Hazards of Divinty
                                    
                           An Oh My God? Story
                                    
                                   by
                                    
                               Brett Handy
                                    
                                    
                           Part 2  - Section C


     I woke up in a small room.  Testing myself carefully I
noticed that I seemed to be free of injury.  I paced around the
small room, it was circular and the door was made of some kind of
metal.  Trying the door I found it was locked.  I was wearing my
uniform, but it's colours were different, it had changed to a
brilliant white.

     There was also a window in the room and I moved over to test
it.  It wasn't locked and I opened it.  Gulping nervously, it
looked like I was in a tower, floating in the middle of space. 
There were sparkling lights outside the tower, some nearer, some
distant.  "Where the hell am I?", I wondered out loud.

     "You're stuck here", a voice answered me.

     I turned around to see a familiar figure watching me.  It
was me! An exact copy of me, down to the last detail.  "Who are
you?", I asked anyway.

     "You aren't that dumb", the other me replied, "I'm you".

     "But.. if you're me, who am I?", I asked, confused.

     "Don't try to confuse me", the other me said sharply,
"You'll only get more confused".

     I shook my head to clear it, "Start at the beginning", I
ordered, "How can you be me?".

     "Now..", the other me said, "Take a seat".  

     He pointed and a comfortable chair appeared, it looked
familiar, "Hey! this is the chair I bought a few years back for
using with my computer!", I said, amazed.

     "Of course", the other me said, "It's the most comfortable
chair you could find for working without falling asleep in".  A
moment later another chair appeared and he sat down in it.

     "Now", he said seriously, "I want you to look at something". 
A large TV appeared in the room and an image of Urd appeared, she
was searching for something, after a moment I realised she was
looking for me.

     "Where is she", I asked desperately, "How do I get to her?".

     The other me held up a hand, "It's a long, involved
process", he explained, "First you have to determine where you are".

     "You can't tell me?", I asked.

     He shook his head, "Sorry, I'm *you* remember? you need to
figure it out first", he explained, "I'm just here to give you
some help".

     "Ok", I said, looking around the room, "I'm in a locked
room".

     "That's a start", the other replied.

     I stood and walked to the window, "The last thing I remember
was the troll going after me and two going after Urd.. I was
angry.... and I woke up here", then I stopped.

     "Yes?", the other me asked.

     Pacing back and forth I ran over a few things, "So what do
you represent?", I asked finally, "Some kind of puzzle?".

     The other me grinned, "Nope", he said, "You're always
talking to yourself, here it's just more manifest than in other places".

     "Come on!", I said in disbelief, "You must represent
something, a part of me perhaps?".  The other me shrugged and
watched me walk around a bit more.

     I sat down on the bed and looked at the other me, "If you
*are* a part of me, what are you doing over there, why aren't you
inside me?", I asked.

     The other me grinned, "You're absolutely right", he replied.

     Then it hit me, "I'm locked up in my own mind?", I asked in
disbelief.

     The other me winked, "Right, I knew you'd work it out!", he
congratulated me, "You just took the first step out of here".

     "But how did I get here?", I asked, then I noticed his
expression, "I know, I've gotta figure it out myself".  I walked
around for a few minutes, thinking.

     "I bet you'd like a drink of water right now", the other me
guessed.

     I nodded, "Do you have one?", I asked.

     He shook his head, "No, but you do", he smiled.

     I thought for a moment and then grinned, willing a glass of
water to appear.  I took a deep drink of water, "So since this is
my mind", I mused, "I can create anything I want?".

     He nodded, "You created me", he replied, "You needed someone
to talk to and started discussing things with yourself".

     I grinned and looked at the lock on the door, a key appeared
in it.  I walked over to the door and turned the key, but my
double's hand stopped me, "Do you know what's behind the door?",
he asked.

     I shook my head, "Then do you think you should open it
before you know what's behind it?", he asked.

     I frowned and he pointed at the door, a spyhole appeared and
I looked through it.  There was a darkness, so black it made me
shiver.  Then it formed into a huge figure of darkness and
pointed at me, hissing.  I quickly turned the key in the lock and the
metal door shuddered, the whole building rocked as the strange creature
tried to break into the room.

     After a few moments, the attacks stopped and I breathed a
sigh of relief.  I looked over at the other me, "At least I know why
I'm in here", I said quietly, "I'm not trapped, I'm hiding!".

