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Part II:
Part II:
The Timekeeper
The Timekeeper
By Oleksiy Fesenko, KYIV
21 SEPTEMBER 2025
The two-dimensional maze
His victory was so easy it felt like cheating. The Ghost got what he wanted, but just as he was about to enjoy it, he got stuck. It was like he'd been floating through a big, open room and suddenly squeezed into a tight space between two walls. He found himself in a flat, gray world where everything was just a line, and his power was gone.
But the worst part was the time. It was broken. Sometimes it would just stop, and he'd be stuck watching all the bad things he had done, frozen in place. It was like a movie on a loop, showing all his mistakes. Then, just as suddenly, the movie would speed up, and he'd see years flash by, his big Tower crumbling away. He felt lost and helpless.
The Broken Clock
In this confusing place, the Ghost started to understand. He couldn't just boss time around anymore. He had to learn its rules. He noticed that every time the clock sped up or slowed down, it was like it was trying to tell him something. He realized his old ways had broken the clock, and the only way to escape was to fix it.
He stopped fighting the craziness. He let the clock move him, and with every spin, he learned. His old, blurry ghost-like shape started to change. It became sharp, like a straight line or an arrow. He wasn't a ghost anymore; he was a Time Arrow, and his purpose was to fix what he had broken. He realized the only way out was to go so fast he could shoot through the broken clock and into the real world. He had to use the broken parts of the clock to fix himself.
And then he heard it — a voice.
Tower (whispering, sly):
“You thought you ruled me. You thought height and stone made you master. But look at you now — only a shadow, only a crack in the glass.”
Ghost (hoarse):
“I can still see you. Your shell stands, proud and heavy. But I feel no weight myself. I see only lines, broken slices of time. It burns my eyes.”
Tower (mocking):
“That is your prison. Time slices you thin, thinner than paper. You wanted to bend it — now it bends you. Over and over, you watch yourself fail. You can never escape.”
Ghost (gathering strength):
“You laugh because you stand tall. But height is just an illusion. I became flat, yes — but in that flatness I found something you don’t understand. A direction. An arrow. And arrows are made to pierce walls like yours.”
The Tower shivered. For the first time, it had no clever answer.
The Ghost stopped resisting the broken clock. He let its twisted rhythm push him forward. His blurred form sharpened, collapsing into a single path. He wasn’t a ghost anymore. He was a Time Arrow.
The Final Arrow
When he finally escaped, it wasn't a calm ride. It was a fast, shocking break. He shot out into Rio, not as a blurry ghost, but as a fast, clean arrow.
Now he could see the world differently. He could see the past and the future all at once. He saw the cracks in the walls he had caused, but he also saw how they could be fixed. He saw the sadness in people's eyes, but he also saw their happiness waiting to happen.
His return wasn't just a physical thing; it was a new beginning. He had become a force of change, speeding up time where it was needed and slowing it down where it was broken. He was no longer a monster but a Timekeeper, a guide for the world. His Tower was no longer a symbol of his power, but a reminder of the lesson he learned: you can't just take from the world. You have to give back to it, too.
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