After my final class of the day, my new friends and I sat around the fountain in the quad. I listened more than I talked until Roberto made me the center of conversation.
"So, Shai, have you come up with a codename yet?"
"A codename?" I parroted.
"Yeah, you know. Like Spider-Man or Iron Man, they have hero names right? We all came up with ours already. Mine's Sunspot."
"Nightcrawler," Kurt said, raising his three-fingered hand.
"Wolverine," said Laura. I realized then that she was Logan's daughter, sharing his mantle.
"And I call myself Iceman," Bobby said.
"I see..." I rubbed my chin, pondering what I'd like to be called. Chronos seemed too on the nose. I understood that I was Chronos and they were me, but I still wanted to be myself before being a God. I imagined other reincarnations of Chronos likely felt the same in their past lives.
"Tempo," I told them. "Is that a good one?"
The four of them looked at each other, nodding in approval. "Not bad," Laura said.
"Yeah, I fuck with it." Roberto nodded. I noticed his eyes wandering behind me. I nearly turned around until he stopped me.
"Don't turn around but Illyana is glaring at you, bro," he said, emphasizing the word 'glaring'.
Even though he said not to, I turned, meeting Illyana's cat-like eyes with mine. Her eyes beckoned me before she turned and walked away. I wondered if I was just imagining things -- it wasn't the first time I noticed her glare.
"What's her deal?" I asked my new friends.
Kurt shrugged, as did the others. "No idea," he said. "She's been acting strangely for quite some time. She has been acting even stranger as soon as you came about though."
"Maybe she likes you," Roberto added.
"Impossible. I haven't even said a word to her."
"Sounds like love at first sight to me," Bobby added.
I scoffed, shaking my head as I stood up. The others chuckled amongst themselves before I started walking toward where Illyana was last seen.
"Where are you going?" Laura asked.
Without turning around, I said, "Seeing what her deal is."
I heard oohs and aahs behind me as I kept walking; they were acting like I was about to ask this girl on a date or something, but that wasn't my reasoning for pursuing her. When she and I lock eyes, I feel something. Not something in the sense of attraction, but something strange. A feeling of warping displacement -- though simultaneously, I felt comfort. If magnets were sentient, I'd imagine they'd have this same feeling; however, I struggled to determine if I was being pulled to her or away.
It didn't take long to find her; in fact, she was waiting for me. Her arms folded across her chest as she leaned against the wall between the library and the science building. As I approached, she looked up at me again, and the feeling of my surroundings warping intensified, causing my brows to furrow.
"You feel it too?" Illyana spoke with a Russian accent.
"Like the world is spinning? Yeah, and only when I interact with you." As I spoke to her, I kept my distance. Any closer, and I feared that the displacement would become unbearable.
"And feelings of familiarity..." Illyana added.
I held my chin and looked at the Russian closely. Once brought to my attention, I realized that she was right. That feeling of seeing a friend after a long time, but you can't remember their name overwhelmed me. Had I met her before? No, I'd have remembered meeting a girl like her, I'd never forget those eyes, not in a million years.
"Have we met before?" I asked her.
"Perhaps." Illyana took a step forward, fighting against the displacement. "You're a chronomancer, yes?"
As she stepped toward me, I stepped back. The displacement was too much for me to handle. "I am... Why?"
"Then perhaps you could help me unravel my past. There must be a reason you and I, just you and I, are linked in some way."
I stopped backpedaling, standing my ground.
That's right... I thought. What was it called? Psychometry. I can see the past through physical touch...
Now was the best time for me to test-run this new ability, so I allowed her to get close. That dreadful warping was unbearable by the time she and I were at arm's length.
"I just awakened to my powers, but I can look into your past, I think. It'll be my first time trying it." I reached out to her, then stopped myself. "Can I touch your hand, if that's okay? There needs to be physical contact."
Illyana took both of my hands without saying a word and instantly, her past beamed into my brain like a short film.
I saw her as a farm girl in Russia with her older brother before he became the metallic, hulking man that he is today. As time passed, the two of them started to unlock their powers and their parents feared them. They lived on their own for a while until Xavier took them in.
