Chapter 1: When is a mission not a mission?
Jen sat in Alex's office, looking around her. She hadn't been to her ex's office in a long time, since he usually talked to her in the Squad Room now, and was amazed at how little it had changed, although it really shouldn’t have surprised her at all. Alex was a creature of habit and he took change hard.
It had always amused her that Alex kept both plants and mementos in his office, since they gave him away as the sentimental type he was and tried so hard to hide. She could see a prototype of a morpher, some photo cubes and -- her heart skipped a beat -- the engagement ring he had given her –the one she had given back- displayed in a little glass box on a shelf behind his desk. It made her feel uneasy, especially after the last few months, so she looked away from it, looking at the plants on the other side of the room instead and wanting Alex to come in as soon as possible.
She had to wait a few more minutes before the door opened and Alex walked in, a file tablet of files in his hand.
"Sorry I'm late," he said, closing the door and walking towards the desk. "Got caught up in something, as usual."
She smiled. "It's alright. What's going on?"
He pressed a button on his console on the desk and the crystal wall that kept the interior of his office visible from the hallway went opaque. "I need your help with something."
"An opaque wall something. It must be serious." Jen knew that Alex didn’t like to lose his view of the squad room, so he only made the wall opaque for very serious or high-level confidentiality meetings.
"It's not serious, but it is important,” he placed his hands on the desk, folded over the tablet he had brought in with him. “Have you ever met Commander James Robertson?"
She sat in silence for a minute, trying to remember if she had seen him at the debriefing of the Ransik mission, which most of the commanders had attended. She shook her head. "I don't think he was at the Ransik debriefing and I don’t exactly hang out with commanders. And I’ve been away, so, no."
"He probably wasn't at the debriefing. James is the head of the Applied Sciences Division. He barely ever goes to debriefings, no matter how important the case."
"Do you know him?"
"Well. We met when he asked for my help testing the Time Shadow Megazord. We've become good friends since then."
"So, the Applied Sciences Division. I'm not sure there's much I can do for them, I’m not a particularly science driven person."
"Yeah, well, this isn't about the Applied Sciences Division. This is about James." Alex took a deep breath and looked directly at her eyes. "I need you to do something for me."
"Do you need me to do something for you or something for James?"
"Let’s say it’s for both of us," he looked down at the file on his desk. "James conducts research aside from his work in Time Force and he's working on an interesting project right now. A very important project."
"What kind of very important project?"
"He's trying to document and study as much as he can about the Venjix Event -- the near extinction event from early in the 21st century."
"I know what the Venjix Event is."
"Well, he found information on a woman. He could only find her by an alias, and he asked me to ask you if you'd interview her for him."
"Interview her for him? How?"
"Travelling back in time." His face expressed clearly just how obvious he thought that fact should have been to her.
"He wants me to travel back to the 21st century and interrogate someone for his research?" Jen said with a raised voice to show she was more than just slightly annoyed by the request. "I have real work to do here, Alex. Real criminals to catch! A city to rebuild! We just came out of a war!"
"I know but-"
"But nothing. The answer is no. If he wants to interview this woman, he can do it himself." She got up to leave and Alex stopped her by calling to her.
"He fears it might happen again." She turned to look at him and Alex continued, "He thinks the technological moment right now is perfect for an event similar to the Venjix one." He pointed at the chair. "Please."
She sat back down. "I still don't understand why he can't do it himself."
"Like I said, this is research he's conducting aside from Time Force for now. He will admit it's a bit of a crazy theory if you asked him right now. That's why he wants to know as much as he can about Venjix, especially where it came from and how it was defeated before presenting it to the other commanders."
"And he can't leave his post at Time Force, but I can."
"It's not just Time Force he has to worry about, it’s more complicated. But that's not why he asked me to ask you. He wasn't at the Ransik debriefing but he read the transcripts. He thinks your knowledge of the time period and your capacity to work alone as well as a part of a team are impressive, and he thinks you show great empathy, which makes you ideal for the kind of interview he needs." Jen fixed her eyes on him as he spoke of her capacities. "I have to say I agree with him."
"So he doesn't want someone to go to the past to do this interview he wants-"
"You. He wants you to do it."
She blushed slightly. "I'm flattered, but even if I agree, how will I get there? It's not like Time Force will lend me a time ship to do research, no matter if it's for a commander."
"You won't be using one of Time Force's ships. You'll be using one of James' ships." She looked at him, frozen in shock. She couldn’t imagine how someone could own a time ship, it wasn’t like the technology was accessible to the general public. Let alone more than one.
