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in frustration, as the rut dipped, pitching the buggy so far from the horizontal it was a wonder that it didn't roll over.
ryan sat and watched as the pair of lights turned out onto the road behind them and began making easy work of the rutted track.
he had an idea.
'move over richards, let me drive,' he demanded.
'what? no! you couldn't do any better, butler, trust me.'
'not in this heap of crap, no,' said ryan firmly.
daisy turned to look at him and ryan gave her a nod, sensing that she understood.
'do it billy,' she said, climbing into the back with ryan.
'what?'
'please?' she added, leaning back through and giving him a peck on the cheek.
he cast a bemused glance over his shoulder, but was faced with steely resolve.
'fine,' he said, sliding across into daisy's old spot. he did his best to maintain |
control as ryan climbed through into the driver's seat. 'you know, when i said i needed options, i didn't exactly mean letting this idiot drive.'
ryan made a point of clouting him on the back of the head as he finally slipped into position.
'you know bill, i'm not as stupid as i look,' he said. 'now shut up and let me concentrate.'
it was easier said than done. ryan had never driven a golf buggy before and, despite the simplicity of the controls, nothing had prepared him for the tussle he was about to have with the steering. he wanted to close his eyes and concentrate, but though the cart was pretty much stuck in the rut there were still plenty of adjustments needed to ensure they didn't come to a grinding halt.
he tried to relax and just go with it, letting the buggy ride the terrain as it saw fit and keeping |
his control inputs to a minimum. it seemed to work. like a rider on a horse he let his mount do the work and the ride began to mellow out. he relaxed some more, imagining a smooth stretch of asphalt beneath him and settling back happily as he cruised the open road, the wind whipping at his hair. the only thing before him was mile after mile of unbroken road. it was bliss. smiling broadly, he gunned the engine to declare his freedom. and it roared.
ryan opened his eyes, startled. he was still travelling down the rutted trail, but everything really had smoothed out. had he just been driving with his eyes closed?
'wha... what happened?' he stammered.
'ryan, you did it!' cried daisy, grabbing him so hard from behind that she almost strangled him.
'what?' choked ryan.
'take a look,' said billy, who was giving |
ryan a look of admiration that neither of them felt all that comfortable with.
ryan peered out over the edge of the buggy and saw a pair of massive tyres churning away beneath him. he was sitting far off the ground in the same little golf buggy's body, but it was now a full-blown monster truck. ryan gaped in disbelief.
'i don't believe it,' he said slowly.
'believe it mate,' said billy. 'perhaps i misjudged you, butler. you do have skills.'
'i... i...' was all ryan managed.
'you're disappearing!' cried daisy. 'billy look, he's about to...'
and ryan woke up.
17
'damn it!' ryan shouted, his mind cottoning on to events far quicker than his body. when it finally caught up, a crippling surge of hunger knocked him for six.
'oh god,' he groaned, rolling his head to one side and seeing the bag of sweets he had |
stationed on his bedside cabinet. it was illuminated by the soft, red glow emanating from the digits of his alarm clock.
3:27am. he still had time, but the sweets were agonisingly out of reach. it had been by far his biggest 'weave to date and the exertion had taken everything out of him. he stared up at the ceiling, taking short, laboured gasps as he fought to quell the horrible emptiness within him. as his mind crept tentatively back to what had happened a few moments before, a small smile began to form at the corners of his mouth.
_i turned a golf buggy into a monster truck_ , he thought happily. _cool_.
he looked back at the bag of sweets and tried to psyche his mind up to overcome his body's limitations. his arms and legs felt feeble and limp, while his head was all but glued to his pillow, such were |
the complaints in his neck.
_this is bad_ , he thought. _how am i supposed to deal with this? sleep with the sweets under my pillow?_
it wasn't such a crazy thought. in fact, he filed away a note to do just that the next time he went to bed. also it would mean that his mum would be less likely to walk off with them, should she come into his room for whatever reason.
ryan sighed. it wasn't just that he felt physically drained; he was lacking motivation too. he just couldn't be bothered. even though the sweets were barely a foot out of reach, he couldn't muster the desire to reach out to grab them. only the irrefutable nagging in his stomach kept the thought alive.
slowly the pain brought on a bout of nausea which, following ryan's experiences with his mum, was enough to prompt him into action. little by little, |
moving just the upper part of his left arm and letting the lower half follow it, he began stretching out towards the bag of sweets. it was quite an effort, but the thought of him lying in a pool of his own vomit spurred him on. with his arm out to the side, he started to reach for the bag.
just as he had thought; it was beyond his grasp. if ryan had been sleeping in a single bed he wouldn't have had the problem. but he had insisted on having a double so he could wallow about with plenty of space, and now it had come back to bite him. he was going to have to move.
he began to inch his shoulders to the left, trying to move as little of his torso as possible. the small movements did not raise many objections from his body, but it was extremely slow going, especially with the great pangs of hunger exploding wildly |
in his stomach.
eventually he had positioned himself diagonally across his bed with the sweets within reach. he had to stretch out at an awkward angle to get to them, but as he closed his hand around the packet he could feel the chewy goodness within. however, when he came to try and pick it up he found he simply did not have the strength to grip it.
_this is pathetic!_ he berated himself. _what kind of man can't pick up a bag of sweets?_
he tried again and failed.
_okay then, time for plan b_ , he thought.
his bedside unit was right up against his bed and he managed to drag the bag towards him so that it flopped down onto the mattress.
_i should have opened this bloody thing beforehand_ , he reflected ruefully, staring at the sealed packet, now only a few centimetres from his face. to the casual observer |
his toils would have made for an hilarious scene, but in truth ryan needed to get some food inside him, fast.
with a monumental effort, he managed to bring his right arm across his body, and in doing so he rolled onto his side. he stared at the bag of sweets, which did not stare back but betrayed an air of smugness as it sat there, tantalisingly close but resolutely sealed.
'bastard,' ryan said to it. the bag ignored him, but it made him feel a little better.
he reached out with both hands and tried to grip the top of it, but having failed to even pick the packet up there was no way he was going to get enough purchase to pull it open. his hands simply had no strength in them. they felt incredibly feeble and ryan hated it.
'come on!' he growled to himself in frustration. 'all i need is a few of you inside |
me and i'll be all right.'
he edged the packet even closer to his face and started chewing at the edges in desperation. suddenly his teeth bit through one corner, creating a small nick that, with a little work, he was able to make big enough for the sweets to fit through. he tipped the bag up and several of its bright, sugar-coated contents tumbled out onto the mattress.
he vacuumed them up greedily without a moment's pause, and then rolled onto his back and savoured the beautiful flavours and sweet goodness, as he slowly chewed away. even before he had swallowed any of them he began to feel strength returning to his fatigued muscles. it was as though his body had been keeping just a small amount of energy in reserve, until it was certain that sustenance was forthcoming.
'oh my god, that tastes so good,' said |
ryan out loud, heaving a big sigh and reaching into the packet for more.
a kaleidoscope of flavours dazzled his taste buds, and he closed his eyes and revelled in the feeling of returning from the brink. over the next few minutes the number of sweets in the bag dwindled, until finally the last fruity treat passed into ryan's greedy maw. he lay there for a while longer, sucking the sugar from the outside, before succumbing to the temptation to chew it up and swallow it. it passed down to join the others in his stomach, which growled its gratitude, and ryan finally felt himself again.
_now, where was i?_ he mused.
with all the effort it had taken to get the sweets inside him the memory of his dream had all but faded. he racked his brain and suddenly billy's face appeared, wearing the same strange expression |
of approval that ryan had seen earlier. it hung there for a moment, and ryan, for a horrible, fleeting second, wondered why he was lying in bed thinking about billy richards. then everything began to fall into place; the encampment, their capture, captain nibbles and their escape. he needed to get back there and help his friends.
he brushed the empty sweet packet onto the floor and rolled over and pulled his duvet up close to his head. its softness and warmth felt nice and snug around him, but ryan was very much awake, and the more he thought about how he had to get to sleep, the more alert he became. the quantity of sugar he had just consumed was not helping matters.
he tossed and turned for a while, his body refusing to let his attention wander and allow him to neglect it in such a way again. there was nothing |
ryan could do. no amount of willing it was going to make him fall asleep. bored and frustrated, he climbed out of bed and switched on one of his games consoles. if he was going to stay awake he might as well enjoy it. he sat for a while, waging a one man war on the occupants of some far-flung tropical paradise where some sinister research was taking place. however, as ryan progressed, his face bathed in a bright swathe of colour, he found that his normally razor-sharp reactions were diminishing. his timing was all off and he was missing what would usually have been bread-and-butter kills for him.
as a distant sniper picked him off for the third time in succession, ryan began to see the outline of a volcanic island mapping itself over the fading on-screen image of his body slumping to the floor. as he suddenly |
realised what was happening, his mind switched on again and he steered himself back to the river that led down from the gates of the spire. the point where he, daisy and billy had entered the dream was somehow lodged in the back of his mind like a bookmark. he recognised it immediately, allowing it to fill with colour as he made his return to the dream isle.
