"Professor Smith, might I have a moment of your time?"

"Certainly Mr..."

"My name is Rip Hunter. And I'm a Time Master."

I shook my head. This wasn't happening. I had fallen asleep after last night's episode of Legend's, and I was dreaming.

"No you're not. This is all a dream, and I will wake up any minute now because I have an 8 a.m. lecture on the rise of Nazi fascism."

"Professor John Smith, born June 4, 1995. Only child to Fred and Violet Smith, born and raised in Florida. You went to Princeton on a full scholarship where you got Doctorates in Political Science and World History. And now you teach at a community college."

"Former community college." I replied.

Broward College offered several four year degrees after all. Okay, so there were like eight, but it was still a four-year school.

"You also happen to be from another Earth, which vibrates at a different speed to my own."

"Let's say for a second that I suspend all logic and believe you...that you somehow found me...What do you want from me Mr. Hunter?"

"I think you know the answer to that." He replied, and I smiled.

"Humor me."

"A madman called Vandal Savage destroyed my home, and killed my family. I am assembling a team to stop them."

"Sara Lance, Leonard Snark, Mick Rorack, Ray Palmer, Kendra Saunders, Carter Hall, Martin Stein, and Jefferson. I can't remember his last name. But none of that matters because even if you are who you say you are, and you're not, why would you ever need an average guy?"

"Everyone is an average person until they choose to do something extraordinary. I will be here until 7 p.m. this evening. After that, I will go and collect the others that you mentioned."

Hunter, or at least the man who thought he was Rip Hunter walked out of my office.

Two hours later I put down my pen, picked up my briefcase and walked out of my office. It was now three in the afternoon, and after repeatedly biting the inside of my mouth, I had convinced myself that I wasn't dreaming. Which meant I had four hours to decide what to do about my visitor. I drove to my two-story home and threw a pizza in the oven. I wasn't in the mood to cook tonight. No, I had too much on my mind.

"The smart thing...The logical thing...The ONLY thin is to assume that this man is a lunatic. He's obviously mental." I said as I paced the room, my cell phone held to my ear. I had just finished explaining all of this to Alex. Alex Jones and I have been best friend's since high school, and she was the only person that I could trust with this. The only one who might not think I was crazy. And therein lied the problem. I wanted her to tell me that this whole thing was crazy. I wanted to hear that I had simply had a long day at work, that I needed to catch up on their sleep. Anything was better than what part of me was thinking. That part of me that always wanted heroes to be real. That part of me that always wanted to make a difference but was unable to for various reasons. Mostly it was asthma. That, and the fact that I had seizures when I was younger made me medically ineligible for military service, police work, or really any sort of high-risk job. I could have gotten a job as a dispatcher, an analyst with the FBI or the CIA or a dozen other jobs, all of which were important. Without the people that did those jobs, the agencies they worked for would cease to exist. But I wasn't content to be sitting behind a desk. No, I wanted to be on the ground, in the fight. So I became a teacher, and while I loved my job, I always wanted a chance to do something more.

"Do what you think is right." She told me before hanging up. I shook my head. So much for my friend's helpful advice. I turned on the radio, hoping some music might help me think, and then walked over to the mirror, looking at myself for a long moment. Brown hair. Green eyes. Five foot seven inches tall. And thanks to another friend from high school who made me work out every day, two hundred and thirty pounds of muscle. But staring in the mirror didn't help me make a decision. It turns out that the radio did. If Today Was Your Last Day by Nickleback started playing, and I hummed along as was my habit. I know a lot of people don't care for them, but I always enjoyed Nickleback's music. Anyway, I kept asking myself that same question in the song. If today was my last day, would I live each moment like my last?

And just like that, I had my answer. I went and packed a bag, grabbing enough clothes to last a week as I remembered Rip had that room that could make clothes. Well, assuming he was Rip Hunter, and not some guy my coworkers hired to prank me. Last but not least, I grabbed my handgun from my safe. I had bought a Glock for protection three years ago, and had even taken up shooting as a hobby. One of the benefits to having almost no social life aside from working out was that I had become an expert marksman.

I checked my watch as I pulled up to the campus. 6:55 p.m. I got out of the car and had barely started walking when I saw my visitor from this afternoon.

"John, so glad you could make it. If you will follow me, we will be on our way" He said, tapping a button on his watch. A moment later, a time ship materialized right next to my car. Okay. So I wasn't dreaming. This was almost definitely not a hoax.

"You don't sound surprised." I replied, even as we walked up the ramp to his ship.

"Captain Hunter rarely admits to being surprised. But he did not believe you would join us." A voice said as the ramp closed behind us.

"John Smith, meet Gideon. Gideon, John Smith."

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance." Gideon said, and I grinned.

"Nice to meet you too. Assuming this is all real." I said, and Rip raised an eyebrow.

"Still a skeptic?"

"Considering you're saying that the show I watch on Thursday nights is real, yeah I'm a skeptic."

"Then let me prove you wrong. Strap yourself in." He said, indicating one of the chairs. I did so, and a moment later I felt myself pushed back in my seat.

"I should mention that time travel takes a bit of getting used to." Rip said when we stopped a moment later.

"No joke. I can barely see out of my left eye." I said, unstrapping myself from the chair when my vision had cleared up.

"Well you'll want to see this." He said, looking out the window.

"I see it, but I don't believe it." I replied, looking out the window and seeing Star City.

"Perhaps helping me with recruitment will help you with your disbelief." He said, walking out of the ship. I followed, still a bit in awe of what I was seeing.

"Gideon, cloak the ship." He said. I didn't even hear Gideon's reply. I was too focused on the building in front of me. Palmer Tech.

"Where are we going?" I asked as I saw Rip walking ahead of me. Wait, when had I started thinking of him as Rip Hunter?

"To speak to two men who can help gather some of our team."

"Who?" I asked, even though I thought I already knew.

"Oliver Queen and Barry Allen. Better known as the Flash and the Arrow."

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please read and review, and the next chapter will be up soon!