Against the Clock
Summary: Cedric learns that a dark curse has been placed on his past self, which is causing him to weaken and disappear in the current day. In a race against the clock, he and Sofia travel to the past to see who has been tampering with past events and stop the culprit before Cedric disappears for good. *Carried over from Villain Symposium*
Disclaimer: I only own a few of the characters in here, including the villain. The character of Mahoney is in honor of one of my favorite actors who recently passed away: John Mahoney.
A/N: Final chapter! 😉 Did any of you figure out who the culprit is yet? I'm sure some of you already knew or had some clue before this story even began… I mean… Yep! :D We'll see. Either way, hope you enjoy the conclusion! AND it's going up on my birthday? Yep, great way to celebrate! Lol! (References to "Silhouettes" and "Umbra Inferno")
Chapter List:
1: Less than Sensational
2: Covert Chaos
3: Pastimes Aplenty
4: A Race Against Time
*Story*
Chapter 4: A Race Against Time
"What are you talking about?" Sofia asked with a frown. "What wouldn't I like?"
He looked around, realizing this was probably a safer place to talk than the grounds of Hexley Hall at the moment. Spying a gazebo in the near distance, he took her hand and led her over to it before having them both sit down. He sighed before glancing toward her. "I knew a Sylas when I was in school…about this age, as a matter of fact."
Sofia's eyes narrowed. She didn't like the direction this story was going.
"One afternoon, Sylas disappeared after school. Everyone was worried and began searching for him. I wasn't necessarily in the search party, so I went for a walk behind the school. Soon enough, I came across some strange man dressed in dark clothing." He shut his eyes tightly as he continued the next part, "He… He was standing over Sylas, who seemed to be really weak at that moment. I wanted to help him, Sofia, but the man warned me that if I said a word to any of the professors, I'd be next."
The princess's mouth dropped as Cedric opened his eyes.
"…I never told anyone…until now." He lowered his head. "I felt overwhelming guilt the next week and finally managed to somehow mentally block the entire thing from my mind by busying myself constantly. Soon enough, I forgot all about Sylas." He scowled. "That's cruel. Cruel to take on a name of an innocent child who likely lost his life because I was too much of a coward to say anything…"
"Cedric, you did what you thought you had to do. You were a kid." She draped one arm over his shoulders and hugged him. "No one could possibly blame you for blocking that out. No one should experience something terrible like that."
"I suppose…" He winced as he felt a strange wave rush through his body. "Oh, no."
"What is it?" she asked, having felt the tremor beneath her arms. "Is it more of the pain?" She placed her hands in her lap.
"No, I think my youth potion is starting to wear off…" He glanced down at his hands. "I haven't much time left…maybe an hour."
"Then we'll just have to work fast." Sofia unrolled the scroll and set it on the table before them. "Let's solve this riddle."
They poured over the riddle for a while, discussing the terms of hearing, listening, seeing, and such. Surely, those words must mean something.
"Usually with riddles, it's not always obvious," Cedric surmised.
Sofia groaned and twirled a lock of her hair as she continued trying to decipher what was written. "Why do villains always do this? Why do they have to have some stupid riddle or show-stopping number? It's getting old."
The boy smiled at her frustrated sigh and shook his head. "Your guess is as good as mine. Maybe they want you to pay closer attention."
The girl's eyes widened as she observed the individual words…and then the independent letters. Something was…different. "Say that again?"
Cedric frowned. "Pay…closer attention?"
Sofia released her hair and picked up the parchment, gaping at the words before her. "Oh, my gosh…" She slammed the scroll back onto the table, causing Cedric to jump. She then pushed it over to his line of sight. "Do you have something to write with?"
"Um…" He withdrew his wand and conjured a quill, which she took. "What is it?"
"Something a little too obvious after staring at this dumb thing for such a long time." She began circling letters. "When I read it, I noticed some of the letters looked a little off…like most of it was in slanted writing, but some of the letters weren't. By the time I looked again, I started really noticing them." She finished circling and gaped at the result. "Cedric…"
He leaned over and took a good look at Sofia's work.
Who am I?
Only time will tell.
Open your ears and listen well.
You think you'll solve a mystery true?
Stop dreaming and scheming; your days are through.
I hope you've listened; I hope you can see.
For only the message here will lead you to ME.
X
SYLVESTER
Cedric glared at the name Sofia wrote on the scroll before standing up. "Sylvester…"
"Wasn't that the name mentioned in that book we saw?" Sofia asked. "He had an evil twin, but he's the only one still alive… And he had a grandson—"
"Simon the Silent," Cedric finished for her. "This has to be Sylvester the Steadfast."
"Ding-ding-ding!" a jeering voice called as the redhaired boy appeared before the friends. "They got it correct, ladies and gentlemen!" He slowly began clapping, smirking at the irritated looks the friends shared. "Isn't that cute? A matching set of glares. My, you really must be best friends."
"We had a deal, Sylvester," Cedric growled, fisting his hands by his sides. "You said if we could solve your stupid riddle, you'd free me from this curse you obviously placed on me."
"Oh, about that." He grinned. "I lied." He dodged out of the way as Cedric wielded his wand and yelled a command, nearly hitting him. "Temper, temper, little royal sorcerer! Wouldn't want that power to ricochet and hit the princess, would we?" He smirked and held out one hand, countering the magic aimed his way and sending it hurling toward Sofia instead.