18
he arrived back on the same wide, sweeping bend in the river where they had found the dream earlier. ryan was now getting accustomed to his robotic form, and he smiled as a stone shattered beneath his foot as he stepped towards the water. he wished he could carry some of his traits back to the waking world, or even into the dreams themselves. it was certainly more fun than being himself.
he set off along the rocky bank, keeping his eyes or whatever |
optical devices his head was fitted with peeled for any sign of billy and daisy tearing through the countryside in a heavily modified golf buggy. having expended so much energy in creating the thing, ryan thought it was rather unfair that he had not had the chance to enjoy it himself. after several minutes jogging along the water's edge he caught sight of a familiar figure in one of the dreams. it wasn't either of his school friends, but tristram.
ryan stopped and watched it drift lethargically by. he wasn't sure what to do. unless tristram had left the dream and entered another it had to be the right one. he had not considered the possibility that he might end up rejoining it in a different part of the story. it was hard to get his head around.
keeping pace with the dream, he watched it for a while as his |
tutor, sporting a german military uniform he had presumably magicked into existence, approached a checkpoint on the outskirts of a small town. he exchanged words with a couple of the hamsters manning it, who appeared indifferent to the fact that he was a human being, and passed on down a small stretch of track and into the town. it appeared quiet enough, so ryan decided to make his move and dived into the dream.
he arrived on the road barely a dozen paces behind his tutor. the sky was dark, but a glow to his right suggested that morning wasn't far off.
'tristram!' ryan hissed. there didn't appear to be anyone about, but he decided that a little caution would not go amiss.
his tutor stopped in his tracks, and there was an awkward moment while they both stood motionless in the middle of the street. slowly tristram |
turned to face him, brandishing a small hand gun that the boy could swear had not been there a moment before.
'ryan?' he said in a hushed whisper.
the boy shrugged and smiled.
tristram relaxed and beckoned ryan to follow him into a dark passage between two houses.
'ryan, what the hell are you doing here?' he asked, when he was satisfied that they were sufficiently concealed.
'i'm here to help you,' said ryan plainly.
'oh no you're not,' said tristram, grabbing him by the shoulders. 'you've no idea what's going on here. this is not a game.'
ryan shrugged him off and instinctively went on the defensive.
'look, i know why you're here. you're trying to find sophie, aren't you? well, she's our friend too. that's why we've come to help.'
'how do you kn... hang on a second. we? don't tell me you brought daisy |
too.'
'and billy, but i've lost them both.'
'christ. ryan, you've just tripled my work-load for tonight. now i've got to find all three of them.'
'what's the big deal? so you've got to overcome a few nazi hamsters. we managed to get away from them.'
'really?'
'yeah.'
for the briefest of moments tristram looked impressed. but his stern expression swiftly returned.
'that's not the point,' he said curtly. 'i don't know how you know about sophie, but you're right. however, there's more going on here than you know. ordinarily we would have left her to just work her way through the dream, but one of rasputin's followers was seen entering it shortly before her.'
ryan's face dropped.
'exactly,' nodded tristram. 'i don't know what made her come here, and to be honest i'm not that bothered. i'm just here to put |
a stop to whatever game rasputin and his buddies are playing, and to keep sophie safe, so i can't afford to have you tagging along. i want you to leave the dream and return to the spire.'
'but i've only just got back here,' protested ryan. 'do you have any idea how long it took me to get back to sleep after that sugar rush?'
tristram looked confused.
'yes, i've been dreamweaving,' said ryan grumpily. 'sorry to disappoint you, oh great master, but i really thought i could help.'
'well, i'm glad you are putting your skills to use, but this is not the place ryan, really. there's stuff going on here that doesn't add up and i'm worried the situation may be worse than it appears. it's too dangerous.'
'so you're going to do it on your own? i don't see any of the academy rushing to your aid, so it can't be that |
bad.'
'something's not right. i don't know what, but there's something. even dreams can have rules too, you know.'
'okay fine, but you're stuck with me until i can wake myself up. and i don't know how to do that apart from by dreamweaving until i run out of energy. plus, i just ate a whole bag of sweets, so it could take a while.'
'okay, okay, you win,' chuckled tristram. 'god, you're annoying when you put your mind to it. you know, i could just send you back myself, but that would be a waste of my own reserves.'
'you can do that?'
'oh yes, but you won't learn expulsion for a while yet. anyway, i wasted enough energy making this.'
he tossed ryan the pistol he was holding.
'you're giving this to me?' asked ryan incredulously.
'might as well. it's not like i'm one of your parents. the least you can do is |
to watch my back, but don't get carried away, right?'
ryan gave a mock salute.
'ja. so vere are ve going?' he asked, doing a rather good impersonation of captain nibbles.
tristram pulled a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and held it up in the dim light so that ryan could just about see what was on it. it was a map, presumably of the surrounding area.
'i liberated this from our furry friends,' he grinned.
'billy nicked one too,' laughed ryan. 'i wonder if they've got any left.'
'good for him,' said tristram. 'anyway, if you take a look it's fairly easy to read. we've got a few villages around here, mountains to the north and forests pretty much everywhere else. now, being a dream, it's extremely unlikely that any part of the tale will play out beyond the boundaries of this map, so we can assume that |
this is our playing field. take a look at it more closely and see if you can work out where the story is leading us to.'
ryan squinted in the pre-dawn light. the map was fairly simplistic, with roads joining the scattered villages and the countryside around them only vaguely mapped out. one feature stood out like no other however; a castle, nestled away in the mountains to the north. he pointed at it.
'there,' he said firmly. 'castle meerschweinchen.'
'spot on,' said tristram. 'you've done this before.'
'too much time spent playing computer games. nazis always hole themselves up in castles. do you reckon that's where sophie is?'
'that's my guess.'
'hey,' said ryan. 'does meerschweinchen mean what i think it means?'
tristram raised his eyebrows.
'that's the best thing about dreams; something weird and |
new every day.'
ryan smiled.
'okay, so how do we get to guinea pig castle?' he asked.
'well, we're here,' said tristram, pointing to a village to the south-east. all we've got to do is head this way.'
he traced the line of a road that led in a north-westerly direction until they were almost directly due south of the castle.
'it looks like there's a river to cross,' observed ryan, pointing to another line that intersected the road as it bent north into the mountains.
'just another obstacle,' shrugged tristram. 'hopefully it's not too deep. hey, we'd best get moving. it'll be daylight soon and we'll want to keep unseen since you're not in uniform.'
'by the way, that's a good look,' smirked ryan.
'shut up and get moving.'
they headed cautiously back out onto the snow-covered streets, their footprints the |
only blemish in the pristine white carpet beneath them. the crunch of it under foot reminded ryan of his robotic form back on the isle, and he felt reassured despite the eerie stillness in the village. every window was heavily shuttered against the night and no sound could be heard save their footfalls. if there were any inhabitants around they were in no mood to venture outside, which suited ryan and tristram just fine.
it was not until they reached the centre of the village that they encountered any form of life. they arrived in a small square, the centrepiece of which was a fountain; its waters frozen in a huge icy cone. it was a bleakly beautiful monument and they couldn't resist taking a closer look. as they drew nearer, a solitary timber wolf appeared from behind it, sniffing the ground and occasionally |
stopping to forage for food. upon seeing the two of them, it stopped and eyed them with curiosity for a few moments, before carrying along on its way.
tristram and ryan watched it go, captivated by the magical feel of the place. it was only when a low droning noise, which had been slowly growing in the distance, became too loud to ignore that they snapped out of it. tristram cast a grim look up at the night sky.
