The Time Chronos Fixed a Broken Clock
It was a small thing.
A mortal clock.
Round.
Ticking.
Until it didn’t.
Orrin noticed first.
“…Mandy.”
“Yes?”
“The timekeeping device has ceased function.”
Mandy glanced over.
“Oh. Yeah, it does that sometimes.”
Orrin frowned.
“…Time should not ‘do that.’”
Pip leaned in close to the clock.
“…It has stopped breathing.”
“…It is not alive.”
“…It was.”
Chronos stood across the room.
Watching.
Quiet.
Pip tapped the glass.
Nothing.
He turned it sideways.
Still nothing.
“…It refuses to continue.”
Orrin reached for it.
“I will repair—”
Chronos stepped forward.
“…Allow me.”
Orrin froze.
“…No.”
Chronos tilted his head slightly.
“…It is a simple correction.”
“…It is a mortal device.”
“…Time is time.”
Orrin hesitated.
Just long enough.
Chronos looked at the clock.
That was all.
No movement.
No touch.
Just—
attention.
The air shifted.
Subtly.
Like a breath held too long.
Then released.
tick
The clock resumed.
Steady.
Perfect.
Pip gasped.
“…You spoke to it.”
Chronos said nothing.
Orrin stared at the clock.
Then leaned closer.
Listening.
tick… tick… tick…
He pulled out a smaller measuring device.
Compared.
Paused.
Compared again.
His expression changed.
“…Chronos.”
Chronos looked at him.
“…Yes.”
“This clock is no longer aligned.”
“…It is functional.”
“It is incorrect.”
Pip tilted his head.
“…It is ahead.”
Orrin nodded slowly.
“…Three seconds.”
Pip blinked.
“…Into the future?”
Chronos gave a faint smile.
“…Approximately.”
Orrin straightened.
“…You were told not to do that.”
“…It was inefficient as it was.”
“It was correct.”
“It was broken.”
“It was consistent.”
Chronos folded his hands behind his back.
“…Consistency is not always accuracy.”
Orrin closed his eyes.
“…In this archive, it is.”
A long pause.
Pip stared at the clock.
“…What happens in three seconds.”
Orrin answered immediately.
“…Nothing.”
Chronos said nothing.
Pip continued watching.
Waiting.
The clock ticked forward.
Three seconds ahead of everything else.
Always just slightly out of reach.
“…It knows first.”
Orrin turned the clock around.
Facing away.
“…It will not be used.”
Pip scribbled quickly.
Artifact Log — Temporal Deviation Device
• standard mortal clock
• previously nonfunctional
• now operates ahead of local time flow
• deviation measured at +3 seconds
He paused.
Then added:
Early warning system — classification possible
Orrin leaned over his shoulder.
“…Pip.”
“Yes?”
“Erase that conclusion.”
“…Noted.”
Across the room Chronos glanced at the clock once more.
“…It will correct itself.”
Orrin did not look at him.
“…It had better.”
A pause.
The clock ticked.
Three seconds early.
Always.
Then—
very briefly—
it skipped.
Just once.
Orrin’s head turned.
Slowly.
“…Chronos.”
Chronos was already looking at him.
“…Yes.”