"Sammy..." "Pearce." "Private S Pearce." "You should have left us alone." "We were causing no harm." "We just wanted what was owed to us." "Pearce, come on!" "You asked me once, remember?" "You asked me to sit and talk with you." "Well, I've sat and I've talked." "On my terms for a change and not yours." "It's gonna be a favourable winter." "It'll slip into spring like they was one and the same." "And then it'll be Eastertide." "Anyway, you'll be leaving us soon." "You've got no choice." "'All irregularities will be handled 'by the forces controlling each dimension." "'Transuranic heavy elements may not be used where there is life." "'Medium atomic weights are available." "'Gold, Lead," "'Copper," "'Jet, Diamond, Radium," "'Sapphire, Silver and Steel." "'Sapphire and Steel have been assigned. '" "Everything's all right, isn't it?" "It is now, yes." "It is now." "Steel?" "Yes, me." "No!" "Stay there." "All right." " It's early morning." "It's dawn." " I know, I just realised." " Why is it dawn?" " Well, how should I know why?" "What is it?" "I've just woken up, I've been having terrible dreams..." "I had a few myself." "In one of them, you attacked me... with a bunch of flowers." "Give me your hands." "'We brought you here after the seance." "'Tully and I brought you to this room." "Is that right?" "'Sapphire?" "Sapphire, do you hear me?" "'Can you hear me?" "'You can't hear me, can you?" "'" "Of course I can hear you." "We've got work to do." "There are some things I must remember." "Stab me." "I remember the girl with the flowers!" "It wasn't me." " An illusion?" " Not quite." "A projected image." " Created by Pearce?" " Through Pearce by the darkness." " But you didn't see the darkness." " I was aware of it." "# La la-la la-la la-la-la-la, picking up gold and... #" "I remember wooden desks..." "and inkwells." "A school - an old school?" " Eleanor." " Who?" " You don't remember her?" " No." "Probably because she wasn't created by the darkness." "She was invited to take part in the seance." "You have been busy in my absence." "'Eleanor!" "Look... '" "I do remember a flower." "What kind of flower?" "'That's a pasqueflower. '" "A wild flower." "Its petals are a kind of purple." "'Well, they're rare. '" "It's very beautiful, and rare, but I don't know why I remember it." "'Come next Eastertide, I'll pick that pasqueflower. ' #... to light your fag, smile, boys... #" "I did visit your grave!" "They suffered!" "Why did they have to suffer so much?" " They told you?" " No, I sensed it." " What's the solution?" " What?" "Whatever it is the darkness promised, did you sense that?" " It was kept from me." " They were waiting." " Yes." " For more of their kind." "Then what?" "I don't know." "You don't know where they were going?" " No." " But they were going somewhere?" " The darkness promised them that." " Why is it morning?" "I'm sorry, but you see I also fell asleep... and I don't sleep." "Right here." "When I awoke, there was a cobweb across the doorway." "Here." "It wasn't on me, it was on the doorway." "Here, analyse that." "I don't have to." " How long was I asleep?" " A few hours." "Why?" "There's a new layer of dust in the waiting room, on the furniture and on the floor." "This room is the same." "I can't see anything." "No, but I can." "Is it a natural formation of dust?" "Yes." "The particles are stratified." "As an analyst, that means it wasn't just dumped here in one go." " It is a natural formation." " How long would it take... this amount of dust to settle naturally?" "Chronologically, with this degree of stratification... about twelve days." "And you've been asleep for a few hours and I for only one." "Yes." " And suddenly it's early morning." " That's right." " It can't happen." " It has happened." "We'll see." " You say we're twelve days adrift." " Approximately, yes." "Tully's sandwiches." "They were a bit stale but they were well wrapped and perfectly edible." "I saw Tully eating one just before the seance and these are..." " Maybe it's another image?" " Not this time." "Why not?" "The darkness is good at images." " You just admitted that." " Yes." "There's another image you missed when