'we need to go,' he said firmly.
at that very moment, a number of powerful searchlights cut into the low covering of cloud and an unseen but fearfully close flak battery burst into life, pumping shells into the night sky that would burst at altitude into shards of deadly shrapnel. a second later they heard the first whistle of an incoming aerial bombardment.
tristram sprinted towards the far corner |
of the square with ryan panting at his heels. they dived for cover behind a low wall, as behind them the first bomb shattered the fountain into a million pieces, vaporising the icicles and frozen water in a wide radius around it. a second bomb landed, and a third, carving a broad swathe of destruction through the south-east quarter of the village.
now the place was starting to wake up. the blackout had failed to protect it from attack, though with the cloud cover it was impossible to tell whether or not the strike had been deliberate or just a lucky hit. there came the sound of activity from within several nearby buildings, and shutters and doors began to fly open as the residents sought to flee the raid.
ryan looked at tristram, who indicated that they needed to keep moving. together they crawled to the far |
end of the wall, where another street led away from the square and the devastation.
'this is the one,' said tristram, taking a quick glance at the map.
'you sure?' asked ryan.
rather than taking a second look, his tutor cast his gaze back into the skies beyond the square.
'yep,' he nodded.
'how far is it?'
'quite a way. we need some wheels.'
they darted off down the street, which was illuminated in patches by light filtering through un-shuttered windows. they kept to the walls as much as possible, but it was only a matter of time before they ran into someone. suddenly ryan spied a ramshackle garage that was tacked onto the side of one of the buildings. he called out to tristram, who came over to investigate. within its unglamorous confines, hidden beneath a tarpaulin, sat a motorbike and sidecar.
'perfect!' |
cried tristram. 'quick, get in.'
'what? in there?' asked ryan, looking dubiously at the small cockpit and wondering whether it could actually accommodate him.
'yes. get in now. those planes are coming back and we don't want to be here when this place goes up!'
suddenly a thought struck ryan.
'hang on a minute. what happened to the other bike you had? someone said you were seen stealing one.'
tristram gave him a rather sheepish look.
'i... err... i kind of trashed that one. but don't worry about that now, we need to go.'
'like that's reassuring,' moaned ryan.
he gave the sidecar one more doubtful look and then climbed in. there really wasn't an awful lot to it; a small cocoon of metal with an insufficiently padded seat, a wind deflector and a wheel to his right. this last feature he found quite alarming, |
since the lack of space and his corpulent frame meant that he couldn't keep his arms inside, leaving the wheel awfully close to his elbow.
he was given no time to raise any more concerns though, as tristram leapt onto the bike's saddle and fired it into life. at that very moment the second wave of bombardment began, shaking the foundations of the buildings around them and drowning out the sound of the bike back-firing, as tristram gunned the engine. in a shower of snow from the garage roof, they tore out into the street, drifting and slewing from one side to the other as tristram fought to gather the bike up. ryan turned awkwardly in his seat and was nearly blinded by an explosion, as a bomb annihilated the building they had just been sitting next to.
'bloody hell!' he cried. 'crank it open tristram, we need |
to get out of here!'
'easy, easy,' came the reply. 'if i put this one in a wall as well, that's not going to help us.'
suddenly, up ahead, the lights of another vehicle cut through the darkness, dazzling them both. clearly the occupants did not have much of a grasp on what was going on in the village, but when they caught sight of the carnage being wrought behind the fleeing motorcycle they took evasive action. with no attempt to slow down, the vehicle a small off-roader turned sharply and began pirouetting down the street towards them.
tristram swore so vehemently that ryan was too shocked to come up with a curse of his own. the front end of the vehicle ploughed into one of the buildings to their right, but its momentum kept it cannoning down the street like a whirling dervish.
'we're gonna die!' cried |
ryan.
tristram gritted his teeth and tried to judge whether they had any chance of getting through unscathed.
'stop the bike!' shouted ryan.
his sentence was punctuated by a percussive succession of explosions that rattled his insides and denounced his statement as being a really bad idea. suddenly tristram came to a decision and twisted the throttle hard, sending the bike leaping forwards towards a gap between the spinning vehicle and the left-hand wall; a gap that was closing far too quickly for them to have any chance of getting through in time.
'what are you doing?' cried ryan, not at all happy that he had been left out of the decision.
'cover your face,' came the reply.
as the gap closed to nothing and the truck slammed into the wall yet again, now only a few metres ahead of them, tristram feathered |
the throttle. then as it ricocheted away and the gap opened up, he let it rip, and they surged past in a shower of mortar and shattered glass. a second later the off-roader was no more, as another bomb impacted and blew it to smithereens.
'woohoo!' yelled tristram, a huge smile spread across his face. he reached across and ruffled ryan's hair as the boy emerged from behind his hands.
he muttered something rather rude under his breath.
'what's that?' asked tristram, above the noise of the engine.
'i said; you're a bloody lunatic!' replied ryan, who couldn't help smiling back. in truth, he had only been seconds away from soiling himself.
'what? have you never done anything like that in one of your computer games?'
'well, yeah, but this is a bit different, isn't it?'
'not really,' said tristram. 'just use |
your imagination.'
another stomach-churning explosion almost lifted the bike off the ground, reminding them that they weren't out of danger yet. they were on the outskirts of the village and could see a thick pine forest up ahead. the road stretched out towards it and across their path lay a barrier, flanked by two hamsters who were watching the annihilation of the village in wide-eyed disbelief.
there was no time to exchange pleasantries, and ryan was forced to cover his face for a second time, as the motorcycle smashed through the checkpoint and sped away into the wood.
as ryan shook the detritus out of his hair he looked over his shoulder and saw the two hamsters angrily shaking their paws at them, while behind them the second wave of bombings had left the settlement in ruins.
he sighed and settled back |
into his seat facing forwards again, as tristram kept the throttle wide open and they raced on through the dark wood. the sky had brightened a little, but they still required everything the bike's feeble headlight could give them in order to see the road ahead.
'okay, you can slow down a bit,' said ryan, realising that he was gripping the rim of the cockpit so hard that his knuckles were as white as the snow being thrown up beside him.
'you all right down there?' smiled tristram. 'didn't scare you, did i?'
'no,' scoffed ryan. 'you're a total nutter though. what happened back there? we should be dead by now, or awake at least. how did you get us out of that?'
tristram laughed.
'you mean; did i do any dreamweaving to stack the odds in our favour? i'm afraid the answer is 'no'. that was all plain luck, or perhaps |
good judgement. feel free to look at it either way.'
'what? so you just winged it?'
'yep. i'm afraid i'm a bit of an adrenaline junkie at heart, and dreams like this help me to get it out of my system.'
'well, would you mind checking with me first next time? you know; before you decide to take your next hit?' ryan frowned.
'you'd have said 'no'.'
'i... well, not necessarily. it was a pretty awesome manoeuvre, i'll give you that.'
'you've still got a lot to learn about dreams, ryan,' tristram grinned. 'you need to just relax and go with the flow. the crazier an idea sounds, the more likely it is to work.'
'there must be limits though, surely?'
'of course, and that's where dreamweaving comes in. it allows you to take those limits and throw them out of the window. but remember this; dreamweaving may be tough |
on the body, but as you get better at it, the temptation will be to use it at every turn. however, more often than not it's easier just to roll with the story. some of the best experiences i've had have come from plain old-fashioned dreaming.'
'i'll bear that in mind. so, what next?'
tristram eased the throttle back and they slowed to a more gentle cruise.
'we carry on along this road until we reach that river. from there, your guess is as good as mine, but we shouldn't be far from the castle.'
'and you think soph will be there?'
'if she's still in the dream at all. i rather hope she isn't. the presence of rasputin's men is worrying, and it would be better if none of you were here. i hope the academy is keeping an eye on things.'
'there was nobody standing around looking in the dream when i came back,' |
said ryan.
'ah, no, there are other methods of monitoring dreams that we have. however, what you've said does mean it will take them a while to reach us if things go awry. the library is having a few teething problems and is not yet ready to be used in anger. we're stuck with doing things the old way for the time being.'
'the library?' frowned ryan.
'i'll explain later, if i get the chance.'
ryan looked up at tristram.
'you really like drip feeding me information, don't you?'
'i just give you sufficient to dige...'
tristram's features were suddenly cast into shadow. they both looked over their shoulders and saw a pair of bright lights tearing up the road behind them. whatever it was looked and sounded extremely big, and tristram did not hesitate in opening up the throttle again to save them being run off |
the road.
'hang on,' he yelled, as they turned into a tight hairpin corner. the bike drifted round it facing nearly at right angles to its direction of travel.
as tristram got it squared up again, ryan looked behind them and saw the lights of the vehicle swing round the corner with far less drama.
'they're gaining on us!' he cried.
