The Empty World | The Empty World Sequence [complete | rewriting]

"Thirty-One" (Draft 2)

Daniel was wandering farther into the darkness. Julien followed after, glass crunching under his borrowed boots. His toes felt slightly squashed, worse because rain had run down into them and made his bare feet wet.

"There's a doorway," Daniel said, "quick, c'mere."

Julien ran over best he could on the shifting glass. They were in a dimly lit hall together. It was quiet. It was the sort of quiet that makes people in movies say: "Yeah, too quiet." Even the breathers were holding their breath, so as not to make noise. Daniel crept down the hall first and Julien followed. Daniel opened the door on his right and pushed it in. He shook his head. Julien glanced in as he passed, and then looked back, the room was messy, but it had in interesting smell. He wanted to explore that room, it made him think of rooms of boys he'd gone to high school with, long ago.

The room on the left was also empty, full of Indian artifacts and colorful silk. There was just one door left, and it was opposite a narrow staircase. Julien's jaw dropped, all along there had been this hidden staircase.

Daniel opened the door cautiously, it was as if they knew it would have to be the last door. They meant to sneak in, certainly, but the land shook again and Daniel was pitched into the room. Julien braced himself in the doorway and saw Joy laying on a large black bed and Mandy standing quite still. He had a line of turquoise eyeshadow over each lid, and it looked good on him. And he'd got false fangs in his mouth.

Daniel pushed himself up from the floor and went to the bed. He lifted Joy's face. She was laying there like a rag doll, limp and expressionless. Her mouth was slack as Daniel touched her cheek. "Joy," he said and then he kissed her.

And that was all there really was to it, but of course Daniel had to be the one to do it. And then he had to leave her and go to the other.

He looked down at the suspicious one and slapped his face so that he would look up at Daniel. And then Daniel spoke his name, "Misery," and he kissed him. And then to this one Daniel said, "You'll take me away instead of her, and you won't bother her. Don't wonder about her. It's not her job to make people miserable, you know. So stop chasing her and asking her for answers. Chase me."

"I thought that I had finally made something out of you," Misery said and he touched Daniel's face."

"It seems I changed. You'll have to start over."

Julien listened. "Has the storm stopped? Have you done it?"

As if in answer Joy rose from the bed on her own. "Julien, I thought you were dead," she said, "I want to go home."

They came from the tower, Julien carrying Joy in his arms, and Daniel leading Misery by the hand. And as they paused on the asphalt to survey the sky Morpheus hopped from the flying carpet and rushed to kiss Julien. They started walking again. Julien glanced up at the carpet and Pandora sitting on it, the looked at Morpheus. "You're all right," Julien said.

"Pandora saved me," Morpheus said breathlessly.

Julien glanced up at the girl hovering on a carpet.

"Come with us, OK?" Morpheus said.

Julien nodded. They followed Morpheus. The storm was settling down, but the damage remained. Morpheus was still coughing occasionally. The valley was still marked by torn and jagged ground and muddy pools. And as they walked the sky filled with Angels, The Ophanim, and various children of Night and they began singing.