Time Holders: The World of Balance

”Aldrus!” Alice shouted, searching for her friend the moment she landed on the wooden floorboards. The fight had spilled outside, and soon after, Cedric followed, joining them.

Still carrying Aiden on her back, Alice dashed down the corridor of broken windows, following the heavy steps of the tall, cloaked man. Before long, she stopped dead in her tracks the moment her eyes met her objective: a monster holding Aldrus’s unconscious body by the throat.

”Alright, calm down,” he said, breathing heavily.

The blond boy arrived just in time to watch the scene unfold. ”W-Wha—”

”Sit down facing the wall. Now,” the man ordered. ”I’ll kill him in five seconds if you don’t obey.” His palm rose to Aldrus’s neck like a blade threatening to end his life.

”Y-You won’t do it,” Alice stammered.

”I will. Now that it’s come to this, one or two of you less doesn’t matter. Five...”

”Shut up! Stop acting! We know you’re under instructions—you can’t kill us! What do you think will happen once your boss finds out?!” Cedric said, hiding his shaky hands behind his back.

”Four.”

”Hey! Listen to me, dammit!”

”Three.”

”HEY!!”

”Two.”

”CEDRIC, DO AS HE SAYS!!” Alice screamed, letting Aiden fall to the ground.

”One.”

”CEDRIC!!”

”...No.” Suddenly, a different voice spoke.

”Zero.”

”He won’t kill him.”

...

”...Eh?”

”W-Where—”

”He’s not... hahhhh... h-he’s not there... anymore. Alice... cough! ...and you, too,” Aiden said. ”...Get ready.”

Cedric and the blonde girl froze in place, immediately glancing back at the man. Within his mighty grip, the pale neck that had just been in deadly danger was now nowhere to be seen.

As he realized this, the jailer sighed; his expression growing somber.

Paralyzed, the four students stood in silence, their terrified hearts still hammered with an anxious rhythm. The once-refreshing night breeze now slithered into the rotten corridor, making their battered bodies ache all over again.

”...” The cloaked man did not utter a single word. Instead, he wearily placed one foot in front of the other and raised his arms. Then, taking a solid battle stance, he patiently waited for something... or someone.

”Come.”

Right then, before anyone could react, all hell broke loose. In one swift motion, a terrible sequence of noise approached the monster with impossible speed.

Each step Aldrus took in his superhuman rush bit into the creaking wooden floor, breaking it apart with the force of a giant.

”Now, attack!” Aldrus instructed without looking back, clashing against the jailer in a cacophony of wind and ruthless strikes. By pure instinct, Alice, Aiden, and Cedric launched forward, betting everything they had on one final fight.

”Agghhhhh!” Dodging a punch, a painful grunt escaped Aldrus’s lips. He didn’t want to think about it, but he was pretty sure his ribs were broken. With each block, a wave of piercing pain made him want to die; he could feel the uneven surface of his bones scratching against his lungs.

It seemed the second blow that had sent him flying through the ceiling had landed in the exact same spot as the first.

T-This is dangerous!

The fight had to end soon; if he messed up or overexerted himself for too long, a blood-filled chest cavity would be the least of his problems.

Ughh!

The cloaked man saw him stagger and closed the distance in a single dash. Then, he leaned back and raised a leg so fast it dried up the surrounding sound. Yet, just as he was about to strike him a third time, Alice suddenly jumped between them, blocking the knee strike with her bare hands.

The impact was so great it sent her flying back, but she soon regained her balance and skidded several meters, sliding her hands across the floor. As soon as she managed to stop, she rushed forward again, using the momentum of the sudden change in direction to her advantage.

At the same time, Cedric leaped toward the ceiling and pushed himself down at full speed against the opponent, aiming to end the fight with a single, deadly kick.

Close to the opposite wall, Aiden jumped a second into the future, compensating for the terrible state of his body with careless, raw power. Once he got close enough, his fist became unbound and his heart filled up with courage.

”H-Huuuff...” At the sight of the imminent danger, the jailer took a deep breath. He closed his eyes and focused, lowering his center of gravity.

Aldrus’s heart raced even faster when he noticed the sudden change in the man’s presence. His entire being was struck by a terrible omen.

Something was different; he needed to act now.

[Visione]! He quickly glanced into the future once again, hoping to be fast enough to avoid whatever blow would follow, unlike last time. However, what he saw shattered every single bit of hope he had left.

Within his mind, the first sight was that of Alice pressing her foot against the floor and delivering an uppercut to the opponent’s jaw. Then, he saw Cedric kick down with everything he had. And lastly, he saw Aiden split the night with a fearsome final punch...

He saw them all fail.

An uppercut caught by the man’s teeth; a leg breaking apart upon clashing against his skin; a titanic attack missing the mark.

No! Think! Think! What do I do?! What the fuck do I do?!?

Aldrus was stuck in the lapse of mere moments, forced to take action just to survive. He needed more time...

Ten seconds. Even ten seconds would be enough. Enough to help him think, to help him save them, to help him win.

People often say there’s a phenomenon some experience before they die—a moment where a threatened consciousness flashes a whole life before their eyes. A gift from the heavens that might grant another chance or, at the very least, a final peace of mind.

Such a thing, of course, was a myth.

Aldrus was sure of one thing: if he were ever to experience it himself, that moment had to be then. He wasn’t the one in deadly danger right right now, but watching his friends die was basically the same. Not only because of how it would feel, but because if they lost their lives right there and then, his own would be next.

He was condemned to accept the outcome and regret it later, whether he’d have time to think it through from the underworld or not.

...

But why?

Why give up?

Why accept the outcome?

Why settle for the myth, when he could make it a reality?

If ten seconds was all he needed, then he had more than enough.

He was a Holder, after all.

[Motion].