'well then, now might be a good time to ready that gun of yours,' replied tristram.
ryan had completely forgotten about it. he had tucked the pistol away into the waistband of his trousers, as he'd seen done in so many movies, and had not given it a second thought. he had been wondering why his seat felt so uncomfortable.
'i'm not sure whether i can get at it,' he said, trying to make space around the rim of the tiny cockpit to fit his hand down.
'where is it?' asked tristram.
'i |
tucked it down the back of my pants,' he said, rather embarrassed.
'you did wh... what did you do that for?'
'dunno. it seemed like the best place to put it.'
'sure, if you want to blast yourself a new one,' said tristram. 'oh, hang on, mind yourself.'
he swerved the bike to avoid a low hanging branch and deftly flicked it into another long, sliding turn.
'all right, so it was a bad idea,' said ryan when they had straightened up once more. 'what do you want me to do about it?'
'can you stand up and reach it?'
'with you driving like that? i don't think so.'
'those idiots behind us are closing in and there's no way off this road. look, we're on a straight now. i'll hold it steady.'
'can't you do a 'weave or something?'
'i already did one to create the gun that's now stuffed down your butt-crack. now, |
sort it out!'
'okay, okay,' said ryan sulkily.
he placed both hands on the rim of the cockpit and readied himself for a push.
'hang on; corner!' shouted tristram.
ryan hunkered down again and strained against the lateral forces that tried to rip his head from his shoulders.
'okay, you're good to go,' said tristram, as he finished fighting them out of a wild fish-tail. the noise of the pursuing vehicle's engine was uncomfortably close behind them, and they no longer needed to look over their shoulders to gauge its distance.
'right, here goes,' said ryan, satisfied that what he could see of the road up ahead was straight, flat and free of obstacles. 'don't you dare try and throw me out.'
'i wouldn't dream of it,' replied tristram.
ryan tensed his arms and pushed hard on the edge of the cockpit, hugely conscious |
of the wheel spinning at an insane speed close to his right knuckles. it went all right at first; his body was free to move up and out of the seat and he was able to shuffle his feet back slightly to get a bit more of a push. then, all of a sudden, something snagged.
he tried again, pressing hard with his arms and legs, but something was preventing him from getting up.
'what are you waiting for?' asked tristram.
'i can't... something's caught,' said ryan, continuing his struggle. 'i think it's my trousers.'
tristram glanced over and burst out laughing.
'it's the gun, you idiot! it's caught under the rim of the cockpit.'
ryan squirmed and tried to look over his shoulder, but was dazzled by the lights of the vehicle behind them, which was now right on their tail and weaving dangerously.
'come on ryan, that |
thing's going to have us any moment.'
ryan strained again and finally succeeded in getting to his feet. unfortunately it was at the expense of his trousers, which remained in the cockpit with the snagged gun. tristram looked over at him again and began crying with laughter. when he turned back to the road he was too late to brake for the upcoming corner. they ploughed into a snow drift at the side of the road and were pitched into the air, sailing high over the top of it and tumbling down the bank on the far side.
for ryan it was possibly the most undignified experience of his life; rolling down the slope with his trousers round his ankles. when he finally came to rest it felt like every inch of his body was covered in snow. he spat out a mouthful and lay there, dazed, while somewhere away to his left he could |
hear tristram still laughing hysterically.
_git_ , he thought. it was going to be a while before he lived that one down. _thank god that sophie wasn't around_.
slowly, he lifted his legs off the ground and tried to shake the snow out of his trousers without covering himself further. when he had got rid of the worst of it, he wriggled them on and stood up to brush himself off.
as luck would have it they had crashed just where the forest ended and gave way to a broad, open vale, with the river they were searching for at the bottom. on the far side the land rose steeply to form a huge wall of jagged peaks and clefts, while away to the left, past where tristram was trying to extricate himself from a large mound of snow, still giggling idiotically, was a bridge with a cluster of small buildings at either end.
ryan |
braced himself for a torrent of ridicule and trudged over to join his tutor.
'ryan! boy, you've got some style,' said tristram, shaking a flurry of snow out of his hair and searching around for the hat he had been wearing.
'yeah, laugh it up,' shrugged ryan. 'get it all out of your system now.'
'no, seriously, that wasn't quite the tactic i was looking to employ, but it seemed to work. look, we're here in one piece and we managed to lose our tail. a job well done, i'd say.'
ryan eyed him suspiciously, and it wasn't long before tristram lost his composure and broke down laughing again. ryan stood with his arms folded, not looking at all impressed. his face was red with a mixture of embarrassment and the cold. suddenly there came the snarl of a large petrol engine and a pair of headlight beams swung out across |
the vale from the road at the top of the bank. slowly, the nose of a vehicle appeared and stopped, looking out over the broad panorama. tristram stopped laughing and stared up at it grimly.
'what should we do?' asked ryan.
'well, there's not much point in running,' replied his tutor. there was no cover between them and the forest, and the snow was too deep to allow them to reach it without being spotted. 'you could try mooning them again. that might work.'
'you're funny,' said ryan, deadpan.
as he stared up at the silhouette of the vehicle, something twigged in ryan's mind. he eyed it for a few moments longer and then it came to him.
'that's daisy and billy up there!' he exclaimed, starting to make his way up the slope towards the lights.
'what? ryan, wait...'
tristram took a couple of long bounds and |
fell into step next to him. suddenly the unmistakable silhouette of daisy rose appeared in front of the vehicle, her features cast into shadow by the glare of its lights. upon spotting them she waved joyously and shouted down.
'ryan! tristram! it's us! it's us!'
tristram looked over at ryan and shook his head.
'i sincerely hope we weren't fleeing from those two,' he said.
me too, thought ryan, though he knew deep down that they had witnessed his moment of shame.
the awkward shape of billy richards appeared beside daisy and gave them a curt, far less enthusiastic wave.
'well, that's two out of three,' said tristram. 'one more to find. how did you know it was them?'
ryan gave an arrogant snort.
'i made that vehicle, didn't i?' he said nonchalantly. it wasn't quite the truth, but he considered it to be close |
enough.
tristram looked suitably impressed.
'then, as your teacher, i feel i should take a look at your handiwork and give you marks out of ten.'
as they neared the top of the slope, daisy could no longer contain herself and came tumbling towards them in an avalanche of affection. they caught hold of her as she threatened to sweep straight past them and down to the river.
'it's so good to see the two of you,' she gushed, hugging them both in turn. 'i didn't recognise you in that outfit tristram. and ryan, i can't believe you made it back here. we've been terribly lost without you, but the buggy's been working perfectly.'
'looks like judgement has already been passed,' smiled tristram. 'i'm glad you are both safe and sound anyway. i was quite concerned when ryan told me you were here too.'
'oh we've been |
fine,' beamed daisy. 'billy's been a bit of a grump, but i think that's because of my bad map reading. this place is so beautiful that i've been a bit distracted and have missed a few turnings.'
'well, you're here now and that's what matters,' said tristram. 'i had been banking on the two of you showing up sooner or later; dreams often work that way. right, let's take a look at this contraption of yours, ryan.'
they climbed up to the top of the bank, where billy and the monster golf buggy were waiting. it really was an odd-looking machine; all wheels, with a tiny body perched on top. it was the vehicular equivalent of a house-spider. it appeared to have endured its journey remarkably well, though the chrome fittings that had been present when it first materialised were now dulled by a layer of dirt and grit.
'wow!' |
said tristram, taking a walk round and inspecting it with keen interest. 'that's pretty impressive, ryan.'
'it nearly went the same way as your bike,' said billy. 'the glare from butler's backside nearly blinded me.'
daisy giggled.
'yeah, yeah, well you shouldn't have been eyeing it up,' scowled ryan.
'couldn't help it. it was taking up most of the road,' said billy, rounding on him.
'well i'm sure the guys at school will all be happy to know that you were dreaming about my butt!' snarled ryan.
'and then maybe they'll start wondering about how you came by that piece of information. butler, you may be good at this dreamweaving stuff, but you're still an idiot.'
'that's enough!' said tristram, stepping between them. 'i've got a good mind to expel both of you from here right now. i'm certainly starting to |
think that the academy's decision to put you both in my group was a bad one, although it seems that when you do work together it is startling what can be achieved.'
ryan and billy glowered at one another like duellists at dawn; waiting for the moment for a swift and decisive strike.
