Chapter 17

Olban stared around himself in dismay. Nothing was familiar. Oh, the trees were all of recognisable species. The flowers and other plants too, but… Gareth had asked a bloody good question. Where in all the hells were they?

He sighed. “I have absolutely no idea where we are;”

Fuck! What are we going to do? Gareth’s tone took on an air of despair.

“I think you were asleep when I made this.” Olban pulled on a chain around his neck and withdrew an amulet. He held it up to his face and turned it around in his hands. “Master Stell had never even conceived of such a thing before. He still doubts its usefulness. Now, it could prove vital.”

Why? What is it?

“I learned a lot in your world, Gareth. Watch.” He closed his eyes and concentrated and a moment later, a wispy form appeared before them.

Don’t tell me you can summon ghosts, now! Eloise exclaimed, horror filling her voice.

Olban muttered through gritted teeth. “Of course not. That isn’t a ghost.”

The form took a step back in shock. “Oh, by the Gods! I’m so sorry, Olban. I’m so”

“Sir. I’m not dead.”

“What? But look at you! There’s nothing to you!”

“Sir. Pull your amulet out.”

“What?” The figure reached for its neck and the moment the twin to the one Olban wore appeared, the figure gained a lot of solidity. It also became recognisable. It was Master Stell.

“But the beast! Goliath swore on his very life! He said it ate you whole!”

“Clearly, the form it took was designed for imprisonment rather than digestion, sir. The last thing it said before I passed out was that someone wanted to see me. It was just as stupid as Wellick. It didn’t disarm me. It swallowed my sword, too, and it was fairly easy to cut my way out. It’s dead, now. The problem is, I have no idea where we are. Nothing in the landscape’s familiar. Can you locate me?”

Stell smiled. “Of course, my boy.” He took something long and thin from his tool belt, clenched his fist around the amulet, closed his eyes and sighed. His smile withered. “How could that thing travel so fast? You were only swallowed two hours ago!”

“Why, sir? Where am I?”

“You’re a hundred and ten miles south of the village.”

“A hundred!? It’ll take days to get back! I have important work to do!”

“Don’t be too hasty. I’m currently in your cave. I’ve already scrubbed away the abomination that perverted it.”

“The salts, sir? I was wondering about that. About what could be done with them to”

“No, Olban. No. I forbid it. Leave the pigments to the weavers and potters. Blending such things with the art of metallurgy can lead to some very… unpredictable effects. It’s far too imprecise and where magic’s concerned…”

“Dangerous… I know, sir. Why did Wellick do it like that, then?”

“A very messy short cut. I did study the pattern before I removed it but I wasn’t able to make much sense out of it. All I can say is, wherever it led, it wasn’t in this reality. Fortunately, the pattern beneath, even though the metal was removed, is still ingrained in the stone. Bear with me, Olban, I think I can at least partially repair the damage.”

“You think we can have a means of instantaneous travel? To anywhere?”

“The magic in this cave is far beyond my level of expertise, Olban. I thought I was a master until I saw this. Now? Compared to this, I’m a child making his first horseshoe, but, I think I should be able to get enough range to open a way for you. One hundred miles is nothing compared to what this thing was originally capable of. I think that’ll be close to the limit with my shoddy workmanship, though.”

“Yes, sir. How long, do you think?”

“An hour, maybe two. You may as well sit down. Relax. Find something to eat while you’re waiting.” The image winked out of existence.

Two hours? Eloise sorted. A hundred miles is easy in two hours!

Oh, for… Gareth sighed. Even a marathon’d be a world record with a time that short. We don’t have the internal combustion engine here! The average walking speed for a human adult is less than four bloody miles an hour! I bet you’ve never even walked ten miles, let alone a hundred. How many settlements are there between here and the village, Olban?

“None until we’re about ten miles away. No-one travels very far south beyond Calton’s farm.”

What about a horse? Eloise prodded. Those are quicker, aren’t they?

“Do you see a horse around here? They’re not wild animals, you know. Certainly not on this continent, anyway. The nearest one? Calton’s farm, again. That means no water, no shelter, nothing. For at least four days. I think waiting here for a couple of hours is preferable, don’t you?”

