Entering the Weave

Josh’s dad was waiting for him in the kitchen.

“Where have you been? You’re soaking.” He sounded more worried than cross, but Josh could sense his seldom vented anger simmering below the surface. “Hello Katrina.” He rummaged around in a cupboard and pulled out some towels.

“I’ve been at Toby’s” Josh blurted, without consciously making a decision to lie.

His dad handed him a towel and looked directly into his eyes. “You haven’t been at Toby’s, Josh. I’ve just spent about an hour trying to convince his mum that computers aren’t all evil machines bent on the destruction of her son, because he’s been in some sort of coma because he had been playing a computer game with you. Now. I’ll ask you again: What have you been up to?”

“Sorry dad.” Josh sat down, wishing he had just told the truth from the beginning. “We went looking for Geigerzalion again. You didn’t tell me not to.”

His dad snorted, which seemed to deflate his anger. “I should have, Josh.”

Josh nodded. His dad’s sudden softening surprised him, but it was certainly better than being shouted at.

“I think we’ll need a cup of tea.” Kat said briskly. “I’ll put the kettle on.”

So Josh sat at the kitchen table and told his dad everything. He started at the beginning with his strange meeting with Mr Oakhampton and the conversation with Geigerzalion in the study. He described his adventures in cyberspace with Michael and the Doge and his meeting with the Gazetteer. And as he told his story he felt a knot unclenching in his stomach.

“Well that’s some story, Josh.” His dad said, leaning away from the table and puffing out his cheeks. “But it’s too far fetched isn’t it? Couldn’t you just have told me that you went to an all night party or something? I mean, Trevor Oakhampton, Sir Trevor Oakhampton reappears as a tramp, you meet a shadowy group of hackers working out of a glass box, perform some impossible telepathy with the Internet and discover a mysterious all seeing consciousness that controls our planet. Come on…” He didn’t seem cross though. In fact Josh saw him smiling gently.

“You’re not trying to hide something are you Josh? You know you can tell me.”

“It’s true, Mr Bennett. Honestly.” Kat piped up.

“It happened, dad. I hardly believe it myself. Half the time, I think I’m going mad.” He looked imploringly at his father. “Is it just possible that Tech-Tonic could have harnessed children’s brains like that. Theoretically?”

Mr Bennett pulled a loose thread from the cuff of his old woollen cardigan and sighed. “Theoretically, I suppose it could be.” He sat up and shook his head. “But we’re decades away from that level of technology, and morally it’s just so wrong…”

“But it is possible?”

“Well yes, most things are, Josh. But it’s science fiction.”

“Dad, it’s not. I couldn’t make this up.”

“But isn’t that the point of your story, Josh? Your imagination is the heart of the whole thing.”

Kat had taken a chair next to Josh and she placed a gentle hand on his sleeve. “Mr Bennett, Josh is very special. We’ve been watching him for a long time now.”

Josh turned to her and pulled his arm away. “What?” He said at the same time as his dad. “What do you mean?”

Kat splayed her fingers on the table and took a deep breath. “I really wanted to tell you Josh. I really did.”

“Tell me what?” Josh felt his jaw clenching and the knot in his stomach had returned tighter than ever.

“I…we’ve been watching you for years, Josh. We always knew you were important.”

“Who’s we? Why have you been watching me?” Josh could feel hot tears in his eyes now. The remembered tenderness of the embrace outside suddenly felt tainted. “Is that why you came in? So you could keep an eye on me?”

“No, Josh. No I didn’t. I was going to go home, remember? I wanted to come in because I…” Tears welled up in her eyes now and she bowed her head to hide them.

“What?”

“Josh, please. Please listen to me. You want your dad to believe you, don’t you? Aren’t you hurt that he doesn’t?”

Josh only then realised that they were both standing up and glaring at each other. The distressed sincerity in Kat’s face was plain and he did feel hurt that his dad didn’t believe him.

