October 8, 2017, 0:35 a.m.
"Madam what?" Max asked, staring flabbergasted at Victoria.
"President," the blonde said with a bemused expression on her face.
"Of what?" the brunette asked, even more amazed.
"The United States. Are you all right, Ma'am?" Victoria asked apprehensively.
"I-, yes," Max stammered. "Please, give me a moment."
"I'll wait outside," Victoria said and closed the door behind her.
Max sat in the bed, trying to comprehend the reality she was in. I'm the fucking President of the United States! Oh crap, what am I supposed to do now?
"If the Wicked Witch of the West Wing sees it important enough to drag you out of bed, you'd better not keep her waiting," Chloe grumbled under the duvet.
Max looked at the woman next to her diffidently. Apparently Chloe was the First Lady of the United States, based on that they were sharing the bed and on the rings that adorned the ring fingers of both women. That wasn't an issue per se as the brunette had come to realize that she was bisexual, with inclination to the female sex already back in college. The thing was that Max was married to her childhood friend, with whom she had not parted ways in best of terms, when she had moved to Seattle. Obviously they had reconciled since they were now sharing the bed but what was the nature of their relationship now? Were they still passionately in love or had they just fallen into a routine? Either way, despite her sexual preference and the fact that she cared great deal about Chloe, she still saw her as her childhood friend.
Still, Max felt that she shouldn't just bluntly get off the bed, so she lifted the duvet slightly and placed a gentle kiss on Chloe's cheek. The gesture didn't awake any reaction from the blonde. Mmm-kay, pretty stale, I'd say.
The brunette got out of bed. Hmm, I probably should get a change of clothes. A nightgown and robe won't probably cut it in the Situation Room, she thought as she tried to look around for something to wear.
"For Pete's sake! What's wrong with you tonight?" an aggravated voice from the bed said. "Your stuff is in the dressing room! Get changed and try not to wake me on your way out, I have an important meeting first thing."
That's Chloe, all right. There's no doubt about it, Max thought, when she walked to the door next to her side of the bed and pulled it open. Calling it a dressing room was mildly put. It was a large space occupied by hangers, drawers and closets containing all kinds of clothing, shoes and other apparel. On one wall there was a huge dresser with a mirror, containing all the possible beauty products that Max could come up with, all designer brands. At the end of the room there was another door that she assumed to lead to the bathroom. I guess, I won't be wearing jeans for some time, Max thought, when she had recovered from her initial shock.
Max got out of the nightgown and selected a clean grey t-shirt adorned by print of the presidential seal. She pulled on a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie that had the presidential seal embroidered on it. As a last touch Max slipped her feet into a pair of sneakers and turned to look her image in the mirror. Ready for the snake pit, shaka brah!
The brunette made her way through the bedroom to the door at the opposite corner. She cast a quick glance at the bed but she saw no movement. Apparently Chloe had got back to sleep or was pretending hard to be doing so. Max opened the door, where Victoria was waiting her, looking impatient.
"The others are waiting for you in the situation room, Ma'am," the blonde said as they walked through the residence. They went through another door into a corridor, where a woman wearing a black suit was standing by.
"Dana!" Max said bewildered, when she recognized the woman.
"Ma'am," Secret Service Agent Dana Ward greeted her commanding officer and joined them. "Doe and Queen are on the move," she talked into the microphone.
My codename is Doe? Max thought as she walked alongside Victoria towards the West Wing. - And Victoria is Queen? Well, that makes sense. I take that she must be the White House Chief of Staff. Max didn't dare to ask it out loud to confirm, though.
"Ma'am, are you listening to me?" Victoria asked slightly piqued.
"Uh, sorry," the President said apologetically. "Still a bit drowsy."
The assumed Chief of Staff let out a discreet sigh. "I was saying that the Operation Chrysalis is in motion. Dr. Graham will fill you in with the latest development."
-ooo-
Max, Victoria and Dana arrived to the basement floor of the West Wing. Dana took her post while the other two walked through the open door into a rather large conference room populated by both military and civilian personnel. Most of the people were unbeknownst to Max, save for three people.
The first was Warren Graham. His wavy hair has greyed somewhat from the temples and a pair of glasses adorned the dark circled eyes. There was no sign of his trademark goofy grin. He wore a two-piece suit, complemented by a knitted slipover vest over his shirt. He was in desperate need of a shave.
The second familiar face was Fernando Alvarez, Max's friend from her Seattle years. He wasn't wearing his jacket at the moment. He had rolled the shirt sleeves and the tie was hanging loosely around the unbuttoned collar.
The third one was David Madsen, in full Army uniform, four stars adorning both epaulets and chest full of decorations. He still had the same fade haircut as he had had, when Max had seen him the first time. The only difference was that it was now completely grey. The chevron moustache still had a hint of its original color left.