What did he mean, find something to eat?

“Ah, yes.” Olban jogged to the top of a small hillock and surveyed the scene before trotting down the other side and over to a tree. “The traveller’s friend, we call this, otherwise known as the molkanut tree. They grow all over the place around here.” He placed his hand on the trunk and closed his eyes for a few seconds before whispering. “Forgive me, but we are in need and beset by evil forces. I promise to spread your seed when we depart.”

What was all that about?

Gareth chuckled. Magic’s real, remember? What you might view as superstitious crap in our world could save your life in this one. There might be a wood nymph attached to this tree. A dryad. Don’t want to annoy her, now, do we? What happened to Rinam. Olban?

“I’d rather not talk about it, but by the gods it was nasty.”

I think our guest needs to know.

Olban began gathering fruit from the tree. They were about the size of a plum with a dull orange skin, dotted with bright purple blotches. He shuddered. “Alright. He was about the same age as me until he disappeared one day. Thirteen by your reckoning. The next day…”

Go on. It’s good to talk about these things, y’know.

“He was my best friend! We were always exploring, playing at being travelling mercenaries and things but that day, I didn’t go with him. He got careless, not thinking the fairies lived in our lands. Here? We’re in fairy territory. That’s why there’s no settlement within a hundred miles. To the south, there’s nothing for a hundred leagues. He ate of the tree without asking for its forgiveness. Without promising to spread its seeds.”

How do you know he ate without this weird ritual thing if he disappeared? Asked Eloise.

“Because the next day, someone new came to our village. God, he was old, must’ve been at least a hundred and twenty. He was blind, but he recognised my voice. That was what happened to him. They took him. Punished him for years, then returned him. That’s one of the many dangers in dealing with the fairy folk. Their time works different. It isn’t consistent like ours. He could just as easily have vanished for a hundred years and appeared in our village as if only a day had passed for him, but they wanted him to suffer. They tortured him. He was insane when he returned to us but he had the odd lucid moment. One of those moments, he told us what he’d done and some of the things they did to him. We both had nightmares for a month. Didn’t we Gareth?”

You’d be nodding right now. One of the first times I really let loose to a psychiatrist. Unbelievably, he actually helped, that time.

Olban nodded, wandered back to the hillock and sat. “It’s not just scary looking things in this world that might be good friendly creatures. Some creatures are incredibly beautiful and very, very dangerous. As I said earlier, bury all your prejudices. Both good and bad. Here, they could get you killed.”

And you prefer this?

“We don’t choose where we’re born, Miss Parker and I was born here, raised, here, trained here. This is where my family and friends are. Besides, your world’s probably more dangerous than this one.”

But it’s hell, here. You live in filth, abject squalor, the dangers are way worse and we’ve been attacked twice and it’s barely afternoon! How can my world be more dangerous than a place that can get you snatched away for a hundred years of torture just for eating the wrong thing?

“You know the rules in your world, we know the rules in this one. As long as you follow them, there’s little danger. As for the filth, the so-called squalor… Gareth, last time you got ill?”

Gareth chuckled. Really bad case of the flu last year. Before that, chickenpox, food poisoning, the broken leg when the boat capsized was a major downer. I was off my feet for six months!

“Quite. I’ve never been ill. I never will be in this world. In yours, I very well may fall foul of one of your innumerate diseases. I didn’t enjoy it one bit when Gareth got sick and the broken leg was agony.”

So? Everyone gets sick once in a while. You’ve just been lucky.

“No. Not luck. Magic. Oh, I’ve suffered from the odd broken bone over the years, too, but I was fully back in action a day later each time. Every trade has its magical lore. Everything we own contains some magic or other woven into its structure. This tunic, for example. A modicum of protection from injury, a little temperature regulation and healing. The amulet I showed you, telecommunication, the pots we use to store food prevent spoilage. It never goes off. Never loses its goodness.” He prodded his neck. “Feel any pain?”

