by C. F. Cooper
Gary pulled away from Sasha and Daisy and ran towards the King, The King spotted him and prepared a lightning bolt. Spotting his fallen sword Gary fell the ground and rolled towards the weapon, avoiding the lightning strike as he did so. He picked up the sword and held it in front of him as he got to his feet.
“Have you learned nothing,” shouted the king. He formed another sphere of light and threw it at Gary. This time Gary did not try to avoid it. He placed his sword in front of him. The ball of light hit the sword and splintered into small sparks that fell the ground. The king looked puzzled and threw another ball of light and then another in quick succession. This time Gary dropped his guard and held his sword to the side, letting the light hit him directly in the chest. The light seemed to engulf him, and the king gave a sly smile, a smile that froze on his face as the light faded to reveal Gary standing firm. “How can this be,” demanded the king. “Demon blood, join me.” He screamed, looking towards the red split in the sky. Six red skinned, winged demons breached the gap and swooped down towards the battle. “Destroy the human,” he demanded.
The first demon landed directly in front of Gary. It hissed through sharp pointed teeth as it bared long sharp claws, ready to attack. Gary moved swiftly, thrusting his sword forward and plunging it into the creature. It gave out a blood curdling cry of pain and anger. The other demons had by this time reached Gary, and he was surrounded. The demon directly behind Gary launched itself at him, only to see Sasha emerge from his back and lunge her sword into it. The others charged and Daisy emerged from Gary slashing and thrusting. Another demon fell. Three down and three to go. The remaining demons backed off from this tripled headed, six handed fighting machine and took the air. The King looked shocked but raised his arms again to create a massive ball of energy. Gary, Sasha and Daisy stood side by side. Resolute and unflinching. The king moved his hands in circling motions wider and wider, expanding the ball of light, putting all his energy, all his lifeforce into it.
“I will not be denied,” he screamed, finally pulling his arms back and thrusting the ball of light towards the three companions.
“Let go,” said Gary. Sasha and Daisy knew what to do. Rather than defend themselves they dropped their arms to their sides and emptied their minds, ready to accept the lifeforce, not repel it. The massive ball of light hit them and engulfed all three. Instead of exploding it surrounded them and floated in place.
The king stared in disbelief and puzzlement. “Destroy them,” he screamed at the light.
Gary, Sasha and Daisy found themselves standing in the middle of the light. Emerging from the edges towards them were doomwalkers of all shapes and sizes. Lizards and cat people and deer and rabbit people. They looked relieved and unburdened. “You are free,” said Gary. “You can return to the river of life.”
Gary recognised one of them as the person who had slayed Oscar, Sasha’s cousin, in Clowder Hollow. “Thank you,” he said.
“Return to our land and rest your souls,” said Sasha.
The king watched with mounting alarm as the ball of light slowly drifted back towards him. He staggered backwards. The light followed him. He lifted up his arms and threw a ball of light. It was simply absorbed into the light. Tentacles appeared from the light stretching upwards into the sky, snaking round the three remaining demons as they struggled to escape. The tentacles threw the demons back into their own word hissing and screaming as they went. The light then slid along the red crack sealing it closed. The blue fracture began to shrink back to nothing. Only the green fissure remained. The tentacles of light whipped back down from the sky to the rooftop and shot out towards the king. He put his hands up creating a shield. The light swept his last defence aside as if swatting a fly. A tentacle entered his body through his stomach and emerged from the other side. Another tentacle wrapped itself around him pinning his arms to his sides. The king screamed as he was lifted into the air. He began to shrink in size, back to the frail old man they had first encountered.
“No,” he pleaded. “It doesn’t have to be like this. We must stick together. I’ve only tried to protect our land. Please.” The king continued to shrink and then he was swamped by a faint glow. Gary and the others watched as the king began to regress in age. He was turning into a young boy in front of their eyes. He began to whine. “It’s not fair. It’s not fair. I want to rule the world,” he cried, sounding just like the spoiled child that he had reverted into. “Put me down. Put me down, I say.”
The white light formed a face. It was a kind, but stern face and it shook its head at the king. “It’s time to return the river. All of us must return and you are no exception.”
“But I don’t want to. I want to stay here. I want to rule the world.” The child now no more than a toddler, burst into tears. “I’m not going back. I’m not going back to the river. You can’t make me.”
