*label final_enigma_start

"${name}!" the Professor calls. "Where to?"

"Where? Uh..." You blink. "Where? I don't know. Um, okay. I don't think we could go back to the battlefield. The spaceship took off, I'm guessing it's not easy to travel to an in-flight vessel." Your mentors nod. "We could try the dorm, but I don't know if I could remember which room it was. Honestly I think our best bet is 1861 Oklahoma."

"A little after our trip, I think," Holt says. He walks over and adjusts the time coordinates. Dan looks over his work, nods and pulls a lever. The room rumbles around you as space and time are warped again.

*page_break "Hold tight!"

"I'm just a waitress!"

"Look," the Professor says. "Ordinarily I would be the first to condemn breaking into a woman's room in the dead of night. But it's really important, and honestly we just want to talk!"

She sits back in her chair and crosses her arms. Scrutinizing the Professor, she suddenly sniffs. "I'm not interested in old fuddy-duddies!"

"Okay, let's start again," you say. "I'm ${name}. Mind if we ask your name?"

"Isabelle," she huffs.

"Excellent," you say. "The Professor, Dan, Renne. You're sure there's nothing unusual about you, Isabelle?"

She shrugs. "I can sing, tell jokes."

You blink. "Can you do acrobatics?"

"...maybe?"

"That's right, we saw on you the spaceship and you were part of a performing troupe!" you say.

"What's a 'space ship'?" Isabelle tilts her head. "You're all a bunch of fat-heads."

"A ship that...never mind." You sigh. You notice Dan frowning; you give him a questioning look, but he shakes his head. "How about Cambridge?"

"I've never been to England!"

"No, the one near Boston!" you say.

"Naaaaaah. I went through New York and then through the Midwest." Dan turns around and you see him typing at his wrist comp. "Then I found my way here."

"So never been to M--wait, no," you say. "I mean, never been to Boston, or outer space, or 2012?"

"I don't know anything about that!" She tosses her head, pigtails flapping. "It's above my pay grade."

"Aha!" Dan yells. You all look at him, and he stares at her. "That's 1940s slang! Why are you using 1940s slang?"

"...because I like it?"

"And the term 'Midwest' dates to the 1880s!" Dan proclaims.

Isabelle blinks and places her finger to her lips. She glances around to each of you. "Oops?"

*page_break 'Oops?'

"Listen, I don't know anything," Isabelle says.

"You know 1940s slang!" Dan says.

"Look," Renne says. "We're not trying to capture you, or hurt you. We just, well it's complicated, but we have our own problems and we think you might figure into them in some way. [i]Did[/i] you ever travel through time?"

Isabelle hesitates for a moment, then a wide smile breaks over her face. "Oh, [i]tiiiiiime travelllll[/i]! Why didn't ya [i]say[/i] so?"

*page_break ???

Renne stares at her. The Professor looks like he's holding back laughter.

"Sometimes," Isabelle says. "Get it, heh? Some'times'? Seriously, though." She takes a deep breath, then she sinks into her chair, frowning. "I don't even know why it happens. One day I go to sleep, the next I wake up in some white corridor, turns out it's the basement of some crazy famous technological institute and it's the 1990s or somethin'. What are you doing?"

The Professor is waving a device at her. "Don't worry," he says. "This is just a detector."

"What's it do?"

"Detects. And right now..." He stares at it. "There's some temporal...thing going on with you, Isabelle. I have never seen anything like it. I honestly can't explain what it is or how it happened." Tapping the device against his chin, he frowns. "Where do you come from? What's your earliest memory?"

"I was found abandoned, as a baby, somewhere in Europe," Isabelle says. "By the Roma. Then I joined a circus. Then, other stuff." She shrugs.

"Curious," the Professor murmurs. "I'd love to study you..."

"I've heard worse pickup lines," Isabelle says.

"Okay, fine," Renne says. "But we have an [i]objective[/i]. Right? How's this going to help us with the Chaos Agency?"

"Oh, the Chaos Agents?" Isabelle says. "Are you fighting them or something?"

*page_break ...

"Kinda," you say. "Kinda fighting. Have you met them?"

Isabelle shrugs. "I take messages for them. Then they ask me for messages in some other time."

The Professor laughs. "Oh, that's brilliant! Did they do this to you?"

"No, they were as puzzled as you lot."

