Twisted Time

37 - Timelines

The museum, 03:31

Dan presses her hand over Ric's, enjoying the warmth of his touch on her neck. As soon as the lighting stabilises, she leans back with a sigh, only to jump when the wheel brace stabs into the small of her back. She yanks the unwieldy tool out of her waistband and places it on the upholstery, next to the fire extinguisher. "If I forget these souvenirs here, they'll at least fit chronologically with the furniture."

"Hm, if you leave them, this will probably be the first museums' burglary where the invaders leave exhibits instead of stealing them. I'd like to see the face of the curator when they stumble over your improvised arsenal."

Dan can't help but smile. She imagines the stunned expression of the police officer—confronted with a stressed, bewildered museum's director who explains that no, the thieves didn't get away with valuable items. But, and that's indeed extraordinary, they left some priceless and unique antiquities instead.

"I might donate my wrench. It was more than worth the investment and has earned a retirement spot in a quiet display case." She chuckles and leans into Ric's embrace. "The spent extinguisher is useless anyway. Perhaps I should write a gift card for the museum and wrap it in some fancy paper with a pink bow. Would 'with regards from Dan, passing by on her maiden trip to the future' do?"

Now it's Ric's turn to suppress laughter. "You should add your surname. And sign it. A signature of Danielle Lent would make this piece worth a fortune."

Dan likes it when he's happy, and the corners of her mouth curl into a smile of her own. But suddenly it hits home that these are the last minutes she gets to spend with him. There is no way to deny that she developed a severe crush on her mysterious dark stranger. The realisation makes her feel like a swooning teenager. Time to pull herself together and let the rational section of her mind take over. Dan, the scientist, to the rescue of my romantic self. "Ric, how can you be sure your virus does its job? What if it glitches?"

Ric's mirth evaporates like morning mist in the sun. He stares at their interwoven fingers with a deep frown. It takes a while until his gaze returns to hers. Caught in the realisation he is about to spill some of his secrets, she swallows in anticipation. Her throat feels parched.

"The Chronos archive contains a report about tonight. I've read it when I prepared for the mission but never realised I'd be there to witness the events first hand. Or play a part in them. It states that the uppermost three storeys of the underground headquarter burnt out completely. The firefighters succeeded—or will succeed—to douse the fire at dawn. They'll also discover the illegal time-lab underneath the destructed area."

Dan lifts a hand. "So you knew the facility was about to be destroyed. Why come here in the first place?"

"It's complicated. Local representatives of Chronos will be called to investigate and secure the remains of the TAs. They'll conclude these were test systems, never put to use and not yet functional. They won't be able to recover data or the basic software and will be relieved the one apparatus designed to transport persons is still at an experimental stage. Well, back in 2103 the technology was new and untested, so their error is understandable."

Dan needs a moment to digest the information. Already a dozen new questions bubble in her mind, and she struggles to order her thoughts. Where to begin?

"Ric, how long do we have? I want to know a million important things before I'm catapulted home."

"You stay here as long as we remain in direct contact. So do I, our overlapping time-fields stabilise each other, to use the simple explanation. Although our armed friends will show up soon, I fear."

"All right, let's not waste our short reprieve. I still want to know why you cam here when Chronos already knows the lab is destroyed tonight."

"The contemporary report left a heap of questions unanswered, and when we tracked disturbances in the time continuum to this year and place, we wanted proof. I came here as an observer, to add my eyewitness account to the 2103 report."

"I'd say you were unusually active for a mere observer. Though I'm not convinced yet your century defines observation the same as mine."

Ric's pulls a face that shows his discomfort with her statement. Her giggle irritates him even more and leads to a deep furrow on his forehead.

"Part of my job was to ensure all relevant data are and remain lost. That's what I've done. The rest... we don't know if this isn't exactly what was, or is, supposed to happen tonight. The Chronos agents weren't involved, and their superficial report lacks details. Besides, I already told you there are unanswered questions, mysteries, and loose ends."

"Don't tell me this was planned. The trick with the welder was a spur-of-the-moment idea, I'm not a professional saboteur."

"Perhaps you should consider a career change, you were good, tonight. And for the true timeline to unravel, a fire was essential. This is the key event that allowed to discover and stop the illegal activities of the gang. Reportedly, the members will all be arrested in the next two or three weeks. I'm sure this is all based on our joint preparations."

Dan shakes her head, not sure she understands the whole concept of timelines. However, Ric seems mostly happy with the outcome of the evening.

"So you're convinced your bosses at Chronos will be happy about your results?"

"Our results. We're a team, a great one. We should repeat this collaboration."

Dan smiles and imagines seeing Ric again. But before she can voice her agreement, a blinking purple light on the Metec calls for his attention. Ric looks up to the ceiling. Muffled steps pass overhead, signalling that their private time is running out.