It is a leap to let your subconscious completely take over, requiring a level of trust and belief most people struggle with. After his first attempt took him over two hours to find the place, Meyer thought this a ridiculous building to use as a headquarters, even for an organisation as secretive as the Inquisition. Eventually, his time to travel here reduced and, for the past sixty years, like all visitors to Holborn Bars, Meyer had taken exactly the same route, even if he wasn’t sure of all the details of it himself.

At the other side of the courtyard, glass doors opened to a series of staircases that led around the building. Holborn Bars was a maze of corridors and rooms, with nobody sure what was ever going on in every part of it. Acknowledging the guard with the vacant expression, who appeared to have been on duty since 1910, Meyer and Ruth walked to the back of the staircase. Further concealment meant the area was only visible if viewed from the right perspective and, as the pair walked around, the black marble stairs revealed themselves. The alternate world was built on principles like this, only being able to see what others deemed you should and nothing more. To Meyer, the building symbolised everything wrong with the order, although most in the community remained ignorant of that fact. Trust was not something associated with the Inquisition, even by those who are a part of it. Threats kept their world safe and deals with the devil helped them survive.

Meyer and Ruth reached the bottom of the stairs and continued along the dimly lit corridor as it wrapped around the edge of the council chamber. Moonlight cascading through the skylights cast long shadows from the ornamental suits of armour that lined the walls of the corridor, their silhouettes contorted by the uneven stone floor. The corridor opened to a wide sitting room, which was filled with a juxtaposition of plump leather chairs, dark oak furniture and priceless alternate artefacts, giving the place the feel of a gentleman’s club turned magic shop. That metaphor wasn’t far off, some of the doyens waiting around almost fitted the Hollywood idea of magic, with their draping long robes and weary expressions. At the end of the room stood double black doors leading into the council chamber, intricately inscribed with hundreds of runes that, from a distance, appeared to be nothing more than random patterns. Naturally, the truth was quite the opposite. The room was one of the safest locations in London, more wards protecting it than anyone had attempted to count. It was by these doors that the majority of people clustered, the gentle hum of conversation drifting across the room as everyone waited for the meeting to begin.

“Alice, my lovely!” Ruth said, as they entered the entrance hall.

Her arms open, Ruth ran to a woman on their left and squeezed her skinny frame as tight as she could. Alice Harvey-Smith was one of the first Inquisitors Ruth trained and, due to her uncontrollable mouth, Meyer knew more about Alice than he cared to. The two exchanged a further hug as Alice bent down to accommodate Ruth's height. She was tall and slender, the epitome of a modern businesswoman, her black hair cut perfectly straight as if in an homage to Cleopatra. Alice appeared innocent enough, but Meyer knew otherwise. She was one of the most successful female criminal barristers in the country, having studied at Cambridge on a scholarship before joining a prestigious chambers in London, and was, possibly, the most feared Inquisitor in recent history. Meyer always thought of Alice as a panther, beautiful to behold, but dangerous to her core.

The sound of footsteps coming to a stop behind him, made Meyer turn. Helena Stevens stood in front of him, looking as haggard and prickly as ever. She was the head of the damn government initiative to oversee their world and as such, always carried an air of superiority that challenged even Wade's. The government helped keep the existence of the alternate population a secret, covering up the media debacles the Inquisitors would sometimes cause.