Prologue- How the Two Whales' Diner got its Name
The Past- When Pirates first roamed Arcadia Bay
Two little girls sat side by side in the booth just one down from the Jukebox devouring sugar laden treats. One had waffles and the other pancakes but like any good Captain and first mate they shared their bounties. So it was more half waffle and half pancakes for the both of them. Their favourite member of the staff came over and offered to refresh their drinks.
"Thanks mom," said the young Chloe Price.
"Thanks Mrs Price," said the young Max Caulfield.
"Oh Honey you've known me long enough that you can just call me Joyce," she said. "You have my permission to do that Maxine."
"Its Max. not Maxine," Chloe said indignantly. "You know she hates been called Maxine."
"My apologise Max," Joyce said to her daughter's best friend.
"I accept your apology Mrs...Joyce," The girl said. "Can I ask you something? I've been wondering about it for awhile now."
"No you can't permanently move into Chloe's room."
"Nice try my loyal first mate."
"No I was just wondering why the Diner is called what it is," Max explained. "Why not just the whale or maybe the whale pod?"
"That is a bit before my time here darling," Joyce said as she slid behind the counter to pour a coffee for one of the regulars. "Here Stan you were around when they changed the name weren't you? Why two whales?"
"I can do our little pirates one better," Stan said cheerfully. "I saw it all, the reason they changed the name."
"Is it a Pirate story?" Chloe asked enthusiastically.
"You bet it is captain," He said. "But hold your first mate close because I will admit to you that I was a bad and evil pirate back then and I did a most despicable thing. I hunted whales."
"That's horrible," Max said burying her head into Chloe.
"Aye it was but this is a story about the day I stopped hunting those magnificent creatures."
"Go on," Chloe said not sure whether she should see Stan in a new light or not.
"We'd set to sea that day hoping we'd pull in a least one beast," he continued the tale. "We thought we had been lucky to spot two travelling together. We set the harpoon and our gunner took aim, he lined up the shot and squeezed the trigger."
"This is horrible," Max said mainly to herself.
"But there was a thunk when there should not have been one. The harpoon stopped in mid air and dropped harmlessly into the water. Needless to say we were surprised, but we where even more surprised when the air shimmered and a strange craft revealed itself like a giant green bird made of metal. It just hovered there above us slowly turning. It was then that one of our lookouts noticed the Whales disappeared in a haze of light, probably some of the sea water surrounding them to."
"No way," Chloe said.
"That can't be true," Max stated.
"We got out of there as fast as we could," Stan finished of the story. "When we got back here and recounted the tale we were of course not believed and accused of been drunks and liars, we said Two Whales so much I think the owner began to like the sound of it and decided to change the Diner's name. Needless to say our crew split up, most went to find jobs inland, although our captain took it as a cue to retire. I'm the only one who sails any more, decided to become a good pirate, not as heroic as yourselves of course, but I joined Greenpeace and helped protect the whales. I figured if aliens came here just to save them they must be pretty damn important."
"So it was all true then," Max decided.
"That's quite a tale," Joyce said as she freshened up Stan's coffee.
"Thank you Sir for that grand tale," Chloe said with a bow. "Sadly I can give you no coin for the telling as my gold is buried all over, but I know the staff of this fine establishment, perhaps they can give you a slice of bacon in lieu of payment. Now if you excuse me my crew must be off."
She grabbed Max and rushed out the door.
"Chloe get back here," Joyce called. "You can't just tell some one I'll give them bacon."
"Its fine Joyce," Stan said frowning slightly. "Shoot I forgot to tell them the best part, I think the aliens were pirates to."
Outside the pirates planned their day.
"Where will we sail today Captain Chloe?" Max asked.
Chloe pulled off her pirate hat and placed it on her friends head.
"That's up to you Captain Max."
"Then to the lighthouse," Max said. "We've been approached by the Galaxy Council to help them protect their newest members, the Humpback Whales of earth, from those that would hunt them down."
"But what's in it for us?"
"Ah first mate, a chest full of space doubloons and our own planet of nothing but tropical Islands."
"I vote we name the planet Maxima for the best captain there ever was."
And the Pirates of Arcadia Bay were off on another grand adventure.
No when, a Friday: The week that never was
Chloe had no doubt that this was all real. All that remained now was to see if she ceased to exist or if she would continue existing as per other theories of time travel. If it was the latter at least she knew Max, her wonderful, loving, awkward heroic hipster Max would be safe. And she was sure that after that wonderful kiss Max would know that this all happened and that Chloe loves her. Chloe just hoped that some of the her that was ending right here would integrate with the her that died in the girls restroom on Monday and know that Max Caulfield loved her so much she wouldn't invalidate the sacrifice she was making so that the other residents of Arcadia Bay could have a chance to be as happy and in love as she felt right now. Max began focusing on the photo of the butterfly Chloe had kept safe all week. Now all Chloe Price had to do was wait and see.
1 of May 2053: The Pirate vs. The Nuclear Apocalypse
The old lady climbed towards the bench near the lighthouse with some urgency. She was only in her late fifties which thanks to advances in Medical science was more like the mid forties of times gone by, but she had spent the last two weeks digging and that had taken its toll.
"Who is the crazy old lady now?" Max said to no one she stopped for a moment as if listening to a reply that never came.
