But perhaps the most notable features of the room were the alcoves. Set into the two side walls were rows of arches, in the style of cla.s.sical cloisters, again wrought out of black metal. Each one was lit by a lamp, modern gas rather than oil, and although the sketch deliberately avoids depicting the alcoves' contents the accounts describe them in detail. Each alcove contained an idol, set on a metal plinth. From the middle of the vast, humming room, the faces of more than a dozen G.o.ds looked out at the observer.

Did Sabbath worship these totems? Or was it all an obscure, blasphemous joke? Without knowing the exact nature of the idols it's hard to say, though one witness records that 'some had faces so monstrus I could not bear but look' (bad writing, or did she mean it that way?). As Rebecca mentioned at least one in the Polynesian style and one following the fashion of the West Indian witch-cults,perhaps Sabbath saw the icons as an inventory of all the world's major systems of ritual. There was even a crucifix, complete with a sculpture of Christ, described with maddening vagueness as 'obscene'. Possibly Sabbath believed that by keeping this inventory, he could (symbolically?) keep an eye on all those who moved in the same circles as himself. In which case, the bridge-room was almost a three-dimensional rendering of Scarlette's own Red List.

The other noteworthy feature of the room was the map. One entire wall, the far wall from the entrance, had been covered by an enormous map of the world almost twice as tall as a man. This was common in the 'war rooms' of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Napoleon himself had a map that took up a wall of his study, as did the British Prime Minister during the Napoleonic wars. On Sabbath's map, dark red (almost blood-coloured) continents floated on metallic grey seas, spidery letters marking out settlements as far apart as Paris and Botany Bay. Interestingly because it was a practice which didn't become common for another century small 'flags' were always pinned to the map, markers of red and black and white and blue. There were so many of these on the map that they seem to have formed patterns, like contour-lines, although as these lines swept across whole oceans they couldn't have indicated military units.

(However, there's mention in the Doctor's yellowed notes of 'time walls', the language he uses suggesting the isobars or 'pressure lines' used on modern weather-maps. The Doctor believed that it was the erratic movements of these strange contours which had prevented his TARDIS entering the eighteenth century, and that if he could navigate a path through the contours then he could finally summon the device. If this is what Sabbath's chart represented, then the Doctor must surely have been interested that Sabbath's research was ahead of his own.) Rebecca's story is most specific about what happened in the room, though it sounds so dramatic that it may all be part of the Henrietta Street folklore. Sabbath himself was standing before the great map when the Doctor entered. His back was turned, and his two plump hands were folded behind his waist. He was staring up at the chart, regardless of his visitors, even though he can hardly have been unaware of their presence. It's an image straight out of melodrama. The casual, confident villain waiting patiently in his lair, finally turning around only after the Doctor greeted him ('h.e.l.lo, I'm the Doctor, but I suppose you knew that').

What can the Doctor have expected from Sabbath, this mastermind who'd ama.s.sed such a powerbase without ever being seen? An adventurer? An a.s.sa.s.sin? Certainty, it would have surprised many to find that Sabbath appeared quite the way he did. But descriptions of Sabbath in this period are common, and all of them are in agreement.

Sabbath was overweight, though not grossly so: he'd chosen to become the spider in the centre of the web, and by 1782 simply didn't regard his physical appearance as an issue. His figure is described, in several accounts, as 'powerful' (or, as one acquaintance put it, 'he casts a grate shadoe wherever he walks'). His bulky body was built of muscle as well as fat, though since his youth the balance had shifted towards the plump side. He had, by all accounts, fists like great hams, and it was impossible to imagine him hurrying anywhere. Though he doesn't seem to have been overly tall, his presence was such that he struck those few people he met as being as big as the room around him. When he spoke it was in a low rumble, the words rolling around in his stomach before finally arriving at his mouth, something which led many people to follow his commands without stopping to think about them.

Yet he was also, without doubt, a man of great wit. Despite the menace in his voice and in his presence, there was a distinctly dry irony in his words. There was said to be a sense of amus.e.m.e.nt in everything he said, as if there were subtle layers of meaning in every sentence and he found himself entertained by the fact that n.o.body understood it all. His features reflected this, although it's unfortunate that no actual portrait of him was ever painted. His face was pale and fleshy, but not at all unattractive as he entered early middle age. In his youth he was, allegedly, a master of seduction as well as the other arts in which the Service trained their agents. The famous Covent Garden celebrity f.a.n.n.y Murray was rumoured to have fallen for his charms as early as 1762, and his history with Scarlette has already been mentioned. The amus.e.m.e.nt he displayed at those around him was most evident in his mouth, which was often fixed in a slight half-smile on the left side of his lips. Most importantly, there were his eyes. Universally described as 'dark' and 'deep-sea' (Rebecca says brown, Lisa-Beth says dark green, the only discrepancy in the accounts), they were said to perpetually 'twinkle with intelligence', though whether this was literally true or just eighteenth-century romantic folly is hard to say.

Rebecca describes his appearance on the warship as remarkable. It must have struck her as notable that his head had been shaved. Though not bald there was only a thin layer of dark hair on his scalp, perhaps what in modern terms might be called a 'skinhead', but which at the time was unknown outside of any monastery. It's possible that Sabbath had just decided that hair was a waste of time and effort. His clothes, too, were notable. His portly figure was covered with a loose grey overcoat, of the kind famously worn by military men like (again) Napoleon. Once more, there's a sense of irony here. Sabbath is known to have considered the military with its insistence on protocol and uniform as absurd, so the greatcoat was almost certainly intended as a form of joke. Sabbath was the captain of this ship, but it was a ship of idiotic, drooling animals, and the idea of any form of decorum decorum being observed must have amused him greatly. being observed must have amused him greatly.

So it was that the two men faced each other for the first time, the Doctor on one side of the room, a casual, intelligent Napoleon on the other, and it's worth noting how often descriptions of the two overlapped. Both of them having something of the charlatan in them, both of them realising it was all part of a greater game in which symbols were their most effective weapons. Just as the Doctor had Juliette as a form of apprentice, Sabbath had Tula Lui, the Mayakai Mayakai amazon, whose importance had yet to become clear. amazon, whose importance had yet to become clear.

And Sabbath's first words to the Doctor were reported to be: 'I'd be more impressed, Doctor, if most of the people who use that t.i.tle weren't either third-rate quacks or pedlars in p.o.r.nographic literature.'

Hardly surprising that there are so many legends about the confrontation. In Masonic circles, for example, it was said that at the very moment the Doctor and Sabbath came face to face, Scarlette still back at the tavern became aware of the meeting. The story goes that she stood from her table, and in front of her a.s.sembled women announced, 'the White Hart has met the Black, and I pity the world for the consequences!'.

