I was laying on my bed, for the last time ever. I looked at the I.V. bag that was going into me, my parents, and the doctor. My parents were sobbing wildly, watching their only child die.

Huntington's Chorea. A genetic disease that causes you to slowly lose control of your body. And as if God didn't hate me enough, it started to hit me at an exceedingly young age, 8. I was 15 now.

I decided the moment that I received my diagnosis that I wouldn't waste my life. Hell, I decided that I would die before I fully lost control. The last 6 years of my life has been one hell of a ride. My parents and I went traveling to several countries. For my dad, it was also his final days. He didn't get any symptoms yet, but it was inevitable.

I've gotten to the stage where talking is difficult for me, and it was getting difficult to understand what others were saying. I learned languages to try and slow it down, but eventually it was hard to find the words to speak.

I told my parents that when I got to that point that they should just euthanize me. I didn't want to live after that. Hard to move and talk.

And they granted my request. As the doctor injected the drugs into the I.V. my vision started to turn black. I reflected on my life.

Did I regret anything? Not really. I felt bad for my parents though. For my dad, he watched what would happen to him in a few years. For my mom, it was her realizing that she would be alone in the near future.

My vision fully turned black and everything started to get cold. It felt strangely comforting. My consciousness was starting to fade. Looking back, I was happy how my life turned out. I did more than I thought I would, and although it wasn't normal, I was still happy with it.

And I left the world with a smile on my face. Something of a rare ending for people like me who are considered 'intellectually gifted'.

My world anyways. I never expected what happened next.

I didn't know how long had passed, but eventually I opened my eyes. I was in a black void. I looked around, only to see an old, wrinkled man holding a staff and leaning against a wall. He looked tired. Really tired.

"Oh my god what were in those drugs?" I asked to myself. Wait, how come I can speak?

The old man gave a dry laugh. "That's not the reaction most people would have. Normally the first question would be 'Am I dead?'"

"I'm already living on borrowed time. Dying wouldn't really matter to me." I replied before frowning. "Speaking of people, who are you? You're too vivid and normal… ish… to be a figment of my imagination."

"You're quite the smart one considering you had a brain disease." The old man said. "I knew I chose right."

I waited a little to see if he would elaborate. He didn't. "Alright, I'll bite. What did you choose me for?"

"An avatar, diplomat, servant, whichever one fits your fancy." The old man said, smiling. He struggled to get up, but he walked to me.

I could tell the casual tone when throwing out those words were on purpose. He was showing his superiority over me, his control in this conversation.

"And who exactly are you?"

"You humans gave me many names. Time. Aeon. Chronos."

"Wait, Kronos? Like the titan?" I asked. It was a bit embarrassing, but my only knowledge on Greek mythology was on Percy Jackson books.

Chronos' smile turned neutral before he yelled out with rage. "Not that upstart. He's a rip-off! A total sham! The books portrayed that idiot accurately."

"Yikes," I winced from the sheer power. "It's not that deep."

"Sorry about that." Chronos said as he regained his composure. "But no, I am not like 'Kronos,'" he said with disdain. "I am the personification of time. The real father time."

"Oh," I said. I really didn't know how to respond. "Cool."

Chronos laughed. "You're quite the interesting one. I knew I chose right. Most people would be on their knees or begging."

"I didn't … ask to live so I don't know why you're offering," I asserted.

"And that's part of the reason why you were chosen," he said as he pointed towards me. "You're not scared of death. You'll accept it when the time comes."

When the time comes. "So this is a temporary appointment? One with an expiration date I presume you pick."

He nodded his head. "Not to worry, a boy of your talents would receive equal compensation considering what I'm asking."

"Equal compensation," I mirrored his words. A trick to get people to reveal more. Let's just hope it works against time itself. "What does that entail?"

"Tell me, do you think the worst enemy is an observer? Someone who watches quietly without anyone paying attention?"

"I do," I affirmed. "You have no idea what cards they hold, but they know yours."

"You lived your life as an observer, both consciously and subconsciously studying the mind. Your skills are grounded in reality, learned through experience and not theory. And where you're going, you're even more of an observer," he said. "Your mastery is something that should be recognized in this new world. You'll understand should you accept."

"Accept," I repeated, drawing the word out. "What?"

"There's a war happening in my universe, and I'm looking for help. A partner, of sorts, for our side."

I stayed silent, thinking about his words critically. If a deity like him needed help, and he represents a concept itself, I could only picture two concepts fighting against each other. But why did he need a human's help?

"To act as a bridge," he said, reading my mind. "Someone who can do things that I can't interfere in."

"And the world I'm going into is-" I ended as a question.

"You'll see," he answered with a knowing smile. "Now, time is of the essence. Heh you see what I did there? So pick yes or no," he raised both of his hands, one representing yes and the other no. Death or adventure."

Death or adventure. Appealing to my personal desires.

I grinned as I walked to approach him. "When you put it like that, the answer is obvious."

