Chapter 11 The Celestial Clock


It was no use. I tried everything, but my friends would not wake up. I had no choice but to wait. I sat down next to Cole. I was so tired; I'll just take a nap until they wake up.

"This is no time to be sleeping, Kai," a flat voice said.

I cracked open my eyes. My vision was blurry with sleep, but I could make out pale hair and a white kimono.

"Zane…" I said. "How long have I been asleep?"

"Approximately one hour and five minutes," he replied.

I smiled. Zane was so exact. "Are the others up?" I asked.

"Yep," said a voice on my left. I turned to see Cole grinning at me.

"The only one who's not up is you," Jay said.

I chuckled. After all of my hard work, it turns out my friends only needed time. I reached for the teapots.

"Here, drink this," I handed it over to them as I spoke. "It'll take us to the room."

"Are you sure?" Jay asked.

"Positive."

Cole took the pot from Jay and started chugging it.

"Don't drink it all," I warned. "We need each pot to last two people."

Cole didn't respond, but he stopped drinking. He wiped his mouth and belched. Really loud. I blinked. Then he was gone.

Literally, Cole vanished to who knows where. That tea must have been really powerful.

Jay backed up away from the teapot. "I'm not drinking that!"

I picked it up where Cole had left it. "Then I guess I'm next."

Jay watched in horror as I gulped down the tea. It tasted funny, like country air mixed with the sea. I swallowed the last drop and exhaled. I felt light and airy. Jay and Zane watched me intently. I blinked and their faces disappeared.

At first, I thought had fallen asleep. I was in the dark room from my nightmares with the golden clock in front of me. The hand was a minute away from the skull. I backed up.

"Ouch! Watch where you're going, Kai," Cole complained.

I turned around. I had walked right into him. "Sorry, Cole."

Zane suddenly appeared next to us, followed by Jay.

"Where are we?" Jay asked.

"The room of the Celestial Clock," Zane answered.

"So how do we destroy this thing?" Cole asked.

I looked around the room. I was kind of hoping an idea would come to me on the way over here. All of my efforts in my dreams had failed.

"Smash it?" I answered uncertainly.

"With what?" Jay asked.

Cole walked up the clock. "With my fists!" He started punching the golden clock. "Ahhh!" He yelled.

The three of watched in shock as Cole bloodied up his fists without damaging the clock at all.

"Earth powers!" He shouted. "Hi-yah!" He punched the clock again. A sound like a gong resounded through the room. The golden clock shuddered, but remained standing. However, I did notice there was a dent in it. Cole panted.

Laughter emanated from the clock. "You think such a weak earth blast can stop me?" It said.

Cole balled his fists and prepared to try again.

"Your performance was always subpar. Your father always thought so, didn't he, Cole?"

His fists suddenly opened. I cast Cole a sympathetic glance. I knew that this was a sore spot for him. Cole didn't reply.

"If you couldn't even sing and dance, how do you expect to take down me, the Overlord?" he mocked.

Jay gasped. "The Overlord?"

It laughed again. The sound made me want to hide in a hole and never come out.

"That's right, Jay. I am the Overlord and nothing will stop my release."

Jay took a nervous step back. "You know my name?"

"I know many things, Jay Walker, including how terrified you are right now."

"That's ridiculous." But even as he said it, Jay took another step back. My heart burned for my friend. First Cole, and now Jay. The Overlord was tearing us apart.

The Overlord wasn't done yet. He kept going. "I know you never wanted to come on this mission in the first place, that you would rather curl up and hide, because you and I know the truth."

I balled my fists. He was getting really annoying. I looked back at Jay. The Overlord's words were having a visible affect on him. He was shaking from head to toe.

"The truth that you are a weak coward," The Overlord continued, "who can't do anything right."

Jay looked down in shame. He believed every word. That's it. I'm not going to stand by while my friend gets bullied.

"Leave him alone!" I shouted at the clock.

It chuckled at me. "Kai Umas, the little boy who thinks he can protect his friends."

I closed my eyes. I had to calm down. Don't let him get to you, I thought. My hands began to grow warmer, but theOverlord wasn't done with me yet.

"And yet, his friends bear the scars of his failure."

I stopped.

"How many koi fish bit you, Cole, before Kai 'saved' you?" The Overlord asked.

I opened my eyes and looked at Cole. The scabs stood out painfully on his skin. Cole didn't answer, but I remembered the swarms of koi that covered his whole body and how I had nearly let him die. I should have stepped out on the ice the instant I saw Cole go down. Instead, I let fear keep me back.

"That's right, Kai. No matter how hard you may try, you can never protect your friends."

Zane stepped forward. "Cole may have been bitten, but if it were not for Kai, he would have drowned."

I looked at him surprise. I guess that was true…

"Why would you stand up for a boy like that, Zane?" The Overlord almost sounded sincere. I watched the golden clock nervously. What did he have in store now?

"Because I stand by my friends," Zane said defiantly.

That's right. We stand together. My hands warmed up again. I remembered Jay and the scarf and started rubbing my palms together. I was going to crush that clock.

"Your friends?" The Overlord repeated. "Is that what you call people who think you're odd?"

