Instants Instance Wattys2016

Chapter 6

In the odd pause of the moment, Alex noted the slightly bemused look on Max's face. Presumably, he hadn't been expecting his opponent to appear in front of his gun.

Alex quickly copied the message he had been sent, and sent it five minutes into the past.

"Don't move a single muscle," ordered Max.

Alex's eyes flickered down to the ground, noting that his own nonlethal pistol was just by his feet. Grinning, he bent swiftly to retrieve it. Max pulled the trigger, but nothing happened. Before he could react, Alex had picked up his own pistol and fired, hitting him with a Shocker bullet. Max collapsed, limbs twitching, unable to scream as his jaw muscles locked.

"I'm sorry, truly I am, but I can't let you stop the explosion." Alex reached out to handcuff Max, but he wriggled out of his grip, and dived for the bag with the bomb. Alex managed to grab his ankle, and suddenly with a blue flash they had left Kiev.

The dark tunnel that Alex was used to travelling along seemed to be going on for longer this time, and he was beginning to wonder whether something had gone wrong, when suddenly, they were out of the tunnel, falling through the air towards a vast expanse of water. Alex braced for impact.

The water slapped him hard, but he managed to hang onto Max, who seemed to have been slightly stunned by the impact. They surfaced, both coughing up seawater. The water was quite warm, and the air was humid. On the horizon, illuminated by the rising sun, was a rocky, palm-covered coastline. The birds flying past the coastline looked strange, somehow jagged...

And then he realised that they weren't birds at all.

Large pterosaurs with swept-back bony crests were soaring above the waves, snatching fish from the water and fighting among themselves for the scraps dropped by others. Amazed, Alex checked his Head-Up display. The time read 5/10/-66098046 04: 47.

Max apparently had regained his senses. "Where am I?" he mumbled, and then seemed to finally notice the pterosaurs. He spluttered and almost sank under the waves again.

"I was about to ask you the same thing," replied Alex.

Max paused for a second. "Where's the bomb?" His eyes widened. "Oh-"

He was already activating his Warper when Alex grabbed his shoulder. They left just in time to see the ocean beneath them rise up; an incandescent flash visible coupled an almighty roar. The blue flash was replaced by the tunnel immediately. Again, the tunnel went on for what seemed to be far too long. They emerged, in mid-air again, but this time above solid ground, next to an ornate white tower covered in arches. Falling alongside them towards the grass below were two iron spheres, one small, one large, though the smaller of the two spheres was slightly lower.

Max was awake this time, but had taken it into his head that now would be the best time to attack Alex. Holding Alex by the straps of his Warper, he landed a solid blow on Alex's face, causing blood and spit to fly from his mouth. But Alex grabbed the larger ball and shoved it hard at Max's stomach, knocking the wind out of him. But the ground was drawing closer, and it was time to leave. Alex activated his Warper, trying to set it for home, but what with the wind rushing past him and the struggles of Max, his hands slipped, and he was suddenly back in the tunnel, still gripping Max's shoulder.

The tunnel lasted for only a short time, when they landed in a crowded office, sending papers flying everywhere. A man with flowing dark hair to his shoulders leapt out of his chair, exclaiming in German. One of the papers caught a candle, creating a flying square of flame, which quickly spread to the rest of the room, creating a blazing inferno of paper. The man rushed from the room, screaming incomprehensibly.

Max shook free from Alex, throwing him over his shoulder. Twisting in the air, Alex just managed to avoid crashing into a flaming pile of papers. Scrambling to his feet, Alex blocked a kick, and then swept Max's feet from beneath him. He landed on Max's prone body with one knee extended, sending all the air right out of him, but grunting as he realised that he'd used his damaged knee. Weighing him down, he was about to use his Warper when Max bucked his entire body, throwing Alex off. Laying a kick into Alex's already-bruised ribs, he began to use his own Warper, but Alex managed to kick his wrist from the floor, sending his instructions off-course. Grabbing onto Max's ankle, the pair of them were back in the tunnel.

As they emerged, Alex could tell that something was wrong. They were underground, surrounded by cold, damp concrete. Alex looked around to see a pair of guards in khaki military uniform staring at them in stunned silence. The both had red armbands with a white circle and some sort of black symbol in the circle. Then he realised who they were. Nazis. Oh-

Alex didn't have time to fully voice the thought, as the guards recovered themselves, bringing up their guns and calling for reinforcements in harsh German. Max and Alex rolled in opposite directions, managing to somehow dodge the first few shots. Then they both struck, Alex rolling again and taking the left-hand guard's feet from under him, and Max grabbing the right-hand guard's gun arm and twisting it into a painful lock, subduing him.

Then they heard the sound of marching feet. Apparently, the calls for reinforcements hadn't fallen upon deaf ears. Alex sneaked up behind Max, still holding the struggling German, and cracked his elbow across the back of his head. Max slumped to the ground, and Alex activated his Warper, setting it randomly, anywhere and any when away from here. The squad of Nazis rounded the corner, the leader taking in the chaos with dismay, but also what looked more like irritation than anything else. As the pair of them disappeared, Alex caught a brief snatch of German.

"Wieder? Das ist der fünfte in dieser Woche!"

Then they were gone, and the tunnel stretched before them. They emerged in a clean, white room, filled with chrome and white machinery. Alex sighed. Home. But then he noticed that something was off. The floor was a shade paler than it should be, the machines were different, and, when Alex looked closer, he realised that it wasn't actually the same place after all.

A door hissed open, and four men in uniform, all with Shockers and Warpers, rushed in, surrounding Alex and the prone form of Max.
"Put your hands on your head," instructed one of them, his face grim. "You're under arrest for illicit time travel and wilful interference with the timeline."