Chapter 8: Deadlocks

The team sat around their makeshift table, their faces etched with exhaustion, but also frustration. Their efforts to locate and track down anachronisms had yielded results, but the closer they came to discovering the anomalies, the more complicated their choices became.

Each anachronism they’d tracked had the potential to lead to another, and with each step forward, they were unknowingly making themselves vulnerable. The anachronisms weren’t just scattered around the world in different time periods—they were aware of one another. If the team attacked the wrong one first, it could trigger a chain reaction, with the rest of the anachronisms finding out what they were doing. That could lead to an all-out assault, one where the team would be outnumbered and outmatched.

It was a deadlock—a stalemate that seemed impossible to break. Every potential move felt like a risk, every strategy fraught with consequences. The room grew tense as the members of the team debated their next course of action.

“I think we should focus on the one in the desert first,” Ken said, pointing to the screen where an anomaly had been detected. “It's isolated. If we hit it hard and fast, maybe we can neutralize it before the others have a chance to respond.”

Ruson, who had been quietly staring at the map, shook his head. “No, if we go after that one, they’ll know we’re onto them. We can’t afford to make a mistake. What if one of the other anomalies is in a more strategic position?”

Ulbert, sitting back in his chair, massaged his temples in frustration. “We don’t even know where the rest of them are! And if we waste too much time deciding, they could find us first and we’d be screwed.”

Snow, who had been silent up until now, finally spoke up. “The longer we wait, the more likely they’ll come after us. We can’t keep sitting here. We need to act.”

“But how?” Lina asked, her voice wavering. She had become the focal point of the team’s uncertainty, though she hadn’t meant for it to happen. “We’re just—stuck.”

The conversation descended into a spiraling loop of back-and-forth suggestions, none of which seemed to resolve the issue. Time and again, they circled around the same points: too risky, too much exposure, too little time. The weight of indecision hung heavy over the group, and soon, even their attempts to stay focused felt hollow.

Alec, who had been pacing, finally broke the silence. “We’re not getting anywhere like this. We need to stop second-guessing and actually make a move. Waiting around is just as dangerous as doing nothing.”

But even as Alec spoke, a ping from Lina’s phone interrupted the tense moment, and the screen lit up with a headline: Local Girl Explains "Power" That Shaped the Timeline.

Lina’s face fell as she read the headline, a sinking feeling taking over her. Her heart began to race. She had no idea how it happened, but she could guess—during their brief respite, she had confided in her friends about what had happened to her, the truth of her capture, and the role she’d played in altering time. She hadn’t intended for it to get out, but it was already too late.

“How did—?” Alec started, but Lina cut him off, her voice shaking with disbelief.

“I didn’t tell anyone about it. I swear,” Lina said, her voice barely above a whisper. “But now, the whole world knows.” In a softer voice Lina said: Now that I think of it I did tell my parents, and my brother, and my friend Leslie who is a reporter...

The team crowded around Lina as the screen flickered with new notifications, each one more pressing than the last. The media had picked up her story, and now everyone—from reporters to conspiracy theorists—was diving into the details of the time anomalies and the mysterious girl with “powers.” The team’s secrecy was shattered. Their every move would now be under intense scrutiny, and the very thing they had been trying to prevent—the exposure of their actions to the anachronisms—had already happened.

Ken was the first to speak, his expression grim. “We need to shut this down, fast. The world is going to tear this apart, and the anachronisms will be coming for us now that they know who we are.”

But Lina, feeling the weight of her actions, looked down at her hands, her emotions swirling. “I never meant for this to happen. I just—wanted to help.”

The silence that followed was deafening. With everything on the line, Lina’s confession had inadvertently caused a new wave of problems for the team—problems they hadn’t been prepared for. The stakes had just been raised higher, and now their enemies would be watching from the shadows, ready to strike at any moment.

Alec stood up, breaking the tense silence. “Alright, we don’t have time to dwell on this. The anachronisms already know we’re coming. We just have to figure out what to do next. We either fight them head-on, or we keep running until we can find a way to stop them for good. But we’re not quitting now.”

The team exchanged looks, each member weighed down by the new reality of their situation. The goofing around, the jokes, the banter—they were all distractions from the fact that the world, and possibly time itself, was now watching their every move. They needed to act, and they needed to do it fast.