Everyone in the room stood up and turned to face the brunette. Max looked at the lot bemusedly, before she realized that they were waiting some sign from her. "As you were," she finally said and most of the people sat down. Of the few still standing included Warren Graham and David Madsen. Max resisted the urge to give her old classmate a hug. "Hi, Warren," she simply said.
"Madam President," Dr. Warren Graham, the National Security Advisor, answered pertinently. "We've been able to pinpoint Sayid Bin Abdullah, the leader of the Jihadist cell Crimson Crescent into a warehouse in Kunduz," he started the briefing. "We have a Special Forces unit in position, ready to apprehend him. We are getting live feed from the spot."
"Do we have confirmation that he is still there?" Victoria Chase asked.
"Or sources tell us that he entered the building five hours ago and he hasn't left it since," Fernando Alvarez, the Operations Director of CIA said.
"How many are inside the building in addition to Sayid?" the blonde asked.
"Half a dozen, ten tops," Fernando answered.
"Do we have a risk analysis?"
"One or two wounded but no casualties on our side, Ma'am," General Madsen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said. "Sixty to eighty percent rate of fatalities on the opposing side, Sayid is left unharmed or lightly wounded."
Max had sat down into a cozy looking chair at the end of the table that she assumed to be the President's. She listened in awe how Victoria and the others went through the proceedings of a military operation. Max was a pacifist by nature. How the hell had she ended up in a position, where she had the power and responsibility to send people to kill or to be killed in conflicts.
"Madam President?" David Madsen snapped Max out of her thoughts.
"Y-yes?"
"Are we go?" the general asked. Everyone turned to look at the brunette, who sat in her chair in bewilderment.
"Um, y-yes, we are go," Max finally said insecurely.
"Very well, Ma'am," David said, glancing at his Commander-in-Chief slightly puzzled. "Raven 1, this is Control. You are go, I repeat, you are go!"
The people in the Situation Room followed from the screens as the Special Forces troopers barged into the warehouse and began securing the premises. One of the screens showed satellite imagery of the warehouse. In less than a minute the building was secured. There was only one issue.
"There's no-one inside the premises," the voice of the team leader said from the loudspeakers.
"Are you absolutely sure?" Madsen asked.
"Positive. The birds have flown," Raven 1 answered. "Wait a second, what's this… Oh fuck! Abort! Ab-" The screen flashed for a fraction of a second before it turned blank. The feed from the satellite showed the warehouse disappear into a bright flash before turning into a flaming and smoking rubble.
"Raven 1, this is Control. Are you still there?" David Madsen asked frantically. "Raven 1, this is Control, come in!" He looked at the blank screen for a moment, before muttering a silent 'crap'.
"What happened?" Max asked.
"They-, they must've know we were coming and set up a time delayed bomb that would activate, when someone enters the building," David Madsen explained with a slight tremor in his voice.
"How is this possible?" the Chief of Staff huffed, staring furiously at the Director of Operations.
"I don't understand," Fernando Alvarez said incredulously. "The intel was good and we had it cross checked."
"Tell that to the widows of those soldiers who just died in there!" Victoria snapped at him.
Max followed the heated exchange of words in shock. She had just sent those soldiers to their death. Oh my god! Those men are dead because of me! They are dead and I can't take it back – or can I? She looked at her hand. Could I just rewind back and tell David that the operation is no go? Only one way to find out.
Max stretched her arm and concentrated. Again, with a swooshing sound, everything came to a standstill and began to scroll backwards. The brunette saw how the smoke on the burning building was drawn back, followed by the explosion reversing and the building standing again intact. A few backward spoken sentences later, Max let go of the time stream.
"Madam President?" David Madsen asked.
"Yes?"
"Are we go?" the General asked.
"Um, is there any way of making sure that those men aren't walking into a trap?" Max asked.
"What do you mean?" Madsen asked slightly restlessly.
"Is there a way to verify that there is actually someone inside the building?"
"Does the team have a through wall radar with them?" Fernando asked.
"Yes, but then there's a high risk that we'll lose the element of surprise," Madsen answered. "I'd advise against that."
"Could we check it anyway?" Max asked.
"Ma'am, with all due respect, you may be my Commander-in-Chef but since you don't have knowledge in military tactics, I'd suggest you trust my judgement on this," David said. "I'll issue the command."
Shit! This conversation isn't going the right way. Let's try it again, Max thought and stretched her arm to rewind the time again. Ok, Caulfield, time to grow some balls!
"Are we go?" the General asked.
"I want to make sure that we are not sending those men into a trap," Max said sternly. "I want the building scanned with a through wall radar from all sides to make sure that there is actually someone inside."