Errr… No. Why?

“That thing held me by the neck until I passed out. Not even a bruise, now. Healing magic. Someone from this world appears in yours, they’re unlikely to survive the week.”

What do you mean? Why?

“Even if they didn’t step out in front of a speeding car and get flattened, they’re likely to catch one of your diseases. They’d have no money, so couldn’t pay for food, pay for shelter. They’re likely to run into some thug or other and get beaten up. Might even get shot if they appeared in the wrong country. Here, we’re not obsessed with keeping up with the Joneses. We don’t own possessions just for the sake of having the brightest newest thing. We own things for their purpose and nothing more. Your world’s beset by greed. Selfishness. You people don’t give a stuff about the people around you as long as you’re alright. Here, we care deeply about each other. It seems your penchant for having a bedroom to yourself made you lose that sense of community.”

And that, Gareth replied smugly, is something I took from this world. It’s why I’m a lifeboat volunteer back home. I do help, where I can. Olban… the nut…

“Oh, of course.” Olban took one of the fruit and using his thumbs, tore off the flesh and put it to one side. Inside, a stone which he popped between his teeth and bit down, hard. There was a crack and he spat it out again before tearing the stone in half. He pulled a black ball about the size of a pea from the centre, wrapped it in the flesh, took out his dagger, cut a square out of the sod and planted it, replacing the square.

I… I don’t understand? You eat the stone? What about the good bit? It’s a fruit! You normally do the reverse. You eat the flesh and throw the stone away.

“Not with these. The flesh contains a stimulant, a very powerful one. If we had a horse, I could feed it the flesh. There’s enough in the stone to keep a human awake and active for quite a while. Eat the flesh and you’d likely suffer a heart attack, even with the healing properties of the tunic. The flesh will help the seed grow.”

Eat it, Olban. Oh, God, this is one of the few things I’m looking forward to when I get here physically. Tasting it for myself. Yes, Miss Parker. I agree with you about the smell. I don’t like it either.

Olban shrugged. “Bet you wouldn’t even notice it after a week. Besides, it’s natural. Better than the diesel and petrol fumes in your world.” He popped half the nut into his mouth and began to chew, sighing with contentment as the flavour exploded in his mouth.

putain, c'est la meilleure chose que j'aie jamais goûtée

What?

I said it's the most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted!

I know. Good, isn’t it?

* * *

“Olban?”

Olban’s eyes snapped open, he leant up on his elbows and look down the hill. The image of master Stell was back. “Here, sir.”

“Ah, good. I’m ready. I’m going to try to open a way for you now, directly to the centre of the village rather than to the cave, but it may place more stress on the repairs. I’m unsure how long I’ll be able to keep it open, so I want you to make yourself as small as possible and leap through the moment it appears.”

“Thank you, sir. Before you do it, though…”

“Yes?”

Olban gripped his amulet, concentrated and a second later, the image winked out of existence. A few seconds wait, another manipulation of the amulet and the figure reappeared.

“Sir, what were we just talking about?”

“I was telling you about opening a way to the village… Why did you end the…. Whatever you call it?”

“A good word’s connection, sir. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t another Wellick. We know they’re a little on the tricky side and they can change their appearance and be pretty convincing about it.”

“Ah… Good thought. Very good thought. Be ready, I’ll do it, now.” The image winked out of existence again.

A few seconds later, it appeared. It didn’t look like the last one. It wasn’t a sphere. Instead, a shimmering window hung in the air, the roundhouses of the village clearly visible.

Olban leapt and at the same time, curled into a ball. It was a strange sensation. A sudden wave of cold combined with acceleration. A few brief flashes of… things. Not long enough to process what the things were, but they seemed to resemble life of some kind and then, a longer flash of the cave, another acceleration in a different direction and the village was just… there.

He landed, stood, and turned just in time to see the window showing the hillock he’d lain on flicker and vanish.

He gripped his amulet one last time and Stell appeared again. “Thank you, sir. You may want to study it before using it again.”

Stell’s eyes twinkled. “Oh, I intend to. What was it like?”

