Chapter 16 - Nightmare


It wasn't long before my dreaded nightmare came true.

It was a few months after Matthew had... It was a few months after we had arrested Metis, a few months after I had gotten my badge back.

Judy, Stephanie, and I were playing in the park. Stephanie and I were kicking a ball around, and Judy was filming it. There was laughter in the air, and smiles on the two girls that I loved. Things were going great.

Suddenly, Judy yelled in pain and grabbed her chest. She fell off the bench and onto the grass. Stephanie and I ran over to her.

I grabbed her hand, "Judy, what's wrong?!"

"I don't know," Judy said, breathing heavily, "My chest... It feels like my chest was stabbed."

Quickly, I unbuttoned her shirt to see what was wrong.

My face grew pale - Judy's chest was becoming translucent.

"No..." I whispered.

Judy looked down to see what I had seen, and she knew, from all the accounts that I had shared with her over the years, what was happening.

In the midst of pain, Judy said, "J- James... Stephanie... I love you."

Then, she slowly turned more and more translucent until she disappeared.

I stared at the spot where she had been, "Judy! No!"

Then, from beside me, I heard Stephanie's panicked cry, "Daddy, what's happening to me?"

I looked over at my daughter, who had also begun turning translucent. She grabbed my arm as she faded into nothingness, screaming, "Daddy, hel-"

"No! Stephanie!" I yelled.

I fell onto my hands and knees, tears streaming from my eyes, thoughts running through my head.

They were gone. Judy and Stephanie were gone.

Suddenly, my cell phone rang.

Confused, dazed, and upset, I took out my phone and saw that it was Captain Mortimer calling. I answered it, "Captain, they- they disappeared! Judy and Stephanie disappeared!"

There was a pause before the captain answered, "I know, James. There is something that you need to see."

"What?! You know why they disappeared?"

"Yes, I do," Captain Mortimer replied, "Metis was getting transferred from our holding cells to the maximum security prison today, but the transfer vehicle was attacked by the Titans of Time. They broke her out, and in the process, they killed an agent. They took his time travel device and cut off his thumb. They must have figured out his passcode somehow. Then... then there's this video that I'm sending you now."

I loaded up the video. An older man with white hair and dressed in some sort of military uniform was on the screen, kissing Metis.

It was Cronus.

Then, Cronus turned to address us, "Hello, Time Patrol Agents. Especially you, Agent Lawson. I am Cronus, leader of the Titans of Time. Thank you for taking care of my beloved for me for so many months. However, I don't like it when someone takes something away from me."

Then, the camera moved and on the screen was a younger Judy, one that was younger than when we had first met. She was gagged and tied to a chair.

Judy stared at the camera, scared.

Cronus continued, "Considering this a warning to anyone trying to stop us."

Metis walked up to Judy with a dagger in her hand. With a wicked smirk on her face, she plunged the dagger into Judy's chest.

"No!" I cried out.

Cronus walked back on screen, in front of a dying Judy. "You have been punished, Agent Lawson. Do not make the same mistake again."

Cronus smirked and the video ended.


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