                                  ******

     Urd recovered quickly from her exposure to Phalarus, she
healed Deedlit and Parn's injuries.  One of the horses was
missing and so was Brett's sleeping roll.  Deedlit tracked the horse
until it met up with a large group of monsters, she stopped counting at
twenty trolls.

     "He's still headed towards Marmo", she insisted, "And with a
company or more of Trolls surrounding him, we couldn't do much
about it even if we caught up with him".

     "Speak for yourself!", Urd said angrily, "I'm more than a
match for a bunch of smelly trolls!".

     "That's not in doubt", Parn said quietly, "But are you a
match for Phalarus?".

     Urd hesitated, she'd noticed that Brett had seemed more
aggressive lately and more powerful, but she'd never dreamed that
another spirit was possessing him.  Stopping that line of thought
she gave herself a little shake and spurred her horse forward,
"We don't have a choice", she said bluntly, "If I can't defeat
Phalarus then I don't know what we can do anyway".

     Deedlit and Parn watched her gallop off and Parn shrugged,
"I wasn't doing anything else this week anyway", he said smiling. 
The two of them followed Urd, catching up with her in a few minutes.

     That evening they stopped late, Urd insisting that they make
the most use of the light while it was available.  Deedlit looked
over with her in concern as she huddled up beside the fire.  Parn
was snoring loudly and she move over to sit with Urd.  The two
women sat together for a long time, just watching the flames,
before Urd spoke up.

     "I don't know if I can fight him", she whispered.

     Deedlit was silent and placed an arm around Urd, "Get some
sleep", she encouraged Urd, "We'll deal with that when the time
comes".  Urd drifted off into a deep sleep.

                                   *****

     "Are you sure that this will work?", I asked my double
nervously.

     "No", he replied, "I'm not, but this is the best chance for
you getting some help".  Then he looked at me strangely, "Can
*you* think up anything better?", he asked.

     I grinned a little, "Obviously not", I replied.

     Looking out at the stars surrounding the tower I stepped out
the window,  forcing myself to concentrate, doing something
consciously, that I'd only previously been able to do while
asleep.  I floated a few feet from the window and noticed a thin cord
reaching from myself to the tower, it glowed a brilliant gold.

     "There you go", my double encouraged, "Now all you have to
do is find Urd, follow the red strings".

     "What red..", I began.  Then I broke off, noticing several
red lines coming from my chest and streaking off into the distance,
many of them in one direction, disappearing into the distance,
while one of them, the thickest, seemed to only go to one of the
closer stars.

     I pushed myself towards that star and watched as the tower
disappeared behind me, the golden cord played out behind me and I
noticed that I wasn't just following a single cord, there were
several, some were just smaller.  I finally reached the star and
was surrounded by light, when it finally cleared I was
approaching a planet, the red lines were concentrated in one place and I
willed myself there.

     "URD!", I called, as I landed in the middle of the camp, she
was the source of the thickest red cord.  There were also two
smaller cords connecting myself with Deedlit and Parn.  I noticed
that everyone appeared to be sleeping and I tried to place a hand
on Urd's shoulder, only to have it slip through and I stumbled.

     Urd whimpered in her sleep, I stumbled and ended up sitting
beside Urd, one of my arms had passed straight through her, I
moved closer to her and touched her brow.  I suddenly found myself
sucked into her dreams.

                                  ******

     Urd screamed as she threw a bolt of energy at the possessed
form of Brett.  She winced as it hit his body and he convulsed. 
She crawled over to him, cradling his dead body in her lap,
cursing herself for a fool.

     "Why did it have to be me that killed you?!?", she screamed.

     A smiling figure filled her vision, "You killed me?", Brett
asked, "How rude!".

     Urd looked down at the body in her arms and then at the face
of a smiling Brett, wearing some brilliant white clothing.  She
shook her head in confusion, "What's going on?", she demanded.

     "You're dreaming", the newly arrived Brett explained, "I'm
trying to contact you".  He looked around, "Looks like you're
having quite a bad nightmare", he observed, noting the dead
bodies of friends surrounding them.

     "But", Urd began, looking at the dead body which dissolved
as she watched, "How?".

     Brett helped her to her feet and as she watched, the
battlefield disappeared and a beach with a calm sea appeared,
"How did you do that?", she demanded.