'now, i want you two to bury the hatchet,' said tristram, stepping out of their way. 'not in one another's backs, i might add. if you don't i'll send you both packing and you will wake up in your beds feeling pretty damn stupid. as it is, you shouldn't be here. but since you are it's a good learning opportunity, so you should be making use of it. now, shake on it.'
billy and ryan stepped in close to one another. they cut an odd pairing face to face. it was like a giraffe trying to stare down a rhinoceros. slowly billy extended |
his right hand, and after a while ryan reluctantly met it in the middle. the shake was short but firm, and a great deal more than words could convey was passed between them in that moment of contact, and through their stares. tristram looked from one to the other and appeared satisfied that they would not give him any more grief, for the time being at least.
all of a sudden, the air was split by the sound of a gunshot and there came a loud _clang!_ as a bullet fizzed off the buggy's bodywork. daisy, who had wandered round to the far side of the vehicle when the argument had kicked off, squealed and dived underneath it. the others joined her. a moment later a second shot came whizzing past and buried itself in the tread of one of the huge wheels.
'never a dull moment here,' commented billy.
'that's dreams for |
you,' said tristram, propping himself up on his elbows and straining to see where the gunfire was coming from. a third shot rang out, and a small muzzle flash gave away a hamster with a rifle, crouching by one of the buildings next to the bridge.
'right, there's at least one of those furry gits trying to have a pop at us, but i expect there are more,' he said. 'now, as i told ryan earlier, one of the most important things about field work is using what is at your disposal, rather than assuming that dreamweaving is your best and only option.'
'so?' said billy.
tristram grinned at them with a devilish look in his eye.
'he's going to do something stupid,' said ryan, not wishing for a repeat of the trouser incident.
'maybe,' tristram shrugged. 'then again, maybe not. it depends on how sturdy this truck you built |
is.'
ryan shrugged.
'it's a golf buggy. it would probably fall apart if you sneezed on it.'
'oh no,' said daisy. 'billy and i have been all over the countryside in it. it's great!'
'that's a good enough recommendation for me,' said tristram. he shuffled backwards across the ground until he was shielded from the shooter by one of the huge wheels. then he got to his feet and peered back down at the others. 'well? are you coming then?'
they looked at one another and ryan rolled his eyes.
'here we go again,' he said. 'tristram needs another adrenaline fix.'
he reluctantly followed as the others climbed into the buggy after their tutor. ryan found himself sitting next to daisy in one of the rear-facing seats, as billy had positioned himself up front with tristram. they had just sat down when the gunfire started |
again in earnest, accompanied by the dazzling glare of a searchlight painting them as a clear target.
'hang on,' shouted tristram, throwing the buggy into reverse and turning it to face the incoming fire.
the vehicle was open-sided, so it was the only way of affording them any protection, though how long the flimsy plastic screen in front of them would hold up was anyone's guess. when they were lined up, tristram put the buggy into forward gear and floored the throttle. the machine let out a raging howl and lurched forward, sinking down so far on its rear suspension that ryan and daisy were perilously close to being thrown onto the enormous rear wheels.
ryan felt her hand grab hold of his trouser leg as she instinctively tried to save herself. he also felt the few leg hairs he had started to grow in that region |
detach, but he gritted his teeth and was determined to be a man about it, especially with billy around.
up front, sophie's brother was shouting a stream of pointless orders at tristram, who was wearing a manic look and appeared to be enjoying the whole experience far more than was strictly necessary.
'ryan, this thing's brilliant!' he whooped, as he sent it barrelling down the road towards the cluster of buildings.
suddenly the sporadic gunfire exploded into a full-on hailstorm of bullets, as the rest of the hamsters guarding the bridge cottoned on to what was happening and joined in. the buggy was closing on the buildings fast, haring along a snowy causeway with banks leading down into the vale on either side. it looked like tristram intended to drive straight through the blockade, but to their surprise |
and slight horror he suddenly turned off the road and down the right-hand bank, before throwing the buggy into a huge drift that kept the bullet-riddled screen between them and their aggressors. by the time it had straightened up they were travelling parallel to the river, heading for the causeway and the buildings perched on top of it.
'oh christ, he's going to jump it,' said ryan, hoping for a contradiction.
'it sure looks that way,' grinned tristram.
'don't put ideas into his head!' shouted billy, but tristram was already hammering the buggy as fast as he could towards the embankment.
daisy looked at ryan wide-eyed and gripped hold of his leg again. the only thing worse than pulling the stunt they were about to do, was doing it while facing the wrong way. ryan grabbed her hand and the small rail next |
to him and tried to give her a reassuring look.
'hang on tight in the back!' yelled tristram as the vehicle began to climb the slope. there was a brief moment when they were out of the hamsters' line of sight and the gunfire abated. the buggy continued to angle further and further up, until ryan and daisy had to clench their buttocks to prevent themselves from slipping off the seat.
with a wail from the engine, the wheels left the ground and they burst over the edge of the causeway, crashing through the upper storey of the nearest building and scattering its occupants. there was a beautiful moment of near-weightlessness as the vehicle reached the zenith of its travel, and ryan couldn't help throwing daisy a mad smile. the hamsters ceased firing their weapons and scurried for cover, as the buggy arced gracefully |
over the road and descended on a building on the far side. its timber structure was no match for the thrashing wheels, which churned the roof to pieces as they smashed through it. a moment later there was the faintest of impacts, as they landed back on terra firma and tore away from the carnage they had wrought, whooping and shouting to one another.
when they were a safe distance away, tristram slid the buggy to a halt and turned to face his passengers.
'everyone okay?' he asked, breathing heavily from the rush of excitement. there was still a trace of the manic glint in his eyes, but he was addressing them as their tutor once more.
'you are a certified nutcase,' said billy, whose face was even paler than usual. 'having said that, considering we made it through that in one piece, i'd have to say that it was |
a pretty cool ride.'
tristram smiled.
'it's just as i was saying; sometimes you've just got to go with the flow rather than force the story through dreamweaving. with practice, you'll be able to pick out the opportunities as and when they arrive. how about you two at the back? still there, i see.'
'we're fine, thank you,' said daisy, who was still holding ryan's hand and seemed unflustered by the whole experience.
'that was awesome,' grinned ryan, who, despite his initial misgivings, now felt like he was part of an action movie and couldn't wait for more.
'good, good, so who's up for another round then?'
a bit of the bravado evaporated from the buggy as the three passengers looked at him uncertainly. tristram pointed across the river to where a similar set of buildings were guarding the far side of the |
bridge.
'what are you going to do? drive across the water?' asked billy.
'an interesting idea, but i think we'll be using the bridge.'
the three teenagers looked at one another and shrugged.
'if that last stunt worked...' said ryan.
'good lad,' said tristram, and he floored the throttle again, enveloping the buggy in a blizzard as the wheels churned through the snow.
he drove them in a wide arc, linking back up with the causeway some distance from the bridge, to allow them a good run-up at the checkpoint they had just demolished. the engine howled its approval as the vehicle gathered speed, and again ryan and daisy braced themselves for another bumpy ride.
the first gunshots began ricocheting off the buggy's windscreen, coming not from the hamsters on the near side of the bridge, but from the opposite |
bank. the flimsy plastic screen continued to hold up miraculously well, although the group remained hideously exposed on all other sides. ryan suddenly had a horrible sinking feeling in his stomach, as it dawned on him that once they were on the bridge he and daisy would be sitting ducks for the hamsters they had just terrorised.
he turned round to say something about it to tristram, but was just in time to see them smash through the blockade and tear onto the bridge.
'dizz, get down!' he shouted, pulling her down across his lap and trying to ignore the rather strange sensation that came over him as he did so.
up front the gunfire was intensifying, and the screen was now so covered with pock-marks that it was almost impossible to see out of.
'go! go! go!' shouted billy, seemingly unable to do anything useful |
other than offer encouragement.
but tristram already had the buggy flat-out, so there was little else that could be done other than cross their fingers and hope for the best. fortunately for ryan and daisy, the hamsters on the near side of the river had been more interested in saving their own pelts, so they were spared from being used for target practice.
all of a sudden, a series of deafening explosions tore at their ear drums as the pilings holding the bridge up detonated one by one. even the heavily-sprung buggy was unable to absorb the shockwaves and tristram swore loudly as he fought to keep it on the bridge.
'they're destroying the bridge!' shouted billy.
'thanks for that,' replied tristram as cracks and holes began to appear in the roadway.
they were over half-way across, but the buggy was already |
going at full speed and it did not look like they had enough time to reach the far side before the bridge was swallowed up by the river. the buggy bucked and swerved as tristram wrestled it between sections of road which were now falling away from one another. it was all the others could do to stay on board as they were tossed around by the bumpy landings and quick changes in direction. all the while there was still a hail of gunfire for them to contend with.