“I don’t know what to believe Kat. I don’t even know what you’ve done.” He mumbled because his throat was aching as if he had been crying. “I need someone I can trust.”

“You can trust me.” She whispered. “I just want to help you.”

Josh’s dad was standing between them now and he reached out with his long arms and drew the pair of them into his sides. “Come on you two.”

Josh nodded and looked at her. She smiled back at him with a streak of black makeup running down one cheek and in that instant Josh loved her more than ever.

They all sat down again and there was an uncomfortable silence for a few moments before Josh’s dad broke it. “So, Kat. What’s been going on?”

“You know what my parents are like, don’t you Josh. Always jetting around the world on business or whatever and leaving me behind with a relative. When I was really young they used to leave me with my uncle. He’s a druid.”

“A druid?” Josh laughed. “Like that lunatic on the news the other day? Coel somebody or other.”

“Amberglass. Yes that’s him actually.” Kat didn’t seem to have taken offence at Josh’s rather rude interruption. “Everyone thinks he’s mad of course, but he’s a lovely man.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be silly. But I don’t think you’ll find his beliefs as wild as most people do.”

Josh grimaced and Kat smiled at him. “Anyway, Coel taught me about how everyone is connected by their dreams and although he couldn’t show it to me, I believed him.”

“But why?”

“Because he can do things, Josh. Magic. And I don’t mean conjuring tricks. Real magic.”

“Like what?”

“He can make people do things.”

“That doesn’t make him magic, Kat.” Josh said delicately.

“Oh I know that Josh. I don’t mean he can persuade people to do things. He can slip into their minds and control them. He can do it with animals as well.”

“Are you sure you…”

“Joshua Bennett after all you’ve been through in the last forty eight hours, I’d have thought you’d have gained enough sense to recognise the truth when you hear it. No matter how strange it is.” Kat glared at him defiantly.

“Hear her out Josh.” His dad said pleasantly and winked at him. “It’s certainly no more bizarre than your story.”

“Thanks Mr Bennett. Well, anyway, Coel convinced my parents to buy a house around here so that I could look out for you. Warn him if you got involved in anything dangerous. And I’ve been doing it for the last eight years. Since we were six.” Josh wanted to protest, but Kat gave him a quelling look. “And it’s a good job we have been watching you, because if we hadn’t then you and Toby would still have been trapped in that stupid computer.”

“What do you mean?”

“He took me round to Toby’s. He’d sensed something was wrong and sent me to wake you up. You should have seen him; I’ve never seen him so worried. He looked so fierce I thought Toby’s mum wasn’t going to let us in, but he worked his magic and she just went back to bed.”

“You mean he’s here? In West Hackett?”

“Yes. Well he was last night. He’s come down to protect you himself.”

“Kat. Why didn’t you tell me all this before? “ He felt like an impostor that had stolen someone else’s life. He didn’t understand why so many people seemed to think that he was so important. “If I’d known what was going on then surely I’d have been in less danger.”

“Would you have been though? You’d have thought I was crazy.”

Josh nodded ruefully. “Yeah, well I guess that’s true.”

“It is true. You don’t really believe me now. I’ve always wanted to tell you, but Coel told me that it might disturb the balance of your future. He’s always been confident that you’d overcome whatever challenges were waiting for you, but he didn’t want to influence your choices.”

“Could we arrange to meet him at some point? Your uncle?” Josh’s dad asked gently.

Kat’s face broke into an unaffected smile and she beamed at them. “Of course you can.” And she squeezed her eyes shut tightly.

Josh and his dad looked at each other, but before either of them could say anything Kat’s eyes popped open again. “He’s coming.” She grinned.

“What?”

“He’ll be here in a minute. Sooner probably.”

“But…”

“Yes?”

Josh wanted to say something about craziness but was interrupted by a sharp tapping at the kitchen window.

“He’s here. I told you he wouldn’t be long.”

“Already?” Josh’s dad stood up and pushed open the window. “Come around to the side door.” He called loudly and slowly into the garden.

