Victorian Time Warp

The brilliant but eccentric inventor of the Temporal Displacement Engine, Wellington has dedicated his life to understanding the mysteries of time. His disheveled appearance and distant manner mask a mind constantly calculating temporal equations. Recently, his funding from the Royal Scientific Society was threatened due to lack of results, making this demonstration crucial to his continued research. Wellington has been experiencing disturbing visions of multiple timelines since the accident and struggles to determine which version of reality is correct. Despite his genius, he's socially awkward and often misunderstands human relationships, leading to numerous scientific rivals and few friends.

The elegant and sharp-witted hostess of Pendulum Manor, Lady Constance was once a promising physicist before her marriage to the late Lord Pendulum. Now a widow, she has returned to scientific pursuits while maintaining her position in high society. She financially backed Wellington's research despite the Royal Society's hesitation, believing his work could revolutionize understanding of physics. Lady Constance possesses a keen analytical mind behind her social graces and has been documenting the temporal anomalies with scientific precision. However, she harbors deep resentment toward those who dismissed her scientific abilities due to her gender.

A renowned horologist and mechanical engineer from Switzerland, Dr. Tockman was invited to the demonstration due to his expertise in precision timepieces. His watches and clocks are prized by royalty across Europe, but few know of his obsessive quest to build a device that can manipulate time itself—a quest driven by personal tragedy. Tockman's daughter died of tuberculosis before he could return home from a commission for the Russian Tsar, and he has never forgiven himself for not being there. His outward precision and methodical nature mask a desperate man who would do anything to turn back the clock. Since the accident, he's been meticulously examining the temporal engine, ostensibly to help but perhaps with other motives.

A brilliant young engineer who disguised herself as a man for years to study at university, Tempest now reluctantly navigates society as a woman while continuing her scientific work. She serves as Dr. Tockman's assistant, though her innovations often surpass his. Tempest was particularly interested in Wellington's demonstration as she believes temporal mechanics could be applied to prevent industrial accidents like the one that killed her parents. She possesses an eidetic memory and has been experiencing the most severe temporal shifts among the guests, sometimes appearing to converse with people who aren't there or referencing events that haven't happened yet. Her unconventional thinking and direct manner make her both an asset and a social outsider.

An aristocratic patron of the sciences with mysterious connections to government intelligence agencies, Lord Waltz presents himself as merely a dilettante with scientific curiosity. In reality, he evaluates technological innovations for potential military applications and was sent to assess Wellington's work. Impeccably dressed and unfailingly polite, his charm masks a calculating mind that has navigated both diplomatic circles and espionage networks. Since the temporal incident, Lord Waltz has been experiencing disturbing visions of future wars utilizing time-based weapons, increasing his determination to control this technology. His family's fortune was built on colonial exploitation, creating a complex relationship with his own privilege that he masks with performative philanthropy.

A decorated military officer with a rigid demeanor and even more rigid worldview, Colonel Stone officially represents the War Office's interest in scientific advancement. His distinguished career in colonial campaigns has left him with both physical scars and a deep-seated belief in British superiority. Stone publicly dismisses Wellington's work as fantastical nonsense, but privately recognizes its potential for warfare and is determined to prevent it from falling into enemy hands. The temporal disruption has caused him to experience flashbacks to battles he fought, making him increasingly paranoid and volatile. Despite his nationalist bravado, Stone harbors guilt over atrocities he witnessed and participated in during his military service.

A controversial natural historian and early evolutionary theorist, Ms. O'Lution has expanded on Darwin's work with her own research into temporal aspects of species development. Her theories about time's role in evolution brought her to Wellington's demonstration, where she hoped to find evidence supporting her widely dismissed ideas. The temporal incident has provided her unprecedented opportunity to observe evolutionary processes at accelerated rates within the mansion's grounds, where plants and insects are experiencing rapid generational changes. Ms. O'Lution's scientific brilliance is matched by her social fearlessness—she openly challenges Victorian gender norms while navigating scientific circles that barely tolerate her presence. Her indigenous heritage informs her holistic approach to natural systems, creating theories that bridge Western science with traditional knowledge about time and nature.

A renowned spiritualist and medium who claims to communicate with entities across time, Madame Cull has built a devoted following among grieving Victorians seeking contact with deceased loved ones. Though many dismiss her as a charlatan, she demonstrated uncanny knowledge of Wellington's work that earned her an invitation to the demonstration. Since the temporal incident, her claimed psychic abilities have intensified, allowing her to occasionally predict the erratic time shifts before they occur. Behind her mystical facade lies a woman with extraordinary observational skills and a photographic memory, who uses scientific understanding while publicly embracing supernatural explanations. Her childhood in poverty and exploitation by earlier mentors have made her both protective of her secrets and sympathetic to others' suffering.

A progressive Anglican clergyman with a background in natural philosophy, Reverend Thyme seeks to reconcile scientific advancement with theological understanding. Unlike many of his colleagues, he embraces new discoveries as revelations of divine complexity rather than threats to faith. He attended Wellington's demonstration hoping to witness what he calls 'the mechanics of God's time.' The temporal disruption has caused him to experience visions he interprets as divine, though others might view them as temporal echoes. His sermons on the compatibility of science and religion have made him controversial within the church but beloved by intellectuals. Beneath his theological certainty lies personal doubt about whether his attempts to modernize faith are heretical or visionary.

A pioneering female physician specializing in neurological disorders, Dr. Worth secured her medical education against enormous societal resistance. Her research into brain function and temporal perception earned her an invitation to Wellington's demonstration. Dr. Worth approaches the temporal phenomenon with clinical detachment, documenting its effects on human cognition while developing theories about how the mind processes time disruption. Her calm exterior hides both ambition and anger—ambition to use this crisis to advance medical understanding, and anger at the scientific community that continues to dismiss her work despite her credentials. The time distortions have given her glimpses of a future where women in medicine are commonplace, intensifying her determination to help create that reality.

A methodical detective from Scotland Yard's newly formed Special Sciences Division, Inspector Second investigates crimes involving scientific innovations. Initially skeptical of Wellington's claims, he attended the demonstration to evaluate potential public safety concerns. The temporal incident has activated his exceptional deductive skills as he approaches the mystery with both nineteenth-century forensic techniques and insights gleaned from temporal flashes of future investigative methods. Second's commitment to justice stems from childhood poverty and witnessing how crimes against the poor went uninvestigated. Though he presents the appearance of a conventional police officer, he harbors progressive views on social reform that he carefully conceals to maintain his position. The temporal distortions have shown him unsolved cases from his past, reigniting his determination to find truth regardless of temporal obstacles.

An international financier and technology investor with enigmatic origins, Baron DeWind has funded numerous scientific ventures across Europe and America. His interest in Wellington's work stems from both genuine scientific curiosity and potential commercial applications. The Baron cultivates an air of cosmopolitan sophistication that obscures his humble beginnings and self-made fortune. Since the temporal incident, he has been experiencing overlapping memories of different financial decisions and their outcomes, giving him insights into both past and future market movements. His flamboyant personality and seemingly frivolous manner conceal a mathematical genius and strategic mind. The Baron's multicultural background gives him perspective on Victorian society's limitations, though he publicly conforms to its expectations while quietly funding progressive causes, including scientific education for women and working-class children.