-News Report: Longport, Rhode Island-

Locally born Tobias Williams, 37, died in a tragic accident while trying to summit, for a second time, Mt. Everest 3 days ago.

Mr. Williams was the author of a series of fantasy novels that took the world by storm, The Owl King Chronicles. He never wrote another book, saying he told the story he wanted to tell and he was done with writing. He went on to become an adventurer and was also a member of Greenpeace and The Peace Corps. He never married and is survived by his mother Karen and a younger sister, Julia Williams. His older sister, Sarah Williams, was murdered nearly 24 years ago in Ireland, and his father Robert died 2 years ago of a heart attack.

Only 2 members of the team survived the massive avalanche that killed Mr. Williams. He had thrown himself over the two men to save them. Both men firmly believe without Mr. Williams' actions, they would have died as well.

"Toby, he was such a fighter." One of Mr. Williams' companions, Geoff Gray, recalled from his hospital bed. "He never gave up. He kept trying. Kept pushing. Then when we were up there, and the whole wall of snow and ice were coming at us, he literally put himself in harm's way to save us. I swear when I was out of it, I looked over at where he was lying, broken and bloody, and there were two angels, a blonde man and a dark haired woman, standing over him and smiling, the man holding up a large crystal. He always said he had guardian angels. Maybe they came to take him to wherever we go when we die."

This is a transcript of the last known interview Mr. Williams did, after publishing his final book.

Q-Good morning everyone! Welcome to Wake Up Rhode Island! We are here with world renowned author Tobias Williams to discuss the recent release of the 3rd book in his Owl King Trilogy, Love's Sacrifice. How are you doing today, Mr. Williams?"

A-Toby, please.

Q- It says on my notes, you just got back from attempting to climb Mt. Everest? You also have worked on an ice ship in Antarctica, cliff diving in Hawaii, and plan on competing in the next Iron Man triathalon. You worked with The Peace Corps and are an active member of Greenpeace. You are quite the adventurer. Or do you have a death wish.

A-I made a vow to live my life free from worry and regret a long time ago. Do everything, try everything. Enjoy every experience this world has to offer. Attempt is right (laughter) I didn't make it to the top of Everest, but I did summit Mt. Fuji in Japan. It was amazing. I'll try Everest again someday. No death wish. Just an understanding time is too short to waste.

Q-Alright Toby. The past few years your books have caused quite a stir in the fantasy genre, can you give us a brief description of this one?

A-Sure. Love's Sacrifice is about The Owl King returning to Sarah's life after so many years apart, and they find each other again.

Q-Now on a sad note, the Sarah character is rumored to be named after your sister who was murdered nearly 20 years ago. Is this true?

A-Yes, Sarah is modeled after my older sister. She was brave and smart, and always went after what she wanted too.

Q-That must have been hard at 13 to deal with.

A-Obviously losing someone you love is hard at any age. My parents had another daughter, Julie, when I was 15. Kind of weird how that worked, as I was born about that time in Sarah's life. Having a baby sister helped me to see why she always told me to follow my dreams. When you love someone unconditionally, you want those things for them. She followed her dreams and though we lost her, I know it was what she wanted and we would have been selfish to keep her from it.

Q- They never caught the killer either. That makes it even harder.

A-No, but I have a suspicion, a feeling if you will, that Karma got him in the end. I'm certain he is dead. I went to the place she died a few years ago, in Ireland. There isn't anything there now really. There was a fire that burned everything the archaeologists were working on to dust, so it was abandoned. Little remains except a few half filled holes in the ground. Locals say the area is cursed.
What is funny, I talked to an elderly lady who runs the museum there, and she swore she met Sarah in the company of a Fae man. Which obviously is a little out there...but I never say never, Sarah always had a bit of magic about her.

Q-What inspired you to write The Owl King series? What mythologies, stories ideas went into it?"

A-It's..hard to say, really. Sarah, she had this book and she loved it. She love the character of the king in it I daresay she had quite a crush on him. The book was destroyed years ago in a fire, and I could never find another copy. There was no ISBN number or anything, no author even. It was like it was written just for her to find. Anyway, this king could turn into an owl, and the girl in it who was a teenager, fell in love with him and he her, but it ended. Really, I wrote it for her more than anyone. I know it's a story she would be proud of.

Q- I never heard of any story like that.

A-Me either, except for that book. There are some myths around the world about a magical being that steals or takes babies that are wished away, but nothing cohesive. So using that and my sister's penchant for fantasy, I took the seed of that story and expanded upon it. She wishes her baby sibling away, solves a great maze to get him back, and her and the king fall in love. However she is too young and they live in different worlds. This last one is the big one. Sarah is older, they find each other again, and they struggle to be together against all odds.

Q- Not spoil it, but your fans are up in arms about...shall I say?

A- Most of my fans have read it by now, it's been a couple of months.

Q- Well it's not often you kill off a main character. Though in the end it turns out okay. Do you think the reason why you ended it in such a way is because of what happened to your sister? Wishing she were still alive somewhere?

A Exactly. The idea, that while Sarah died here on earth, but she isn't dead. That somewhere she is with her Owl King in another world. She was brought back to life. She is happy and free, and maybe they have a couple of kids by now. I like to think Sarah is out there somewhere, happy, loved and in love.

Q- Do you think she is?

A- It's just a fantasy of course, but those times went I think of her, and I'm sad, it helps to think maybe it's true. That there is more out there than just here. Maybe that king came for her after all, in her final moments.

Q-Do you think where ever she is, is where you will go someday?

A- Anything is possible. Who knows? I don't give up hope I will see her again someday. That we can sit and talk and speak of our lives since we parted. It's a nice thought. Maybe in my final moments, she will come for me.

Q-"Well, Toby, we are about out of time here, you are truly a fascinating man. Best of luck on your next adventure!

A- Thank you. It's been great talking to all of you. Enjoy the books!

Was one of Mr. Williams' guardian angels the spirit of his sister? Or was Mr. Gray concussed and hallucinating? I guess we'll never know. It's nice to think there is something more out there, waiting for us.

In any case, Mr. Williams will be missed. His words live on in The Owl King Chronicles, rumored to be soon made into movies. We are sad he did not live to see them.

-End of report-

And so it is done. This has been a pleasure to write and I am overwhelmed at the response. You are ALL great! I will probably add some thank you's here as reviews are posted :)

Going through it and fixing little bits here and there. Have "fine tooth combed" the first 6 chapters again, will do the rest tomorrow.

Thank you, MyraValhallah, potions failure, Tenjp, and tmwillson3 and Partners in Fanfiction!

Note: Something special I had to do..I changed the titles of the chapters to coincide with the great Bowie album, Heathen, because it just seemed to fit. I listened to it so much during the writing of it, it seeped into the story.