CHAPTER 14 - REACHING
Orlando, Florida, Tuesday, 4:51 pm.
"I might have an idea," Karl spoke breathlessly. Shocked at himself by the thought.
"Better be a good one that Quackity will listen to." Sapnap seemed almost uninterested in the conversation. Like he was focusing on everything else but himself and it made Karl's stomach twist.
But this zoned-out answer got him to his thoughts. He needed the panda's help for the procedure, what if he got lazy and couldn't complete it? Or if it seemed silly to him or Quackity?
"You're biting your nails again." Sapnap broke into his thoughts. His eyes were suddenly locked into Karl's, this time they weren't dazed off into space or looking through the wolf. This time it seemed like he was searching for worry in the depths of his eyes. The concern from the Panda put his thoughts at ease for now. But just like the ocean, he knew they would come in waves, waves of worry.
"What do I do?" Sapnap offered. Something that Karl loved about the panda was his brutal honesty and his straightforward personality. And from time to time, you need that type of friend by your side when you need something to lean on. Like having a break from the real world, and caving into theirs to relax.
"I've never done this before, but I need to get to sleep." He explained swiftly, pulling out the watch that contained his powers. Karl hoped he sounded more confident than he was because if he wasn't, Sapnap would be more than he would.
It looked like the panda was to say a protest if he was, he bit it back. Karl thought he might have commented on the short explanation. But realized they were losing time every second, and needed to hurry.
As Karl turned himself on the couch and back onto Sapnap's lap, the panda did nothing but adjust himself for the time traveler. The wolf felt eyes on him and then the watch he was fiddling with.
To Sapnap it must have looked like he was spinning the arrows of the built-in clock uselessly. Or franticly pushing the buttons on the side. But to Karl, every adjustment could mean crucial different paths.
When the wolf believed he had got it right, he handed it to the Delta he was lying on.
"I will close my eyes, you swing the watch back and forth above me from the chain." As soon as the clock was handed over, Karl rested his head on the other's lap. The time traveler could smell the scent of worry and alarm, but he knew what Sapnap was capable of.
Silently wishing he had more time to explain to the clueless Delta, though he knew time was not on their side. He sighed and closed his eyes to welcome in the darkness.
Once all he could see was an endless shadow, he sensed the clock above him. The small breeze, it could make on the time traveler's face. When he made sure it was swaying side to side, he began to imagine it.
The wolf focused on the small ticks of sound it would make as seconds flew by, just like how it would fly by his face. But suddenly it was a struggle to continue to picture it.
Soon enough he was thrown into darkness once more. And the only sense of it was the continuous clock ticking in the echoes of the darkness.
Instead of pure black, it turned into a muddy dark green. Trees uprooted themselves, their leaves were as grey as the air around them. A lake could be promised ahead of the wolf, but this whole forest seemed dull, with fog surrounding it all.
"George!" Karl called out, "Dream!" The first thing on his mind was his two pack mates. How could it not be?
As the time traveler walked that seemed endless, he began to wonder if he had turned the clock too far. Or pushed too many of the buttons. Subconsciously he brought his nails to his mouth, as a coping method.
Through the thick shadowing leaves, the wolf could make out the stars above him, glittering like nothing was wrong. Turning his focus back to the path ahead of him, at first he thought he was looking at a star. But as he drew closer, its bright white consumed his vision every step. Until he couldn't see the gloomy forest from the corners of his eyes.
Karl not once felt uneasy at the thought of a never-ending floor beneath him. After all, trippy things were now burned into his brain over time. Normalized so much until he brushed it off casually. Even if it were the most hypnotizing spiral to others.
As he kept walking, a structure ahead was barely visible in the blinding white around him. The scent of fear and worry was overwhelming with every step he took closer. When the time traveler squinted, he saw the familiar brunette hair he was missing.
The wolf broke into a sprint, filled with joy to see his friend once more. Ready to spill out his apologies and worried feelings. The wind blew in his face with a harsh push, like it was trying to hold him back. The clock ticking echo burned into his ears. Like it was a ticking time bomb.
However, it didn't stop him. As Karl was close enough to identify things easily, he realized it was a sort of laboratory. He suddenly slowed down, wrinkling his nose at the stench of the fearful scent coming off the Omega. But there was a commanding scent soon overpowering it.
George had his back to the time traveler, his spine was slacking like he was exhausted. But something was off, he was on edge, about something. And Karl was desperate to know why.
As he tried to face the Omega, he was blocked by an invisible barrier. Out of frustration, he banged on the wall hopelessly. The wolf had a sudden thought this blockage was made out of George's piled-up worry. Like he refused to believe anyone could save him now, and blocked anyone out who tried.
The time traveler shuffled himself to the side, pressed against the barrier. He barely held in a gasp when he saw Dream. The Alpha was growling face-to-face with another person Karl didn't recognize. He now understood why George was so heightened, two Alphas were scowling at one another.
"George!" Karl yowled, "Tell me where you are!" His palms opened up on the clear wall, dragging down. Creating an imprint made of sweat. Unexpectedly, the Omega turned to face the echo of his name. Though he didn't look at the wolf. He only glanced around confused about where his name was called.
The boy looked drained and exhausted, more than himself. His once precious dark locks were now scrambled uneasily, Karl couldn't even notice his ears beneath the mats. He appeared defeated or had given up pretty early on.
"I'm here George!" Crying out, the time traveler's shoulders drooped with disappointment. The brunette interlocked eyes with him, but it was one-sided. George was looking straight through the wolf like he couldn't see anything.
When the Omega turned his back once more the wolf knew he needed to figure out another way.
He drew a deep breath in, leaving his mouth ajar to drink in the scents. Most of what he could pick up were Alpha's bickering scents and fear. But underneath it, was something else. Like brambles in the wild, protecting something precious underneath its growth.
It was a scent of open moorland. Even though all he could see was a blinding white, he could picture the open land right in front of him. There was no density in the air, it was purely carried by the clear winds. No trees were blocking the breeze's path, it was open and free.
To Karl's dismay, before he could identify anything else, a familiar echo surrounded him. It grew louder till it throbbed in his ears. It was the ticking of his clock, he knew his time was almost up.
"Don't worry George, we are coming!" The time traveler yelled last second. Not sure if he could make it possible or not.
He had so much to say, but time wasn't on either of the two's side. Nor was the state the Omega was in. But then Karl was thrown into udder darkness just like how he started.
The wolf gave a frantic gasp of air when he woke on Sapnap's lap. His eyes piercing open, pupils adjusting to the change of lighting.
Karl jolted up to sit upright. "Are you okay?" Sapnap questioned, "Did you see anything?" The panda paused to let the time traveler catch his breath. As if he hadn't had any for years.
"I.. saw... George" Karl heaved between rapid breaths, that were gradually slowing down. The Delta's eyes widened like he couldn't believe the Omega was still alive. Though thankfully he kept his patience for Karl.
"He was in some sort of.. laboratory with Dream." The wolf left out the part where the two Alpha's snapped at one another. He could not quite believe it himself. Besides, it wasn't necessary to worry Sapnap, enough was going on for him.
"But I might know where he is." The two were face to face. Karl swallowed thickly. Despite the state the partners were in, they had to race against time to save their friends.