But this is provably rubbish. At the moment Sabbath and the Doctor met, the fight at the tavern was just winding down and Scarlette was simply brooding. The mysterious (and possibly mythical) man with the rosette had evidently departed, because as the last of the rowdier men were escorted off the premises Lisa-Beth scowled her way across the room and sat in the seat across the table from her employer. She found Scarlette still hunched over her cup of chocolate, 'reading the stains at the bottom of the cup as if she thought herself an augur'.

Chocolate and the tantra tantra were inexorably linked, in the eighteenth century. Houses of ill repute were often referred to as 'chocolate-houses', as the refreshments they provided included hot chocolate (still regarded as a little exotic) as well as more carnal pleasures. Also, it's worth pointing out that much of the were inexorably linked, in the eighteenth century. Houses of ill repute were often referred to as 'chocolate-houses', as the refreshments they provided included hot chocolate (still regarded as a little exotic) as well as more carnal pleasures. Also, it's worth pointing out that much of the tantra tantra, at least from a woman's point of view, was connected to blood and the lunar month: and that chocolate had a reputation for both calming and 'synchronising' the body's menstrual cycle. It's a well-known fact that chocolate does indeed cause distinct chemical changes in the female biology (largely due to the forced production of seratonin), and it's therefore logical that cocoa was seen as an almost mystical substance. Many would perhaps be surprised that, far from hemlock or newt's eye, in some circles chocolate is regarded as the definitive ingredient of witchcraft.

It was possibly the effects of the chocolate which caused Scarlette to open up to Lisa-Beth in a most unexpected way. Lisa-Beth records that Scarlette said nothing for a moment or two, but continued to look down into her emptied cup. Then, at last, she looked up and made eye contact. All she said was: 'It doesn't matter about Juliette.'

Lisa-Beth merely nodded. It was an acknowledgement, more than anything. Scarlette was making it clear that she knew the secrets Lisa-Beth had been keeping relating to Juliette's own background, many suspected but that she was now prepared to forget the past. Both Scarlette and Lisa-Beth knew that things weren't going well for their kind, and that things would get even worse before the end. Both of them now accepted that they had to face the future together.

If she'd known how close Sabbath was, Scarlette may have been less confident. Indeed, only moments later Fitz dragged himself into the tavern to report what he'd seen at the docks.

Questions of Importance Magical theory states that a person is inseparable from his or her place of power. Scarlette was was her House, or at least connected to it; the Doctor obviously believed he her House, or at least connected to it; the Doctor obviously believed he was was his TARDIS (though later events would prove him slightly mistaken); perhaps Sabbath was his warship. It thus follows that King George III his TARDIS (though later events would prove him slightly mistaken); perhaps Sabbath was his warship. It thus follows that King George III was was Britain, and an elementalist might have argued that his later descent into tortured, frothing madness was initiated by the events of that summer. Britain, and an elementalist might have argued that his later descent into tortured, frothing madness was initiated by the events of that summer.

The King was spending much of his time at Windsor, where he'd often take walks around the farms and shops of the community, thoroughly confusing everybody he met. He'd frequently talk with local farmers or tradesmen, about agriculture and local affairs and even religion, but between May and July many of those he spoke to later admitted that he seemed... unwell unwell. He'd switch rapidly from topic to topic, punctuating every sentence with cries of 'eh?' and 'what?', as if something were following him and only by changing direction could he throw it off his scent. It's surely significant that when he finally lapsed into permanent madness, in 1811, one of his recurring delusions was that his country was sinking and that he was a beast on board Noah's Ark.

The Service became concerned. Still believing Sabbath to have been the root cause of all the trouble, they started speculating that the whole thing was an attack on King and Country. They hardly would have been rea.s.sured if they'd known that Sabbath considered King and Country to be gloriously irrelevant No reliable account of the Doctor's first conversation with Sabbath exists, but what follows is an approximation. It's been a.s.sembled from Rebecca's tales, from the Doctor's own recollections (as they're recorded), and from things known about Sabbath. Rebecca related that during the encounter, the Doctor constantly paced the hall, making the decks ring out as he examined the icons and the alcoves and Sabbath regarded him with cool interest. Rebecca herself remained silent.

DOCTOR: I can't say I think much of your crew, by the way. It must be hard finding the staff.SABBATH: Finding staff isn't difficult. Finding staff who are capable of discretion, however...DOCTOR: Hmm. You trained them yourself?SABBATH: By proxy. The process isn't reliable.DOCTOR: Yes. But you're not the one responsible, are you?SABBATH: 'Responsible'?DOCTOR: You're not the one causing the attacks. Scarlette thinks you are, but she's, ah... not unbiased.SABBATH: I should imagine. Might I ask how she is?DOCTOR: She sends her love.SABBATH: I'm sure. Well now. You seem convinced of my innocence. I'm gratified.DOCTOR: You're riding the wave. For some reason, the ape elementals are being summoned to Earth. Or at least, they're just bubbling under the surface. You think you can control them. You've been calling them deliberately, then binding them. But you're not really in control at all. You're just trying to turn the situation to your advantage.SABBATH: That's something of a narrow perspective. But I'm the host here, it'd be bad manners for me to argue.DOCTOR: You can't control all all of them. There must be thousands waiting out there. of them. There must be thousands waiting out there.SABBATH: Millions, I should think.DOCTOR [some of the conversation may have been lost here]: But it strikes me we've got very similar aims. I don't want to see the babewyns babewyns overrun the Earth. I don't know what your agenda is, but I'm fairly sure you don't either. overrun the Earth. I don't know what your agenda is, but I'm fairly sure you don't either.SABBATH: I see. Why do I feel, Doctor, that you're about to suggest an alliance?DOCTOR: There are more important things to think about than your private army. If we're going to achieve anything, we're going to have to find out the truth. We need to work out who's really responsible for all this. Who's letting the apes come into the world.SABBATH: Really? I would have thought that was perfectly obvious.DOCTOR [presumably surprised]: You know?SABBATH: Of course I know. It's not difficult to work out.DOCTOR: Who, then? Who's behind all this?SABBATH: You You are. Why do you think I invited you here? are. Why do you think I invited you here?

What happened next is obscure. The Doctor apparently reacted badly to this, and began arguing with Sabbath in a fl.u.s.tered manner, but all Rebecca could later remember was that the two men spent some time discussing (or arguing about) technical matters. They may have talked about the contours on the peculiar map, though whether Sabbath fully explained his strange accusation against the Doctor is unknown. What's known known is that after a while the Doctor fell into an uneasy silence, and ceased pacing the bridge-room. is that after a while the Doctor fell into an uneasy silence, and ceased pacing the bridge-room.

