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Camilla had spent years watching time fleet away, literally.
Her and her partner jonah were paramedics, every day they saw life slip through the veil while some found a narrow escape. It was something that could break someone, seeing people die but the paramedic team was a family that held each other strong. But Camilla had it different, Everytime, she didn't just see death, she saw it coming.
It all started when she was eleven when her and her parents paid a visit to her granny. She held her Grandma’s hand and for the first time saw she saw red numbers glow above her Granny's head: 00.00.00.00.02.32. As a little girl she watched in confusion and horror as the countdown reached all zeros and her granny suffered a heart attack and died at the spot.
Since then her world was all timers, she didn't tell anyone but instead aspired to and became a paramedic to push against time. Sometimes she was able to tip the balance of fate and time and sometimes she would watch time run out in the blink of an eye.
Camilla and Jonah were two hours into their peaceful night shift when the radio on the desk cracked a few times before finally a distorted voice came through “dispatch to unit 3, possible cardiac case at Jim's diner, dims Street,”
Jonah felt uneasy with the voice "is it just me or that sounded really creepy,"
Camilla felt uneasy too but she didn't over think it, "probably just a network jam, come on let's get moving, time is of the essence,”
When they got to the diner, it was only one guy there seated drinking his coffee, and he looked perfectly alright, “well this guy looks really fine to me,"
“Hi, are you the only one here?"
“Yh," the man responded
“okay, I am a paramedic Camilla and Jonah my partner. We received a distress call of a possible cardiac case here,”
"I am Ian and as you can see I am hail and hearty,” Ian took them as a joke.
"Yes we can but just to be sure we would like to do a regular check up,” Camilla insisted.
“Sure, long as I ain't paying," Ian said after sizing them up.
Camilla used this chance to touch Ian while Jonah did the check up. And what she saw was a little shocking to her,
“He is fine, I see nothing wrong," Jonah said
“But how," Camilla looked at the empty space above his head, 00.00.00.00.05.08
‘Maybe the danger is external, but it doesn't explain the call, was it fate just setting up so I could warn and save him.’ Camilla was in her head.
“What is wrong?" Ian asked.
“Nothing but you need to leave here now,"
“Why?"
“I can't explain,”
00.00.00.00.02.25
As time drew nearer and Ian was still persistent and being stubborn Camilla lost it. She had promise herself to always fight to save people.
“Listen to me, you would die if you stay here,” her hands shook as she held Ian in an attempt to drag him.
"Get the hell away from me,” Ian yanked his hand away.
"Cam, stop it you are scaring him,” Jonah looked worried for the way she was acting.
“You don't understand, he doesn't have much time left," the look in her eyes was starting to look deranged.
00.00.00.00.01.07
Just then Camilla felt the surroundings temperature drop, it wasn't just her who noticed it. Ian wrapped his hand around his self as he shivered.
Camilla was the first to notice the side lamps creak as they bent.
“What_" she said as she stumbled back.
“What the hell is going on here?"
Jonah's breath was visible in the mist Air, “is it just me, or is it_"
Suddenly the shadows on the street slowly converged and the street lights went off one after the other in a perfect rhythm.
Following there was a low distorted whisper in the corner of the diner.
“Did you guys hear that?" Ian felt a chill that came with the whisper.
00.00.00.00.15
“Noooo!" Camilla shouted as she lunged at Ian and grabbed his hand.
00.00.00.00.05
The count down froze. Camilla let out a sigh of relief because she solely acted on instinct, she never knew it would stop.
“You stopped it," the distorted voice was audible this time, with a giggle that gave goosebumps.
The whole diner was enveloped in darkness and finally the looming shadows converged to take form in front of Camilla.
“What, what is that?" Both Ian and Jonah choked on their breath.
The entity shifted forward like shifting frames free from reality. Camilla's grip tightened on Ian's wrist.
“One must go"
Finally Camilla recognized the voice, the voice on the radio was never a coincidence it was more like fate itself, maybe.
Camilla understood then that she had been breaking a fundamental rule all this while, Ian should be dead, but like so many others she intervened. She felt a strong feeling of wrongness, a price had to be paid.
She made her decision as she took one last look at Ian, maybe this was it, it was never meant to be him in the first place.
Camilla let go off Ian's hand and closed her eyes as she took a step forward.
The darkness lunged at her and at that instant she felt a piercing cold like ice knives cut through her, and with a hazy sight she saw it— her own timer.
00.00.00.00.00.08
The thing in the dark whispered “now you understand,"
Time was a balanced she had broken and now she had to fix it.
00.00.00.00.00.02
The darkness finally swallowed her entirely.
00.00.00.00.00.00
Ian gasped for air as the lights snapped back on.
Jonah staggered to the empty spot left by Camilla, “no no no, Camilla!!!" His breath unstable.
Ian looked at the empty space, "she_she saved me."
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