A Cursed Gift: by Nick Venom (freenovel24 txt) 📕

Rachel entered the ‘Dead Zone’ hidden in the Merchants Section, one of the four sections of the small stone city of ‘Iron Wall’. Iron Wall was positioned between two stretches of deserts and is the only town around for miles. The four sections are the Merchants, Nobles, Residential, and Community sections. The Merchants Section was filled with stores---ranging from grocery stores to armories---along the main entrance of the city. The second section, the Nobles Section, contains the influential people---royals, mayors, nobles, and celebrities---of the city and their large mansions. The third section, the Residentials Section, contains the majority of the population---the common people living in apartments with terrible conditions. The last area, the Community Section, had the public service buildings; schools, libraries, hospitals, the town center, and more within its boundaries.

The Dead Zone area lacked the conditions that the Nobles Section had, venturing deeper into a slum-like situation. The area acted as the black market of the Merchants Section, danger hiding at every corner. The Dead Zone allowed illegal items to be sold without any monitoring by officers, hidden within the black smoke of blind eyes. A woman, with purple hair that she styled into a ponytail that reached her stomach, walked into the alleyway that connected the several streets of the Dead Zone. Her blue eyes reflected off the sliver of sunlight that glared over the tops of the surrounding buildings’ roofs. She scanned the alleyway, detecting the sign that read: ‘The Gift’ over a small store. She walked into the store and noticed a man, with dark green hair that he styled upwards, black eyes, and tan skin, who lazed around on the front desk. His feet rested on his desk while his eyes rested on the headboard of the chair. “Excuse me… are you Alpha?” She asked.

The guy opened his eyes, looking up at Rachel. “What ‘ya want?” He asked with a harsh tone, glaring at her.

She ignored his tone. “I heard that you could help me with my problem,”

“I don’t deal with pregnancies,” Alpha remarked.

Rachel shook her head before pointing up at the ceiling with two fingers. Alpha’s demeanor changed as he took his feet off the desk and sat up. “What is it?”

“I need to go back in time!” She declared.

“So does everybody else. You ain’t special.” He retorted.

“It deals with the government.”

Alpha’s expression changed, squinting his eyes at Rachel. “The government,” he whispered as he stroked his beard.

Rachel walked closer to Alpha, her breathing becoming erratic. “My parents were killed by them, ten years ago. It happened during the ‘Stone Massacre’.” She told him.

“The Stone Massacre, huh?” He repeated. “Come back tomorrow and we’ll discuss it.” He told her, turning around in his chair to face the opposite wall. Rachel nodded before, quietly, leaving the store. Once outside, her legs collapsed, dropping to her knees. Nobody considered her request, rejecting and throwing her out. She was overjoyed for him to even consider the request of time traveling, an illegal action that could get both of them executed if discovered.

“My thirst for revenge can be fulfilled soon. This corrupted government will soon fall.” Rachel muttered while on the ground.

TBC…

Alpha prepared his time-traveling device known as an ‘Ark Teleporter’; a device that was created and used, primarily, by ‘Time Officers’ to teleport into the past. Ark Teleportes then became scarce after an officer negatively affected the past, which forced the government to crack down on all Time Officers. This led to the imprisonment of several officers who were falsely charged and jailed for life or sentenced to death.

Alpha’s past as a Time Officer disappeared after his wife’s existence was erased by Father Time correcting his mistakes. The government intended on executing Alpha for his crimes, but decided against it after learning of the state he landed himself in; stuck in never-ending depression. Fortunately, Alpha held onto the teleporter, hiding it out of depression, but, soon, retrieved it from its hiding place in the backroom. Alpha inspected the teleporter, blowing the dust off the microphone-shaped device. The head of the microphone allowed the user to speak into the device, in which Alpha did, shooting  three beams of solid colored lights that revealed an instructional panel. The panel displayed options for the user to customize with one of the options indicating how far the user wanted to travel back. Another option asked for the number of people time traveling while another asked for the mission details and the necessity of disguises.

Rachel entered the store and noticed the backroom’s door open. She walked towards the backroom and watched as Alpha clutched the Ark Teleporter in one of his palms, slightly shaking. “Are you ready?” She asked, snapping him into reality.

Alpha nodded his head before customizing the options. “We’re going back to before the Stone Massacre?” Alpha asked her. Rachel nodded her head. Alpha entered the necessary information and pressed the large red button with the words ‘time travel’ imprinted on it. The teleporter then started up, emitting a picture of the date: 6:23:21 in bold print alongside a notice that read: “Restricted”. Alpha reached out and touched the notice, expanding its details.

