In the silence of the night, the clock struck 12. A soft continuous chime rang out, echoing. A rather unfamiliar chime.
Eyes flickering open, David woke up and then lay quietly. While his vision adjusted to the darkness, he silently listened to that soothing chime. Despite its relaxing tune, David couldn't help but get anxious, his body slightly tensed.
A minute of this unsettling atmosphere continued until it was too much to bear. With cold sweat condensing on his face, David slowly sat up.
He sat rigidly for a moment as if waiting for something to occur. Yet...nothing happened. Nothing changed. Everything remained the same.
Unsure, David started looking around. While it was dark, with his sight adjusted for some time, he could make out the details of his sparsely decorated bedroom.
On the floor stood a plain wardrobe; A simple dressing mirror; a boring nightstand with an unsophisticated lamp and his creaky old bed.
On the ceiling hung a simple fan. Two adjacent lightbulbs and a clock opposite them were the only inhabitants of the unadorned walls.
Nothing too different from what David was used to. Nevertheless, one thing was different: the chimes. Where were they coming from?
Seconds go by and all remained still, apart from the continuous chimes nearby...
Wait, nearby? David's eyes opened up in horror and snapped to a location on one of the walls. A dark silhouette loomed.
Hung above the only window was a simple analog clock. It was as mundane as a clock could be. What was there to fear, one might ask?
In David's point of view, things couldn't be further from the truth.
The second hand moved at its normal pace, slowly circling the circumference of the clock. The minute hand, currently positioned at the 2-minute mark, gradually moved ahead.
As for the hour hand...there was no hour hand. A key component of all clocks, yet missing from this one.
That was not all that was different though, as each step of the second hand did not tick like it usually would, but rather it let out chimes. The lovely ones.
However, David did not appreciate the sounds. He was in no mood to do so. Things had changed. A change had happened without his supervision. An unwelcome change.
David had hoped that this was just him jumping at the darkness...at things that aren't really there. That his intuition and senses were wrong...unfortunately they never were. The clock was the proof. Something had happened.
As you can tell, David wasn't a person fond of change, especially unexpected ones. The ones on the level of this clock? They rang major alarms in his mind.
Things don't change without reason, and whatever the reason was for this change...David wasn't very keen to find out. It never bodes well, poking your nose into things that didn't concern you.
David had lived through his share, or rather more than his share, of troubles and unpleasant situations. Most of them came from him not minding his business. As a result, he became well-versed in the art of what not to do.
Slightly lost in his thoughts, David shook his head and began staring at the clock with an intensifying gaze.
The tension built up and one could feel David's sole desire at this point. To remain ignorant and go back to sleep. Let things handle themselves.
Alas, the problem was that this particular situation occurred in this very house, in this very room, and very close to David himself. It was highly likely to be linked to him, meaning it was a problem he couldn't escape.
He also couldn't go back to sleep, with such a thing happening a few meters away from him. What if when he slept once more, things changed further?
This realization unnerved David. What had he gotten himself embroiled with? Did he do something wrong yesterday to deserve this?
Aware that he had gotten sidetracked, David focused on himself. It wasn't good for one's mental health to get deep into paranoia. He needed his mind to be sharp for tomorrow's pile of work.
Living is truly tiring, so much work to just get meager pay, barely enough to feed oneself. How David wished for things to change...
Change? Why was he thinking about change? David abhorred change, so why was he wishing for it in his mind?
*grr*
David let out a grunt of frustration.
'What is happening? Why can't I...stay...focused?'
David could feel that his mind was slipping. Something was interfering with his flow of thoughts. Things were changing further.
He began looking around, yet it was futile. The room was still the same, apart from the chiming clock.
David's eyes widened. Of course, it must be the clock. It was naturally, the only difference in the room. Not only that, but it was also the only thing doing something.
Still, wasn't David also doing something? Sitting up; looking around; shaking his head and thinking about needless things.
Suddenly, David harshly bit his lips, the pain bringing back his clarity. His focus had started to fail him. Things were not looking good, the situation getting dire at the moment. He couldn't allow himself to fall into a spiral again.
With a flurry of his blanket, David dashed out of his bed causing it to creak loudly. He began rushing for the clock. His footsteps thundered, declaring his determination.
In a shocking display of athletic ability, David jumped and grabbed the clock. When gravity took hold, he smashed the clock onto the ground while landing.
Silence overtook the night. The chimes stopped. David's mind felt unburdened. All was right once again.
Silence? The night was silent, causing David to frown. Where were the ever-present crickets? They never went quiet.
A gnawing unease drilled into his mind, causing him to move toward the curtained window.
Sweeping aside the curtains, a faintly lit city bathed in the moonlight showed up in his vision. The very same city David had lived in for years. With its schools, plazas, markets, and businesses.
One thing was different though. In the middle of the city something tall and twisted; gnarled and elegant; immense and majestic jutted out from the ground reaching the sky. Something mismatched with its surroundings.
At the same time, a familiar tick rang out behind David, and with it a strange voice.
"It's 24:06, dear David..."