TimeKeeper part 3

The third and fourth chapter in a book I named Timekeeper where a boy finds himself pulled into a world that’s not his own, where much is expected of him. Friends turn to enemies as the boy is dragged deeper into the long dead world of Tithus discovering secrets that should have been left secret, medalling with powers that could lead to their own fall, just as the Timekeepers before them. Enjoy as the mystery unfolds..."

Chapter 3-Home sweet home
The building grew more stable as they hurried deeper slowing to a walk as they came close to their destination.
They entered a hall three stories high and just as wide, a whole taking out one of the walls extending through several floors at an angle until it opened out into the night sky, where the ship that know stood imbedded into the opposite wall know lay. It had crashed many years ago taking up the other half of the room. Its four large thrusters where missing scattered across the room .What was left of the ship was its body, a massive oval lump carefully patched up and well maintained.
The three companions approached it wounded and tired.
Charles knocked on what appeared to be the door, the other two resting against the side.
A small shutter opened and two beady blue eyes stared out at them.
“Show me your eyes,” the woman said harshly
Charles opened up his eyes showing her, she nodded satisfied. “Next,”
Charlotte did the same, the woman eyeing the gash on the side of her face.
Last came Ferric. Again she nodded. “Clean,”
“We have another,” Ferric added before she walked off showing her the boy raped in his coat, her eyes widened then checked his blue eyes as Ferric priced them open,
“Clean,” she disappeared from view, closing the shutter.
The door opened with a hiss, warm light flooding out. They traipsed in, the door closing behind. The ship had been transformed into a home and an open kitchen sat neatly in the corner. The cupboards crafted from scrap metal and polished wood, a door behind it leading to the food supply. In front of the door they entered through lockers extended from one side of the room to half way, where the rest of the wall opened up into a small room in which sat the table, leaving just enough room for an assortment of chairs to gather comfortably round. The chairs ranged from a battered red arm chair, too a small homemade wooden stool. To the left of the front door another door lead off to the rest of the makeshift house.
Ferric walked over to the patched up sofa that separated the kitchen from the rest of the room and gently laid the boy down replacing his coat with a blanket while Charlotte and Charles put their gear way in their lockers.
The woman, who let them in, glared at Charlotte, “Where did you find him?” she said harshly.
“He appeared,” Charlotte replied, closing her locker with a bang, Ferric came back over with a damp cloth and first aid kit and began cleaning up Charlottes face.
“Appeared?” she raised an eyebrow making her face more wrinkled then it already was.
“Timekeeper,” she winced as ferric cleaned the gauge on the side of her face.
“But he’s only a boy!” her face softening
“I was only a child when I appeared and I was a lot younger than him,” she took off her coat as Ferric began cleaning and dressing the wounds on her shoulder. On her elbow to her wrist seven zero’s where tattooed.
The woman glazed at the tattoo, “does he have the mark?”
“Look for yourself,”
Lauren walked over to where the boy lay and removed his left arm from under the blanket, Sure enough a seven digit clock was tattooed on the inside of his arm, from his elbow to his wrist, two for the seconds, two for the minuets and three for the hour. It was glowing green and counting upwards. The boy stirred, cracking open an eye.
“What’s your name,” Lauren asked lightly with a smile.
“Samuel,” he mumbled
“Go back to sleep Samuel you’re in safe hands,” he closed his eyes and drifted back to sleep.
“Did he say anything?” Charlotte said walking over all patched up.
“Only his name, Samuel,” she looked up, “How’s your ribs?”
“Fixed!” she replied joining Lauren on the sofa opposite Samuel “it’s taking longer and getting harder to do that”
“Join us humans; it only lasted five years after I died to get back to a regular human life for me,”
“Yeah but you’d come back half dead still thinking you were a Timekeeper
“Those where the day’s,” They laughed and joined the two boys at the table for their dinner of dried fruit and stale bread.
“You guys haven’t brought me back any solid food in weeks!” complained Lauren.
“You want to go out there!” Charles laughed through a mouth full of fruit, “It’s getting worse, something aint right”
“We’re seeing less people and more Wraiths out there and not to mention the Shadows, the Dreamers are sending more and more of thoughts thinks down by the night!” Ferric added
“Dark days, dark days,” Charlotte sighed, looking at the boy sleeping peacefully on the sofa.


“Somebody call an abilence!” the teacher shouted as he checked Samuels vital signs. He wasn’t breathing and he couldn’t find a pulse. “hang in their boy,” he wispered as he started CPR. His friends stood around shocked at what had happened, moments ago he was sitting their looking a bit down but was it really that bad, could he be…dead?
The Abilence arrived with in minets, the CPR seem to have had no effect. The crew quickly rushed him into the abilence and began charging the defibrillator.
“What happened?” a member of the crew asked
“We don’t know, he was complaining of a bite mark this morning and he seemed quite sick throughout the day, he just collapsed, in front of use…” Elizabeth said holding back tears.
“He’ll be ok,” the man replied, rushing back to the Abilene, taking off for the hospital, sirens screaming.

