the chronos institute

Kronos was the king of Titans in Greek mythology but Chronos is an entirely different person. He is the personification of Time, also called Father Time. It is unclear when the Chronos Institute came into being, who created it and how but it is just there. It’s a place that isn’t fixed in a time period but instead in a place called Limbo by those who call themselves professionals. As years and centuries passed by the Institute grew from a simple wooded hut into the big and imposing town it is now. While the technologies and buildings improved, the main purpose of it has stayed the same: Protect history from external, malicious forces and prevent the known universe to be destroyed by paradoxes and dangerous time rifts. Due to an anomaly in the genetics of certain people – generally referred to as Gene X – they are able to jump through time. These gifted ones are treasured by the Institute who employs them as the agents of the Institute have sworn their lives to protect and preserve history from those who would like nothing more than to disrupt it.

[thechronosinstitute]

Announcement: No Alcohol Allowed

A short reminder to all those who are short of memory: No alcohol allowed on the main premises. Those who are caught carrying alcoholic beverages without previous, explicit permition or those who are seen roaming around intoxicated will face harsh consequences up to and including permanent termination from their current position. Have a nice day!

- Mrs Petrovic

[thechronosinstitute]

Name: Neil Rostov Nicknames: - Age: 34

THE S T O R Y:

Neil was born in Moscow in 1985. He grew up in Edinburgh, where his father was from originally, with his three younger brothers, Mathew, Jamie and Thomas. When he was 15, his parents and brothers disappeared and he never found out what happened to them. He was recruited by the Institute and trained to be a retrieval agent. There he found out that his mother had been working for the Institute as a preservation agent all along. Ever since he has been trying to find out more about the mysterious powers that are making agents disappear. He has been the leader of several missions, one which went terribly wrong. He lost all of his agents in an attack on their base, and only survived because he had left to get pizza.

THE M I N D:

Despite the hardship in his past, Neil has a very cheerful attitude, which is annoying, and even creepy, to some. He easily gains people’s friendship and respect, making him popular everywhere he goes. Neil feels very guilty about his comrade’s deaths, and blames himself for the incident. Although he seems hot-headed and rash at first, he is a rational and analytical thinker making him a perfect agent for the field.

THE C O N N E C T I O N S:

Rose Bunter - Aquaintance Robert Petrovic - Friend

[thechronosinstitute]

Name: Robert Petrovic Nicknames: Bertie, Rob Age: 14

THE S T O R Y:

Robert was born in the Institute. His mother is Mrs. Petrovic and his father classified. He spent most of his life roaming around the many buildings and rooms of the Institute, hardly ever seeing the world outside. Due to his mother’s high status he was able to do as he pleased, and went almost wherever he wanted. His favorite places are the many libraries, where he met Rose, who became an honorary big sister to him. He is very gifted in almost any field taught at the Institute’s school and finished his diploma at the age of 12, but remains a student until a plan is mapped out for him by his mother, who is very busy and doesn’t seem very concerned with her sons future.

THE M I N D:

Robert is very gifted and has a high IQ. He hasn’t been tested for the Gene X yet, but nobody doubts that he has great potential. He is rather shy and doesn’t get along with people his own age very well. He is a loner by choice, preferring books to conversation and machines to human company. He is a grave boy, considering his young age, but kind-hearted.

THE C O N N E C T I O N S:

Rose Bunter - Close friend Mrs Petrovic - Mother

[thechronosinstitute]

Name: Rose Bunter Nicknames: - Age: 25

THE S T O R Y:

Rose was born the daughter of a Cambridge English professor and an actress. She was orphaned at the age of three and was adopted by a friend of the family, a librarian. She spent most of her young life between the pages of books and accumulated a wide array of knowledge. When she was seven years old she ran away from home for the first time, seeking an adventure that she couldn’t find in her quiet life. When she left home for the seventh time within the short period of three years her guardian sent her away to a boarding school. He passed away soon afterwards, leaving Rose alone once again. When Rose was 11 the institute got her a job in their library, a seemingly random act of kindness. Her extensive background knowledge and intelligence helped Rose rise to the position of head librarian of the 19th century library by the age of 18.

THE M I N D:

Rose is intelligent, quick-witted and knowledgeable. She has a confident and bold appearance and is therefore feared by many. She is never afraid to give people her honest opinion, even if she hasn’t been asked for it. She has few friends, and mistrusts people in general. Behind her gruff exterior she is a kind and generous girl yearning for an adventure, but too afraid to leave her safe, familiar world behind.

THE C O N N E C T I O N S:

Vega Groves - Close friend Robert Petrovic - Close friend

[thechronosinstitute]

Name: Vega Groves Nicknames: - Age: Between 20 - 25

THE S T O R Y:

There isn’t much in Vega’s past that is known, apart from the fact that she was raised in an orphanage from a very young age on. The caretakers there saw her as gifted and pushed her through multiple programmes to harvest her talents. Vega didn’t mind it much since it also gave her more personal freedom and special treatment. She liked the attention and never complained. Instead she used the education she got to find her own pace on how to tackle challenges and excel at them.

