The Watcher took a step back and held out her arm, hand opened and angled towards Des. Gripping Rachel’s wrist, the dreamer was helped to a stand on a floor that colorfully pulsated. The bed she was lying on vanished behind her, and her surroundings flickered like a hologram. The colors reminded the red-streaked blonde of gasoline and oil spots in a parking lot after a rain storm with a greasy, rainbow-like hue.

“Holy shit.” Des looked around the area in awe of what she was witnessing.

As her glance landed on Rachel, she noticed the Watcher seemed more human than in their earlier encounters. In the dreamspace, she appeared differently from their previous meeting at the gas station and the time before when Des nearly crashed her bike during a joyride. The woman’s irises were an alluring shade of green, perfectly complimenting her skin tone and olive-shaped eyes. She looked as if she were closer to Des’s age and not some ageless demigod. The time traveler recalled when she was younger, hopping around observing moments in her moms’ lives. Rachel’s face looked similarly to how it did before she went missing several month prior to her younger mother returning to Arcadia Bay.

“Let me just…” Rachel waved her hand from right to left, out in front of her face. “There. I know you’ve never been here, but it always seemed to calm your mom’s nerves.” Four walls and a ceiling came into view. Exposed wooden beams lined the violet tinged ceiling with what appeared to be a starfield of tiny lights peppering the room. A larger amber-tinted star hung on the wall just over a cork board with a variety of items tacked to the front.

“Where are we?” Des groggily asked, looking into Rachel’s eyes.

“It’s interesting that you can see me right away. Max and Chloe had to adjust their perceptions before I became visible the first time. Anyway, this is a damn near perfect replica of my old bedroom at my parents’ house.” The former actor stood tall, placing a hand on her hip and shifting her weight until one was pushed outward a bit. She scanned the room, a pleased pride-filled smirk materialized on her face because of what she had crafted. The biker always thought Rachel was a bit cocky, if overly confident. She still hesitated when around her, not fully trusting the Watcher, even if her moms had complete faith in her.

“It looks… purple,” Des responded matter-of-factly, a monotoned, almost irritated, pitch to her voice.

“Do you like it?” Rachel asked, seeming to genuinely seek the girl’s opinion.

“Listen, Rachel. I gotta be honest with you. Being here sorta gives me the creeps. I’ve had an emotional night, which, funny enough, makes me feel like being brutally honest. If I piss you off, well… sorry about it.” She pressed her lips with a slight frown then rolled her eyes.

“I know you don’t trust me, Des. Even though I’ve always loved you and your moms, you still can’t find it in your heart to believe in me.”

“I mean… you probably know this, but, I traveled back and watched you take my mom for granted when you were teens. I can’t unsee what you did to her, Rachel. Her mental health was fucked for years because of you. I know she thought you were her angel and shit because she needed someone, and you were, like… there. But I think she’d have been better off without you around. Just being honest. Her friend Steph took her to Pride and was better to her than you ever were; she actually respected my mom.” Des stopped and took an airy breath. “Thankfully, Max came back and helped her heal. You know, her REAL angel.” She didn’t realize how badly she needed to say those words. It felt like the weight of a hundred lifetimes had been lifted.

“Ouch,” gulped Rachel. “I deserve that, and I think it’s great you’re getting your emotions out, because we have much bigger fish to fry. But, to be fair, I was trying to find my way too, and if everyone were judged based on the mistakes they made as kids, we’d all be fucked. So, come on. Go ahead and say what you need to say. Let’s clear the air. It’ll be good for both of us.”

Des sighed. “Actually, that’s all. I’m done talking about it. I know you started helping them after the storm because you cared and wanted to atone for your shit. You care about all of us. I believe that’s true. But now you’re the Watcher and can see pasts and futures through all of time, it’s tough to understand your motivation. Even right this second, what I’m saying… you knew the probability of this exact combination of words I’m using, right?”