"Sofia, look out!"
The princess, thinking fast, dived under the table and slid through to the other side just as half of the gazebo was blasted to smithereens.
"Excellent form, Your Highness," Sylvester mocked with a chortle. "Rather nimble for a royal." He used his wand and melted away his façade, revealing himself as his usual dark-cloaked self with his striking white hair yet same red eyes. "Perhaps I underestimated you."
"Obviously," Cedric snarked.
"Not you." He pointed his wand toward Sofia. "I think we all know who the real challenge between you two is. If it weren't for the princess, you wouldn't even be here right now."
"Enough!" Sofia demanded. "Sylvester, you should honor your word and heal Mr. Cedric. He didn't do anything to deserve this."
"Oh, you think so, do you?" He smirked. "Silly princess, always trying to find the 'good' in everyone. Fine, I'll reverse the curse. If for no other reason…" He waved his wand and released a blast of magic toward Cedric, who fell to his knees.
Sofia gasped and knelt beside him.
"I'm curious if you two are even an actual threat."
Cedric, who could instantly tell that the curse had been lifted, quickly jumped to his feet and held the wand out toward the man. "Why don't we find out right now?"
Sylvester chuckled. "Maybe next time. I have plans for you two, after all." With that, he vanished.
"What do you think he means by that?" Sofia wondered as Cedric stood, the effects of his potion wearing off and reverting him to his normal self.
"I think it means we need to be even more on guard…" He smiled at last as she rushed toward him, hugging him. "It's all right, Sofia."
"I know…" She glanced up at him. "Don't get me wrong. I always have fun with your childhood self. He's nice and interesting. But he's not you, Mr. Cedric."
Cedric chuckled as he placed one hand on her head. "We're the same person, Sofia."
"I know, but… I guess I just feel like you're my Mr. Cedric, you know?" She smiled as he raised an eyebrow at the explanation. "I met you like this first, so I prefer you the way you are."
The sorcerer smiled, touched by her words. "Thank you, my dear." He glanced up as he noticed the world they'd entered beginning to fade away. "Oh, we'd best be going. This secret world was never meant to be a permanent location, after all." He took the girl's hand and led her toward the weeping willow, touching the bark. "Ad rem."
The friends reappeared outside the Hexley Hall building, just as the final bell of the day rang.
"Perhaps it's time to go home now," Cedric suggested.
Sofia nodded. "Oh, wait! What about our copies? And…" She smiled sheepishly. "Maybe we should do something about my interference with your past?"
He nodded at her words. "I've got just the spell for that."
Once Cedric had taken care of the doubles and wiped the memories of Sofia from the minds of any in Hexley Hall (a spell which he deemed quite dangerous and advised Sofia never to attempt…at least not without his permission and guidance), the friends ventured back home. Surprisingly, it was almost as if they'd never left. It didn't seem like much time had passed at all: maybe an hour or two? And most importantly, things felt the same. Apparently they hadn't affected the past as much as they thought they had.
Cedric collapsed onto his bed and sighed heavily into his pillow as Sofia leaned against his dresser with her arms folded. "No more adventures for a while," he pleaded with a muffled tone. He turned toward his giggling apprentice and frowned. "I don't think I could handle it any time soon."
"I actually agree with you." She sighed. "But…we'll have to figure out how to handle Sylvester the next time we see him."
"I'm aware… I know it's not the last we'll see of him, though I do have a feeling it will be a while before he shows his face again."
Sofia shifted her footing. "How can you be so sure?"
"I can't," he admitted with a shrug. "I just…have a feeling."
She smiled. "That's good enough for me then." She turned as a knock fell upon the door.
Cedric tilted his head. "Enter."
Roland stepped inside and smiled. "How's the patient?" he asked as Cedric scrambled to sit up. "No more fainting spells?"
"No, sire. Sofia knew just the right potion to brew to treat me. Turns out it was a form of…exhaustion. The potion should help though."
Sofia smiled at his cover before turning to her father. "I'm sorry it's taken a while, Dad. I wanted to make sure he was okay."
"It's all right. We did start to wonder though, since it's been over an hour since you left." He turned back toward the door before looking at them. "Would you like me to bring you both some supper so you can eat together and relax?"
Cedric and Sofia exchanged glances before nodding happily toward the king.
"That would be excellent, Your Majesty," Cedric acknowledged. "Thank you. You don't have to do that."
"Nonsense. I feel it's well deserved." He smiled before shutting the door behind him and heading off.
"That's going to take some getting used to," Cedric admitted to his smiling apprentice.
"I like it," she said simply. "It's great you two are getting along now." She then sighed. "So about Sylvester…"
"Forget about him for now, my dear. You and I will handle him when the time comes." He smiled as she hugged him.
"I'm glad you're all right, Mr. Cedric."
He returned the hug. "It's all thanks to you, Sofia."
"Bah," an annoyed voice echoed in a dark room as pale hands tossed a crystal ball across the space, causing it to shatter against the floor. Sylvester glared at the shards, which showed Cedric and Sofia carrying on as if nothing happened. "Don't get so comfortable, you pests. Our battle has only just begun." He turned as he heard a portal open behind him, and he smirked upon realizing just who was hovering before him. "You must be Furio…"
The end (and to be continued in "Umbra Inferno" sequel "Out of Sight")