“Best I can describe it as is strange, sir. I don’t know how it works, but I seemed to pass through another place and I think there were living things there.”

“Really?” He giggled. Olban had never seen Stell giggle before. “I’ve got so much more to learn. I could spend the rest of my life studying this and barely scratch the surface. I’ll let you get on with it, I’ve…” He rubbed his hands together with glee… “I’ve got a to learn.”

And with that, the image vanished yet again.

I’ve never seen him like that before. He’s normally so….

“Serious?”

I was going to say miserable, Now? Looks like a kid in a toy shop near Christmas.

“Well, he is. He knew it all until he saw that cave. Now he’s realised he doesn’t know anything. Bet he feels like that kid, too.” Olban took a deep breath and turned towards his forge. “Better get to work. I’m afraid you might have to miss a day, Gareth.”

Miss a day?

“I think I’m going to have to pull an all-nighter. No sleep means you stay asleep until I’m finished. Sorry, but we’ve lost so much time today with all the distractions.”

Gareth sighed. OK. Just as well we decided to travel across on a Sunday, isn’t it? Just as well I booked a few days off work to show you around, too.

* * *

It was a weird sensation. Oh, she’d been conscious a few times when one of her other “personas” had control, but this time? The care! The skill. The strength he put into the work, carving the precise patterns onto the inside of the band with a white-hot stylus. And she wasn’t just seeing it being done. It actually felt like she was doing it, even though she had no idea what it was he was doing. There didn’t appear to be any rhyme or reason to the patterns other than the fact they were beautiful.

Olban worked tirelessly at first, but the exertions of the day eventually caught up with him and when his need for sleep began to make demands, he took another nut from his pouch and did the same thing he had last time, munching on another of the stones. Reinvigorated, he continued, setting aside the stylus and collecting together the numerous metals he required, drawing them into wires so thin, Eloise suspected they were about as thick as a human hair.

When that was done, with even more care than the carving, he placed the hairs he’d made into the grooves, winding them around the pattern in various combinations, all the while muttering something incomprehensible under his breath, and, when each hair was fully in place, he ran this thumb along that section of pattern, muttering something more, this time with almost a sing-song tone. As his thumb stroked those sections of pattern, the metals smoothed and became a part of the armband in a way she couldn’t fathom.

When darkness began to encroach, Olban waved his hands in an elaborate way and the ceiling lit up. He continued his work.

Light was beginning to stream through the open doorway again by the time he held up the armband to study it and sighed. “All done.”

It’s beautiful, Eloise gasped, but what does it do?

“You surprised me, Eloise. I was expecting to be bombarded with questions all night.”

I’ve just never experienced anything like that before. Oh, the others had control once in a while, but my hands were doing such amazing things, I was mesmerised, this time. What was all that mumbling?

Olban sighed. "Alright. It takes immense amounts of concentration to focus enough to shape magic to your needs. I was just stating in exact terms what my intent was, that helps shape the magic in my mind and thus, the magic in the piece."

But I didn't understand a word of it.

"That's because I was speaking in the ancient tongue."

Why not just say it in English?

"A few reasons. You need to learn it, it isn't what you grew up with, which makes sure you're concentrating. That's only a small reason though. It's much more formal than English, not that we call it that. English is far more flexible and far more imprecise, more prone to misunderstandings. If I said it in English, my mind might trip up over some of those imprecisions and that could be dangerous. The ancient tongue is precise, rigid, just like the metals I'm working with."

I'm not too sure what you mean by imprecise.

"How many synonyms and homonyms are there? How many people can't even get it right in your world? Wear, where, were? There, their, they're. As for set, the dictionary has pages full of definitions and that's before we even get onto punctuation. When I say a panda eats shoots and leaves, do you picture a panda munching down on bamboo shoots or taking a bite out of a doughnut before opening fire with an assault rifle and walking away? One comma's all it takes to completely change that sentence."

I think I uderstand. I’ve never really been into arts and crafts. That might change, now.

“Nice to know we’ve had an impact.”

But what’s it supposed to do?

