SIO) zs 7 sf a Z| Q < oe, = BUCKINGHAM Zz ft = FINE. “YOU LOOK ) A upser. Iwas ~\ TLL SLEEP ( GOING TO ON THE BED IN \réte vou. \wy S7upyY ste \CTONIGHT. THEY KNOW MORE THAN THEY'VE ‘TRAVELED THEY'VE SEEN SO MUCH MORE THAN WE HAVE, REMEMBER WHEN I WANTED ‘SO MUCH TO HAVE A BABY. SOMEONE SMART, SOMEONE PRETTY. SOMEONE WHO'D LOVE ME FOREVER AND EVER. SOMEONE WHO'D NEED Me. THERE'S A COLD PLACE INSIDE ME, AND I THOUGHT A CHILD WOULD MELT IT,WANTED ffl SOMEONE WHO'D MAYBE TOMORROW. ‘SOMEONE ff NEVER LEAVE ME, WHO WAS fl OR NOT FOR A ‘SPECIAL LONG TIME... ood TO ME. Z_ ’ MAYBE TOMORROW SHE'LL t (7 WAKE UP AND REALISE SHE NEEDS ME. AND MAYBE THE SKELLA MERCHANTS WILL GIVE US A LITTLE SILVER SKY BOAT, AND aguas TOGETHER WE'LL SAIL AWAY INTO THE STARS, TOGETHER, AND NEVER COME BACK.BEHIND THE SCENES De Mace Ce Reade escrito suc E ea c Ea] ee eeenc rl ea eo eno era ere) aie AISGRGARAARRA¢GSS2SSSSSIISSSIASSSALRAAIS Preererrrrrerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrtres WINTER’S TALE by Neil Gaiman Illustrated by Mark Buckingham Painted by Sam Parsons Hand Lettered by Wayne Truman Edited and Typeset by Greg S. Baisden See ao) egy eee ee eee eee ane ed ee ee ee Se Etec un tenit rate as Winter was nearly half year old ‘She wanted to go Into space to find things out. ‘Tm going to see the Qys,” she sald to her daddy. “There ae lots of things they can teach me. Bye bye. ‘Bye bye, Winter” said Miracleman, ‘She stopped of behind the moon. “Which way ate the Qys?" Winter asked Aza Chorn, the Warpsmith He thought fora lite, then he pointed. “Do you see that star?" he asked, "Yes," sald Winter, who had very good eyes. There,” sald Aza Chor. “Then that’s the way I'm going to go.” sald Winter, and off she went Bye bye, Winter,” sald Aza Chorn. Soon the sun was just another stat. Winter few on.‘The Stella Merchants in ther big bone ship caught Winter in thelr great glass nets What have we here?” they asked themselves ‘Winter.” sald Winter. ‘We've tried a million-milion things in our travels,” sald the Skella Merchants. “We've {tawled bottles and diamonds and quibblefrands and Anything Machines. We've trawled _guns and gewgews and gily lowers, hats and ships and asteroids. But in all the years we've been trawling, and all the things we've trawied, we've never caught a Winter in our great _lass nets befor. ‘Well, now you have,” sald Winter, “so why don't you invite her infor tea? The Skella Merchants invited Winter in for tea, Where are you going?” they asked her 'm going to see the Qys,” she sal ‘Are you going through overspace or underspace?” they asked her What’ the elference?” sald Winter. ‘Qys ships go through underspace,” they sald, “Where they keep their bodes. It makes the Journey quicker. We go through overspace, and on the way we find ll mannet of things that people have left behind them. It’s a slow journey, but the Skella Merchants live as long, as they want to, and so we don't mind, Fist ofall I want to go through overspace,” sald Winter." will meet more people that way. The Skella Merchants showed Winter lite boat. ‘Do you want to buy oUF lite boat?” they asked her. “It wll go even faster than you can Ay: It loats on waves of light, and light pushes Is sal.” How much?” she asked ‘What do you own?” they asked her. Nothing,” said Winter, and she smiled a big smile, "And Everything, “Then It’s yours already,” sald the Skella Merchants, and they showed Winter around her Dost, showed her how fo tack and reach and run Winter climbed into her lite boat. “Bye bye, Skella Merchants,” she sald, “Thank you. ‘Bye bye, Winter” said the Skella Merchants, ‘So Winter sailed away in her silver star boat, scudding on waves of light across the gulf Dea ea ae eee ce Coa a re) andl ofiginal arwork (pencil, India ink and white aerytic on illustration board) by Mark Bu asDe ene ea See 1) Ret ee cnet ce na ee ea Ree get se Cras eae been Pere Paynes techs pete a ema | eer n eee osi a The fist ofthe guf worlds she vsted was the home of the Peri. They welcomed Winter, bu they found It strange that she was on her own. “Where ts your mate?” they asked het 1 don't have one.” sald Winter. One day Winter binked And between the beginning ofthe bink and the end, a Blue Warpsmith was standing on her tle boat Hello, Winter” sal the Blue Warpsmith.“ Si have a message for you from the Black a Warpsmiths Cry > Hello, Why are you blue?” asked Winter ‘Blue Warpsmiths are artists and dancers and painters and bureaucrats,” sald the ‘Warpsmith, whose name was Lona Kl “White Warpsmiths are wariors. Grey \Warpsmiths are diplomats, Red Warpsmiths tend the hears of stars ‘And Black Warpsmiths?” asked Winter. ‘The Pell thought this very odd. They married Just “They are very big." sald Lona Keil "They after birth, and remained together until they died sent me to say that The Adversary Is Everywhere they went, they went together. "You must be very lonely,” they sald to her. 