A huge glossy raven flapped in through the open window, almost knocking Josh’s dad over, and landed on the back of one of the kitchen chairs. It stood there for a second eyeing the room with its beady, black eyes.

“Ello” It cawed.

There was silence for a few moments.

“Um. Your uncle’s a raven?”

“No, he’s not. Stop being so dense. I’ve told you. He can control animals. This raven was just the quickest way to get here.”

“It talked.” Josh’s dad grinned foolishly. “The bird. It said ‘Hello’”

“Ello.” The raven squawked again and swayed impatiently from claw to claw.

“Mr Amberglass?” Josh ventured.

The raven launched into a tirade of croaks and squawks. The actual noise seemed to be the usual cawing that any bird might make, but somehow, amongst the sound Josh heard a distinctly human voice.

“I’m sorry I can’t come in person, I’m afraid the conclave is rather busy at the moment and I’m needed there. Please continue to take care of yourself and listen to any advice that Kat gives you. Be careful of whom you trust. Hopefully it will not be long before we meet properly.”

The raven fell silent.

“Did you understand that?” Josh asked nobody in particular.

His dad nodded slowly. “This is impossible? Am I going mad?”

But no one answered; because at that moment the raven became merely a raven again and it decided that it didn’t want to be in the kitchen any more. It sprang off the back of the chair and swooped around the room squawking much louder than it had before. It seemed enormous and the fluorescent light threw its shadow onto the floor making it seem like there were two birds thrashing around.

Kat managed to wrench the back door open and the raven flew out into the night.

Just then the door leading to the hall opened and Josh’s sister bustled in, performing some intricate twisting procedure with her hair and looking determinedly cross.

“What’s going on? It’s Sunday morning. Oh, so you’ve decided to come home have you?” She didn’t seem to have noticed Kat. “Shame. It was nice and quiet without you.”

“Hi, Jackie. Nice to see you too. Josh was quite used to her barbs. Kat however took instant offence.

“That’s not very nice. He’s your brother.”

Jackie smirked at Josh. “Oh I knew it. I knew you fancied her. But I didn’t think you’d manage to lure her back here. Did you promise to read your poems to her?”

“Have you seen any more of David McKenzie?” Kat said ferociously sweetly. The effect of these words was instantaneous and remarkable. Jackie’s face flushed puce and she darted a furtive glance at her father.

“I…I don’t…know what you mean.” She stammered and backed towards the door. Josh had never seen her so completely deflated before and he almost felt sorry for her. Kat sat innocently examining her nails while Jackie closed the door behind her.

“I’ve never seen her shut up so quickly. Is this the magic you spoke of?” Josh’s dad looked as bewildered as Josh. “Who is David McKenzie?”

“He’s just this guy who works at a garage down by the school. Jackie’s fancied him for ages and last week she plucked up the courage to ask him out.”

“And?” Josh’s dad said stonily.

“He told her he was married and she should look for someone her own age. Apparently he was really nice about it, but she hasn’t taken it very well. He called her ‘sweet’.”

Josh couldn’t contain his laughter. This was the best present a younger brother could get.

“Is someone watching my daughter as well? Is that how you got that particular piece of information?” Josh couldn’t tell if his dad was serious or not, but he stifled his laugh just in case.

“No, Mr Bennett. It’s just a rumour going around at school. She’s not being followed.”

“Well, I’ll certainly be having words with that young lady.”

“Do you believe me now, dad?” Josh asked quietly.

His dad took a deep breath and smiled. “Yes, I suppose I do. Geigerzalion has posed lots of problems that our experts can’t explain. It’s also opened up a lot of possibilities. We’ve been working hard to try and understand what it all means, but so far we’ve drawn a blank. Your story, funnily enough, could explain quite a few anomalies that we’ve observed recently. I suppose this ‘Weave’ could exist, and if there has been a fusion of children and machines then perhaps the Internet could connect to it somehow.”

