Path
Lee Williams was eight years old, he was bruised in the ribs where his father had kicked him and his arms hurt where his father had grabbed him.
He knew his father could not help drinking, and had been like this for the last six months since Lees' mother had died and Lee just wished things could be different.
All he had done was spilled a glass of water and his father had lost his temper, it was 11.58pm and Lee lay in bed unable to sleep, he missed his mother so much.
Suddenly in the darkest corner of his room, he saw two red eyes watching him and he blinked thinking he was imaging things.
The man walked out of the corner, with the whitest skin Lee had ever seen, his eyes were the brightest red and he was dressed all in black, and Lee was too scared to scream, he thought Dracula had come for him.
The man looked about early twenties, and when he smiled he had the whitest teeth with two fangs.
"Hello Lee" said the man.
"Do not be afraid" said the stranger as he neared Lees' bed.
"I will not harm you, Lee, I am here to take you on an adventure and show you a life that will help you....yes I know you miss your mother and I know your father regets the man he has become".
"How do you know my name?....how do you know about me?...what is going to stop me calling my dad?" Lee said.
"Ahhhh, if I told you, where would be the adventure?...as for your father, if you look at your clock you will see time has stopped, call for him for he can not hear you" said the man.
From behind the man appeared a floating large oak door with a handle of a dragon that looked made of brass.
"If you wish to follow me, then follow me through this door, it will only stay for five minutes then vanish for good and I will never return...all I promise is you will have an adventure unlike anyone else...I will tell you who I am, what i am and never mind your pyjamas for behind this door is magic and your clothes can turn into anything you want" said the stranger, he turned to the door and opened it, stepped through then closed it.
Lee did know what to do, but he thought this must be a dream and he was curious...after all he was a child and he loved adventure stories.
Lee got out to bed, he was wearing his Star Wars pyjamas..he put on his Spider-man slippers and approached the door.
He opened and stepped through before changing his mind, closing the door behind him.
Suddenly, as quickly as it appeared, the door vanished.
Lee could not believe what he saw, something he would never have imagined.
The sky above was so many different shades of colour, strange shapes glistened like stars, the floor was cover in mist and it felt as if he was walking in water.
But all around him, floating in every direction were doors, they were everywhere, millions of them.
"Hello there" said a voice behind him.
He turned and saw a girl, she was about fourteen, and petite, dressed in a grey dress, like an old victorian dress.
"I am Lucy, have you met Path"? she said.
"Path"? Lee asked.
"He is the one you followed, he is the Path Finder but I call him Path for short,,,he is a good guy really. a bit scary looking but a good guy" Lucy said.
"What is this place?...what is it with all the doors?" Lee asked.
Just then, Path appeared and then he spoke.
"Every story every told is behind these doors, every dream, every book, every film or TV programme, every poem, every thought" Path said.
"Your Star Wars pyjamas, yes even that film...but there is a twist, each door always has a twist so nothing is how it should be" Path said.
"In what way"? Lee asked.
"Well, behind one door, Peter Pan is a killer and nasty....or a Dragon could be your best friend....it all depends on the door.....but there are other travellers, some good and some bad and one extremely evil that you must never meet" Path said.
"Who is that"? Lee wanted to know.
He or it, steals souls and can use the doors as well....it can be in your world or any world, it will play a game with twists knowing it will win...no one knows exactly why it is this evil..it can reach out from a book or a screen on a TV or computer and grab you in" Path said.
Lee shivered and then asked "Who or what is it called"?
"The Triman" said Path
"Well I will wake up soon and forget all this...what a weird dream" Lee said.
Path approached Lee, Path looked sadly at Lee and then he said "I am sorry, Lee, but this is really happening and I am afraid that you can never go back...it is complicated".
"What the heck are you talking about?, I know this is only a dream, how could it be real?, I want to go home NOW" Lee replied.
Lucy came and put her arm around Lees' shoulders.
"Lee...Path should had explained exactly why you are here, and why I am here" she said.
