Ryder POV
God, why. You first don't give me an ability, you then take away any chance I had for a social life, then you take away my parents, now... now you take away my world. God, all I have to say is.... 'fuck you'.
I think this as I am currently bleeding out and dying after a void being stabbed me, but I guess even void monsters don't want 'unabled' not surprised after all.... we are treated like bottom feeders and trash. I try to pull myself up to no avail, my vision is failing and my body is starting to feel really cold. Realizing my imminent doom I start to cry and just shout.
Ryder: "FUCK. WHY ME? WHY ME OF ALL PEOPLE? WHAT THE HELL DID I EVER DO TO DESERVE THIS? I SWEAR LIKE FUCKING 'CLOCKWORK' I KEEP GETTING FUCKED OVER, WHY CAN'T IT JUST 'STOP', I JUST WANT TO 'REWIND' AND LIVE A GOOD LIFE."
While I am yelling I start to feel something. Something I didn't fully understand, but somehow also did? I look up and see that as if time itself has stopped, and a large bright yellow clock hovering over me, and I can tell, this... this was my ability, then a voice within my head spoke.
???: "Ability released after saying the proper set of words. Ability: Clockwork / Chronology. You have chosen 'Rewind' at what point would you like to 'rewind'? "
The voice seemed calm almost robotic. I chuckle at this and think to myself.
With this maybe, I can change this! Fuck you god, fuck you Aurelion Sol, and most importantly fuck the void. Alright, if my power is 'Chronology' and I can rewind like the voice said, then this should work.
I raise my hand to the clock and yell at the top of my lungs.
Ryder: "REWIND, REWIND TO THE TIME WHEN MY ABILITY SHOULD HAVE BEEN UNLOCKED! THAT FATEFUL FUCKING DAY. JUNE 23RD, YEAR 2153!"
With that I notice the clock starts to tick.... backwards. I feel time itself moving in reverse and I start to fade out. With that everything goes black.
???: "Ry get up champ or you won't make it to the assembly."
That voice is one I have forgotten due to the time it has been since I've actually heard it. That voice was my father's, he died a long time ago, so that means.... IT WORKED! IT FUCKING WORKED!
I snap my eyes open and sit up quickly and look at my father. His patchy beard, his grey hairs, and kinda fit frame. I start to tear up at this, one of two people who actually ever cared about me even after I was labeled as 'unabled'. The other unsurprisingly is my mother, but regardless, I shoot out of bed and hug him which seems to startle him.
Dad: "Ry you ok?"
Ryder: "Yeah sorry, I'll be ready in 10."
Dad pats my head and smiles. He starts to walk away.
Dad: "Alright champ, I'll be in the car.
I smile and start to get ready, today is the day, but first let's test something. For most people you don't unlock your ability until your birthday and today was mine, I turned 10, the gateway to joining Kavler Academy, the main school where you learn all your fundamental skills and such. Ironically though, the assembly day, where students abilities get ranked, and labeled, was on my birthday, June 23rd. I raise my hand and speak.
Ryder: "Clockwork"
I am shocked to see that same clock appear in front of me.
Ryder: "ALRIGHT! I'M NOT UNABLED! Oh crap, I don't know if I can even use this though.... does this power even have any combat abilities?"
I clap myself in the face.
Ryder: "No time, I'll figure it out when I need to, for now, I need to get to the assembly."
I quickly get ready and snag a poptart from the pantry and make my way to my dad's Volkswagen Passat.
Man how nostalgic.
-Timeskip-
We made it to the assembly hall and I can tell my dad is nervous. I mean before now, I know for a fact I showed no mana sensitivity and no signs of my ability manifesting, though granted I should have, with two 'abled' parents. We enter and take our seats and immediately a person stood out, Ahri Tengho, a child celebrity that stands above all us 'common folk'. She is definitely someone who I need to avoid. Everyone takes their seat and waits for the Headmistress of Kavler, Fiora, to speak, she clears her throat and speaks.
