TTA

The crystal wind chimes swayed on the small wooden porch, shooting rainbows through the screen door. The bursts of color danced in the natural light, jumping with each clink. The summer breeze traveled a great distance to find this home, making a final stop at the lilac bushes lining the yard before coming inside. 

Johanna basked in the rays steaming through the massive french-windows. She sat motionless— slumped into the uncomfortable wood couch with her legs and arms dangling over the sides. She was in a trance with the dripping glass of ice water on the coffee table.

Johanna’s total consumption by the water wasn't rooted in appreciation, peace, drugs or any other pleasant place. Her preoccupation with the minutiae of reality was an elected numbness. She wasn't feeling anything in particular. If she had the awareness to look at herself, she’d probably say she felt like she was watching condensation on a glass of water.

Chatter in the kitchen picked up a couple notches. The awkward cackles nudging Johanna’s bubble of solitude. So she added some spice to the spectacle of condensation, treating the falling drops as competitors in a race. She picked winners, made hypothetical bets, and even began naming some of the contestants. The level of creativity increased proportionally with the probability of one of those distant voices coming into the room to check on her. 

She’s changed so much since her mom died and she’s the only one who can’t see it. Some losses are just too much. Johanna expected the world to stop when she lost her mom and broke when it didn’t. Favorite foods became normal food. Family and friends became people she knows. Waking up became a hassle, and so did falling asleep. Johanna came to see life as a requirement, not a gift. 

The only recognizable trait in Johanna was the will to escape. She used to run away from being alone, but now she runs away to find solitude. All of the energy she used to spend loving, caring, listening, and wondering is boxed up. The glass of water is what she has now. 

When nothing except that cup existed in her mind, that’s when it happened. The prisms of color from the chimes froze, the ringing cut off, and the action on the glass disappeared. Time came to a halt, and even then, it took Johanna a few seconds to notice. At that moment everything went dark. 

#

Johanna opened her eyes to find herself seated in a middle-school sized desk. Facing the dried-gum laden desk was a box TV strapped to a dirty brown metal cart. The scent of pencil shavings and rubber eraser circulated the room. A hint of chalk-eraser particles stung Johanna’s throat. 

She dropped her eyelids and tilted back, filling her lungs for a bothered sigh. “It’s always something,” Johanna mumbled, treating the experience as if it was a normal occurrence. When everything seems like shit it just kind of all blends together. 

She pulled herself up to look around when a VHS clicked into the VCR, a man popping onto the low-resolution screen. 

“Well hello there,” the man said with an upbeat tone, “Welcome to the Temporal Temp Agency tutorial video. I’m Luke and I’ll be showing you around the joint. Let’s get rolling.”

Luke looked like a mid-80s aerobics instructor professionally fitted for a funeral tuxedo. Johanna squinted her eyes and leaned forward with intrigued disgust. To her own surprise, his cheesy smile and demeanor was able to elicit an actual emotion. She jerked around in the desk to scan the room before settling back into the screen. 

“Now, I’m sure you have a million questions,” Luke said approaching the camera, “so let me clear the air on a few that pop up the most.”

“You are not dead, this is not a dream, and for those free spirits out there, you are not tripping face. You have, however,” raising his index finger with a smile, “been selected for a position at the TTA and are now in the interview stage. Congratulations.”

Johanna peeked at her hand, digging her nail into her palm. Yup, she could feel it. 

“Interview?” Johanna asked as she searched for cameras. The room collapsed to a cage as she not only failed to find a camera, but any type of exit. No doors, windows, or vents. 

The possibility of flight removed, an urge to bash somebody jolted around Johanna’s body, but who could she get her hands on? The nostalgic fumes of pencil shavings and rubber grew thick, Johanna now pushing and pulling each breath. The anger gave her a bit of life.

“Anddd— probably the most important thing to you at this exact moment,” Luke said, “You are not a prisoner. Despite the lack of exit points.”

“Who is this wide-eyed, buck toothed underbite having loser with that haircut?,” Johanna yelled to the empty room, “Is this torture? I mean come on, that’s a face even a mother would need to learn to love.”

The TV cut off. The tiny red power light fading black. 

“About time,” Johanna said, “Come show your face.” She pushed herself from the desk, screeching it across the wood as she powered toward the cart. As she lifted her leg to deliver a big boot to the TV, the screen came alive with a sharp static and an unnecessarily close shot of Luke smiling. 

“Will you continue or would you like to return home? Please use the provided remote to make your choice now.”

Johanna’s eyes darted around the room, rushing back to her desk where a metallic silver remote was now sitting in the pencil holder. She comes to a halt after snatching it up in a hurry, realizing it only contains two unlabeled buttons. Who even put this here? Panic crept up and tightened Johanna’s stomach. 

“You have ten seconds– please make a selection now.”

Did she want to continue? Did she really care about going back home?

“Well shhhh,” Johanna said as she pressed a button without looking. 