Path placed his hands on Lees' shoulders, and looked into Lees' eyes...Paths' eyes seemed to glow brighter and redder.
"I saved you as I saved Lucy.....Lucy comes from World War Two London and I took her away before a bomb would have killed her in her sleep" Path said.
Lee pushed both Lucy and Path away "Are you trying to say I died in my sleep" Lee said.
"Lee, you would have had a nightmare and awoken your father, he battered you to death...I am so sorry...same as I, in another door I also died......but now you will never age, never die" Path said.
"I have been travelling with Path for fourty years, hoping to find the door where I suvived and so did my family" Lucy said.
"So behind one of these doors, I live and so does my mother"? Lee asked.
"Yes, Lee...but I do know what is behind the doors, your door led me to you by accident but it also showed me what would happen...that is why I saved you so maybe you can find another door where you will be happy" Path said.
Lee was shaking inside, he wanted to cry but he also wanted to be brave, somehow Lee knew all he had been told was true.
Path neared the closest door and opened it, the handle on this one was of a mermaid, "Shall we explore"? Path said.
Lucy and Lee followed Path through the door, Path closed it behind him.
The door led to a very stange dark World, it was night and all around was trees and grass, a narrow trail led through the trees.
"Lets follow the trail, see where it leads us" said Lucy and then walked off down the trail.
Path and Lee looked at each other, they both shrugged, then followed off after Lucy.
The trail led to a cottage, but this was no ordinary cottage...it was made of candy.
The walls were Marzipan, the windows were sugar paper, all kinds of candy were all over the cottage.
A little grey haired old lady stood at a door made of think chocolate, she was smiling as the travellers stopped.
"Hello Dearies, would you like to come in for tea"? she asked.
Lee whispered "I am not going in there, I have read Hansel and Gretel...I know whats going to happen".
"Nothing is as it seems, don't forget things can have a twist and be different" whispered Path.
But as both Path and Lee turned, Lucy was already with the old lady, "Come on, you two" called Lucy.
"Hello, are you coming to visit my friend as well"? came a voice from behind.
Path and Lee turned to see a wolf walking like a man, dressed in top hat and a suit....smiling.
.
They all entered the candy house, Lee still muttering that he knew what happened to Hansel and Gretel and he knew it was going to be a big mistake...it was getting darker outside.
"We will be safe here, pity the others could not make it here in time, hope they found somewhere to hide" said the wolf.
"Let me get you all tea, sorry but I can not give you any sugar, we need it" said the old lady, getting up to go to the kitchen.
The room only had six chairs and a table, no pictures or decorations adorned the candy walls, no carpet was on the floor.
"So who are you hiding from?, tell us" asked Path.
"They will eat us, you watch, that old lady has most likely gone to light the oven" mumbled Lee.
"Ignore him, he's new" smiled Lucy.
The wolf didn't smile back "Don't you know they are coming" ? he said.
"Who are coming"? asked Lucy.
"The vampires, Hansel, Gretel and Red Riding Hood...they feed on our souls but we are safe in here" the wolf said.
"Vampires? we got no garlic or crucifixes...so how are we safe"? laughed Lee.
"I don't know what your vampires are stopped by, but our ones are stopped by candy, why do you think I came here to hide" ? the wolf said.
"What a load of....." but Lee never had a chance to fininsh as they heard the old lady scream from the kichen.
They all rushed in, the old lady stood shivering and pointing to outside the sugar paper window.
Three people were out there, looking in, with four inch long finger nails and a mouth full of pointed fangs.
Two girls and a boy, all in their late teens.
One girl with blond hair, same as the boy, the other girl had black hair and all their eyes glowed bright yellow.
"You're all going to die...come to me and Hansel and Gretel, we are all hungry" said Red riding hood.
"Quick, arm ourselves" said the old lady.
"With what"? asked Lee.
The wolf looked at Lee, and growled, "Toffee Apples, you silly boy" he said.
Path grabbed two toffee apples and flung open the kitchen door and rushed out.