     "Ahhh", Brett said, grinning, "It appears that I have some
abilities I didn't know about...".  Urd looked around more
closely and remembered the time that she and Brett had visited some of
his favourite spots in Australia, this was one of them.

     She reached out a hand and touched his cheek, "It really is
you", she said.

     Brett grinned and kissed her hand, "Of course it is!", he
looked at her and raised his eyebrows, "You're so stubborn
sometimes".  She grabbed his head and pulled forward, kissing him
soundly.

     After she broke for breath Brett gave her a serious look. 
"I should explain what's happening", Brett said, he gestured and a
comfortable sofa appeared, he sat down, motioning for Urd to sit
beside him.  And over the next few dream minutes explained what
he'd experienced.

     "So you're hiding in your own mind?", Urd asked, frowning,
"You can't kick whatever it is out?".

     Brett shook his head, "Nope", he explained, "It's far too
powerful, it seems to be drawing energy from the universe itself,
I can't beat him.. at least... in this universe".

     Urd gave him a confused look, "You mean..", she began.

     Brett nodded, "I could probably take over for a moment or
two.. if that's enough then I could force him through a
portal..", he said cautiously.

     "You don't sound too confident", Urd said, "using 'probably'
and 'if' doesn't sound like you".

     Brett looked uncomfortable, "I'm not really familiar with
any of this", he said, "But I'm not gonna give up my body to whatever
that thing is".

     "Well", Urd said, "the impression I got from it was that it
is known as Phalarus".

     "This world's god of evil?", he asked.

     Urd nodded, "He's very powerful.. I don't know if I could
defeat him".

     "You could if you had some help", Brett mused, "If I strike
at the same time as you do, it'll confuse it and I might be able to
take it through the portal".

     Urd sighed, "It still seems pretty risky", she complained.

     Brett grinned, "Of course it's risky!", he said jauntily,
"That's all part of the fun!".

     Urd punched him in the shoulder and he grinned wider, "It's
a dream remember?", he said, pinching her.  She jumped and then
realised that she couldn't feel it.

                                  ******

     "Brett is alive!", Urd said to Parn and Deedlit the next
morning as they had breakfast, "He spoke to me in a dream last
night".

     Parn looked skeptical, "Are you sure this isn't just wishful
thinking?", he asked.

     Urd gave him a understanding look, "I realise it seems
strange, but Brett has always seemed to have an ability with
dreams", she explained, "I've shared a number of them with him". 
She went into detail about what Brett had told her the night
before and some of the disbelief left Parn's face.

      "That plan is interesting", Deedlit said, "but what will
happen if you dump Phalarus out of Brett between universes?".

     Urd paused, "I don't know", she admitted, "But if it saves
Brett, I don't care".  She went about packing up her things. 
Parn and Deedlit exchanged a nod and the two of them quickly followed
Urd's lead and they resumed their pursuit of Phalarus.

                                  ******

     Sherris quickly ran her sword through the last Kobold and
turned around to see her partner leaning on his massive sword,
watching her thoughtfully.  She wiped her sword clean and gave
him a curious look, "What are you doing?", she asked.

     "Oh", he said in a quiet voice, wrapping his sword back up
and hefting it onto his shoulder, "Just noticing how efficient you've
become dealing with these things".  The two of them walked back
over to where they'd left their horses.

     "So!", Sherris said, raising one eyebrow, "Admiring my form
are you?".

     Orson stumbled slightly and gave her a confused look, "I beg
your pardon?", he asked.

     Sherris shook her head, "You're a great partner Orson, but
you don't have a clue...", she stopped as she heard a chorus of
guttural calls from the road they were about to travel.  Dropping
to the ground, the two crept closer to the edge of the thicket
and saw something that cause both of them to draw a shuddering
breath.

     Advancing down the road was a small army of trolls and
kobolds.  They numbered in the low hundreds, but more amazingly,
they were arrayed in tight formations, rather than the usual
unruly mess.  There seemed a definite undercurrent of discipline that
was completely at odds with every experience the two warriors had
with the monsters.

     "What could be happening?", Sherris wondered out loud.

     Orson placed a hand on her shoulder and pointed to the
middle of the formation.  Riding high in the saddle was a tall young
man, wearing a strange form of body armour and carrying a light sword. 
There was a space around him which no monster invaded and his
expression was one of supreme confidence.