This is when he reached into his jacket pocket, took out a bright red envelope, and handed it to Sabbath.

That the Doctor invited Sabbath to the wedding ceremony is remarkable in itself. It was the envelope marked out for the Mayakai Mayakai: with the race almost extinct, the Doctor may have seen Sabbath as the last guardian of the Mayakai Mayakai's heritage. Or maybe he felt that as one of only two Mayakai Mayakai known to survive was in Sabbath's employ, the invitation might as well have gone to Sabbath as to anyone. By this time Tula Lui had already embarked on her mission of revenge against the Service, and if the Doctor had known of its b.l.o.o.d.y consequences he might not have been so willing to hand over the envelope. known to survive was in Sabbath's employ, the invitation might as well have gone to Sabbath as to anyone. By this time Tula Lui had already embarked on her mission of revenge against the Service, and if the Doctor had known of its b.l.o.o.d.y consequences he might not have been so willing to hand over the envelope.

Sabbath knew all about the Doctor's proposed marriage. In a fragment of conversation which occurred towards the end of the encounter, the men even discussed the matter: SABBATH: I see. And you believe, I presume, that this ritual ritual can help you? can help you?DOCTOR: It might not help me me. But it'll help.SABBATH: And does the young lady understand the consequences of what she's doing?DOCTOR: I'm trying to teach her. Do you really care?SABBATH: Oh, I have a certain casual interest in these things. Of course, you realise... this isn't going to change my opinion of you.DOCTOR: Mmm. You're the one trying to shut our House down, then?SABBATH: The machinery's already in operation. What happens next is hardly my concern.

Unsurprisingly, Rebecca understood little of this exchange. She might have been expecting a battle, not a polite (if vaguely menacing) conversation. She was certainly surprised when the Doctor, after asking one more simple question, wished Sabbath a good day and turned to leave the room. Sabbath's response was simply to nod back.

So it was that the two of them left the warship, not in a fury of action but with a mere goodbye. The apes continued to spit at them on their way out, but this time they left by a steel stairway, arriving on the ship's deck rather than crawling back out through the side of the vessel.

When they emerged into the dim light of the covered shipyard, they found they weren't alone. On the jetty by the warship, Scarlette was waiting for them, along with Fitz, Juliette, Anji, Lisa-Beth and the rest. Dressed in their clothes of red and black, they must have looked something like a guard of honour, but their faces were grim. They were carrying lanterns, as if the affair were a vigil. The Doctor had made contact with the enemy: even the Doctor himself must have been expecting some kind of conflict, which was presumably why his army had accompanied him here. Legend has it that Scarlette's face, lit by the dull yellow glow of her lantern, was so fixed and calm that she hardly seemed human at all. As if she knew how close she was to her old enemy-c.u.m*suitor, and knew she couldn't allow herself to even acknowledge it. This time, legend is probably correct.

It wasn't until the long journey home to London that Scarlette discovered the truth, and found out exactly what the Doctor had said to Sabbath. One can only guess how she must have felt, when she learned that the Doctor had asked Sabbath to be his best man.

5.

Europe Nightmares and Ghost Stories It was a year of great literary note. Or at least, it was a year of literary note: whether the literature qualified as 'great' is a matter of taste.

It was in summer that a French n.o.bleman, incarcerated in the dungeons of Vincennes (second only in reputation to the Bastille), began work on the rough notes of what later generations would regard as his masterpiece. For political reasons, the governor of the prison insisted that the n.o.bleman's real name should never be spoken: in another of those quirks which modern readers often believe to be some kind of obscure joke, the prisoner was known only as 'monsieur le 6'. His book, The 120 Days of Sodom The 120 Days of Sodom, would come to be reviled by many as the most blasphemous, bloodthirsty work of p.o.r.nography ever written... its true significance would only become clear centuries later, when historians would realise that 'Number Six' had written in his own, admittedly vitriolic, style the first work of clinical psychos.e.xuality. 'Six' had set out to record every imaginable perversion that might be enjoyed by the corrupt ruling powers of France, in a style that bordered on the horrific.

On the other hand, the second important work to be started that year was written by the Doctor.

What inspired the Doctor to sit down and write a book remains unclear. It could have been that he wanted to further expand his horizons, or that the conversation with Sabbath had been playing on his mind and he needed a way to exorcise his doubts. It could have been that he simply felt like it. The unwieldy t.i.tle was The Ruminations of a Foreign Traveller in His Element The Ruminations of a Foreign Traveller in His Element, and it has more in common with the work of 'Number Six' than one might expect. Although s.e.x is never discussed by the Doctor, much of his Ruminations Ruminations takes the form of a catalogue, an a.s.semblage of demons fought, people encountered and dream-worlds visited, in no order that makes much sense. But as takes the form of a catalogue, an a.s.semblage of demons fought, people encountered and dream-worlds visited, in no order that makes much sense. But as tantrists tantrists such as Lisa-Beth made a strong connection between the body and the world of 'private time' (indeed, violent or unpleasant perversions such as those listed in such as Lisa-Beth made a strong connection between the body and the world of 'private time' (indeed, violent or unpleasant perversions such as those listed in Sodom Sodom are referred to in many texts as 'demons'), modern psychologists might find peculiar parallels between the two works. It's interesting to think what might have happened if the Doctor and Number Six had compared notes. are referred to in many texts as 'demons'), modern psychologists might find peculiar parallels between the two works. It's interesting to think what might have happened if the Doctor and Number Six had compared notes.

