3. Portal

TYRE

He shot me an impaling look and then picked up his pace making him seem more suspicious, he fast-walked into a cul-de-sac and I unintelligently followed suit. He could no longer move from there as he stood still, backing me.

"Hey! What's your fucking deal? " I hollered, yet he refused to look at me let alone give me his attention.

He heaved a rather heavy sigh and crossed his arms behind his back. "I see you seek the truth. "

I moved closer towards him. "May I ask what truth you're talking about? "

"I know you have questions about why you can't just stop reliving this day. "

My eyes flickered frantically. "Oh my—you know? "

"Brace yourself for what I am about to say next. " He looked up for a second then turned towards me. "My name is Mann; THE GOD OF TIME... and, time is not on our side, Tyre. "

The traffic going on in my head was enough to make it explode. My silver briefcase shook staggeringly and I held it with a firmer grip.

"I don't under– " I fell on my knees crouching. "How did you know my name? "

He heaved a frustrating sigh and crossed his arms in front of him.

"As expected... Humans–such confused species, " he muttered almost under his breath and shook his head. "Clearly, you did not hear my vague introduction. I am Mann, God of time and I am one head of the great PRIMORDIALS. "

My mind still raced like a battlefield, his second introduction was no different from the first, but one thing I noticed was his sincerity. If he was 'one head', how many heads are there then?

"What's a primordial? " I asked.

"The substantial body of Gods that controls and oversees the universe. Unfortunately, these very Gods became shortsighted to the truth, and now, the natural flow of time has been sabotaged, in other words; the universe as you know it is in danger"

I scoffed. "This is a lot to take in. "

Mann put down his veil revealing a broad face and thick long hair. "I am tied to this body as long as I don't recover the utmost control I had over time. "

The rays from the sun blasted my naked eyes as I looked up at his face. "What do you mean by; you had? If you no longer have control over time, then what the hell is still keeping the world spinning? "

"In just a matter of time, Tyre, The world will stop spinning. We can prevent that by taking immediate actions, " he said.

"How does that have anything to do with me? "

Roofing sheets began to shiver, the blue sky turned purple and lighting shook the ground. I staggered to my feet, looking at all the abnormalities occurring around me. He then released a holographic structure of the earth from his hands, degrading into bits of stones.

"This is what awaits your world. "

As if I hadn't enough on my table already, now, I was being shown the earth in ruins, the thought of Ann living in that very earth sent a shiver down my spine and I was broken.

"No, no," I said in utmost dismay.

"I could stop this so it never has to happen, with your help, Tyre. "

"I still don't understand how my help could affect eight billion people. "

He took a few steps towards me. "Trust me, " he said stretching forth his hand.

Shaking his hands would mean a sealed agreement for us and I wasn't really ready to play hero, at least not when I was still struggling with my marriage.

"I'm not ready for this, I'm not a hero. "

"You don't have to be. I don't need heroes, " he said.

"What? "

Mann backed me again with his arms tied at his back.

"You don't belong here anyway. "

"What do you mean? " I uttered in sheer confusion.

Christy always had this saying which she learned probably from church, that 'we didn't belong here', but something about Mann's tone seemed different. I felt it deep in my gut he was talking about something else.

"I had already registered an oral command call. You must activate it to leave this time loop. "

I glared at him skeptically. "When I leave this time loop, do I ever get to be with my girls? "

He snorted and I could tell his answer was 'no'. It was a sacrifice I needed to pay on my part if I wanted Ann to grow up in this world.

Glaring with some kind of pity, he walked around me. Each time he circled me, I looked over my shoulders to catch a glimpse of him. If he was the God of time like he said, then why did he look so mortal and so helpless?

"You could eventually see them, Tyre. "

My eyelids sprung wide open. "Are you sure? "

"Only when I have recovered the complete control I had over time, " he said rather annoyingly.

I wasn't doing this for him. Christy and Ann were all I could think about, and I was certainly going to risk my life for them anytime.

"The oral command? " I uttered nearly under my breath with my head bowed to the ground. I could smell his excitement from where I stood, though, not that I imagined at all Gods could get excited. I was tempted to live at least one more loop with the girls, but I knew that's when it'll hurt the most, leaving right now was the best option, also, I still stood a chance of being with them, that's if I help 'Doctor strange' here with his little mission.

"Say it, Tyre. You already know it. "

I shrunk my eyes in bewilderment. "Know what? PORTAL? "

Shit! 'portal' was the fucking word, saying it without even realizing it was what freaked me the most. I felt really weird as my body began to diffuse into a transient spectrum of lights. I threw a glance at where Mann stood, but he was already gone.