[ WP ] `` We will send you back to the creation of the thirteen colonies . You are immortal to death by old age until this year occurs again . Your task , is to recreate America as it is now . ''

I blinked. He had to be joking. Right? 
 `` You have to be joking, right?'' I asked. 
 The man in the black suit looked at me over a piece of paper. He seemed surprised that I was still here. After a few moments, he sighed, as though resigning himself to the fact that I was n't leaving. Placing the paper back on his desk, he steepled his fingers and spoke. 
 `` I am by no means joking. You will be sent back to Jamestown in 1607, the beginning of the first permanent colony. Your task is to shape the course of history so that the year 2015 is reached as it exists today. This includes all inventions occurring when they should, all discoveries taking place on schedule, and, unfortunately, all tragedies happening. Now report to room 2834 for preparation.'' 
 I was in shock. I could n't move, could n't do anything but sit there slack-jawed. This went against everything the organization stood for! How could they be doing this? 
 The director, now looking positively annoyed, pressed a button on the side of his desk. `` Security!'' he snapped. `` Applicant to be removed from my office to room 2834!'' 
 It was the security guard's hand grabbing my arm that snapped me out of it. 
 `` Sir!'' I shouted, as the guard dragged me out of the room. `` You ca n't do this! It violates the Timeline Accord!'' 
 The director stood, waved at the guard to continue dragging me, and followed. Finally he responded. `` Explain. How does it violate the Timeline Accord?'' 
 I swallowed. `` The Timeline Accord states, in simple terms, that no entity shall manipulate the timeline. Now, I know your argument will be that you do n't WANT me to manipulate the timeline, in fact my assignment is specifically to NOT, but the simple fact is that I ca n't control the Butterfly Effect. The world evolved as it did over the past 400 years without my help. The moment I insert myself into an event, the timeline will change, if in no other way than to say that I was there. Now, it could be argued that if, say, I took the place of a signer of the Declaration of Independence, nothing will change on the large scale, but we both know that to be untrue practically. At minimum I would be in every American History textbook ever. There's no way to prevent that.'' 
 I stopped. We had arrived at room 2834. The director swiped his keycard and the door swung open, revealing what appeared to be a standard medical facility, complete with a doctor in green scrubs. I knew better. I knew that it was the preparation room for travelling through time. All of your bodily systems needed to essentially be paused before entering the wormhole, or else you could end up with some.... issues. Also, it helped to change into period-appropriate clothing. No sense in travelling back hundreds or thousands of years if you were going to stand out by wearing polyester and denim. 
 I fought against the guard, but the doctor grabbed me as well and forced me into the chair, where they quickly restrained me. All I could do was keep talking and hope they realized how stupid this idea was. 
 `` The only way I could manage to get events to play out exactly as they did,'' I continued explaining to the director, `` is to make myself a hermit and not interact with anybody ever. Only that would n't even work, because I would still have to eat, drink, cut down trees to have a place to live. My mere existence over the course of 400 years would cause a butterfly effect of unknowable proportions. I kill a deer in 1650 to survive, turns out down the road that that deer's now nonexistent descendant was supposed to feed George Washington during the winter at Valley Forge, but since I already ate it, the father of our country starves to death and England wins the Colonial Rebellion of 1775. And that's an easy example, that does n't even take into account the microscopic changes. I build a fire in 1607, how do I know the change in global air circulation wo n't slowly build up over time to cause drastic deviations in the timeline? Maybe because of my fire, I cancel out Hurricane Katrina. Maybe because of my fire there's a gust of wind that blows a certain grenade a little bit to the left and kills a young Hitler in World War One. We have no way of knowing what will happen.'' 
 I paused and took a deep breath before continuing. `` And if you're going to say that none of that will happen, because I've already been there throughout history, then I would point out that that makes all of American history based around a Predestination Paradox, which this organization is supposed to stop. Which is why I can not, in good faith, complete this task.'' 
 The director smiled. Gesturing to the doctor to unclasp my restraints, he stepped toward me and extended his hand for me to shake. 
 `` Congratulations,'' he said. `` This was, in fact, the final exam. Not the trip itself, but knowing why the trip could not be taken. There are many things that our organization is unable to do. We exist as a force to protect the timeline, and as a result we can not simply do anything we wish. Sometimes you may find yourself doing something you deem immoral to protect the timeline - I myself have lost track of the number of times that an agent has been sent back to save Hitler from a rogue time traveler with a misshapen idea of justice. It is hard sometimes, which is why it is so important that we know that you understand the importance of keeping the timeline whole.'' 
 He reached into an inner pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out a small badge, which he handed to me. 
 `` Welcome to the Time Masters, Mr. Hunter.''