Olban sighed. “Alright. The designs along the outside edges are the original ones. It was nothing more than a proof of concept. Master Stell examined it and said it’d work so we didn’t even need to test it, not that we could until this weekend. Those patterns allow the band to travel through the dream with the wearer. It will appear on Gareth’s wrist when he wakes up. Stell’s confirmation allowed me to try for something much less conspicuous and much grander, though. Two days ago, I completed the two rings we would wear the next time I slept. Gareth also completed the other half of the mechanism. A circle in his basement that allows physical objects to appear from the dream. I was going to travel across with him, wearing the rings I’d made, but that’s no longer possible.”

What? Why?

“Because Vellan asked us to help you. We can’t use the rings until we have enough of them, that means six more.”

Six? But there’s only three of us.

“And five more minds sharing your original body. They’ll each need one in order to gain independence from each other. Until then, this armband will prove, finally, that magic is real and that Gareth doesn’t suffer from multiple personality disorder. As for the other things it can do, what I added to it? Several things above and beyond its original function. Vellan suggested a proof of magic, so… Well…” Olban snapped the armband onto his wrist. It covered his entire forearm, like a bracer rather than just a small bracelet. He pointed at the anvil and it shot three feet into the air. He twiddled his fingers, it span and then, he lowered his hands and it gently landed where it’d originally sat.

Gareth let out a cackle. And I’ll be able to do that? I’ll be able to flip the doc’s desk?

“No, Gareth. You know how weak magic is in your world. You may be able to levitate a feather. Possible even a pencil, but I doubt you’ll be able to do more than that. There is however more to it than just magic tricks. I’ve woven a healing charm into it. Here, it’ll do pretty much what the magic in my tunic does. There, it should prevent any diseases, stop them from gaining a foothold. It should aid your recovery by maybe double the normal healing rate if you’re injured. I also threw in a mental block. No more mind reading from things like Wellick. It’ll be like bashing their minds against a brick wall, here or there should they make the attempt.”

Good thought.

“Only one more thing to do before I bed down.”

Gareth sighed. What?

“Don’t worry, it’s only a promise I need to keep.” He gathered together the four Molka seeds and dashed to the edge of the village. A few minutes was all it took to plant them before he was back in the forge. He opened his firebox, placed it in the centre of the fire and the light began to dim, then winked out. Firebox back in his pouch, he walked over to the other side of the hut, swept aside a blanket, rapped it around himself and lay down in the centre of an ornate circular design.

I thought you slept with your family?

“Not this time. The circle’s needed, the armband won’t go anywhere without it.”

* * *

Olban walked through the void and it wasn’t long before two misty figures began to materialise by his side. Gareth to his left, Eloise to his right. A couple of minutes was all it took for them to become as solid as he was.

Gareth glanced across Olban and smirked. “At least put some clothes on.”

Eloise’s attention snapped to her left and the froze. “Who the hell… Gareth? Olban?”

“Of course. Who else would we be? Clothes?”

She looked down at her naked form and yelped, curling up and attempting to cover herself, not very successfully.

Olban sighed. “I thought you were familiar with the dream! You said you were going to conjure up a dagger, after all.”

“I normally find myself in some woods with my other… selves? I’ve only ever seen… What is this place? Why is it so… So empty?”

“It’s always like this. Just conjure up some clothes. It’s a little distracting, to say the least.”

“How?”

Gareth tutted. “It’s easy, just use your imagination. Look.” He swept his arm across himself and instantly, the jeans and t-shirt he had been wearing vanished, to be replaced by a pirate outfit that would’ve looked ideal for one of Jack Sparrow’s crew. He clicked his fingers and that was replaced by a full leather biker suit and crash helmet. Another click and he was wearing his lifeboat gear, yellow waterproofs and life preserver. Then, a thought… He clicked his fingers a final time and was immediately encased in steel. A full medieval suit of armour, cotton surcoat depicting a red cross included. “Thinking about it, we might all want to dress like this.”