When she was 16 she popped up on the radar of the Institute due to some weird mechanical constructions she would build, which partially mirrored the jump stabilizer in its design. As it happens this was a sign of near-dormant abilities brought on by the Gene X and it lead to the recruitment of the young woman. Vega thrived under the lead of the Institute and upon reaching the age of 18, she moved there completely, cutting all ties to her former life.

Before getting to her current position as a retrieval specialist, Vega worked primarily as a mechanic since she is very handy with any kind of machinery. Some even describe it like she is able to talk to them to see what was wrong. Finally though the world of the Institute became too small for Vega, who strives to use her special abilities to their full extend. After going through the qualification process, she became one of the youngest retrieval specialists at age 20.

THE M I N D:

Vega is bold in her appearance and actions. She will consider many possible actions before settling on the one that will cause the most exposure. Her relationships are easy-going and she throws herself into them with all her heart. This has caused her much heartbreak already, but she believes it’s worth the pain. She is also quite smart and can think quickly in stressful situations. People find it easy to trust her, which is vital to her position as a retrieval specialist.

THE C O N N E C T I O N S:

Rose Bunter - Close friends

[thechronosinstitute]

Name: Alan Carter Nicknames: Al Age: Between 30 - 35

THE S T O R Y:

Alan was the middle child of three and suffered through his childhood by having to mediate between his older sister, Brittany, and his younger sister, Elisabeth. His parents were more interested in the grades their children brought home than in having a proper family dinner in the evening. As a consequence Alan soon decided to spend his spare time not practicing for school at all but instead began playing the guitar, bands like Green Day being his inspiration.

He set his eyes on becoming a singer and guitarist after he finished school but those dreams never came true. Tensions at home were at its peak when Elisabeth became pregnant at age 17, which was absolutely scandalous in their parents’ eyes and as a consequence they became even more overbearing and controlling of their children’s extracurricular activities.

Motivated primarily by the urge to defy his parents, who want their son to follow a prestigious career path, he joined the British Forces in 2001. He served for four years and did two tours during that time, one in Afghanistan and one in Iraq. It was the latter that brought him in contact with the Institute. His convoy got hit by still unknown assailants and when he woke up, he found himself in a hospital that was definitely more advanced than what he knew.

THE M I N D:

He’s a hopeless romantic, who likes to pretend he is anything but soft, mostly by hiding behind an arrogant façade. He sees close connections with other people as hopeless and primed for failure due to his bad experiences in the area. Alan also likes to act before thinking about the consequences and when someone tells him not to do something he will most likely do exactly that. In complete contradiction to that, he is structured and separates work from private life very efficiently.

THE C O N N E C T I O N S:

Camille Rouillard - Close friends and partner in the field

[thechronosinstitute]

Name: Camille Rouillard (born Lavigne) Nicknames: Cam, Cammy Age: Between 25 - 35

THE S T O R Y:

Camille is the only daughter of a French tailor, prior tothe 1stworld war. She had a normal, quiet uprbringing in Brest and she hadalways known that eventually she would marry her best childhoodfriend Pierre Rouillard. Over the years their friendship evolved into love and they said their vows in August 1913. When the Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated their content life was thron out of order, when Pierre was drafted to aid against the Central Powers in the war.

During the war Camille kept busy by helping wherever her hands were needed, be it supporting her family’s closest friends, who lost their only son during the first year, or sorting through ammunitions for the soldiers on the front. All the while she held up hopes for the letters that Pierre would send her from the front until the days without a letter arriving grow longer and longer.

After the war was over, Camille had to face the harsh truth that her husband wouldn’t come back. On the inside it broke her but to everyone around her she was the steady column of support after the terrible years they’d had. After all she wasn’t the only one with a loved one lost and it was much easier to focus on the misery of other people than her own. Her recruitment by the Institute was quite complicated because the First World War is one of the events in time that are less flexible than other events. She was therefore recruited shortly after the capitulation of the Central Powers. Within a year, Camille had moved out of Brest and fully thrown herself into the new task she had, trying to ignore the fact that she could never go back to save Pierre.

THE M I N D:

Camille is the one quiet person in a room full of talking people, but that no one would ever mistake her for shy or reserved. She’s got an open mind and is easy to joke and laugh with but she keeps people at a distance whenever possible. Although most people see her as someone who would crack easily under pressure, she can focus the best when the world is falling apart around her. It’s the aftermath of disaster that she has difficulty coping with.

THE C O N N E C T I O N S:

Alan Carter - Close friends and partners in the field

[thechronosinstitute]

Gene X

The genetic mutation that allows certain people to jump through time was discovered in 2053 by classified. Through years of experimentation, both with success and utter failure, a computer was developed that stabilised and improved the accuracy of the time jumps. 

A side effect of the mutation is slower aging for a varying amount of time jumps and with higher frequency of jumps the risk of reversing this progress increases. The consequence is a rapid aging process which can kill the person, if they don't stop jumping. Due to this every jumper needs to attend regular medical tests. 

Additional abilities, like premonition, telekinesis, elemental manipulation and other, have been observed in individuals from more advanced timelines. 

[thechronosinstitute]

Attention!

We sheduled a general meeting of all personnel today, 10:00, local time. Your attendance is mandatory. 

Please be punctual.

- Mrs Petrovic + Mr Schneider

[thechronosinstitute]

the leaders: Mrs Petrovic + Mr Schneider