Then he shook his head. “The thing is Josh. If Tech-Tonic were using humans as computers I’d know about it. I work for Mythago Industries, but really we’re just a semi-independent subsidiary of Tech-Tonic. We all share the same knowledge base. Even if it was restricted or top-secret I’m sure I’d’ve heard rumours.”

“You work for Tech-Tonic?” A vague memory of something Toby had said filtered into his mind. “But don’t you hate what Mr Oakhampton’s doing to the software industry?”

“Since when have you taken an interest in that? But yes, in principle I do. I’ve even given lectures about it. Huge multinational conglomerates shouldn’t be allowed to put small innovative companies out of business with their aggressive marketing and so forth. It’s just wrong. Sir Trevor actually encourages me to do it. It’s somehow in his interest to publicly distance Tech-Tonic from some of the companies it owns. He doesn’t want the government to think he’s as powerful as he actually is.”

“So you know Mr Oakhampton?”

“Sir Trevor? Yes I do. Quite well actually. He’s been coming around a lot since we started on the Geigerzalion project. He’s a ruthless man though.” Josh’s dad paused for a moment pondering something. “I think he would be quite capable of giving the go ahead to an unethical project if he thought it would benefit his company.”

The telephone rang suddenly and Josh jumped. His dad picked up the receiver. “Hello.”

Josh wondered whether he could use his father’s unexpected association with Tech-Tonic to find out more about the Delphixians. Was his dad important enough to demand information from other departments? Or would the project be so secret that only a handful of top level scientists knew about it?

“Yes… yes… okay, we’ll be there… Yes, that’s fine. Thanks Chris.” His dad replaced the receiver and turned back to the kitchen table.

“They’ve found him.”

“Who?”

“Sir Trevor! He’s just been picked up from the Red Lion down the road. Apparently he turned up earlier this morning dressed as a tramp. Just like you said. The owner was going to turn him away, but he produced a wad of cash and booked the best room in the hotel. I couldn’t imagine him as a tramp. It just wouldn’t suit him at all.”

“He was quite good at it.”

Josh’s dad chortled. “Well, the thing is, he wants a meeting with me and Chris to talk about the Geigerzalion Project. And he’s asked for you to be there.”

“Me?” Josh was stunned. “How does he know about me?”

“Well he has met you, Josh. Perhaps he remembers something about your encounter.”

Josh remembered with a sudden chill what the Gazetteer had said happened to people after he’d finished using them.

“This could be your chance Josh. You could ask him about these human computers.”

Josh nodded slowly. “Yeah I suppose.” But he thought that anyone capable of such an atrocity would hardly be decent enough to admit to doing it in the first place.

“When’s the meeting?”

“Tomorrow morning. Nine o’clock. At my office.”

“What about school? It’s Monday tomorrow. I should go to school.”

“I’m not going to force you to come Josh. I thought you’d want to meet him.”

“I’ll come.” Josh said quietly and sighed.

The remainder of the day went slowly. Kat went home in the afternoon and Josh ran out of excuses for not going to bed by about six o’clock. He was exhausted but he was worried about falling asleep because he didn’t know what to expect. He really didn’t want to have to contend with dreams within dreams or a lecture from the Overseer of the Earth. All he wanted was a rest.

As it turned out he did dream but only randomly, of things that were too fleeting to grasp, and he woke up in the morning nicely refreshed.

He thought wistfully that perhaps all the things he remembered from last week were just dreams, but then his dad brought him a cup of tea.

“Will you be ready to go in half an hour?”

“Yeah, I suppose.”

Josh got ready with a jittering energy. He was worried about what Sir Trevor would remember from their previous meetings and he convinced himself that he would end up being blamed for making the chairman of Tech-Tonic spend three weeks as a tramp. Sir Trevor didn’t sound like the type of person to forgive that type of thing very quickly.

His dad, as usual, was not ready in half an hour and Josh waited patiently for him in the kitchen, watching the news. He smiled to himself a little, wondering what the serious newsreaders and journalists at the BBC would make of his adventures.