The Doctor was no author. He saw himself as an adventurer, a gentleman-traveller, and as a result his Ruminations Ruminations is an awkward and often deliberately obtuse work. His thoughts fill the pages as though the memories of several lifetimes have been painfully scrambled and forced into words. Then again, the book was most probably written for a readership familiar with coded alchemical texts. Although the is an awkward and often deliberately obtuse work. His thoughts fill the pages as though the memories of several lifetimes have been painfully scrambled and forced into words. Then again, the book was most probably written for a readership familiar with coded alchemical texts. Although the Ruminations Ruminations was eventually published in 1783, it had a tiny circulation. A copy is known to have been held in the Windsor bookshop for several years afterwards. Yet however tangled it might be, the book contains several insights into the Doctor's thoughts at this stage. Here, for example, are some telling notes on the topic of mortality: was eventually published in 1783, it had a tiny circulation. A copy is known to have been held in the Windsor bookshop for several years afterwards. Yet however tangled it might be, the book contains several insights into the Doctor's thoughts at this stage. Here, for example, are some telling notes on the topic of mortality: The purpose of all alchemy is to find the Philosopher's Stone, the key to immortality. But let us suppose there was a coven, or a whole race of people, which had discovered such a Stone. Let us suppose that if a member of this race died, his body could heal itself and allow the man to live again. There is a problem, naturally. Death means change; ergo, without death there would be no change. The society of such a people would be a dreary and stagnant one... [but] let us not imagine they would be fools. They would realise this. The Philosopher's Stone has the ability to re-make a man as he was before he suffered his unfortunate death, but in an effort to allow at least some some development in their society these immortal folk might mix the Stone with other compounds... to ensure that when a man of their number was re-born, he would become a development in their society these immortal folk might mix the Stone with other compounds... to ensure that when a man of their number was re-born, he would become a new new man. Therefore change among these people would be a case of sudden and jarring steps rather than a constant spectrum of development. In this race, each man would be his own coven... man. Therefore change among these people would be a case of sudden and jarring steps rather than a constant spectrum of development. In this race, each man would be his own coven...The difficulty with such stability is that it goes against the grain of all other life in the universe. Even if such a race were not entirely entirely unchanging, their lack of motion might cause them to become as a solid rock in the middle of a river. All other life would flow around them, until the universe itself accepted their presence as part of its function. Terrible to imagine the consequences of such a race being suddenly removed from that universe. unchanging, their lack of motion might cause them to become as a solid rock in the middle of a river. All other life would flow around them, until the universe itself accepted their presence as part of its function. Terrible to imagine the consequences of such a race being suddenly removed from that universe.All this is speculation, though, because I can truthfully say that no such race exists in this universe...

And this is in a section of the book that's supposed to be about the habits of pigeons.

Later in the book, he returns to the subject of these 'immortals' and suggests that if they existed, they could use the 'Philosopher's Stone' to rebirth themselves in any number of new forms, 'from great three-headed things to bodies made of pure heat'. Again, we get the impression of a man who's been pushing his limits ever since his arrival (Scarlette records that although Fitz and Anji accepted the Doctor's marriage without question, they did so 'in a manner which told me they were merely so shocked as not to dwell on it'). It was as if the Doctor had suddenly realised that the Philosopher's Stone was his, and that there were no others of his kind to limit the way in which it was used. What's most striking of all is the tone of surprise surprise that runs through the book, the sense that the Doctor hadn't even considered these ideas until he'd put pen to paper and let his subconscious pour itself out on to the page. that runs through the book, the sense that the Doctor hadn't even considered these ideas until he'd put pen to paper and let his subconscious pour itself out on to the page.

His new interests didn't stop at literature. More than once he visited the Royal Academy he seems to have had no difficulty charming the Academians, nor in gaining their immediate trust where he was particularly taken by a painting that had recently arrived there, Fuseli's The Nightmare The Nightmare.

It's hard to explain the impact of The Nightmare The Nightmare on the world of art. A haunting, murderous vision of a painting, even the conservative Sir Joshua Reynolds acknowledged it as like nothing he'd seen before. A woman lies on a bed, p.r.o.ne and sprawling. Velvet drapes hang like shadows around her; a creature, part goblin and part simian, squats on her chest like a predator while eyeing up the audience in search of further victims. It had a ma.s.sive influence on the fantasy literature of later centuries, and like Wessel's on the world of art. A haunting, murderous vision of a painting, even the conservative Sir Joshua Reynolds acknowledged it as like nothing he'd seen before. A woman lies on a bed, p.r.o.ne and sprawling. Velvet drapes hang like shadows around her; a creature, part goblin and part simian, squats on her chest like a predator while eyeing up the audience in search of further victims. It had a ma.s.sive influence on the fantasy literature of later centuries, and like Wessel's Anno 7603 Anno 7603 opened up whole new realms of artistic thought. Significantly, it also became the first known painting to inspire a cartoon parody: in 1784, the opened up whole new realms of artistic thought. Significantly, it also became the first known painting to inspire a cartoon parody: in 1784, the Covent Garden Nightmare Covent Garden Nightmare would be published in the popular press, depicting the d.u.c.h.ess of Devonshire as the p.r.o.ne woman with Charles Fox as the bloated demon on her chest. Appropriate, then, that it should have been painted in the same year as the Doctor's arrival. would be published in the popular press, depicting the d.u.c.h.ess of Devonshire as the p.r.o.ne woman with Charles Fox as the bloated demon on her chest. Appropriate, then, that it should have been painted in the same year as the Doctor's arrival.

From the Doctor's point of view, it was a portrait of an intrusion from another world. He's known to have stood for over an hour in front of the Nightmare Nightmare, and at one stage he even conversed with a gentleman of the Academy (it may have been Joshua Reynolds himself, Reynolds being a notorious patron and painter of courtesans) without taking his eyes off the canvas. The Doctor, it's said, asked if he could have a print of the painting for the House. When told that this would be impossible, the Doctor noted that this would be a piece much sought after by the public. History proved him right: The Nightmare The Nightmare became one of the first prints to be ma.s.s-produced, starting in 1783. became one of the first prints to be ma.s.s-produced, starting in 1783.

There was one other thing the Doctor is thought to have said, as he stood next to his fellow Academician before the Fuseli. His words are recorded to have been: 'Painting. Yes. That's where I should go next.'

Evidently, he was well aware of his limitations as a writer. But then, the Doctor's new hobbies could have been a result of him having little else to do. Because in the weeks following the meeting with Sabbath, the House began to split apart. By the second week of the month, both Scarlette and Lisa-Beth were in Paris, staying in a bright and sunlit room overlooking the open streets near the Place de Greve.

At the end of June another of the women left, heading for a more successful bordello to the north of London. Business dropped still further, to the Doctor's quiet relief but at the expense of the House. Gentlemen were avoiding Henrietta Street, seeing the House (ironically, given its link to the lunar cycle) as 'cursed'. The watchmen who patrolled Covent Garden were starting to circle like sharks. They could frequently be seen, lamps in their hands, eyeing up the windows as if wondering how long it'd be until they felt safe enough to pounce.

During his meeting with Sabbath, the Doctor had learned the truth of it. Sabbath, like the Service itself, had indeed been using his resources to make things hard for Scarlette's operation. He'd supplied small amounts of money to Scarlette's rivals, spread stories among the watch and the Bow Street Runners, encouraged his contacts in high society to think that these 'witches' carried diseases sp.a.w.ned by the Devil himself. He'd explained his reasons, but only in vague terms: SABBATH: It's a question of control, I think.DOCTOR: You mean, you want more of it?SABBATH: Not at all. I mean, you don't possess any any of it. Do you know the consequences of what you're doing, Doctor? Does Scarlette? of it. Do you know the consequences of what you're doing, Doctor? Does Scarlette?DOCTOR: Oh, don't worry about me. I'm a professional. So's Scarlette, I suppose.SABBATH: You were were a professional. Your company has... so to speak... gone bankrupt. a professional. Your company has... so to speak... gone bankrupt.

