Book IV: The Road to Nowhere is the fourth and final issue in the limited series The Books of Magic.
Summary[]
Mister E takes Timothy to one of the possible futures. First, they visit a point fifteen years from their time when a final battle between the magical forces of good and evil is being fought, and in this instance the grown-up Timothy is leading the forces of evil. This battle is fought differently in different futures, but it always signifies the end of magic for the centuries to come.
Next Mister E takes Timothy thousands years into the future, showing him how both science and magic rise and fall time and again, taking different forms, until finally, millions years from now, both terms lose all meaning. Finally, they arrive at the End of Time when they meet the last thing remaining before the collapse of the Universe - the embodiment of the Major Arcana of Tarot inhabiting the place they call Terminus.
There, at the End of Time, Mister E reveals that he has no intention of taking Timothy back; rather, he believes the boy to be weak like all humans and wants to kill him before the world corrupts his soul. However, the worried Trenchcoat Brigade sends Yo-Yo through time to rescue Timothy. The owl sacrifices itself to save Timothy, but soon their fight is interrupted by the appearance of first Destiny, and then Death who came to claim her brother and then the Universe itself. Death tells Mister E that Timothy's life is not his to take, and orders him to walk back to his time "the hard way" - one year at a time. She also mentions that she has "an appointment in Samara" with him, thus tying Mister E to an old legend. Then she sends Timothy back to his time.
After returning from the journey, Timothy tells the Trenchcoat Brigade that the price that he's seen is too high, and he chooses the regular life. However, both the brigade and himself soon realize that the choice was an illusion, since he's already seen the magical side of the world and won't be able to forget it. In the final panels of the comics, Timothy manifests Yo-Yo back into existence, thus performing his first spell.
Appearances[]
Featured Characters[]
- Mister E
- Tim Hunter
Supporting Characters[]
- The Endless
- The Hierophant
- Jack
- John Constantine (Future)
- The Lady
- The Liege
- The Trenchcoat Brigade
- Doctor Occult
- John Constantine
- The Phantom Stranger
- Yo-Yo the Owl
Antagonists[]
- The Archmage
- Darkseid
- Fatal Five
- Emerald Empress
- Mano
- The Persuader
- Tharok
- Validus
- Mordru
- Timothy Hunter (Future)
Other Characters[]
- Doctor Fate (Future)
- Nabu
- The Forces of Good
- Abel
- Captain Marvel
- Doctor Fate/Kent Nelson
- Jason Blood
- Jennifer Morgan
- Randu Singh
- The Spectre
- Tefé Holland
- Zatanna Zatara
- Ghosts
- Jonah Hex
- Legion of Super-Heroes
- Element Lad
- Cosmic Boy
- Dream Girl
- Lightning Boy
- Night Girl
- Saturn Girl
- Tellus
- White Witch
- Mary Hunter
- OMAC
- Space Cabbie
- Tommy Tomorrow
- William Hunter
- Basilisks (Mentioned)
- Auntie Blodwyn (Mentioned)
- Brotherhood of the Cold Flame (Mentioned)
- Dream (Mentioned)
- Fairies (Mentioned)
- Queen Titania (Mentioned)
- Jesus of Nazareth (Mentioned)
- Griffins (Mentioned)
- Katarina (Mentioned)
- Lords of Chaos (Mentioned)
- Lords of Order (Mentioned)
- Mister E's father (Mentioned)
- Sea Spiders (Mentioned)
- The Sphinx (Mentioned)
- Spirits (Mentioned)
- Superman (Mentioned)
- Werewolves (Mentioned)
- Alfred Tennyson (Mentioned)
- Noël Coward (Mentioned)
Objects[]
- Book of Destiny
- Helmet of Fate
- Jonah Hex's Gun
- M-Metal Wand
- Silk Cut
Locations[]
- Timestream
- End of Time
- Kingdom of Terminus
- The Castle
- Kingdom of Terminus
- The Road to Nowhere Future
- Possible Futures (Mentioned)
- End of Time
- Earth
- United Kingdom
- England
- London
- Ravenknoll Estate
- Hunter Residence
- Brighton (Mentioned)
- Ravenknoll Estate
- London
- England
- India
- Calcutta (Mentioned)
- Iraq
- Samarra (Mentioned)
- Italy
- Rome (Mentioned)
- Nepal
- Khatmandu (Mentioned)
- United States of America
- Boston (Mentioned)
- San Francisco (Mentioned)
- United Kingdom
- The Dreaming (Mentioned)
- Faerie (Mentioned)
- Baba Yaga's Hut (Mentioned)
- The Void
- Gemworld/Zerox