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know that we are entering a period of potential time signal availability… so Christie must think they will use this opportunity to carry out their plan.” He paused. “Do we have any details on the actual intervention in history that they are planning?”
    “No. Apparently when Christie left them, there were a number of open scenarios still being analysed, but they were notcomplete. He had no final detailed plans.”
    “So, Theo, now is the time to say something sensible. You’re the historian, any particular views on why they would choose the period between 1580 and 1600 to make an intervention?”
    Theo Joplin looked up from a laptop that he had open in front of him. He was only twenty-seven but looked like a relic of sixties’ hippiedom with his long hair, goatee beard and flowery shirt. But appearances were deceptive and encased within his mop of messy black hair was an encyclopaedic knowledge of history.
    Joplin curled his lip. “A good choice if you want to make some structural changes to the future course of history – many, many options. Lots going on. Overall, a very cool period…” He turned back to his laptop assuming that this would be a more than sufficient contribution to the conversation.
    The Rector tried to contain his frustration. “Would you mind being a little more specific ?”
    Joplin shrugged nonchalantly. “English Renaissance, Shakespeare, Marlowe, Spanish Armada – or Armadas – I should say, Mary, Queen of Scots, the Babington Plot, Drake, Raleigh, Howard, Grenville, Treasure Fleets, first English colony in America, religious conflict, Ireland… I could go on… and no doubt you’ll want me to…”
    “We don’t have time for all this,” Inchquin said irritably. “Jim, are we sure that Christie’s message did not say anything more specific about what Pendelshape and the other Revisionists might be trying to do?”
    “He said that Pendelshape had a well-developed theory that if the Spanish dominance of the period could be extended somehow, then it might be harnessed to usher in a period of peace. Perhaps for centuries. A strong Spain would have defeated the Netherlands and then colonised all of the Americas… and also they would have been better able to enforce a single religion – Catholicism. This would have reduced religious conflict.”
    “Interesting theory.” Joplin was suddenly enthusiastic. “It’s true that the period was a bit of a turning point for Spain. She wasthe most powerful country in the world, but her power declined – gradually mind you – pretty much from then onwards.”
    “Since when, specifically?”
    “The defeat of the Armada, really, in 1588. The fact that Queen Elizabeth reigned for so long, as a Protestant queen, and the fact that the Armada failed meant that the balance of power – certainly naval power – slowly transferred to England, then to Britain. And by the nineteenth century, Britain was the most powerful nation on earth.”
    “So you’re saying that if the Armada Campaign had succeeded, the world would have been a different place.”
    “Very different. The common language of the West would be Spanish, not English – just as it is in much of South America today. The influence of Protestantism would have been substantially weaker and we would have many different habits and customs. We might even have had a regular bullfight in Soonhope,” Joplin chortled.
    “Theo, this is not funny,” Inchquin growled. “Jim, do you think Pendelshape’s plan is to give power to the Spanish?”
    “It’s something along those lines – it marries up with Christie’s communication to us. But the details clearly weren’t fully developed when he left – so I don’t think he knew the specifics. But the main thing he wanted to make clear was that he didn’t want to be associated with any of it and, more than that, he wanted us to know that he was not associated with it so that we would not take retribution on him.” Jim paused and then