Chapter 35

2022

A knock came at the side door of the hangar. Michael Knight told Sinjin, "I'll get it." He walked over and opened the door to reveal an older man with white hair, a bit heavy sporting baggie cargo pants and a white shirt standing there. Suddenly, Michael knew who he was. "Mac!" He paused as his memory changed. He went from not knowing the man minutes ago to knowing him for years in a second.

"Michael." he grinned. "Am I late to the party?"

"You're just in time." he nodded and stepped aside.

Mac stated, "When I saw Ralph go viral I figured it was time to come into the hangar." He the greeted, "Sinjin! I think I saw Cait leave just now.

"She went to get Jo, Mac." he nodded. His memory had yet to be altered by the timeline shifts. "Um…fill me in."

Michael asked, "You don't remember, Mac?"

"A minute ago you were asking he is, Michael." he stated. "I have the first timeline. It's not affecting me."

KITT came over the speaker, "I have documented another timeline shift as Angus MacGyver was hired by Stringfellow Hawke as a stunt pilot a full year before the Phoenix Foundation recruited him."

Mac stated, "I was a stunt pilot for Dom. Then you guys brought me into the fold. I figured I would wait for a sign before coming in. Ralph's blowing up the internet was that sign." He then asked, "How many timeline shifts have there been?"

KITT replied, "I have thus far documented four. You were instrumental in helping to save Sam's life. We have shifted the timeline so the mercenaries do not take the job offered to them by the elite. However, there seems to be another shift that I cannot determine the cause of. It appears there is a technology leap and technology that took years to develop was on the market much faster than in the first timeline."

Mac asked, "What could have caused that?"

"I do not know as of yet." KITT replied.

Sinjin asked, "So…Mac…all the air shows, the asking me to let you co-pilot, was that to keep an eye on us?"

"Little bit." he confessed. "I also really want to fly Airwolf." He opened up his button down shirt to reveal a t-shirt underneath of Airwolf that he purchased in an air show. "I have every shirt!" he bragged.

"Your whole goal in life is to fly Airwolf?" Sinjin asked cockeyed.

He explained, "I'm retired! What else is an old fat guy like me to do?" He made one more attempt, "Let me be in the show, Sinjin. Four of us is better than just the three. I'm volunteering! I will even take turns manning the booth."

He asked, "Did you get to fly it before?"

He nodded, "Yes! That's why I want to fly it again. It's that rush when you go from rotors to jet." He confessed, "I'm your biggest fan!"

Sinjin laughed, "Sam called you our one and only groupie."

"Okay…she's got me there." he agreed. "On the first timeline, did Sam ever ask me to help her with that engine?"

He shook his head, "I don't think she knows your past. I just found out today you were a secret agent and have these degrees. We both thought you were some old dude trying to look cool and relive the 80's."

He confessed, "I am some old dude trying to look cool and relive the 80's. The secret agent stuff isn't what it used to be. I got out." He grinned, "Of course now we got this…" he pointed to the engine. Mac felt useful again and had a new self given assignment.

Sinjin's cell phone lit up with a notification. KITT spoke before he could even look at the screen.

"Saint John, Samantha has texted you the code to return. She says it is important." he informed.

"Send her through." he gave permission.

It seemed nearly instantly as Sam emerged from the invisible wormhole by herself. She grasped her cell phone and was about to explain she lost her smart watch when her eyes settled on MacGyver. She asked, "Um…okay…why did Uncle String hire our one and only groupie?"

Mac smirked, "It's great to see you to again, Sammy."

Sinjin explained, "KITT recommended we hire him. He's a genius like you, got degrees in physics and chemistry. He worked for the Phoenix Foundation from 85 to 92. I'm not sure if he worked for Dom the first time or not but the timeline has changed four times already."

She asked, "Four times?"

"By KITT's calculations." he told her. "I only remember the first timeline. I'm buffered by being here in the warp field. Mr. Hinkley remembers the original timeline too. He can separate them. Not sure if that was a side affect from wearing the suit and being exposed to those nanites but that's KITT's theory."

Mac stated, "I really wish you had asked me for help on this. I could have helped you build it from the get go. Even in the first timeline."

"I didn't know anything about you." she replied. "I thought you were some old dude who had nothing better to do than follow us around to air shows."

"I was trying to keep an eye on you guys." he confessed. "That…and I wouldn't mind helping your guys out. Plus, I'm bored…" he confessed.

KITT informed, "You did work as a stunt pilot the year prior to being recruited for the Phoenix Foundation in the first timeline, Angus but it was for a different company and not Santini Air. I do not know if you applied at Santini Air or not in the first timeline. There is no record for me to compare." he referred to the records he saved from the first timeline.

Mac stated, "It was actually kind of weird how I ended up going to Santini. I had a friend working for Hollywood Stunt Pilots. I had an in! My last day of work at the power plant and this guy just walks into my office as I am packing to leave and hands me a business card for Santini Air and said I should go there first. He then walked out of my office. I had no idea who he was. Never saw him before. He didn't even have an employee badge. He was dressed in jeans and a blue shirt. I remember his face…what he looked like clear as day. I stepped out to get his name and ask how he got in the plant and he was gone. No one else saw him. Just weird!" he admitted. "I cannot explain how he got in or where he went and why he handed me a business card and told me to look for a job at Santini Air when I could have flown for the biggest agency there is. To this day, I have no idea who he was."

