AN: Hi there, just to let you know, I'm not a native speaker and this story has not yet been seen by a beta-reader. However, I do use a spell checker so grammar and spelling should be ok. I hope you'll enjoy reading Time Fracture. Please, do not hesitate to leave a review or PM me if you prefer (thankfully, I can receive PM alerts from FFN again!). I'm trying to get the pace a bit quicker than my previous stories so I'd be interested to know what your thoughts are.

For the fifth time, Adler opened his eyes to the familiar control room of Scarecrow's crashed ship.

Blue and purple arcs of electricity were popping above him and he shielded his face with his arm. Well aware of the sense of panic around him, he saw scientists and guards scurrying to cover behind equipment, crates and tables while LED light projectors exploded and computers crashed to the ground.

Silent darkness briefly swallowed the alien cockpit as the indoor electrical storm stopped. Groans, then calls for help reverberated, and suddenly, dozens of flashlight beams dispelled the shadows, blinding him as he tried to stand up.

A hand grabbed his shoulder. "Lie still, son."

Like always, Ben pushed Dr. Weigel away, causing the old man to fall over. No matter how many times he'd done this, Ben still couldn't keep himself from reacting the same way.

"Sorry, doc."

Dizzy and nauseous, Ben sat on his heels while guards, armed with electrical rods a hundred times more powerful than the ones used for sharks, rushed toward him and Scarecrow.

"Move away, Commander!"

Clenching his jaw, Ben staggered to his feet, stepping in front of the damaged robot who, a minute before (or sixteen years ago, time was relative after all) managed to free himself from his shackles, causing some kind of cosmic shunt... A space-time loop that forced him to relive the same four years of his life over and over. But this time, it would be different. This time, he knew how to break the infernal cycle.

During the last evolution, he'd learnt a critical piece of information. Saving John and his family from being killed in the initial attack on the Resolute had caused a major twist in the chain of events. One where his old friend's son had connected with the robot who had attacked them, proving that these deadly machines could be reasoned with. Thanks to this boy, there was still hope for them. The kid was the key. He was certain of this.

"Everybody out! That's an order!"

The guards looked at each other for a few seconds, hesitant to leave him alone with the killer but they finally complied, dragging the scientists and medics with them. Those being taken away, kept staring at him like he was a madman. Perhaps they were right. His head was swimming and pounding, adrenaline the only thing that kept him on his feet right now. But he had one opportunity to start over with Scarecrow and it was now. What happened in the next two minutes could change all of their lives.

A familiar scratching noise came from behind him.

Scarecrow was awake again.

Ben turned slowly and kneeled next to the robot, staring at the few blue lights appearing in its dark, pearl-like head.

"Hello again, old friend. Let's do things differently this time, what do you think?"

A few pixels turned red.

Adler clenched all his muscles not to cringe and keep a relaxed, non aggressive stance. Will Robinson had helped the other robot. A child's thinking had turned a killer into a dove. He could do that too, right?

"I'm not here to hurt you, mate. I don't want to hurt you."

Scarecrow's pixels remained red. The machine still didn't seem to understand. Or was it like him with Dr. Weigel? A first reflex, rooted in instinct and triggered by the shock of the temporal displacement? Could Scarecrow feel dizzy too?

"I want to be friends with you," Ben stretched his open hands in a gesture of peace when he heard a slight squeaking two meters behind him and the humming noise of an EMP loading.

"No!" Ben screamed as Scarecrow's head turned a bright red and Hastings fired.

Ben gasped. It was like a balloon had just inflated in his skull, sinuses, ears and lungs... then popped. Breathing through a straw, he lay down on his back next to the unconscious Scarecrow while his boss stood above him.

"What the hell do you think you're doing? That thing could have killed you."

Restraining himself from blowing a fuse at Hastings, Adler pressed his hands into his eyes. "I don't know… I don't feel so good…"

As Hastings urged the medics to come back, the ground shaking once more under guard's boots, Ben let himself drift toward the darkness, thinking: here we go again.