In the distant past, shatranj was the ancestor of chess. In 2036, "shatranj" is the password for a time-warp chess match that jumps 17-year-old Margeaux Quigley -- the chosen pawn among eight classmates kidnapped from high school detention in 1984 -- 52 years to 2036. Margeaux, who only ages 52 minutes during the leap, is asked to help checkmate Robert Ballentine, the self-proclaimed king of America. A corporate pirate who goes by the nickname "Balls," Ballentine is holding America's first female president hostage aboard a ship after a successful coup of the federal government on New Year’s Day, 2036. An Australian-born, University of Texas-educated oil, shipping and media tycoon, Ballentine pulls off the hostile takeover with military and technological support from China, North Korea and dozens of U.S. turncoats. He also threatens to kill the president if the U.S. military attempts any major counterattacks during the transition phase. But when Ballentine holds a contest to find a virgin queen from his conquered land, a U.S. special defense unit at Area 52 in west Nevada -- a top secret and much smaller base than today’s Area 51 in east Nevada -- sees an opportunity to strike and comes up with a plan. Margeaux only accepts the dangerous mission to seduce and trap the king when the teenage clone learns the president is … 69-year-old Margeaux Quigley.