'isn't this one of those times when a bit of dreamweaving wouldn't go amiss?' shouted ryan.
'maybe,' returned tristram. 'i think we're about to find out. hang on!'
daisy and ryan craned their necks round and saw a gaping chasm opening up between them and the far end of the roadway. unless ryan had unwittingly fitted the buggy with wings and a rocket motor |
they were never going to make it. in a last breathless moment, the buggy left the final piece of crumbling roadway and plunged into the void. the engine screamed its objection as tristram kept the accelerator well and truly buried. the three passengers braced themselves for the impact.
as the front wheels ploughed into the water everything around them was lost in a shower of spray. strangely though, there was less of a sensation of slowing down than they expected, and a moment later ryan realised why; they were still going forwards. a combination of their momentum and the buoyancy of the gigantic wheels was allowing them to stay afloat, while the thick rubber tread thrashed at the water, propelling them along.
'what do you know? it works!' cried tristram in astonishment, as they headed between the pilings that |
held up the remainder of the bridge.
'yeah, but look out for that pillar!' cried billy as they careered towards a huge tower of concrete, sticking out of the water.
tristram wrenched the wheel left, then right, but only succeeded in showering them all with water.
'i'm afraid the steering is not quite what it was,' he shouted.
he reached down to flick the buggy into reverse, but there was no time. the driver's-side wheel crashed into the pillar, tearing the suspension off and sending the rest of the vehicle cartwheeling into the water. ryan and daisy, who had spent the past few minutes hanging on for dear life, finally let go and were hurled clear, landing in water that was waist deep and shatteringly cold.
'tristram! billy!' cried daisy, almost before she had resurfaced.
looking back, the remains of the |
monster golf buggy were upside down next to the piling, while their two companions were nowhere to be seen. daisy immediately began wading back out towards it, but ryan lunged forwards and grabbed her.
'dizz wait,' he said.
'ryan, they may be trapped under there. we've got to help them.'
'billy's with tristram,' ryan replied calmly. 'if they're in any trouble, he'll sort it out.'
daisy looked despairingly at the stricken buggy, but gave little resistance as ryan pulled her to the bank of the river. they dragged themselves out and sat watching as the last remaining pieces of debris fell into the water. there was no going back now. aside from the short stretch they were now sitting under, the bridge was gone.
suddenly a head broke the surface of the water next to one of the huge wheels and looked around wildly.
'tristram!' |
cried daisy joyfully, but ryan immediately clamped his hand over her mouth. the cacophony that surrounded the bridge's demolition had subsided, along with the gunfire, and he was all too aware of how close they now were to the other cluster of buildings.
they sat and watched as tristram ducked back under the water, then reappeared a few moments later and began swimming over to join them. there was no sign of billy. ryan could feel daisy's body quivering and knew it had little to do with having just crawled out of a freezing river. for his part, he was feeling surprisingly comfortable.
tristram pulled his dripping form out of the river and lay on the bank next to them.
'billy's gone,' he said, panting slightly.
he looked at them both and daisy's eyes widened in horror.
'no, no, it's okay. he's just woken |
up,' he added. 'it's probably for the best; one less person to keep track of.'
'he'd probably just be slating your driving if he was here,' said ryan quietly.
'probably,' replied tristram with a smile. 'hey, we'd best find some cover. our furry friends will most likely come looking for us soon.'
they climbed to their feet and crept up the shallow bank to where it met with the road overhead. with daybreak only minutes away it offered them a dark place to hide while they considered their next move. they were not a moment too soon. barely had they hunkered down next to the large concrete support that held up the edge of the roadway, when a squad of soldiers appeared close by and marched down to the water's edge to survey the wreckage.
tristram immediately came to a decision and indicated that they should move |
off while the hamsters were looking the other way. they crept round the support and up to the edge of the road. crouching down, the three of them peered over the parapet and saw a similar blockade to the one they had annihilated minutes before. it was flanked by two wooden buildings, while just beyond them the road swung to the right and began zigzagging its way up the steep mountainside. it was quiet; almost too quiet. there were no guards manning the barrier and no sign of activity in the buildings.
ryan felt tristram nudge him in the ribs and saw that he was pointing at another building close to the foot of the mountain. ryan hadn't noticed it before, but now they were closer he could see that it was a cable car station. the two lines coming out of it tracked parallel to one another up the slope until they |
disappeared through a cleft between a pair of low-lying peaks. tristram clearly thought that it was their best bet for reaching the castle.
'are you sure?' ryan hissed.
'yeah, what's the problem?' tristram asked.
'well, you've knackered the last three vehicles you've used and, to be honest, i'm a bit sick of flying through the air.'
'at least your trousers were done up this time,' smirked tristram.
ryan glared at him.
'okay, okay, i won't mention it again, i promise,' said his tutor. 'besides, i won't be driving this one, so what could possibly go wrong?'
'apart from us plummeting hundreds of metres onto jagged rocks? can't we walk it?'
'that's the last thing i'd expect coming from you.'
'actually, ryan has walked to and from school every day for the past week,' put in daisy.
'thanks dizz.'
'well, |
you're welcome to give it a go, but the chances are that this will all be over by the time you get to the top,' tristram shrugged.
'so you're going to use it no matter what?'
'of course, it's part of the dream. it's got to be there for a reason.'
ryan looked at daisy and rolled his eyes. she gave him a smile in return.
'that's the spirit,' said tristram, clapping them both on the shoulders. 'follow me.'
keeping low, he led them over to the corner of the nearest building and carefully peeped through the window.
'not a furry soul in sight,' he whispered. 'they must have been really bored.'
they crept round the back of the building and still there was no one to be seen. they were now only thirty yards from the cable car station. tristram checked to make sure that the coast was clear, and then, with a shrug, |
led them quickly across the open ground and into the building.
it was dark inside, but they resisted the temptation to find a light switch and continued on in the gloom. a cable car was hanging next to the platform, its doors enticingly ajar. they were about to take a look inside it when a noise from the far side of the open-ended room caused them to stop in their tracks.
it was a scuffling noise, but in the darkness they had no idea what was causing it. tristram silently bade ryan and daisy to stay where they were while he crept forward to investigate. they watched breathlessly as he made his way along the far wall towards the open end of the station. ryan couldn't tell whether or not their tutor had used his dreamweaving skills to conjure up a weapon, so, just in case, he tried to focus his mind on an image |
of his dad, so that he had something to use if things went sour. tristram had almost made it to the end of the building when a high-pitched voice squeaked out of the darkness.
'who goes there?'
tristram immediately flattened himself against the wall. ryan's first thought was that it had to be another of the hamsters, but the accent didn't quite fit and the tone of the voice was much higher than that of any of the rodents they had encountered thus far. sensing that danger was not imminent, ryan beckoned to daisy and the two of them crept over to where tristram was standing, motionless.
'i can hear that,' came the voice again. 'who's there?'
they were close to the open end of the building, which afforded them a little more light to see by. looking along the wall, ryan noticed that the last few yards were not |
brickwork, but a wire mesh; the kind that was used for fencing. it ran from floor to ceiling and there was the outline of a frame about halfway along, which looked suspiciously like a gate. unable to restrain his curiosity, he pushed past tristram, who appeared to be caught in two minds, and went to look inside.
'stay right there,' came the voice, almost as soon as he reached the start of the fencing.
ryan stopped in his tracks and stared into the space beyond, trying to pick out the owner of the voice. behind the wire mesh was a sizeable alcove, within which sat the drive mechanism for the cable cars. there were several large, upright wheels connected to a shaft that, through a series of gears and a transfer box, took the power up through the ceiling and over to the huge wheel that drove the cable. ryan wondered |
if all the engineering that had gone into it was strictly necessary, but before he had a chance to dwell on it he spied movement in a dark corner of the room. slowly a creature emerged, and crept tentatively round the machinery to get a better look at him.
it was the size of a large dog, but was definitely still a rodent of some kind. unlike the hamsters, it walked on all fours and had a long, furry tail that trailed along the floor behind it. the creature stopped at the edge of the nearest wheel and peered at ryan through large, black eyes. its whiskers were quivering and its nose twitched with anticipation.
'all right?' nodded ryan, not quite sure of how best to greet it. the creature hadn't pulled a gun on him, which was a start. he sensed tristram and daisy join him, and the creature shrank away upon seeing |
the other two intruders.
