Learning to Love Time Loops Without Going Insane

Harold entered several passwords into a system he had just spent the better part of the day assembling, testing, and retesting. Everything in it needed to operate exactly as he intended. This was the device he needed to contact Clark, and any screw-up on his part could lead to them being traced. He was reasonably confident as things currently stood that Clark had no idea what his current whereabouts were or even if he was still alive, and while he couldn’t keep the second part up, he had every intention of keeping the first. If this all went south, he had told Bart to make sure they spent a year doing recon work for every scrap of information that could be found before making any communication attempt again. Hopefully, it didn’t come to that, but his paranoia was a well-developed skill for a reason.

The machine beeped back at him; his codes had been received. It was time for the next series. This process went back and forth for another ten minutes before he was finally ready to send the actual message. He started typing, careful to stick exactly to his initial script for now.

Yes, the codes were accurate; this is Harold. I am alive. Things in the world seem to be changing, and as I’ve learned in the past, you are generally abreast of the nature of various world-shifting events. I wish to have a meeting. Is this acceptable?

He pressed send on his first message and waited for the reply. As previously discussed with Bart, he did not intend to be the one at the meeting himself and assumed Clark would also send a proxy. However, once the other man acknowledged the message and responded, that would be something to discuss. The terminal beeped again, and several lines of green text flashed onto the screen.

Harold, you old dog, I am surprised to see you still alive and reaching out to me, of all people. You must have discovered something dire if you are willing to inform me that you are leaving retirement. So, which of the many world events has you so worried? I might be able to spare some time to discuss it. Please try to be specific; there are always so many.

Harold quickly read the reply and then bit down his annoyance at the response. Somehow, Clark's overly smooth voice managed to come through even in the text. This had been expected, though, and he moved on to the next part of his script.

There are a few that have me concerned. In my old age, I’ve finally settled down. I’d rather an alien invasion, or is it an invasion from another universe? The details were a bit fuzzy there, but either way, I’d rather they not destroy my idyllic farmstead retirement. I’ve come to enjoy watching the goats.

He knew Clark would never believe it, but the pretense was important; otherwise, he might slip away and give away something from his real life. The wait for the next message was much shorter than before. It looked like he had Clark’s full attention.

Another dimension, and another other world, I believe, though those details are hard to by. How did you manage to encounter this little bit of information hidden away on your farm? Your family certainly isn’t in any position to tell you, at least.

“Damn,” Harold cursed out loud. While he hadn’t plainly stated it, this likely confirmed the Agency had Melissa and Clark knew of her relation to him. He had prepared for the possibility but had strongly hoped against it.

How is Melissa doing? Are you treating her well? And Cal? She had just started mentoring him. Or we could perhaps cut through the theatrics here and agree to a meeting. I have some information I’m sure you want, and you have information I would be willing to trade for.

He had always planned to name-drop Cal as the final push for the meeting. He wanted to make it clear that his understanding of what was happening was large enough for himself to be considered a threat, leaving Clark with no choice but to agree to the meeting, if only to get a chance at eliminating the threat.

Yes, it seems best we do. There’s a diner in New York I’ve been meaning to try. Dimensional Burgers, the name should be fitting for the meeting. I’ll see you there in two weeks at noon.

Harold slumped back into his chair. The first part was complete. From here, everything was bound to get increasingly dangerous. Harold sighed. There was no safe way around it now. He had to find a way to get access to the compound that Bart had told him about. These people were nice enough, which was a big part of the problem in itself, but they were not remotely equipped for the espionage game. He needed to remember what happened here if it all started again.

How long had they known about Melissa’s relationship to him? As he considered the possibilities, he came to the conclusion it had to have happened once the loops started. Otherwise, they would have used that to their advantage a long time ago. Now, it’s just a reality they have to deal with instead of a useful lever. If the story he had been told was completely true, Melissa was just collateral damage in the need to capture and control Cal. Once they learned about the time loop, whichever agent was willing to stay with them through it likely climbed his way to the top.

He was reasonably sure he understood what was going on now. They want to control the loops themselves. That meant keeping Cal under their control, probably in some sort of medically induced coma, cared for around the clock. Cal was also the only one he could be sure was even alive. He wouldn’t be sharing that news with the others; they would be back in the next loop anyway. The important thing now was finding a way to get to Cal before they did, and that meant far more information was needed.

It was time to get a burger.