'm not lonely: I'm Winter” sald Winter, and she laughed her Winter's laugh and went back into the sky Bye bye, Winter,” sald the Peril destroying London. He and your family are going to have a fight. “Let me know who wins,” sald Winter. wil” sald Lona Kill He went away Then he came back. "Your father won,” sald Lona Kall, “and Aza Chorn is dead. ‘Winter sailed her litle boat on across the stars of the _guff, She met lots of people. But she never stopped for 1 though che would wi." Vance very long. Bye bye, Lona Kil Bye bye, Winter” ald Lona Kl 3ee fe eee ee epee ete ey ei Winter stopped at Sauk "Will you marty me2” asked the Lantiman of Sauk. “You ‘ean be my newest child-bride, “Al ight," sald Winter. “ve never been mamied before She mared the Lantiman of Sauk He was very big but he made Winter laugh. He gave her world of her own, and for a present he told her the biggest secretin the universe But he made her promise not to tell a soul what it was. How long will t take me to get to the Qys’ star, In my litle boat2” she asked him, ‘Seven hunclred and three thousand years, two months, and eleven minutes,” sald the Lantiman of Sauk ‘Then I think It's time for me to go,” sald Winter. She kissed the Lantiman on his big eye You were the best bride | ever had.” he said, sadly "You were the best husband I ever had,” said Winter. “Bye bye, Lantiman of Sauk Bye bye, Winter. Sen ea cee ot nee ee aa Winter had an idea. Se called for a Warpsmith. Hello, Winter,” sald Kana Blur. Hello, Kana Blur” sald Winter. “Show me your magic skin, From before they are born, Warpsmiths have magic skin, That Is how a Warpsmith wap. Kana Blur showed Winter her magic skin. Winter made herself magic skin, just like Kana Blur's, but in her head. She made it out of her glow. No one hacl ever done this before, except a Black Warpsmith ‘That was when there were four Black Warpsmiths Now there are only three. Kana Blur sald, “That Is good magic skin, Winter Winter wiggled her Ite fingers. And she was along way Bye bye, Winter” sald Kana Blur, to the place where Winter had been,Winter could not warp as well as 2 Warpsmith. But she was the fist person who was not ‘a Warpsmith to warp anything at al She warped to the edge ofthe universe, where the Whisper sinks, She warped to the home of the Lantiman of Sauk, ut he was asleep, She warped to London, where they were building a bg house In the ruins, bt no one saw her. She was only there for a moment. ‘Winter warped back to her tle boat. I thought you hac! left me for good,” sald her ite boat. “I was so sad, ‘Winter gave her boat a big hug, Then Winter warped her boat into the sky of the Qys world ee nea Ree eerie a eo eee epg ct occ The Qys were very happy to see her Winter met the Queenking of all the Cys, who ls as big as a moon, They talked fora long time. ‘The Queenking lked Winter very much. Then Winter went out ‘ofthat place to explore the world of the Qys. ‘The Qys live fora very long time. They don't have children any more. Winter was the ist child on Qys in more than a milion yeas. They had a big party for her.Mirecleman #20, “Winter's Tale,” page 18 la Reece ce rere} eee eee Ae! seep eee cece ca Then the Qys told Winter everthing she wanted to know. They taughe Winter lots of things (None of them knew the secret the Lantiman of Sauk had told Winter, but now that is her secret, too, and to this day Winter has told no one what I.) They showed Winter how to put her mind into other bodies This is Winter asa glant fish, This s Winter as a Rainbow Ghost. Sie had so much fun eee a eee eg eee ea Peete eames Then one day Winter sald to the Qys, ‘It's time to go home now. Ihave learned a lot of things. Thank you for having me.” ‘The Qys sald, “Thank you for coming. Come back again soon.” “Perhaps | wil.” sald Winter. “Bye bye.” “Bye bye, Winter” sald the Qys. Winter climbed into her litte boat, and warped a hole Into underspace. ‘She made a litle sun, and put It behind her boat. The ight from the sun pushed her ite boat along. ‘She salled it down the trade ways. Far away she could see bodles stretching away Into the distance, more than you could count you stated today and finished when you were a hhundred and tw. She came out of underspace ina hole above Wiltshire. ‘Winter warped her litle boat into orbit, “Bye bye, ite boat,” she sald “Bye bye Winter” sld the lite boat. “Come and ride me agaln soon.” ”ee eeu ce rere) 1 eee a eC ee ee ee eee eed eae cnet Eo] Pea ate eee Se Rete gers aVeoecr nn ‘Ax the top ofthe biggest house In the whole wide world, she sat and she waited, \When he came home, her daddy got a big surprise. Here was his litle gi. She wasnt a baby any more. ‘Winter satin the Wiltshire snow. ‘She made a snowball Hello, Winter,” sald Miracleman. Winter grinned, ‘Tm back,” she sal ‘She made a bigger snowball. ‘She put the litle snowball on top of the big snowball. She put in a twig. She put In two pebbles. ‘She gave the snowman a big smile. ‘Then she flew to London,Deen ede 26 page roughsMettering guidesipeneil on tracing papeil Peed rcaPym eed a oy = ~] | = 2 x 4 cs = 2 Zz < = Ww al oO < a =BOOK FOUR: THE GOLDEN AGE COVER ART Dae ir