     The army was coming closer and Sherris tugged on Orson's
arm, "Let's get the hell out of here", she whispered.  The two
sprinted for their horses, and not a moment too soon as a pair of Kobolds
marched right through the area they'd been occupying for the last
few minutes.  The Kobolds (not being the most observant
creatures) continued through the thicket, not noticing the disappearing
figures of the two warriors.

     In the centre of the army, Phalarus nodded in satisfaction
as his army advanced.  This body had an aptitude for tactics and the
new strategies it had picked from it's memory were indeed
interesting.  Phalarus smiled at the thought of finally devouring
his host's soul, the soul that was hiding in the deepest part of
the body's mind would not escape him forever.

                                  ******

     Urd, Parn and Deedlit were pushing their horses as far as
possible and Deedlit's sharp eyes had picked up the tell-tale
dust clouds rising from the small army they were trailing.  They had
just stopped to discuss what their next move was, when the sharp
whinny of a horse distracted them.  Parn and Deedlit drew their
weapons and Urd prepared a quick spell.

     "Glad to see you too", came the sarcastic voice of Sherris
at the sight of the drawn weapons.

     Parn and Deedlit both lowered their weapons and smiled, "We
should have expected to see the two of you here", Parn said
wryly, "Trouble has a way of find you".

     "As opposed to not finding you?", Orson replied softly.

     Urd gave the newcomers a frown, "Are you going somewhere in
a hurry?", she asked, noting the exhausted look of their horses.

     Sherris gave her a smile, "No one in their right mind would
try to fight that army by themselves", she observed.

     Urd looked interested, "Did you see a young man, in his
early twenties, wearing blue armour?", she asked quickly.

     Sherris nodded, "We saw him all right", she said, in an
almost angry tone, "Riding along in the centre of the army, I think the
hordes of Marmo have a new leader".

     Deedlit and Parn exchanged a long look and then Deedlit
turned to Urd, "Do you still want to go after him?", she asked softly.

     Urd spurred her horse forward in reply.  Parn and Deedlit
watched her go silently.  "What's with her?", Sherris asked,
confused. 

     "Her fiancee is the one leading that army", Parn said
quietly, "She's going to try to get him back".

     Deedlit nodded, watching Urd get further and further away,
"If she can't defeat him, Phalarus will come back into the world",
she said softly.  Sherris and Orson exchanged a concerned glance and
Sherris turned her horse after Urd, "Well, what are we waiting
for?", she asked grandly.

     Over the next few miles, Parn and Deedlit explained the
story in more detail, Sherris whistled slightly at the thought of
Phalarus being reborn.  Orson remained silent through the
explanation and nodded as they explained how Brett was possessed,
"That's a fight I fight every day", he observed solemnly.

     "Well", Sherris grinned, "It looks like we're going to be
helping you two out again".  Parn and Deedlit smiled and the four
companions tried to close the distance to Urd.

                                  ******

     Sherris walked over a hill to see a large pool, with some
kind of canvas tent beside it.  She was confused, one moment she'd
been lying down to rest for the night and the next she was here.  She
turned sharply as a footstep echoed behind her, she looked into
an equally confused Parn's face, "Sherris? is that you?", he asked.

     "Over here!", came a call from down near the pool.  Deedlit
was idly dipping one of her feet into it and seated beside her
was Orson, he smiled, "Nice place huh?", he asked as Parn and Sherris
stopped by the pool.

     "But where are we?", Parn wondered, looking around
carefully.

     "You are sleeping at your campsite", came a voice from
inside the tent.  The four reached for their swords, only to find they
weren't wearing any.  Brett stepped out into the bright sunlight
and smiled at them broadly.

     "You!", Sherris spat, "How did you do this to us?".

     Brett frowned and took a step back at the anger in her
voice, "Sorry", he apologised, "But I couldn't ask your permission".  He
looked distracted for a moment and nodded, "Urd's just fallen
asleep", he announced, "She should be here soon".

     True enough, a few moments later Urd came walking down the
hill.  Seeing Brett she ran forward, pulling him into a hug. 
Brett grinned sheepishly at the four warriors, "Sorry about not asking
first", he said carefully, "But if we're going to get rid of
Phalarus we'd better plan a little first".

     Parn looked around, "Nice place you've got here", he noted,
"How'd you do it?".

     Brett looked around curiously, "Actually", he admitted, "I'm
not sure".  Parn gave him a frown and Brett shrugged, "I didn't
even know I *could* do this until yesterday".

