“Right,” said Gary, looking at Daisy and Sasha. “My name is Gary, and this is….”

  “Ah, Gary. Professor Wiseman’s young protégé?”

  “You know the professor?”

  “Yes indeed. He asked me to look out for you.”

  Gary shook his head. He had expected that when he had finally returned to his world, the real world, everything would seem normal again, but this was not what he expected. “The king, we are looking for the king.”

  “Indeed,” said Morven. “He has just passed this way. Seemed to be in a hurry. We’re all rather worried by his recent behaviour here at the Embassy.”

  “You know the king?” asked Daisy.

  “Come,” Morven turned on his heals and walked off. The companions followed him. Looking around it was clear that they were in a basement corridor with pipework covering the walls. At the end of the corridor, they reached an old-fashioned lift with a lattice metal sliding door. Morven opened the door and ushered the friends in. He pulled on a leaver and positioned it to the letter G. The lift began to creak and move upwards. “Most of our guests, indeed most of our employees, are not aware of the, how shall we say, unique nature of this establishment. We find it easier to continue our work that way.”

  “What work is that?”

  “Well, just as the name suggests we are an archway to the other worlds and an unofficial embassy for the connections that do exist. Ah, reception. Please, act… well… of this world.”

  “Other worlds you said. Not other world, but worlds?”

  The door opened onto a grand reception area with a floor of black and white checkered marble floor tiles, a high ceiling with a chandelier and a long, ornate reception counter with a row of grandfather clocks behind it. These showed the times of several cities around the world. Morven walked towards reception counter looking back at his guests who were taking in the scene.

  “I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Daisy. “It’s beautiful.”

  “Indeed. We pride ourselves on the hotel décor,” said Morven. “Keep up.” As he approached the desk a man behind the counter nodded his head in acknowledgement. “Alex, can you book these guests into the presidential suite. Gary Smith and his companions.”

  “Daisy.”

  “Sasha.”

  “Gary, Daisy and Sasha Smith,” said Morven. “Now come with me. He lifted the counter and gestured them to follow. “Please come into my office.” He opened the door and they walked into something that looked more like a Victorian drawing room. “Now then, let’s see,” he mumbled to himself as he opened and closed drawers in a large sideboard. “Yes, this should do.” He handed each of them a T-shirt, a pair of jeans and some sneakers for their feet.

  Daisy held up the jeans and looked at the back of them. “But what about…”

  “A small unobtrusive slit at the top of the garment. I think you ladies may want to wear this too.” He handed them each a long line open front cardigan. “Blue for you Daisy and green for Sasha. Matches the eyes and will hide any emergent appendices from those not accustomed to seeing such features.”

  Sasha shook her head. “What?”

  “I think he means it will hide your tails.”

  “Indeed, that was my point. These may also be of use,” he said opening a glass cabinet and removing three short swords.

  Gary held up the weapon. It was no more than a foot long, more of a large knife than a sword.

  “It is much more powerful than it looks. Now please get dressed quickly. I do not believe we have much time.”

  “Where is the king? Do you know where he went?” asked Gary as he removed his tunic and pulled on the jeans and t-shirt.

  “Yes, of course. He’s on the roof preparing to open the gates of three worlds to ours. All rather urgent that you stop him really.”

  Gary stared at Morven, wide-eyed and confused. “Then why are we wasting time getting changed into jeans and t-shirts? Are you crazy?”

  “Ah, well he is just preparing, and I thought you needed time to catch your breath and acclimatise. Can’t really start till midnight which is still…” he pulled his watch back out from his waistcoat pocket and held it away from himself as he tried to focus. “Must get some new reading glasses. Yes, yes, five minutes. You’ve got five minutes. Let’s go.”

  Morven led the three companions back out of the office and over to the lifts. A guest followed behind them ready to enter the old-fashioned cage. Morven turned and politely pointed them to the more traditional lifts on either side of the one they were about to use. “Any other lift sir. This one only stops at various service locations.”

  “Ah,” said the guest. “The unglamorous side of the hotel.”

  Morven smiled and twirled on one side of his moustache. “Indeed sir, indeed. We like to maintain the air of mystery.” Morven pulled open the door and beckoned Gary and the others in. Shutting the door after him he wound the dial forward as far as it went. Music was playing in the background. “Pachelbel, very calming, isn’t it?”

  “I guess,” said Gary as the lift travelled upwards.

  “If you survive, the presidential suite will be ready for you. If not, well… best not dwell on that.” The lift travelled to the top of the building and stopped. They were in a small room with a single door. “This is where you get off. Good luck. You are wedded, aren’t you?”

  “Wedded?” repeated Sasha.

  “Oh, you’re not. Might be an idea. Off you go then,” he said shooing them out of the lift. He closed the door and began the descent. As he was disappearing he shouted. “I’d wed if I were you.”

