"This darkness is nothing but a lack of light. Darkest before the dawn rise. The silence just the sound of night" 

The hour was growing late.

Thom's footsteps echoed off the cobblestones in the quiet night as he stole down the street towards the great ivory stone building ahead. The Society of Timekeeper's kept it in good knick, being that it was hundreds of years old and still looked remarkably fresh.

Thom paused in his mind briefly to wonder at it. In his last three years as a young Timekeeper, he had noticed that things concerned with keeping Time seemed to age slowly, if ever at all.

It felt like a lifetime ago when his grandfather had given him his Watch and the thing still looked brand new - although, it had morphed somewhat peculiarly over the years in colour and shape and instead of being pure black, now had a light cream band with a rustic face.

His mother had calmly explained that this was a known phenomenon with the Watches, as her fathers had been a dark green when he first received it from his father.

Thom looked down at it now. 11:45. He was right on Time. A familiar step fell in beside his in the darkness.

'Thom. Right on Time, mate,' a grin of crooked teeth came from the boyish face of his friend Artemis. 'You think Professor Lutwyche will start on Time tonight?'

'Good one, Artie. His Watch would surely crack right down the centre if he didn't, don't you think?'

'We could bet on it and see?' Artie grinned.

Thom knew his friend was merely joking. No Timekeeper would ever seriously wish for a cracked or broken Watch. It was against everything they had learned in the last three years in the Timekeeper's Society.

All those years of his childhood, Thom had wondered where his grandfather had mysteriously gone at all hours of the day and night. Only once he received his Watch did Thomas truly find out what went on in the Society. And with it, the responsibility of a new life, one where he attended classes at all times of the day and night. Time did not matter to the Society in that regard, Thomas had thought.

He looked up at it now, looming overhead in the darkness of the street; the dimness of the streetlight's dismal and eerie at this hour. Great ivory stones were covered with streaming green vines of Devil's Ivy down the front facade. Lights shone out from behind tall, shuttered windows. The two young men entered under the cover of the dark.

Thom had learnt in his first year that the buildings appeared and disappeared through history as Timekeeper's had need for them. This particular one had been around for a very long time, known as Norwood House, after an old famous Timekeeping family.

The inside was just as mesmerizing, the walls covered with portraits and bookshelves with books on any genre a budding Timekeeper might wish to learn about. Dramatically wide staircases led up towards countless floors where different rooms were used to attend classes.

Thom led the way up the eastern staircase as Artie puffed behind him. 'Do you think it's still in room 601?'

'My timetable said 601,' Thom shrugged, 'and considering it's been in this room for the last however many years I'm guessing there's been no change. Especially not with old Lutwyche overseeing things.'

The boys shared a grin and pushed up the last flight of stairs towards a polished mahogany door that had 601 stenciled in gold lettering. The room was filled with other young Timekeepers, seated neatly at a semi-circle of tables in front of a gruff looking silver-haired man. His silver-rimmed glasses covered his eyes which were cast downwards towards a pocket Watch, attached to a golden chain clipped to his jacket.

The boys quietly made for the available seats and after a minute or two of silence the man clipped the pocket Watch shut with a brisk click.

'Perfect! We may begin!' he said with a rough voice. 'Welcome back to your fourth year of Practicalities of Timekeeping. Good to see everyone was on Time. Let's not dilly-dally! Open your Timekeeper's Codex to page 594 and let's get started.'

There was a ruffle of pages as books were pulled out and the correct page was sought.

'Who can tell me about Helena Von Gren?' Professor Lutwyche leaned back against the desk and eyed the room. 'Anyone? Come on? Anyone, now! It's on the page right in front of you!'

A hand rose in the back row.

'Yes, Miss Norwood?' Lutwyche barked, with a wave of his hand. His gaze sharpened intently on the girl over the rim of his narrow glasses.

'Helena Von Gren was a Timekeeper in the early 1900's in Germany, who mastered the Art of Time Resetting.'

'Excellent. And Time Resetting is essentially what, Miss Norwood?'

'Time Travel, Professor Lutwyche,' the girl responded.

'Correct.' The professor nodded curtly and surveyed the rest of the room. 'Everyone pay a welcome to Miss Norwood, who has joined us from Farcroft House in London, to finish the remainder of her Timekeeping studies. Some of you may register the familiarity of her surname.'

Thom, like others in the room, turned to survey the newcomer. The girl returned his gaze. He saw a rounded face with blonde wavy hair cut short around her shoulders and light almond skin.

Artie whispered quietly in his ear from the seat next to him. 'Norwood? As in Norwood House?'

Thom shrugged in reply and looked at his friend. He went to mutter a reply, but was cut off.

'Alright, enough chatter!' Lutwyche clapped his hands together sharply and the young scholars quickly turned their attentions back to the front of the room. He stepped towards a chalkboard and wrote in large letters the name Helena Von Gren.

'Timekeeper Von Gren!' the professor continued. 'She was a brilliant spark of her Time. She became so exceptionally skillful at Resetting her Watch and moving through Time, that she averted many disasters or deaths in history from reoccurring. The Great Firebombing of Amsterdam where thousands perished. The Tsunami that put Hokkaidō underwater in the 1920's and killed over a hundred thousand. The World War Three debacle and her assistance with the formation of the United Nations in 1945, much to the contrary of public belief that it was founded after World War Two. Timekeeper Von Gren really founded it before World War Three could reoccur.

My point with all of this, of course, is that great things can be accomplished by a Timekeeper with adept or masterful abilities in Resetting their Watch. We haven't had a Timekeeper in this society as good at it since! Not to say that bad things don't occur with those that are not up to the skill. Has anyone heard of Karson Able?'

Artie's hand rose in the air. 'Professor, isn't that the fellow that tried to Reset and ended up with half his body staying behind?'

There were sniggers throughout  the room. Professor Lutwyche looked thunderous. 'This is no laughing matter! Mastery of Resetting ones Watch and moving between Time is an incredibly difficult skill to learn let alone become mildly adept at. I highly doubt any person in this classroom will ever accomplish the task of even a single Reset!'

The professor took a calming breath. 'Karson Able left his upper body in 1975 and his legs travelled to 1947 where quite shockingly, I would imagine, the Timekeeper's found him. You must understand the Theory of this skill only. The practical aspect will not be undertaken in this lesson.'

There were a few low groans of disappointment that came from the back of the room. 'However,' the professor continued, 'I am rather certain that a demonstration can be of practical use to you.'

Professor Lutwyche brought his left arm up to his pocket-Watch and fiddled for a moment, staring intently.

Then in under an instant the air around him seemed to vacuum and he was sucked up into the invisible air in a rapid spin.

The class gasped in wonder. One or two stood up from their chairs in surprise.

Then a familiar voice came from behind them.

'Now, can you see how this would be a useful skill for a Timekeeper?' said Lutwyche, from where he sat neatly perched on the window ledge behind them.