Olban nodded. “Slight improvement on that idea, Gareth. How about this?” And in the blink of an eye, Olban was encased, too, but not in metal. The material was much lighter and more flexible around the joints, but completely solid. Completely sealed off from the outside world.

“Space marine? I like it!” Gareth chuckled and his armour changed to match. He patted his side and pulled a laser pistol from its holster. The next time he spoke, it came out like a poor quality old-style phone call. “Might as well be armed, too, just in case.”

Eloise looked down at herself, closed her eyes and concentrated. When she opened them again, she sighed with relief. Jeans, t-shirt and leather jacket. “Why do you want me to dress like a science fiction convention reject?”

“When we crossed over last time, there were a lot more nightmares than usual. They can be dangerous if you become embroiled in them. You can’t be hurt, but you can have a very rude awakening and if you’re here physically, like when Olban completes the rest of his rings, then you can die. As just dreamers, though, it just means waking up, but on this side of the woods, that means waking up back in Olban’s world. We have to get back to mine. To ours.”

“You were having nightmares?”

Olban shook his head. “The woods you seem so familiar with aren’t just your dream. They contain all the dreams, of everyone. Here, this empty space is just the place between worlds, between the physical realm and the dream realm.The woods’ll materialise soon, we cross them and then they fade again as we enter the place between the dream and your world, but if those nightmares have got worse… We want to be protected. I suggest you protect yourself, too.”

“What do you mean, everyone?”

Olban tapped his chin for a second. “Think of the woods as the collective unconscious of the whole of humanity. Yes, humans have got a small amount of latent psychic ability, but that only usually manifests when they’re dreaming. They’re usually totally unaware of any dream but their own, but we’ve been crossing those woods all our lives, so we get a sneaky peek into what everyone else is dreaming about. We can even interact with them, but if it’s a nightmare, that is not advisable.”

“And I can dream up anything?”

“Yes. You could even turn yourself into a dragon if you wanted to.”

“Well, I’m not wearing that!” She closed her eyes again and a moment later, a bracelet covered in flickering lights appeared on her wrist.

“We said protect yourself, not invent a new piece of costume jewellery.”

“Go on, then. Shoot me with that blaster thing.”

“Seriously? This could cut a mountain in half!”

“Try me.”

Gareth shrugged. “OK, if you’re sure.” He raised his gun and with a zappy sound just like the one in Star Wars, a blue bold of energy shot out, bounced off her and vanished into the distance. “Personal force field? Clever. Think I’ll add that to this.” and in the blink of an eye, a flashing panel appeared on Gareth’s chest. “Double protection. Let’s get a move on, eh?”

They continued on their way, but before the first of the trees began to show themselves, another figure appeared in the distance. As it approached, Eloise inched back, to walk behind the other two. It was the wolf. It looked like the same one that’d… that she thought…

Olban sighed. “It’s alright, Eloise.”

“But it… it… killed me.”

“It did to you what it saw as necessary to protect everyone else. What you attempted to do could’ve caused untold damage to not just your friends, but to the world itself.”

“But it”

“He attempted to prevent the damage in the only way he could. He did also ask us to help. If he hadn’t, you’d still be standing in this void, mindless and naked. He won’t harm you again.”

Well said, Olban. Hello Gareth, Eloise. I trust your work was fruitful?

“The armband is complete, sir, if that’s what you mean but”

But things didn’t go quite according to plan, I know. For either of us. The balance has been disrupted more than we feared.

“Is that why we were attacked, sir?”

Yes.

“What exactly was Wellick? What was that thing that ate me?”

I suppose the best way to describe them is minions of the nameless one.

“Nameless one?” Gareth said with a yelp. “That doesn’t sound good. What the hell is a nameless one?”

When the universe was still very young, we emerged. How? We don’t know. We just… Appeared. Whether we were created by gods or just out of a necessity the universe required, we don’t know that, either, but each of us had a purpose. Some had a creative purpose, others a destructive one, but the nameless one chose a different path. It attempted to undo everything each of us tried to do. It wanted a return to the void, the state of things before the universe began. That was what it decided its purpose was. As time went on and we began to make progress, it became more violent ending with the death of one of us. The rest of us banded together, created a space for it with just what it claimed to want, an empty void and locked it away.

