THE BETTER PART OF VALOR. Morgan Mackinnon

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      The other members of the team dispersed back to routine duties and documentation, so it was Sanford and Leigh who guided Chen into a lounge outfitted with a sofa, coffee table, three chairs, a fridge, and a sideboard holding refreshments slightly stronger than mineral water. Jim set out a glass and poured a healthy shot of whiskey for Chen, which was gratefully accepted. Cresta frowned. She maintained a stash of anti-anxiety drugs kept in a locked closet just in case they would be needed, but she didn’t want to administer any if Chen had alcohol in his system.

      Jim clapped Chen on the back. “What happened? You look white as a ghost.”

      Chen nearly choked on the reply. “I found…I think I’ve found…an anachronism. A person who is out of time. I mean, a person who should be in the present but isn’t. This one could really impact the future.”

      Shrugging off the suggestion he go home and rest for a bit, Sammy Chen shook his head. “No. This is important, and I need to tell you about it.”

      Going to the end of the lounge, Sammy raised a curtain that hid a whiteboard. Taking a colored marker from the whiteboard tray, he began by putting the current year, 2002, at the top. He motioned for another shot of whiskey which Jim provided. Below the 2002, Chen listed the years 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016—all the way to 2036. He then circled 2004. Taking his briefcase, Chen pulled out some rumpled photos and newspaper articles from that year showing news and events.

      “Okay. Remember the attacks on the World Trade Center last year? How could any of us forget, right? Nearly three thousand American dead, morale low, President Bush declaring war on the Middle East over suspected ‘weapons of mass destruction’ that, as it turns out, didn’t exist. The war was not very successful and would tie up money and cause thousands of American service people to be killed in the fighting, not to mention civilian deaths. One president would send troops in, another would bring troops back. That’s why I added all the election years. See? Democrat here, Republican here. The situation was a complicated mess. I mean, it will be a complicated mess.

      “There will be a radical shift in public opinion, inflamed propaganda, and foreign interference that will allow a nearly autocratic government to begin forming in the early part of two thousand nineteen. No, party and names don’t matter. What voters wanted was someone who would be a breath of fresh air shake things up, drain the swamp. To accomplish that end, many people voted for an outsider, someone who knew nothing about how government works. That person proceeded to fill Cabinet appointments with his friends and donors. The result was a rolling back of environmental regulations, financial regulations, tax codes, an assault on healthcare, withdrawal from international treaties, alienation of major allied countries. Sorry, I know I’m mixing tense with ‘would’ and ‘will,’ but in this time, it hasn’t happened yet.”

      Chen paused and drew a deep breath. “What matters is that by twenty thirty-seven, the seeds sown in the late twenty-teens will result in the world…the entire world will be on the brink of nuclear war which will virtually destroy this planet and millions upon millions of people will die. All because of a few greedy men who will rampage through Washington, DC, driven by ego, incompetence, and corruption. Fortunately…”

      Chen sank down in a chair and drew another breath before he could continue. “Fortunately, there is a solution. There will be a statesman emerge who will bring the much-needed voice of reason to the people. A brilliant, ambitious young man of thirty-four will correctly access this situation and create a third party between the far left and the far right—a party people can get behind and support. It will be a United American People’s Party. Because of his influence and ability, diplomatic relations will be restored with those countries on this planet who wield nuclear capabilities and a peace will be struck. This man will understand isolationism, and war is not the answer. Killing and racism is not the answer. This man must become Secretary of State or we are probably doomed.”

      Cresta looked cautiously at Jim before confronting Chen.

      “Okay, so far there isn’t a problem. Something happen to this guy? We need to step in and save him?”

      Sammy Chen took out a sheaf of photocopied pages. “I risked my butt to get these copies. And I checked a dozen sources. Every source says the same thing. The man in question will be Thomas M. Keogh, born to American parents of Irish descent in twenty oh-three.”

      At their quizzical looks, Chen shoved over the papers. “The man’s father will be an army man named Myles Walter Keogh. He was born in…eighteen forty.”