At dusk, I returned to the lighthouse alone, my heart filled with conflicting emotions. The scene at the café and Mr. Fisher's words about guardians having to sacrifice personal happiness kept replaying in my mind. Perhaps this was my destined path—to come to the past, repair the time fracture, and then leave alone, allowing Jack to continue his life in this era, possibly with Elizabeth White.
The lighthouse door was ajar, with warm light shining from within. I pushed it open to find Jack at the workbench on the middle level, intently studying a pile of documents and charts. Hearing my footsteps, he immediately looked up, a clear sense of relief flashing in his eyes.
'Ella, you're finally back,' he said, his tone tinged with concern, 'Margaret told me you parted ways, I've been waiting for you.'
'Mr. Fisher knew some legends about the Time Guardians,' I replied briefly, trying to hide my unease, 'How did your conversation with Elizabeth go?'
Jack's expression grew complex. He hesitated, then walked to a small table nearby and picked up a small wooden box.
'I think I owe you an explanation,' he said, handing me the box, 'about Elizabeth, and why she came to see me today.'
I carefully took the box and, opening it, found an intricate brass mechanical device inside. It looked like a component of some scientific instrument, with complex scales and symbols engraved on it.
'What is this?' I asked, puzzled.
'A key component of the time tracker,' Jack explained, 'A few months ago, I mentioned to Elizabeth the design of an ancient mechanical device, but I was missing a crucial part. Her father owns a precision mechanical factory in Boston, and she volunteered to help manufacture this component.'
He paused, looking directly into my eyes. 'Ella, it's no secret in town that Elizabeth has feelings for me. But I've never given her any promises or reciprocation. To me, she's just an old friend, someone who can help with my research.'
I felt an unreasonable sense of relief, but immediately reproached myself for being selfish. 'You don't need to explain anything to me,' I said softly, 'We both know I don't belong in this era, and whatever is between us... is destined to be brief.'
Jack's expression became determined. 'I don't believe that,' he said, his voice full of resolve, 'Since you appeared, I've felt hope for the first time—not just hope of defying fate, but of finding someone who truly understands me.'
He stepped closer, gently taking my hand. 'No matter how far time separates us, I believe our meeting wasn't just an accident of the time fracture, but some deeper connection.'
I wanted to object, to remind him of the practical difficulties we faced, but the words that came out were a simple question: 'So, what does this component do?'
Jack accepted this change of topic and led me to the workbench. 'This is the final piece of the puzzle to complete the time tracker,' he explained, 'With it, we can more precisely measure and predict the activities of the time fracture. More importantly, it might help us understand the specific rules of crossing.'
He began installing the new component into the device we had seen earlier in the locked room. As the last screw was tightened, the entire device lit up with a faint blue glow, remarkably similar to the light emitted by my pocket watch.
'Now, let's see what we can discover,' Jack said, adjusting various scales and pointers on the device.
We worked together for several hours, recording the device's readings, comparing them with data Jack had collected over the years, as well as the knowledge I brought from 2025. Gradually, a clearer picture began to emerge.
'Look here,' Jack pointed to a chart we had just completed, 'The time fracture's activity follows a distinct cycle. Whenever the lunar phase, tides, and specific meteorological conditions are satisfied simultaneously, the fracture becomes active.'
'That explains why I crossed over at that particular moment,' I pondered, 'But there are more factors. The pocket watch seems to be the key trigger, but a watch alone can't cross. It must be two paired watches existing simultaneously.'
Jack nodded, continuing the analysis. 'According to this data, the time fracture appears to have three states: dormant, active, and critical. Currently, the fracture is in an active state, but on 21st September, it will reach a critical point.'
'At the critical point, the boundaries between the two timeframes are thinnest,' I added, 'This should be the easiest moment to cross, but also the most dangerous.'
We continued our research, gradually summarising several core rules about the time fracture and crossing:
One, crossing requires specific conditions: paired watches, specific time points (related to lunar phases and tides), specific locations (the top of the lighthouse), and specific meteorological conditions (usually fog or storms).
Two, crossing is bidirectional but asymmetrical. It's easier to travel from the future to the past than from the past to the future, which explains why I could easily cross to 1925, while Jack's ancestors could only occasionally glimpse scenes from the future.
Three, each traveller can only stay for a limited time, usually one complete lunar cycle. Beyond this time, they either become trapped in the visited time period or are forcibly returned to their original time.
Four, crossing consumes the watch's energy. After each crossing, the watch needs time to 'recharge,' which explains why my grandmother couldn't immediately return to 1925 after crossing back.
Five, most importantly, the time fracture needs 'guardians' to maintain balance. If the fracture expands to a critical point without guardian intervention, the two timeframes could experience a catastrophic merger.
'According to these rules,' Jack said seriously, '21st September is the only opportunity for you to return to 2025. If you miss this time point, you might be trapped in 1925, for at least a hundred years.'
This realisation tightened my chest. Only four days remained until 21st September, and we still weren't clear about the specific cause of the lighthouse accident, or how to ensure Jack's safety while I returned to the future.
'There's another point,' Jack added, his tone becoming even more serious, 'The lighthouse accident and my "disappearance" in historical records may not be coincidental. I'm increasingly convinced that the accident is an inevitable result of the time fracture reaching its critical point.'
'Are you saying that no matter what we do, the accident will happen?' I asked, feeling a chill.
'Not necessarily, but very likely,' Jack answered, 'Unless we find a way to close or stabilise the fracture. And that might be the true mission of the "Time Guardians."'
I looked down at my pocket watch and Jack's notes, suddenly noticing a detail. 'Wait,' I said, turning to the page from Jack's great-grandfather's diary, 'It mentions that the day after the lighthouse accident, he found a note in your room saying "I found her." If you truly disappeared in the accident, how could you leave a note afterwards?'
Jack's eyes lit up. 'Unless... disappearance isn't the end, but another form of crossing?'
This idea plunged us both into deep thought. If Jack didn't die in the lighthouse accident but crossed to another time point, then we were facing not just the challenge of saving his life, but ensuring he went to the correct time point.
'There's another question,' I said thoughtfully, 'If I truly am a "Time Guardian," what is my duty? Is it merely to cross back to 2025, or do I need to do more to repair the fracture?'
Jack pondered for a moment, then took out the parchment with the 'Time Guardian' symbol—a line within a circle. 'This symbol might be the key. The circle represents the cycle of time, the line represents crossing or connection. Perhaps the guardian's duty isn't to break the cycle, but to ensure its completeness.'
Night had fallen, and the lighthouse beam rotated in the darkness, guiding distant ships. We stood by the window, watching this beam cut into the night, just as the time fracture cut into the calm reality.
'Whatever happens,' Jack said softly, holding my hand, 'we have four days. Four days to find more answers, four days to change destiny, four days to... be together.'
I gripped his hand tightly, feeling both fear of the unknown fate and a strange calmness. Whatever 21st September would bring, at least now we had more understanding, clearer direction, and each other's company.
The rules of the time fracture were clear, but how to protect our feelings while guarding time remained a question without an answer.