Twilight Children is the twenty-first book in the series of Deathlands. It was written by Laurence James under the house name James Axler. Plot synopsis Ryan Cawdor, his son Dean, Krysty Wroth, J.B. Dix, Dr. Theophilus Tanner, Mildred Wyeth, and Michael Brother arrive in a MAT-TRANS chamber which appears unusually constructed. The normally seamless bulletproof glass windows are badly aligned, along with the doors, and the exterior control chamber appears to be a hastily constructed chamber carved from an existing cave, with chisel marks still showing in the surrounding granite. The atmosphere outside is heavy and foggy, and in addition to preventing J.B. from putting his sextant to use the fog also seems to interfere with both compasses and electronic equipment, including watches. The companions venture out cautiously into the barren surroundings, encountering a variety of highly mutated insect-like creatures, as well as a few sources of water, including a fast-flowing stream. All are tainted with an unknown substance that causes an unpleasant stinging on contact, and thus clearly undrinkable. Eventually the companions arrive at surprisingly intact town, which is revealed to be an "Old West" themed reconstruction called Lonesome Gulch. In short order the companions are surrounded by a large group of flying reptilian creatures, and after the companions take shelter in the town's General Store the creatures attack. J.B. and Ryan rig a crude timed explosive, then wait with the others in the store's root cellar; when the explosives detonate the companions flee in the ensuing confusion, though Ryan is wounded by one of the creatures. The companions make it to the MAT-TRANS chamber and make the jump. Ryan and his friends arrive in a familiar redoubt, and after some exploration conclude that it is a redoubt in Louisiana, where they initially met Jak Lauren. However, rather than the wet Louisiana bayou they are expecting, the group finds the area outside the redoubt is a barren, flat, lifeless desert. Furthermore, Ryan and J.B.'s radiation detectors show the area is dangerously radioactive, forcing them back inside before they can investigate a cause for the sudden change in the terrain. With no resources in the redoubt, the group reluctantly makes a third jump. When the companions arrive in the next chamber they find that Ryan, Doc, and Michael are all unconscious. After some time Doc comes around, but Ryan manages only to regain consciousness briefly before passing out again. Most