I ran. My feet pounded on the hard ground. The cold night air burned my lungs. I didn't look back. I couldn't.
Behind me, Instructor Valerius shouted my name. "Kaelen! Stop!"
But I didn't stop. I ran faster. The watch was hot in my pocket. It felt like it was burning a hole in my leg. The ticking was loud in my ears. It matched the beating of my heart.
...run... the voice in my head whispered. ...faster... she will lock us away...
Trees whipped past me. I was leaving the main campus now. Heading into the dark woods that surrounded the training facility. I didn't know where I was going. I just knew I had to get away.
"Kaelen, please!" Valerius's voice was farther away now. "You don't understand what you're doing!"
But I did understand. I understood that everyone wanted to take the watch. Everyone wanted to use me. Julian wanted it. Now Valerius wanted it. They all said they wanted to help me, but they just wanted the power for themselves.
The watch was my only friend. It healed my arm. It saved me from the monster. It talked to me when I was alone.
...good... the voice whispered. ...you are smart... trust only me...
Branches scratched my face and arms. My chest hurt from running. I stumbled over a root and almost fell. I caught myself on a tree trunk. My hands were shaking. I was deep in the woods now. I couldn't see the lights of the facility anymore. I couldn't hear Valerius.
I was alone.
I slid down to the ground, my back against the tree. I tried to catch my breath. The forest was dark and quiet. Too quiet. No birds. No insects. Just the sound of my breathing and the ticking of the watch.
I took the watch out of my pocket. It glowed with a soft, golden light. In the dark forest, it was like a tiny moon in my hand.
"Are you really my friend?" I whispered to it.
...yes... the voice replied. It sounded clearer now. Stronger. ...I have always been your friend... even when you did not know me...
"But what are you?" I asked. "Valerius said you're a piece of a broken god. She said you're hungry."
The watch was silent for a moment. The ticking seemed to slow.
...she fears what she does not understand... the voice said finally. ...I am not a god... I am... memory... the memory of time...
"The memory of time?" I asked. "What does that mean?"
...I remember everything that was... everything that is... and everything that could be... the voice explained. ...the woman fears me because I remember her secrets... her failures...
"What secrets?" I asked. But the voice didn't answer that question.
...they will come for us now... it said instead. ...both of them... the woman and the pretty man... we cannot go back...
"I know," I said. My throat felt tight. Where would I go? I had no family. No home outside the facility. The Agency was my whole life.
...I will show you the way... the voice whispered. ...I remember all paths... all hiding places... trust me...
The watch grew warmer in my hand. Suddenly, images flashed in my mind. Not like my power visions. These were different. Clearer. More real.
I saw a path through the trees. A hidden trail I had never noticed before. I saw a small cave behind a waterfall. A safe place to rest.
...I can show you many things... the voice said. ...not just paths to walk... but paths of knowledge... of power...
Another image flashed in my mind. Me, fighting with a sword. But not like the clumsy practice in training. This was smooth. Perfect. Every movement exactly right. I was better than Instructor Valerius. Better than anyone.
...I remember all fighting styles... all techniques... the voice said. ...I can teach you... make you strong... so no one can ever hurt you again...
The image changed. I saw myself reading a book. But I wasn't just reading it. I understood it perfectly. Complex equations. Ancient languages. Things I had always struggled with were now clear and simple.
...I remember all knowledge... all science... all magic... the voice whispered. ...everything they have forgotten... I remember...
The images kept coming. Faster and faster. Me speaking languages I had never learned. Me playing musical instruments I had never touched. Me solving problems that had stumped the Agency's best scientists.
...this can all be yours... the voice promised. ...everything I know... everything I remember... I will share with you...
It was amazing. It was wonderful. It was everything I had ever wanted. To be smart. To be strong. To be special. Not just a lucky E-Rank. Not just cannon fodder.
But something felt wrong. A small voice in the back of my head—my own voice this time—was warning me.
This was too much. Too easy.
...do not fear your own greatness... the watch's voice said, as if it could hear my thoughts. ...this is your destiny... I chose you for a reason...
"Why?" I asked. My voice was shaky. "Why me?"
...because you see what others cannot... it answered. ...you understand the paths... the possibilities... together, we can do great things...
The images in my mind changed again. Now I saw the future. My future. Me, standing tall and confident. People respecting me. Fearing me. No one could push me around anymore. No one could call me weak.
Leo was there in the vision, looking at me with admiration. Instructor Valerius bowed her head. Julian was on his knees.
It was everything I had ever wanted.
But then the vision shifted. The people's faces became scared. Their eyes were wide with terror. Not respect. Not admiration. Fear.
And I saw myself. My eyes were cold. Empty. Like Julian's eyes. And the watch wasn't in my hand anymore. It was in my chest. Where my heart should be. Beating. Ticking.
I gasped and dropped the watch. It fell to the forest floor, still glowing. Still ticking.
The visions stopped.
...why did you drop me?... the voice asked. It sounded hurt. ...I was showing you your future... our future...
"My future?" I whispered. "Or yours?"
...they are the same now... the voice said. ...we are connected...
I stared at the watch lying on the ground. The golden light pulsed like a heartbeat. My heartbeat.
Valerius's words echoed in my mind. It will need a new home. A new heart.
Julian's warning. It will consume him.
My own vision. The watch in my chest.
Was this what they meant? Was the watch trying to become part of me?
...do not listen to them... the voice pleaded. ...they want to separate us... they fear what we can become together...
I didn't know what to believe anymore. Everyone was lying. Everyone wanted something.
But the watch wanted something too. I knew that now. It didn't just want to be my friend. It wanted to be me. Or for me to be it. I didn't know which was worse.
In the distance, I heard voices. Shouting. Flashlights cutting through the trees. They were coming for me.
Valerius. Julian. The Agency. They were all coming.
I looked down at the watch. It glowed up at me. Waiting.
I had to choose. Now.
Pick up the watch. Embrace the power. But lose myself.
Or leave it here. Run away alone. Be free, but be weak forever.
The voices were getting closer. The lights were brighter.
I reached down. My hand hovered over the watch.
What would I choose?