“Nope,” Rachel quickly replied, slouching and crossing her arms in front of her chest. “I can’t see anything outside of time, and dreams aren’t bound by those same rules. I figured you’d have known that by now. Regardless, the choice I made was to bring you here. I can only see the possible outcomes of our interactions. Most of the time, anyway.” She stopped and glanced around the room, apparently admiring her handiwork once more. “Speaking of time, what I was trying to tell you before I had to leave earlier involves the omniverse. There’s a lot I’ve recently come to understand that might blow your mind. We have some work to do; it’s why I contacted you in the first place.”

Des strolled around the room in contemplation, examining the details of Rachel’s dreamspace creation. “This actually is a pretty space you’ve created. Okay, fine. I’ll bite. What’s the omniverse?”

“Before I tell you what I know, you need to understand that this info will change things. It’s a pretty big deal.”

“Rachel, I literally pulled the multiverse back into one prime reality. I think I can handle whatever it is you’re gonna say.” Des held her chin up and shoulders back.

The Watcher’s downcast eyes sent a shiver through Des’s body, causing the girl to shift her weight and clasp her hands over her head. Rachel waved her arm and a bed appeared in the spot where the sleeping girl became conscious in the dreamspace. “Let’s sit. We have to be on the same page going forward.”

The time traveler nodded and sat on the edge of the bed, legs dangling beneath. She was joined by her mothers’ friend who didn’t leave much space between the pair. Rachel shoulder bumped the girl beside her as an obvious attempt to lighten the mood.

“So,” the Watcher began, “the omniverse exists as a trinity of sort. I previously believed our universe made up everything that existed, with branching potential timelines and the formerly shattered multiverse you put back together. I took a peak under the forbidden veil that separates my realm from time, and I caught a glimpse of something I never expected. I mean, I knew I wasn’t supposed to even look, but… well, I’m a curious kitten.”

Rachel arched her back and nodded. “What I saw changed things, Des. Like spokes on a wheel, there are three universes that make up the omniverse. Somewhere below, in the middle, something I can’t see, holds it all together; or at least makes sure it doesn’t fall apart. Whatever it is, it’s in danger. There are no words to accurately describe what I saw, but I know if the center fails, all three realities will crumble until all of existence is wiped out. The light would be snuffed away and all that would remain is darkness.”

“Yikes, Rachel,” the girl with a red streak in her bangs whinged. “That’s like… outrageous. It’s hard to wrap my noodle around that shit.”

“Yeah, I know. If I hadn’t seen it myself…”

“So, like, do the other two have their own Watchers?”

“Actually… yes. It was weird, though. When I looked beyond the veil, I could feel them. They seemed aloof and more like the one that was here in our universe before me. It was as if they were just going through an emotionless, thoughtless process without any concern.” Rachel stood and took a couple of steps away from the bed. She turned back, looking at Des without a word.

“What about…?” The girl hesitated, not knowing if she wanted to ask the question that was on the tip of her tongue. Des was nervous about the answer she thought she might receive.

“Go ahead and ask. You need to know.” The Watcher acted like she knew what was passing through Des’s mind.

“So, do the other universes… have… ya know… another me?”

The Watcher giggled after Des’s question. It was interesting to hear and see her respond not like a robot but as someone with real human reactions and emotions. Rachel assertively hopped down from the bed, dramatically swinging her arms.

“There are none like you, Des. That’s why you’re perfect, and it’s why you have to leave your timeline and come back with me to my realm. I know you want to help your moms, but if we don’t figure out how to fix things, they’re doomed anyway; we all are.” She held her hand out towards Des, who quickly grabbed hold and stood from the bed.

“Do you really think I can travel around the omniverse? I dunno if I can do that, Rachel. It feels too far away; like a concept I don’t know how to see. When I travel, I can almost envision the place I’m going before I even begin. I used to glitch around, and I was almost lost several times before I learned how to control it. What if I fuck up?”

“Unfortunately, we have to push you to your limit; see what you can do. Perhaps if you try from my realm, it’ll be different. Maybe you’ll be able to do things you’ve never done before.” The Watcher paused and stepped towards Des, throwing an arm around her neck and pivoting into a side hug. “You need to travel to my area right away. I know it’ll sound counterintuitive, but we don’t have much time to spare.” Rachel playfully laid her head on Des’s shoulder, twisting a strand of the girl’s hair in her fingers. “Buuuuut… we have a new problem, don’t we?”

