The Time Tourist is a mostly serious and sometimes humorous story of Juan Tomas, introverted 30-something individual who builds a time machine and ends up trapped in the 26th century. Not realizing he has committed a serious offense, he is apprehended by Illyana, an exotic and beautiful time cop who is charged with both holding him in custody and protecting him from sinister forces who seek to use him for nefarious purposes. Told in first person narratives, alternatively by Juan and Illyana we learn of Juan discovering that he has a messiah-like role in the future: to save all of humankind.