He threw the first toffee apple which hit Red Riding Hood, who screamed and turned to dust.
He threw the second toffee apple which just missed Hansel.
Hansel moved with remarkable speed and dived at Path, Lee rushed out and grabbed the toffee apple from the ground and aimed it to hit Hansels' head, Hansel screamed and turned to dust.
Gretel snarled, she changed into a small robin and flew away.
"I never saw that coming, thought it would have been a bat" said Lucy, joining Path and Lee.
A door appeared and Path opened it, "Shall we go"? he asked.
Lee, Path and Lucy entered and closed the door which vanished.
Both the wolf and old lady came out, "they never drank their tea" said the old lady.
"That was great, can t wait for another door " said Lee, full of excitement.
"Not all doors will be as easy as the last one" said Path.
"How come we never heard much about your past", Path asked Lucy.
Path strolled around the strange world of doors and mist, Lee and Lucy walking next to him, both watching him and waiting for him to speak.
Path stopped, "okay, okay" he said.
"I was Greg Richards, I tried to commit suicide by jumping of the George Washinton bridge....I never hit the water, I must have gone through a door and ended up here" Path said.
"We have five lives, we borrow ourselves from other doors..those selves are dead and we can be any age...I am at the last of my lives, I was originally Fourty years old " Path continued.
"Wow, so how do we change ? " asked Lee.
"Only a Path Finder can I am afraid Lee, who ever takes over from me will have this gift" Path explained.
"Thanks a lot, so I won't turn into a super model" said Lucy.
"I am afraid not " came a voice, gravel in tone, from behind.
They all turned to see a dwarf, dressed in rags, glowing black eyes just like Path, grinning at them with sharp fangs in his mouth.
"YOU" shouted path.
"Do you want to play a game ?" said the Triman.
"So, Path....this is Lee, hmmmm, not much of a challenge, still got the bitch as well I see" sneered the Triman.
"Yeah, you still an ugly little f.... " Lucy went to say, but one glance from Path and she stopped.
"How can anyone be scared of this creep, what game ?" Lee asked.
The Triman grinned and said "It can be any game Lee, if you win I will go...but if you loose one of you dies" .
"He is not playing" said Path.
"Too late grinned Triman", two doors appeared, "one door is safe, one is not...pick one " Triman said.
"I,m not playing so go away " Lee said.
"In that case you loose by forfeit " Triman snarled and jumped at Lee.
But Path was there, grabbing the Triman, Triman snapped both Paths wrists.
Triman then stamped and snapped both Paths Knees, and then snapped Paths spine....running into a door and laughing.
Lee was at Paths side, blood coming from Paths mouth I m Dying, Lee...I had to stop him but I was not strong enough...you have to take over before I die..before it is too late .
Lucy was in tears, Lee was crying...he wondered what was going to happen without Path.
Black lightening suddenly flashed from the dying Paths eyes and connected with Lees eyes, Lucy screamed.
Suddenly, Lee began to change, slowly growing older and his clothes were also changing, Path was slowly fading into mist.
Path was gone, as if he never existed, Lee stood....he was now six foot, spiky hair, his eyes glowed black, he looked about twenty four and his clothes were now, a black suit with grey stripes, a purple shirt and black buckled shoes.
"Lee ? " Lucy asked.
"Yes and no, I am the new Path Finder...but I can no longer be a child, you have to change too, we need to so we can suvive" Path Finder said.
Lucy changed, jet black hair, studded collar, black crop top, leather mini skirt, with studded belt...she looked about twenty two...her innocence was gone.
"Lets find that thing and destroy him" Path Finder said, and both he and Lucy vanished into the nearest door.
In the distance a man observed them, hidden by the mist and doors, a good looking man, long brown hair in a ponytail, he had the brightest red eyes.
He had a goatee, dressed in leather jacket and black shirt and jeans, he held a large knife, eight inches of blade showed in his hand.
He began to laugh, Path had almost stopped him in the past...but Jack was back.