Chapter 4-awake
Samuels’s first thoughts when he woke were it was warm and the pain had gone and that’s all that mattered. Then he realised he was naked. He opened his eyes with a flash; he was in a badly light room lying on a musty old sofa with a patchwork blanket covering him. As his eyes adjusted to the light he noticed a heavily built black man sitting on the opposite sofa, yellow cat like eye’s studying him.
Picking up a mug off the small table that separated them Ferric offered Samuel the mug. “Drink,” he said in his thick ascent.
Samuel sat up and accepted it.
“Drink,”
It looked like hot water, he took a sip. Spluttering he spat it back out tongue burning. It warmed his body making him suddenly very alert.
Ferric laughed all seriocity leaving his face and stood up patting Samuel on the back on his way past to the kitchen, “You’ll be fine! Better get used to it,”
Know that he was awake he sat back wondering how he got here, where even was here? The last thing he remember was lots of pain, school then…nothing, is this dream? He was adjusted the blankets to check that he was still covered when he saw a flash of green light; it was coming from his arm! He gasped and tried rubbing off the florescent numbers, 006:49:52 and counting up. What have they done to me he thought! Before he could investigate further charlotte entered and sat across from Samuel.
“You ok?” she asked smiling
“Where am I?”
“You’re in a ship that had crashed into a building which we’ve made are home, you're on the planet Tithus,”
“You’re joking!” he almost laughed waiting for her to tell him the truth or burst out laughed…but she didn’t. Instead she just sat their smiling as if she knew he wouldn’t believe her.
“Give it an hour and I’ll show you,” she replied as she checked her watch.
“Why an hour, why not now…?”
“Because its night and nobody goes out in the dark,” and with that she got up and left.
As if on cue Ferric appeared and put some cloths in front of him. “These may fit you, follow me,” and without further ado he walked off leaving Samuel to stumble around raping the blanket around and picking up the buddle then hastily following Ferric. They passed the lockers and through a tight corridor, pipes covering both the sides and celling, the metal grid clanking under foot as they passed sets of parallel ladders each labelled with a name. Samuel counted four when they reached one labelled Ferric and on the opposite wall freshly labelled, “Samuel.”
“This is your room,”
“I have a room?”
“Since you’ll be staying you do know,” he began walking back the way he came leaving Samuel outside his new room, “meet me in the kitchen when you’ve settled in.”
Descending down the ladder Samuel stepped into a small bedroom, the bunk was imbedded into the metal wall above an assortment of shelves and a desk, the rest of the room consisted of a wardrobe and a welcoming fire burning happily in the corner. He swiftly changed into the hand-me-downs: a pair of working boots, some jean like trousers and a scruffy brown shirt, rolling down the sleeves to cover the numbers on his arm. He could still see the glow through the shirt but it would do for now. Wasting no time he made his way back to the kitchen, entering the room to find Ferric and Charlotte sipping mugs of the strange water.
“How do you know my name?”
“Pardon,” Charlotte responded looking over.
“My name, how did you know it, it was on the plaque above my…room?”
“You told use before you past out again,” she replied through sips from her mug
“Again?” he looked worried “how did I even get here and why was I not wearing anything… who even are you!”
“Wow wow, slow down, I know it’s a lot to take in but one question at a time,” Ferric interrupted, “for a start let me introduce myself, I’m Ferric, this is Charlotte,” she nodded. “Next question,”
“What are you?” looking at Ferric inhuman yellow eyes.
“Ah…well that’s complicated, Charlotte’s basically human and from where you come from and umm… I’m umm…let’s just say alien for now,”
A gurgling sound came from Charlotte as she chocked on her drink, bursting out in laughter. “Alien, ha! He’s a Dreamer, a strain of human but he’s an outcaste, ending him up here with the rest of use and you’re just like me,”
“Wait what! You’re no human and how are we alike?” he replied confused
“Well you’re not exactly human either!” he shot back before Charlotte could reply and it was his turn to laugh as Samuels face got more and more confused by the minute
“What…is this even real, is this some kind of a joke!”
“You still not believe use, all in good time, believe me this is very much real,” Ferric replied quite seriously.
“So how am I not human? I feel human,”
“Really?” Charlotte smiled “look at your wrist,”
“How do you even…”
Charlotte rolled up her sleeve exposing her arm; she had the same markings as Samuel but hers where all on zero and deep black.
Samuel in reply rolled up his sleeve, lively green markings continually counting upwards. “Why is it counting upwards, what does it even mean?” he sounded worried
Charlotte checked her watch, “It’s morning…come with me,”