Gareth sighed. “And the last thing Wellick said was he’s coming. What happens if he does?”

He? That’s new. It never even chose a name for itself let alone a gender. When I said the balance must be restored, it was to prevent just this type of catastrophe.

“And if he does return?”

Chaos. And it’s… he’s just the type of petty minded, vindictive… He’s likely to start with the highest of our works. Worlds with life, with intelligent beings such as yourselves.

“He can’t be that much of a threat, can he? He doesn’t seem to be intelligent enough. We’ve encountered two of these minions so far and both were severely lacking in the brain department.”

His minions are something new. He only cared about destruction, so creating some proxy creatures to do his bidding is unusual for him. Clearly, he hasn’t mastered the art, yet. We don’t create life in the way he is. We allow nature to take its course and just prod it once in a while. We guide, we don’t force. These Wellicks are just his first attempts. Never underestimate then because they will become smarter as he grows in confidence.

Eloise finally plucked up the courage to poke her head around Gareth’s side. “But why are they targetting us?”

The wolf regarded her gravely. You were a very unusual and powerful being, Miss Parker. Six independent and distinct minds all sharing the same body? If you’d only realised just how special you were, you could’ve performed some amazing feats, but now? The balance is too fragile. Your attempt to murder one of your own, your betrayal is what allowed the barrier to weaken to the point he could force open a crack. It’s far too thin to allow him entry back into these worlds right now, but if you were to die before the balance could be restored, or worse, if you were to fall into his clutches, he could tear the world apart. That is why I had to do to you what I did. The only way to even begin to fix this, now, is to transport all of your compatriots to their respective worlds. Olban, Gareth, come. Eloise…. Stay.

Vellan turned and trotted away.

Gareth and Olban glanced art each other and jogged after the wolf. When they were a fair distance away, it stopped, turned and regarded them.

What we discuss now must not reach her ears. Is that understood?

Olban nodded. “Yes, sir.”

“I’m fine with that. Why the secrecy?”

When your rings are complete, do not allow her to wear one until you’re travelling back to Olban’s world. I know I said she could travel back to her own but things have changed. She already has a physical presence there and another would only add to the disruption. When the rings are distributed and her compatriots have completed their journey, her body will die, because there will no longer be a mind to sustain it. Olban… She will have to take up permanent residence in your world. When you get back there, take her ring and destroy it. Ensure all rings attune themselves to the first wearer so they can never be used by anyone else, just in case she attempts to steal one of yours.

“Hmmm…” Olban looked down at the wolf with concern. “I’m not sure about the attune to one wearer thing, sir. In order to give the rings to her and her compatriots from Gareth’s world, he’ll need to wear all of them in order for them to travel with him.”

That may be, but he won’t be materialising himself. He has a body there. Make the attunement activate on materialisation. Gareth will appear in your world using the full power of the ring. Have it lock to him, then.

Olban nodded. “I see how that could be done, sir. One thing I don’t understand.”

Only one? Vellan’s voice took on an amused tone. Go on?

“You said there were many focussed on destruction as their purpose. Why not lock them all away?”

Creation and destruction are two sides to the same coin, as long as they abide by the rules the universe sets forth, Olban. If a star explodes, what happens?

Gareth chuckled. “He’d got you there, Olban. Heavier elements? We wouldn’t exist without iron, carbon, a few dozen other elements.”

Quite. The nameless one doesn’t want to just blow up the odd star, he wants to unmake the universe itself, and not just this one, but every corner of reality.

“But what do we tell her?”

I’m sure you’ll be able to come up with something. Just, don’t tell her the truth until her ring no longer functions. I suggest you get on your way, I have a lot of work to do. Be careful crossing the woods. Oh, and be on your guard. There may be minions anywhere, including Gareth’s world, now.

And with that, the wolf vanished.

“What was all that about?” She demanded, the moment they got back to her.

