Eridanus ~ A Collection Of Short Stories

Temporal Paradox

(Entry for New Year's Fiesta contest by WattpadTimeTravel
Word count – 1606 words)

I woke up in a cold sweat, meeting the gaze of my reflection in the mirror hanging on the wall.

"It's a one-time opportunity. Don't waste it."
The voice had been clear enough. The man in the mirror had handed me a sleek black tablet, maintaining an unwavering gaze as I accepted the item. I wasn't accustomed to having conversations with myself in the mirror, which was what led me to believe that it had been a dream.

But as my fingers brushed against a slim black object under my pillow, I came to realise that 'dream' did not quite sum up my vision.

"One day of the year... Any past incident you could undo or rectify. Where would you go, Carson?"

Where would I go indeed.

My fingers fumbled around with the thin tablet now in my hands. Swiping at the screen, I unlocked it. My fingers located the Calendar app before I could think and tapped on it. Now all I had to do was decide on a date to travel back to.

I looked up at the reflection staring back at me unblinkingly, judging my next move, my decision.

My hand scrolled over the month of December – 31st, 26th, 14th –
further and further down until exactly a month ago.
November 30th.

The day that marked the beginning of a series of terror attacks on the city, masterminded by a man called Liev Petrovsky. Petrovsky had been under the radar as a civilian for years before he turned to a life of crime one sudden day. Nobody knows what made him do it, but the destruction he had caused in just a month left people shocked and families broken.

Including mine.

My wife and son had been a part of the explosion on that November Day, when Petrovsky had allegedly detonated a bomb at a parking lot of a local mall, killing 27 people. That was what I would undo.

I turned over to my side and opened my bedside cabinet. The matte grey handgun that I hadn't used in ages slid into my hand, almost begging to be used. I turned my attention back to the tablet in my hand.

November 30th. It would never have happened.

Tapping on the date, I felt the world around me go silent as death, my mind getting sucked into a whirlpool of time.

*****

"Mom, d'you think dad will be back from work early today?"

"I don't know, darling. He's been pretty busy this week."

My mind registered voices from a distance as I opened my eyes to find myself lying on the cold floor, somewhere between two parked cars.  The smell of car tyres combined with the echoing sounds of shopping bags rustling and people talking led me to believe that I was at my destination.

The parking lot of Sven's Shopping Mall.

I got to my feet, my fingers gripping the gun for comfort as I scanned the parking lot. The voices of my family that I had heard a moment ago led me to their source, and a sense of warmth overcame me. The young boy of twelve was engaging the lady in what seemed to be an animated exchange, and I wanted nothing more than for these people to come home safely, unlike what had actually happened.

You're not going to die, guys. Not today, I muttered to myself, moving away from the cars parked behind me. Now all I had to do was find Liev Petrovsky and make sure he'd never be able to detonate his bomb. You see, it wasn't just my family I wanted to save today. All those innocent civilians who had been a victim in that parking lot explosion didn't have to lose their lives this time.