He whispered it in her ear.
'You can't, Ryan!' Gripping his arm, she fought to stop herself becoming distressed.
'I don't matter here,' he said. 'Church matters. You matter. I was always along just to make sure you two made it through to the finish line. And that's what I'm going to do now. My last act.'
'Ryan, if you go into the abyss, you'll be wiped from Existence. No one will ever remember you.'
He grinned. 'Not the end of the world.'
'But that was all you ever wanted — for people to remember you as a hero.'
'Yeah, that was all I wanted.' He glanced back to check on the Libertarian and Church. A minute to go. The fires of the Burning Man were growing more intense; the Void was coming. 'I've learned a lot from Church, and you, and the others. I'm a better man now. I know what's important. It's not what's out there, or what people think. It's what's inside. I've got a whole world in here. In the past, I could never look inside myself — it was too frightening. But now if I know I'm going out a hero, well, that's good enough. That's important.'
'Don't do it, Ryan-'
'There isn't any other choice, darlin'. This is the whole reason I'm here. I know that now.' He wiped a tear from her cheek. 'A kiss?' he said. 'Won't mean anything. I know you love Church, and that's right. I've got my head around it now. But it would be… nice.'
She pulled his head down and kissed him deeply.
When he broke away, his smile melted her heart. 'I can die easy now. There's nothing else I want.'
He tore away from her grip as a roar began to fill the cavernous space. The heat from the Burning Man increased sharply, the flames turning a deep scarlet. Dropping his sword, Veitch ran. He thought of his father and his mother, of the mermaids swimming by his boat and the tiny people with gossamer wings who always instilled such peace. And he thought of the woman he loved more than anything else in the world, more than life itself.
Hitting the Libertarian full force, they both went over the edge of the bridge while Church slumped against the side, clinging on. At the last, Veitch thought he saw relief in the Libertarian's red, lidless eyes. His adversary had time for one word — 'Ryan…' — and then they plunged down into the dark.
7
'Ryan!' Church yelled as he watched Veitch and the Libertarian fall.
Ruth scrambled to his side. 'Remember him, Church! Don't let his memory die! Don't-'
The words died in her throat. They stared at each other in incomprehension for a moment, and then Church dragged himself to the centre of the bridge. 'What just happened?'
Ruth shook her head. 'I don't know.' She looked around. 'We… we must be… The Burning Man. We have to destroy it.'
Church nodded, although he instinctively knew that was not the correct answer. 'Where are the others?'
On cue, Miller and Jack ran in accompanied by Shavi and Tom. 'Hunter and Laura are guarding the entrance,' Shavi said, 'but there is no sign of Mallory and Caitlin. We do not have the Extinction Shears.'
'Yes, you do.' Walking along the bridge from the opposite side, the Wayfinder held high so that the blue light lit his path, came a cloaked figure.
'Hal?' Church said, baffled by his human form.
'The Caretaker,' Hal said with a smile. 'The new one. There's no time to explain. Here.' He handed over the Extinction Shears.
'What do we do?' Church asked.
'You use the Two Keys to destroy the holding matrix for the Void. And then you use the Extinction Shears to untether him from reality. The Void will be lost for ever.'
The roaring became deafening: the Burning Man glowed so brightly they could barely look at it. A deep dread closed in around them, and a feeling that a terrifying presence was only a room away.
'No time!' Hal stressed.
'The Wish-Hex in me won't be enough to destroy that!' Jack peered over the edge of the bridge into the fire.
'I can help,' Miller said calmly. 'Of course. I can see why I'm here now. As the Wish-Hex starts to destroy you, I can heal you so you can keep releasing the power. You can do that?'
'I… I think so,' Jack said. 'Keep the chain reaction going.'
Miller looked around the others. 'We always knew it was going to come to this. Don't worry about us.'
'But if you go into the abyss you'll be wiped from Existence,' Ruth said. 'No one will ever know you existed.' Just like no one knew of… A name began to come, then faded rapidly.
'Good,' Jack said. 'Then Mahalia won't feel any pain. She can get on with her life.'