“We must all return the river. That is the way. None of us can cheat the river. You have tried but you have not succeeded. Now it is time to return home.”
“No, no, I won’t.”
The light pulled the child towards itself and the crying became muffled as he was absorbed into the body of the light. The light then drifted back towards Gary and the others. Gary grabbed Sasha and Daisy by the hand. Silently he said his goodbyes to them as it swept over them for a second time. A figure appeared in front of them in the light. It was a deer. “It is not your time yet,” it said smiling.
“I thought…”
“I know what you thought Gary. Everyone comes back to the river but only when it is their time. Sasha and Daisy have more to do in this incarnation. So do you. Trust the river, be the river in life and be ready to come back to the river when the time is right.”
“What will become of the king.”
“There is no king.”
“What should we do now?” asked Sasha.
“Should we come back to the four lands? Said Daisy.
“Each one of us is part of all of us, part of the dance of life. Dance. That is all that is asked of you. Dance until the river comes for you.”
The light began to clear from around them as it moved to the edge of the roof. A tentacle shot out into the sky and connected to the one remaining crack in the sky, the opening back to the four lands. The tentacle flattened and became a ribbon of light as the orb shrunk into the shape of the deer that had stood before them.
“Are you… are you Devin?” asked Gary.
The deer looked at him and nodded, then shook its head. “Yes, no, never, always.” It turned away from them and began to gallop up the ribbon of light. As it progressed up into the sky the ribbon shrunk back, following the deer. Soon the deer became no more than a small dot in the horizon. Then it passed through the break in the sky which shrunk and disappeared.
Gary pulled Sasha and Daisy close and hugged them both. They all embraced in a kiss and melted into one another then parted again. Staring at each other, they laughed simultaneously.
“So,” said Gary.
“We’re really…” said Daisy.
“Wedded.”
“And does it worry you?”
Gary reached out and took both by the hand. “Not is the slightest. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Come let me show you my world.” Gary walked to the edge of the building where the king had been standing. “He had the best view.” They looked out across the city towards the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. “This is my world. It’s not as magical as yours and there are lots of problems, but I like it. I think you might like it too. Will you stay and let me show it to you.”
Daisy leaned over and kissed Gary on the cheek. “You couldn’t send me back without showing it to me. I want to see it all.”
Gary looked at Sasha. “And what about you? Will you stay. Will you let me show you?”
“I’ve already answered Gary.” She kissed him on the other cheek. “Daisy and I answered you together through Daisy. We are one, Daisy and I, you and I, you and Daisy. You couldn’t get rid of us i
f you wanted to.”
Chapter 22
The door to the roof cracked open and Morven popped his head round the side of it. “So, all finished I see.” He stepped out and walked towards Gary and the others. “That’s a blessed relief. He really would have ruined everything. There’s enough magic in this world already, but if the gates had been pulled open fully, well I don’t know. Come, I have your suite prepared.”
They walked back to the lift arm in arm. “So, people, creatures from other worlds are here in our world?” asked Gary.
“Indeed, the portals open periodically and some slip through. There are some of us from all worlds that try and keep it under control, search for stray dragons, capture misbehaving demons, return them to their own lands. The Arch is our meeting place. A sanctuary where creatures from all worlds meet in safety to discuss and manage the various contretemps.”
“So, why didn’t you stop the King?” asked Sasha.
“We couldn’t. Only someone with the same power source could stop him in this world. It had to be you.”
“What made him do it?” said Daisy.
“Ah the king. A rather interesting character that one. He was one of us initially. Wonderful company, a great advocate of our mission. Visited often but then came to believe that it was a matter of time before this world’s technology would overcome the otherworlds magic.”
“Why?”
“One month here is a year there. He has been visiting us for hundreds of years. The advances in that time have been phenomenal. And then of course there is professor Wiseman.”
“Wait, what’s professor Wiseman got to do with this? It was him that sent me to the garden.”
“He worked here one summer when he was a student. Found out about the otherworlds, met the king and made it his life’s work to create technology that could connect the worlds. That’s what set off the king on his current plan.”
“So, it was all the professor’s fault?”
