The Break

"Where have you been for four days?"
"I was having a break."
"But why?"
"Wouldn't you like to know?"
"Well yes, I would. That's kind of why I asked."
The statement hung in the air like a bad fart.

Escape part nine

The darkness was lit up, brighter than anything he'd ever seen before and he closed his eyes.
"Why is this here?"
He recognised the voice. It was Dr Devorian, the man who had made the watch.
The man opened his eyes, but it was too bright to see anything.
"How peculiar," said the doctor.
The light disappeared and he was plunged into darkness again. He then felt like he was being lifted and then felt like he was falling. It was like being inside a washing machine, he thought, although he remained standing.
Dr Devorian picked the watch from the table, dropped it into his pocket and left the lab.

Escape part eight

He pressed the buttons on his watch and departed from the road.
He experienced the flash of light and then it was dark, pitch dark.
He was lying on the ground, but it didn't feel like the ground. It was both hard and soft at the same time, like no material he'd ever touched. It was so dark he couldn't see a single thing. He looked at his watch. Or tried to. He couldn't see the display. Had it died?
He stood and tried to walk. He couldn't.
He opened his mouth and tried to shout. He couldn't.

Escape part seven

His vision adjusted quickly.
Cars.
Cars?
Why were there cars beneath him?
He slammed into the road and heard a mass of horns and screeching rubber.
He expected to be hit and covered his head with his hands, as if that would somehow stop his head being crushed like a walnut. His eyes were tight shut, braced for a fatal impact.
A car door slammed shut and he opened his eyes. He saw a pair of boots walking towards him.
The voice of the owner of the boots said something incomprehensible too him.
A woman appeared who said something similar.
What language were they speaking?
Where was he?

Escape part six

The warriors shielded their eyes from the bright flash from the top of the tree and the man vanished once more.
He was appearing in another bright flash of light and felt himself falling. He guessed there was no tree there in his own time.
As he fell he saw the mass of colour moving below him. Something wasn't right.

Escape part five

They were getting close, very close. He had climbed the tree, but there was no way he could stay out of sight where he was - they weren't stupid.
He needed to go right away, but he wasn't sure it was safe. The field was still a field in his own time, but the trees were a different matter. Some had grown a lot and some had been cut down. How would that affect his re-entry?
"There he is!"
A warrior was at the bottom of the tree staring up at him.
It was now or never.
He pressed the buttons.

Escape part four

He sat beneath a tree with the watch in his hand. He couldn't figure out what was wrong with it.
There was only one avenue left to explore, a reboot.
He removed a penknife from his pocket and began loosening the tiny screws on the underside of the watch. He removed the cover and took out the battery.
He wasn't sure how long to leave it, but he counted to thirty in his head before putting the battery back in place and reassembling the watch.
He could hear the warriors returning.