"I'm almost there Chloe," she said as she sat. "Can't believe I dug out that place, but you would have, despite what he caused to happen to Rachel, to you and so many others. Because it was the right thing to do and now fifty more people have the chance to survive what's coming."
She pulled out her camera and took one last selfie, she'd been saving the last piece of film stock for five long years waiting for just such a special occasion. Having sore hands she didn't even bother flapping the photo around as she usually did. She had to laugh when she realised she was still wearing her Pirate hat when she saw it in the photo. She'd worn it to convince the children to help her look for buried treasure. The adults had just laughed at crazy old lady Max, that was until they realised that the buried treasure was the missing Prescott bunker. They to knew its dark history and it's other name but in this day and age any and all underground refuges would be used.
Max dropped the selfie to the ground and looked up. It was such a clear day for the end of the world. She had always assumed it would be a stormy and dark, just like when Chloe...when Chloe...Max cried. The nuclear bomb dropped almost unnoticed just the other side of the lighthouse. And Max's last thought was as always of a beautiful woman with blue hair and the kiss they shared right on that spot just over there.
The Present: Not quite Utopia but getting there
The children crowded around the woman that had appeared out of thin air and interrupted their playtime.
"Maybe she's the ghost," one suggested.
"That would be highly illogical," replied his female friend with the pointed ears.
"Why?" their other friend sneered. "Did your Dad say the Science academy decided ghosts were not real?"
"Lay off her Van," the first child said. "Its not T'ler's fault the Vulcan science academy couldn't bring itself to ask What if? for the first few years of the federation's existence."
"That's not it and you know it David."
"I merely meant that this woman cannot be the ghost," T'ler explained. "In all stories related to the Ghost of Arcadia Bay she has blue hair, this woman does not, therefore logically she cannot be the ghost."
"Chloe?" the woman on the ground said.
"Excuse me," David said. "Is that your name?"
"No I'm Max," the woman murmured. "If you see Chloe send her over, I've been waiting a few decades to kiss her again."
What conciousness the woman had been holding onto slipped away.
"I knew we should have bought a comm unit," Van wailed. "We need our parent's help."
"That's no way for a deep space exploration crew member to talk," T'ler said a little too forcefully. "Here's the most logical plan, Van use your tricorder to scan this woman for injuries."
"Aye Captain," Van replied.
"David use my training lipra to ward off any wildlife that gets curious."
"But its yours."
"But you are more skilled in its use."
"Aye Captain."
"I will collect M'arshda from the bottom of the path were she was tracking that deer," T'ler explained. "Being the best long distance runner she will be able to get into town to retrieve help the quickest. I shall then retrieve a med kit from the first aid stand at the start of the trail and then return."
Immediately all three children set to their tasks.
As Van scanned the woman and David scanned the undergrowth they conversed.
"Van I know you're a Tellarite and to argue with people is your cultural right but don't you think T'ler is already upset over the whole Romulus and Remus thing."
"Then why didn't her father support..."
"They've been going to therapy."
"Oh," Van said. "I'll, I'll try to be more supportive. This mystery might make her feel better though, she might even do the eyebrow thing."
"What Mystery?" David asked. "At the moment isn't it most likely this woman just has access to another form of transporter technology."
"How can you wait a few decades to kiss someone when you're only eighteen years old?"
Further up time: A transitional time about time
"Believe me I know it is hard Daniels," The Admiral told his student. "But you know I saw your point eventually."
"I know," Daniels replied. "Its just difficult to remember the you I met tomorrow might not be the experienced you of today."
"Don't sweat it kid," the Admiral practically laughed. "The you I know today definitely isn't the arrogant know it all who was always criticising our methods, but eventually you will be."
"I know you actually did your best I just wish it hadn't opened up more fronts in the Temporal Cold war."
"Has your organisation identified more time periods?"
"A few...but some just don't make sense," Daniels said. "Why the 22nd century, why not the 21st where humans were still confined to the one solar system, why not before the third world war even..."
The alarm klaxon sounded throughout the ship.
"Sir," called the ensign. "There are several humanoid life signs moving rapidly uptime. The Chroniton wake they're leaving...these readings don't make sense."
"Daniels I know you're a civilian but man that transporter," the admiral said. "I want the best person on this and that's you."
"Yes Admiral Ducane."
"Readings indicate some kind of chroniton surge, epicentre in the 2010s and 2050s," the ensign said. "The 2010 reading just went haywire, fluctuating between a temporal loop and a knot."
"Now its a shunt," another crew member called.
"Ignore all that," The admiral ordered. "Daniels, readings on our time traveler."
"This can't be right," Daniels said. "I'm reading roughly one hundred, all the same person just with a quantum variance of...how can you get a quantum variance that low without reality folding back into the origin timeline. Wait they're integrating down to 47, 30, 20, 15.
"Beam them all to sickbay," the Admiral ordered. "And by the great bird of the galaxy don't integrate what's left of them. The variance between these two is too great."
"Already ahead of you," Daniels said. "That one with the greatest variance, the medical scan, what kind of primitive age is this person from."
Daniels caught the admiral smiling at him as the console read that beaming was complete.
"You've meet this person in her future haven't you, but your past."
"Perhaps," Admiral Ducane. "But you actually meet her for the first time right now."
"Any advice?"
"Just what you will tell me in the future," he said. "The twenty-first century was a strange time to be a teenager."