11:23am
Adunni sat cross-legged on the floor, surrounded by her father's old research notes, his handwriting faded but precise. The room was dimly lit, the scent of aged paper and ink filling the air. Across from her, Uncle Olamide flipped through another journal, muttering under his breath.
"We need to find Mirabel before it's too late," he said, his voice edged with urgency.
Adunni barely heard him. Her fingers traced over a particular passage in the journal, her pulse quickening as the realization sank in.
"Time avatars are not human."
She read the words over and over. Despite their ability to reproduce, they were not truly of this world. They were sentient beings, existing within a complex system—one that bound them together through something deeper than blood.
The Core.
Every time avatar had one. It was the heart of their abilities, the very thing that allowed them to freeze, reverse, and manipulate time. But what stunned her most was the revelation that all time avatars were linked—a hive mind of sorts.
"If I can tap into that connection," Adunni murmured, "I might be able to find Mirabel."
Uncle Olamide looked up. "What do you mean?"
She turned the journal around, pointing to a passage her father had written:
"The core of a time avatar is both their strength and their tether. Severing it means severing all ties to the others. Connection is the key—one can follow the link, trace its echoes, and locate another within the timeline."
Adunni's mind raced. Their mother, Aisha, had destroyed her own core to escape the Bureau's control, cutting herself off completely. That's why she had lost her powers. But Mirabel? Her core was still intact, still connected to the hive.
"Mirabel is stuck somewhere in time," Adunni said, standing abruptly. "She could be anywhere in the past, and she has no way of getting back."
Her uncle frowned. "Even if you can track her, what then? You don't have the ability to open a time rift."
"Not yet," Adunni said. "But if I can reach her through the Core, I might be able to guide her back—or at least figure out exactly where she is."
She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, focusing on the idea of the Core—the invisible network binding every time avatar. If she could reach through it, if she could feel Mirabel's presence, she could tear through the barriers of time itself.
But there was one problem.
If the Bureau sensed what she was doing… they might come for her.
___
Meanwhile, at the Bureau, Mirabel stood in the center of the council chamber, surrounded by stern-faced officials. Their voices overlapped as they listed the consequences of her actions.
Reports of her existence were surfacing across Nigeria and other parts of the world. Her name had even begun appearing in history books, marking her as the first teenage girl to fight against the colonial masters. That alone was a breach of the timeline—an anomaly they could not ignore. But there was something even more troubling: how had she managed to freeze time?
Only Time Avatars and Bureau agents were capable of such a feat. Yet, Mirabel had done it without training, without awareness. When confronted, she could only shake her head. "I didn't even know I could do that," she admitted.
The Bureau dug deeper. What they uncovered made no sense—she had been born in the past but somehow raised in the present. That should have been impossible. And yet, she had created a rift, a time portal linking both eras.
"How did you do it?" one of the council members demanded.
"I don't know," Mirabel insisted. "I swear, I don't know anything about it."
Her plea fell on deaf ears. The decision was swift.
She and Elliot were locked up once again. But this time, the punishment was harsher.
"We will erase Elliot's memory," one of the officials declared. "He will be returned to his rightful place in time. The past will be restored."
Mirabel stiffened. "What?"
"But you," the official continued, his gaze settling on her, "you are still an anomaly. You will remain here… until we understand what you are."
The cell door slammed shut.
Here's a continuation with Mirabel and Elliot's escape, their arrival in 1994, and how Adunni's search unfolds:
---
The Escape
Mirabel sat on the cold floor of her cell, her wrists sore from the restraints. Across from her, Elliot paced restlessly. They had little time before the Bureau erased his memory and sent him back to the past.
"We have to get out of here," Elliot muttered.
Mirabel exhaled sharply. "You think I don't know that?"
The Bureau's security was airtight. No one left unless they allowed it. But Mirabel wasn't just anyone—she had done something impossible. She had frozen time before. If she could do it again…
She closed her eyes, searching within herself, reaching for that strange energy she had felt when she first stopped time.
A spark ignited.
Everything around them slowed—the flickering lights, the hum of the security field, even the faint footsteps of guards patrolling the halls.
Elliot's eyes widened. "You did it!"