"Madam President, I-," David started but shut up, when Max stood up and placed her knuckles firmly on the table.
"Was there something in my order you didn't understand, General?" the brunette said with a low voice.
David Madsen stared at the brunette defiantly for a brief moment. "I-, no, Ma'am," the general yielded with a frown. "Raven 1, this is Control, do you copy?"
"Control, this is Raven 1, standing by," the voice on the loudspeaker said.
"Raven 1, perform a scan to the building with the through wall radar from all sides."
"Control, please repeat. Do you want us to scan the building?"
"Correct, scan the building."
"But-"
"Raven 1, you have your orders," David Madsen said, not trying to hide his frustration.
"Copy that, Control."
Max cast a quick glance towards Victoria, who had been quiet through the debate since the rewind. She couldn't tell from the blonde's expression whether she was for or against her decision. Undoubtedly, the subject would be brought up at a later moment.
"Control, this is Raven 1. According to the radar, there is no one in the building," the team leader said on the speaker.
"Raven 1, are you positive?" David Madsen asked.
"Positive, Sir."
"How's that possible?" Fernando asked. "Our surveillance doesn't indicate anyone having left the premises."
"There must be some passage that doesn't show on the blueprints," Raven 1 said.
"All right, go in and sweep the premises. See if you can locate that passage," David instructed.
"Hold on, Raven 1," Max said. "Have you got equipment to check if the entrance has been booby trapped?"
"Yes, Ma'am, we have an endoscope," the voice on the speaker said.
"I suppose we can all agree at this point that whoever was in there knew right from the start that we were coming," Max said to the General, when she saw his expression. "If someone's gone through the trouble of getting an U.S. military unit into an empty warehouse, I'd put my money on that there's a nasty surprise waiting for them."
"I can't argue with that," Victoria said.
"Check the door, Raven 1," David Madsen said resignedly.
"Copy that."
The people in the Situation Room followed as one of the team members drilled a hole into the door and an endoscope was pushed through.
"Control, Raven 1," the team leader spoke. "There definitely seems to be some kind of triggering mechanism attached to the door. It seems to be connected to what may or may not be an explosive device."
"Very well, Raven 1, retreat and wait for further instructions," David Madsen said.
"General, arrange a bomb squad at the site and either disarm or detonate the possible bomb. The President wants a full report first thing in the morning," Victoria said. "Madam President, we'll take it from here. Agent Ward will escort you back to the residence.
-ooo-
"Here we are Madam President," Dana Ward said to Max at the door.
"Dana, may I ask, how did you end up being a Secret Service Agent?" Max asked.
"After the tornado hit Arcadia Bay, I felt I needed to do something meaningful with my life. I enlisted in the Marines and the rest is history, Ma'am," Dana answered.
Max could barely hide her reaction. A tornado hit Arcadia Bay? When did this happen? The brunette dared not to go into the details, though. She'd look it up tomorrow. "Hey, we go way back, you and me. You can call me Max," she said instead.
"Not while I'm on duty, Ma'am," Dana chuckled. "Madam President, your nose," she said suddenly with a concerned look on her face.
Max felt her nose. There was a trickle of blood coming out from the other nostril.
"Are you all right, Ma'am? Should I call the doctor?" Dana asked, digging out a handkerchief from her breast pocket and passing it to the brunette.
"No, I'm all right," Max said, taking the handkerchief and trying to hide her bafflement.
"If you say so, Ma'am," Dana said, still looking concerned.
"Yes, I'm good, thanks," Max said, returning the stained handkerchief. "Good night then."
"Good night, Madam President." Dana closed the door behind the brunette.
Max walked to the dressing room and switched back into the nightgown, before snuggling next to Chloe, who was snoring quietly on her side of the bed. The brunette lied awake, trying to comprehend what had happened. She'd somehow travelled back in time, where she had managed to prevent her childhood friend being shot by somehow being able to rewind time. She'd returned back to find out that she was now the President of the United States. This is fucking cereal! Max thought before she fell asleep.
To be continued...
A/N: I should be writing the final chapter for 'Once Upon a Time on Hellaween' but I'm having too much fun with this story.
Thanks for all the reviews and favors/follows! Please keep the reviews coming!
Max is slowly beginning to realize the new reality she's in. I want to point out at this point that since Max originally discovered her powers at 42 years, it also means that the Max of this alternate timeline has been on auto-pilot for 24 years and hasn't been aware of the powers before now, when the Max from the original timeline claimed the body. That'll mean a few changes to the five days, that in this story happened in 1993 instead of 2013. What the changes are, will be revealed in the future chapters. The West Wing staff and few other key people will mostly consist of people in the game. Some of them we already met and the rest we'll meet in the following chapters.
Now I'm going to finish 'Once Upon a Time on Hellaween', scout's honor.