The Office of Spatio-Temporal Affairs

Chapter 3 : Welcome In The Office

Célia was seriously starting to worry. It must be said that her day had been very peculiar. After being kidnapped by her ex, she had seen her friend almost fighting to the death against a dealer shooting laser beams from his hands, while the infamous dealer fought with a slime that sometimes turned into a blade, sometimes into a mass. After this fight, Thomas had freed her and told her that people would come for them before fainting. Shortly after, the warehouse had been filled with a bright light, and when this flash faded, a group was there, without her being able to find logical explanations on how they got there. The majority of the group wore purple outfits that seemed to come from a sci-fi movie, as well as some sort of gas masks. These men surrounded Victor's corpse, while others passed in front of Miguel a device emitting flashes of light. Men approached Célia and Thomas. Some, wearing surgical masks and white coats, worked around the unconscious young man; she assumed they were the "medical team" he had requested. Three people in purple came towards Célia, the one in the middle removed her mask, revealing a woman with a stern face. She looked at her colleague, whose mica eyes fixed on the tablet she was holding, before nodding. The woman then addressed Célia: "Madam, I'm going to ask you to follow us." Her tone admitted no refusal, but anyway, the young woman had already decided to follow them because she wanted to trust Thomas, and above all, she wanted answers. Speaking of Thomas, the men in lab coats had placed him on a stretcher and led him to the center of the room. After exchanging some words with the men who remained in the center, the injured man and the doctors disappeared in a flash, in the same mysterious way they had arrived. Célia got up, and the trio in front of her turned on their heels to follow their movement. The young girl followed suit, and after a similar exchange with the men, a blinding light surrounded them.

When Célia opened her eyes again, she found it hard to believe what she saw: from an old, dirty, and dark warehouse, they had moved to a spacious and bright building. The place seemed unreal, with tall white walls connected by crystalline bridges and cornices, large plants seeming to come from other planets adorning everything. But she didn't have time to marvel for long, as their guides invited her to follow them. After walking through the crowd, they then came across a group of men in camouflage gear. They talked for a few moments with the woman leading the group, then Célia was signaled to go with them.

And now she was here, in this sort of darkened lounge, and she was beginning to think that these people were not the ones called by Thomas, and that she had been captured again. But she wasn't going to let it happen this time. She walked around the room and spotted a statuette that would do perfectly as a weapon. Then she waited. She didn't need much patience: behind one of the two doors adorning the room, she heard a lot of commotion, muffled by the thickness of the wall. She positioned herself behind the door, then when it was finally unlocked and someone entered, she didn't bother to find out who it was, she struck with a sharp blow.

But the newcomer dodged the blow effortlessly, stepped back quickly, raised his hands, and exclaimed, "Hey, calm down, I don't mean you any harm! -Who are you, why did you lock me up? -Easy, I haven't done anything to you, it's Thomas who sent me, I've come to help you!" At the mention of her friend, Célia lowered her improvised weapon a bit. Then she examined the intruder in the light of the opening; he was wearing loose clothes, gloves, and sunglasses that hid his identity. Yet Célia recognized him: "You're the man who came to see Thomas at the university, aren't you? -I guess I really wasn't discreet that day." His voice had regained a calmer tone. "Yes, it's me, I'm Dave, pleased to meet you," he said, extending his hand. "What are you doing here?" Célia didn't shake his hand. "I repeat, Thomas asked me to come and get you and bring you to him." Célia still didn't seem ready to cooperate. Seeing this, Dave put his hand back in his pocket, turned around, and said, "You know, I'm not going to force you to follow me. If you think it's better to stay here indefinitely waiting for these guys to take care of you, you're free to choose. But between us, wouldn't you rather finally unravel all the mysteries swirling around in your head?" He was right, she didn't completely trust him, but following him was still the best solution available to the captive. She finally put down the statuette and told him she agreed to follow him. The man smiled and walked ahead, with Célia on his heels. Passing through the adjoining lounge where she was, she saw a real mess, with collapsed furniture and three people passed out in the room. Dave said, "Don't worry about them, they didn't want to let me through, I had to flex some muscles." Under the guidance of the man in sunglasses, she crossed long marble corridors and finally arrived in front of an oak door, above which was the inscription: "OMEGA Division, Anti-Crime Force." Dave pressed the numeric panel next to the door, which opened with an electronic beep. He invited her in and said, "Thomas's office is at the back on the left, I'll leave you, I have work to do."