"Not for long," she said through gritted teeth. The strain was immense.
They bolted. Rushing through the corridors, they passed frozen guards, the alarms trapped in silence. Mirabel didn't know how long she could hold this.
Then she felt it—the moment slipping, time preparing to lurch forward again.
"Hold on!" she gasped, grabbing Elliot's hand.
She didn't think. She just jumped.
The world twisted around them, colors bleeding into each other. It felt like being pulled through a vortex, time unraveling and reweaving itself. Then, suddenly—
They hit the ground.
---
1994: A New Time
Mirabel groaned, rubbing her head as she sat up. The air was different. The world was different. No more sterile Bureau walls—just the smell of dust and gasoline.
They were in the middle of a busy street. Cars honked, people yelled, and a billboard nearby advertised a concert from an artist Mirabel barely recognized.
"Where… are we?" Elliot asked.
Mirabel's breath caught as she spotted a newspaper stand. She scrambled over, grabbing a copy.
The date read: April 12, 1994.
"Oh, this is bad," she whispered.
They had escaped, but not to the present. They were stuck in the past—again.
And worse, the Bureau would not stop hunting them.
High above the city, in a place untouched by mortal eyes, two figures stood in the folds of time itself.
"They escaped," one said, their voice laced with amusement.
The other nodded. "The Bureau is furious. They want them retrieved immediately."
The first figure smirked. "Then let's not keep them waiting."
With a flick of their hands, time bent, and they vanished—heading straight for 1994.
Back in 2024, Adunni sat cross-legged on the floor, her hands pressed to the old journal. She had been trying to connect to the Core for hours, but it was like reaching for something just out of grasp.
Then, suddenly—a flicker.
A pulse of energy rippled through her, like a distant echo.
"I found her!" she gasped.
Olamide rushed over. "Where? Where is she?"
Adunni squeezed her eyes shut, focusing harder. The connection was weak, distorted. But there was no doubt—Mirabel had jumped, but not to the present.
"She's in the past," Adunni whispered. "1994."
Olamide's expression darkened. "Then we need to find a way to get her before the Bureau does."
Because if Mirabel was in 1994, it wouldn't be long before the time avatars hunting her arrived too.
And this time… they wouldn't let her escape.
Elliot fidgeted with his oversized shirt, his eyes darting around as they walked down the busy street. Cars whooshed by, their designs unlike anything he had ever seen. Neon signs flickered overhead, and a loudspeaker blared music that made no sense to him.
"This… this world is unnatural," he whispered to Mirabel.
She sighed. "Yeah, well, welcome to 1994."
"I feel sick," Eliot muttered.
Mirabel grabbed his arm, steadying him. "You can't act weird, okay? People are going to notice."
Elliot took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. But then he saw something that made his heart lurch—a woman wearing pants.
His eyes widened in horror. "Women dress like men?"
Mirabel groaned. "Oh boy. We really need to get you up to speed."
She pulled him into a nearby diner, where the smell of coffee and fried food filled the air. It seemed like a good place to lay low.
But as they slid into a booth, Mirabel felt it.
That eerie sensation—the feeling of being watched.
The time avatars had arrived.
The Hunters Close In
Outside the diner, the two time avatars scanned the crowd.
"She's near," one murmured.
The other smiled. "Let's see how long she can hide."
They stepped forward, their presence subtly warping the air around them. The hunt had begun.
Back in 2024, Adunni sat cross-legged on the floor, sweat beading on her forehead. The more she reached for Mirabel through the Core, the more resistance she felt.
The Bureau was pushing back.
"I need something stronger," she muttered.
Olamide flipped through her father's research. "There might be a way to boost the connection, but it's risky."
Adunni wiped her brow. "Tell me."
Olamide hesitated. "You'd have to tap directly into your own Core. And if you push too far…"
"I don't care," Adunni said. "I have to find her before the Bureau does."
She closed her eyes and focused, pushing deeper into the network of time avatars.
Then, suddenly—
A flash. A vision.
Mirabel. A diner. A neon sign reading "Jerry's 24-Hour Grill."
Adunni gasped, snapping back to reality.
"I found her!" she shouted.