“What shall we do?” said Luke.

His girlfriend grinned. “Not worry for a start.”

“How can you say that?” said Luke. They were standing on the edge of the abyss and the city of angels was slowly sinking down into it. The bottom, if it even existed, was lost in darkness.

Marie held out her watch. The time was ticking away. She pressed one of its buttons, and it stopped. The city stopped sinking and hung distant in the air before and below them.

“Now clear your head. We’re going to need some good problem-solving round about now.”

Luke shook his head as if to dislodge a rebellious thought. He felt hopelessly inadequate at the moment. Sighing, he took the watch from Marie’s proffered hand and looked at it. The second hand twitched as it held back time’s onslaught.

He looked up. Marie had taken a towel out of her pack and was spreading it on the ground. As he watched, she took out a thermos flask and a box of sandwiches.

Luke returned Marie’s smile, sincerely if a little wearily, and sat down with her. He took one of the sandwiches and bit into it. Chicken and brinjal pickle. The bread was a little soggy by now. They looked out, chewing. The city of angels and the abyss loomed on a mind-bending scale. Was it further and bigger or closer and smaller? So hard to tell.

Luke levitated the watch before his eyes thoughtfully and poured out a lidful of tomato soup from the thermos. Sipping, he revolved the strange mechanism in the air and considered the different possibilities each of its aspects offered.

Marie watched him as he reached out and touched the thing, already deep in trance. Energy flowed along his fingers, back and forth, and sparks jumped lazily. The world distorted, and then Luke opened his eyes. He smiled, seeing that Marie now had the merest suggestion of a pair of ethereal wings spreading from her back.

She laughed happily and gave them a flap. “But will they work?”

Luke shrugged. “I don’t see why not. Though, they won’t last long, not even in this false-time we’re experiencing now. I stole them from a very rare alternate possibility.”

“So in some universe we’ve already been to the city? And entered in the order?”

“Yes. Practically impossible, but still possible even so.”

Joyfully, Marie pitched forward and kissed him on the cheek. Then she got up, and started running. She reached the edge at speed, and leapt.

“Marie!” Luke yelled. He hesitated, then ran himself. And leapt. “Marie, come back!”

Marie didn’t hear him, she was already too far ahead. Furiously, he stared at the watch. The second-hand was shuddering violently. He could do nothing but pitch himself forward and race for the city of angels.


*


“I only wish,” said the djinni, “that you could have spared the girl.”

“The girl is an important part of my plan, my friend,” said Rencor. He stirred the dark soup and the possibilities flashed and blended in its magical depths. Suddenly the soup went clear and he saw the city of angels before him, sinking into the abyss.

Rencor looked up and studied his shelf. He selected a vial of swirling brown liquid and poured it into the cauldron. The possibilities exploded into chaos again.

“There is one last item that I need, and then you will be free of me,” said Rencor.

“And what would that be, my captor?”

“The heart of the city of angels.”

“But… then the city will die. You cannot ask me to do this!”

“I will make my own moral judgements, thank you. Your place is as the tool. Now, do as I command.”

“I shall do so, but hear me, human. If I ever become free, I will kill you for this.”

“Goodbye, tool.”


*


The city loomed closer to swallow the horizon. It was gargantuan. From here the structures resolved themselves into coherence and a buzzing activity could be seen, as of ants.

Ahead, Marie whooped.

The watch vibrated ever more violently. No! thought Luke. Just a little more!

The wind whipped his face raw and the exertion of his phantom wings was stretching his stamina to breaking point. How could they reach it in time?

Luke poured all his magic through his hands into the watch. Just keep going.

The incredible mass of life that was the city of angels spread out before them. Soon it would be under them.

Luke felt a burning in his palm. Suddenly the watch was too hot to hold – he let go of it out of reflex, and it exploded.

Time returned.

Luke’s wings shuddered and disappeared. Ahead, Marie screamed.

Luke caught his breath and closed his eyes. He used a frantic burst of energy, relying more on force than finesse. The world span around him –

The watch returned to his hand.

Luke stared at it in disbelief for a few moments. The Z-warp! He had performed a Z-warp! The watch was really there!

It didn’t make much odds, though. Luke had no energy left. He could hardly reach the closest possibilities, let alone a dimension that might be of use.

He fell. And fell. He desperately searched for ideas, but all he could think was that this was really the end. He heard Marie’s terrible wail, and hated himself.

Then he felt it. A presence, a living presence – not in this universe, but very close to it. Perhaps a ten percent possibility. If only to forestall giving up hope he strained all his being to gather up his last dregs of energy. The possibilities had already faded a little by this time. He released the energy and the spectre of a djinni appeared from a universe that could have been, flying only a few hundred metres away, bound for the city.

“Help!”

The djinni turned his head in surprise and saw Luke. Then he continued in his flight.

“Djinni! HEAR ME!” yelled Luke. “I INVOKE THE RITE OF AIR!” Adrenaline making the world feel unreal and distant, he tore out own left eye. “WITH THIS SACRIFICE, I BIND YOU TO MY SERVICE!”

“I am bound on an errand. I cannot defy my master’s wishes unless you order me to,” said the djinni into Luke’s ear.

Luke started. He looked around at the floating djinni. “I order you to defy your master’s wishes!”

The djinni smiled. “Thank you. You cannot know how much suffering you have just prevented.”

“Now…” said Luke. He stared at the city they were falling past as he considered his next words. “Take me and Marie both safely to the city of angels!”