Sabbath had admitted that he'd tried to shut the House down, as he'd felt it to be an 'unacceptable risk'. Following his meeting with the Doctor, it's obvious that Sabbath changed tack, and allowed the Doctor to think the two of them could work together. But the wheels had already been set in motion. Funds had been paid, rumours spread: and when the Doctor had asked Sabbath to use his influence to undo undo the damage to the House, Sabbath had refused. It was, Sabbath had explained, a maxim of his always to see something through to its conclusion. the damage to the House, Sabbath had refused. It was, Sabbath had explained, a maxim of his always to see something through to its conclusion.

'Think of it as an initiation,' Sabbath had said, probably with that famous half-smile. 'If you don't have the power to put your own House in order, then you can hardly have the power to save the whole of the world.'

So Scarlette's departure to France came at a bad time. Worse, she left immediately before a 'b.l.o.o.d.y weekend'. As has already been recorded, the women within the House had all become part of the same lunar cycle, including Anji and Juliette. There was a long weekend in every month in which 'the House would bleed', business would be suspended, and much chocolate would be drunk. Fires would be lit in every room after nightfall , the raw flames visible in the windows and making it clear to all pa.s.sers-by that the building's blood was up. The occupants of the House tended to shut themselves in their rooms during b.l.o.o.d.y weekends. The pianoforte in the salon seemed ill-fitting, somehow. Frequently, in the red-lined room on the second floor up, Juliette, Rebecca, Fitz and (sometimes) Anji would sit together around a fire in an incense-bowl that was the only source of light. Rebecca would tell ghost-stories about America, because, by definition, any any story told about America was a ghost-story. Often Juliette would fall perfectly silent and stare either into the fire or just at the floorboards, leading Fitz (correctly, or not?) to conclude that she was becoming as sad as the House itself. On one occasion Juliette picked a card at random from a deck of cards, the first time she'd ever let Rebecca make an attempt at reading her fortune. Her future was the Knave of Hearts. Rebecca's interpretation of this isn't known. story told about America was a ghost-story. Often Juliette would fall perfectly silent and stare either into the fire or just at the floorboards, leading Fitz (correctly, or not?) to conclude that she was becoming as sad as the House itself. On one occasion Juliette picked a card at random from a deck of cards, the first time she'd ever let Rebecca make an attempt at reading her fortune. Her future was the Knave of Hearts. Rebecca's interpretation of this isn't known.

What Fitz can't have guessed, at least not in the summer, was that Juliette's 'rooting' to the House was only the first step in a process by which she was to become linked to the planet planet.

There may have been an element of escape in Scarlette's decision to go to Paris, but she had good reasons for being there. It had started the week after the Doctor had met Sabbath. A most notable body was found in London: a second turned up fifteen days later. The first body had been found dangling beneath Blackfriar's Bridge, within sight of the spot where Sabbath's initiation had taken place, the deceased's intestines ripped from his body and hung around his neck. It was the traditional method of Masonic execution, for those who betrayed the Brotherhood. The second was found in the river itself, but two miles away from central London. Stones were found in his pockets, though some of the stones had come loose and allowed him to be caught up in the mooring-rope of a boat by the riverbank. The magistrate called to the scene noted the blackly comical detail that 'a family of small sh.e.l.led fish had made their home in the s.p.a.ce of one nostril, and none who found the unfortunate had the stomach to evict them before burial'.

Both victims were members of the Service, and both belonged to the five-strong Council of the Star Chamber. These were big targets indeed. Although the Council was known in underworld circles to be the nominal leadership of the Service, the truth was that the real real heads of the organisation were safely tucked away in obscure offices at Westminster. The five Councillors were purely symbolic figureheads, who carried the vestments of the Service's occult heritage for all to see. Nonetheless, anybody who attacked the Council was making a bold gesture. When the still-new Prime Minister Rockingham dropped dead on the first day of July leaving the American peace negotiations at an uncertain point, some immediately a.s.sumed that it was part of a ruthless attack on the very foundations of the country (though it soon became clear that the death was due to nothing more sinister than influenza). heads of the organisation were safely tucked away in obscure offices at Westminster. The five Councillors were purely symbolic figureheads, who carried the vestments of the Service's occult heritage for all to see. Nonetheless, anybody who attacked the Council was making a bold gesture. When the still-new Prime Minister Rockingham dropped dead on the first day of July leaving the American peace negotiations at an uncertain point, some immediately a.s.sumed that it was part of a ruthless attack on the very foundations of the country (though it soon became clear that the death was due to nothing more sinister than influenza).

But there was definitely a threat. When the rat-catchers rat-catchers had tried to a.s.sa.s.sinate Sabbath, Sabbath had sent his agent on an errand to a.s.sa.s.sinate the Council in return. It was a message to Westminster: 'I'm had tried to a.s.sa.s.sinate Sabbath, Sabbath had sent his agent on an errand to a.s.sa.s.sinate the Council in return. It was a message to Westminster: 'I'm not not going to be intimidated, so please stop bothering me.' And this must have troubled the Doctor. He was still intent on bringing together all factions, using the wedding as a focus, so for his best man to be murdering the other guests was impolite to say the least. He knew that Sabbath would have left Manchester by now, and decided that the best way to stop the slaughter was to stop Tula Lui herself. Which meant finding the other three members of the Council. going to be intimidated, so please stop bothering me.' And this must have troubled the Doctor. He was still intent on bringing together all factions, using the wedding as a focus, so for his best man to be murdering the other guests was impolite to say the least. He knew that Sabbath would have left Manchester by now, and decided that the best way to stop the slaughter was to stop Tula Lui herself. Which meant finding the other three members of the Council.

But after the first two killings, the three survivors had gone to ground. Rumour had it that they'd fled abroad. The only one whose exact whereabouts could be traced had gone to stay at his continental residence in Paris. There he'd formally asked for the protection of the Royal Lodge of Commanders of the Temple West of Carca.s.sonne, a group whose secrets no historian has ever unravelled, and which in 1782 had just initiated the American amba.s.sador-c.u.m*scientist Benjamin Franklin into its ranks. The Temple was still considering its reply.

The Doctor knew that Sabbath himself wouldn't be in France. This could be why Scarlette so readily volunteered to cross the channel, taking only Lisa-Beth as a companion.

Besides which, Scarlette had her own interests in the Mayakai.

The City of Love The Polynesian race known as the Mayakai Mayakai essentially ceased to exist around 1773, when a South American survey of their native island found 'a blasted and appalling land... bodies lie wasted on the sh.o.r.e, and no man has reason to give them decent burial'. As the essentially ceased to exist around 1773, when a South American survey of their native island found 'a blasted and appalling land... bodies lie wasted on the sh.o.r.e, and no man has reason to give them decent burial'. As the Mayakai Mayakai's first contact with Europeans had occurred less than a decade earlier, many believed that it was European disease which had decimated the population, as with so many Polynesian peoples.

