Running Out of Time (Tommy Timetraveler AU)

Chapter 2

"Isn't it weird that this collapsed?" Sapnap asked, kicking a rock down into the gaping hole. Karl knelt over the edge, his brown eyes peering into the sinkhole as he hummed in agreement. "It's Pogtopia, I think."

"Well, it had been abandoned for a while. Maybe some support beams finally gave in?" George said, crossing his arms as he himself looked down at the hole. He sighed out of annoyance. "It's gonna be annoying to fill in."

"Foolish will be annoyed, he just finished this place. Do you think it's wise to call him in for repairs?" Karl asked. George hummed, scratching his neck. "I mean, he's proud of his work, but not very patient."

"To think, Pogtopia was right under our kingdom, the whole time!" Sapnap muttered.

"Should we explore it?" Karl asked, tilting his head. He'd heard about Pogtopia, he never got to actually see the place though. He was curious now.

"Well, we could... but what if it collapses more?" George said. "It's dangerous, in my opinion."

"George is right, it could still be unstable. Maybe we should just leave it alone for right now." Sapnap added, a nervous smile forming on his lips. Karl pouted.

"But it could be fun!"

"But it's also dangerous." Sapnap shot back. He looked serious, meaning he was not going to reconsider Karl's proposition. "Please, Karl, give it a night. If there is anything still unstable, it'll collapse by then. In the morning I promise I'll help you explore."

His fiance sighed and nodded reluctantly. Sapnap bent down, pecking Karl on the cheek and leaving.

In truth, Karl didn't want to explore for the fun of it. He had been building a historical section in his library and this sinkhole had more historical books and documents than he could imagine, he guessed.

He sat down on the smooth stone that paved Kinoko Kingdom, staring at the abyss that was Pogtopia. Sapnap was right. Karl sighed, looking up. The stars above him shone, flickering softly and barely, like a billion candles. He smiled. He had always loved astronomy. He remembered sitting on the balcony of his house, listening to Quackity mutter the names of each constellation.

Karl shook his head of any thoughts of Quackity and looked back down at the sinkhole.

And he saw a piece of red cloth.

Ripped, barely soiled, snagged on a sharp piece of rock. He looked closer, reaching down and freeing it from its sharp prison. He immediately recognized it as cloth from a T-shirt.

"Tommy?" Karl mumbled. Was Tommy down there?

He looked back at Sapnap's house, biting his lip nervously. The lights inside it were off. If he were to go against his fiance's decision, now was the time to do it.

He inched toward the ravine, carefully finding his footing and lowering himself down, lower and lower until he reached the bottom. It was dark, the starry night above not reaching inside the ravine.

Taking a torch from his inventory, he thrust it forward, checking his surroundings.

A flash of gold beneath a pile of rocks, hidden in a large alcove that was once a room.

Karl got lucky.

⏳️

Settling Tommy on the mattress, Karl immediately got to work, examining the boy's limbs for any large injuries. Besides a few bruises and scratches, he found nothing.

He rolled up the right sleeve, the last limb he needed to check. A large cut ran up the boy's arm, starting at the palm and ending at Tommy's elbow. Karl sighed and reached down, tracing the cut-