Her consent came quickly, probably too quickly as she was likely caught up in the rush to make sure he had a favorable opinion of the program. Many jobs, including hers, rode on his agreeing to keep the program going. Not that there wouldn't be other options for such a bright and beautiful young woman, but she didn't yet appreciate the opportunity she was being given, or what it might cost her. "I'm glad to hear you are cooperative as you will be a crucial part of the project." He raised an eyebrow as she asked about her role. "Yes, it is time you learned more about your role. This whole meeting today was geared towards convincing me to go forward, and I of course already know the main purpose. So let me fill you in." The luncheon was about over, with small but delicious desserts being delivered to the table by the waiters.
"This entire project is focused around an opportunity, theoretically at least, to experience history first hand." He let his words sink in for a few moments. "You probably aren't that aware of the activities of your partners in this. The Fraunhofer Institute for Relativistic Temporistics and Quantum Mechanics has been doing the scientific heavy lifting, but we need someone who can appreciate the significance of events as they experience them. That and speak the languages with an appreciation for the context of when they were spoken. That's where you come in my dear." He gave her a satisfied look, his eyes lowering to appreciate all of her for a moment.
He could tell it was probably difficult for her to understand precisely what he was talking about just yet. "We think we can transport your consciousness, back in time to a specific person, so you can see the world through their eyes. We aren't yet sure just how much our historian will be able to remember or if they will have any control over the events of the day. Obviously those questions are extremely important as experiencing history is one thing, changing it is another thing entirely." As they finished their dessert he stood and offered her his arm. "Why don't you come with me for a small tour before your pre-immersion examination. We are calling these trips to the past 'immersions' by the way as you will be immersed in history like no one has ever been before."
They walked through the rather impressive looking machinery of the Institute and were greeted by a friendly looking Yellow Labrador dog who padded up to them. Bending to pet the friendly canine, Xavier made an introduction. "This is Lucy, she has made several immersions, and as you can see seems completely healthy." He stood and continued the tour and his talk. "It takes an extraordinary amount of energy, precisely focused to initiate the immersion process." He said as they looked at the mysterious looking equipment. "We are convinced it is safe, we just don't know if it actually works. Sadly Lucy is not able to tell us much about what she experienced in the past. Which brings us to you."
Their tour left the larger equipment and ended in somewhat plain room with a
table that looked like it might be for a medical experiment. There were restraining straps distributed that would immobilized someone almost completely. It was rather intimidating looking. There was a large mirror which she would be shown was a control room full of computers and the mirror was one-way, they could see into the room with the table. "For your body, it will be much like a very vivid dream. But dreams can be intense, and the stress may be great, so I need to examine you to convince myself you are up to the ordeal." This was true, but it was not the entire story. He also needed to see just how compliant she was, and how that compliance would change with each experience. "If you are ready?" He took her to a small exam room and on the exam table was a folded hospital
gown, the kind that barely covered one's body and tied in the back. "If you would remove your clothes, and put this on, we can begin." He stated but made no motion to leave, as if he fully intended to watch her undress.