of generators. I need you to take a look at them and see what you can do about fixing them.”
“What’s the problem?” Tesla asked.
“Well, if I knew that, I wouldn’t need you on the job, now would I?”came the retort. But, realizing that insolence wouldn’t get him anywhere with this man, Edison took a calming breath, softened his tone and continued. “There are twenty-four machines in all, but for some reason, their combined power output is far lower than it should be. I’ve had my men working on them for months now with no progress. I’ve seen your work, Mr. Tesla, and I am confident that you can fix the problem.”
Nikola nodded, “I am certain that I can, but it could take months--years, even!”
Edison’s impatience boiled to the surface, again. “Damn it, man! I don’t have years. I don’t have A year! I need this done within the next 6 months. The future of Edison Machine Works depends on it!”
Edison stopped talking immediately. He couldn’t believe what he had just said. Here he was, a man of business schooled in the art of the deal, and he had just made the most fundamental of negotiating errors. He tried to play it off in hopes that Tesla’s lack of business savvy would keep him from realizing that the ball was entirely in his court, but he would have no such luck.
Tesla lowered his head and peered up from beneath a furrowed brow. “But, Mr. Edison, what you ask is physically impossible. There aren’t enough waking hours in the day to accomplish such a feat.”
Realizing his disadvantaged position, Edison decided to drop the negotiation. “I recall the evening Batchelor and I ran into you outside the building. You had been up well over 24 hours working on that ship’s generator. I have heard about your regular sleeping habits, and they are very similar to mine. That is to say nonexistent. If any man on the face of this planet can get this job done, it is you.” Eidson paused, considering his next move carefully. “If you can get those generators running at full capacity within the six month time frame, I am willing to pay you a $50,000 bonus.”
A tingle shot through Tesla’s body like an electric shock, and he had to wait for the roar in his ears to die down before he could even attempt a reply. Still, he kept his composure so well that his adversary feared the negotiation may well have to continue. Finally, after recovering from the shock of such a life-altering opportunity, Tesla raised his head and looked Edison straight in the eye. “I will get those generators running, Mr. Edison, and with time to spare.”
Immediately, Thomas Edison felt as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He had a newfound respect for one Nikola Tesla: the man who had bested him in the art of the deal but still had the integrity to allow for a mutually beneficial agreement. He stood up and extended his hand. “Nikola, it was a pleasure doing business with you.”
Tesla rose to his feet. At 6’ 2”, he stood a good four inches taller than Edison, which forced him to look down upon his superior. His hand engulfed Thomas Edison’s, and they sealed their deal with a handshake.
“I will begin at once.” Nikola stated. He turned and opened the creaky wooden door. It closed behind him with a triumphant thump.
Thomas Edison traipsed over to his office window overlooking Goerck Street in the lower east side of Manhattan. He usually found comfort in watching the people below going about their daily lives; scurrying to and fro while they ran errands and fulfilled their mundane existence. On this occasion, however, his sole focus was on the preceding encounter as he replayed the whole exchange in his head.
“Fifty. Thousand. Dollars.” he finally said aloud.
“That’s a lot of money!” came a voice from behind him.
“You’re damned right that’s a lot of money!” Edison exclaimed before stopping sharply. His back quickly straightened as he realized that he was supposed to be alone. His mind raced, and within the time it took him to spin around on his heels, a million different thoughts had already come and gone.
Am I hearing things? No, the sound definitely came from behind me. Who would be foolish enough to barge into my office unannounced? But, I didn’t hear the door open?
By the time he completed his about-face, he had convinced himself that someone had been hiding in his office throughout the entire standoff with Tesla, but to what end he did not know. He hoped to find a trustworthy confidant like Charles Batchelor standing behind him, but nothing could have prepared him for his next encounter.
I hope you enjoyed Part 1 of A Hard Fork In Time: Tesla's Departure. Please, let me know what you think in the comments, and check back tomorrow for Part 2!!
Also, if you think your followers might enjoy the story, give it a ReSteem!
Some of the source material that I used for inspiration:
The Oct 1 episode of The Conspiracy Show w/ Richard Syrett
Nikola Tesla's Autobiography, My Inventions
This LiveScience article.
This article from Open Mind
When you say "a hard fork in time" are you referring to a deviation from the path of historical events? I'm not well read on Tesla and Edison, so I'm not sure if your post is based on historical events or not.
Please let me know whether this is a true story or not, but either way, this was a very interesting read and I look forward to reading the second part as well!
Ummm, yes and no. Tesla did work for Edison, and Tesla was promised a $50,000 bonus for some work that he never recieved. Popular legend has it that Edison himself offered the bonus and then refused saying "You just don't understand American humor" (or something to that effect), implying that he wasn't serious when he made the promise. In real reality it was probably just one of Tesla's managers that screwed him over, but the Tesla vs. Edison version is much more fun!
There will be "hard fork" in time that happens in Part 2. The story ended up being a little longer than I had intended, so I felt that I needed to break it up. I'll probably post the rest tomorrow.
Thank you for taking the time to read and comment!
good post and interesting
Wow! You must be a speed reader! Thanks!
Thank you again