Time discussion

2064

"We need something to stop this madness before it's too late." A man said, addressing the crowd that had gathered in the underground bunker they were speaking in. "At this moment, it's just a matter of who it is going to be."

"Well instead of risking our own forces," a stiff backed man in glasses spoke up. "Why don't we just recruit from our nation. They are, in fact, more expendable. We could do a national survey and chose those who meet our needs. We could just pretend we're collecting information when we launch the project."

"And what will we say once they are selected? Or if they refuse?" A woman to his left piped up.

"Well they'll be left with no choice, once the briefing is over, they must go through with it. We can't have a national security threat like that. After selection, we could always call those we want to their local government building and question them about how'd they'd feel working on a top secret project. Those who refuse can be sent away." The glasses man replied.

Another man who had been sitting back and listening now chimed in, his voice rough but sure, "This could work," he said, "but what will we look for in these 'applicants'?"

"That sounds quite suspicious. Then the people who refuse will speak about being a part of a top secret project. We are better off forcing them into the mission." The original man spoke, cutting off the woman from replying. "We would look for resiliance, and some knowledge of history, at least at first."

"It were are to look from history," the glasses man said, trying to answer both questions with one answer. "Then you know an army needs a variety of people; we should look to the brightest of society in the fields we deem most important to the mission. Like the medical profession, engineers, and those who establish law and order for example."

The man nodded, "We have to keep our minds open though, great talent can come from unusual places. I myself used to work as a bartender in Manhattan."

"A national survey it is." The man seated at the head of the table boomed. "Alert me when our final candidates are chosen."

AFTER THE SURVEY

Carla walked up to the building. She had wanted to dress up, but she had been specifically insturdcted not to. Now she was glad she hadn't. The feel of her worn clothes and the comfortable weight of her backpack made her feel more comfortable. She had no idea who she was actually meeting, only that they were important. Taking a deep breath she walked into the building and imedietly a man walked up to her. "Follow me," was all she said. He lead her through the halls and left her in a bare room with only a few couches and a table with two other people.

Rosemary had breezed into the sterile building a half hour early, taking a seat in a bland room to wait until she was addressed. She always made it a habit to arrive early, as she hated the stereotype that doctors were always late. No more than a half hour later, a tall man arrived in the room, and instructed her to walk into an even more sterile room. There she had waited until she was joined by the two other people she was currently seated across from. "This room may be even more sterile than my doctors office." She smiled, attempting weakly to make such a nerve wracking situation better.

"Doctor's offices are nothing compared to forensic laboratories in terms of cleanliness," the reddish-brown haired woman said. Realizing she had come off as rude she added, "I mean, not that doctor's offices aren't clean, it's just that... this place is immaculate and it reminded me of where I work. My name is Sasha Hunt by the way. What's yours?"

Carla laughed, "I'm a mechanic. Where I work everything is covered in grease and break dust."

"Rosemary Williams." the girl answered. "Though I would say that I disagree with your assumption of cleanliness." She paused. "It is definitely cleaner than a garage, and in certain situations, I would bet it's cleaner than a lab, though not often."

"Clara Hijaki," Clara reached out to shake her hand, "This place gives me the creeps it's so clean."

Rosemary laughed. "You get used to it after a while." She paused, looking around the barren room. "So, any idea why we're here?"

Sasha shook Clara's outstretched hand before taking a good look at the room around her. "Well," she started to answer Rosemary's question. She lowered her voice for the next part of her sentence; she didn't want to draw any extra attention to what she was saying. Which was absurd considering that it was likely everyone in the building knew what the three women were doing there. "It's about that... thing, right?"

Carla had no idea what she was talking about, but she had been so busy over the last couple of years that it would make sense if she had missed some current event, "what thing?" she asked

"Y'know," Sasha rambled on, keeping her tone low. "The summons we received in the mail?"

"Mine was rather bland, but I've heard the rumors." Rosemary agreed.

Clara didn't know what they were talking about, "All I know is I got a piece of paper telling me to come here today"

With Clara's exclamation, a door in the wall swung open and a tall man appeared, clad in a suit complete with a shiny golden badge. "Welcome, Clara Hijaki, Sasha Hunt, Rosemary Williams." He nodded, and gestured to the whole in the wall he had appeared through. "We have much to discuss."
He lead the three women through a maze of hallways too quick for any of them to remember how they had traveled, stopping in a large room. "Now, I suppose you've been wondering why you were summoned here. You have all been selected for a top secret governmental mission, one which will require you to spend a great deal of time here." He paused, waiting to see the women's' reactions.

"What do I get out of this?" Clara asked immediately.

"You get to serve your government and do your duty as a citizen." The man responded.

Clara regarded the man for a minute, looking him up and down, "You see, though, I've never been the most patriotic person"

"Well, you could always refuse of course." The man nodded. "As long as you're alright with never returning to life as you know it again. But by all means, the choice is yours."

Clara though about it again before responding, " I never said I wouldn't do it, it would just be nice to get, you know, like my finished college degree out of the mix or something."

"If you can complete the task we've assigned for you, you'll have your degree without having to finish school." The man explained. "That goes for you two as well, if you can complete this task, then the government can provide you with aid."

"I'm all in then," Clara said, satisfied. "So," she asked, "What is is exactly that we're doing here?"

Rosemary nodded in agreement. "If we have no other realistic option, I'm in too."
The man nodded. "Good, because you're traveling back in time."

Clara just nodded, shocked by the news, "okay," she said, "this will be an adventure"