Mission: Improbable
Wymane Wyot was on a crucial mission: to retrieve a vital artifact from 16th-century Venice. The briefing had been dire—world-ending consequences, cascading timelines, blah blah blah. Wymane, however, had other priorities.
He floated down the canal in a rented gondola, sunglasses perched on his nose, humming an off-key version of "O Sole Mio." His companion bot, Unit-94B (affectionately nicknamed "Bix"), floated beside him, whirring with panic.
"Wymane, the timeline integrity is at stake! Shouldn’t you hurry to retrieve the artifact?" Bix’s voice was a mix of urgency and exasperation.
“Relax, Bixie,” Wymane said, waving a hand lazily. “Do you know how often a Time Keeper gets to enjoy a gondola ride? Never. It’s all running, hiding, and blah blah saving the universe. This is cultural immersion.”
Bix’s sensors blinked with disapproval. “This is procrastination.”
Wymane grinned and reached for a plate of cicchetti he’d balanced on the edge of the gondola. “Tomato, tomahto.”
A sudden burst of movement from a nearby bridge snapped Bix out of its tirade. “Wymane! That cloaked figure—he has the artifact!”
Wymane casually picked up his pace, leaning back as the gondola bumped gently against the canal’s edge. The cloaked figure bolted down an alley.
“Looks like we’re playing tag now,” Wymane quipped, popping an olive into his mouth before jumping onto the cobblestone walkway.
The chase was… unconventional. Wymane cartwheeled over market stalls (“Style points!” he shouted), stopped to admire a street musician (“Love your vibe!”), and even bought a gelato (“Fuel for the hero, Bix!”). All the while, the cloaked figure darted through Venice like his life depended on it.
Finally, in a dead-end courtyard, Wymane cornered the thief. Panting, but still holding his gelato, he extended a hand. “You’ve got something I need, pal.”
The thief, clearly bewildered by Wymane’s demeanor, handed over the artifact—a small, ornate hourglass—with no resistance.
“Well, that was easy.” Wymane winked and tossed the hourglass to Bix. “Mission accomplished. Let’s go celebrate with more cicchetti!”
As they strolled back toward the gondola, Bix sighed. “You’re impossible, Wymane.”
“And you love me for it,” Wymane said, taking another lick of his gelato.
The timelines, for now, were safe—and Wymane Wyot, ever the carefree Time Keeper, wouldn’t have had it any other way.
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