Célia found herself alone. Following her guide's indication, she crossed the corridor and reached a door at the end. She knocked, and a familiar voice invited her in. She opened the door and entered an office that seemed to come from the White House: a large piece of furniture stood at the back, piled with papers and folders. In the center of the room were two sofas facing each other, with a coffee table between them. But the most impressive thing was the gigantic window on the wall without any shelves. Célia approached it, and through it, she saw an indescribable vision. It wasn't really the cosmos; it seemed even bigger, a kaleidoscope of colors floating in infinite space. Someone spoke behind her: "Impressive, isn't it?" The young woman turned around to face Thomas. He had swapped his everyday attire for a suit and was leaning against the desk. He continued, "It's a unique sight, few can boast of enjoying such a spectacle. -Thomas?! You...are you okay?" The questions that had been accumulating in Célia's mind now clamored to get out, and she struggled to express herself. "Yes," he replied with a small smirk, "I've been through worse, and the doctors here are talented. Well, you must have thousands of questions, and it's time I answered them. Sit down," he said, indicating one of the sofas. Célia sat down, and her friend sat on the one facing her. He continued, "Well, I'm listening, ask your questions." Célia took some time to sort out her thoughts, and was surprised of how easily she accepted everything that happened today. She began to realize how lost she was and started, "Where are we?" - "You're at the Bureau, well, to be precise, their headquarters." - "The dealer mentioned this name 'Bureau,' and so did you when you were fighting. What exactly is it?" - "The full name is the Bureau of Spatio-Temporal Affairs. It's a secret organization tasked with keeping the world safe from supernatural threats." - "How so?" - "Do you know about the multiverse theory? Time flux concepts? All the legends about monsters, supernatural beings? Well, it's all true, and we ensure that the general public remains unaware and protected from all that. Don't look at me like that, after everything you've seen, do you really think it's so far-fetched?" - "No, not really... So, what are you exactly, the SCP Foundation?" - "Ha ha! Well, that's indeed one of our departments, but our missions aren't limited to that." - "But... You, who exactly are you?" - "Thomas, the one you know," he said, spreading his arms. "More seriously, I'm the head of the OMEGA division, responsible for tracking down criminals, like the man you saw me confront. I'm also a user, meaning I'm a being with supernatural abilities, as you also witnessed," he continued, making a golden form appear and dancing it on his arm. - "I see... That's a lot to digest and believe..." - "I understand." - "But why did you bring me here? Are you planning to kill me because I know too much or something?" - "Don't look so scared; you certainly didn't get a decent welcome, but we mean you no harm. In fact, you're even an honored guest!" - "Me?" - "Yes, you. You see, there's a particular power, the ability to manipulate time, that has been passed down from person to person since time immemorial. Those with this power are called 'Time Masters.' And the most recent one is you." - "I could manipulate time? That's impossible!" - "Really? Yet, you did it when I almost ended up impaled. And you must have felt it for some time, right? Moments where time seems to stop, or on the contrary, accelerate. Even the ease with which you believe me, it's because deep down, you have this connection with the time stream." - "So, what does that mean?" - "It means you'll have to make a choice, Célia." Thomas stood up. "Either you reject this reality, and we erase your memories so you can go back to your quiet, ordinary life, or you accept this destiny and the responsibilities that come with it. You learn to master your powers and work with us to protect the world. The choice is yours."

Célia was in shock. Her, a holder of a power and an exceptional destiny? Seriously? Thomas approached her, "Sorry, I know it's abrupt; take some time to think about it. But before that, I'd like to introduce you to someone." - "Who?" - "The head of the Bureau, my superior, and possibly yours soon. I'll introduce you to Izuru String."