“A new problem?” Des furrowed her brow. Even though she knew it was a platonic gesture, she felt uncomfortable being in the Watcher’s embrace.

“Yep,” the former actress beamed. “Think about it. There’s a group who can detect time travel, and you’re going to use your power right when you wake up. What do you think they’ll do when they plot your location?”

“Oh no! Pearl.” A plea of desperation passed through her lips. She felt her heart sink in her chest like an anchor being tossed in the ocean.

“Yeah, unfortunately. By the way, you two are so cute.”

Des pushed away and turned back towards Rachel. “They’ll come to her apartment looking for me. Fuck, Rachel! I can’t leave her there.”

“I know. With a 98% probability, if you just flat out leave her, they will track your power back to her apartment and kill her.”

“Goddamnit!”

“But, Des, you have options.” The Watcher softened her voice. “You could wake up and tell her to get far away from the apartment immediately. You’ll have a 25% chance of successfully convincing her to leave with only a few undesirable consequences. In most all other cases, she’ll lose trust in you and be left thoroughly confused. But that’s not really the bad part. They’ll still go to her apartment and wait for her to get home. When she eventually does, they’ll try and use her to get to you. Torture and other tactics will be used, finally they’ll dispose of her if you don’t come back.”

“Cut the shit, Rachel. Tell me what I need to do for the best percentage of ensuring her safety. Even if she hates me later. I need to know she’s safe. She has to be okay no matter what.”

“Aww, Des. She’s in love with you, you know.”

“Me too, Rachel.”

“Then there’s only one option.” The Watcher slightly curtsied before continuing. “Bring her with you.” A toothy grin brightened the woman’s young-looking face.

“Wait, what?”

“Yep. In 100% of all outcomes, bringing Pearl along will ensure the zealots never hurt her. I have a sneaking suspicion that she’ll grow to actually enjoy the adventure. She’s quite special, Des. Maybe more than you even know yet.”

“She is.” Des bobbed her head up and down, a slight grin curling the corners of her lips.

“Listen carefully. I am unable to see the future beyond certain points. It all fades to static afterwards, Des. I think that means I have some sort of decision to make that I don’t understand.”

“What decision?” the girl implored, shooting a soured glance towards the Watcher.

“It doesn’t matter. It’ll be mine to make. You just have to keep making your own choices and believe in me; that I’ll make the best ones with the most desirable outcomes.”

“Desirable for who, Rachel?” Des narrowed her eyelids through a sideways stare.

“For everyone, of course. It’s my obligation to our universe. I take my role very seriously. Just know, Des, that I have no idea how this all will end. It’s outside of my view.”

The dreamer turned her back to the center of the room and casually walked over to the wall. She looked up at the glowing star, thinking about her current circumstances. Everything seemed to be coming to a head as she contemplated her decision.

“I feel like you’ve been avoiding something. Tell me… are my moms safe?”

“Not yet, I’m afraid.”

“Will they be okay, Rachel? Please! I can handle it.”

The Watcher swallowed hard. “I-I don’t know.”

“Give me the odds! I deserve at least that.” A distressed inflection plagued her words.

“Fine. With an 85% certainty, no matter what you do, one or both of them will die.”

“Fuuuuuck!”

“Yeah. Hold on to hope, though. The other 15% comes into play if you leave them alone. They have to work through this by themselves.”

A slight stinging reaction was beginning to burn the time traveler’s eyes. She forced back the threatening tears and shook away her fear. “It looks like we have a lot to do. Let’s get to work.”

“…3!”

Like a camera being adjusted into focus, the room’s details became sharper and clear. Max reached for her head with a grimace, rope-like restraints stopping her from fully raising her hands.

“Ouch,” she mouthed to herself. A splitting pain splintered outward from her forehead and made its way through her upper body. She tasted the iron-like, metallic residue of blood and could see a dark trail of crimson leading from the spot of the pistol impact down her nose.

