INFINITE RUSE

"Christopher Columbus?" Lucy looked at him, surprised by his selection.

Garcia halted before his chair. In his one hand rested a bucket of popcorn, while in the other were a stack of bowls about to topple over. He sat down. "Now you're just repeating what I said."

The bucket and bowls slid to the centre of the table, the group grabbing a handful each.

"We've never travelled so far along the timeline." Rufus said in Jiya's direction.

"I didn't give a limit remember."

"Can we go that far?" Wyatt asked dubiously.

"When again?"

"Late fourteen hundreds." Conner said through a mouth full of popcorn.

"Why?" Lucy inquired with a furrowed brow.

"Why not? If it weren't for his sense of adventure, you think Amelia Earhart would've pursued her dream? What about the guys from the Titanic? And Eugene Bullard? Columbus is the father of pioneering." The others stared at Flynn, amazed. He shrugged. "To me he is. C'mon, he's the Admiral of the Ocean Sea."

"Okay, fair enough. He was vastly self-educated, widely read in geography, astronomy, and history."

"Precisely. Columbus' expeditions inaugurated a period of exploration, conquest, and colonization that lasted for centuries, helping create the modern Western World."

"However, he had a role in the extinction of the Taíno people, promotion of slavery and allegations of tyranny towards Spanish colonists."

"I agree public perceptions have changed because recent scholars are paying more attention to the negative aspects of his life. Still, you can't overlook the outcomes of his quests. He discovered the Americas and magnetic declination. Those voyages marked the beginning of the European exploration and colonization of the American continents. And are thus a colossal and significant part of Western history. The same history we've been trying to make whole. Am I correct?"

"Um, correction. We're fixing what you broke."

"Ten out of ten." Rufus jested, scooping another handful of popcorn into his bowl.

"No, correction. Only modifying what you prescribed."

The professor sat back and crossed her arms. The abhorrence swiftly came and went on her face, and she cautioned loud enough for him to hear. "I'm not her."

He stared at her, hurt by the reminder.

"At the end of the day, we're undoing what Rittenhouse did centuries after Columbus set sail." The geek added, hoping to intrude upon their sudden inflamed staring contest. "And technically he wasn't the first explorer who discovered America. There's Erik the Red in the 10th century Greenland, and then Leif Erikson in 11th century L'Anse aux Meadows."

Garcia gazed to him deliberately, dissolving the fierce gaze between himself and Lucy. "Columbus' expeditions. They're still considered some of the most important events in world history, kick-starting modern globalism, and resulting in major demographic, commercial, economic, social and political changes. It also resulted in the permanent contact between the two hemispheres. He practically introduced them."

"Okay, now you're just chucking history facts at one another."

Lucy gave Wyatt a terse gesture. "He advised I should defend my territory. Last time I checked, history's my terrain."

"Still." Flynn challenged again. "Made possible by our maritime explorer."

"I can see why you picked him. You could've gleaned some pointers on how not to destroy the past. Heck of a collaboration."

"Oh snap."

"How sweet." Wyatt scoffed, amused when the duo glared at him and Rufus. "Mom and dad are fighting."

"This is tame. Now, when we're on missions."

"They're like a cat and dog. Priceless."

"Do you remember that one jump?"

"Yeah, yeah. Salem."

Bewildered, Rufus scowled at the soldier. "You weren't there."

"I know. But I heard the stories."

Lucy cleared her throat very much annoyed. Flynn snorted, enjoying the moment Rufus and Wyatt each bore a roguish smirk.

"Excuse me." She bumped the shoulder of the man next to her. "Our debate. Not theirs."

"But the kids don't like it when mom and dad fight." Rufus whined.

Facing her, Garcia allowed a boyish smile to move along his lips. She canted her head, disliking the carefreeness he directed towards her. The others gazed curiously too, except for the soldier who frowned upon the strange exchange.

"To whom are they referring to exactly?"

"Mason and Agent Christopher for sure."

"Now hold on a sec. I'm not a prehistoric grandpa."

"And you're saying I am?" Denise asked somewhat insulted.

"No. Not at all Agent Christopher." Mason swiftly pacified. "I have the utmost regard for you."

"Yes, keep grovelling."

"Please do." Flynn agreed sardonically. "The amusement's well worth it."

"Lucy, my dearest Lucy."

"Yes, Jiya, I know. I'm last in line."

"Saving the best for last." Flynn crooned.

"I'll take it as a compliment."

"Get a room." Jiya murmured.

"Please don't."

"No worries in that department grunt. I have one already."

To stave off another unnecessary bicker, Lucy quickly supplied an answer. "Johann Zahn, an expert on light wrote extensively about the camera obscura, magic lantern, telescopes and lenses. He proposed a design for the first handheld reflex camera – 150 years ahead of his time."

"For those who don't know. Camera obscura. It's a natural optical phenomenon where an image on one side of the wall – or screen – is projected through a hole onto a surface opposite the opening. The resulting projection is upside down. It was first coined in the 16th century."

"Thank you, Mason." Playfully, she flicked some popcorn at him. "For the explanation. However, French inventor Joseph Nicéphore Niépce is now widely accepted as the creator of photography. Using a homemade camera, he produced the first partially successful photograph in 1816 on paper coated with silver chloride. Though it didn't survive."

"The first surviving photograph also comes from him and is now in the permanent collection of the University of Texas-Austin. It dates to 1826 or 1827 and is a scene from his window in Burgundy."

Lucy and Rufus shared a comical expression, then recited together. "He's from Texas you know."

"West Texas." Wyatt mumbled.

"Why?"

"Can't choose where I'm born."

"The question wasn't directed at you, Wyatt." Jiya shook her head, then pointed at the professor.

"Because if it weren't for them, along with Mozi a Chinese philosopher and Aristotle, capturing moments wouldn't have had such an impact on the world today. Actually, we should be grateful for the painters. They brought history to life. Etched it for centuries to come."

"Very corny." Garcia whispered on the sly.

"And now we have the Lifeboat." Jiya rejoiced, standing to get another serving of popcorn.

"Can't get more up in your grill like a good ol' trip back to the past."

"For once, I agree." The geek looked shocked when he gazed at Garcia. The man smiled wickedly. "Geez, I must've really gotten used to you. Dang, that's tragic."

"Oh don't be so dramatic. I'm part of the furniture."

"Now that is tragic."

"Family then."

"Don't kid yourself."

"Only when it comes to you, Logan." Standing, Garcia turned the chair around, and while reaching for the bucket, winked at Wyatt. "Only when it comes to you." He nodded his goodbye at Lucy, then walked away. "Thanks for the shindig. It was educational."

Wyatt scowled after the retreating form. "Who invited him?"

"No one invites him." Lucy answered reprovingly.

"My point exactly."

CHAPTER 20 & 21 FOOTNOTES:

PART 1

#Amelia Earhart; Eugene Bullard; Jacob Parrott – Wikipedia

#Titanic Designers – Who designed the Titanic? (titanicfacts)

#Nancy Wake – 5 of the world's most famous female spies (lifedeathprizes)

PART 2

#Christopher Columbus – Wikipedia

#Johann Zahn; Joseph Nicéphore Niépce – Who Invented the Camera? A Lesson in the History of Photography (mymodernmet)