A scant handful of the race survived, and by 1776 were taking refuge in Europe or the Americas. Though no first-hand writings exist, it's worth examining the few stories told by these refugees. Although western disease is mentioned (it's described, not entirely accurately, as a 'pox'), the Mayakai Mayakai had their own beliefs as to what had caused their destruction. It was, they said, all about the had their own beliefs as to what had caused their destruction. It was, they said, all about the Moak Moak: often translated as 'G.o.ds', but in fact closer to 'giants', albeit giants of a spectral rather than physical nature. The Mayakai Mayakai essentially believed themselves to be the chosen ones of these giants. The giants had suffered a great battle the essentially believed themselves to be the chosen ones of these giants. The giants had suffered a great battle the Mayakai Mayakai lived on too small an island for them to have created a word for 'war' which had lasted for generations, in which many of the greatest G.o.ds had been smitten by the lived on too small an island for them to have created a word for 'war' which had lasted for generations, in which many of the greatest G.o.ds had been smitten by the Na Koporaya Na Koporaya, a word notoriously difficult to translate. The greatest of the giants had pa.s.sed on to the Polynesians the duty of guarding the ancient wisdom, ready for the day when they would walk again in this world to reclaim what had been lost in the battle.

Although the stories speak of the battle as a physical thing, it may well have been a metaphor for the disease which ravaged the island and virtually destroyed the pure Mayakai Mayakai bloodlines. One of the few who survived was Tula Lui, and she can't have been more than seven when she left for the western world. From Sabbath's own recollections, it's known that he first encountered Tula Lui as a child of ten in 1776. He immediately took an interest in the girl, possibly seeing the great similarities between the ways of the bloodlines. One of the few who survived was Tula Lui, and she can't have been more than seven when she left for the western world. From Sabbath's own recollections, it's known that he first encountered Tula Lui as a child of ten in 1776. He immediately took an interest in the girl, possibly seeing the great similarities between the ways of the tantra tantra and the time-oriented beliefs of the survivors. But the and the time-oriented beliefs of the survivors. But the Mayakai Mayakai were warriors too, and Sabbath the strategist must have seen the appeal of taking on one of the few survivors as an 'apprentice'. were warriors too, and Sabbath the strategist must have seen the appeal of taking on one of the few survivors as an 'apprentice'.

By 1780, the year in which all ties between Sabbath and the Service were finally broken, Tula Lui was under his wing. Perhaps as an entertainment, he took the girl to several society functions shortly before his fall from grace, where he dressed her in sombre black clothing but made no attempt to cover up her hairstyle (Mayakai women shaved off all hair on the scalp but for a small patch, and let that patch grow indefinitely, letting the seemingly endless strands fall loosely over their faces). Those members of society who deigned to approach this curious girl found that she had 'an ill disposition' and was 'unable or unwilling to speak English', though she did apparently understand Sabbath. She was described as being very nearly feral, not unattractive though with a flattened nose and 'skin near luminous'. She snarled at anyone who attempted conversation, no doubt to Sabbath's amus.e.m.e.nt. women shaved off all hair on the scalp but for a small patch, and let that patch grow indefinitely, letting the seemingly endless strands fall loosely over their faces). Those members of society who deigned to approach this curious girl found that she had 'an ill disposition' and was 'unable or unwilling to speak English', though she did apparently understand Sabbath. She was described as being very nearly feral, not unattractive though with a flattened nose and 'skin near luminous'. She snarled at anyone who attempted conversation, no doubt to Sabbath's amus.e.m.e.nt.

Of course, 1780 was also the year in which Sabbath had tried to seduce Scarlette, and very nearly succeeded. So, as she sought out Tula Lui, how did Scarlette see this sixteen-year*old a.s.sa.s.sin? Did she see the girl as having taken the place Sabbath had marked out for Scarlette herself, and if so, was there a secret element of jealousy present?

It was on July 17, 1782, that Scarlette came the closest she ever came to meeting her 'replacement' face-to*face. She and Lisa-Beth had taken an upstairs room in the region of the Place de Greve, the expense of which had caused some concern to Lisa-Beth. But Scarlette was determined to enjoy the sojourn. Paris, at the time, was a far less industrial city than any of those Scarlette knew: though the French winters were often murderously cold, in summer the skies were a pure and liquid blue that no resident of Covent Garden could have antic.i.p.ated. Scarlette would spend great lengths of time by the (gla.s.sless) window, the shutters open, the sunlight streaming into the soft-wood interior of the building. Scarlette would take deep lungfuls of fresh air while Lisa-Beth would lie on the bed in the background, shaking her head and working on her journals.

In fact, Scarlette's deep lungfuls of air can't have been all that pleasant. A non-industrial city is, after all, a city of excrement rather than smog. But Scarlette had practical reasons for standing at the window as well, as she'd already located the third member of the Star Chamber, known in both women's journals as 'Johnny Lucifer-in*Britches'. The room overlooked a thoroughfare between the man's Parisian home and the wider street to the north, home to the region's more tasteful boutiques boutiques. In the afternoons the man would often be seen strolling along the thoroughfare beneath the window, enjoying the sunshine and regularly being propositioned by the local harlots. Scarlette described them as 'not at all up to scratch, when you think that this is supposed to be the ville d'amour ville d'amour'.

Whenever he pa.s.sed by, Lisa-Beth would ask Scarlette whether they shouldn't follow, in case Tula Lui was close. Scarlette would generally say no, claiming that she'd know, at a glance, when the man would be in danger. Lisa-Beth notes that Scarlette would often fiddle with the seams at the front of her red dress when she said it, as if reaching for the shard of gla.s.s that no longer hung there.

On July 17, things were different. On that day, records Scarlette, she 'saw Johnny Lucifer-in*Britches pa.s.sing by and knew his life was in peril'. Exactly what this instinct might have been, Scarlette doesn't say no doubt she would have claimed that she could sense the closeness of a Mayakai Mayakai but Lisa-Beth was obviously convinced. but Lisa-Beth was obviously convinced.

Scarlette's instincts apparently weren't good enough, though, because five minutes later 'Johnny' was as dead as his two comrades in London.

