‘There was always a degree of tolerance in allowing beings like ourselves to move through this land,’ the queen added, ‘as long as the balance of power was not unduly affected.’
‘So it is scared of us,’ Ruth said.
The queen turned her full attention to Ruth for the first time and smiled patronisingly. ‘Scared? The Devourer of All Things sees you as insects emerging from the fabric of its property. If the infestation is allowed to continue, then the foundations may be undermined. But still … insects.’
‘As are we all,’ the king said. ‘Even the Golden Ones.’
‘When the Brothers and Sisters of Dragons began to come together, ripples moved out across all Existence.’ The queen’s expression became grave. ‘When the Fabulous Beast was awoken from its sleep. When the last remnants of the Blue Fire eased out into a land grown cold and still. All parts of a greater picture. For anyone who has the eyes to see, it is the final act in the story that began when this place sprang into being.’
‘The end of the universe?’ Ruth said. ‘Are you serious?’
‘Ragnarok,’ Shavi explained. ‘In Norse mythology, it is the twilight of the gods when the universe is torn apart. It will be preceded by the Fimbulwinter, the winter of winters; conflicts will break out and morality will disappear. There will be a final battle between the gods and the forces ranged against them, and in the end, death will come to all.’
Silence stretched between them for a moment. Then the king said, ‘Everything that has happened to you has been leading to this. The Devourer of All Things knows it. It sought to subvert the ancient story by holding you Brothers and Sisters of Dragons in stasis. Now you are free, it rages, and seeks to hold back the end with the terrible power of its complete regard.’
‘So basically it’s not tolerating us any more,’ Laura said. ‘Or you.’
‘Or any beings like us, born of wonder and magic and spirit,’ the king replied. ‘All things of greatness in this place are being harried. Those who fall are being taken to the dark camps in the Far Lands to be fed to the crushing engines of eradication. The Golden Ones who once walked this land with impunity now hide in the shadows, and run before the darkness that seeks to cleanse them. Even in the Far Lands, in the great courts, a debilitating fear has taken hold. Our long rule has been shaken. For the first time we know that we might fall.’
‘Where are you going?’ Shavi asked.
‘Away,’ the queen said simply. ‘We seek safe haven, like many others on the Last Train.’
‘You haven’t found anywhere yet?’ Church asked.
A shiver of sadness passed across the queen’s normally implacable face, but she said no more.
‘You are welcome to join us in our search for asylum, Brother of Dragons,’ the king stated.
‘We’re not looking for a hiding place. We’re finding a way to fight back.’
An awed whisper ran amongst the Seelie Court. The queen smiled. ‘We recognised the potential in the Brothers and Sisters of Dragons long ago. This, then, is the moment when Fragile Creatures escape from the mire and start the long walk to their shining future.’
6
Laura was lost in the hallucinatory flicker of lights through the train window.
‘Deep in thought?’ Shavi slipped into the seat next to her. Apart from them, the carriage was empty. Church and Ruth were still locked in conversation with the king and queen of the Seelie Court in the adjoining carriage.
‘I don’t do deep thought,’ she lied. ‘Life’s for feeling.’ She could see from Shavi’s face that she wasn’t fooling him; she never did. Every time he would give his faint, knowing smile, but he would never challenge her. ‘Got a question for you,’ she said, deflecting the conversation. ‘Those lives we all remember from before we came together. They were fake, right? So who are we really?’
Shavi’s brow knitted; it was a question he had already considered. ‘I know, in a way unsupported by memory, that we are all good friends. The very best, a friendship that can only have been forged by travelling through the hardest of times.’
‘I only ask because since we all got together I’ve been getting flashes … images … snatches of conversation … things that don’t fit anywhere into my life at all, but feel more real than anything I do remember properly. You get that?’
‘I do. And it is growing stronger. We are throwing off the shackles of the Void. Moving closer to who we really are.’
‘So, us having sex together, on a warm night, with the stars overhead …’ She stopped, embarrassed at the dreamy tone that had materialised in her voice. ‘What does that mean?’
‘That you have excellent taste.’ He gave a teasing grin.
‘Did I mention it was a nightmare?’
‘I recall one thing from my previous life: an emptiness,’ Shavi said thoughtfully. ‘I remember searching many spiritual paths for answers, finding none. Until I joined with you.’
His words echoed Laura’s own thoughts.
They were interrupted by Church and Ruth returning from the adjoining carriage. ‘This train isn’t going anywhere we need to be,’ Church said. ‘We should get off as soon as we can.’
Laura glanced out into the dark. ‘Don’t want to burst your bubble, Chief, but no Railcard is getting us back home from here.’
‘We’re not going home.’
‘Where, then?’
‘Not sure exactly, but somewhere in Scandinavia.’
‘That narrows it down,’ Laura said sarcastically. ‘Any particular reason for that destination, or do you just like cheap furniture with clean lines?’
‘Puck told me we needed to look in a cold land where rainbows bring the gods to Earth. In Norse mythology, the Rainbow Bridge is the link between Earth and the gods.’
‘You’re putting all your trust in some mischievous imp that spends its time leading humans into swamps?’
‘And saving them from them,’ Church said. ‘Don’t forget the other side of the coin.’
‘I have to agree with Laura,’ Shavi said. ‘At best the Puck’s intentions are ambiguous. How do you know we can trust him? None of the Tuatha De Danann appears to hold him in high regard.’
‘He’s got his own agenda,’ Church concurred, ‘but my instinct says this time we need to follow his suggestion.’
‘All right, so how do we get off this damn thing?’ Ruth said.
‘You ask. I exist only to serve.’ Everyone started; Ahken was standing near the doors halfway down the carriage.
‘Is that how people get off?’ Laura snapped. ‘You pop up like a rat from a drain and give them a heart attack?’
‘Many have died on the Last Train.’ Ahken clasped his hands in a gesture of deference that also appeared triumphal. He smiled and raised one hand. The train slowed. ‘The Last Train is at your service whenever you might need it. One small thing will summon it: a spot of blood on the tracks.’ Ahken bowed.
‘You really think we’re getting on this thing again?’ Laura sneered.
Ahken smiled again, this time sly and cold. ‘Everyone takes a scheduled trip on the Last Train once in their existence. Yours is still to come. A seat has been reserved.’
Laura felt a chill, resisted the urge to ask when that would be.
The doors slid open and they stepped onto the clean, modern platform of Heathrow Airport Underground Station.
‘Shit. How did he know where we needed to be?’ Laura turned to ask Ahken, but the Last Train had already departed, as silent as the grave.
Chapter Three
1
The last leg of the journey through the Kent countryside was illuminated by the silvery light of approaching day, and by the time Mallory drove the stolen rental transit across Canterbury’s city limits, the sun was a pink and gold glow low in the eastern sky.