The Grand Reset (Book 2 Withering Away The Clock)

Departure

"I haven't told you everything about 11." One more desperate attempt at winning me back. I know why he decided to say this for a while now I was telling them my main focus was figuring out how the twelve work but that was only on the surface behind the scene. Rachel was my number 1 goal. Still I'm willing to hear what he has to say. I looked at him waiting for an answer then he smirked and said "If you want the whole story you're going to have to stay with us." Of course I could easily lie about this. Saying I'm going to stay and leave whenever I get the details but I don't think he's that dumb. If I were him, he would give me only a little detail at a time to keep me as long as possible and I don't care enough about 11 to do that.

I turned around and said "I don't need to know about 11. What I need to know is the whole picture and you're clearly not going to give it to me '' I don't care about 11 anymore I never did, they said it themselves. If you and Rachel were together it would be a huge threat. Those might not have been his exact words but that is what it means to me. If I found her we would be unstoppable. I walk past 12 and ask "If you thought of anything I still ok with playing questions with you." He looked at me and said "I don't have any questions that face your making is enough to tell me everything I need to know." I guess I didn't realize it but I still have the dumbest smile on my face. Ah whatever that didn't matter 11 didn't matter this place doesn't matter. I went to the hour glass and said "Ascend to day break."

The clock below took me back to the surface and now that I'm here the situation finally hit me. I just talked to 12 directly and he could inform 1 at any point in time. I have to run fast. So I sprinted directionless. I had no clue where I was going, no clue what to do. I just knew I wanted to be as far away from the glass as possible. I hopped on a bus that took me to who knows where and started thinking of what to do now.

Damn it I really dug my own grave. 1 could attack me at any moment. I'm completely alone and directionless. I smack myself, this is no time for self pity you dug this hole but we can dig ourselves out. While I was trying to think of a plan I heard whispers all around me. "That's him isn't it?" "I can't believe he's just here on our bus." "There is no way. Why is the time traveler here?" The time traveler. I got out of my own head and looked around. Everyone was staring at me, in fact the bus hadn't even moved yet. How do they know about me?

I can find that out later right now I need to get out of here as fast as possible. I opened the bus window and jumped out and made a break for it. I ran into an open forest and hoped no one saw me. Damn it damn it damn it. What am I supposed to do now I'm stuck. I told myself to take a deep breath and keep moving.

I ran and ran for what felt like hours until my body physically couldn't take it anymore. I stopped and rested. Was this really a good idea for all I know my hunch could be completely wrong and there is no point in this. Maybe I should turn back. No way it's way too late to turn back now I committed to this path I just have to keep searching.

I looked up to the sky and the sun was going down and I checked my internal clock at 8:20 pm. I got an idea . I would wait here till midnight then enter the city. There would likely be a lot less people and I can walk around with some sense of comfort. I just have to sit here and wait.

Hour after hour went by of me just staring at my internal clock until the time had hit 12:00am. I got up and exited my hiding spot and entered the city looking around to make sure no one spotted me. During those hours I came up with a plan to go back to my old house. Sense it's 12, anyone there would probably be asleep and if no one was there it would be a half decent place to stay for the time being.

I went over to my place and checked if anyone was inside making sure to not make any noise as I traveled to my old apartment. Luckily for me no one was here at the moment. This could work, I don't really like the idea of staying in one place for too long but I hate the idea of constantly running even more. The hard part starts now. I can't fall asleep. I decided after seeing how empty the city was that it would be best if I kept doing what I was doing, staying up till midnight and traveling then.

I decided to put myself in Racheal shoes. If I just escaped from the place under the glass where would I go? MY first guess would be the real world. Unless I'm extremely unlucky and she decides to go to the real world the day I was in the forest we would have seen each other at one point or another. So it's way more likely she'll be here. My second option would be here. This is one of the only safe spaces. The problem is people know who we are now. When she noticed that she might have decided to leave any place with a decent population. That's a good idea. Why didn't I think of that? Regardless I don't think she would run off aimlessly. Who knows where a dessert place would be here.

There is a chance she knows something I don't, a place Young Rachel might have said to here that wasn't mentioned. Damn that really means she could be anywhere that didn't help at all. Calm down, I can figure this out. I have been here longer than her. I might have heard of something. A place with no population or a place no one would be. A place with no population, empty, deserted, nothing, The White Void. I remember Young Rachel was talking about levels. Maybe Rachel figured out how to move between them that would explain why 1 wasn't there and how I didn't see her.

Still that idea is way too much of a stretch she could have easily just run off to some place I don't know about. Plus I don't want to go back there. So where does that put me now? I have an idea of where she could be but the idea is unlikely and if she isn't there she might as well be in some far off dessert. This was a bad idea wasn't it I'm screwed what was I thinking. I'm stuck here by myself in constant fear of something whether that be one or some random coming out to get me. I have no one, nothing. What was I going to do now?