At the junction of the street to the north there was a butcher's shop, owned by a notorious slaughterman named Brillot. Brillot had achieved some fame in the 1770s for his claim that he could prepare any any animal for the table, no matter how small or paltry: the only meat he'd refuse to touch was horse, as he felt it was too 'common' and beneath his capabilities. This pride in his work would later rebound on Brillot and bring him close to a lynching when, during the French Revolution, the streets of Paris would fill up with human cadavers and the patently false rumour would be spread that the infamous butcher was serving his customers with delicacies of human flesh. animal for the table, no matter how small or paltry: the only meat he'd refuse to touch was horse, as he felt it was too 'common' and beneath his capabilities. This pride in his work would later rebound on Brillot and bring him close to a lynching when, during the French Revolution, the streets of Paris would fill up with human cadavers and the patently false rumour would be spread that the infamous butcher was serving his customers with delicacies of human flesh.

By the time Scarlette and Lisa-Beth arrived on the fetid street, their quarry was some way ahead of them, turning into the gaudily-painted door of M. Brillot's establishment. Shortly thereafter, Brillot himself a plump, bald man who constantly carried a cleaver in one hand as if it were a sign of his masculinity came running out on to the street, somewhat damaging his macho reputation by shouting that most French of exclamations, 'a l'a.s.sa.s.sine!'. It took the London women some moments to squeeze through the gathering crowd, and some moments more for them to slip past Brillot, who was convinced that they were ghouls intent on pillaging at the crime scene.

Scarlette was first into the boucherie boucherie, but only by moments, so it's hard to explain the discrepancies between her account and Lisa-Beth's. According to Lisa-Beth, when they entered the shop it was clear that they were too late. The shop was dimly-lit and stank of blood, hung with the hides of butchered animals, but there were no human beings to be seen. No live human beings, at least. For the man they'd come to save, still in his English waistcoat and breeches, was already dead on a cutting-board. His head had been removed, by the cleaver which now lay at the side of his body. As Lisa-Beth describes the scene, the victim's expression was one of quiet bewilderment, as if the head had been severed so quickly that he'd had no idea what to make of it.

But Scarlette tells a different tale. Though she too relates that the body was on the board, she claims that as they entered the man's a.s.sailant was still standing over the corpse the man's a.s.sailant was still standing over the corpse. Her story puts great store in the fact that the murderess whirled around to face her, and that just for a moment Scarlette looked into the angry, wrinkle-nosed face of a young Polynesian woman, whose strands of hair were plaited and who wore some form of monastic cloak which covered most of her body.

The end of the story is typical of Scarlette's effective-but*theatrical style. The a.s.sa.s.sine a.s.sa.s.sine turned away from Scarlette, and Scarlette believed the girl was about to run. But then... turned away from Scarlette, and Scarlette believed the girl was about to run. But then...

...I heard her growl a single world [sic] beneath her breath. She ran, yet I did not and could not see the direction in which she ran, save to say that there was no exit from the shop in that direction.

There does does seem to have been an exit at the rear of M. Brillot's shop, through which the girl could have made her escape. Yet Scarlette's account makes it sound as though the killer simply vanished into thin air, or through a solid wall. Doubly curious, then, that Lisa-Beth mentions seeing no such a.s.sailant. Then again, perhaps due to the pleading of the British amba.s.sador, there's little record of the death at all. seem to have been an exit at the rear of M. Brillot's shop, through which the girl could have made her escape. Yet Scarlette's account makes it sound as though the killer simply vanished into thin air, or through a solid wall. Doubly curious, then, that Lisa-Beth mentions seeing no such a.s.sailant. Then again, perhaps due to the pleading of the British amba.s.sador, there's little record of the death at all.

It might sound like a terrible joke on Tula Lui's part, to have slaughtered a man in the style of an animal. But the Mayakai Mayakai were always a deeply ritualised people. Those of the Masonic tradition expected to be executed by hanging below a bridge, and on the Thames that was how it had been. Perhaps Tula Lui simply killed according to what seemed most correct at the place of execution. Perhaps she saw the remains of the animal carca.s.ses around her in the were always a deeply ritualised people. Those of the Masonic tradition expected to be executed by hanging below a bridge, and on the Thames that was how it had been. Perhaps Tula Lui simply killed according to what seemed most correct at the place of execution. Perhaps she saw the remains of the animal carca.s.ses around her in the boucherie boucherie, and believed that this was how any killing should be done when in France.

Things and people vanishing off the face of the Earth or mysteriously appearing are common themes in the narrative. The a.s.sa.s.sin in the boucherie boucherie; Sabbath's warship (later to be named, with the usual irony, the Jonah Jonah); Fitz and Anji on May Day. The Doctor was definitely convinced that he could force solid objects to appear at will. From mid-June, new diagrams begin to appear in his yellowed, arcane notes. Until June there are a few anatomical drawings, but mostly mechanical designs, machines that seem to have no practical value at all. After June there are ill.u.s.trations that look suspiciously like maps, with contours in coloured inks, just like the great chart on board Sabbath's warship.

The Doctor wished to bring his TARDIS to the House, and on the warship he'd seen a new way of approaching the problem. If the first chart the Doctor drew was based on Sabbath's, then his memory must have been truly remarkable, as the detail is astonishing. Precise whorls, referred to as 'walls of time' (the tantrists tantrists' 'horizon'?), sweep across rough representations of the then-known world. In certain areas primarily London, Hispaniola and the Americas the contours are so dense that they seem impenetrable, as if those cities were being slowly surrounded by the strange, invisible forces of time. Later charts are variations, the Doctor's predictions as to how the patterns might move, and alarmingly many of them show London and Paris completely cut off from the rest of the world. 'Islands of time,' perhaps.

While Fitz and Juliette rea.s.sured each other by firelight in the upstairs room, the Doctor set about his task of navigating a safe path through the storm. The House had already seen him open a way into the world of elementals, though admittedly he'd only succeeded in bringing Fitz and Anji through naked and without possessions (when the Doctor had 'walked' to London, he'd done so fully-clothed, which perhaps suggests that he saw his clothing as being as much a part of his ident.i.ty as his flesh). Now he seemed sure that he could achieve something more ambitious. On the same day that Tula Lui murdered Johnny Lucifer-in*Britches, the Doctor decided to test his new methodology.