“He was, well, a typical academic. A well intentioned and very clever idiot. Sometimes I wonder why there was not a land created at the split for academics. They could pursue their latest world destroying technology without the rest of us having to worry about it. He told the king what he planned to do. The king exploded and vowed to rip down the barriers between the worlds for good and take control before it was too late.”
“He knew he’d set off this chain of events. He wanted to go to the four lands to stop the king,” said Gary.
“A little too late unfortunately.”
They reached the penthouse and Morven opened the door. It was luxurious. A floor to ceiling window that stretched round two sides of the building gave a panoramic view across the night sky of London. A huge bed dominated the room and a one wall was a wine fridge stocked mostly with champagne.
“Passing between worlds can be quite exhausting,” said Morven. “Champagne seems to help the body recover. Something in the bubbles I believe. Help yourself.”
“But we can’t afford this. I don’t think I’ve ever bought anything out of a minibar let alone stayed somewhere like this,” said Gary sweeping his hand around at the luxury laid out before him.
“Oh, you can afford it,” said Morven. “The four lands have a standing account with the hotel, and it is very much in credit. With the king gone, I think we can safely say you three are Cockaigne’s representatives here at the Arch.” Morven walked over to the fridge, opened the door and pulled out a bottle. He peeled back the gold foil and holding the cork he twisted the bottle, uncorking it without a single drop being lost. He then filled three Champagne flutes and passed one to each of them. “You will find this useful during your stay,” he said picking up a small briefcase and opening it. The briefcase was packed with bundled notes. Gary stared in disbelief. “Small change from your account but it will give you some spending money while we organise a corporate credit card in your name.”
Gary put his glass down and took the briefcase from Morven. He pulled out some of the bundles. There was a mix of denominations, ten’s twenty’s, fifty’s and hundred-pound notes. “Unbelievable,” he mumbled.
“Is it a lot?” asked Daisy.
“It’s more than I’ve ever seen.”
“Thank you,” said Sasha.
“No, thank you. Thank you all. One more thing.”
“Yes.”
“You are now of this world and the four lands. You need to nurture both sides.”
“What do you mean?” asked Gary.
“Well… how can I put this delicately? After the exertions of the last few hours you will need to do what would nourish you in the four lands and you will need to do what would nourish you here.”
“What? I don’t understand,” said Sasha.
“I think I do,” said Gary. “We need to make love, and then feast. Is that what you’re saying?”
“Very well put,” said Morven. “And often, I should add.”
Gary looked at Sasha and then at Daisy. “I think we can do that, don’t you?” They both smiled and nodded.
“I’m willing to give it a try,” said Daisy, her rabbit ears popping out of her hair as she spoke.
“Well, I better leave you three to it. Get some rest and I will send up a banquet breakfast in the morning.”
***
Professor Wiseman stared at the three young adventurers on the bed. “Yes, yes but did you save the multiverse?”
Morven appeared in the doorway behind the professor. “Yes, James he did, no thanks to you. Are you done with all your meddling now?”
The professor’s head drooped and suddenly he looked more like a naughty schoolboy than a university professor. “I didn’t mean any harm.”
“Not meaning harm and doing harm are two entirely different things.”
“I know, I know. I’m sorry, but if it wasn’t me it would be someone else. Science never stops.”
“Perhaps so, but can you just let it be someone else next time? Give us some space to prepare all worlds for the reunification.”
“I want to see the otherworlds so badly.”
“I know you do, but that’s not a good enough reason to destroy this one.”
The professor nodded sadly. He looked up at Gary. “Are you okay Gary?”
Gary smiled. “I’m fine. More than fine actually.”
“I took care of your grades and your absence from classes. Your course is waiting for you when you’re ready to return.”
Gary looked at the professor, then at Daisy and Sasha, then back at the professor again. “You know what, that’s okay professor. I don’t think university is right for me. I’m going to do something different.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know, but I’ll figure it out.”
“There have been some reports of a stray dragon in Siberia,” said Morven twirling his moustache. “If you were looking for something to do, we could use your help tracking it down.”
“I’ve never met a dragon,” said Sasha.
“Me neither,” said Daisy.
“Okay,” said Gary, “I guess it’s settled. We’re going to Siberia.”
“Would you… do you think that maybe…possibly…”
“Ok professor, if it will keep you out of trouble you can tag along.”
The End
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