6. 7. 8. Kline increased the treadmill’s speed. His hazel eyes focused on his room’s display screen. Two headlines stuck out:
Global Gazette: XLS Party Gaining Ground Despite Extremist Label
Federalist News: Union Blames XLS Propaganda for Eleventh Riot-Related Death.
A chime sounded and an electronic female voice announced, “Captain Bashui Lee.”
Kline slowed. “Admit him.”
The door slid open to reveal a lean man with sharp features. Bashui Lee, captain of XLS Phase Travel Operations, sauntered into the room. Cunning and driven, Lee was a decorated commander and war hero. As the leader of the Xi’an Liberation Society’s answer to the Union Subdivision, he commanded his timeslingers from a secret base located in New London, the lone city on Earth’s moon.
“Evening, Marcus. Up for a real walk?”
Kline stepped off the treadmill and wiped the sweat off his brow before nodding. The two men exited Kline’s quarters and headed toward the briefing room.
“Any news on Randolph?”
“Not yet,” said Lee. “He doesn’t know enough to be dangerous.”
“He lost it. Almost got me killed and jeopardized the mission. He’s a fanatic. He doesn’t belong here.”
“So you’ve said. He had been a good soldier up until Los Alamos. His brother was killed by a Union police unit during a protest outside Sydney the day before you transferred. Wrong place, wrong time. He must have heard right before you two left.”
Kline stopped. “I’m sorry for his loss, but I won’t work alongside extremists, Captain.”
“You won’t have to. Next mission’s a solo shot.” Lee entered the briefing room. “The doodles that you brought back from Los Alamos sparked some creative thinking in Tactical Sciences. Rahul Banerjee really was onto something. Tactical claims they can build a device that’ll cloak a small city.”
Lee flipped a switch. Holographic blueprints appeared over the briefing room table.
“Operation Yamato–” started Kline.
“Launched this morning. Our best chance of crippling the Union and allowing the Xi’an Liberation Society to become a true player in world politics starts now. As soon as the cloaking device is ready the excavation team will transfer out. It will be the largest time travel operation we’ve ever put together.”
“Which means–”
“You’re headed to Dallas.” Lee grinned.
Our first glimpse into the present day, XLS headquarters on earth’s moon. We also get to meet Kline’s boss, Bashui Lee. These last two episodes fling us into the main plotline.
As an aside, the name Yamato does have some significance. What kind? Well…you’ll see.