Director Stevenson was the overall head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He oversaw a tentative cooperative relationship between the FBI and the Travelers after an initially rocky start in the aftermath of the latter's exposure to government agencies and the general public. He was a well-informed man who didn't readily trust people, though he was willing to hear their explanations and consider all facts at hand before committing to or reversing a course of action.
Averted Death[]
Stevenson did not have an averted death. He, along with several key government figures stateside and worldwide, were forcibly overwritten by the Faction following Traveler 001's successful transfer to computer systems and eventual takeover in the future. (S3E10: Protocol Omega)
Biography[]
Stevenson[]
Director Stevenson and Deputy Director Oslin were convinced by Special Agent Wakefield that he could prove time travel exists and that Travelers have infiltrated their agency and elsewhere. Initially they were skeptical, but one day Wakefield reported to them that his task force found "nothing". Suspicious about the sudden change, they quietly began gathering intelligence on these Travelers over the course of several months and learned Wakefield and his entire team were replaced, among other things.
Following the exposure of Traveler activities through Vincent Ingram's actions, Stevenson spearheaded a highly-classified operation to eliminate these infiltrators worldwide, including within his own organization. 23 minutes before its start, however, Special Agent Joanne Yates went to see him and Oslin with a request to issue a cancellation order for the operation. Given that Yates had no business even knowing about the operation, Stevenson ordered her to explain.
The Director spent two days convincing Yates it was real, and it needed her to tell her superiors that it will be cooperating with 21st century authorities going forward. Stevenson refused to cancel the operation, citing the way consciousness transfer works and wary if Yates was also another Traveler. She played her last card: her comatose mother was turned into a messenger and relayed a few words intended for Stevenson: "the bargain he made that autumn morning was not with his God, but with me." Stevenson obliged and called off the operation, just before the Core Traveler Team were about to be assaulted at their safehouse.
Stevenson confided in Yates that his daughter Claire was dying of a rare cancer. One autumn morning, Stevenson was on a hospital with his daughter when she was turned into a messenger. The Director told him it will save her life but there will be a day of reckoning. Claire improved by next morning, but Stevenson thought it was a miracle at the time. As Stevenson investigated Traveler activities, he became aware they had the technology to cure her daughter, and such reports kept him up at night. Yates told him he made the right choice standing down, but he adopted a more cautious outlook. (S3E01: Ilsa)
Sometime later, after nuclear attacks on archives worldwide, Stevenson was approached by Yates telling him the attacks were caused by the Faction. Stevenson was aware of the political divisions between the Travelers, but it didn't change the fact that the bombs were traced back to the US and that the only attack that was averted happened to be on US soil. The Travelers they were monitoring mentioned something called "Protocol Omega", and Stevenson charged Yates with finding out what it was: not by directly asking Grant MacLaren, but by other means as he's running low on trust.
Yates failed the task and Grant accompanied her to Stevenson to talk to the FBI Director himself. Stevenson enacted several precautions like an FBI-made space-time attenuator and a device that messes with comms to ensure his meeting with Grant was not eavesdropped by the future. He wanted to round up all of the Travelers, and told Grant to give him one reason why he shouldn't. Grant explained there were still nukes on the loose, and revealed the nature of Protocol Omega. Continuing the conversation in his office, Stevenson learned what generally went wrong in humanity's future that necessitated the need for time travelers fixing up the past. Stevenson showed he was aware of the Helios-685 mission, but wondered why it didn't save the future. Grant also didn't know, only that the Director kept trying until Protocol Omega was enacted.
With the USA accused by other countries of launching nuclear strikes, Grant offered to explain to Stevenson's international counterparts about the Faction's involvement. The FBI Director arranged a video meeting, where Grant offered to share Traveler technologies equitably, though Stevenson momentarily paused it to warn Grant it's not the time to be discussing such matters. However, the counterparts began to be overwritten live, and Stevenson received a call that the US President and most of his cabinet were also overwritten.
Now convinced a coup d'état was afoot, Stevenson ordered Yates to arrest Grant while he travels to Washington DC to sort out the matter. Stevenson proceeded to the elevator, accompanied by an elderly agent. However, he was overwritten before even leaving the floor, showing the STA's range didn't extend to the elevator. (S3E10: Protocol Omega)
Traveler (Number Unknown)[]
The Faction-aligned Traveler killed the bystander agent with Stevenson in the elevator, then went back to the STA-protected room and attempted to shoot Grant. He succeeded only in breaking the glass, and Yates shot him in the chest in return. (S3E10: Protocol Omega)