Jess found herself standing and fully conscious, which was remarkable considering that she'd just appeared to have travelled through a wormhole that strangely supported life – or at least her life. She was, however, incredibly dizzy, and the first thing she did on materialising right in the middle of Grundo's Café was to fall over.

"I'm all right," she insisted, causing several seemingly helpful Gelerts to frown in bewilderment.

"You're not under the influence, are you?"

Against all common sense, Jess laughed. "You sound like a police officer," she told the young Red Gelert. "I don't need an appearing-out-of-thin-air license, do I? Well, I don't have one for you to put a strike against, anyway."

The Gelert was even more puzzled. "What's a license?"

"Ask your owner when you find them," Jess smiled, picking herself up off the floor. "I think some tea is in order." Abandoning the Gelert, she strolled towards the counter...

...where she saw herself ordering tea! Jess had quite forgotten that going back in time would risk her crossing her own time line. That would make things difficult. But at least she knew she didn't cross her own time line...

But if she hadn't believed history was changeable, she wouldn't have wasted the effort to steal Sloth's gun. So basically, she had to be wary.

So Jess waited until she saw herself take a sip of the tea, wrinkle her nose in disgust, throw the cup into the café disposal unit and wander away from the café altogether before heading up to the counter.

"A cup of tea, please," she requested politely.

"You just got one," the Mutant Grundo growled. "And a change of clothes."

Jess sighed. "What kind of salesman are you?" she asked. "If I want to buy bonus tea, you're supposed to let me. It makes you more money, don't you see?"

The Grundo grunted in reply and produced the chemically space-made tea in a Styrofoam cup. "650 NeoPoints, ma'am."

"That's ridiculous," Jess snapped, rummaging around in her purse for money. "300."

"That's equally ridiculous," the Grundo growled. "Do you want the flaming tea? 550 NeoPoints at the least."

Jess sighed irritably. "400."

"Look, I can't go giving you half-price tea just because you drink a lot of it."

"That's not half price," Jess argued. "That's eight-thirteenths price." The Grundo ignored her. "Fine. 450."

"525."

Jess glared at the Grundo. "475." She'd gotten five hundred NeoPoints in coins from her wallet, and wasn't going to take any more or she'd have to do more rummaging.

"510."

"490," Jess argued. She was relieved when the Grundo declared "deal!" and took her 500NP, leaving her 10 and the tea in exchange. Jess took the tea happily and took a sip.

Having not been allowed to have any for two days didn't make it taste any better. Jess threw this cup out, as well.

"Right," she muttered to herself. "Now, where do I start?" She paused in thought. "Mid-June. It's mid-June. What was happening in mid-June?" She ignored the stares of the various Neopians also in the café. "I don't remember. Funny. I'll have to find a newspaper."

"Nothing. I don't believe it. Nothing happened in mid-June. Well, apart from Kau Day, Nimmo Day, Quiggle Day, the release of the Hissies, the end of the Maraquan war... but that's not much," Jess told herself after buying and reading a copy of the Neopian Times that she'd already read.

"Trust you to think that's not a lot."

Jess turned and stared at the Chinese girl, about her own age, who'd come up to join her.

"Zoe!" Jess grinned. "I didn't know you went to the Space Station on... uhh..." Jess checked the paper. "The eighteenth of June."

"You didn't forget the date again, did you?"

"What?"

Zoe coughed. "It's the nineteenth."

"Oh." Jess grinned. "It's been so long since June."

"Not really," Zoe disagreed. "It was June yesterday. Not to mention a second ago. And a nanosecond ago. And now."

"Technically speaking," Jess waved a hand. "What happened in June? Wait, I mean, what is happening?"

Zoe stared at Jess. "You're in a let's-annoy-Zoe mood, aren't you?"

"No," Jess disagreed. "I just thought it was July." Well, it was before she went to the sixty-first century. "Besides, you know how forgetful I am."

"I'll say. It hasn't been July for eleven months, Jessie."

"Exactly," Jess beamed. "Has fishing been released?"

"Fishing?" Zoe asked blankly.

"Oh, it hasn't," Jess replied stupidly. "I did tell you I was forgetful."

"No, Jessie," Zoe disagreed. "You're just remembering things that didn't happen. That's the polar opposite."

"But they did happen," Jess protested crossly. "It must have been later in June."

"You're just being stupid now," Zoe rolled her eyes. "You haven't been to later in June."

"Yes I have," Jess bristled indignantly.

"No you haven't."

"Why not?"

"Because you don't have a time machine, dummy."

"Well, of course I don't have a time machine," Jess rolled her eyes. "I used Sloth's ray gun. Did you know that in the sixty-first century it can transport people through time? Wait, I don't suppose you do..."

"Jessie!" Zoe yelled crossly.

Jess grinned. "Yes, Zoe?"

"You're babbling again."

"Oh," Jess replied. "Do you want be to be concise?"

"That would help," Zoe growled.

"All right." Jess's face darkened. "One: most of Neopia will be killed in... um, twenty-seven days' time."

"Sure, Jessie," Zoe drawled.

"Just listen!" Jess took a breath. "Two: right now, there are pets and humans being tortured. Just upstairs."

Zoe just glared at Jess this time.

"Three," Jess stated, "In six thousand years people will think of Sloth as the saviour of mankind. And four, he was the one who killed everyone."

Zoe laughed.

Not the desired effect.

"So you're admitting Sloth's evil now?"

"Zoe!" Jess yelled angrily. "You know me, I don't admit being wrong very readily. I certainly wouldn't admit it without a reason."

"You had too much tea," Zoe decided.

"No, Zoe," Jess argued, getting increasingly irritated. "Down there, on floor minus 12, there are a million and a half small, icy boxes. Inside all of these boxes – every one – is a perfectly miniaturised, suspended Neopian. The originals."

Zoe was nonplussed.

"I'm there. Or rather, I will be there in a month. Perfectly suspended, to be awoken in 6081 by archaeologists on the planet Rendal. Suffering from trauma and psychological abuse. Suffering from torture."

"Is this supposed to be impressive?"

Jess pursed her lips. "Christine was wrong," she snarled viciously. "You have zero prominent warrior potential. At all."

"Who's Christine?"

"Um, your descendant. In 6081."

Zoe rolled her eyes.

"If you don't believe me," Jess snapped, "I'll go fight Sloth on my own. See you."

"See ya," Zoe waved as Jess stormed off, then muttering herself, "definitely had too much tea."