     Orson sat down and rested his feet in the pool, "Well it's
comfortable enough", he noted, "A nice place, even if it is a
dream".

     Brett smiled at his comment and gestured for everyone to sit
down, "I'm afraid that unless we can do something soon, Phalarus
is going to get past my defences", he said seriously.

     Urd looked concerned, but Brett shrugged at her look,
"There's nothing I can do about it", he admitted, "This is his universe,
not mine".

     "What do you mean?", Deedlit asked, "Urd said you'd locked
yourself away from him".

     Brett nodded, "I'm keeping as much from him as possible, but
each minute he overwhelms more of my mind.. it's like a wave
crashing against the shore.. sooner or later, the waves will
win", he explained.

     "He's already gotten past much of my memories", Brett said
seriously, "But some of the more exotic things have confused
him... and he's fascinated by some of the military stuff I remember".

     "I think we saw some examples of that", Sherris explained,
detailing what she'd see of the army.

     Brett nodded thoughtfully, "That's what I would be doing in
that situation", he noted.  Then he smiled, "Well I think we just
found our first advantage", at everyone's blank expression Brett
grinned, "Who do you think knows my weaknesses better than me?".

                                  ******

     Urd drifted in the dream pool for a long time, she revelled
in the sensations and smiled as she felt Brett's arms around her and
he kissed her lightly on the lips.  She opened her eyes and
placed her arms around his neck.

     "This is wonderful", she sighed, "Let's stay here forever".

     Brett shook his head, "This isn't real remember? it's just a
dream", he said sadly.

     Urd gave him a fond look and ran a finger lightly along his
jawline, "Even if this is just a dream", she said, "I can't think
of another place I'd rather be".

     "Well now", he said, grinning widely, "I could think of one
or two places I've been that were better".  Urd smiled and then
suddenly gasped as the dream dissolved around her.

     She awoke to find Deedlit bending over her, shaking her arm,
"Come on Urd, wake up!", she insisted.

     Urd battered Deedlit's hand away, "Go away!", she insisted,
"I was having the nicest dream".

     Deedlit grinned at her, "Oh I can imagine", she said.

     Urd shook herself awake and sat up, Parn and Sherris were
grinning at her from across the fire, "Is it time?", she asked
them.

     "It's a couple of hours before dawn", Parn said, "You've got
a few minutes to get ready".

     Sherris nodded, "Brett told us to wake you up early", she
apologised.

     Urd's eyes narrowed, "I'll have to talk to him about that",
she mused.  The others laughed and Urd sat down to what passed
for breakfast in this world.

                                  ******

     Phalarus awoke slowly and lazed for a few moments in his
bedroll, enjoying the sensations of awakening after the thousands
of years of having no body.  One of the trolls approached,
grovelling, "Master", it said in respectful tones, "Our scouts
have not returned". 

     "Send out a group of trolls", Phalarus replied, "Kill any
human you see, if you come across serious opposition, one troll
is to retreat with the news, the others are to block the attackers". 
He rose his voice so that it carried across the army, "We're
moving out in ten minutes", he ordered.

     The monsters obeyed without question, the last troll to
question Phalarus was blasted down into fine dust and they
weren't going to push it.  As he climbed up onto his horse Phalarus
examined the tracking device that a goddess named Skuld had give
to his host.  He was following along where the device was pointing,
because a dimensional portal was just what he needed.

     He laughed at the thought of placing his fellow evil gods in
the bodies of the monsters surrounding him.  "It will suit their
personalities", he smiled savagely.

     After a day of harsh travel, his army made camp on the edge
of the southern sea, the glow of the volcano of Marmo lit up the
night sky and Phalarus nodded in satisfaction.  Another troll
approached him, "Master", he said respectfully, "The group of trolls have
not returned".

     Phalarus's eyes narrowed, "Oh?", he said, then he looked
across at the island in the distance.  "WAKE UP!", he thundered,
magically amplifying his voice.  The army shifted around him,
monsters awakening, "We are going across now", he ordered, "We
will not wait until tomorrow!".  There were a few grumbles from the
massed creatures, but a sharp glare from Phalarus halted any
further unvoiced comments.

                                  ******

     "They're going across", Parn whispered to Deedlit, "It's
time to get moving!".  The two quietly moved away from where they were
observing the army and rejoined Urd and the others, "What now?",
Sherris asked, "How do we get across before them?".

