How could Neil Gates prove his great-great grandfather was innocent of the deliberate friendly fire death of his own brigadier general at the battle of Gettysburg during the Civil War some fourteen decades earlier? How could Dr. Henry Welles protect his project examining time travel from a governmental seizure? The two situations mirror one another as confidant Neil Gates embraces his role of the 'fan plucked from the stands' thus becoming the first individual to experience a teleportation to another era.

Dr. Welles and Neil Gates seize Project Sundial after a CIA plan to confiscate the hardware for its own corrupt purpose surfaces. To prove the worthiness of the project, Neil volunteers to go back to the three day Civil War battle of Gettysburg in an attempt to clear his great-great grandfather's name and prove Dr. Welles right.