"Commander Tamarind, how was your leave of absence?"

Jared stood once more before the Prometheus council, "Restful. The psych board cleared me for active duty once more."

The council member had a lot of sympathy in his eyes, "Jared, we are concerned that you were put under the psychological stress that you endured in retrieving agent Frank."

Jared grinned recklessly, "It was worth it; she is an asset to us all. I predict she will be a fine agent."

He had spent six weeks on an extended leave of absence after their returned from the CZ. That was almost an eternity to Jared. Anne had returned to her own zone of operation, and he had not seen her since. Rather than finding the furlough restful, he had found himself eager to get back to his work. With the passage of time, and his awareness of its personal limits, he felt an urgency to do what he could while there was yet time.

"Commander, you violated your mission orders." It was an invitation to explain, rather than an accusation.

"Yes, but only in part. I was told to retrieve her. I was only ordered to use force if I could not reasonably bring her back with persuasion. There was no need to harm her."
There was an orca on the council here, perhaps the same one from Midtime, he did not know. She spoke in her moans and whistles that could only vaguely be heard in the tank, but the translator on the side of the tank gave voice to her words in human language.

"You told her about the Mannheim Contingency."

"By my judgment, an acceptable course of action, preferable to the use of force. I didn’t go back there and risk my own life extracting her from the time stream once just to harm her later."

The orca rolled her eye and gazed at him from the tank, "Your decision has consequences. Only a Kohei may be told of the Mannheim contingency. Anne Frank 700-426-4 will know of Mannheim. Therefore, Sempei trainee Frank must be prepared to become a Kohei. You will train her."

And there it was. Jared had played chess, and he knew when he was in check. Orcas were nothing if not logical.

Jared bowed respectfully, "I cannot argue with the council member’s reasoning, but I would prefer not to have a Sempai who knows my personal future."

She was prepared for him, "You will take her as a Sempai from one year before her incursion into time stream 700. She will not know your future, but you will know hers."

Jared pursed his lips, thoughtful, "If we can alter her past, why not just prevent her from going? Then she would not be exposed to classified data."

The Orca was intent, but inscrutable. Most humans could not easily discern the expressions of non-humans. But he had an uncanny feeling she knew what he was thinking.

"That action resolved itself satisfactorily. It is now a matter of personal convergence."

Jared sensed defeat, "Mine, or hers?"

"Both."

Checkmate. Now I’ve done it, he found himself grinning. Life had his attention, at least.

Stream Agent Academy, Pole City, Antarctica. May 15th, 27,860 T.C.

"…Your empathy for them says volumes about you. Contrary to what the Psych Board will have you believe, it means you are more than just a tuner, you are a human being."

As the hundred or so graduating Sempai clapped politely, Jared looked them over, searching for her face. She was near the end of the third row back, looking happy and energetic, as a normal young person should. Yet she was the harbinger of his doom. He was fond of her already, and her dossier verified that she was well on her way to becoming the asset he had predicted. He would be proud to be her teacher, but his affection was muted by the knowledge that sometime in the next year, she would watch him die.