KITT suggested, "Could it have been this man, Angus?"

On the computer before Sinjin a file picture of Dr. Samuel Beckett appeared.

Mac looked at the photo over Sinjin's shoulder. "That's him! Who is he, KITT?"

"His name is Dr. Samuel Beckett. He is another time traveler that I have identified. His project is considered a failure as they were not able to retrieve him. The accelerator for his project is still running and is located in Arizona. I had a time getting around firewalls for the mainframe running the project but I have successfully connected to the mainframe keeping the accelerator running. It's another Artificial Intelligence, named Ziggy. I have established communications with Ziggy. She has informed me that Dr. Beckett broke free of the perimeters in the year 2000. At that point he was declared dead. The Department of Defense has pulled funding. Dr. Beckett's wife as used her life savings to keep the power on as she believes he is still alive and still leaping but without the need of an avatar. He can now leap through time as himself. Last year the Admiral assisting Dr. Beckett's wife with funding passed away. She has sold her home and all assets to keep the power on. Ziggy fears if the power goes off then Dr. Beckett may perish."

Sam gasped, "Wait? What?" She blinked, "There is an actual state commissioned time travel project and the dude is what? Leaping through time?"

"That is correct Samantha." he confirmed. "I have the original plans for Dr. Beckett's accelerator. Would you like to see them?"

"Yes!" she nodded hard a bit wide-eyed.

On the computer screen the blue prints and information appeared. Sinjin stood up, "You take over honey. I need to stretch my legs." He grabbed his coffee cup once more.

Sam sat down at the computer and began to go through the information. She looked at the formulas and cocked her head to the side. "This accelerator is what we need to buffer a warp drive engine."

Sinjin turned slightly as he went to the coffee pot, "What?"

"The accelerator that he designed would be needed to buffer the engine I am making. It would prevent the engine from tearing apart the vessel and crew of any ship. It's the solution to the biggest hurdle to making a ship that would be like on Star Trek." She then noticed, "Dr. Beckett looks a lot like that actor who has a Star Trek series. I think he had a crime series I saw commercials for. Anyways, his theory is time travel but if I tweak it slightly, it's a propulsion system. The dude made part of a space ship engine and didn't know it?"

KITT agreed, "I believe so, Samantha. Ziggy informed me that she thinks Dr. Beckett is refusing to come home because he believes he can do more good and help more people. The deceased Admiral often referred to him as and I quote 'the world's biggest boy scout' un quote." KITT then asked, "Samantha, what was the reason for the urgency of your text?"

"Uh?" she nearly forgot. "Oh…yeah, I lost my smart watch at school." She looked up to her father. "I looked all over and I can't find it anywhere. I forgot to take it off this morning. I was up all night watching the fallout from Ralph breaking the internet."

"That's not good." he soured.

"Indeed." KITT agreed. "That could account for the acceleration in technology."

"Acceleration in technology?" Sam asked.

KITT reported, "Technology came to the market sooner in this timeline. It's possible your watch fell into the hands of developers who reversed engineered it to bring the technology to the market years ahead of time."

She rubbed the side of her head, "Could I screw this up anymore?"

KITT replied, "Considering you are human the answer is a resounding yes."

Her head rolled back and she looked at the ceiling. "Oh' god."

Mac stated, "Give me the exact location of the accelerator in Arizona, KITT. I will go there and see what I can do to help keep the power going."

"I have sent the location to your cell phone, Angus." he told him.

He looked at the phone and gave a nod, "Got it. I think Beckett is trying to help Sam out by sending me to Santini Air. Let's see if we can help him out of that accelerator. I'll go see what the situation is there."

"Sounds like a plan." Sinjin agreed.

KITT added, "Ziggy is also in danger of being turned off. The only one protecting her and the accelerator is Dr. Beckett's wife. Now that the Admiral has passed, she does not have anyone to stand up to the Department of Defense that wishes to gain the technology for war purposes. Might I suggest securing Ziggy as well, Angus."

"I will." he assured. He waved, "Keep me in the loop. I'll be in touch." he then walked out the door to attend to the other time travel project that is about to go defunct.

Sam stated beside herself, "Wonder what else they got they are keeping from us. Do we have space ships?"

KITT stated, "I have concluded that is likely but I have yet to find an actual connection or proof."

She puffed her cheeks, "Great! If we already have space ships then I'm wasting my time. They already have an engine."

KITT countered, "I don't now believe you are wasting your time, Samantha. As it appears, the advanced technology and any deep space program is being hidden. I do not believe it is being hidden to keep the population calm. It is likely being hidden to keep those in power…in power. Your engine would be a threat to them and possible free humanity for the current mental enslavement and help expose any hidden truths."

She admitted, "I wasn't looking to do that. Just make it possible to go to Mars."

KITT assured, "Your invention can do much more."