'As ready as I'll ever be,' added Polly.

'In that case,' Chate said, grinning, 'let the show begin.'

He gestured through the high wooden archway that led to the makeshift screening theatre Harold Reitman had made out of one of his many living rooms.

When the clean-up operation around Griffith Park had turned up the body of Charles Wallis the policeman had been officially declared dead, and Chate had learned that his old man had been chosen by De Sande to be the heir to all FOCAL's assets, including the Reitman estate.

Wallis hadn't made any will as far as anyone knew, so under the law of the land all the assets automatically passed to his legal next of kin. To Chate. Revere was gone, De Sande was gone, Maria would fade back into obscurity. . Chate's path was clear.

He'd been given a chance. He'd been given a future. It had all happened so fast, and two days had now passed since the climactic events surrounding the release of Dying in the Sun Dying in the Sun.

To celebrate he'd held a party for everyone in FOCAL to explain what was going on, but very few had turned up. After the events of the last couple of days there weren't that many people who wanted to be reminded of what they'd been through.

The guests who did come were the few charitable people who had joined FOCAL because they genuinely wanted to help others, and a few of the monks who were extremely sheepish and embarrassed about having endorsed De Sande's plan so readily. Chate told them that no grudges would be held. That under his control FOCAL was no longer to be a secret society, but a charitable organisation in the genuine sense of the word.

Its resources and funds would be put towards rebuilding and revitalising the city to make a difference, to make an impact on the lives of ordinary people that was far more important than anything De Sande could have planned.

He had explained that he now knew he didn't need fame to be immortal. He had plenty of time, and plenty of money, to make amends for his past crimes. He wanted to work on revitalisation projects that would stand the test of time. He realised that he now had the resources to ensure his legacy would live for ever through the generations that would be helped by his charity.

When the guests had left Chate decided to hold a screening of the film that everyone was thinking about but which no one would talk about. With all known prints recalled from cinemas to be kept under lock and key, this could possibly be the last ever showing of Dying in the Sun Dying in the Sun.

Polly walked into the screening room first followed by Chate and the Doctor, with Ben bringing up the rear.

They took their seats. Chate asked one of the servants to dim the lights. The film began.

'Do you think this is wise?' Ben whispered to the Doctor.

'Very much so, Ben. I think we all need a bit of reassurance over this so-called masterpiece. I think this viewing should exorcise a few ghosts, if nothing else.'

Familiar images flickered in front of the nervous audience, but this time their impact was completely different. The three-dimensional monsters were unconvincing, clearly men in rubber suits. The amazing transformation of the city into a living hell consisted of some cardboard bits of scenery being taken down, even with the stagehands visible. In short, it was a very, very mediocre picture and by the time it finished everyone had tired of the experience.

The final reel was coming to an end, the lead character returning from hell to his home in Los Angeles refreshed, invigorated, renewed and reborn. As the character walked down the street Ben was sure he saw a couple of familiar faces in a crowd. 'Look Doctor,' Ben said. 'It's us!'

'So it is, Ben,' the Doctor said, clearly enjoying his cameo.

'Before they died the Selyoids must have taken that position in the crowd. We wouldn't join with them, but they liked us enough to create an image of us in their film, it seems. How nice.'

As the film ended and the lights went up Ben said, 'So they did manage to convert you to their cause, in a way. They made you a star after all, it seems. Lucky you.'

The Doctor grinned.

'It wasn't the same film, was it?' Ben said.

'It never was the same twice,' the Doctor reminded him.

'That's not what I meant though. I mean, it always looked good before, but now... Well, it's rubbish, isn't it?'

'That was the power of the Selyoids,' Polly said sombrely.

'They changed everything, made it look better, made you feel better. But underneath, once you strip them away.. '

'You're still the same person you always were,' the Doctor said, finishing her sentence, 'and we wouldn't have it any other way.'

They made their way out of the screening room and Chate offered them a drink.

'Thank you,' the Doctor said, 'but I think we ought to be going now.' He checked his watch. 'It's almost four a.m. It will be getting light soon.'

'Will you be OK?' Polly asked Chate, giving him a goodbye kiss on the cheek.

Chate nodded. 'I'll be fine.' He opened his arms and lifted his palms slightly skyward. 'I've got all this now. It should keep me busy for a while.'

'Are you going to try to find Maria?'

Chate shook his head. 'I'll never forget her, you know. I assume she'll return to her life, as drained as the rest of us by everything that's been going on. One of the things I want FOCAL to do is to help out-of-work actors. That's what they always said it was meant for anyway. So you never know, I might bump into Maria again in the future, but I'm not going to look for her. I've learned that if you spend enough time reaching for the stars, you'll eventually touch one. But stars are damn hot.

You touch one, you're probably going to get burned.'

After leaving the Reitman estate, the Doctor drove Ben and Polly downtown where, under a rippled orange and purple sky, the waking city was gradually depositing its early risers into the outside world. A cleaner swept the streets, a vehicle mechanic waxed a car outside his garage and an old lady walked her dog, completely unable to control the animal.

'Do you think these people will remember the Selyoids in years to come?' Polly asked the Doctor as they walked towards a cafe one of her friends had recommended to her.

'Extra! Extra!' a news vendor flogging gossip magazines shouted. 'Secrets of the stars revealed! New pictures and interviews inside!'

'There's your answer,' the Doctor said. 'People's attitude towards stars won't change for a while.'

A crowd of people began to buzz around the stand, eager to buy the magazines, eager to read the latest juicy gossip from Hollywood.

'Yes,' the Doctor said. 'I think it's safe to say that the influence of the Selyoids will be felt in this town for many years to come.'

On a rocky outcrop above the Hollywood Hills a man in a tattered trench coat sat cross-legged, watching the sunrise over the city below him. He'd watched the sunrise from here two days ago while he got to know his new companion, and had found the sight so moving he'd vowed never to miss another one. The creature inside him was content. Lonely, but content.

Fletcher had found companionship at last. They were both survivors, he realised.

He'd spent two days wandering around, coming to terms with what had happened and trying to figure out where to go next. For years the creature had been lonely, the top of the chain of command, having to devote its life to looking after and instructing others with no time to itself. Now the others were gone. It had found a new friend, and it was free. Fletcher was free.

He stood up and began to make his way down the hill.

As he walked he wondered whether he should return to the LAPD. He could do a lot of good, and the boost the creature would give him should guarantee a promotion, but somehow he felt that this was his chance to get away. This was the chance he'd been looking for. A chance to make a new start. Maybe he should move away from Los Angeles, move closer to his son.

Whatever his future held, wherever it lay, it was an open book.

A chance to start again.

Fletcher looked upwards and had to shield his eyes from the bright rays of the newly dawning sun as they burst through the orange clouds and slowly turned the sky blue. A new day was beginning.

THE END.