AEON - 1. The Dawn of Twilight

It’s late and in a mad dash to get home I know I will most definitely be skinned because I’ve already been grounded this week. I know I should have gone straight home but when a certain Big Man on Campus named Scott decides to give me a little attention everything, and I mean everything else goes on hold. I do love him completely but he can’t even acknowledge being my boyfriend so we play the same game every week. We meet, he tells me he loves me, we argue about his inability to love me in public even though everyone knows he’s gay, and then comes the make-up sex. I feel cheap and used after but I can’t seem to leave him alone. He’s walking me home now to make sure I get there safely; if I didn’t already know he loved me this may have just convinced me. Right?

The cold wind raged around us in a forceful display of power snatching leaves and debris in its wake and effortlessly setting them to lazily waft back to the ground in a dazzling display of fall beauty. I loved times like these, who doesn’t?

We had been walking for about 15 minutes when I first started feeling anxious. I kept a constant lookout but I couldn’t shake the feeling we were being followed. As we turned the corner near Frommer’s market, I was so paranoid we were being followed that Scott pulled me into a doorway and held me until I calmed down. He kept a constant watch on the street as I tried to calm myself. His sharp intake of breath convinced me that I was right; seconds before we were both tore from the doorway and deposited feet away in the center of the street. Standing up, I was yanked forward when Scott started to run while maintaining his death grip on my hand. We made it around the corner and about five steps before I felt the cold touch of steel pierce me from behind.

I looked to Scott, reaching for him to save me when he turned and ran like a scared kid. As he ran, I was surrounded by five men. ‘Engage?’ They asked and when the leader said no I was snatched up from the ground and suspended by my arms by two of the masked assassins. I could feel the hot blood running down my back as I started to shiver from the cold. ‘And what of this one,’ said one of the men holding me. An answer was never given but I was thrown face first to the ground. I lay there very still so they wouldn’t think I was trying to escape and kill me, when I felt the cold press of steel again. I was unceremoniously kicked over and held in check by a boot to the throat and a gun to the head. ‘Identify’ I was told repeatedly and the only answer I could provide was my name, Cronos.

After hearing my name I was snatched up from the ground. As they attempted to suspend me once again, I heard a shrill whistling and felt as if I were hit by a Buick as I began to fall slowly back to the pavement feeling as if I had lost forever.

I woke up surrounded by darkness and tied down to a hard surface. I could feel the wetness still seeping from my back, and the metallic tang of my blood permeated the space where I was held captive. ‘They tell me you are called Cronos.’ I heard as I desperately sought to escape my bondage. I couldn’t see anyone near but I clearly felt a presence. “I am” I answered in an attempt to find out where this line of questioning would lead. A steady pulse of blue light caught my attention from a few feet in front of me and I held my breath as it gradually moved closer to me.

“Who is it? What do you want from me?” I asked in a desperate attempt to make sense of this situation I now found myself in, and was rewarded with a stinging slap and an admonishment to shut up or lose my teeth. I prayed to Zeus and Hera to deliver me from my captivity when I once again noticed the blue light. It was directly in front of my face and through the glare of it’s illumination I could just barely discern a human face. As the face within the light became clearer to me the guard that slapped me earlier began to get suspicious and tried to figure out exactly what the blue light was.

I heard the sounds of a struggle and a muffled grunt of pain as the guard was dispatched and sent to the floor. “Who are you” I asked once again and instead of a slap I received an answer. ‘I am here to free and protect you.’

After being freed from the table, I informed him about the injury I had suffered from the assassins earlier that night, which he placed his hand over and pressed hard. As he finished he told me the bleeding has stopped and I would feel no more pain. Glad to be free once again we hurried and found the exit to the room.

I can’t explain it but just as we reached the door I had the vaguest feeling of déjà vu. It seemed as if I could actually see what was going to happen and what I saw wasn’t by any means pretty. Throwing back the door I could see that we were so far undetected, but upon the first step out it seemed as if soldiers appeared out of nowhere and immediately gunned us down not even 2 steps from the doorway.

With a gasp I realized we were still in the room but my unknown savior was still moving resolutely towards the door on a quest for freedom. Just as he touched the door I grabbed and snatched him backwards to emphasize how much we weren’t taking that direction. Seeing the look on my face he resolutely announced new plan and as he grabbed hold of my arm we were both enveloped by a warm blue aura as the room completely disappeared from view and was replaced by a large marble hallway.

As we appeared at our destination I freaked out at discovering we were in an entirely new location and rapidly fired questions at him trying to regain some semblance of my sanity. I was told all of my questions would be answered in time but I had no interest in being part of anything relating the supernatural. I started to back away from him slowly when a voice rang out quite loud and clear ‘Lord Cronos.’