"One of James' time ships?" She heard herself repeat.
"Yes, his research labs have a small fleet," Alex said nonchalantly. "As for the permissions, don't worry. That's where I come in."
"And who will take care of my cases while I am gone? Alex, I need some time to think this through."
"I will."
Her eyes went wide. "You? You will take my cases?"
"Personally. And I will do my best to close as many of them as I can."
And by that he meant all of them, Jen knew. Whoever this James Robertson guy was, he meant a lot to Alex if he was willing to be back on the street just so she could do this for him.
"He's a really close friend, isn't he?"
Alex didn't answer immediately. He got up and paced up and down the office a couple of times. He stopped and looked at her, as if he was trying to find the right words. "Shortly after we met, I found out, and not from him, that it was James who saved my life after Ransik attacked me. It was technology he had developed that saved me. He didn't bring it up or cash in on it, and I don't think he knows that I know he saved my life. It's his technology that keeps me alive, Jen, and yet, he has never mentioned a single thing about it."
"He sounds like a very humble man."
"He is. He saved my life and if he asked me to shake Time Force from the foundation so he could test a theory, I would do it. I'm not letting you leave this office until you say 'yes'."
"If he means that much to you and if he asked for me specifically, how can I say 'no' to the man who saved your life?" She had gotten up and was standing very close to him.
He stepped away from her and sat down again. He took a couple of deep breaths while Jen sat back down. "Good, thank you. I’m sorry that got a little—anyway, here are the details." He handed her the tablet he had been holding when he came in. "James will program one other stop in your ship. There's someone he'd like you to pick up before you get to Corinth. Another asset for the interviews, I honestly don’t know how he finds these people."
Jen did a quick scan through the information in the tablet. The names of the people she had to interview, information on the specific time period, the coordinates to Corinth City and a very long list of equipment. "All this equipment is at my disposal for just a couple of interviews?"
"From James' labs, yes."
"You keep saying 'James' labs' instead of Time Force's-"
"That stuff doesn't belong to Time Force, Jen. This is not a Time Force mission. You’re not been ordered by James or me to go on this mission. This is an everything goes research mission. James is asking you, on the side, one person to another, to conduct a research mission for him. All that stuff belongs to James, not Time Force." He opened his drawer and pulled out a black box. "However, this does belong to Time Force," he said, opening the box and holding it so she could see its contents. Inside was her morpher. She looked at it, her heart racing. She hadn’t seen or worn it in almost two years. "I think you should take this, just in case. Take good care of it."
She took the device carefully and felt like she was being reunited with an old friend. He put the box in front of her. "You can't put it on while you're still in this time. Time Force can track it and you haven’t been cleared to use it again. But It's still locked to your DNA." She put the device back in the box and closed it. "It's almost lunch time. Have lunch and meet me at the main gate. I'll take you to James' labs."
"Do I at least get to meet him before I leave?"
"He was very adamant that he would be too busy elsewhere to meet you before you left. Which is code for 'I need an alibi and I will make one'."
She smirked. "So he can throw us under the bus if things go wrong?"
It was his turn to smirk. “Actually, he’s giving me an alibi too and you were never here so…”
“I see. Mischievous little commander.”
"Well, I know you are not a gossip kind of woman," Alex said getting up to lead her out of the office. "But he’s very mischievous. A total ladies’ man. And gentlemen's man too, he’s not picky." She laughed. “He says he just doesn’t like to dine alone, make of that what you will.”
He opened the door to indicate she should leave.
"I'll see you after lunch."
"See you."
After lunch, Alex drove her to what he kept referring to as 'James' labs', which turned out to be a very famous multibillionaire interplanetary applied sciences company that produced everything from ships to medication. Jen remembered something that had been in the news recently about this company.
"Alex." He grunted to let her know he was listening. "Wasn't this the pharma company that created the test for that alien plague that was causing all those deaths these past few months?"
"The test, the treatment and the vaccine. All developed personally by James."
"He developed them himself?" She scoffed, as if a such thing was ridiculous. "I'm sure that's what he told people-"
"The press release credited the research team of the pharmacological division for the development," Alex told her, briefly taking his eyes off the road to glance at her. "But James did it himself. I know that for a fact because his assistant kept calling me to drag him home. I never could, not until he was finished. He slept on the floor, ate poorly, and wouldn't stop talking to himself. I thought he had lost it. But then he developed the test, and right after that, the cure and the vaccine.