you were asleep." "A barbed wire entanglement - I ran right into it." " Where is it now?" " It's gone, of course." "But the cobweb hasn't." "It's still there." "Did you receive any cuts from the wire?" " How could I?" "It wasn't..." " It wasn't what?" "It wasn't real." "This dust is." "When I woke up, there was no dust on me and you said the cobweb hadn't touched you, so those things were not put in our time, we've been put in theirs." "We've been shunted forwards in time?" "Yes!" "And something else - they're not here any more." "Pearce and the others, they've gone." " Perfect." " They have gone." "The atmosphere has gone, the malevolence, the after-images, there's nothing here any more." "Even the darkness has gone." "This place is free now." "Free." "Twelve days ahead." "What happened in between?" " How should I know?" " Your subconscious!" "My subconscious has missed twelve days as well." " You know what happened?" " Yes?" "While we've been shunted twelve days to one side, the darkness could have kept its promise..." "To Pearce and the others." "It could have, yes." "But what has it done with Tully?" "Tully?" "Yes, where is Tully?" "I left him with you." "I told him to look after you." " I've been asleep, remember?" " Tully!" "Tully?" "Tully?" "We've been moved forward twelve days, Tully's been left behind." " We're being manipulated." " Tully could just be hiding." " Why would he do that?" " I don't know." "Well, let's find some proof." "Tully!" "Will you ever forgive me?" "Here" " I'm here." "Thank God you're safe." "That's all I want to say before I go, just thank God you're safe." "Tully!" "No accusations, please." "I apologise here and now." "When I realised the darkness must have swallowed you up..." " When you what?" " The darkness, it was everywhere." "You're not injured?" " No." " Thank God for that." " You saw me?" " What?" "Saw me on the wire." "More or less, yes." "There's your proof." "Oh, my dear girl..." "I abandoned you." "But I had to, you see." "Anyway, I intended to send back help." " You will forgive me?" " Where were you?" "I intended to send back help as quickly as possible." "When you "abandoned" Sapphire, where did you go?" "I..." "I..." "I looked for you and then I came up here." "Then what?" "Did the darkness swallow you up as well?" "I've no idea, I fell asleep." "Sound asleep." "You fell asleep?" "Yes." "L-I saw the ghost of that poor airman down there and then I saw the ghost of the young soldier up there." "I crossed the bridge and..." "I fell asleep." "I slept like a log." "I slept for hours." "I must have done, I mean, it's dawn, it's almost daylight." "Now you're leaving?" "My work here is done." "Who decided that?" " I did." " Nothing decided it for you?" "If you mean have I been frightened a little?" "L" " I don't mind admitting I have been, that's why I have to leave." " Mr Tully." " Yes?" "Take a look at your sandwiches, Mr Tully." " If you leave now..." " I'm not concerned about sandwiches." "I am concerned about leaving when there's so much more to learn." "But that's the way it must be, I'm afraid." "Naturally, I'm thankful for the things I've witnessed here, the opportunity to see the spirits of the dead, even speak to some of them." " Sadly I can't talk to the others..." " What others?" "...before they explain their troubles." "I said, what others?" "The new ones, of course." "You haven't seen them?" "No, I haven't seen them." "Tell me about them." " Well, they arrived." " When?" "Just before I fell asleep last night." "It wasn't last night, Mr Tully." "It was twelve days ago." " What?" " It was twelve days ago." "Where did you see them?" " On the platform, waiting." " How many "new arrivals"?" "Oh, I don't know." "Nine or ten, something like that." "Anyway, I have to go..." "Please let me go." "I..." "I have to leave." " Why?" " I've explained, my work is done." "What about those missed opportunities?" " Yes, but when I say that..." " Tell me!" "Why are you leaving?" " Because I..." "I made a promise." " A promise?" "To whom?" " To it." " The darkness?" " Yes." " That brought the ghosts here?" "That's supposed to have swallowed us up?" " You're both all