We're Not Alone - Virgil (36)

Strapped to a chair in a dark room. Classic interrogation scene. A bright light was shone into my face and a voice comes from no where.
"We've missed you, Virgil." The voice was mechanical, altered to hide its identity. "Where have you been?"
"Working for you, of course," I replied. "I was assigned by the Agency to monitor the new recruits."
There was a pause. The interrogator was undoubtably confused.
"You've been dead for seven years. The Agency has given you no new assignments since your demise. You will report all activity since your last entry."
I smiled. "That won't be necessary. I am no longer affiliated with this Agency. You guys aren't alone. I'm surprised you don't know about the parallels yet. Unless, of course, you do know, and simply don't let on."
"Explain yourself." I could sense the anxiety, even through the voice alteration. I pulled a piece of paper from my jacket pocket and tossed it into the shadows.

* * *

Do you find your career tedious or boring? Do you feel as if you are trapped by the oppressive dimension of time? Are you looking for a career full of excitement, danger, adventure, and/or very confusing mathematical, philosophical and psychological processes? Then the Agency has an opening for you! See strange and new worlds! Witness the history and future of our universe first hand! Protect all of existence from total annihilation! Many opportunities wait for you in the business of saving the world. Start your preparation in the present, save humanity from the future!

What is the Agency?

The Agency is an institution founded to protect all of existence from the dangers of cross-dimension and time travel. Far into the future, the founders discovered a way to travel outside of time, as well as a way to cross to parallel universes. The damage caused by this form of travel became catastrophic, however, and attempts were made to limit it. These attempts failed, and the only way to prevent the collapse of time as we know it was to create an Agency before this method of travel existed by traveling backward in time to organize it. The purpose of this agency would be to deal with inter-dimensional problems before they become too big to possibly deal with. This, of course, creates several paradoxes for an aspiring member of our team to deal with. This is why one must prepare for the confusion with intensive study into the science behind inter-universal travel.

What Do I Need to Know?

Any physics classes may help improve your understanding of the concepts behind inter-universal travel, but much of what you have learned, you may need to forget. Several laws have been revoked by perpendicular theory. Geometry, trigonometry, and other mathematical studies that have to do with space, will prove to be very effective. The Agency will provide courses to help recruits apply these concepts to planes outside the three dimensional norm. It is vital that you understand these geometrical concepts prior to your involvement of the Agency, however, as we have no room for individuals who have no concept of space as it is. Perpendicular theory is impossible to grasp for those who have no geometrical sense.

What Can I Do for The Agency?

There are many jobs available within the institution; not everyone is cut out to be a field agent, and not everyone has the patience for a monitoring job. Here is a brief list of our most active jobs, though many peripheral positions are available in maintenance of our facilities.

Field Agent: It is the field agent’s job to carry out whatever assignment is given to him or her, be it an apprehension of a cross-dimensional criminal, or something as simple as moving a rock into the right place for the right person to trip on it at the right time. A field agent must have incredible physical and psychological endurance, and it is the most immediately dangerous position in the Agency

Monitor: Monitors keep track of agent movement, and provide assistance to field agents who lose track of time, space, or any other factor. It is the monitor’s job to keep the agent on task and as safe as possible.

Other Jobs: Classified. Many opportunities await those with certain talents. Nothing more will be disclosed.

Think you have what it takes? Simply fill out the enclosed form and leave it with your local post office. The Agency will contact you if you qualify.

* * *

"This isn't the only Agency."

This Chapter May or May Not Contain Trust - Ellen (35)

