Timebreak

The story begins with the disappearance of Benjamin in 2026 during his work on a project involving London's Post Office and an old underground railway. His sister Gabby and friends Peter and Freddie investigate, discovering an abandoned underground platform. Exposure to a mysterious gas transports them 230 years into the future, to 2256, where London is a silent, controlled city divided by social class and ruled by the Crown under President Hans Draggor.
The city is patrolled by humanoid robots, and the working class lives under strict surveillance. The trio encounters resistance fighters led by Hep, a deformed but intelligent leader, who reveals Benjamin is alive and working within the resistance to sabotage the Crown's humanoid enforcers. The Crown came to power through a coup that overthrew the previous leader, Rifton Du Pont, establishing a world federation governed by an elite few.
The regime enforces rigid social stratification, forced sterilisation, restricted education, and pervasive surveillance using advanced technology. The resistance, led by figures such as Hep and political prisoner Raffel Zabor, seeks to overthrow this tyranny. Their plans include daring missions to rescue prisoners like Zabor and disrupt the Crown's control systems. Benjamin plays a crucial role in these efforts, using his technical skills to sabotage humanoid production and security systems.
The resistance undertakes several high-risk operations, including infiltrating Fort Island to rescue Zabor and Freddie. Peter, Pearle, and Rex lead these missions, navigating dangers such as hostile humanoids, mutated creatures called Gargrons, and strict security patrols. Zammit, leader of sentient deformed humanoids living in the forest, allies with the resistance to create diversions by flooding the fort to facilitate the prisoners' escape.
Parallel sabotage efforts in humanoid factories by Benjamin and his comrades successfully disrupt the Crown's security forces, though they heighten Crown vigilance. The resistance focuses on acquiring and utilising advanced technology to gain an upper hand. They plan to seize control of Trakliners-advanced flying crafts-and floaters to enhance mobility and launch attacks. A reconnaissance mission led by Peter, including Pearle and Benjamin, successfully infiltrates the Trakliner depot, downloads critical data, and escapes despite the capture of one member, Shinto.
Meanwhile, Elara leads a separate reconnaissance into the Crown's administrative centre, Tehidy House, but her team is captured and sentenced to forced labour on Fort Island, underscoring the high stakes of their struggle. Elara and her team endure harsh conditions on Fort Island but maintain hope and continue resistance efforts. They emphasise recruiting skilled pilots for Trakliners and disabling Crown surveillance devices such as spinners and dazzelers.
Within the Crown's hierarchy, Spreen, a high-ranking official, experiences tension with Draggor over recent resistance successes. Secretly, Spreen offers to aid the resistance by infiltrating and undermining the Crown from within, adding complexity to the power struggles and trust dynamics between factions. This internal duplicity highlights the nuanced political landscape the resistance must navigate.
The resistance consolidates forces, including Zammit's men and other allies, to launch a coordinated assault on Tehidy House during Draggor's monthly world meeting. Through disabling security humanoids and coordinated strikes, they capture Draggor and detain or reassign the senators, effectively ending the Crown's tyranny.