Darin and Mira stood at the edge of a cliff. Below them was a deep canyon filled with glowing fog and floating rocks. In the middle of the canyon was a tower made of glass and gold. It sparkled like a star.
"That's it," Mira said. "The last Time Shard is inside."
Darin looked down. "How do we get there?"
Mira smiled and pulled out two small devices. "With these. Time-jumpers."
She gave one to Darin. They strapped them to their boots.
"Jump and think of the tower," she said.
Darin nodded. He took a deep breath—and jumped.
The air whooshed past him. The Time-jumper glowed, and in a flash, he appeared safely on a platform near the tower. Mira landed beside him.
They walked into the tower. Inside, everything was quiet. Lights floated around like fireflies, and the air felt warm and still.
"The shard is close," Mira whispered.
But just as they reached the center of the tower, the boy from the Broken City appeared.
"You again?" Darin said.
"My name is Kael," the boy said. "And I won't let you take the last shard."
He held out his hand. Time around them froze. Even the lights stopped moving.
Kael stepped forward. "I used to believe in the Clockmaker's Key too… until it took everything from me."
"I'm sorry," Darin said. "But breaking time won't fix anything."
Kael looked sad—but angry too. He threw a wave of power at them. Mira blocked it with her shield charm. Darin ran through the frozen time and reached the shard.
He touched it—and a bright light filled the tower.
Time unfroze. Kael stepped back, surprised.
"You… really did it," Kael said quietly. "All seven shards."
Darin looked at him. "We're trying to fix time for everyone. You can help."
Kael looked down. Then he disappeared in a blink, leaving only silence.
Mira placed the final shard into the key-shaped device they had carried since the beginning.
"It's ready," she said.
Darin looked at the key glowing in her hands.
"It's time," he said.
They stepped outside the tower. The sky above them began to glow.
The final journey was about to begin.