The Story
Somewhere west of Denver, behind the hogbacks of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, there is a high school of higher learning. Meeting after class in room 314—named affectionately after pi—are five students. Together, they, along with the Professor, are trying to figure out how to time travel.
The Professor, who may or may not have once worked for the CIA, has a mantra he keeps repeating, “Pay attention to the ordinary.” And with that, the six of them pore over the great works from the past, examining patterns and clues found in literature, artwork, and the discoveries of the great physicists. Before long, the combined prodigious brains of the Time Club working together are able to open up portals that allow them to travel from time to time and place to place.
One day, during one of their excursions, something goes wrong. Thinking all is lost—the Time Club stumble upon a painting by an obscure French painter that has secret clues to unlock in order to work their way out of a dire situation. They must work together in order to solve the mysteries of both time travel and of this strange painting in order to save themselves before they get locked forever in a prison of time!
The Characters:
Caleb:
The Puzzle Solver
Caleb is not sure how he fits in. He kind of, sort of, forced his way into the Time Club in order to be closer to his girlfriend, Evelyn. However, lingering self-doubt has convinced him that he has nothing to contribute to what’s going on, as he does not possess the same mathematical prowess as others in the club. And yet, something in Caleb’s past suggests that perhaps this isn’t the first time for him to cross the time/space barrier. Perhaps his inclusion isn’t accidental after all?
Evelyn:
The Unlocker
Evelyn is a highly driven overachiever who accomplishes pretty much anything she puts her mind to. Her never-give-up attitude is what prompted The Professor to extend her a personal invite to the Time Club. Evelyn’s keen intuition allows her to uncover secrets about the time portals. Working extra hours on trying to understand the mysteries of time travel is a welcome escape from an otherwise chaotic home life, but is she pushing herself too hard?
Jonathan:
The Mathematical Prodigy
Jonathan is a very quiet, cerebral individual, who has suffered a lot of pain and bullying growing up, causing him to withdraw within himself and his own mind. He is extremely intelligent. His ability to crunch complicated equations from his mind is what enabled him to be invited in The Time Club. It really isn’t a big deal to him, however, it comes across as almost magical to the rest of the crew. Normally preferring the security of logic and reason, in the end, could his feelings end up being his downfall?
Mattie:
The Fashionista
Mattie tries to hide her nerdy side by becoming an expert on all things fashionable. As a result, her expertise is called upon frequently in order to make sure period wear is accurate for wherever they go. Mattie is very friendly and looks for ways where she can lend a helping hand or her expertise. She looks to please everybody and is often found working with Jonathan to help out with the equations. She is the first to volunteer to run errands while they are working on any particular project. She is empathetic and compassionate for others, even if that person wounds her greatly.
Bones:
The Class Clown
The only reason Bones is a part of the club is because his dad is The Professor. Bones knows this. Everybody knows this. Since Bones has no real contribution otherwise, he takes on the roll of class clown, always trying to make light of the situation. Often he can be impulsive and do things extremely out of the ordinary, just to get attention. He’s very outgoing, and is overall just a loveable goofball. But is that all there is to Bones? Or are there some deeper skills he possesses that he’s hiding that could come in handy at just the right time?
The Professor:
The Faculty Sponsor
The Professor has long sought to crack the code of time travel, and so he recruits a small handful of extraordinarily gifted teenagers to help him finally solve this mystery once and for all. By all exterior appearances, The Professor is extremely popular and well liked. The students know he once worked for the government, however, that is about the extent of it. Rumors are, it was for a secret division of the CIA. Whatever the case, it starts to become evident that The Professor might have done this time travel thing once before and that perhaps he is holding on to dark secrets that leads to a sense of urgency.