Zane blinked and frowned. I could tell he was struggling. I longed to tell him it wasn't true, but I had thought that he was odd on occasion. He was a strange person who missed on a lot of social cues. I could think of several awkward lunches because of Zane. But that didn't mean he wasn't our friend.

"Your so called friends take advantage of you. Deep down you feel it, don't you? You feel that you don't really belong. You will always be an outsider."

Zane looked down. I felt guilty. When we first met, I did use Zane as homework help. I hung out with him whenever I needed to get an essay done. But that's not what I thought now. Shadows loomed closer. I glanced at the minute hand. The Overlord was wasting time.

My sadness turned to anger. I couldn't let him do this to us. This dark wizard was not going to escape.

"Zane is our friend!" I shouted at the clock. "And we are going to defeat you. Together!"

I threw whatever flames I had made at the clock. It encompassed the whole face in an orange inferno. It wouldn't be enough. There were several other appendages to go. I summoned every ounce of strength I had and covered the entire clock in flames.

Jay gasped. Even Cole and Zane looked surprised.

"You unlocked your true potential," Jay said in awe.

I smiled. I guess I did. The flames were starting to die down now. I could see the gleam of gold beneath the fire. I sagged. It can't be. The clock was still there. The gold melted in a few places, but the second hand was still ticking. I had failed.

"You fool! You cannot stop me!" The Overlord shouted.

Zane examined the clock. I watched his eyes narrow in concentration, then widen suddenly.

"What is it?" I asked.

Zane lifted his hand, just like at the koi pond. "If we all concentrate our elemental powers, we can stop him."

"But Kai and I have tried and it hasn't worked," Cole objected.

"Yes, your elemental powers can do nothing to stop me," The Overlord interjected.

There was something suspicious in his tone…I couldn't put my finger on it… "Let's just do it."

The four of us nodded. I took a deep breath. The first volley of flames had taken a lot out of me. I understand why Zane had collapsed earlier, but I had to do this, not just for the wizarding world, but also for my friends.

I drew upon every last bit of energy I had and shouted, "Fire!"

I started shooting a continuous stream of flames at the clock. Cole pounded his fists together.

"Earth!" He yelled. I couldn't tell what he was doing, but it looked like he was sending sonic waves, or maybe it was just dust, into the clock.

A moan came from the clock. "Fools!" He cried. It was working.

Jay had finished rubbing his hands up against his scarf. I think there was more energy now than when he powered up the jet.

"Lightning!"

The Overlord screamed. His rage shook the room. I nearly crashed into the floor, but managed to regain my footing. My flames were going out. I panted, recovered my strength, and started again.

Zane joined in. "Ice."

His shards joined the fray. My fire melted the ice, only for it to be refrozen again by the stream of frost, creating more destruction. Cole broke down the metal, allowing the lightning to destroy the inner mechanisms of the clock. The gold began to pool on the floor and freeze into horrible, twisted shapes.

"NOOO! I will not be defeated!" The Overlord shouted. The floor rumbled. I refused to give up. Instead, I poured even more of my strength into my flames. The quakes began to grow more violent. Jay was on the floor, but he gritted his teeth and kept sparking. Cracks began to form in ceiling, just like in my dream. I could barely make out the clock hands, but I could tell they were slowing down.

"We're almost there!" I shouted to the others.

They nodded. My heart was pounding. I was running out of energy. Jay's head hit the floor hard. The lightning fizzed out, before dying all together. Cole and Zane's power was also dwindling. I wasn't doing much better, but we had to keep going.

"It can't be! I'm the Overlord! I can't be defeated by a bunch of kids!"

I smiled through the pain. We were winning! The clock was getting distorted, and the time was coming to a halt. Its nervous reaction was all the proof I needed. My chest tightened. Sustaining the fire was becoming agony. I felt like joining Jay on the ground, but I had to hang on for a little longer.

Zane crumpled the floor. It was amazing he had lasted this long considering he had just recovered from last time. Now it was just up to Cole and me. Cole was breathing heavily; I didn't know how much longer he could carry on.

The room shook again. Cole fell to his knees. His wave subsided. The edges of my vision were growing dark. My strength was fading too. Cole wasn't getting up, but he continued to shoot dust at the clock.

"IMPOSSIBLE!" The Overlord yelled.

The clock was turning into a dusty, goopy mess. The inner wires sparked, and then died. The face of the clock cracked. My vision went black, but I heard the tinkle of glass. I forced my eyes open. I had to know if the clock was truly destroyed. Cole had face planted on the floor next to a golden puddle on the ground. The clock was unrecognizable.

I smiled. My flames died, and I let myself sink to the floor.

"We did it, guys," I whispered; even though none of them were awake to hear me. I had no idea how to get back to the main part of the school. Maybe break through the ceiling? My tired brain wasn't making much sense now. I guess we would have to cross that bridge later. Right now, I just needed to get some sleep.

I closed my eyes. This time for sure, I was going to beat the Overlord once and for all in my nightmares. I dreamed of darkness and shadows, but I also dreamed of friends and victory.


AN: Epilogue to come-stay tuned-please review!