“So you want to continue, huh? Love that choice,” Luke said, “Let’s get into what we’re all about here at TTA.” 

#

Johanna felt a tinge of relief as she wasn’t particularly enthused about returning to her reality. 

“Here at the TTA our mission is simple; encourage progress and ensure the survival of humanity. We achieve this through the monitoring and adjusting of the timeline.”

Johanna inhaled a massive amount of chalky air for a deep sigh. Luke seemed to pause. 

“Don’t think of TTA as a small, privileged group of manipulators. We are a tool for humanity created and controlled by the people.”

“Well I wasn’t thinking that until you said it,” Johanna mumbled. 

“As every movie involving time travel has told you,” Luke continued, “the smallest interaction can have serious consequences, so timeline adjustments are few and far between. Practically all the work we do here is research, observation, simulation, and identification.”

Out of nowhere, Luke exploded with emotion, jumping into a squatting position, “Which is why your selection as adjustment agent, the one who actually alters the timeline, is so frickin’ awesome.” But like a zero-turn mower, Luke turned on a dime, throwing his lips back and cheeks up for a forced transition to a somber, serious demeanor. 

“The TTA maintains the upper echelon of integrity through a simple practice; voluntary participation and absolutely zero personal benefit. This means while your time here at TTA will be the most significant moments of your life, you’ll have no memory or records of your sacrifice.”

“What the hell does he mean sacrifice?” Johanna asked herself. 

“I mean the ultimate sacrifice, Johanna,” Luke said as he popped out of the TV and appeared six inches from her face. 

Johanna threw an instinctive left hook aimed directly at Luke’s jaw, but he cracked his neck fully horizontal for the dodge before taking a step back and raising both hands armed with the peace symbol. Johanna froze with helplessness and a realization she didn’t really care what was going on. She decided to let the scene unfold.

“Now, I know what you’re thinking,” Luke said walking slowly like a teacher, “Time travel isn’t possible— can’t be. And well, that is technically correct.”

“Isn’t time travel— I don’t know,” Johanna started, “Like your whole thing here? You said I’m not dreaming or hallucinating, so how are we here?”

“So, you’re not dreaming right now, but you did fall asleep and that’s where TTA exists. When you dream, your brain manufactures scenarios to help you make sense of your consciousness. What has, could, and will happen get all jumbled together. But did you know there’s a requirement necessary to dream, Johanna?”

“A requirement?” Johanna asked, “Everybody dreams all the time. What the hell are you even talking about?”

“How do you know everybody dreams, Johanna?” Luke snapped, “Did you read it somewhere? Did you actually seem somebody physically dream? No— you didn’t. You just assume that’s the case.”

Luke and Johanna, both equally annoyed, just glared until Luke seemed to remember he was at his job. 

“The requirement of dreaming, Johanna,” Luke said, “Is a sufficient desire to process life. If the brain lacks the inclination to understand what’s going on around it, you end up here—TTA headquarters. It’s not like we recruited you here— you showed up at the doorstep and we’re just here to guide you.”

“Sounds like a creative way to describe dreaming,” Johanna said, “But let’s say you are just relaying facts. How do I know this isn’t a dream? And how could TTA change anything if it can only exist in sleep?”

“To answer your first question, it doesn’t matter what you think. To answer your second question, dreams influence reality. Known here at TTA as an obvious truth, we call it DIR— like the phrase “no der.”

“Fu—,” Johanna started. 

“We don’t assassinate villains, sabotage nukes, or force a person to turn left instead of right. Instead, we identify the dream cycles of certain individuals at particular points and influence trajectory. We use dreams, of both good and bad people, to help their unconscious brain gravitate toward a desired outcome.”

“Okay, I’ve heard enough,” Johanna said, “Send me—.” 

“Johanna, if you want to leave, leave,” Luke said as he raised an open hand toward a new door labeled “Home.” 

“The reason you’re here is because you want to escape your reality,” Luke said, “In the few moments you’re not zoned out in la-la land, you constantly try to manifest time to come to a halt. Well, time has come to a halt, literally.”

Johanna pulled her stare away from Luke and directed it at the door. She contemplated the specific aspects of what it would mean to go home, turning back to Luke with a more accepting gaze. 

“Let me be blunt,” Luke said, “You waste the time you have on Earth. And here at TTA, we know you’ll continue to waste that time.”

“I do not,” Johanna snapped. She wanted to follow up with an example, but couldn’t push anything out. Luke stared with true empathy in his eyes.

“So what’s the ultimate sacrifice and why do you think I would even want to join this type of thing?” Johanna asked. 

“The ultimate sacrifice is your time,” Luke said, “Your time assisting with the progress of humanity at the TTA is deducted from your time allowed on Earth.”

Luke provided a long pause for her to absorb the agreement proposed. 

“I’d also like to point out the same goes for me,” Luke said, “So I’d greatly appreciate you not wasting my sacrifice.”