'who are you? what do you want?' it squeaked, unwilling to reveal itself any further.
ryan looked over his shoulder at tristram, who was wearing a rather bemused expression.
'err... we want to use the cable car,' ryan said, thinking that they had nothing to lose by being honest. 'can you tell us how to turn it on?'
the question had a remarkable effect on the creature. its meekness swiftly evaporated and was replaced by scorn.
'turn it on? turn it on?' it scoffed, coming out from behind the wheel and putting its front paws up on the fencing, so that it was almost face to face with ryan. 'you hear that, lads? this idiot doesn't even have a grasp of basic mechanics.'
there came some sniggering from the far corner of the alcove and two more of the creatures emerged, shaking their heads |
and whispering to one another.
'okay, steady on,' said ryan, who never liked being made a fool of. 'we just want to get the thing working.'
'no, you said you wanted to turn it on,' said the first creature. 'that implies there's some sort of power source that can be operated by the mere flick of a switch. now, take a good hard look in here. can you see anything even remotely like that?'
ryan hated rhetorical questions and was struggling to work out how he had managed to cause such offence. he gave a cursory shrug and let them continue.
'no? that's because there isn't any. no motors, no batteries, no engines, nothing. zip. just three big wheels and three gerbils to drive them.'
ryan looked at his friends in disbelief.
'you? you guys power this thing?'
'don't look so surprised,' said one of the other gerbils, |
joining the first one at the fence. 'this is what we do; we run in wheels. mind you, we usually do it out of choice. and so did _they_ once.'
ryan looked at the gate that was halfway along the fence and noticed that it was padlocked from the outside.
'you're captives?' he asked.
'wahay! we've got a right genius here, haven't we?' sneered the first gerbil. 'where'd you guys get him from? the circus? discount sale on clowns, was it?'
that was enough for ryan.
'at least i'm smart enough not to get myself captured by a group of dumb hamsters,' he retorted, although it was not exactly the truth.
the three gerbils looked stunned by his outburst.
'that's cold, my friend, cold,' said the third, padding over to join his companions. 'if you only knew what those hamsters have done to us...'
daisy, who had been staring |
at the creatures with a look of unbridled adoration on her face, stepped forward and knelt down in front of them, mirroring the way they were all gripping the fencing.
'please,' she said. 'we need your help. our friend is in trouble and we have to get to the castle to help her.'
the first gerbil nudged the second, and ryan could have sworn they winked at one another.
'the castle, you say?' enquired the first, shuffling along until he was face to face with her. 'well my dear, i trust you've heard the tales of castle meerschweinchen, because it would be a fool indeed who headed up there unprepared. where's the rest of your raiding party?'
'it's just us, i'm afraid,' said daisy.
'what? you're crazy, the lot of you. with the elite guard up there?'
'what's the elite guard?'
'it's the most bloodthirsty platoon |
of guinea pigs you'll ever have the misfortune to run into.'
ryan snorted and the gerbil threw him an angry glare.
'you may laugh, but you've no idea what you're in for. you think these hamsters are bad, but you ain't seen nothing yet. those guinea pigs are evil. they'll tear you limb from limb just for the hell of it.'
'and laugh while they're doing it,' added the second.
'but we've got to try,' said daisy. 'she's our friend.'
the third gerbil pushed between the other two and put his furry muzzle right up to the cage.
'i can see you're sincere,' he said softly. 'we'd like to help you, but understand that to get you up there requires a tremendous amount of toil on our part. we need something in return.'
'we'll set you free,' said daisy immediately, with a look at tristram. he nodded.
'that's a noble gesture, |
and one we would gratefully accept, but it would be a hollow one if we could not keep our end of the bargain. we are tired and weak and may not be able to get you all the way to your destination.'
daisy thought for a moment, then headed to the end of the building and rolled herself a snowball from the ground outside. by the time she turned to come back it had miraculously transformed into the biggest sunflower seed that ryan had ever seen.
'sweet mother...' murmured one of the gerbils.
'will this do?' asked daisy sweetly, kneeling back down in front of them again.
the first gerbil looked at tristram.
'well, you may have got _him_ from the circus,' he said, nodding at ryan. 'but this one must have come from heaven. of course we'll help you. just make sure you give them hell when you get there.'
'we plan |
to, my furry friend,' replied tristram, walking over to the gate and ripping the padlock off with his bare hands. the gerbils stared at him in wonder. 'so, we have a deal then?'
'absolutely,' said the third gerbil. 'it is the least we can do.'
'great!' said daisy. she walked into the alcove and handed them the giant sunflower seed. 'it was lovely to meet you all.'
the gerbils bowed low to her and she giggled.
'just one thing,' said the third as she turned to go.
'yes?'
'if you... err... if you see any of our kin up there, please, do what you can for them.'
'of course we will,' said daisy cheerily, and she headed out to join the others, who were climbing into the cable car.
'god bless you miss.'
ryan had never ridden in a cable car before and was rightly nervous about the experience. there was not much |
to the tin box the three of them were now sitting in, and it was pretty disconcerting. he had already ridden in a golf buggy and a side car, both of which had been fairly flimsy and both of which had ended up crashing. why couldn't he have had a tank instead?
he sat with his hands clenched around the lip of the wooden bench he was seated on, as the car lurched into motion. daisy was sitting next to him and was waving goodbye to the gerbils, while tristram sat opposite, looking so relaxed that ryan expected him to drop off to sleep at any moment.
was it possible to fall asleep in a dream? ryan didn't know, but the thought stayed with him for a few minutes as the car began to ascend the mountainside and did a good job of keeping his mind off the drop below.
they were about to pass through the cleft they had |
seen from down in the valley, when suddenly the car was filled with dazzling sunlight and their eyes were drawn to the spectacular panorama below them. in the distance, to the south-east, lay the smoking remains of the village they had passed through, and they could now see that the river they had crossed passed very close to it. tristram pulled the map out of his pocket and put it upside-down against the glass behind him. all the main features were there: the forests, the roads, the river; everything.
then, all of a sudden, they were swallowed up by the towering peaks of the mountains and the view vanished. a huge pylon loomed up ahead, and as they clattered over the cable supports ryan gripped his seat hard and pressed his back against the side of the cabin, breathing heavily. it was a while before he had |
the bottle to look out of the window again. when he did so, he saw below them a road, twisting back and forth in its attempt to keep up with them through the rugged terrain. the way ahead was shrouded in a thick blanket of cloud, and as they entered it he felt a distinct chill run down his spine. there was something sinister in the air that was almost tangible. it was like a prickling feeling at the back of his mind; an itch that could not be scratched.
'can you feel that?' he asked, looking at tristram, who was suddenly tense and alert.
'it's what i've been feeling the whole time we've been here,' replied their tutor. 'i've been ignoring it for a while as it seemed to be fading away, but now it's back in earnest. so much so that even you can feel it. something's not right.'
'what do you mean?' asked daisy, |
who, for once, was not smiling.
'well, it is said that whenever someone dreamweaves it causes a disruption in the fabric of the story. if that disturbance is great enough it can be felt by others in the dream. this is mostly just conjecture, but some work has been done to see whether there is any truth to it. personally, i think there's got to be something going on. the amount of energy used when dreamweaving is quite considerable, as you have already discovered, and that energy has got to go somewhere.'
'so you think someone else has been dreamweaving here and we're feeling the effects?' asked daisy.
tristram nodded.
'i already know that one of rasputin's lackeys was seen entering this dream and i'd bet my life that they are still here. the problem is, i don't know which one.'
he stared out of the window |
into the swirling mist in a vain attempt to catch a glimpse what might be lying in wait up ahead. ryan slouched down in his seat, stretching his feet out so they were resting next to tristram.
'does it really matter?' he asked.
'hmm?' murmured his tutor.
'does it really matter who it is?' ryan repeated.
'indeed it does,' said tristram grimly. 'rasputin's forces have increased rapidly over the past few years, though many would attest that the quality of his recruiting, or lack thereof, has diluted his overall capabilities. however, there are plenty of his followers i would rather not run in to unprepared, especially with the two of you in tow. your friend damocles, for one.'
ryan could still picture the bull-man. his astonishing yellow eyes and towering frame made him an intimidating creature to behold, and |
yet strangely the thought of him did not give ryan any cause for concern. damocles had done him no wrong, save try to sway him to rasputin's cause, which in turn was exactly what tristram had done for the academy.
'is he powerful?' he asked, just out of interest.
