Prologue    


Timeline: 3rd of September 2032

Everywhere was a chaos. Everyone was on the run on the planet Earth. There was not a single place which is safe anymore. No one around could even be trusted. You could only trust yourself but trust was difficult to find these days. Murder in every corner made everyone doubtful and wary of every single person, even people who were once closest to you.

Amidst the war, there was a single messy ebony black-haired boy trying to squeeze himself through the gap. He cursed when he heard footsteps close by. Hiding in the shadows, he tried to hold his breath. Even with his wushu training, he was very much outnumbered. He had been fine if he was only against three but in his weakened state, he doubted he could fight that number. He was so starving and thirsty. The only edible stuff he had were consumed yesterday. He was out of drinks since this morning.  

Shoot. Why did everything take such a bad turn? If only he could do something to change all these happening around him. But his Papa had warned him not to use that 'thing' and never to take it out. If anyone were to find out, they would try to steal it. He sure was tempted to use it now but he was scared at the same time. What if something even worse were to happen? His Papa had told him TIME is a fickle thing that he should not play with. But he was desperate now.  

When he heard those footsteps were at least some miles away, he slipped out of the dark alley and into a hidden doorway. As he entered, a foul and nasty smell wafted into his nostrils. The smell of fresh blood. Fear gripped him. No, it can't be!  

There he saw, a lifeless figure lying on the ground with glassy brown eyes by the cupboard. The sign of life gone from his body. NO! Someone must have came in while he was out. He rushed towards the frail and lithe frame of his Papa and shook him, trying to wake him and hoping that this was all just a dream.  

No, they can't just take his Papa away. The only person he could trusted his life with. Gone! He was gone. The reality sank into him and he sobbed, craddling himself while clutching his Papa's shirt like a child that he was. His Papa was the only reason he was living now. Now that his reason had just left, he felt like he could jump off the cliff so that he could meet both of his parents in the afterlife.  

But his mind knew better than his heart. He must continue living and appreciate the life that his Papa and Daddy gave him. Especially his Papa, who carried him in his womb for nine months and then cared for him for the next fifteen years, making sure that he knew what love meant. His Daddy was dead before he was born. He had no idea how he looked like or how his personality was but his Papa would always say that he was a miniature version of his Daddy. After his Daddy's death, his Papa had went into hiding, trying to raise him as best as he could.

All those moments, he would treasure forever. What to do now? Might as well, go find some food and water if he wanted to live a long life ahead.  

Sighing, he closed his Papa's eyes and wept for another hour until his tears had dried out. It hurts. No one was there for him anymore. Lonely. Please, if there was something he could do, he would turn back time and change everything. Even if it meant, he would not be reborn again.  

Wait...  

Hold on...  

What? Come again? Turn back time?

That's it! Why had he not thought of that. He fumbled with the necklace around his neck and stared at his Time Control. It was twinkling at him, seducing him to come and use it. He touched it lightly and shivered. The last time he used it was two years ago when he was almost killed. Well, after that incident, his Papa forbid him to go out by himself.

Today, he had disobeyed his father and went out, trying desperately to find some food for him and his Papa. His Papa had not eaten for far longer than him. To him, his child came first. If only, he had listened and stayed. His Papa might even be living now.  

There was not much time to waste. No one could stop him now. In his mind, he tried to find the strings of time. There, behind the neon lighted door, he found so many coloured strands; some straight, some tangled together and some coiled into weird shapes. He could see one of them that clearly looked like a bunny. Cute.  

He stepped carefully into the room, trying not to trip over some thick strands on the ground. Anyone who saw this would be totally confused and might not be able to get out. But to him, he knew what each and every strand meant.  

Now, to search for the strand which has a diameter of 0.20 mm and is white. That would take him to about 20 years back. He closed his eyes and focused. It was a little hard to find but it was there, sitting in a corner, waiting for him to go to it.  

He walked towards it and smiled for the first time in many years.  

"Hello. I'm my Papa's one and only Kungfu Panda Tao who would one day like to stroll by the beach with both of my parents. I thought I would never need you but I think it's time we put you into use. Take me into the past. Let's change the future. Because this life...is no longer meaningful to the both of us."  


To be continued...