On Andrea's next shift, Manager Lacosa Silvan sat at the main console, monitoring the timeline. She stopped Andrea as the Intern entered the department.
"I was told you were introduced to the Garlon habitat by Supervisor Caisoni," the Manager said.
Andrea had been careful to follow her first assignment to the letter. She had even gone out of her way to memorize all of the names. Of the three controlling Managers of the department, Manager Silvan was the second female. In her previous shifts, Andrea had developed a respect for Silvan, and had studied the way in which the experienced Keeper skillfully monitored the past for changes. This Manager was at the top of her game and would except no excuses.
"Yes, ma'am, I did. He called me in to assist him with a birth complication. It was the first time I had ever encountered their kind."
"What did you think of the Garlons?" Silvan asked with a fixed stare.
"They were terrifying at first, but I became used to them, ma'am," Andrea said, unsure of the point of the questioning.
"What do you think of us using them as enforcement?"
"They seem suited for the job," Andrea replied. She thought for a moment and added, "I don't think they would make waves in the ancient world and early historical periods. But, if improperly used in modern and early-recent times, a mass sighting would be detrimental to the timeline."
"Astute analysis," the Manager said. "I'm glad to see you understand the limits of using them as a tool."
There was a pause in the conversation as a Supervisor entered the room and took a seat at one of the three central terminals, giving a salutation to the other two in the room. The Manager nodded and turned back to her impromptu examination of the new Intern.
"From this department's operations, what have you learned from your time observing? Have you noticed any patterns in our work?"
Andrea suddenly realized this was no casual conversation with one of her superiors. Answers formed in her mind, on the fly.
"I think I noticed something... It is in the way we monitor the past." She paused for a moment to let a theory develop. "A principal, maybe... It seems that the further back you look, the clearer the changes can be seen. A change further back is more apparent as it progresses up the timeline to the present."
"By your logic then, should a deviation occur in the last month, we would not have as much warning compared to something that happened three thousand years ago? Is that right?"
"I suppose so, Ma'am."
"This is excellent thinking. This is the reason we try to focus our research and special undertakings further back in the past first, on a schedule, rather than jumping around. This rule is not set in stone, as a list of high priority events have been around since the dawn of free travel," Silvan said. "I feel you are ready to move on to more sensitive responsibilities. I will give you access to the back hallways. This will be the hall opposite to the access to the Garlon habitat. Spend some time back in the secure unit with Intern Meyer."
"Yes, Ma'am," Andrea said with an excited smile.
"Former Manager Osorio told my fellow department Managers that you specifically requested to work with us. I have confidence from your first reactions to this work that you will have no problem with potentially strenuous concepts. In this field you are bound to encounter techniques that are interesting, to say the least. But you will realize they are a necessary aspect to securing the timeline."