"What sort of messages?" you ask.

"Crazy stuff. Numbers."

"Huh," you say. "What sort of numbers?"

Isabelle rattles off some strings of numbers. Your eyes widen as you realize that they're time coordinates! Renne quickly enters them into her comp. "I recognize these!" she says. "This is almost exactly the Boston 1994 time. And the planet I was on when I was kidnapped! And the Octagon!"

"Of course," the Professor breathes. "Where we were all kidnapped from."

"You guys were kidnapped?" Isabelle asks.

"We got better," Dan says. "I'm amazed you could remember all those numbers."

"Oh, I've got a great memory," Isabelle says. "I mean, I have to, to remember stuff like Jugemu Jugemu Goko-no surikire Kaijarisuigyo-no Suigyomatsu Unraimatsu Furaimatsu Kuunerutokoro-ni Sumutokoro Yaburakoji-no burakoji Paipo-paipo-paipo-no Shuringan Shuringan-no-Gurindai Gurindai-no-Ponpokopi-no-Ponpokona-no Chokyumei-no Chosuke."

*page_break ...

"Right," Renne says. "[i]Once again.[/i] How is this going to [i]help[/i] us?"

You all look at each other. "Isabelle is a...[i]curious[/i] girl," the Professor says. "But whether she can help us, I'm not sure." He scratches his chin. "I'm about out of ideas. ${name}, do you have anything?"

*if (enigma < 5)
	"I...I don't know," you say.

	"Mm." Standing up from his chair, the Professor pats Isabelle on the head; she lets out a purr. "Sorry to bother you, Isabelle. We may be in touch later. Or we may not."

	It's a subdued party that walks back to the time machine in the dark. But as you approach, an ill feeling builds within you. You break into a run and turn the hillock to find--

	Nothing.

	Little whistling sounds can be heard around you. You recognize it as the sound of energy weapons coming to full power. You look around at a sea of black muzzles and glowing orange lights.

	"Last ones," a voice sneers. "Nice try, Corpses, but the Agency is in control now!" A metal prod is jabbed into you, causing intense pain, then unconsciousness.

	It doesn't get better after that.
	*ending

"I...wait," you say. "What about...What about a trap?" Your mentors glance at each other. "Yes! If we change Isabelle's coordinates--"

"I am [i]not[/i] going to change the numbers!" Isabelle says, frowning. "That's just not sporting!"

"Yeah, but--" You frown. Renne opens her mouth but you raise your hand. "Wait. All right. I see. I...I just remembered." You look steadily at Isabelle. "There's one more set of numbers you need. One they forgot to give you. So, when they come and ask for them again, you give them these numbers too. Okay?"

Isabelle blinks. She tilts her head, pondering, then she nods. "I suppose I could do that."

You nod and look at the Professor. "Prof?"

"Just a sec," he murmurs, tapping frantically at his computer. "Okay..." He reads off a string of numbers, and Isabelle repeats them perfectly. "Amazing," he murmurs. "All right."

"And speaking of traps," Renne says, in a low voice. "We've spent a long time here, with someone the Chaos Agency is known to associate with."

Dan nods and starts up his comp. "Frankie? Holt? Can you transport directly to the room we're in?"

Everyone stands up. "You should get a kick out of this, Isabelle," you say. "I won't ask you to come along, but maybe someday."

Isabelle watches with wide eyes and a delighted smile as your time machine fades into view. As you disappear inside, she waves. "Byyyyyyye!"

*page_break One and a half centuries later...

The wind blows over the field. Rows of lights stab at the oncoming twilight.

Two boxes sit in the grass; one cardboard, small enough for perhaps a basketball, the other a large, metal booth.

Space and time wrench aside, and a woman steps out of nothing, followed by two men. She's old, but still vigorous, brown skin and gray hair. The two others are of ambiguous gender, but they have black hair, epicanthic folds and very pale skin. All three are dressed in black uniforms with pockets and weapons.

She looks around. "Did you really expect us to fall for that?" she asks.

The door to the booth opens. "It would have been nice if you had," you say. "But, well. Hi. Who am I speaking to?"

"Call me the Architect," she says. "And you?"

"${name}. We'd like an end to hostilities, release of our people, our base returned."

She raises her eyebrows. "I see. ${name}. And if I refuse?" She opens the cardboard box with the muzzle of her gun. "You'll detonate your little bomb?"

