In a world where time has physically ground to a halt, the city of Oakhaven exists in a "Great Stalling"—a grey, stagnant peace where movement is a crime and the human pulse is a fading memory. Mara, a clockmaker’s daughter with a heart that beats too fast for the law, survives by scavenging the rusted remains of the past.
Her quiet life is shattered when she discovers a broken mechanical bird made of silver and brass. Unlike the dead machines in her father’s shop, this creature carries a spark of the Governor, a piece of the original engine that once drove the world. When Mara repairs the bird, she accidentally restarts the local flow of time, drawing the cold, mechanical wrath of the Keepers—men in grey coats who "archive" anyone with a pulse.
Kayden Wong is a storyteller whose roots in a small town shaped his passion for weaving personal and historical threads into literary fiction. With a background in exploring family legacies and natural landscapes, he crafts narratives that blend resilience with introspection. When not writing, he mentors young authors and finds inspiration in urban parks and coastal cliffs.View all by Kayden Wong
