Consequences
Elena's POV
My phone started ringing exactly at the 30-second mark of the countdown.
I was hiding behind an overturned table in the library, watching Maya stare at her laptop screen in horror. The Void Drake was growing larger, its dark energy making the air itself feel heavy and wrong.
"Elena Martinez," I answered, keeping my voice low.
"Professor Martinez?" The voice belonged to James Kim, one of my best students from last semester. "Are you seeing what's happening downtown? Every screen in the city is showing some kind of countdown."
"James, where are you right now?"
"At my apartment, but Professor, there are these black wolf things running through the streets. People are saying it's some kind of terrorist attack, but these things aren't normal. They're moving like shadows and—"
The call cut off abruptly. I tried calling him back, but the phone was dead.
Around me, every electronic device in the library was now showing: "15... 14... 13..."
I had to do something. Maya was powerful, but she was just one girl facing an ancient evil that had been planning this for centuries. She needed help, and fast.
Pulling out my grandmother's journal, I flipped to a page I'd hoped I'd never have to use. It was titled "Emergency Contacts - Last Resort Only."
The first name on the list was "Dr. Patricia Valdez - Healer - Pioneer Hospital."
I dialed her number, praying it would work.
"Patricia, it's Elena Martinez. I need you to listen very carefully."
"Elena? How did you get this number? I haven't practiced the old ways in fifteen years."
"The barriers are breaking down. There's a girl here with Chen-level power, and something from the Void is trying to take her. Every witch in the city needs to help, or we're all going to die."
There was a long pause. Then: "I'm at the hospital. Half my patients just started having the same nightmare at the same time. They're all dreaming about shadow creatures."
"That's not a dream, Patricia. Those creatures are real, and they're coming."
"What do you need me to do?"
"Round up every healer you can find. We're going to need them." I gave her the library's address. "And Patricia? Bring whatever medical supplies you have. This is going to get ugly."
Next on the list was "Roberto Santos - Elemental - Fire Station 12."
Roberto answered on the first ring. "Elena, I was just about to call you. My station got three reports of fires that won't go out, but when we get there, there's no fire. Just cold spots where the temperature drops to freezing."
"Shadow creatures. They leave cold burns instead of hot ones. Roberto, I need you to call every firefighter in the city who has the gift. Tell them to come to the university library."
"How many people are we talking about?"
I looked at the countdown: "8... 7... 6..."
"Everyone, Roberto. Call everyone."
The last name on my list made my heart sink: "Marcus Holloway - Wards Specialist - Downtown Precinct."
Marcus was a police detective who could create magical barriers, but he was also my ex-husband. We hadn't spoken in three years, not since our divorce got ugly over my decision to keep practicing magic.
But Maya needed all the help she could get.
"Elena?" Marcus sounded surprised. "What's wrong?"
"Mark, I know we haven't talked, but—"
"Elena, every computer in the police station just started showing a countdown. My partner thinks it's hackers, but I can feel magic all over this thing. Dark magic."
"It's not hackers. There's a girl at the university library who's about to be taken by creatures from the Void. If they succeed, everyone in Portland dies."
"The Chen girl? I felt her power spike about an hour ago. Elena, what has she gotten herself into?"
"It's not what she got into, it's what got into her. Mark, I need you to bring every cop you trust with the gift. We have maybe five minutes before this whole thing explodes."
"I'm on my way."
As I hung up, I realized something that made my blood freeze. The countdown had stopped at "3... 2... 1..." but nothing was happening.
Maya was still staring at her laptop. The Void Drake was still waiting. But the timer wasn't moving anymore.
That's when Sarah grabbed my arm.
"Elena, look at the screens," she whispered urgently.
Every device in the library was now showing the same message: "COUNTDOWN PAUSED. THE GIRL HAS CHOSEN TO NEGOTIATE."
"I didn't choose anything!" Maya protested.
But the voice in her head was laughing loud enough now that I could almost hear it too.
"Oh, but you did, dear," the ancient Chen witch said, her words somehow echoing in the air around us. "You chose not to decide. Which is exactly what I wanted."
"What do you mean?" Maya asked.
"Maya, every second you hesitate, every moment you spend thinking about your choice, more people die. Not from my creatures—from ordinary things. Car accidents because drivers are staring at the countdown on their phones. Heart attacks from the fear. Panic crushes as people try to run away from something they don't understand."
She was right. Through the library windows, I could see chaos in the streets. People were running, screaming, crashing into each other. In the distance, I could hear sirens.
"So here's my new offer," the witch continued. "For every minute you delay making your choice, I'll have my shadow creatures kill exactly one hundred people in this city. And Maya? The timer starts now."
Every screen changed to show: "NEXT EXECUTION IN 59... 58... 57..."
Maya looked at me with desperate eyes. "Professor Martinez, what do I do?"
That's when my phone rang again. This time, the caller ID showed a number I recognized but hadn't seen in twenty years.
I answered with shaking hands.
"Hello, Elena," said my own voice from the phone. "We need to talk."
I looked at Maya, then at the phone, then back at Maya.
"That's impossible," I whispered. "I'm right here."
"Are you?" my voice asked from the speaker. "Elena, how do you know you're really you? How do you know you haven't been Maya's imagination this whole time? After all, wouldn't a scared college student imagine a helpful professor to guide her?"
Maya stared at me with growing horror. "Elena? You... you're real, right?"
I opened my mouth to answer, but no words came out. Because suddenly, I couldn't remember.
I couldn't remember my childhood. I couldn't remember going to school to become a professor. I couldn't remember anything before the day Maya first walked into my classroom.
"Elena?" Maya asked again, but now her voice sounded far away.
I looked down at my hands, and they were starting to fade like smoke.
"Maya," I managed to say as I felt myself dissolving, "don't trust anyone. Not even—"
But I disappeared before I could finish the warning.