Chapter 2 - Revelation

Time Slip Precognition (Part 1)

***

Small pieces of paper fluttered about as the train pulled into the underground tunnel. The doors to the train opened with a swish, and Joshua entered inside with a quick step before swinging into one of the many empty seats. At the other end of the car sat a man in a brown jacket, non-descript except for the sunglasses he wore. Sunglasses at night, thought Joshua; wasn't that a bad song? Who did that in real life?

Four stops later, Joshua stepped off the train. As the doors closed behind him he turned to watch the train leave, and thought he glimpsed the man standing on the other platform through the windows of the moving, but as soon the last car passed, there was no one there. He chalked it up to something like his occasional bouts of deja vu.

The rain seemed to have subsided while he'd been underground. Between the subway station and his home lay a park that he expected to be deserted except for puddles. Tonight however, a girl in a grey sweater and jeans sat in the swing set, swaying slowly back and forth. What struck Joshua was the faintly blue tinge of the girl's hair. She seemed to ignore him as he walked past. Oddly, despite the earlier drizzle, she seemed completely dry.

It was late evening again, and Joshua was walking through familiar streets, thinking to himself as he did so...

At first they were just dreams that seemed too real. Then, the dreams had started to invade reality. He'd pretend to space out, but it was tough to hide it... seeing things... that hadn't happened yet. Though he knew, that sounds like it would be a blessing. But really, it wasn't. It was a curse to know something could happen. But not know really, if it would, or what to do about it. Other than that, he believed he was normal. Well, that's what he kept telling himself anyway...

The house itself was a dull brick building with a poorly kept lawn and garden. The driveway was empty as always. He made his way up the path and fumbled for his keys. After going inside he flipped on a light. The house was empty, as usual, but full of memories. He wandered into the kitchen to see if there were any leftovers. A hastily scribbled note on the kitchen table caught his eye. From Mom, it informed him that there was pizza in the fridge, and that she had to work late again. Joshua wondered if the hospital was any busier than usual, or if Mom was just being her workaholic self.

He looked up at the wall, at a family portrait of woman, a boy, and a man... Dad. Joshua hadn't seen his father in a while, ever since he'd been forced to move across the country to attain his promotion at Megalith Corporation. He wondered if he'd call tonight, and he'd have to explain again why Mom wasn't around.

Upstairs Joshua unpacked his knapsack and flicked on his computer. While waiting for it to boot, he flopped onto the bed and closed his eyes for a moment. The sound of rain drops on the window pane came from across the room. He wondered if that girl was still sitting on the swing set.

It happened suddenly. The stars outside his window shifted, their light turning a menacing red, and he found himself staring at them from a standing position across the street from the school. The world around him was thick with a heavy grey mist that swirled about like a viscous solution. Across the street, a girl in a red jacket and green skirt, blond hair falling to her shoulders, was walking across the street. High above, on the nearest, disturbingly grey concrete building, a silhouette pointed something long and menacing at the girl and suddenly a flash and a loud, horrible sound, and she fell to the ground, something a darker, sinister red pouring from a hole in her jacket.

"Mary!" he shouted.

***