“That’s just crazy,” Johanna said, “I don’t want to end my life- or take years off my existence. I admit I’ve been disillusioned with, well everything lately, but I don’t want to die. There’s a million things I still want to do.” 

Luke smiled and said, “There’s a reason why the good always die young, Johanna. They are people exactly like you; full of beautiful intentions, intense emotions, and world-class abilities. But more often than not, those gifts become a curse when they lose somebody or something early in life. The inherent ability to make the world a better place is locked away, trapped in everlasting depression and unrelenting sadness. Here, we can remove those feelings and let you reach your potential.”

Johanna clenched her jaw to stop the tears from falling.

“Your mom was a lovely woman and she loved you more than anything in existence. She wouldn’t want you wasting your life.”

Johanna burst into tears— a full on stream. The tension that pulled her shoulders and neck since her mom’s first cancer diagnosis released, her body melting into the desk. 

“You were chosen because you can change the world and unlike most people, you don’t want recognition,” Luke said, “Altruism can’t be learned so when it is available, it can’t be wasted. If you were vain, you’d at least care about something, but you’re lost Johanna. You belong here.” 

Johanna’s vision, blurred by the bout of tears, cleared as she wiped her eyes and rose to her feet. 

“I’m done trying to escape. I’m done wasting my life,” Johanna said.

“I’m glad you’re joining the team. I think you’ll love—“

“No,” Johanna said, “I’m going home. You were right about my Mom not wanting me to waste my life, but you didn’t know her. If she was here she would break your neck for trying to manipulate me when I’m this low. I don’t know what game you want me to play, but I’m out.”

Johanna walked through the door and back into her reality, opening her eyes to find a glass of water on a hot summer day. She chugged it down and got up.

#

The instant Johanna walked through the door, a man dressed in an identical tuxedo to Luke swung it back open. “You truly are the master, Luke. The numbers are in and you’ve done it again. Humanity’s timeline extended 3.7%.”

Luke manifested a clipboard out of thin air and broke it over his knee with jubilation. The other guy grabbed a child’s shirt out of his tuxedo. He put it on and preceded to hunch over and flex to rip it in half. The two performed a well-rehearsed hand shake and dance routine before Luke conjured a door labeled “Main Office.” They wrapped their arms around one another and walked on through. 

Operation #53: Final Progress Report

“The JJ Special”

Earth Time: 4:35 PM CST

Earth Date: July 13th, 1997

Location of Adjustment: TTA Meeting Room “F”

Individuals present: Agent Luke and Johanna Jackson AKA “JJ Special"

Methods: 

Agent Luke created, organized, and completed operation “The JJ Special.” The agent staged a fake TTA interview for the subject, summoning her at a particularly vulnerable moment, shortly after the death of her mother. Agent utilized nostalgic smells and visuals within the environment to mimic the location where the subject first learned of her mother’s impending death. Agent instituted measures eliciting fear and helplessness in order for the subject to achieve an emotional breakthrough, thus avoiding a mediocre and ineffectual existence. Agent intentionally provided a lackluster performance and sales pitch to ensure the subject would not attempt to join TTA. Agent selected the emotion of anger as a primary motivator for subject moving forward. Subject departed TTA Meeting Room “F.” 

Agent removed visual and auditory memory of the subject per TTA protocol, but left emotional and subconscious memory intact to ensure the subject’s progress toward the designated TTA goal. Upon her return to consciousness, the subject’s preference for solitude and inaction diminished significantly. While the subject had lost desire to live by the time of intervention, the anger sparked during the session with the Agent became a place holder. Subject was subsequently radicalized by a number of TTA adjustment agents in relation to animal welfare and ethical responsibility at future vulnerable dates. Agents identified animal welfare and ethical responsibility as areas of opportunity based on the death of the subject’s mother (cancer related to factory farms). Actions by other TTA agents were undertaken with the intent of amplifying the magnitude of the subject’s actions on Earth and are not included in this report. 

Summary of Results:

The subject is classified as a Category 1 super-influencer, single-handedly producing the largest positive impact in TTA history. Without intervention, it is estimated she would have left no lasting impact on humanity, likely succumbing to suicide by age 30. 

Subject achieved the Category 1 level of influence by disrupting current civilization’s dependence on the industrialized slaughter/consumption of animals. Subject terminated life functions for a total of 83 cattle farmers, 4 CEOs, and 2 politicians over the span of 43 years. The subject remained anonymous, even following her death. The subject’s actions did result in a brief period of increased political conflict, financial turmoil, and a number of false imprisonments, but all collateral damage was negligible. 

Initial report indicates 3.7% extension of the humanity timeline with a significant improvement in quality of life for all animals on Earth. Further reports should clarify the source of progress for extension, as TTA typically utilizes prevention measures and this operation had unexpected and wide-ranging implications. Unbeknownst to the agents at the start of the operation, the intervention led to drastic changes in climate control, ethical evolution, interplanetary travel, and technological progress.