“Our leading item today focuses on the riots in Buckingham. This normally quiet market town on the outskirts of the home counties, has become the centre of middle England’s violent annoyance at the way the general public is being treated by the government. We sent Estella White there to investigate the reasons.”

The scene changed to a street where rioters were standing in a ragged line behind two still smouldering cars. Josh peered at the screen and saw that they were not the usual yobbish mob. These were mostly middle-aged men and women, who would have been well dressed, had they not obviously just spent a few hours rampaging through the streets.

“Thank you, Myra.” Estella was saying. “Yes, as you can see. Buckingham high street has turned into a war zone. I’ve spoken to a few of the rioters, and, as yet, the reasons for the disturbances are unclear. Tempers are running high and there have been a few skirmishes between the rioters themselves.”

“Can you tell us the cost of the damage so far?” A voice from the studio asked.

“Well, the worst of the rioting has been kept to the high street you see behind me, and that has been quite severe, although nobody has estimated an monetary value so far.”

“And there still seems to be no reason for the riot?”

Estella looked as though she was pondering the question for a moment and then her expression changed. “I’ve already said that, haven’t I? I mean what’s the point of me being here, if you’re not going to listen. You lot in your comfortable studio. You make me sick.” And she threw her microphone at the camera and ran away down the street to join the rioters.

Myra’s bemused smile replaced the carnage of the Buckingham street. “I’m sorry about that. We’ll go back to that story when we can.” She looked at her notes and then to the side. “Technology now. More than twenty percent of the world’s Internet sites have gone down this morning according to an industry watchdog…”

His dad came into the kitchen just then, looking about for something and furiously trying to tie his tie at the same time. “Are you ready? Good. Good. Come on then, we’ll just have to leave my briefcase.”

“It’s in the cupboard under the stairs.”

Josh and his father did not talk to each other much on the way to Mythago Industries, but his father said an awful lot to the other drivers on the road, and most of it was not suitable for Josh’s ears. Josh had never seen his dad so stressed out and it was not very encouraging to think that it was all because he was meeting Sir Trevor.

When they finally pulled into the car park Josh had convinced himself that this meeting was going to be entirely about what he had done to Sir Trevor and what his punishment should be. Any thoughts of using this meeting to his benefit had slunk out of his mind without a trace.

Josh had been to his dad’s office a few times, and he had always found it interesting before, but now he kept his head down as he was led swiftly through the building until they came to a small room where a young man in a crumpled T-shirt sat behind one of two desks. He looked as though he’d slept there.

“Hi, Chris. Is he here?” Josh’s dad bustled into the room.

“Yeah, he’s waiting in the board room.” Chris had an American accent.

“How is he? What sort of mood?”

“That’s the queer thing. I’ve never seen him in such a good mood. He’s even been laughing. Telling jokes to the secretaries.”

“But he doesn’t normally even speak to them.”

“I know.” The young man threw his arms out theatrically. “Go figure. Perhaps it’s the calm before the storm.”

“Wait here, Josh. I’ll be back when he wants to see you.”

Josh could see the glistening of sweat on his dad’s forehead.

“Okay.”

Josh plonked himself down behind his dad’s desk and watched his dad and Chris hurry off through another door. He pulled his mobile phone out of his pocket and settled down to wait for a while.

He had two text messages.

The first was from Kat. “Hi J. C ya L8r. Luv K.” He grinned, but immediately tried to work out what she meant by “luv”. Did she mean it the way he felt about her?

He almost lost himself in teenage angst, but the flashing envelope on his phone reminded him that he had another message. He quickly brought the text up.

It wasn’t text.

Swirling gibberish filled the screen. Pixels danced in a chaotic mess and then his familiar tumbling symbols appeared.

“Trust the chairman. He is my friend. He has helped me.” The message repeated a few times and then dissolved from the screen. The flashing envelope disappeared.

Josh put his phone away.

“Josh! Are you ready?” His dad popped his head into the room. He was grinning. “Sir Trevor wants to meet you.”

