《Sea of Time》


 Out and In

    Time had stopped. The world was at a standstill. The silence was so deafening that it felt as if the slightest sound could shatter existence.


    Zulfiqar had been sitting at dinner when it had happened. His mother had been bringing a bowl of salad and his father had been commenting on how wonderful dinner looked.


    Then the world shook and he felt as if his body had been struck by lightning and he was drowning at sea. He tried to swim but his body refused to respond to him. As he tried to use his eyes to observe his plight only darkness greeted him. The only thing he knew was that he could feel an enormous pressure around him.


    He felt panic start to set in and tried to calm himself. He tried opening his mouth to take in and understand what was around him and to his surprise he realized that he could breathe. Taking in as deep a breath as he could, he slowly exhaled and tried to relax his body. He felt his muscles gradually relax and start to regain movement. He tried blinking his eyes hoping to see something but sight itself seemed to be fleeing from him. As his muscles started to rejuvenate,he tried to move. The moment he tried, it was as though an invisible force had grabbed him and wrenched him out of the sea.


    He slowly opened his eyes and sighed a breath of relief when he saw that he was back home again. A gasp of shock immediately followed and he started to feel fear when he realized that his family had come to a stop.


    Zulfiqar slid out of his seat and approached his mother. He reached out his hand to touch hers, but it went right through her and touched the salad bowl she held. The bowl slipped out of her hand and stopped in mid air. It was then that he realised that it was not his family that had stopped but time itself.Stolen novel; please report.


    His mind just couldn''t wrap around this. Maybe his parents were playing some elaborate joke. He had to make sure whatever this was, was real. He rushed out of the dining room and up the stairs to his room. He hurriedly opened the door and was relieved to see his wife sleeping on the bed. He approched her and tried to caress her head but his hand passed right through her. His heart clenched. He ran onto the balcony and as he observed his jaw slowly started to lower.


    The world was at a standstill.The cars had stopped , a flock of birds had stopped midflight, the neighbours cat was stopped in midair as it jumped down and as he looked on a dreadful feeling seemed to well up inside him. A feeling that was a mixture of despair and loneliness. There seemed to be a deep pit in his stomach which seemed to pull him down. He remembered his wife and his yet unborn child. He felt his knees touch the ground as tears welled up in his eyes.


    "No". He thought to himself.


    "There must be a way out". He thought out loud.


    Getting himself off the ground, he returned to the dining table and sat himself back down.


    He tried to concentrate, trying to get back the feeling from before. He tried to imagine the dark sea and to his amazent, there it was. It was as if it had never gone. He relaxed his body and tried move towards it and the force from before returned and wrenched him back into the sea.


    Before he could open his eyes there was a loud noise of breaking glass. " Oops" he and his mother said at the same time. When he opened his eyes his mother was staring at him.


    "And why are you saying oops Zulfiqar?" It was as if his mother somehow knew whose fault it was like she always did.


    "Oh! Just reflex." He quickly replied before he could get into any trouble. Just as the words left his mouth, a wave of fatigue washed over him and he lay his head down and fell asleep right there on the table.

 Tea

    A light shone out of the house on the beach. A man sat looking out the window of the second story of the house. He seemed deep in thought, as if the weight of the world had been placed upon him.


    A touch on his shoulder brought Zulfiqar out of his reverie. He turned around and looked into his wife''s eyes. He had been pondering on the implications of his new found power and all the opportunities it provided him. It was as if the world had now become his oyster. He wondered if he truly deserved such power.


    "What has you so deep in thought ?" asked his wife.


    He felt her concern and compassion for him. He wanted to tell her everything and had wondered on how to let her know as gently as possible. He feared how she would react to knowing that he he had so much power but he knew that she trusted him.


    "Say that you had been given power over the world, to do with it as you wished, to have whatever your heart desired of it, then what would you do ?" he asked earnestly.


    She looked at him for a while and kissed his forehead. Then she looked deeply into his eyes and said. "I need no power and I wish for nothing for I have all I desire, but if you had such power and such desire then I would wish for you to use it rightly, for we are travellers and only our deeds go with us to the grave."If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    They stared at each other. Each knowing the love they had for the other. Her words of compassion had stirred his heart. He did not know what he did to deserve such affection.


    "Thank you my love" he said as he kissed her hand and held it to his cheek." There is something I wish to show you and I beg your patience with me."


    "What is it ?" She asked with a hint of concern.


    "I have been granted a power, the reason for which I do not know, but your words have made my mind clearer." He said with a smile.


    "And what sort of power is this?" She asked playfully.


    She laughed as Zulfiqar lifted her up in his arms. He walked over to the bed and laid her down. "Observe."


    Zulfiqar felt for the sea and slipped out time. He saw his wife''s face frozen in mirth and thanked the creator for such a wonderful blessing.


    He then went downstairs into the kitchen and made some tea. Everything he touched worked as it normally would. He played around a bit throwing water into the air and watching as it froze. Of course he did it over the sink since he didn''t want to bother cleaning up.


    Going back upstairs with the cup of tea, he sat on the bed next to his wife and slipped back into time.


    "Oh My God, what just happened?" She screamed as she jolted out of bed.


    "Laila, please relax and have some tea, it''s just that I can stop time."