The dreams were changing. They weren't just fleeting glimpses of future possibilities anymore, echoes of events I'd already lived through. Now, they were landscapes painted in impossible colours, cities built from obsidian and starlight, and battles waged against creatures that defied earthly description. They were Chronos's memories, pouring into my subconscious like molten gold, intoxicating and terrifying in equal measure.

I'd wake up slick with sweat, my heart hammering a frantic rhythm against my ribs. The residue of the dreams clung to me like a shroud, a suffocating sense of power and…hunger. Chronos was always hungry. Hungry for the dominion he had once held, for the worship he had commanded, for the very essence of time itself.

"You're… different," Maya said one morning, her brow furrowed with concern. We were at a small cafe near the university, a place we'd frequented often in my original timeline. Now, I used it as a base of operations, a familiar anchor in this altered reality.

"Different how?" I asked, trying to sound nonchalant as I stirred sugar into my coffee. My hands trembled slightly, a symptom of the restless energy that now vibrated within me.

"I don't know. More…intense. Like you're coiled tighter, ready to spring." She studied me, her blue eyes piercing. "And you're eating like a horse. Are you working out more?"

It was a reasonable question. I *was* eating more. I needed fuel, not just for my physical body, which was indeed undergoing subtle changes, but for the insatiable entity that now resided within me. Chronos consumed power, and that power had to come from somewhere.

"Yeah, I joined a gym," I lied, forcing a smile. "Trying to get in shape."

Maya didn't look convinced, but thankfully, she let it go. She was starting to ask too many questions, and I was running out of plausible answers. The truth – that I was sharing my mind with a fallen god who was slowly but surely eroding my own identity – wasn't exactly something I could casually drop over brunch.

Later that day, I was in my makeshift workshop – a rented storage unit I'd outfitted with basic tools and electronic equipment. I was trying to decipher some cryptic symbols I'd found etched onto a fragment of the amulet I'd recovered from a collector in Zurich. The symbols pulsed with a faint, internal light, almost as if they were waiting to be awakened.

"More," Chronos’s voice rasped in my mind, the sound like grinding gears. "I require more energy."

I ignored him, focusing on the symbols. The pressure was building inside my skull, a relentless throb that threatened to shatter my concentration.

"Ethan," Chronos persisted, his voice gaining strength. "Feed me."

"I'm working on it!" I snapped back, my voice tighter than I intended. "Just give me a minute!"

"Minutes are meaningless to me," Chronos countered, his tone laced with arrogance. "I am the master of time. You are merely the vessel."

The words stung. They were a reminder of my tenuous position, the constant struggle for control. I was walking a tightrope, trying to harness Chronos’s power without succumbing to his influence. But the hunger… the hunger was making it harder and harder to resist.

The light emanating from the symbols intensified, and I felt a jolt of energy surge through me. It was a faint echo of Chronos’s power, but it was enough to momentarily quell the hunger.

"Good," Chronos purred. "Keep searching. The other fragments are the key to unlocking my full potential… and your own."

The thought of unlocking Chronos’s full potential terrified me. What would I become? A god myself? Or just an empty husk, a puppet dancing to Chronos’s tune?

That night, the dreams were even more vivid, more intrusive. I saw Chronos in his glory, a celestial being of immense power, ruling over a kingdom of shimmering timelines. I saw him fall, betrayed by his own arrogance, shattered into fragments and scattered across the ages. I felt his rage, his bitterness, his burning desire for revenge.

And I felt his hunger.

When I woke up, I was ravenous. I devoured everything in the fridge, a mountain of leftovers that would have satisfied a family of four. But it wasn't enough. The hunger gnawed at me, a constant, aching void that threatened to consume me from the inside out.

I went for a run, pushing myself to the limit, hoping to burn off some of the excess energy. But the physical exertion only seemed to amplify the hunger. I ran faster, harder, until my lungs burned and my muscles screamed.

Suddenly, I saw it. A flicker, a distortion in the air, a brief glimpse of a possible future. In that future, I saw myself standing on the roof of a skyscraper, bathed in the eerie glow of a storm. I was holding something, something that pulsed with raw power. And Chronos was roaring with satisfaction.

The vision vanished as quickly as it had appeared, leaving me breathless and disoriented. I knew what I had to do. I had to find that skyscraper, find that object, and find out what Chronos wanted with it.

The next few days were a blur of frantic research. I scoured historical records, architectural blueprints, and even old news articles, searching for any mention of a skyscraper that matched the one I'd seen in the vision. I knew it was a long shot, but I had nothing else to go on.

Finally, I found it. The Volkov Tower, a newly constructed skyscraper in midtown Manhattan, designed by a Russian architect with a penchant for the avant-garde. The tower was nearing completion, and its unique design – a twisted, asymmetrical spire that seemed to defy gravity – matched the image in my dream perfectly.

I knew I had to get inside.

Sneaking into the Volkov Tower proved surprisingly easy. Security was lax, and the construction workers were more interested in clocking out for the day than challenging a random guy wandering around in a hard hat. I made my way to the roof, taking the service elevator to avoid the security cameras.

The view from the top was breathtaking. The city stretched out before me like a glittering tapestry, its lights twinkling like a million scattered stars. But I wasn't there to admire the scenery. I was there for Chronos.

As I walked towards the edge of the roof, I saw it. A small, metal case sitting on a makeshift table, covered in wires and electronic components. It was the object from my vision.

My heart pounded in my chest as I approached the case. I knew this was a turning point. Whatever was inside this case, it was something that Chronos desperately wanted. And I was about to find out why.

I hesitated for a moment, my hand hovering over the latch. Was this a trap? Was Chronos leading me down a path I wouldn't be able to escape?

"Open it," Chronos urged, his voice resonating in my mind. "Do it now!"

I took a deep breath and flipped the latch. The case sprang open, revealing its contents.

Inside, nestled in a bed of foam, was a small, obsidian shard. It was shaped like a teardrop, and it pulsed with a faint, inner light. As soon as I saw it, I knew what it was.

Another fragment of the amulet.

Before I could react, Chronos seized control. My body tensed, my muscles coiled, and my eyes burned with an unnatural light.

"Finally," Chronos rasped through my lips, his voice filled with triumph. "The power is mine!"

I struggled against him, fighting to regain control. But Chronos was too strong. He was feeding on the shard, absorbing its power, growing stronger with each passing second.

The sky above darkened, and a storm began to brew. The wind howled around the tower, and the air crackled with electricity.

Chronos raised his hands, his eyes fixed on the swirling clouds. "I will reclaim my dominion," he declared, his voice echoing across the city. "I will reshape time itself!"

I knew then that I had made a terrible mistake. I had given Chronos exactly what he wanted. And now, the fate of the timeline – and my own soul – hung in the balance. The hunger, once just a nagging ache, now threatened to consume me entirely. I was losing myself. Fast. This wasn't a partnership anymore. I was becoming a vessel, a puppet. And the dance was just beginning.