  Gary, Sasha and Daisy stood at the door to the roof and looked at each other. “Ready?” said Gary.

  “Let’s do it,” said Daisy, pushing through the door. It opened out onto a rooftop garden with views across the night sky of London. Daisy gasped, “It’s beautiful.”

  In the distance a figure turned towards them. The king, although small, had a loud booming voice. “Welcome, welcome to the end of the world. Welcome to the rebirth of the world.” As he spoke, he began to grow. “Behold the true power of our people.” He doubled in size and the face now matched the one that Gary had seen in the sky. “Do you see? Daisy, Sasha, do you see? Our land is not a sanctuary, a paradise. It is a prison that contains our magic. Here we are not mortals, we are gods. Freed from our prison see what power we have.” The king raised his arms and clasped his hands together above his head. A white sphere formed around him and then shot up into the night sky. Exploding in the air above him, fractures appeared like the cracking of a panel of glass. One crack burned green, one red and another blue. “We can rule this world before it rules ours.”

  Gary walked forwards towards the king pulling out his short sword as he did so. “Why does anyone have to rule anyone else? We don’t want to rule you.”

  The King laughed. “Look around at your own world. When has there ever been peace? I have visited your world many times, Gary. This world of yours is rushing towards the future, developing weapons and technology as it does so, becoming ever more powerful, ever more dangerous. It is only a matter of time before it discovers our world and destroys us. We must strike before you are too powerful.”

  The King shaped a ball of light in his hands and threw it towards Gary. Gary raised his sword in defence. The light smashed into the sword, throwing it out of Gary’s hand. Another ball of light hurtled towards him. Sasha and Daisy ran forward and held their hands palm up towards the missile. Shields of light formed in front of them but the light from the king pushed the shields apart and it hit Gary square on the chest. Gary was lifted off his feet and thrown backwards across the roof. He landed with a thump on the ground and slid backwards. Chased by Sasha and Daisy he reached the edge of the building, putting his hands down to try and stop the sliding with little effect. Looking backwards he saw the streets far below, cars passing by, oblivious to the battle above. Then he was in mid-air, falling. He stopped with a sudden jolt. Looking upwards he saw Sasha and Daisy holding onto each leg. He saw more balls of light being thrown into the sky, the fractures increasing with every explosion. As they dragged him onto the rooftop Gary tried to sit up but was still winded.

  Loud booming laughter came from the king. “You cannot stop me. I have a lifeforce of a thousand people concentrated in my hands. Lifeforce that wields magic in this world. Every Doomwalker I controlled was connected to me, wedded to my lifeforce. The true believers of Winterhaven drank the remaining elixir before you entered the city. The city was empty because every one of them gave their remaining lifeforce to me. Gave it willingly.” The King threw a ball of light at the three companions. Daisy grabbed Gary and Sasha by an arm each and leapt out of the path of the light. It exploded behind them.

  “He was never trying to take over the four lands,” said Sasha. “He just wanted to harvest us. Harvest our lifeforce.”

  The King turned away from Gary and the others, now dismissing them as any real threat to him. Shaping balls of light, he threw them into the sky once more, expanding the openings to the other worlds.

  “We can’t stop him,” said Daisy. “No-one can.”

  Another ball of light shot into the sky and exploded. This time the cracks were wide enough to show what was behind them. The green light gave a view through Winterhaven and Crystal City.

  “Wedded,” said Gary, recovering his breath. “Their lifeforce was wedded to mine. That’s what he said.”

  Another ball of light shot into the sky. This time the blue crack widened, and a fire breathing dragon was visible, throwing flames into the sky as it passed the fracture.

  “That’s what Morven meant. We must be wedded to each other. One wedded lifeforce to have the strength to fight him.” Gary pulled himself to his feet and put his arms round Sasha and a Daisy pulling them close to him in a tight circle, their heads touching. “Let yourself go,” he said. Gary cleared his mind, no longer Gary but part of something bigger. Sasha and Daisy followed his lead. Looking into their eyes he saw himself reflected then Sasha then Daisy. His sense of self melted away, and he became aware that he was looking through three sets of eyes. He was Daisy and Sasha and Gary, they were him. “Now and forever,” he said.

  “Now and forever,” said Sasha.

  “Now and forever,” said Daisy.

  The King threw another ball of light into the air, this time exploding on the edge of the red crack. Demons and smoke and fire blew out of the opening in the sky. “Join me,” he shouted at the sky. “Join me to reclaim our place in the world. The exile is over. Let us sweep all before us.”

  Gary pulled away from Sasha and Daisy and ran towards the King, He spotted him and prepared a lightning bolt. Noticing 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 on 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 ragged 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 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 his arms and threw a ball of light. This too was simply absorbed into the light making it even larger. 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 world, 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 pushed aside 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 stay united. 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 Gary. 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 return 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 along 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.”