The Time Traveler (Malec Fanfic with TMI/TID crossover)

Part 2 - Chapter 10

*warning: unedited. proceed at your own risk*

Chapter 10

Have you ever felt like you were awake but unable to move? Heard sounds and voices but unable to open your eyes? Like you wanted to move your legs but all muscles were frozen stiff? Like you wanted to scream and call for help except that your voice wouldn’t work?

There’s a term for that: sleep paralysis.

Ever heard of that? Nope? Well, according to mundanes, sleep paralysis is a feeling of being conscious but being unable to move. It occurs when a person passes between stages of wakefulness and sleep.

But in my case, I don’t think this is called sleep paralysis.

In fact, I don’t even remember falling asleep.

I’m not even sleeping—unless sleeping with your eyes open is what you call sleeping with your brain running a hundred miles an hour.

It was like I was frozen in time—I couldn’t move or speak, all I could do was watch. Like a black and white film on slow motion, buildings gradually passed by. Some disappeared, like the Starbucks that was sitting around the corner and the cars that were idling along the road. Everything was so slow—it was like I was dreaming.

Then everything started to move rapidly.

People vanished, tall buildings disappeared, colors faded; all replaced by taverns, the construction of bridges, old-looking cottages—then faster; women in fancy getups wearing gowns and hats, carriages zooming down the street drawn by horses, drunkards filling an inn and smoking a pipe, a palace being ran by a stern-looking queen, people crowded in a square in swaddled clothes—

There was a loud and furious bong and everything erupted in white.

Gasping, my eyes jerked open.

Trying to catch my breath like my lungs would explode at any moment; I slumped on the ground, my head between my knees.

My head was whirring. What the hell happened? I couldn’t remember anything, except that I was with Magnus and—by the Angel, Magnus. Where on earth is he?  Once the pounding eased down, I took a glance at my surroundings and saw—nothing.

The café that we were in awhile ago was gone, as well as the busy streets filled with people. I was in the middle of an isolated area with a bunch of weeds and rocks and it was freezing.  

I stood up and rubbed my hands together, puffs of breath appearing in a tiny cloud that vaporizes instantly. The chilly air was rattling my lungs.

“Magnus?” I said uncertainly.

Nothing.

Where are the others? I thought silently. It was like I was teleported to a whole new world.

I glanced at the sky. The sun was nowhere in sight and the clouds were tinged with gray. An icy breeze rustled past. I shivered.

By the looks of it, I was guessing it was December. But that didn’t make any sense since last time I checked, it was July. Rubbing my arms to keep myself from freezing, I pulled out my phone.

Three bars of signal with ninety-percent charge.

I scrolled through my contacts and dialed Jace’s number.

It rang, then after a few seconds the line was cut off.

Now, the signal was reduced to one bar.