I took my time getting over to Ian and Greg's room. Had to give them time to get set up, and get suspicious. Whether they were becoming suspicious of each other, me, or the Agency, I really didn't care. I took a nap. I woke up. I put on my cute pajamas-- the ones with the bunnies on them-- and re-applied my makeup. When I was done, I looked the picture of innocence, not to mention wholly un-recruiter-like. The perfect outfit for being sneaky with boys. Not in the dirty way we did it as teenagers.
I arrived at the door of the boys' room, Ian's bag in hand, and knocked. From inside the room, I heard a thud, and two voices saying "Ow." They'd been hiding under the beds. Clever boys. I knocked again, and this time I heard a lot of shuffling and mumbling. I thought I heard Ian ask, "For you guys, did the ninjas knock?"
Then Greg's voice, hesitant: "Who is it?"
"Land shark," I answered.
"Ellen?" Greg was incredulous.
"Yes, but don't worry, I'm not here to seduce you. Not with the child in the room."
"So, why are you here?" Ian asked.
"I've got your bag. I assumed you'd want it."
There was a lot of scrabbling at the lock. Then indistinct arguing. Finally, I sighed, pulled out my passkey, unlocked the door, and entered. Ian and Greg stared at me.
"Oh." Ian scratched his head. "I guess I just locked us in, then. Sorry."
I dropped the bag on the floor and proceeded to make coffee, pretending to be surprised at the sight of the neatly made beds.
"Haven't you guys gone to bed yet?"
"Have you?" Greg asked, eyeing my perfect make-up job. I probably shouldn't have been so meticulous with that, come to think of it. Oh, well. I flashed him a smile.
"Don't you believe I look this lovely all the time, Greg?" He didn't answer.
I handed both he and Ian cups of Twenty-Second Coffee, at which Ian looked a bit surprised.
"How did you make is so fast?" he asked.
"You can do interesting things with time-travel," I answered, adding, "Not that the Agency advocates that sort of thing. You've heard of Instant Coffee? Some very high-ranking Agency officials think an instant is too long to wait. There is a theory that Twenty-Second Coffee may actually cause the breakdown of space time someday, but they view it as a small price to pay. These are highly caffeine-addicted people."
"How does it work?"
"Quickly," Greg and I answered at the same time.
Ian sipped his tentatively. "Not bad." He sat down on one of the beds. "Ellen?" Glancing at Greg nervously. "Are there really ninjas?"
"Yes, I've heard they do exist," I replied.
"I mean, are there ninjas in this hotel, that work for the Agency?"
"Now, what makes you think that?"
He shot Greg pretty much the same look that Greg was giving me. "I thought so. I thought you two were just cooking this up. And now I'm never going to sleep because of this stupid coffee."
That was when his eyes rolled back and he flopped back onto the bed, out like a light.
"Not necessarily," I responded.
Greg was livid. "You drugged him!"
"You can't prove that. Twenty-Second Coffee is very volatile."
"You drugged him!"
"And you knew I would. That's why you didn't drink yours."
"You lied to him!"
"I'm a recruiter."
"You lied to him!"
"I didn't lie. I just asked him why he thought there were ninjas. He could simply have answered, 'Because Greg told me about them,' which, yes, we knew you would. He just made an assumption as to my meaning. From tonight Ian has learned that he can't trust me, because I drugged him-- if he remembers that in the morning, and that he can't trust you because you didn't deliver ninjas. You see? You, sadly, played into the strategy. Obviously we couldn't use ninjas anyway, because in any case they wouldn't work on you. Unless you were suspecting we'd think that, in which case ninjas would have been the way to go. Unless you anticipated that we'd be thinking that way. Unless you thought we'd realize you'd be thinking that way and expecting the ninjas after all, which-- are you tired yet?"
"Very."
He looked it. Poor guy. I really did feel sorry for him, but that wasn't what he needed from me. My pity would just make him feel pathetic, I knew enough about Greg McIntosh to realize that. Instead I sat down next to him on the bed that Ian wasn't passed out on.
"Look," I told him. "I know you're mad. I don't blame you. If I were in your position, I'd be mad, too. But I'm asking you, please, not to be mad at me. If you're mad at me, then I'm sorry, Greg, but you're barking up the wrong tree. I can't promote you. I wish I could. I want your help on this mission."
"Why? You seem to be handling things." He tone was still not exactly friendly.
"Virgil's here. Not dead. Someone's messing with us. Or something. I've already let you in on more classified information than any recruit should know." Greg laughed a little. "I need you to respect me. I need that in order to lead the mission. But I want you to know that I still respect you. I want us to trust each other."
"I thought the first night is supposed to show recruits they can't trust anyone."
"Yeah, well." I shrugged. "If I can't count on you, who can I count on?"
Of course, we hadn't touched on half of the awkwardness the Agency had created by putting us in this situation, but we'd deal with it. Greg seemed to be accepting my peace offer.
"Ellen, when we were recruited... how come you didn't manage to take out any ninjas?"
"Well, I wasn't that well-trained then. Spent most of my time in libraries and bookstores, and there's only so much muscle you can build lifting and shelving books. Besides, they outnumbered us four to one. I figured I'd wait until the odds were more in my favor to make a move."
"You actually evaluated the situation and worked out the odds?"
"Yep. Jimmy didn't care for my method, but... there were a lot of things Jimmy didn't approve of."
"True." He looked around the room. "Okay, I give up. Where do the ninjas come in?"
"There's a panel in the closet. Want to see?"
I was right about Greg, I knew. You could always count on him. He opened the closet door and peered in. That was when I beckoned the ninjas in through the main entrance.
I was pretty impressed. Greg managed to take out two of them before the other two pinned his arms behind his back. I told them to let him go, and they dragged their incapacitated comrades out the door.
"Nothing personal," I told Greg. "And there really is a panel in there. It's just that for seven years I've regretted that I never got to see you getting your ass kicked by ninjas."
He stared at me speechlessly for about twenty seconds. I took the opportunity to make coffee. When his response came, I must admit, it surprised me.
"So, how did the girls do?"
Classified," I told him. "It's absolutely mandated by the Agency that I not tell you that Gillian took out two and Scarlett kicked one in a particularly sensitive area."
"Goodnight, Ellen."
"Goodnight, Greg."