     Urd raised her arms, "This is going to take a lot of power",
she announced, "So keep your cool, I don't need any
distractions".  She began chanting, her voice rising musically over
the clearing.  The air around the group began to glow with a silvery
light and the horses shuffled around uneasily.  Deedlit and Parn quickly
settled them.  The air began to move slowly around them in a circle. 
Faster and faster, until they were standing in the middle of a
whirlwind of leaves and branches.  Sherris looked around
uneasily, although she could see the movement, all she felt was a light
breeze, "I hope she doesn't make a mistake, we'd look really
silly spread out over half the continent", she observed.

     Orson, quickly slapped a hand across her mouth, effectively
silencing her further comments.  As the whirlwind reached it's
peak, they began to rise from the ground, moving quickly across
the open waters and to what was left of the island of Marmo.  They
landed on the uneven ground and the wind disappeared as suddenly
as it had started.  Urd half-staggered over to her horse and took a
long drink of water, puffing slightly.

     "Well we're here", Sherris noted unnecessarily, "What now?". 
The growling of a large troll answered the question for her and
the group suddenly found themselves under attack.

                                  ******

     Brett watched as Phalarus put his plan to capture his
friends into place and he nodded thoughtfully, "Good plan", he noted, "I
couldn't have done better myself".

     The other Brett agreed and then looked around the room at
the collected objects that Brett had been protecting from his memory,
"Are you sure that this is enough?", he asked.

     Brett shook his head, "I don't know", he replied, "But it's
something that Phalarus isn't going to expect"

                                  ******

     Urd was pushed roughly to the ground and her wrists chafed
from the bindings she was forced to wear.  Behind her, Parn,
Deedlit and an unconscious Orson were also dropped to the ground. 
She looked up and her breath caught in her throat, standing,
looking down at her was the familiar form of Brett.

     He had a cruel look in his eye and his face was twisted in a
sardonic smile.  "So", Phalarus said firmly, "The Goddess of the
Past is no match for the God of Evil".

     Urd refused to reply and cringed away when he gripped her
jaw forcing her to look him in the eye, "Why so shy?", he asked
evilly, "You seemed passionate enough back at the castle".  Involuntarily
Urd's eyes opened wider and Phalarus nodded, "You think that this
spineless mortal I inhabit would have had the courage to make
love to a goddess?", he sneered.

     "You're lying!", Urd spat.

     Phalarus smiled, "Maybe I am", he mused, "But then again..
who knows?".  He laughed at the expression on her face and turned to
look at her companions, "More vessels for my kind", he said,
looking at them, "How kind of you to sacrifice yourselves to

ring the dark gods back to Lodoss".  He gestured to the trolls, "Bring
them", he ordered, "But don't hurt them too badly".

     Urd and the others found themselves dragged towards the
volcano.  At the base of the huge mountain, they were pulled
inside a cave.  Urd noted that Phalarus was constantly checking the
tracking device and she nodded once to Parn who winked in
response.  As they reached the middle of the mountain they felt a gust of
searing hot wind and Urd closed her eyes involuntarily.  They
walked out onto a small shore, before a lake of lava.  Urd tried
to shelter her eyes from the heat of the boiling rock.

     Phalarus seemed unaffected by the heat, he walked over to
the edge of the lake and examined the tracking device, "It will
appear here", he said, point to the empty air, over the lava.

     He looked down at the humans and single goddess at his feet,
"Soon I will return my minions to this world and without Phalus
to stop me, everything will be mine!", he gloated.  Then he suddenly
staggered.  Urd whispered a word of power and her bindings
dropped to the ground.

     The troll's standing closest to Urd didn't have time to
wonder what hit them as they were thrown by a blast of wind into the
boiling lava below.  Deedlit and Parn's bonds also ripped away
and Deedlit quickly chanted a spell of her own.  Parn picked up a
troll-sized war axe and began hacking at Sherris' bonds. 
Phalarus jerked again and screamed in pain.

                                  ******

     Brett carefully fitted the key into the solid metal door,
turning it slowly.  He nodded to his double, "Good luck", his
double said gravely.

     Quickly pushing the door open, Brett rushed out to confront
the creature that had taken over his body and was slowly
devouring his mind.  Once again, the darkness condensed into a human-like
form, "So", it hissed, "You have come out of hiding".

     Brett was wearing his usual body armour and raised his
sword, "This body is mine", he said grimly, "Consider this an eviction
notice!".