He followed his dad through some parts of the offices he had not seen before until they came to a set of polished wooden double doors. Josh’s dad pushed one of them open and motioned for him to go through.

“You’re not coming?”

“He’s asked to see you on your own.”

“But…”

“It’ll be okay Josh. Just remember to be polite.” His dad smiled.

“You’ll be waiting out here?”

“Of course. And there’s nothing to worry about.”

Josh took a deep breath and stepped into the room.

Sir Trevor Oakhampton was standing with his hands clasped behind his back gazing out through one of the large windows. He was dressed in an expensive looking suit and his hair, which the last time Josh had seen it resembled a bird’s nest, had been cut and combed to perfection.

“Hello Josh. It’s good to see you again.” He held out a well manicured hand.

Josh shook it, trying to see a glimmer of the person he knew in the eyes of the man standing before him. There was none.

“Hello.” Josh said nervously.

“Please sit down.” Sir Trevor’s courtesy was at odds with the brusqueness of his tone. “I don’t remember much about our previous meetings and I was hoping that you could fill me in on what was said.” Sir Trevor smiled but Josh could see that the expression had not had much practice on his face.

“Thank you.” Josh seated himself on the other side of the long table. They considered each other for a moment.

“I’m not going to lie to you Josh. I don’t know what has been happening to me over the last few weeks. One night I went to an opera as an influential business man, and the next thing I clearly remember is waking up in a ditch three weeks later with whatever happened between those times a total blur. Your face is the only prominent memory I have. Why do you think that would be?”

Josh swallowed hard at the directness of the question. “I don’t know.” He continued quickly, feeling a prickling at the back of his neck. “You came to see me twice but only for a few minutes each time and I didn’t really understand what you were talking about. In fact to begin I thought you were just a harmless tramp.” Josh grimaced. “Sorry.”

“Yes, yes. I’m sure you did.” Sir Trevor gestured for him to continue.

“You told me a story the first time about how the Earth was in danger from some alien influence or something and that Gaia needed my help.”

“Aliens? Who is Gaia?”

“Well…I think you meant the whole planet.”

Sir Trevor shook his head. “Madness! What about the other time we met? Did I make any more sense then?”

“Erm. Not really.”

Sir Trevor’s mouth suddenly contorted into a snarl and Josh thought he saw a sheen pass over the man’s eyes. Before he had time to wonder about it, Sir Trevor had regained his weighty composure, although he now wore a more natural smile to replace the inexpert one of before.

“I’m sorry about that, Josh. I haven’t fully recovered from my… adventures.” He leaned forward over the table and winked. “I’ve changed.”

Josh struggled to find something to say. “What do you mean?”

“I wasn’t the nicest person in the world.”

“Really?”

Sir Trevor laughed. “You’re very tactful, Josh. Your father must have mentioned how much of a tyrant I used to be.”

Josh was about to protest, but Sir Trevor held up a hand to stop him. “You don’t need to worry about getting him into trouble. As I said I’ve changed. I feel like Scrooge, I suppose, when he woke up on Christmas morning and realised that he could put things right. You’re my ghostly Marley and the first thing I want to do is reward you for helping me to see the light. Is there anything you want? Something I can give you?”

“Well there are a couple of things I’d like to ask you about…”

“Yes? Ask away.”

Josh cleared his throat, and then plunged ahead with his question. “When I was online I found a… boy.” He paused, hardly sure what he was going to say.

“Go on.” Sit Trevor nodded encouragingly.

“He said he was real. That he’d been wired up which had allowed you to use his brain as a computer.”

“Me?”

“Well, Tech-Tonic.” Josh mustered as much defiance as he could.

Sir Trevor looked incredulous. “That’s absurd.” He didn’t seem cross. “Even if we were morally bankrupt enough to attempt such a thing, we just don’t have the technology, Josh. I can assure you of this.”

Josh sighed. He didn’t see how he could argue against such an absolute denial. Even though Michael had seemed so honest and sincere, Josh could not think of what to do next.