Fiora: "Thank you all for coming today, we are here to register your child's ability and place them in their respective class, now Mr. Braum could you bring out the device."
My eyes go wide, a large machine is brought out, that damn machine took my social life, my whole future away from me. I take deep breaths as I watch other kids go up and get their scores taken, unsuprisingly Ahri Tengho takes the top spot with 'Kitsune' with a score of '7.4/10'. She seems unsuprised and struts her way off, a kid by the name of Vladimir Kurov, takes second though with a 7.23, which makes me smile since the dude will drop out in about a month cause Ahri embarrasses time. I was only at Kavler for a short time while I was 'unabled', but I also am very aware of everything that happened since they never shut down my account, so I know the second place student drops out and in four years, Ahri is about to go through a nightmare, of course, right now thought I want nothing to do with her, she's way out of my league and so on and so forth. I continue to sit through the assembly and last is me, ironic, I make my way up the stage and start to get nervous, what if... what if this is a cruel joke by god and I am about to just go through hell again. I shake my head as Mr. Braum taps my back.
Braum: "I understand you are nervous lad, but you need to scan, you're the last one."
I nod and place my hand on the device.
Device: "Scanning........ Scanning........ Scan Complete."
What is said next I think shocks everyone, because I could hear a gasp echo from the ENTIRE auditorium.
Device: "Name: Ryder Klien. Ability: Chronology. Score: 9.4 / 10. Type: Multi-range combat type."
Fiora: "This is unprecedented not once has a student ever been initally scored above an 8! Mr. Klien, you will be in class 1-1. Let us congratulate our newest Rank 1."
This caused an uproar of an applause, but I could also feel daggers being stared into me if I had to guess it was Ahri, she probably wasn't too happy some nobody took her precious pedestal, not that I want it. I walk down with eyes staring at me and see my dad absolutely beaming.
Dad: "THATS MY BOY! YOU SCORED HIGHER THAN ANYONE IN THE WORLD MY BOY! I'M SO PROUD OF YOU!"
This made me smile, I didn't care about my rank or my score, I just wanted my dad to be happy, he and mom went through so much to protect me, now it is my turn.
Ryder: "I just had some amazing parents."
I take my seat and let Headmistress Fiora finish her speech and we are all led to a large room with drink and snacks and such. I remember last time I didn't go because I was so upset about being 'unabled' and I didn't want to be bullied. I quickly take some snacks and a Dr. Pepper and sit down at a table in the corner, soon to be joined by my dad.
Dad: "Don't you want to socialize? Meet your new schoolmates?"
Ryder: "I don't kn-"
Before I can even answer my dad, I see two people take a seat at the table I am sitting at, those two people were Ahri Tengho and her mother.
Dad: "Oh hello! I'm Clark Klien, I am Ryder's father."
Ahri's Mom?: "Oh hello Mr. Klien, I am Seo-Jun Tengho, Ahri's mother."
Dad: "Ah I know who you are you both are famous! I am honored that you would speak with us."
This makes me sigh internally and shake my head, my dad is really nice and sometimes it upsets me because people will walk right over him, but not this time, the moment it happens I am shutting that shit down, famous or not, I don't like bullies.
Seo-Jun: "Oh no need for that, we are both parents here to send out wonderful children off to Kavler Academny. Ryder was it? Consider me shocked to hear a child was able to score a 9.4 and Chronology was it? So you can control time?"
This seemed to shock Ahri, I mean I am not surprised, most children probably don't even know what that word even means. I mean when I was 10 I definitely didn't.
Ryder: "Uh yeah, I have to activate it first by saying 'Clockwork'"
On command, and to everyone in the room's shock that clock shows up but this time behind me. I gesture to it.
Ryder: "In a more actual sense this 'clock' lets me control time."
I realized I am just spitting these words out, I don't even know if it is even true, I am just assuming off of how I used it last time, I mean first, time-control based abilities are rare, like rarer than a four headed puppy, second to have this form of understanding means I started understanding my mana at a young age, third and most importantly, this ability is a multi-range combat type with an initial score of 9.4 which means it has serious combat capabilities past just make time go backwards and forwards, and I STILL DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FUCK THIS DOES. This though seems to shock everyone at the table.