Olban shrugged. “It’s technical. A final modification to the rings, in order to prevent interference from that… thing. Also a warning, he said the woods were getting more dangerous. Come on, we’d better get going.”

* * *

Even before the misty forms of the trees had solidified, it became evident something had changed. They no longer stood erect, proud. Instead, they were twisted, deformed and the more solid they became, the more sinister they appeared. Their branches seemed to reach out to grab them as they passed, their leaves were black. In fact, everything about then was black.

“I see what he means about being careful, now.” Gareth said, staring around uneasily. “It looks like something from bloody Scooby Doo.”

Before he’d even completed the sentence, a man appeared, eyes wide with terror, bolting through the woods at right angles to them. A few seconds later, a misty form floating three feet off the ground appeared, clearly chasing him. It let out a blood curdling howl and vanished into the woods.

Olban sighed. “At least the last time, the nightmares were benign or distant enough not to matter. We’d better hurry. The quicker we’re through, the better.” He increased his pace.

At the brow of a hill, the trees began to thin and down below on the other side, a city street appeared. Rubble, shattered windows, huge holes in some of the buildings. A man in camouflage uniform stalked rounded a corner and froze as an old woman approached. She said something that clearly upset him and held something out to him. He raised his rifle and fired. She slumped to the ground. He stared at the body for a few seconds, shaking his head. He appeared to be weeping. Then, he turned tail and ran.

Olban sighed. “At least some of them appear to realise what they’re doing is wrong, if they’re having nightmares about it.”

“What was that? Was that”

Gareth cut her off. “A Russian soldier. Yes. I wonder if that’s Kiev or one of the other cities.”

“I really don’t think it matters. I suggest we run until this one’s gone.”

“But we’re protected, aren’t we?”

“And if a missile strikes one of those buildings and buries us? We might not be hurt, but we would still be trapped.”

Olban and Gareth bolted and Eloise was hot on their heals, dodging around mounds of rubble, they reached an intersection, stopped at the corner to peer around it and continued. A few explosions could be heard in the distance, but clearly, the worst of it was wherever that soldier had run off to.

“How do you know it wasn’t the old woman’s nightmare rather than the soldier’s?”

“If the woman had died, this entire nightmare would’ve ended. She would’ve vanished. She didn’t. The nightmare’s still here, so, it was clearly the soldier.”

Eventually, the streets began to fade away and the trees replaced them again. Still covered in black leaves, but much straighter than the first they’d encountered.

A man standing on a hill as a mushroom cloud erupted in the distance. Fire swept the landscape turning him into ash in an instant. The whole scene vanished a moment later. A woman fleeing the transparent outlines of a shop with a security guard in hot pursuit. A man strapped to an electric chair. A flip of the switch, a lot of smoke and screams and that nightmare ended, too. They skirted dozens of them, avoiding trouble in each one before the trees began to fade and the between reappeared. They hadn’t encountered a single pleasant dream.

It wasn’t long before Olban and Eloise began to fade, too. As the armour became more transparent, it was clear the armband wasn’t.

“You’re both fading. What happened when you’re gone, Olban?”

“Pick the armband up and put it on the wrist you don’t wear your watch on. I don’t know what’ll happen if you put it on the other wrist. Two objects sharing the same space, I doubt the results would be good.”

“That’s a damned good thought. I hadn’t considered that.”

“I guessed. That’s why I said it.”

They continued and before long, there was a clatter as the armband fell to the floor. Gsreth picked it up, snapped it onto his left wrist and continued on his way. At first, it felt too big for him, but as he continued, it began to feel snug against his skin. He looked at it in amazement.

That’s another thing I considered, Gareth. I am more muscular than you, after all. Comes with the work. It’ll always adjust itself to the wearer.

* * *

Gareth woke, stretched, sat up on the camp bed and glanced at his wrist with a grin. He held it up so they could see it. “It worked!” Then, he shifted uncomfortably. “Oh, bloody hell! I suppose I should count myself lucky I didn’t wet the bed, and bloody hell, I’m famished.”

He dashed upstairs to the toilet, glancing at his watch as he went. It was nine at night.