“And the other thing?” Sir Trevor was smiling.

“I want to help Geigerzalion. Dad said you might be able to do something.”

Sir Trevor grinned. “You really are quite an astonishingly… um, nice boy, aren’t you? And I’d be glad to help. You’ll need to come to our main facility. We’ve got a whole team of engineers who’ve been wrestling with the Geigerzalion enigma for years. I shall put them all at your disposal. I think Professor Ackermann will be particularly pleased to see you. And also, I’ll be able to show you that we don’t have any unfortunate children wired up to our mainframe.”

“I don’t know very much about computers. I probably won’t understand.”

“That’s okay. Your father’s very competent. He’ll explain the things you don’t understand.”

“Would it be okay if I asked one of my friends to come along?” Josh knew Toby would love the opportunity to see Tech-Tonic’s main offices. “He knows all about Geigerzalion.” He added quickly.

“Of course he can come. It’ll be Toby you want to bring, I presume?” Sir Trevor smiled gleefully at him and Josh thought for an embarrassing second that he was going to reach across the table and tousle his hair.

Toby had not been allowed to go back to school, which suited him just fine. When the doctors had said that he could go home, he was told not to do anything exciting and that included playing computer games.

His mum had decided that temptation would get the better of him if he was allowed into his own room, so he was now lying on the bed in the spare bedroom staring at the ceiling. He wouldn’t have touched his computers even if someone had paid him, but he hadn’t argued. He hadn’t had the energy. It was all he could do now to look at all the frilly lace that covered every conceivable surface in this room.

He heard the phone ringing downstairs and assumed his mum would answer it, but it continued to ring. He heaved himself out of bed and stomped down the stairs.

“Hello!” He challenged whoever it was.

“Hi, Tobe. It’s me.”

“Josh? How are you? I thought you’d have come over to see me.”

“I’m sorry Toby, I only got back yesterday and now I’m at my dad’s work with Sir Trevor Oakhampton. He wants to show me round Tech-Tonic’s headquarters.”

“Is he still a tramp?”

“No, he’s recovered. He’s really nice. That’s why I’m ringing actually. He’s said you can come too. It’ll…”

“I’m not coming.” Toby interrupted flatly.

“But why. You love this type of thing. I’d really like you to come, Toby. I won’t understand any of it.”

“I’m not coming.”

“Please Toby.”

“No way. That’s it with computers. My mum’s said I’m not supposed to anyway.”

Josh laughed. “So? You only do what she says when it suits you. You won’t have to go online or anything.” He added.

“It’s not that. I’m not scared.” Toby said quickly.

“Oh, okay then. I’ll just go with my dad. I’ll come round and see you later then.”

“Yeah, sure. See you later.” Toby put the phone down.

Josh had been the only person in the world he wanted to talk to right now, and he’d found that he couldn’t even talk to him. Josh had hit a nerve when he’d assumed that Toby was frightened about going back online. He could feel the dread shivering through him even from just thinking about the Doge and the dark dungeon he had been kept in before Josh had come to rescue him. Sometimes when he closed his eyes he thought he would go mad with fear. There was no difference between virtual darkness and real darkness. Any snarling thing could be hiding in either.

He clambered upstairs slowly and flopped back onto the spare bed and stared at the ceiling for a while.

Weariness began to tug at his eyelids and he closed his eyes. He felt himself drifting off to sleep and then the towers and spires of Vienopolis rose up around him. It was exactly as he remembered it down to the finest detail, but this was so much more then a memory. A crippling terror gripped him and he wrenched his eyes open with a gasp.

He was back in the spare bedroom. He heaved a shuddering sigh of relief trying to calm his rapid breathing.

“I’m back. And the Doge isn’t there anymore.” He told himself as firmly as he could.

He tried to close his eyes again, but they just flickered and his hands clawed into the quilt.

“Come on Tobes. You can do it.” He muttered to himself and squeezed his eyes shut.

