Project Time

Chapter 13: I'm Vanessa

"Wake up"

"Rise and shine sleepyhead"

"I said wake up!" The girl shouted; she poured a juice over Trisha.

Trisha woke up all of the sudden due to the cold juice. Her vision was still blurry, and with a throbbing headache. The sterile, metallic room around her seemed both unfamiliar and intimidating. The girl was slowly approaching toward her.

"Who are you? Where am I? Why am I here?" Trisha's voice trembled as she spoke.

"Whoa, slow down. One at a time," the girl said, glancing up from a small tablet. "Let me check your background first."

The girl tapped on her tablet, which emitted a soft hum as it scanned Trisha. She squirmed under the scrutiny, feeling exposed.

"Who are you?" Trisha asked again, her voice firmer this time.

"I'm Vanessa," the girl replied.

"Where am I, Vanessa?"

"Welcome to the Timeline Order Authority," Vanessa said with a hint of pride in her voice.

"Timeline Order what?" Trisha's confusion deepened.

"Timeline Order Authority," Vanessa repeated, enunciating each word carefully. "Are you deaf?"

Before Trisha could respond, Vanessa moved towards her with a pair of handcuffs and a neck cuff. Trisha instinctively recoiled.

"What are you doing?"

"Standard procedure," Vanessa said. "Don't try to escape. This neck cuff will electrocute you if you attempt anything funny."

Trisha reluctantly allowed herself to be restrained, the cold metal of the cuffs sending shivers down her spine. Vanessa led her out of the room and into a vast lobby bustling with guards and workers. Pictures of Vanessa and other unfamiliar people lined the walls.

"Here we manage your timeline," Vanessa explained. "Not just yours, but everyone's."

"What do you mean?" Trisha asked, bewildered.

"Aren't you a scientist?" Vanessa inquired.

"Yes, how do you know?"

"I know everything, Dr. Merdova. And I know what you've done."

"I haven't done anything wrong," Trisha protested.

Vanessa sighed, exasperated, and guided Trisha into her office near the lobby. With a flick of her wrist, she activated a bright line across the room.

"This is a holographic projection," Vanessa said. "This line represents your life. Every decision, every moment of every second, is this line. Until..."

"Until what?" Trisha prompted.

The line began branching out.

"Until you made the fucking time machine and went back in time," Vanessa said, her voice dripping with contempt.

"Hey, it's bad to start dropping f-bombs," Trisha chided.

"Bitch, please. It's chapter thirteen and a little late for this," Vanessa snapped, then quickly caught herself. "Sorry, old habits."

"Anyway, why am I here?" Trisha asked, trying to steer the conversation back on track.

"You've created an anomaly," Vanessa said. "You've made alternate versions of yourself. Do you know what happened the first time you created the time machine?"