Dad: "Ry when did you figure all of this out?"
Seo-Jun: "Indeed now I am quite intrigued young man."
Ahri seems to just be now really invested on who I am.
Shit shit shit! THINK! THINK OF SOME KIND OF EXCUSE! ANYTHING! WAIT JUST 'STOP'!
The moment I thought 'stop' I saw the entire world go still and no one was speaking, no more noise, nothing. I realize.
Ryder: "Holy shit I stopped time."
I get up and realize, I can interact with everything, but no one else is moving. I start to poke things, like cups and the table clothes and realize that they kind of unfreeze when I touch them, but immediately go back to freezing when I stop making contact. I also realized that it has to be skin contact and it doesn't transitively go through my clothes and shoes which is a relief. I guess that also answers the how am I breathing question, I am unfreezing the oxygen atoms around me, but I guess that also means I can't just stay in one spot or I will suffocate. I take this time to sit and think, but also realize, wait how vast is my mana, if I haven't passed out yet..... This has got to take a ton of energy, well since I don't just have a mana scanner up my ass I will have to wait until classes next week. I get back to thinking and find my 'answer'.
New problem, how do I unstop this? Uhhhhhh, 'start'? No? 'Release'?
With that time returns and I saw everything I poked move with time, since it wasn't anything major it didn't affect much. I look at my dad and Ms. Tengho and they are awaiting my answer, I can also see Ahri staring at me with much interest.
Ryder: "About last year, I started to feel mana, and I then started experimenting. Right now, all I can really do is stop time, and rewind time."
I worry that saying those thing will cause my power to activate, but I notice it didn't.
New note, maybe it does it based on my want to active, I mean I wanted it to stop so it stopped, but now I am just trying to explain, oh wait, or maybe it is because the clock is gone.
I just realize that the clock isn't behind me anymore, so that adds to things I got to test and mess with.
Dad: "That would answer it, we didn't go have you take another test after a year and a half ago.
Seo-Jun: "That is very impressive young man, only a year of training and you can still use your ability to a minor degree and understand it relatively well? That is quite the feat.
Finally after saying LITERALLY NOTHING THE ENTIRE CONVERSATION, Ahri speaks.
Ahri: "That's cool I guess."
Now that almost and I mean almost, made me fire a comeback, but I decided to hold my tongue, my dad is here, and he isn't the fighting type. Last thing I want is to cause issues for my dad, and sure I could just rewind it after I say it, but I don't know if there is some kind of a cooldown and such, still too much unknown about my ability.
Ryder: "Yeah, you're ability is pretty cool too."
This seemed to catch her off guard and started to scowl at me. Of course my dad and her mother were just watching us with great enjoyment.
Ahri: "My ability isn't just 'pretty cool' it is the best, and you may have scored higher than me, but I am still significantly better than you, so watch it."
Ryder: "Yeesh, I am just trying to be nice, why do you need to be so mean to me, listen we are gonna be in the same class, we should at least TRY to get along."
Ahri huffs and turns away from me with crossed arms.
Ahri: "Whatever, just know I am better than you."
Ryder: "Yeah yeah, let's get along friend."
I stick my hand out for a shake and Ahri begrudgingly shakes it and I smile.
I guess even though I intended to avoid her, fate said otherwise, and who knows maybe she will be a great ally in the future, connections are important and hell while I am at it, I'll help her avoid 'that', she maybe be a bit stuck up, but all in all no person should have gone through something like that.
My dad and I smile at each other as I have made my first friend here, which makes Ahri sigh at me.
-End-
A/N: So this is the first chapter, and I will have Shadow of a Doubt out relatively soon, when? I have 0 clue, I am also working on Chapter 3 of [The Idols Wind] I am trying have at least this story and [The Idols Wind] be at chapter 3 before my finals, but also that might just be a fools errand. Any critiques are welcome. Welp, Weebiest out!