“Time traveling has been restricted by President Winter’s declaration. Anybody attempting to time travel will be considered an outlaw by the new act, ‘Time Restriction & Imprisonment Act of 2038’, that the president signed this year.” A robotic voice declared, being emitted from the speakers of the Ark Teleporter.

“Winter,” Rachel muttered. Alpha nodded his head slightly. President Winter’s reign began in 2020, ruling as a dictator more so than a president. His first term ended in 2024 with the destruction of Congress and the Declaration of Independence, enforcing his actions by enlisting an army and using fear tactics to rule with an iron fist. Since then, he enacted several acts, with full control of the country, that discriminated and led to hundreds of deaths. The ‘2022 Act of Violent Affairs with Government Officials’ allowed the government to execute anybody for, slightly, threatening, any government officer. Unfortunately, this act was supported by several more, including the ‘Demi-Human Slave Act of 2032’ that allows any demi-humans to be enslaved on the spot. This terror and full control increased his confidence as he brought ruin and chaos to the country. The lives of many, including Rachel’s family, were discarded without a second thought. However, Rachel would never forget about her family’s death, muttering to Alpha: “What now? We can’t give up!”

Alpha began stuffing his possessions into a large black bag. “Now we leave. They could be monitoring me, waiting for the perfect chance to hand me an execution. Let’s leave before they do.”

“They?”

“The ‘Time Task Force’.”

“What’s the Time Task Force?” Rachel asked.

“They’re in charge of tracking down time criminals. Anybody---Time Officer or not---can be executed for, merely, touching a teleporter!” Alpha explained. He looked around the store before facing Rachel. “That means we need to leave right now!” Rachel nodded before following Alpha out of the store and the alleyway. The Gift sign loomed in the distance as they departed,  two people in black cloaks watching over them as they left their eyesight.

TBC…

Alpha and Rachel sprinted away from Alpha’s store, attempting to flee any pursuers. Now that Alpha rekindled the teleporter, the Time Task Force will pursue him to the ends of the Earth. 

Alpha led Rachel towards a safe house that he had prepared for years. Due to his depressed state, he never intended on getting close to the building. However, times had changed. 

The two of them stood in front of a warehouse. The warehouse was in a poor condition; mauled by the recent weather conditions. Graffiti found itself painted on the parts of the warehouse that were in one piece. The other parts were too disfigured to look at. 

Alpha took the initiative, walking up to the carbon-black door. The door, unlike everything surrounding it, was new -  handcrafted and repainted over and over again. Alpha noticed the metallic look that the door had, smiling to himself.

He rattled his knuckles on the door, waiting for a response. Somebody inside the warehouse could be heard, tip-toeing on top of a layer of empty chip bags and water bottles. The person took their time to reach the door, peering through a makeshift peephole---which was crude and allowed for people to peer in and out of the warehouse; not created as attended. 

“Who is it?” A man’s voice shouted from the other side of the door. “I don’t know-”

“You recognize me?” Alpha asked while pointing at his face. 

“Alpha… you’re back!” The man shouted before yanking the door open and revealing himself. A thirty-year-old man with matted black hair and dim jade eyes. His clothes were torn and dirtied. A potato chip was embedded into his jeans. His shoes also had dirt and wear; torn at the tongue. The man had a skeleton for a body, his physique breaking down after years of harsh living conditions. He ate little, slept little, and moved little. Instead, he focused on a computer screen for ninety-nine percent of his time, becoming an excellent hacker at the expense of his health. 

Alpha took in the new sight of the man. He had changed more than Alpha could’ve ever imagined. He was a new person in his eyes. 

“Brother, you’re back. Where is-”

Alpha shook his head, stopping the man from speaking his wife’s name. The man was too absorbed by the computer screens that common news like Alpha’s wife’s death hadn’t penetrated his ears. 

“Dead. Taken by Father Time for our sins,” Alpha told him. 

“Dead?” The man questioned. He staggered backward, gulping hard at the news. “But I saw her not too long ago. She couldn’t be dead.” Alpha nodded, confirming the worst for him. “How long have I been here.”

“A few years maybe. Whatever that doesn’t matter anymore. What does matter is that we need you to hack the teleporter.” He started, handing the Ark Teleporter to the man. “We’re going against Winter and we need your help to do so. Sav, please help me”

The man nodded, saluting Alpha. “Give me ten minutes and I’ll crack it.” He then turned around and went to his desk, plopping the Ark Teleporter on it. He began the first stage of cracking the teleporter’s security. 

Meanwhile, Alpha and Rachel entered the pig infestation of