Introduction of Hosen 3: Is This Really a Saved Life?

He knew the rules of time traveling very well. He knew, and yet, what was a child doing right beside him?

As a time traveler, he oughtn't to interact with the past too much, especially one this close to their original timeline. Hosen was in big trouble…

Not only because he broke the rules on his first expedition, but also because the commotion concerning the boy's father brought attention to the nearby invaders.(1)* And now, the strange agglomeration of tentacles approached the corner the two hid behind.

Slimy, black things slithered around the area like they owned it.

Hosen was never a man of action. He was just an observer behind the closed curtains of history, unveiling only to his (outsider's) eyes. Under such circumstances, rather than fighting these monsters, it was better to pretend he was never there.

With their backs glued to the wall, the kid clung close to Hosen's coat, his small fingers grasping the material with all the strength he had. Looking at his determined frown, fear striking the boy's tan countenance, the self-proclaimed scientist already regretted his abrupt decision.

If it wasn't enough to be brought into the beginning of the world's end, he now was demoted to a babysitter.

"Stay back."

Uttered in a stern whisper when the child tried to peek around the corner, Hosen kept him in place with a palm on his shoulder.

At any moment, he could have tossed the boy aside or used him as a distraction to carve a path for his escape. A calculated approach—the most rational solution for Hosen. 

Yet, instead of acting on logic alone, he tightened his grip on the kid's shoulder and gently pushed him away from the edge of the wall, shielding him behind his own back. He wouldn't let the little one recklessly give away their position.

As much as he relied on reason, he stood firmly by his own morality.

With each meter the monster approached, their breaths became more ragged too.

Frost culminated at the outlines of the pavement and edges of the buildings. The white, prickly feeling spread across Hosen's cheek once the air froze around them, keeping them caged in. Their hinged, slow breaths turned visible with the cold the creature brought, along with the rising tension.

Hosen halted. In the deaf silence, he, along with the child beside him, held their breaths not to be noticed.

Closer and closer it came…

The scientist shifted his gaze to the boy—or rather, at the shoulder he strongly held in place. A spark of concern emerged from deep within him as he observed the spot intently, as if expecting something unsettling to unfold.

It was a chase of time. The longer he touched the kid, the more uncomfortable he became, until finally what he was afraid of began to manifest.

The colors on the boy's shirt fled from beneath his fingertips, and the hues of what was once colorful melted into shades of grays, gradually spreading over his body. If he held this little guy within his touch for longer, the damage would turn irreversible.

A horrific shrill echoed right beside them.

Screech!

And then another.

They heard the entity pass by the wall they hid behind—their bird sounds were just as creepy when he heard them for the first time.

Time was running out.

A bead of sweat rolled down Hosen's back when he saw a lone tentacle slide across the ground.

One second too long, and then a second more.

Generally speaking, he didn't believe in God (in a Biblical sense), but, with the big trouble they were in, Hosen silently prayed for this moment to pass.

"..."

They had been holding their breaths for so long that they were on the verge of suffocation.

"...!"

Until finally, the monster's ethereal sounds seemed to fade in the distance.

"Gah—!"

Exhaling loudly, the scientist immediately let go of the boy. The color that faded at where he touched started to return, slowly.

The child followed suit, taking a big gasp of air into his lungs.

"Gah… That was close." He commented, looking up at the man who just saved his life, twice. "What should we do now, mister?"

Hosen didn't know how to answer.

Theoretically, this child wasn't supposed to be here at all. However, what was done was done, and he couldn't revert it.

A sigh of defeat slipped through his lips.

Either way, they wouldn't be able to proceed further without getting to know each other.

"What's your name, kid?"

So there went the ice-breaker.

"...Billy."

He seemed cooperative enough. An unruly brat in such a scenario would bring much more trouble than he had calculated. Besides, the boy was already aware of the danger they both were in. He was visibly scared, but he knew better than to show it.

Smart kid.

"And how should I call you, mister?" Billy asked back curiously.

Telling him his real name wouldn't matter since they shouldn't have met at all. Knowing the name of a man from the future wouldn't result in anything good, either.

Since it was his first time-dive, he needed to stay extra careful to avoid any more mess-ups.

"You can call me whatever you want."

He was ready to leave this area—sticking around here would bring attention to additional number of monsters lurking ahead. Better to go somewhere secluded than rot here.

And, looking at the boy's trembling figure, he wouldn't want to stay in this spot for too long either. Especially not with his father turned into a monster roaming nearby, and, after seeing the boy's bruises when his baggy shirt slipped off his shoulder. Not from the monsters, no—these haven't touched even a hair on his head.

Such a sad detail to notice; Hosen thought to himself.

This boy, even though he loved his father's good side, was abused when he got angry. Except for the visible lack of a frontal tooth, the blue hidden marks and the burned cigarette scars under his long sleeves served as proof. He had been mistreated for years.

To be able to withstand it so long…

Hosen began to feel for this small guy, even if it was just a little.

What a strong kid he is, indeed.

"Then… I'll call you Whitey."

However, that absurd nickname made the scientist stutter in his steps.

"T-the what now?"

He expected something ridiculous but not that ridiculous. Just because he wore a white coat didn't mean he needed a nickname for a dog. Well, Billy's pupils looked at him expectantly, so he couldn't just reject it...

A child's innocent mind like such was always difficult to comprehend.

"Whatever," They had more important issues to deal with than staying fixated on the insignificant ones. "We need to get out of here first."

Any other discussions could wait for later.

Out of the monsters' sight, Hosen jumped from shadow to shadow, carefully watching whether the horrors hid behind the ruins or were gone. Billy followed suit, careful not to get too far from the scientist.

Whenever they noticed a horrific creature in the corner of their eyes, they stayed quiet, in hiding, until it disappeared just like before.

The two advanced stealthily between the abandoned buildings, soundlessly sneaking behind cracked pillars and ruined doors. Along the way, they saw numerous shattered windows and crushed, dusty bricks spread across their path; a result of an explosion or tipping of a skyscraper.

Based on Hosen's deductions, it seemed to be the most likely cause.

It wasn't hard to notice that the atmosphere in their surroundings had changed.

From bustling streets where people fell over another just to get away, screaming in chaos and crying in pain, the streets were filled with an eerie silence instead.

A sense of emptiness overtook. The environment felt devoid of life, abandoned, ghastly; hardly the city everyone was so proud of.

The once lively Manhattan turned into a ghost town in a matter of hours.

(1)*From: "The Invaders" by Henry Kuttner, 1939