right..." " You didn't know that!" " But I told you..." " You made a promise, did you?" "To the darkness that plays games with people's minds and time." " I keep my word!" " You what?" "They gave me my freedom when I asked them..." " You pleaded for it!" " If you like!" "I pleaded for it and they gave it me last..." "last night." "Why are you still here, Mr Tully?" "What?" "If it wanted you to leave, why did it make you sleep?" "I don't know." "Please..." "I'm so frightened." "I didn't think I'd ever be this frightened after so many years but I am, I'm scared silly!" "I mean, the way I deserted the pair of you..." " Sit down." " I did, I deserted you but... but it frightened me, you see." "Even my prayers didn't work." " Mr Tully..." " Yes?" "It's gone." "What?" "The darkness." "It's not here any more." "And the ghosts of those poor lads?" "They've also gone." " In peace, do you think?" " We hope so." "'You want him to stay... don't you?" "'" "Because they deserve peace, you know, those poor lads." "With all their problems, their bad luck..." " It isn't fair." " What isn't?" "There they are looking for peace after death after such short lives and... here am I hoping for peace in my old age." "'Sapphire. '" "That's all I..." "That's all I want." " Well?" " The darkness hasn't gone, has it?" "As far as we're concerned, yes." "It's playing games with time." "It's using time against us, isn't it?" "Yes." "Therefore, it must be around here somewhere." " I suppose so." " Good." " I can't do that, Steel." " Do what?" " I can't take time back twelve days." " I don't want you to." "I want "it" to take us back." "Can you make contact with it?" " Contact the darkness?" " Yes." " Possibly, if I tried." " Then try." " It's hardly likely to..." " Cooperate?" "I think it will." "I want to make a deal with the darkness." " You want me to negotiate the deal?" " No, I'll do that, after it's taken us back." "Just the two of us?" "Yes." "And Mr Tully." "It may not give us a second chance." "There's no guarantee it's given us a first one." " No." " Who says we're safe in storage?" "So let's make that deal." "Find it, Sapphire." "Find the darkness." " What is it?" " Tully." "Wait for me." "Sapphire asked you to rest." " She did, yes." " Then sit down and rest." "It's for your own good, Mr Tully." "What is?" " You were frightened, you said so." " Yes." "Then you should sit down and rest." "Calm yourself." " All right." " That's better." "How old are you?" "53?" " 52." " 52?" "Well, well." "All the more reason to take care of yourself." "You'd rather I didn't leave?" "Go home?" "Not because of the promise I made." "I realise that was as bad as making a promise to the devil." "And that would never do." "No." "I..." "I... didn't want to leave just because I was frightened, it's just that I don't feel I'm of any use here." "My faith has taken a knock, you see." "Well, we'd rather you stayed." " Hm?" " We need you." " Really?" " I need you." "You?" "I never thought I'd..." "ever hear that kind of admission." "You needing me!" "All right, I was wrong about you." " That's easy enough to..." " You sit there and relax." "Sapphire and I, er..." "have things to discuss." "What things?" "Private things." "Ah." "By the way, Mr Tully, do you have a family?" " A family?" " At home." "No, I live alone except for my cat." "I have a cat." " Nelson." " Nelson?" "He's only got one eye, you see." " Oh." " Yes, but don't worry, my neighbour always feeds him if I'm not there." "Oh." "Good." "Now, quickly." "What's Tully doing?" "Relaxing." " This deal..." " Now, Sapphire." " What exactly is it?" " I can't tell you, not yet." " If I'm to make contact..." " That's all I want you to do." "All right." " If I do make contact with it..." " It may decide to come back." " It can only come forward..." " Yes." "It may well decide to bargain from here." " This room?" " Somewhere here!" "You could be face to face with it, Steel!" "Yes!" "All right." "But watch for it." "I may not be able to help you." "Please be careful." "'We wish to talk with you." "'We have something to say to you." "'Something important." "'Something important." "'Very important. '"