I looked directly at my savior and my thoughts instantly started working overtime creating various scenarios as to why anyone would address me as Lord, and wondering if this was just someone’s ingenious plan to get themselves a new piece of ass. I made no pretences of even trying to escape slowly as I quickly back-peddled away from this so called savior and ended up standing flush against the wall on the opposite side of the room.

As I stood there watching the unknown man while trying desperately to disappear into the wall he turned to his left and addressed the still unseen caller by telling him to bring warm food and fresh clothes to his guest. I stared at him still unsure of exactly where I fit into this situation when he turned his steely gaze onto me. “Who are you?” The words were out of my mouth before I could stop myself. He leveled his gaze on me and stared for a moment or two before he started to talk. ‘My name is Cronos Strath.’ All of the color drained from my face as I began to shake my head back and forth trying to wake up from this nightmare I had found myself in. “How?” I asked suddenly feeling anxious and very scared at this new turn of events.

He once again stared at me as he began to formulate an answer. ‘I need to get you away from here so I can save us both. I am you. But I am also the personification of what you must now become. I, you, we are time itself.’ I slowly sank to the floor and started to chant no as I shook my head back and forth. I’ve watched the news, and lived my life to the best of my ability so far. I’ve seen how people who are different are treated in today’s world.

Look at how the mutants are treated and if not them the meta-humans. While they’re not mutants the similarities are great. Even others are treated different. I was there when Alex, a kid I had grown up next door to was killed at school with his best friend Ashley. There was absolutely no remorse for any of that and the bad part was nobody cared except to celebrate it. The degeneration of Centennial was so bad that my parents packed us up and put 3 states between us and that city. I guess life really does come back around to bite us in the ass.

I was still contemplating this recent turn of events when I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up into a pair of gray eyes. ‘It doesn’t have to be that way, if I can get you away and keep you safe you may never have to experience this.’ I looked at him after his statement like he was a fool but I just nodded and stood up next to him. “How old are you now?” I asked him as he led me towards the dining room. He led me to a chair situated directly in front of a wall before he told me he was over 500 years old. I stopped eating and stared at him as I asked how. ‘Like I said We are time’ was the only answer he would offer. As if sensing my unease he walked around the table to me and lifted his hand as if asking permission. Once granted he placed his hands on either side of my head and I felt as if a switch had been flipped. I felt as if I was everywhere and nowhere.

No limitations and no restrictions. When I opened my eyes I had knowledge of everything. I knew everything that had happened since the beginning of time, and I knew everything that would happen until the end of time. I even had knowledge of every alternate reality and their timelines if I so chose to see them. A Chronopath some would call me but it was there that they would be wrong. I AM TIME. I control what no man could ever comprehend or harness. They may tap into its potential and benefit but they will always suffer the effects of changing time.

That’s why it came as a surprise when I suddenly looked up and we were surrounded by a shit load of the same soldiers from earlier. They leveled their guns at us and gave an ultimatum surrender or die. I raised my hands and slowly stood as ordered when my older self began to blur and disappear from sight. I muttered freeze under my breath and all time within the room stopped, even my older self. I began to frantically search through the timelines looking for a strategy to get out of this situation when I felt the white hot gaze settle on me.

I dropped back to my own timeline searching for the source but was unsuccessful, and as I leapt forward once again I came face to face with myself. He was me down to almost every last detail. Just short of 6 feet tall, built like a football player, black hair gray eyes, but the malice in those eyes was so great that they had started to change to slits. I attempted to drop back out of the time stream when he grabbed my head and asked ‘Is that any way to greet a cosmic twin?’ I felt a monumental amount of pain for just a split second when I noticed that I was alone again and hanging on the threshold of my reality. I stepped through and into a dead end street, and the carnage that greeted me was so great that I doubled over and vomited on the spot.

As I attempted to stand a great sense of dread fell upon me. I looked back and forth trying to detect anything when I felt a presence to my right. As I began to turn I was lifted straight up off the street and yanked thousands of feet straight up into the air. ‘You will help me Time Rider or I will kill you!’ was spoken as I looked up into a very familiar pair of green eyes. “Alex,” I spoke as I finally recognized who held me.

Startled and caught off guard a watched his face change from a cold mask to utter confusion, as his hand began to loosen. As he finally figured out who I was, he tried to bring his arms up to catch me but I was already hundreds of feet below him. I willed myself to stop but nothing happened. As I continued to fall I stopped trying to stop myself and started to wonder why I hadn’t stopped already, or why Alex hadn’t tried to help me yet. As I looked up I got my answer, there frozen almost a hundred feet above me was Alex. I looked down but couldn’t see the ground. In my extreme panic I had stopped not myself, but everything else. Trying to undo the freeze proved useless as I had no clue how I had done so in the first place. As it finally occurred to me I wouldn’t be helped, I began to scream as I hurtled rapidly toward the ground.