His maturity brought a swell of pride to Ruth and Church.
'I wish Hunter was here,' Jack said. 'He was…' The word choked in his throat. 'Never mind.'
Jack stepped onto the edge of the bridge, and Miller wrapped his arms around him tightly.
The roaring was so loud they could barely hear themselves speak. 'Go!' Church yelled.
Jack and Miller threw themselves off the bridge. Instantly, a white light washed out, and a moment later a blue glow, the two intertwining, merging. A burst of the white light rolled upwards, and the bridge shook and then cracked, huge chunks plummeting down into the abyss.
As Church, Ruth, Tom and Shavi ran back the way they had come, Church snatched up a sword. It wasn't the shattered Caledfwlch, and he had no idea who it belonged to, but it felt right in his hand. He sheathed it. The Caretaker was nowhere to be seen.
As the bridge fell into the abyss and the white and blue light continued to roll out in waves, the structure of the Burning Man began to break up and fall apart. The scarlet flames leaped out with a life of their own, no longer able to maintain any shape.
'We did it. The matrix is breaking up.' Church opened the Extinction Shears and felt their pulsing energy rush up his arms and into his heart. He knew he wasn't really holding shears. On the edge of his perception, images shifted constantly, hinting at something much bigger, something that reached across worlds. 'Now we just need to get rid of the Void for ever.'
As the frame of the Burning Man plunged into the abyss and the flames roiled out of control, a voice rang out far behind him. 'Church! Stop them! Use the Shears! Stop them!'
He didn't turn. His concentration was fixed on the flames; he was convinced he could see a face in them that would haunt him for the rest of his days. Part of him knew the voice was Hunter's, that the warning was important. But he didn't turn.
Crying out in shock, Ruth thrust Church to one side as a seemingly endless army of spiders streamed towards the furiously churning flames, their metallic bodies glinting in the ruddy furnace light.
'Stop them!' Hunter called, closer now.
Church glanced back to see Hunter and Laura racing behind the flow of spiders. Beyond them, Cernunnos, Carlton and the Caretaker all looked on with deep concern. He realised, too late, that it was the moment his future self had warned him about so many times: when you're in Otherworld and they call, heed it right away.
The spiders flowed around the weakened essence of the Void lost in the flames, carving through reality to create a door in the air leading to the superstructure behind everything where the spiders moved freely across all time and space.
As Church raced to the edge of the shattered bridge, the swirling flames were sucked through the gaping door. Falling through, the spiders worked rapidly to seal the opening behind them.
They had taken the Void to another place, perhaps another time. They would be bringing it back.
From the doorway behind reality, coloured lights leaked out and Church felt the very nature of the cavern alter. Mists rolled all around and suddenly he was in the Warp Zone again, and there were numerous versions of himself at different points in his history, wandering, baffled, determined, scared, fighting. Desperate to send a message to himself to change what had occurred, he raced from one to the other, calling, 'Is this it? Is this the right time? You have to listen to me. This is a warning.'
But, of course, he knew it was futile.
That didn't stop him. Confused by t
he shifting reality of the Warp Zone, he added, 'Is this the right place? Am I too late?' To the multiple Churches, he insisted, 'When you're in Otherworld and they call, heed it right away. They're going to bring him back. They're-' Suddenly he glimpsed the spiders closing the door in the air and remembered where he was. 'Too late!' he yelled, racing out of the colours to the edge of the abyss.
With only a sliver remaining, Church brought the shears together. There was a moment when everything seemed to hang, and Church felt as if he was floating in a brilliant white light. But with a sound like the crystal-clear chime of a bell, he was snapped back into the harsh reality of the cavern and flung head over heels in a rushing wind. His head hit stone and he blacked out.
8
'Will he be all right?'
Silence.
'Please come back to me. Please!'
'Don't worry — it's nearly over. There'll be peace.'