You'd think that was enough but he wouldn't go home until he was sure all three would be available to anyone who needed them-"
"For free," Jen interrupted. "I saw it on the news. Very generous of him."
"That's James."
When they arrived, Alex got out of the car and she followed his lead. Jen waited while Alex talked to a nice looking young man who smiled at her.
"Sergeant Scotts," he said, walking up to her. "I'm Charles, Mr. Robertson's assistant. Everything has been set up for your mission."
Jen was barely paying attention to him. She was looking around, searching for the gigantic portrait of James Robertson that was bound to be somewhere. Her eyes fell on Alex and Charles, who were looking at her as if waiting for an answer.
"Sorry, I got distracted by the surroundings."
"Yes, the atrium can be quite a sight," Charles commented with a smile. "Mr. Robertson has very fine taste and it is important for him that his employees like their work environment." Jen wondered why there was no portrait and asked Charles about it. The young man let out a little laugh and smiled. "That's not how Mr. Robertson does things."
"He’s as private as he can be, it gives him room to do things his way," Alex told her.
"Please, come with me," Charles said and they followed him out of the atrium towards one of the transport pods which took them through the various buildings, until finally stopping in a hangar where Jen finally saw the ship she would be using for this mission.
She was expecting something similar to the bulky, round, and yellow time ship Time Force had, but this ship was very different. It was much smaller, sleeker and the overall design was very elegant: a flat, arrow-like body with shiny silver finish. She was fascinated.
"Wow," she whispered, staring at it enthusiastically.
"The newest model. Interdimensional storage units allow for less weight and bulk, and it contains our most advanced engine and state of the art time travel technology," Charles recited. "And she's all yours."
"She doesn't need a big crew, then?" she asked, her eyes still glued to the ship.
Charles exchanged a look with Alex and cleared his throat. "I mean, she's literally all yours." Jen still didn't look away from the vehicle.
Charles looked at Alex for help. "He means the ship belongs to you, Jen."
That got Jen's attention. She looked away from the ship and over at Alex. "What do you mean the ship belongs to me?"
"Mr. Robertson thought it would be a nice thank you for accepting this mission," Charles explained.
"What am I supposed to do with my own time ship?" Jen asked him. She looked at Alex. "Why is your friend giving me my own time ship?"
"He read the transcripts of the Ransik debriefings," he reminded her, giving her a meaningful look. "Perhaps he thought you'd like to visit someone in your time ship."
Jen closed her eyes. "Alex, this is really not-"
"Necessary?"
"-kind of him," she said. "It sounds like a cruel thing to-"
"Do for someone who is in love with someone from another time?"
"-do to you," she finished.
He looked at her and his expression softened. Then he smiled at her. "You win some, you lose some, Jen." He looked at the ship. "I will take care of the permits every time you want to see him."
Jen didn't know what to say. This kind of thing was the reason she had fallen in love with Alex in the first place. He had arranged it so she could visit Wes whenever she wanted to, instead of cutting her out of his life.
“This was your idea, wasn’t it?” She looked at him as he looked at the ship to avoid answering. "I can't accept it." Both Alex and Charles looked at her but for different reasons. "I will use it for the mission but I can't just keep the ship. I'm sure Commander Robertson will find better uses for it." There was a question in Alex's eyes. She looked away from him to stare pointedly at Charles who got the hint.
"I'll go double-check everything is ready for you, sergeant," he said, walking towards the ship. Once they were alone, Jen and Alex just stared at each other in silence for a moment.
"I'm over Wes,” she said bluntly.
Alex looked at her, confused. "Sorry, what?"
"I'm over him," she repeated, averting her gaze. “The war, what happened, the things I did…” she took a deep breath.
There was no need for any more explanations.
"He wouldn't be the first love of your life you got over."
She closed her eyes, hurt by his words. "Alex, I'm sorry. I really thought-"
"This is not the time or the place to have this conversation," he said. She nodded. "We'll talk when you come back if you want, but know that James will not let this stand. He will repay you somehow for helping him and he won't take no for an answer."
"Understood. I didn't pack or anything, what if it takes me longer than expected?"
"Knowing James, there are enough clothes of your size and style packed inside somewhere," he replied, glad to change the subject.
"How would he know my size?" she wondered as she walked towards the ship. "Did you tell him?"
"It's one of his many talents," Alex commented, walking behind her. “He’s a ladies’ man.” Alex smiled and shrugged. “And a gentleman’s man too, he’s not picky.”
"Okay. I guess he probably has been with enough… ‘ladies’ to guess sizes.”