'extremely. he's bad enough to tackle in the nightmare realm, let alone in a dream. his physical evolution skills are way beyond mine; probably anyone in the academy.'
'so what's your speciality?' asked ryan. 'surely you could take him on with your skills?'
'ah, now there you've hit upon our little problem,' said tristram earnestly. 'you guys have seen me do things; little 'weaves, which might seem impressive to newcomers such as yourselves, but a dreamweaver who has specialised in a particular discipline is capable of so much more. my problem is |
that i've never specialised. i'm a jack-of-all-trades and a master of nothing, as it were. that's why i've become an inductor; i can teach a bit of everything, a bit like those supply teachers you get at school.'
'why didn't you?' asked daisy.
'specialise? i don't know. i guess i never really found the time. don't get me wrong; i worked hard when i was in your position, and it got me where i am today, for which i'm thankful. the thing is, without trying to sound big-headed...'
'... which you will,' smirked ryan.
tristram gave a small smile.
'yes, probably, but when i started i found that i was naturally good at lots of things and i tried to pursue them all, rather than concentrating on one or two. that's where i went wrong; i tried to be the best at everything and failed on all counts. it was a bit of a |
bummer, to be honest.'
'surely you could still specialise?' suggested daisy, with a kind look.
'yeah, you said yourself that it's never too late to learn,' added ryan.
'you're right, i did, and i do still learn new things. i have a few nifty tricks up my sleeve, but i actually get a great deal of satisfaction from working with newcomers. you see, even dreamweavers can be narrow-minded sometimes. many are well and truly stuck in their ways, so it's the blank canvasses those who see the opportunities rather than the limitations whom i find inspiring.'
there was a period of silence while the others digested all this. for ryan in particular, the explanation did not sit right. it was like the people who grew up to become school teachers. what was the point? why spend all that time in a hell-hole only to go straight |
back and spend the rest of your life there? he knew he would never be able to do it. there was too much cool stuff to see and do. it was just wrong.
suddenly the prickling feeling at the back of his mind intensified, and he sat up and started scratching wildly at the back of his head, trying to reach the source of the irritation. daisy and tristram were experiencing similar discomfort, both of them pulling some rather strange faces as they fought the sensation. a few moments later it subsided back down to just a tickle, but tristram's face remained gravely concerned.
'i'm getting you two out of here,' he said firmly. 'something is seriously amiss and i can't warrant endangering either of you any further.'
'but we're here because we want to be,' protested ryan. 'what about soph? if she's in trouble we want |
to help her.'
'i know you do, but this is beyond either of you now. for all i know, it's beyond me too.'
'all the more reason for us to stick around,' said ryan defiantly.
tristram smiled at them both.
'look, you two have been great company. we've had a lot of fun up until now and i'd hate for it to all go wrong. i'll be okay, don't you worry. the academy will be watching what's going on and will respond if necessary. i'm afraid it's more than my job is worth to keep you here.'
daisy smiled back and nodded her understanding, while ryan crossed his arms and pulled the best sulk he could. being told he couldn't do something was like a red rag to him, but it was a testament to his respect for tristram that he didn't pursue it any further.
their tutor got to his feet, causing the small car to swing in a rather |
alarming manner as his weight shifted across to their side. ryan held on to the bench again as tristram placed a hand, open palmed, on his head.
'now, don't try to resist it,' he said quietly. 'there may be a slight pushing sensation in your mind. just try to clear your thoughts and relax.'
though the bouncing and swinging had subsided somewhat, relaxation was still the last thing on ryan's mind. he closed his eyes and tried to block out all his senses. the tingling feeling was still lurking, letting him know that whatever mischief was afoot was still there. after a few moments it started to give way to another sensation. it was a gentle pulsing, or kneading, and it was strangely soothing; almost as if his brain was being massaged around his cranium. it felt wrong, but in a bizarrely nice way.
suddenly ryan |
felt a real push and heard tristram say 'bugger!' quite loudly. he opened his eyes and found that his was still in the cable car, with daisy sitting to his left and tristram standing in front of them. he wasn't sure whether to feel disappointed or relieved.
'what's the matter tristram?' asked daisy. their tutor was staring at his hands in puzzlement.
'i... i'm not sure,' he said, shaking his head. 'it should have worked. i've performed expulsion a hundred times. it should have worked.'
'well, it didn't,' said ryan helpfully.
'maybe if i do just one of you,' he said.
he put his hand on daisy's head and concentrated for a few moments, but nothing happened apart from a slight change in the girl's complexion from white to very white. he then tried again on ryan, who felt the same massaging sensation, but this |
time it was much rougher.
'hey, knock it off,' he said, twisting his head to one side. 'that's my brain in there, you know.'
tristram looked utterly baffled by what was going on. he staggered back down to his seat and continued to stare at his open palms in total bemusement.
'it should have worked,' he said again.
ryan was in no mood to offer sympathy, following what he felt had been a minor violation of his mind.
'well, it didn't,' he repeated. 'it looks like you're stuck with us, i'm afraid.'
tristram looked from him to daisy and back again, momentarily lost. then he seemed to collect himself and gave a resigned sigh.
'yes, it looks like i am,' he said quietly. 'though i greatly enjoy your company, this is really not ideal. all joking aside, i honestly don't know what is happening here now, and i've |
got a horrible feeling we're well and truly in the brown stuff. i want you both to stick close, whatever happens. and keep your wits about you.'
ryan slouched down in his seat again and put his hands behind his head.
'relax tristram,' he said. 'it's just a bunch of over-sized rodents. what the hell are they going to do to us?'
but, for once, ryan's blase attitude did not coax a smile out of tristram. he sat, grim-faced, lost deep within his own thoughts. ryan stared through the glass and wondered how long it would be until they could get out of their tiny, hanging prison.
they had all but ceased climbing now, and had the sky been clear they would have been able to appreciate the magnificent scenery they were passing through. as it was they continued to be wreathed in a thick blanket of cloud, which swirled |
and parted obligingly to let them through, before lazily closing up the way behind them. occasionally the heavy grey outline of another car would loom up out of the darkness, taking the return line back down the mountain. these would often pass slightly above them, which left ryan to ponder how three people, or two and a half if you considered daisy's slight frame, could have such an effect on the car's weight.
they clattered over another support and ryan still didn't feel comfortable with the way the car bounced around with minimal encouragement. slowly things were beginning to change though. more shapes were drifting in and out of the mist, as though the walls of the mountains were closing in, funnelling them towards their destination. at the same time the prickling sensation returned, not as strongly as before, |
but enough to demand their full attention. all three of them were sat upright now, staring out of the front of the car. waiting for something anything to appear.
'okay, i think this could be it,' said tristram quietly.
_talk about stating the bleeding obvious_ , thought ryan, who was now so tense that he had to keep reminding himself to breathe.
it was tantalisingly close, whatever it was, but time seemed to have slowed to a crawl. then suddenly it appeared, fleetingly, as if the clouds themselves had their own sense of drama and knew exactly how much to reveal, and when. it was a castle, certainly, but not in the sense that ryan had expected. he had been waiting to see a fortress; hewn from the very heart of the mountain and as old and strong as the earth itself. he had been expecting a medieval stronghold, |
with towering turrets and battlements, imposing and impenetrable. what he got was something torn straight from the pages of a fairytale; all slender spires and towers with conical roofs, some projecting out at inconceivable and impractical angles, before reaching their heads skywards. there were arched walkways spanning immeasurable gaps and narrow windows everywhere; the kind that were impossible to see into but remarkably good for seeing out of. it was breathtaking and baffling in every sense.
all this was taken in in just a handful of seconds; enough for the clouds to share a taste of their secrets. then, just as quickly, it was gone.
'beautiful,' breathed daisy, her face a picture of enchantment.
ryan looked over at tristram, whom he hoped would offer a more rational analysis of what they had just seen. |
however, his tutor looked just as perplexed as he was feeling and was slowly shaking his head in time with the gentle rocking of the car. after a few moments he looked ryan in the eye and the briefest of smiles flickered across his features.
'dreams eh?' he murmured. 'expect the unexpected.'
'that's the stupidest phrase in the world,' said ryan. 'how can you anticipate every possible thing that could happen?'
'i know it is,' said tristram. 'but unfortunately it rings true for us at this juncture. even by the standards of some of the dreams i've seen, there's something really weird going on here. both of you stay close, okay?'
again they sat staring into the grey mist ahead of them; tense, waiting for something to appear. it wasn't long before it began to grow dark in the cabin and they got the same sensation |