'Peace…'
9
Surfacing from disturbing dreams, Church found himself lying out in the wastelands, surrounded by his friends. On the horizon, there was a smudge of scarlet, gold and black where the Fortress of the Enemy burned and above it the Fabulous Beasts swooped majestically, caught in the rosy light of the setting sun.
'We did it?' he asked, still dazed.
'I don't know what you did exactly, but the Enemy's army lost all heart for the fight.' Squatting beside him, Tom looked more at peace than Church had ever seen him. He pulled off the ring Freyja had given him and tossed it down a dune into the ochre dust.
Looking up into the darkening sky, Church said, 'The stars are coming out.'
Ruth brushed a hair from his forehead. 'I never thought I'd see that again.'
Levering himself onto his elbows, Church asked, 'Are we all here?'
'Yes,' Ruth replied. 'You, me, Tom, Shavi, Laura and Hunter. Five Brothers and Sisters of Dragons, one hanger-on.' She smiled at Tom, but it was gradually replaced by a puzzled, sad expression.
Church understood. 'Strange — it feels as if somebody's missing.' Shrugging off a sharp pang of grief, he clambered to his feet.
Nearby the Army of Dragons and the gods celebrated loudly. The Brothers and Sisters of Dragons moved amongst the knots of strange beings, surprised by the camaraderie and the hugs and back-slaps from ones who may well have tormented them only a few days earlier. Not far away, Virginia and the other refugees stared at the sky in mute disbelief.
Lugh saw that Church had recovered and made his way up the dune with Rhiannon close behind. 'Brother of Dragons, you have the thanks of all of the Golden Ones, indeed of all living things in all the lands.' He shook Church's hand warmly.
'The Void isn't gone for good,' Church said.
'Yes and no,' Lugh said enigmatically. 'This is the dawn of a new age. A golden age. You will soon understand.'
'It is a new age, too, for the Brothers and Sisters of Dragons,' Rhiannon added. 'You were forged to prevent the victory of the Void this day. You will have a new role now, and in that spirit we, the Golden Ones, have a request, equals to equals.'
'Go on,' Church said.
'The great sadness that lies at the heart of our people is the loss of our homes — Gorias, Finias, Falias and Murias,' Lugh continued. His eyes blazed with a hopeful excitement. 'Help us find them. Help the Tuatha De Danaan return to their ancestral homes and bring joy to our hearts again. It would be a quest that would live up to the great legend of the Brothers and Sisters of Dragons! The filid would sing songs of such an achievement until the stars came down!'
Church glanced around the others and saw the silent answer. 'We owe you for your help and sacrifice,' he said. 'Once we've rested, we'll start to plan.'
Lugh and Rhiannon could barely contain their joy. They thanked the Brothers and Sisters of Dragons profusely and then hurried back to the ranks of their people to spread the news. Soon their celebration dwarfed even that of the Army of Dragons and the other gods.
In the growing gloom, a blue light gleamed across the wastelands. 'Wait here,' Church said to the others. 'I'll be back in a while.'
As he set out towards the light, he was distracted by the strange but familiar sight of a puppeteer standing alone on the blasted terrain. Eight feet tall, wearing black robes and a white mask with a nose that arched like a bird's beak, he looked just as Church had seen him in Venice in the sixteenth century. His hands moved rapidly above five dancing puppets, though there were no strings. The puppets' lifelike faces were exactly as Church had guessed.
Church approached him and for long moments watched the silent show. Then he reached up and removed the puppeteer's mask, without any resistance. His own face looked back at him, though that too resembled a mask.
'It's true, then?' Church asked.
The puppeteer only gave an enigmatic smile.
Realising he would get nothing more, Church headed once again towards the light, and when he glanced back briefly the puppeteer was gone, no marks in the dust to suggest he had ever been there.
Soon all thoughts of what he had seen faded, to be replaced by the unexpected sensation of a great weight lifting from his shoulders. Could it be all over? After so long, he scarcely dared believe it.
Night came down quickly in the desert. Hal waited for him, the Wayfinder a blue beacon of hope in the desolate landscape. His cloak was wrapped about him against the plummeting temperatures.