Once more Vienopolis appeared around him in all its gothic, romantic splendour. Fear coursed through him and it took all his resolve not to open his eyes. He gritted his teeth and forced himself to stay.

He could feel both of his bodies. The one on the bed felt huge and ponderous, while the one that stood in the narrow alley seemed quick and small, alert to the movements of the night. He felt the difference acutely and concentrated on it, trying to dull the terror that threatened to swallow him.

Gingerly he made his way down the alleyway and peered out into a brightly lit boulevard that stretched away into the distance in both directions. He saw some cloaked figures tottering up the street and felt his bedridden hands clench into tight balls. He could barely breathe.

“Concentrate!” He hissed through clenched teeth.

A bell rang out into the night, startling Toby and he felt the familiar fear beginning to assert its hold.

He opened his eyes again and returned fully to his bed, breathing heavily. He looked at the glowing digits of his alarm clock, and realised that they hadn’t changed. It certainly felt like he’d stayed in the Vrealm for longer than a minute.

Josh couldn’t put the phone down straight away after talking to Toby. There had been a disturbing edge to his friend’s voice and now he stared at the handset as if that would help him work out what it was.

“We’ll have to fly there I’m afraid, Josh.” Sir Trevor broke Josh’s concentration. “Do you mind helicopters?”

“I don’t think so.” Josh had never been in one before, and he wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity.

“Good. When you’re ready then. Is Toby coming here?”

“He can’t come.”

“Oh, now that’s a shame. It would have been nice to see him again.”

They made their way outside. The helicopter had landed on the grass to the side of the car park, its rotors buffeting the saplings that surrounded the building. Josh, his father and Sir Trevor ran stooped to the helicopter and climbed into the cabin behind the pilot.

“Off we go, Terry.” Sir Trevor said, after pulling the door shut behind them. “Strap yourself in Josh. It should be a calm ride, but it’s better to be safe than sorry, don’t you think?”

The ground fell away from them with a lurch and the helicopter tipped forward slightly as they began to speed up. Josh peered through the small window next to him to see the countryside getting further away and everything in it so much smaller.

Josh enjoyed just watching the ground speed by below them and then all too soon they were descending again. Josh thought they had only been in the air for ten minutes, but they had actually been travelling for nearly an hour.

Tech-Tonic’s main office was enormous and it looked pristine and new. It was like a university campus in its design, with copses of trees and sculpted ponds separating the buildings. It even had what looked like a football stadium and, handily, a helipad. People walked through the campus chatting, and some sat on the many benches that were scattered around. From the air, Josh thought it looked like a really pleasant place to work.

The helicopter settled down and Sir Trevor bustled into action again, herding them around and into a waiting golf cart. They whirred off and Josh gave the pilot a cheery wave of thanks.

Sir Trevor drove them along the paths slowly, but all the pedestrians gave the golf cart a wide berth. They didn’t look directly at them as they passed and Sir Trevor leaned over to Josh.

“You can see what sort of boss I was from their reaction, can’t you. I’m going to change all that.”

“It’s a nice place though. You gave them somewhere nice to work.”

“That was purely business, Josh. A happy worker is more productive than an unhappy one. It didn’t seem to matter to me how rude I was to everyone though.”

That was typical of the rest of tour. Every building had its own special purpose and Sir Trevor would ask a petrified technician about what they were doing and the man or woman would explain as well as their trembling voice would allow. Sir Trevor smiled through all of this with an avuncular expression that belied the fear he instilled in his employees. When they left he would invariably comment on how everything would change.

Just before six o’clock they came to the last building. It was small, had no windows and looked more like a garage than a laboratory.

Sir Trevor placed his hand on a white square next to the door and a red beam shone into his eye.

“Processing…” A computerised voice said, and Josh thought that even that sounded nervous. “Welcome Trevor Lewis Oakhampton. Security level seven.” The door slid open.

Sir Trevor led them through into a brightly lit corridor and the door closed solidly behind them.