Eighth Circle

Tom's blood boiled.

'Are you removing them, Crispin?'

'I'm trying, Professor.'

Tom heard panting.

'What's the matter?'

Someone has hammered them in.'

'What idiot did that?'

'Probably you, Professor. When you tried to force the panel open. I'll go and get some tools ... I won't be long.'

Tom heard Crispin run off and felt stupid. If he had remembered about the wedges he wouldn't be risking death from asphyxiation while others took the initiative. Hammering told him that Crispin had returned. The panel slid open and he saw the young man's face.

'Come on!'

Crispin grabbed his arm.

'The guardians have boarded the boats. They are waiting for you to take them to the Sixth Realm. Father is the only one in a jar. The chancellor is looking after him. He's on our side and so is Balduur.'

***

Tom sat in a small dinghy with Crispin and watched the blood-red disc of the setting sun slip towards the horizon. Father was in another dinghy with the chancellor. They had reached the island and had dropped anchor near the whirlpools. Under different circumstances he would have felt elated. The whirlpools were gateways to other realms and one led to the Sixth Realm. Everything was going according to plan apart from one hideous mistake.

The guardians were still with them.

Tom was furious. While he was trapped in the Forbidden Zone, Balduur had rounded up the guardians and told them they must leave for the Sixth Realm at once. That was a good move but he should have put them in the leaking boat that had been prepared for them. Instead, he put them in a sea-worthy vessel. It was anchored nearby. Once the gateways were open the guardians could dash ahead and enter the pathways leading to the Sixth Realm.

Tom was appalled. The Sixth Realm was in a bad enough state when he left it. The guardians would make it a hundred times worse. They would insinuate themselves into industry and take over governments. They didn't need the death trolls to seize power. Their advanced knowledge would set them on the road to world domination.

Father wanted to return to the Sixth Realm and warn people that they were heading for disaster if they did not look to the future and change their ways. He expected to arrive back as a fully-functioning human being and hoped to take the chancellor with him.

Tom felt a deep respect for the chancellor and the other guardians who found themselves trapped in an evil organisation. They kept faith and looked for a solution. Crispin and Liala were part of the solution and they fulfilled their roles superbly. Both were now free to lead their lives as they wished.