The early morning’s light outlined the window in her room, spilling in from around the new curtains Chloe picked out a week prior. The door was standing wide open like it had been forgotten about during some sort of hastened exit. Sounds of commotion drifted in from another room, and Max suddenly remembered the plan they devised in the mindspace.

“Now, Max! Do it!” Her wife’s voice abruptly boomed from down the hallway, supplying the brunette with a renewed vigor.

“Oh, shit…” Max lifted her hand as high as she could and located the sweet spot in her mind. Surprisingly, it was easy to find and readily available, unlike before when Esther had blocked her power. She carefully pressed it in, volitionally controlling the pulse like holding a cupped handful of water, not allowing even a drip to escape through the cracks. Everything froze. She had gripped time itself like a pincer, temporarily holding it in her grasp.

Skimming the room, Max noticed a tiny, yet bright, indicator light glaring from the handheld device Esther was previously using. The zealot must’ve placed it on their dresser when she left the room to investigate whatever Chloe did to draw her attention.

Max recalled the version of herself that saved her significant other from death row, and knew exactly what to do. The memory of a heavily vibrating vortex of spinning spirals engulfed her thoughts like a flame tossed to gasoline. Through the frozen moment, the captive focused her power on the device. Jumping past the phases of her rewind, she opened a twisting, horizontal column the size of a basketball beside the device.

She felt a trickle of warm liquid sliding down from above her lip, but she couldn’t concern herself with a nosebleed.

“Max, I love you. You got this.”

She could somehow hear her wife’s words of encouragement in her head, and she knew everything would soon be okay.

“I love you too, babe,” Max whispered aloud.

The horizontal column began to stir up a breeze in the room, even though everything else remained still. In a flash, the device floated in the air and was sucked into the miniature wormhole like a vacuum, vanishing from sight. Max plugged the pulse and the spiraled vortex dissipated.

Time resumed its normal pace, but Max didn’t allow it to stay that way for long. She feared Chloe’s distraction might get her killed and didn’t want to risk it. The brunette slowly rewound again and chose the best moment to stop.

Max lowered her head and tucked her chin to her chest so it would appear like she was still unconscious. She noticed Esther was standing with her back turned to her hostage, talking on her cell. Max stretched her hand out and shoved it into the girl’s back pocket, where an object had created an obvious bulge. She pulled it back out with the item in hand before Esther could react. Hiding it in her palm, Max quickly rewound again to the same spot she had before. This time, she let Esther finish her call and walk a few paces away.

“Des! NOOO!” Chloe’s raised voice could easily be heard through the bedroom walls. “Get away from here!!”

The distraction Chloe created worked well, as the black-haired girl ran out, leaving the door ajar behind her. Max opened her hand and a tiny knife, with Esther’s name engraved in the side, rested in the larger crease of her palm. She used it to cut herself free then rewound once more. She froze time in position prior to the moment Chloe faked seeing their daughter. As quickly as she could, Max removed Esther’s gun from her pocket and tied her up in the chair she was previously bound to.

Moving from their room to where Chloe was being held, Max freed her wife then forced the pair to the kitchen.

Fatigue was setting in from carrying her best friend’s weight and the pressure from using her power for an extended period of time. But Max pushed forward, refusing to give in.

She located her car keys and her old messenger bag, obtained their phones, and made their way to the garage. Remembering that the black car the zealot’s arrived in was parked behind the right garage door, Max decided to take the SUV that was parked in the left side. She placed Chloe in the passenger’s seat and buckled her in. Once she, herself, was buckled too, the driver released her grip on time and pressed the garage door button to open it.

Max noticed Chloe looking around. She grinned and clapped her hands. “Holy shit, it worked! You did it, Max! Fuck. There’s blood all over your face.”

“Uh huh.” The driver quickly cranked the vehicle and threw the gearshift into reverse. As soon as the garage door was raised, Max floored the gas pedal and squealed out of the driveway, shifting into ‘drive’ when they made it to the road.

Chloe held two middle fingers in the air directed towards the couple’s house. “Fuck yoooouuu!” she hollered as they escaped and sped away.