He heard her sarcasm and shook his head while he smirked. “He just doesn’t like to dine alone.”
“Right.”
“Let’s get you going, we don’t have much time,” he said and led the walk to the ship.
The inside of the ship was somehow even more spectacular to Jen. It was brightly lit, the controls were elegant silver buttons on black glass panels and the many holographic screens were sharp and easy to read. It seemed like a good example of the fine taste Charles had mentioned James had.
There were seats for five people inside the ship, but it was obvious that only one person was required to fly it, the pilot’s seat was easily recognizable.
"It seats five," she commented.
"Passengers," Charles told her. "She pretty much flies herself once she's been programmed. She will respond to verbal and tactile commands and-" He pressed a button on the console and the screen showed a list of items. "-you can access all the equipment by pressing here and then lightly placing your finger on the item on the hologram."
Jen scanned the list of items more carefully, it was the same Alex had shown her in his office. Some of the equipment seemed like odd things to pack for a research mission. She mentioned this to Charles.
"All the ships are kept ready in case of an emergency. They’re kept stocked with various equipment Mr. Robertson thinks may be useful."
Charles had said it before, but this time Jen noticed that Charles didn't refer to Commander Robertson by his rank. "Why do you call him 'Mr. Robertson'? You addressed me as ‘sergeant’."
Charles lean face went slightly red and he glanced at Alex, before returning his attention to Jen. "James, I mean, Mr. Robertson doesn't like it when people address him by his rank."
"Or as 'Mr. Robertson'," Alex added, looking at Charles. "He asks everybody to call him 'James'," he told Jen.
“And everybody does," Charles added with a shy smile.
"Except his butler, who keeps referring to him as 'Master James', making him cringe every time," Alex pointed out and both he and Charles stifled laughs, clearly remembering instances when this had happened.
"Why can't he just program his butler to call him James?" She asked. Surely a man of such wealth and wit knew how to program a household robot. Or had someone to do it for him.
Charles and Alex exchanged another knowing look. "James' butler is not a robot, Jen."
Jen just looked at them and then her eyes fixed on Charles. She could see he clearly wasn’t a robot either. She had assumed he was just a hyper-realistic android. Clearly James Robertson had a lot more money and charm than she had thought.
"You're not an android," she told Charles.
He shook his head. "One hundred percent human."
"And you are one of James'…" she stopped herself. She didn't want to call him 'servant'.
"I serve James with great pleasure, sergeant. It's no big deal. His closest staff are all humans."
"James doesn't entirely like robots. He tolerates them as the part of life they are but he prefers working with humans," Alex told her. "The story of his personal staff is fascinating but we'll save it for another day because whatever alibi he's giving himself for this won't last much longer. You need to leave."
"Just sit down and buckle up. Put your right palm on the reader. The ship has been locked to your DNA and fingerprints, and, like I said, she will fly herself," Charles instructed. He handed her a black gauntlet for her left hand, which had a beautiful pattern on it. "This control gauntlet will also give you access to the equipment from wherever you are outside the ship and he wanted you to have these." He handed her two small metallic bars. "James has been developing them for Time Force. Quantic police batons. If they come in handy, you can tell him how they do."
"Why would I need these?" she asked, looking at Alex. He had given her her morpher back too. "Is there something you're not telling me?"
Alex shook his head and looked at Charles who smiled. "You know me, I prefer to cover all the bases. These are just precautions in case you run into trouble."
"Right," she said, not entirely convinced they were telling her the full truth. “How do I use these?” She asked Charles, showing him the bars. They were the size of a pair of batteries but were remarkably heavy.
“Think of how long and heavy you need them to be and they’ll take subatomic particles from the environment to change and fit your needs.”
“They’re magical police batons?” Jen mocked, looking at the little bars.
“Quantic.” Charles corrected and moved towards the door. "I was told you travelled in a Time Force time ship before. You will find your travel in this ship a lot more comfortable."
"Comfortable?" She really doubted being spun around at top speed could under any circumstances be comfortable.
"She doesn't spin, Jen," Alex told her with a smile, as if he had read her mind, he moved towards the door too. "You won't even notice she's moved."
With that, both men exited the ship. When they were a safe distance away, the palm reader glowed green on the black glass, indicating the ship was ready for departure. Jen stared at it and swallowed. She felt like she was losing her mind. This James Robertson character sounded like the most eccentric billionaire she had ever heard of and here she was leaving everything behind for him without even meeting him.
As she put her hand on the reader and the ship started the launch sequence, she thought that maybe she could keep the ship after all.