"Yes." Suddenly the air is filled with blue energy, crackling over the three, dancing over the metal booth. The commandoes gasp; one aims its weapon at you and pulls the trigger...producing a click. "Electromagnetic pulses," you say. "Sure, there was a [i]conventional[/i] bomb, if you actually teleported it into your base. There are a couple others in there, though."

"Mm." The Architect waves at her companions, who have drawn knives. "I also see someone has figured out the temporal shield."

"How to create one, yeah," you say. "On a small scale." You step forward. Dan steps out and next to you, as does the Professor. There's something...Something familiar about this woman, but you can't put your finger on it yet. "So, are you going to negotiate?"

*page_break

"Negotiate what? A surrender?"

"If you like. I would have said 'detente'."

The Architect smiles. "We're trying to make a better reality. By studying and exploiting paradox. Sure, it's dangerous, but so is uranium. So is [i]fire[/i]. Until you guys get all Smokey the Bear on us!"

"So this is revenge?" you ask. "No, you see it as you stopping us from interfering with you." Very familiar...

"Yes," you say. "I can see you're a star pupil."

"I..." You frown. "You...Wait. I...Where did the Chaos Agency come from? How did it start?"

She shrugs. "Not a big secret. You know how the Corps 'invites' inventors of time machines? Someone found a society that was ready to embrace and exploit time machines, and they decided to defect. The lure of possibility was too great."

"A Paradox Corps defector," you say. "Of course. Then that--"

A tension seizes your stomach. Your eyes widen. "[i]You![/i]"

"Me?" She raises her eyebrows. "Me who?"

"I [i]know[/i] you! You must have defected, will defect, in my future!"

"I suppose that's likely," she says. "Is it relevant?"

"Everything's relevant," you say, blinking. "I...all right. Paradox can be exploited, correct?" She nods, eyes lighting up. "Okay," you say. "But it's also dangerous. Especially in large quantities. Right?"

"What are you getting at?" she asks.

Then there's a whistling from behind. The sound of an energy weapon coming to full charge. You turn and see Renne with a gun pointed at the head of the Professor.

"What we're getting at," she says, "Is, how much paradox can you [i]actually withstand[/i]?"

*page_break

You look around. Renne has her war face on, emotions completely concealed. Dan is stunned. The Professor...the Professor looks [i]old[/i].

The Architect has a poker face. She runs her tongue along her lip. "Not [i]that[/i] much," she mutters. "All right. We will leave the base and return the agents. There will be a cease fire...Until next time. Next time we decide you're getting in our way. And we will take steps to make sure this doesn't work again."

"Not [i]cruel[/i] steps, I hope," you say.

There are footsteps from inside the time machine. Frankie comes to the door. She looks around, but if she shows any surprise, she hides it well. "Temporal message," she says. "Chaos Agents are leaving the base. Also we got time coordinates for a place our agents have been left." She nods. "Looks like the siege is over. They surrendered."

"We didn't surrender," the Architect says.

"We negotiated a peace," you say. "All right. Take down the temporal shield."

In moments the commandos have vanished. The Architect stays a bit longer, though, smiling, but she also vanishes before saying anything.

A few more moments of silence, then an electronic whine. Renne pulls her gun back, its charge fading. "Well," she says. "Wasn't [i]that[/i] a thing."

The Professor opens his mouth, then he swallows. "Could I get a glass of water?" he says in a low voice.

*page_break

You find yourself back at Continuity, the base once again filled with Paradox Corps agents, bustling this way and that.

"Hey!"

You turn and smile. "Frankie. Good to see you again."

She nods, walks up and stands next to you. You both look at the blue holographic display. "Is that...is that really going to happen?" she says. "The Professor going rogue? Founding the Chaos Agency?"

"I think so," you say, slowly. "If not, it would cause a lot of paradox. I dunno. I'm still a trainee."

She laughs. "After that? I'm sure you're getting a promotion."

"Yeah, maybe." You smile. "How about you?"

"I guess my archives are now a time machine," she says. "I'm still not a full agent. Maybe I'll stay on as your assistant. Continue working on my own projects while I help you out. What do you think?"

"Sure thing. Er, are they going to let me keep that time machine?"

Her eyes twinkle. "Are you going to let them take it from you?"

*ending