     "Very well then", Phalarus said, forming into the semblance
of a warrior with a massive two-handed sword, "Let us begin".

     Brett raised his sword in salute, Phalarus mimicked his
action.  Then instead of attacking, Brett stabbed his sword into
the ground and concentrated.  A moment later he was looking down
the targeting scope of a TOW-II anti-tank missile launcher.  A
sharp beep echoed in his ear and he pulled the trigger.

     Phalarus was blown backwards, one of his arms disappearing
in the blast.  Brett discarded the launcher and concentrated again,
this time a rather ugly looking shotgun appeared.  At Phalarus'
confused expression Brett shrugged, "I never said that I'd play
fair", he explained, unloading another blast into the stunned
god.

                                  ******

     Urd looked over at Brett/Phalarus in concern as he screamed
in pain yet again.  She dispatched another contingent of trolls with
a whirling ball of fire and noted that her companions had managed
to free themselves and were protecting her back.  Concentrating
carefully, she unleashed two force-bolts, they impacted the
cavern entrance, forcing tons of rock into the opening and blocking off
any more trollish reinforcements.

     "Get him away from the edge", she ordered Orson and Sherris,
gesturing to the twitching form of Brett/Phalarus.  The two
warriors grabbed his body, pulling it away from the edge of the
lave lake, they lay him on the ground gently.

     Parn and Deedlit dispatched the last remaining troll and
nearly collapsed from exhaustion, Urd wearily fell to her knees,
placing a hand on Brett/Phalarus' brow, "Please be ok", she
whispered.

     His eyes flickered open and glowed red for a moment, "Such
concern!", Phalarus said sarcastically, "I shall soon dispatch
this pathetic mortal..", his voice degenerated into gibberish for a
moment, before it continued, but in a very different tone, "Urd,
get him into the portal as soon as it opens!", Brett ordered.

     Hope flared in Urd's eyes and she gestured to the two
warriors, "Bring him over here", she said, "Hurry".  Sherris and
Orson nodded and Urd gestured to Parn and Deedlit, "Come on!",
she urged, "Let's go".

     Deedlit looked out where the portal was suppose to appear,
"But won't that mean we're going to be lost like you and Brett?",
she asked.

     "Would you rather stay here?", Urd asked, looking pointedly
at the collapsed tunnel.  The five waited until a white light began
to overpower the dull red glow created by the lava.  A gust of wind
filled the chamber and Urd nodded, "It's ready", she announced.

     "Too late!", Phalarus announced, "I've won!".  Sherris and
Orson nodded to each other and flung the newly wakened god
through the portal.  A shriek echoed for a moment and was suddenly cut off. 

     "Oh well", Urd said solemnly, "I guess we're on our way". 
The four joined hands and jumped into the brightness.

                                  ******

     Slayn was walking across the courtyard of the Royal Palace
in Valus when a strange white glow began and he felt the build up of
powerful magic.  "GUARDS!", he shouted, raising his staff and
preparing for combat with whatever came through the portal.

     A moment later, four familiar figures appeared.  Slayn
lowered his staff, a smile on his face, "Where have the four of you
been?", he asked, "We've been worried sick!".

     Parn and Deedlit looked around in confusion, "But I
thought..", Parn began.

     "Weren't we suppose to end up in another universe?", Sherris
asked.

     Orson checked himself over, "I'm not wounded anymore", he
noted.

     The others also found that their wounds had been healed and
they looked around for Urd, who was missing.  Eto and the Queen
arrived a few minutes later, "Where are Brett and Urd?", Eto
asked curiously.

     Deedlit shook her head, "I don't know", she said, looking up
at the sky, "But wherever they are.. I hope they're happy".

                                  ******

     Urd glanced over at the shimmering shape floating beside
her, "Are you happy now?", she asked, "Your people are all back where
they belong".  She had found her trip through the portal put on
hold when she ran into something unexpected.

     "I thank you Goddess of The Past", the figure said gravely,
"For I still have need of their services".

     "Whatever", Urd replied shortly, "Now will you let me go
after Brett?".

     Phalus The Supreme nodded, "Remain careful", he advised,
"Phalarus is likely to be nearby...".

     Urd nodded, "Thanks for your help", she said grudgingly.

     "My best wishes for your future", Phalus replied, smiling. 
Urd felt herself resume her portal trip, and everything dissolved
in a wash of colours.

                                  ******


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