A summary of Sergei Lukyanenko’s "The Last Watch"

This book is the fourth installment in the acclaimed Others series, completed in 2005. The main intrigue revolves around an ancient artifact hidden by Merlin, capable of erasing the impenetrable barriers between the layers of the magical Twilight. Moscow magicians investigate strange murders that inexorably lead them to a crazed conspiracy of fanatics who dream of reviving their fallen comrades.

Murder in Scotland

The events begin in Edinburgh. A young Russian student, Viktor Prokhorov, dies inside the dark amusement park "Dungeons of Scotland." An unknown assailant coldly slits his throat. Gesar, the leader of the Moscow Night Watch, orders Anton Gorodetsky, the Supreme Light Mage, to investigate the incident. On a plane, Anton accidentally encounters an acquaintance, Yegor. A former candidate for the Others, he works as a simple illusionist. He categorically refuses to develop his dormant magical abilities. Arriving at the scene, Gorodetsky carefully examines the labyrinth of fear. The murdered tourist’s blood was drained into a utility ditch, despite gaping bite marks on his neck. Someone had masterfully attempted to fake an attack by a hungry bloodsucker, misleading the investigation.

Thomas Lermont, the leader of the Scottish Light, confirms these suspicions. Victor’s girlfriend recalls an interesting detail. Victor recognized someone familiar in the mirrored room. That’s why the criminal eliminated the unwanted witness. Soon, someone decapitates the amusement park security guard with a fake guillotine. Anton realizes his mistake. He was communicating with the killer, disguised as a young, red-haired French actor. Late in the evening, Anton is attacked by an automatic sniper robot. The device is hidden in a dark alley. The magician is saved from the enchanted bullets by a young werewolf, Galya, sent by Zavulon. She transforms into a huge wolf and takes the shots herself. Gorodetsky deduces the true purpose of the tourist attraction.

The building conceals a powerful anomaly that absorbs energy without a trace. Lermont confides in Anton. Hidden beneath the building is the ancient wizard Merlin’s cache. The path downward is blocked by a terrifying golem in the form of a two-headed snake. The guardian of the fifth layer has been neutralized, and unknown beings are already hunting for the powerful Crown of All. To obtain the treasure, the mages need either an absolute source of power or cunning.

The Search for the Great Rustam

To uncover the enemy’s plans, Gesar sends Gorodetsky to Uzbekistan. The purpose of the trip is to find the ancient mage Rustam, an old friend of the boss. A young operative, Alisher, is sent to accompany the High One. In sunny Samarkand, the Muscovites visit the local headquarters of the Light Ones, peacefully sharing a dilapidated building with the Dark Others. There aren’t even any locks between the rooms. The local mages introduce Anton to an old man, Afandi. The elderly Uzbek appears to be a dim-witted janitor with a seventh-level Power. Afandi agrees to guide the guests to the ancient demon plateau. Suddenly, the detachment comes under massive assault. Local special forces and police open heavy fire on the mages.

The soldiers are reliably protected by high-quality amulets. The Night Watch operatives suffer heavy losses. Young Timur dies, and Murat kills five soldiers with a white magic sword. The Light mage, overcome by remorse, vanishes into the Twilight. As the mages retreat, they are pursued by a monstrous fire dev. The ancient monster bites a Day Watch operative in half. Old Afandi bravely grabs the monster by its flaming tail. Anton destroys the creeping golem with an ancient ash spell. Reaching the Demon Plateau, the heroes inspect the hideous stone statues. This is a vast army of Dark Ones, frozen by Gesar and Rustam 2,000 years ago by the merciless White Mist.

Afandi suddenly transforms, revealing the true nature of the blue-eyed Rustam. The powerful Other long ago abandoned the Watches. Rustam answers one of Anton’s questions. The Crown of All is capable of completely destroying the barriers between the layers of the Twilight. The former Inquisitor Edgar suddenly appears, hidden by a powerful invisibility artifact. He suffered greatly in the car accident that killed his wife. Now the mage yearns to resurrect the departed Others. Toward this insane goal, Edgar stole the best weaponry from secret archives and allied himself with the enemy.

A fierce magical battle ensues. Edgar attacks Anton and Alisher with fire, a slashing blizzard, and acid. Gorodetsky uses Gesar’s protective rings and easily deflects the blows. The Inquisitor realizes the futility of further confrontation and escapes through the teleporter. The amulet deprives him of his virility for the next 77 times, thanks to Rustam’s curse. Anton analyzes his enemy’s behavior and the other party’s spells. The identity of the Dark Ally is revealed. It is Anton’s longtime neighbor, the vampire Konstantin Saushkin, whom everyone believed to have perished in space.

Moscow secrets

Gorodetsky returns to the bustling capital. The computer archive reveals a shocking truth. Konstantin is indeed dead, but his father, Gennady, is alive and filled with hatred. Together with the sorceress Olga, Anton enters the empty apartment of the elder Saushkin. Inside, a chilling discovery is made. Hidden in the bedroom are plastic bags containing 50 bloodless human bodies. Gennady had been secretly exterminating migrant workers. The vampire had illegally increased his power to the Highest level in order to exact cruel revenge for his son and wife, Polina. Gesar and Zavulon are enraged by such impudence. The Moscow Dark Ones are stripped of their right to issue licenses.

In the morning, Anton falls into a trap. Edgar and Gennady are waiting for him in a car near his house. A living, fluffy noose is placed around the mage’s neck. The Schrödinger’s Cat artifact will instantly decapitate him if he attempts to perform a spell. The criminals threaten to detonate a nuclear explosion in Moscow if the mage refuses to comply. The High One is forced to fly back to Scotland with them. On the plane, Gorodetsky solves Merlin’s ancient riddle in verse. Edgar vows to remove the collar if the Light One reveals the ancient secret. Anton explains the meaning of the lines in detail: The crown is hidden within the two-headed golem.

The ancient serpent Ouroboros, devouring its own tail, acts as both a loyal guardian and a shell. Destroying the guardian immediately activates the artifact. The trinity arrives in foggy Edinburgh. Edgar lulls the inhabitants of the central district with the powerful artifact "Merlin’s Dream." The mages are plunged into the cold Twilight. In the fifth layer, the Inquisitor unleashes a green demon, King Kong, from jade to battle the serpent. The monsters engage in a fierce battle. Anton takes advantage of the others’ hesitation, quickly finds his shadow, and breaks through to the sixth layer, inaccessible to the others.

Merlin’s True Legacy

Here, the hero is greeted warmly by the elder Merlin. Long-disembodied Others gather around, desperately bored in this gray and unreal world. They yearn to escape to the living. Konstantin Saushkin shakes Gorodetsky’s hand and quietly asks him to stop his distraught father. The departed can no longer return to humanity. Suddenly, the fabric of the universe ruptures with a clang. Six-year-old Nadya Gorodetskaya, the future Absolute Sorceress, appears in the clearing. Her daughter saves Anton, confidently pulling him into the real world. The light mage mentally commands the ancient stones of the Scottish fortress to seal the magical breach. The conspirators fully realize their failure.

Arina, the unknown Light Witch in their motley crew, aborts the nuclear detonation. She had long since defected to the Good side and would not allow mass deaths. Saushkin launches a final attack, but little Nadya stops him with a scream. The vampire loses his strength. Anton relays his son’s last words to Gennady. The old vampire surrenders and voluntarily returns to the sixth layer to his family. The defeated Edgar accepts a crushing defeat, and the cunning Arina escapes through an invisible portal to the sound of music. Leaving his broken enemies behind, Gorodetsky and his daughter prepare to go home.