'You're the new Caretaker? How did that happen?' Church asked.
'Long story. It's a big job, an important job. Someone needs to do it, and I guess I passed the entrance exam.'
'Don't do yourself down. You deserve it.'
'Walk with me.' Hal held the lantern high to guide their way across the wastelands.
'It's not over, is it?'
'No. I'm sorry, Church. It's never over.'
'Never?'
'Never.'
Church's heart sank.
'On the bright side, you get to spend eternity with the best friends you could ever wish for. You get to be a tremendous force for good in the universe, shaping the lives of untold millions. And you get to be king, now and always.'
'So we didn't win today. Despite all the deaths and the pain, we didn't win,' Church said wearily.
'Oh, you won.' The Wayfinder's sapphire glow gave Hal's smile a strange, transcendental quality. 'You won bigger and better than you ever dreamed.'
Hal's words resonated with what Lugh had said about the Void and the new age, and Church had a strange sensation of something of incomprehensible magnitude drawing around him. He shivered, although he had no idea why.
On the crest of a rise, Hal indicated the shifting colours of the Warp Zone ahead. 'That's still here?' Church said. 'I thought it was some bizarre side effect of the Void.'
'It's going to stay here. And it'll be your new home.' Hal laughed when he saw Church's baffled expression. 'In a way. It's time I told you everything.'
They sat together on the ridge in the chill desert night under the lamp of the full moon. Across the heavens, the glorious sweep of stars brought a shiver of magic and a feeling that anything could happen.
Hal set the Wayfinder in the dust and watched the blue flame dance. 'Destroying the Burning Man weakened the Void immensely. If there'd been time to use the Extinction Shears, the Void would have been cut from this reality for ever.'
'I don't know if that would have been such a good thing. Everything needs two sides, two faces. One to define the other and to give it value. We need the Void and Existence. It's just a matter of balance.'
Hal nodded slowly. 'They said you were wise.'
'So is this how it was meant to have turned out? All part of the pattern?'
'Who knows? I don't. What I do know is the spiders took the Void to safety in the past. That dark force can reappear at any time in Earth's history to try to change things so that what happened today… never happened.'
Watching the drifting colours of the Warp Zone, Church thought he understood.
'It's the j
ob of the Brothers and Sisters of Dragons to oppose the Void wherever it appears,' Hal said. 'In the Renaissance, the seventies, the Norman Conquest, the Jurassic era, for all I know. Whenever the Void starts to exert its influence, calling on new allies, creating new threats, trying to shift the pattern, you and your Brothers and Sisters will be there to stop it.'
'Through the Warp Zone, we can reach any time and any place.'
'Exactly. It was always going to be this way. You read all the legends, the old stories. The king, waiting across the water… the ocean — of time and space — at the darkest hour when the call would go out and he would return with his knights to vanquish evil and save the land. The Brothers and Sisters of Dragons become the ur-myth.'
'Yes, I know that story.' Church drew the sword he had picked up near the shattered bridge. After Caledfwlch, it had a strange feel, but it felt right, as though it had been held by good people, despite the way the blue and black flames appeared to fight along the length of the blade. 'So we don't get to rest.'
'You get to live for ever with the people you love the most because time never passes here in the Far Lands, or there in the Warp Zone. Always young, always strong, the greatest hero Existence has, fighting the true fight for all time. Does that not feel good?'
Church considered it for a moment and realised it did. It felt, in a strange way, like heaven. The best reward of all.
'Lugh and the Tuatha De Danaan have asked for our help,' he said.
'You'll have time for that. After all, you've got an Army of Dragons to help you out. And more gods than you can shake a stick at. If you really need them.' He laughed quietly.
'So we keep repelling the Void at every turn. But we can't destroy it, because without the Void we would never have been challenged enough to grow and become what we are today. We needed that dark side to learn how to be good. That was part of the plan too, right? Existence needed the Void to achieve its ends. There's irony in there somewhere.'
Hal began to say something about the Caraprix, but then caught himself and would only shake his head enigmatically when Church pressed him.
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