Getting Somewhere, Going Nowhere It was in July that the House announced its wedding list for the marriage of Juliette and the Doctor. As the thirteen guest-parties at the wedding were all organisations organisations rather than people, it would have seemed churlish to ask them for expensive gifts, and as a result the items on the list had a somewhat fetishistic flavour. They were tokens more than anything else, like ingredients for some unthinkable magic potion, and this suggests a change of emphasis. In the past, the Doctor had only required mechanical parts for his studies. But suddenly there was a markedly ritualistic feel to his requirements. (then again, it's feasible that he only wanted 'the egg of a tartan bird, bred by the Lodges of the Highlands' because he liked the sound of it... it's even feasible that it may have been rather than people, it would have seemed churlish to ask them for expensive gifts, and as a result the items on the list had a somewhat fetishistic flavour. They were tokens more than anything else, like ingredients for some unthinkable magic potion, and this suggests a change of emphasis. In the past, the Doctor had only required mechanical parts for his studies. But suddenly there was a markedly ritualistic feel to his requirements. (then again, it's feasible that he only wanted 'the egg of a tartan bird, bred by the Lodges of the Highlands' because he liked the sound of it... it's even feasible that it may have been Juliette's Juliette's request.) At best, some of the items on the list were crossbreeds of alchemical ingredients and scientific components: for example, what's anyone supposed to make of 'six gla.s.s phials containing liquid mercury, of the type which might be used to forge the link between the worlds'? request.) At best, some of the items on the list were crossbreeds of alchemical ingredients and scientific components: for example, what's anyone supposed to make of 'six gla.s.s phials containing liquid mercury, of the type which might be used to forge the link between the worlds'?

On July 17, Juliette was alone with Fitz in her boudoir. The room was technically Anji's as well as Juliette's, but Anji spent as little time at the House as possible and generally used her days to feel her way around the streets of London. Fitz and Juliette were talking at length on that afternoon, though it's not known what the subject matter was. However, the conversation was interrupted when Juliette abruptly clutched her stomach, complaining of 'sudden cramps'. At first Fitz was merely concerned, but then he too became aware that something was very wrong.

The two of them stepped out of the room, to find that Katya was also at the door to her quarters. Scarlette (not even in the country, of course) would claim in her journal that 'every woman in the House bled at once', but this clearly isn't supposed to be taken literally. Smoke was rising up the stairs from the ground floor, and all those present in the House began to move towards the salon, fearing the worst. Just before he himself reached the ground floor, Fitz heard a voice cry out and recognised it as the Doctor's.

'Magic words' are important in ritual, as any form of ceremony is about the power of symbols more than anything else. Even hard-nosed Service lore held that Sabbath had learned a certain word which had allowed him to escape his initiation, but if Fitz was to be believed then the noise the Doctor made was a cry of alarm rather than an incantation. As Scarlette so vaguely puts it, 'the Doctor needs no words: his words are in his hearts'.

When Fitz and Juliette arrived in the salon, they found it full of a thin, sickly smoke. This may have affected Fitz's perceptions, because although there was no sign of the Doctor he claimed to have briefly seen a 'Doctor-shaped hole' in the smoky air.

A search of the room revealed a note, in the Doctor's hand. It read: GONE TO FRANCE. BACK FOR TEA.

Where did the Doctor actually go? His failure to keep a diary of his own means there's no first-hand account of what really happened that day. But one description does does exist, in the fragments left behind by Sabbath himself. Sabbath later extracted the entire story from the Doctor and friends, and one of his agents (somewhat clumsily) recorded the details. The thrust of it is as follows. exist, in the fragments left behind by Sabbath himself. Sabbath later extracted the entire story from the Doctor and friends, and one of his agents (somewhat clumsily) recorded the details. The thrust of it is as follows.

The Doctor stepped out of time, with the same skill ascribed to the giants of Mayakai Mayakai folklore. His ability to do this was due to his elemental nature, at least according to Sabbath, who also felt that only the unstable nature of the 'walls of time' had allowed the Doctor to do this: the same weakness in time which allowed the apes to manifest presumably granted elementals a fraction of the same power. How much of this account is to be believed is up to the individual to decide. The story goes that the Doctor didn't arrive in France, as he'd planned (possibly he chose the destination only because Scarlette was already there). Instead he found himself in 'a stranj and terrible place, under the site of the great black eye'. folklore. His ability to do this was due to his elemental nature, at least according to Sabbath, who also felt that only the unstable nature of the 'walls of time' had allowed the Doctor to do this: the same weakness in time which allowed the apes to manifest presumably granted elementals a fraction of the same power. How much of this account is to be believed is up to the individual to decide. The story goes that the Doctor didn't arrive in France, as he'd planned (possibly he chose the destination only because Scarlette was already there). Instead he found himself in 'a stranj and terrible place, under the site of the great black eye'.

This mysterious place isn't described in full... at least not in the Sabbath account. But here the Doctor made himself himself clear, as the realm of the 'great black eye' is described in his clear, as the realm of the 'great black eye' is described in his Ruminations Ruminations. Quite patently this is the same location which Juliette had seen in her vision. The Doctor's description is written in the style of a warning to other travellers.

It's a terrible place, although it's probably not like any terrible place you might have seen in art galleries. There's no h.e.l.lfire or pits of agony. It's a city, the greyest, bleakest city you could imagine. There are buildings, beautiful buildings, but every wall and every brick has been bleached of its colour, worn down by the wind, pulled into ruins, scratched into rubble. There are statues there, like the statues you might see on the Grand Tour of Europe, but they too have been reduced to pale, bleached things with their arms snapped off and their faces sc.r.a.ped clean. The wind never stops making you itch... and everywhere is the smell of animals. Apes, so that the smell isn't quite far enough from that of the traveller's own body to make it seem truly alien. Yet the sky is a bright and beautiful blue, which is a cruelty in itself, because under that sky the earth and the city seem more horrific still. Occasionally, parts of the ruined architecture will be familiar. The buildings behind you might remind you of your own place of residence. A distance away you might see places which make you think of the boulevards of, say, Paris. It's almost as though the traveller brings some of his own city to this graveyard-of*cities, only to see it reduced to a grey husk.But it's the sun that strikes you most. At least, the traveller will at first a.s.sume it's a sun. When you see the pure blackness of it, surrounded by a halo of light against the blue, you might think there's a simple eclipse. Then the sun will turn in the sky, like an eyeball turning in its socket. The sun will look at you, and when you find yourself staring into its terrible dark centre you'll be forgiven if you feel like crying out. Be warned, though, that if you make a sound then your cry will sound like an animal's cry. It may even summon some of the creatures who live in this horrible place, and bring them bounding out of the ruins with their knuckles on the ground.If you find yourself in this place, then turn back. You have put a foot wrong somewhere. This is the horizon horizon, but the horizon made of flesh and plaster.

These 'turn back!'*style warnings are common in the mystical texts of the period, though usually if there's a reference to demons it's code for the creatures of the reader's own psyche, terrible things one can see if exposing oneself to too many poisonous vapours. In fact, there's a sense in which the Doctor's journey reads like a hallucinatory experience, at least partly brought on by the smoke. And it's an indication of the Doctor's somewhat erratic style that this warning to travellers is placed in the Ruminations Ruminations between a series of predictions on the subject of America, and a pa.s.sage which at first sight seems to be a description of a terrible multi-eyed many-limbed monster but which on closer inspection is revealed to b