The Watch – Part 141:

He lifted his staff into the air. He started chanting something unintelligible and the crystal started to glow brightly. Whatever he was doing, I had to put a stop to before it goes too far. Searching through my watch, trying to find the option to give me the ability to do magic. My limbs froze. I couldn’t move a muscle.

‘Ah, Ah, Ah,’ Magician said tauntingly, ‘I can’t let you do that. You refused to give me the watch and now you are going to pay the price. All you can do now is stand there and watch.’ I was not looking forward to this. The yellow circle with the complex pattern appeared behind him for a second time. I wondered if he was going to try and do what he did last time, but I quickly dismissed that when the circle started to rise into the air.

Continuing to chant undecipherable words, the circle rose high into the sky. I watched as the further away it flew, the bigger it grew, until it finally came to a stop at the very edge of the world where the sky starts blending in with space. There were no clouds in the sky, so I was able to see everything clearly, helplessly. With every ounce of my strength, I tried to break free of this bond he has on me, but I knew it would be pointless. I just have to try.

He stopped chanting and looked at me. The circle remained in the sky, floating there as if it was waiting for more commands. ‘This is your last chance,’ Magician said, ‘give me the watch now or suffer the consequences.’

‘What are you going to do?’ I demanded.

‘Do not give me the watch and find out,’ Magician smiled.

‘You’re not going to get away with this,’ I said.

‘Is that a no that I hear?’ Magician asked rhetorically. ‘Very well,’ he said, resuming the position, getting ready to activate his plan. ‘If I am unable to take the watch from you, I will make you give it to me after suffering a horrendous defeat at my hands.’

He said in a clear, crisp voice, drenched with authority, ‘from the darkest corner of the multiverse, a place where time ceases to exist I call out to them. Dwelling between the gaps, I ask to summon the Monsters hell-bent on destruction, conquering the Multiverse; I pledge to be your leader. Together we can bring victory in this fight. But first, I shall call out one’s name: Magician.’

Nothing happened. Silence. The longest silence I’ve ever experienced. Every second felt like a year. My heart was in my throat, beating a tattoo against my Adam’s apple. I knew it wasn’t over. Magician was still looking up, waiting for a response. Then the circle started to glow a magnificent yellow, blindingly bright, on par with the sun itself, yet I was still able to look at it without retaining damage. Then, a solid beam of light shot downwards, wrapping around Magician from head to toe. It lingered for a minute or so, as if it was waiting for something, and unfortunately, it found it and the light disappeared. No, it didn’t just disappear, Magician absorbed it. Then the ground started to shake.

‘Just remember, you brought this on yourself,’ Magician said. ‘There’s no stopping it now. Give up and give me the watch.’ What was he talking about? My eyes remained fixed on the circle above as the shaking grew more violent. Then the pattern started to move, dance around the centre before disappearing completely, leaving a hole in the sky, a doorway to another dimension. I was expecting a horde of Monsters to pile out, fight over themselves to be the first one out, but instead, hundreds of tiny orbs of light flew in every direction, flying away until they disappeared over the horizon.

‘They are here,’ Magician said, sounding smug. He knew that he had won. ‘Here,’ he said, ‘let me give you a front row seat,’ and he waved his hand over me. An intense feeling as if something was taking control of my body grew behind my eyes. Images started to pop into existence in my mind’s eye. I was standing in some random town, far away from my home, watching as many orbs of light descended from the sky, growing at a rapid rate, before finally revealing the creature inside.

Five indescribable, gigantic, powerful monsters stood, towering over the people, and the buildings, with nothing but wanting to cause as much destruction as possible, to conquer this world. At first the people were curious. I screamed as loud as I could to tell them to run away even though I knew they couldn’t hear me. Then, the Monsters attacked. Nothing stood a chance. Every building fell to the ground as if they were made out of weak Lego. The ground beneath their feet shook and crumbled with every step, forcing people to lose their balance and fall onto their knees. Unable to stand in time, the buildings fell on top of them. I stood, watching, wanting to help, but unable to move a muscle.

Then the image changed and I was standing in New York. This time a stampede of Monsters has already started their rampage, bursting through every skyscraper, kicking cars like footballs, breathing fire across the ground, creating a tsunami of fire, washing over everything it could.

Then the image changed again and I was standing in Berlin, and the image continued to change until I got the message. Every monument, major building that stood to show that we humans are strong and can overcome anything and everything that comes our way fell to the floor, shattering in pieces. In a matter of seconds, the entire world had a fallen, the monsters had won without breaking a sweat. My heart was beating so fast, feeling everything that everyone is feeling at once, causing my brain to struggle and deal with the pressure the only way it knows how by giving me a migraine.

And then, to cement the message even further, I found myself standing in my home town, outside my house. I saw Amy sitting on the sofa, waiting for my return, flicking through the channels on the TV until she saw the destruction and despair the Monsters have caused. She stood up with her hands over her mouth in shock. I wanted her to run. I yelled as loud as I could, wanting Amy to hear me, to notice that she isn’t safe.

Then the picture changed once more. I am now standing outside Tom’s house. He was playing on his computer, distracting himself from the outside world. Any minute now, a Monster is going to rampage through, destroy everything. Knowing what is about to happen and that I can’t stop it made the situation unbearably intense. I wanted to cry, but my body was too numb to function properly. Instead the feelings built up inside me, filling up my head, adding to the incomprehension and pain. The world has stopped spinning.

Then the images stopped and I fell to the floor. My body was too weak to move so I stayed curled up in a ball, shaking with torment. I felt everything everyone was going through all at once, and there was nothing I could do except watch. I could still hear the screams inside my head, see the pictures loop over and over, even though they’ve stopped.

‘This is your fault,’ Magician said in a serious voice. He wasn’t being manic, happy, or even showing off. He was being sympathetic, telling me that he had no choice, that I led him to do it. ‘You brought this upon yourself. I gave you a chance to give me the watch and now you are going to pay the consequences. There is nothing you can do. Not even you can stop them. Of course, before you can even get near them, you will have to go through me first, and now that I know what you are capable of, I am not going down so easily again, you mark my words. And don’t think you can go back in time and rewrite history, that portal will remain there throughout time, there is no stopping it now.’

I thought about everyone in this world, about how they lost their lives because of me. I should have given him the watch. I should have given up and gave him what he wanted, then none of this would have happened.

Then my thoughts focused on Amy, Tom, my parents, and everyone else who has stood by my side, encouraging me to be who I want to be, to get out there and change the world, telling me to never give up no matter what. It was through their unprecedented support that I learnt not to give up, to keep fighting no matter what, to show the world what I am capable of. But I failed them.

I want this to end.

I’ve lost.

‘I’m sorry,’ I whispered numbly, closing my eyes, shutting out the world around me, sinking into the pit of despair, waiting for Magician to take the watch. Then I can lay here, waiting for the Monsters to find me, to finish off the world and claim it for themselves.

‘I’m so sorry.’

TO BE CONTINUED…

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)