Illyana lived a normal life as a student at Xavier's until she was one day kidnapped and taken to another world by a sorcerer named Belasco, where he would be her slave.
I could feel tears rolling down my face as I experienced her slavery firsthand. She was just a little girl, yet this despicable man used her as a puppet and ordered his assistant S'ym to torture and beat her.
There was a moment when Illyana was fed up with the abuse. I saw her body start to transform, but then my psychometry ability started acting screwy. Instead of her past looking like a short film, I could only see flashing images.
Illyana had transformed into a devil, horns and all. She killed S'ym, impaling him with a greatsword. As his body slid down the blade, stopping at the hilt, the Illyana of the past looked at me, transcending time itself.
She lunged at me, but before her talons could rip me apart, chains manifested from the ground and subdued her. The scenery changed and I saw Professor Xavier using his abilities on Illyana -- no, not just her, but the entire school. He erased everyone's memories in an attempt to seal away Darkchylde, Illyana's darker half.
I realized then that my psychometry ability didn't see through the memories of the brain, but the experiences of the body. Hence, I could peer into her past.
I took a step back from Illyana, overwhelmed and overexerted. Still holding onto my hands, she prevented me from falling.
"Are you okay?" she asked me.
"Yeah... I'm fine. It's just... that was a lot."
"What did you see?"
"It was horrible. You were a slave to some demon named Belasco and his assistant S'ym. You got S'ym good, you really fucked that guy up. Belasco though, he's still free."
Illyana covered her mouth with her hand. Her already fair skin turned pale and her eyes trembled. "A slave?"
"Yeah... The professor must've wiped your memory from that time so you wouldn't have to remember the horror you went through. But I also believe he was afraid of your power: the Darkchylde.
"Darkchylde... That name feels familiar to me."
"I believe you've called yourself that at one point in time. You transform into something demonic and probably powerful."
"And Xavier took that from me... And the others have been lying to me?"
"No, they had their memories erased as well. You, me, and Xavier are the only ones who know about Darkchylde."
I found myself trembling with rage for some reason. I believe this anger was because I inherited the emotions of the person whose memories I experienced. Xavier was a hypocrite, calling our powers "gifts" while suppressing the ones he deemed too powerful to control. And Belasco... I wanted him to suffer a fate a million times worse than what he put Illyana through.
"Do you want revenge, Illyana?"
Illyana was taken aback for a moment. However, she ultimately nodded. "On Belasco, I do. Xavier... I don't know."
"I want to get Belasco as well."
Illyana furrowed her brows. "Why? He's done nothing to you."
"You're right, but having lived through your memories, I'm pretty sure it's caused me to share what you feel at least for the time being. Besides, you and I have this weird connection. Unlocking more about your past might unlock something about me. But mainly, I just want to help you."
"I appreciate that, but how will we even do that? I can't use my powers and yours are still weak, no offense."
"Well, first of all, ouch. Second, I have all of your memories so I think I can reteach you how to use your powers. Maybe I'll learn something about myself too. That is if you don't mind being a bit sneaky about it. I don't think Xavier would appreciate me reawaking the Darkchylde after he put in all the effort to lock her away."
Illyana scoffed playfully. "You think I haven't snuck around before? Let's meet up tonight. Eleven o'clock."
As our newfound relationship was forged, I could hear Chronos speaking once more. It was then that I noticed a pattern. With every new relationship, I gain a new power.
"I am thou, thou art I… Thou hast acquired a new vow. It shall become the iron fists that slice through thy chains of injustice. With the birth of the Empress Arcana, may Limbo open a path to freedom and a new power…"
This new connection unlocked another ability of mine: Time Freeze. It would allow me to freeze any person or object in time. Very useful.
I pondered why Chronos didn't mention this aspect of my powers, this Social Link System. I wondered if this was unique to me, a power I acquired on top of my chronomancy.
Illyana started walking away and I could feel that distortion between us finally wain. "Wait! Isn't curfew ten?" I asked her.
Illyana turned around, showing a slight grin. "Exactly."
As she walked away, I started paying attention to my heart, which was nearly beating out of my chest. It didn't hit me until then how intimate our situation had become; hell, I just peered into her memories.