Андрей Сопельник – UNIVERSE AETERNOV The first book The heart that remembers tomorrow (страница 4)

– no! Andrey shouted.

He didn't have time to think. He just ran.

The world has narrowed down to a few steps. The air became as thick as water. My heart was pounding in my ears.

He jumped and knocked the child down, grabbing him and rolling away.

The beam collapsed next to such a blow that the windows of the workshop shook. A column of dust and rusty shavings rose up.

The boy was crying, clinging to Andrey. Andrey himself was shaking as if he had just been pulled out of icy water.

"Are you… are you okay?" – he croaked, trying to unclench his numb fingers.

The boy nodded and snuggled closer to him.

And then there was a flash.

No light.

Not a sound.

Time.

It was as if reality itself had sighed and shifted.

Andrey felt his body losing weight and boundaries. It doesn't hurt. It just… disappears.

The last thing he heard was Ivan Ilyich's voice coming from somewhere far away.:

– Andrey?! Andrey, where are you?!

And then – silence.

3.

He opened his eyes.

Sand. Pale, iridescent, like mercury in the sun.

The sky was not blue, but mirrored: instead of clouds, it reflected his own faces at different ages – a boy, a young man, an old man, a warrior, a poet, an outcast, a savior.

"Where… am I?" "What is it?" he whispered, getting to his trembling feet.

The sand beneath him trembled and whispered, as if a thousand voices were saying at the same time,

"You're late… but you're on time."

"You're not ready… but you're the one who's needed."

"You're afraid… but you're Chronos."

"Who's there?" Andrey shouted.

A woman in a white and gold robe came out of a nearby dune. The fabric flowed like light. Her eyes resembled rotating galaxies, and her hair looked like sand that had come to life in time and was flowing down her shoulders.

"I am Inna Sandran, Empress of the Aeternes, – she said softly, but there was steel in her voice. – And yes, Andrey… You are the last Chronos whose chronocode has not yet awakened.

–Chrono… what?" He laughed hoarsely. – I'm just a mechanic. I'm fixing the Lada, not saving worlds.

"That's exactly why we need you, – a deep metallic voice said.

A tall warrior in steel armor came out from behind the dune. A blue crystal pulsed in his chest, near his heart, like a naked but living "Core Heart."

"I'm Alexey the Mechanic, – he introduced himself. – Former soldier of the Chrono-Galaxy. Now it's someone who makes sure that the machines remember why they were created. You're the person who fixes what's broken. I am a machine that learns to be human again. None of us knows how to be a hero. We'll learn together.

Andrey was silent. His shoulders were shaking.

–I… I can't, – he gasped. "I'm afraid."

"It's okay, – Inna said, and knelt down in front of him so that their eyes were on the same level. – Heroes are not born fearless. They are born alive. And the living are always afraid. But they're moving forward anyway.

She held out her hand. In her palm lay a handful of the Sand of Time—it shimmered, as if every grain contained someone's moment.

–Take it, – Inna said softly. —And remember.

Andrey, as in a dream, held out his hand.

The sand touched his skin and exploded with light.

4.

Memories hit him like an avalanche.

Not his. More than one time.

He is a child in the year 2047, hiding from hunting drones in an underpass and clutching a battered teddy bear.

He is an old man in 3012, planting a thin sprout on the charred ruins of the Land where his house once stood.

He is a soldier in 2155, kneeling in front of his friend's body and unable to find words – just a silent scream inside.

He is a boy in 1923, holding out a flower to a stranger at the train station and not understanding why her smile makes the whole world warmer.

He is a young man in 2089, kissing his beloved for the first time under the neon of a metropolis where the stars have long been hidden by domes.

He is a mechanic in 1978, rescuing a child on Budennovskaya Street… and disappearing in a flash of time.

–No… it's not me…" he whispered, falling to his knees. "This can't be happening."…

"It's you, – Inna said. "It's you. All lives. All the chances given to one soul. In every time, you are the one who fixes what is broken. People. Cars. Worlds. You are the one who carries time within you. And now… time has chosen you.

Andrey's hands were shaking. He automatically reached into his pocket and took out his grandfather's watch.

They were ticking.

In the opposite direction.

"What should I do?" "What is it?" he asked in a whisper.

–Here you go," Inna said, and placed a small, warm crystal in his palm, shimmering with all the shades of dawn. – This is the Core of Chronos. Your connection to us. From the Aeternes. With time itself. Now get up. The others are waiting for us. Alexey. Elira. Knox. Ziggy. Kitty is 9.

–To… fluffy what?!" Andrey couldn't stand it.

"Later," Elira smiled, stepping forward as if she had stepped out of the very song of the wind.

"We don't have much time, – Alexei said. His voice rang like metal. – The Chrono-Shadow is already moving towards the Heart of the Aeternes. If she gets there first, everything will disappear. Even the memories of goodness.

Andrey squeezed the crystal as if it could give an answer. I looked at my reflections, past and future. To Inna. On Alexey. On Elira.

He took a deep breath.

–Okay, – he said. "First what?" And… where are we anyway?

"We're on Aeternum, – Inna replied. – On a planet that remembers all possible tomorrows and cherishes every "if." This is the heart of the Aeternes. And it believes that you can save even what hasn't broken yet.

"And… how do I get home?" To Rostov? "What is it?" he asked softly.

Inna smiled softly, almost motherly.