He closed both his hands. "Good luck," he said. I saw him reach into his pocket and throw me a golden watch. As soon as I had caught it, the world began to spin.

"Don't be startled by the small changes in your appearance," he warned. "But they'll reflect you better."

"Oh, and find your two friends that'll come along."

"Wait!" I yelled out. "Friends?! Who?!"

He put his finger to his mouth in a shushing motion. "No spoilers! Oh, don't freak out in the first five minutes, and enjoy your great destiny!"

"You're just adding that now?!" I yelled out before the world finally faded into white.

"Follow me," a female voice said. It was calm and soothing. She grabbed my hands and began to walk along a pathway.

My body was on autopilot, but my mind was perfectly active. It felt … weird to be walking again. Being balanced just felt odd. I'd been used to always stumbling or falling over, never walking straight.

And as soon as I had thought that, my right leg began to stiffen up. Instead of walking, I began to experience the familiar feeling of falling down on my leg.

"Oops, careful now," the lady said, putting her hands on my arms and pulling me back up. The sudden limp had continued throughout our short walk.

The one thing that I had noticed was that I was shorter. Like pre-puberty short. Looking at my hands, they seemed smaller too. If I had to guess, I would say pre-teen or early 13s.

As we reached the doorway, she rang the doorbell. Footsteps could be heard before the door swung open and revealed a man.

"Hello," he greeted, albeit confused. "Uh, who are you?"

"I'm Alexandra from CPS," she introduced. If I had control over my body, my eyes would've widened. What the fuck did Chronos put me in? "One of your relatives died, and you're listed as next of kin."

"Who? I wasn't aware of any deaths?"

"U-uncle Rubio died," my squeaky voice cried out.

As he looked down, there was a look of confusion before his face dropped like a realization set in. His eyes, however, gained a cloudy quality. "Zackary?"

I felt my head move up and down in a nod. I tried to move my body according to my will, but it was to no avail. I was trapped in my same prison; except this time it was moving. Hope dangling right in front of me.

"Ruby!" the man yelled out.

"What honey?" a voice asked, sounding like it was from a second floor.

"I need you to come down here!"

Footsteps echoed from the right as a woman with light-brown hair came into view. Her smile faded when we entered her eyes. I immediately noticed the shift in her facial expression. Her jaws tightened and a small crease formed on her forehead. She became more guarded. She was trying to figure out what was going on. "What's happening?"

"Ruby, this is Zackary," he said slowly. "Rubio has died."

"Zac-" she began, her pitch being high with confusion. Then, her eyes suddenly gained the same cloudy quality that Julius had. "-kary" she completed with a tone of familiarity.

"Oh god," she uttered. I saw her eyes widen as her gaze softened. Her face began to relax, the tensing now undone.

"Can you … take him in and show him around," Julius leaned in and whispered.

"Of course," she said before returning her gaze over to me. "Come with me Zackary."

Her arms extended. My arm rose up as she grabbed ahold of it. The grip, although not tight, wasn't weak. Her fingers were over her thumb, a subtle message saying that she wouldn't let go.

As my legs began to move forward, I fell once again. She still kept her warm hands on me however, not letting go. She pulled me up and guided me forward.

"You have a limp?" she asked. My head nodded once again.

"I believe we have a cane somewhere here," she comforted. Her voice was silky smooth, like a parent talking to a baby. "I'll look for it once we get to the living room, alright?"

I didn't say anything, only nodded.

'Chronos!' I thought. 'Give me control over my fucking body! I'm not a wimp!'

No answer came into my head. I don't know what I thought really, but I was still on autopilot.

We took a few turns before finally heading into a room with two kids. They were playing in the middle of the room. To their left was a messy sofa and a table with a chessboard in which black was losing, books, and bowls of food.

The girl was chasing the boy around with an abnormally long stick. They were running in circles until they saw their mom.

"Introduce yourself," she encouraged me. My face lokoed down to avoid eye-contact.

'Oh god,' I thought as I mentally cringed. 'Look at them! Look at them!'

"I'm … Zackary Lockheart," I mumbled softly.

"What?" the girl asked. "Say that louder."

She straightened her back and walked to the duo. I heard her whisper in their ears and sudden gasps.

'Stop looking down!' I thought. My head suddenly rose from the view of my feet to the trio standing in front of me.

'Hahaha! Thank you!' I thought, although my face remained neutral. I tried to wiggle my fingers, and to my excitement, it moved! My fingers moved again!

"Zackary," Ruby began. "Meet my children, Carter and Sadie Kane."

My eyes widened. Now I was in control of my body, although this was probably the worst time for it to happen.

"Kane?" I squealed out, drawing out the last sound.

The power behind my voice was completely different now. Ruby took immediate notice as her eyes squinted towards me for only a second before returning back to normal.

Ruby nodded her head. "I'm your aunt Ruby Kane and the man you met before is your uncle Julius Kane."

I let out a shaky breath. Keeping my expression the same, I began to speak. "Thank you for taking me in."