DEEP WATERS

CHAPTER 20 - Ace's Knife

Will moored the boat carefully at the far side of the fjord, grabbed a bag from the bench, and tore across the beach. He started jumping up the steep mountainside, zigzagging through the trees. He felt Ace suddenly stop, as if amazed, then start moving much faster, as he realised what Will was doing. Will grinned to himself, and came out from among the trees, curving round the shoulder of the mountain over rough moorland grasses lightly sprinkled with snow. It was getting lighter as he turned east; it was nearly dawn, and they were getting closer and closer by the minute. Then he saw him, just a flicker, as they covered the last mile in huge leaps, and fell into each other’s arms. They held on tight as if they never wanted to let go, whirling around in their joy.
“Oh, Ace, at last!” said Will.
“Oh, this is wonderful!” said Ace. “I thought I’d never see you again.”
“You’re home now, you’re safe at last. Oh, let me have a look at you!”
They stood at arm’s length, with their hands on each other’s shoulders, laughing happily, then buried their faces in each other’s necks, as the tears came. It just wasn’t possible to be that happy without crying. But after a while, a ray of sunlight dazzled them, and brought them to their senses.
“You’ve been travelling non-stop, haven’t you?” said Will. “You must be gasping. Look, let’s light a fire, I’ve brought loads of nice stuff, we can’t go back to camp until tomorrow.”
“OK,” said Ace, “but why can’t we? What’s been going on?”
“It’s all over,” Will explained, as they walked to the forest’s edge and gathered some sticks. “I think Gran wants the geek off camp before you get back. We’ve got a day’s leave. But I shouldn’t wonder if really he was just giving us a bit of time on our own.”
“Fantastic,” sighed Ace. “Hey, watch this, Will, I’ve learned a good trick with fires.”
“So have I!” Will laughed. “Same one - the smoke? Yes? Did it on that camping trip you missed.”

Soon they were sitting side by side on a fallen branch, looking down at the deep waters of the fjord, sipping hot tea and talking incessantly. First Ace wanted to hear what had happened last night, and Will told him every word. Ace was full of all the emotions Will had felt - wonder, shock, bewilderment and relief.
“I couldn’t have done it,” he said. “You were brilliant. I don’t think I could have obeyed that order. But why didn’t Gran let you in on what he was going to do?”
“Everyone else there knew it wasn’t really Gran, except Grybow, and she doesn’t like him. He needed my reaction, real grief, to convince them that they’d succeeded.”
“That was hard on you. But it’s some compliment, Will, that he knew you could handle it. And see the good that’s come out of it! Wish I’d had a chance to say goodbye to General Cherapont, though.”
“You will. He’s having a funeral, and it’s tomorrow. We’ll be there. I knew someone was going to die, but I never guessed it would be him. But wow, what a way to go.”
“He died with his boots on,” said Ace with respect. “What more can you ask? And that foul envoy totally discredited. How long d’you get for murder?”
“Fifty years, I think.”
“Are you sad for Jasan?” Ace asked uneasily, hoping he wasn’t butting in.
But Will was glad to talk about it.
“A bit…he’s a cold-blooded murderer, and yet, I don’t know…he was doing what he had to. He was under orders, and he stayed true to whatever he gives his loyalty to.”
“That doesn’t mean much if you gave your loyalty to something evil in the first place.”
“That’s what I mean, I think,” said Will. “You can’t win in that situation. And just once, I got the feeling he’d realised that. If he obeyed, he was dishonoured by the evil act, and if he didn’t, he was dishonoured by disloyalty.”
“Oh, I see,” said Ace. “That’s hard. Just shows you should be very careful who you give your loyalty to in the first place. But I used to think Special Brigade were just mindless thugs, and they’re not. The ones that had me, they could have been a lot nastier. But they were no rougher than they had to be.”
“Yes. We thought our enemies were monsters, and then we found out they were just elves, like us.”
Then Will sighed, and smiled.
“But don’t run away with the idea that I liked him. I didn’t. I just felt sorry for him once or twice. When he wasn’t pretending to be you. That was so gross, I couldn’t bear it. If I hadn’t known you were safe, if I hadn’t been able to talk to you….”
“But you did bear it. Very strong, Will.”
“You know what kept me going? I was determined I would never, never, call him by your name. And I didn’t. I was really pleased about that.”
“Nice. But how come it took the others so long to notice?”
“No logic,” sighed Will. “Except Hogweed. Jasan was rude to him, and Hogweed decided that as you’re never rude, it couldn’t be you. Tried to convince the others, but they wouldn’t listen, until the other day when you messaged the orders for that exercise. That got Betch and Fran thinking. But to be fair, Clover knew straight away something was wrong. The very first day. Unfortunately, it wasn’t what she thought. The whole time, I’ve had her telling me to stop sulking. Every single day.”
Ace patted his shoulder sympathetically.
“Was the likeness really that good?”
Will looked at him, consideringly.
“Yes, it was. It isn’t so good now. You look a bit different. Too thin.”
“So are you,” said Ace.
“That’s what Gran said,” laughed Will. “Your hair’s different too…it’s even brighter than ever.”
“Oh, I hoped you’d say that! I did wonder, but I couldn’t be sure. It was that wonderful milk did that, I reckon.”
“Must be good stuff. So you had a nice time on that farm, did you?”
“Mmm, yes,” said Ace, a bit too casually.
Will laughed.
“Come on, your turn,” he said. “Spit it out.”

“Oh,” groaned Ace, “it’s hard to explain. But I’d like to try. She’s beautiful - but so is Rowan. And she’s good fun - but so are Laura and Gemma. But they didn’t make me feel like this. This…burning loyalty, that really hurts, but you wouldn’t want it not to. Almost, a bit like the Tree. And yet closer, more down to earth. I almost didn’t want to leave her, yet I knew I had to, it was too much to bear, too overwhelming. But it wasn’t anything she did, she was friendly and kind. It was the way she made me feel.”
“Sounds a bit scarey, Ace.”
“A bit. You’re almost scared of doing or saying anything that would disappoint her, so you feel you’re on your best behaviour. But I’m making her sound frightening, and she isn’t. She could laugh, all right. There was this day, Will, when I was getting better, and limping about a bit, and she carried me into the barn while she milked the cow. By the way, that really is gross. You don’t want to know about that, believe me. Anyway, I saw this beam overhead and thought I’d see if I could jump up to it. Tried a bit too hard and overshot the thing, came down on the other side, and landed on this perishing cow’s head. So it starts tossing its head around, thinking, what’s this on my head? - trying to shake me off, and I’m trying to balance on its horrible hairy skull, clinging onto its horn, being swung backwards and forwards. And does she help me? No chance. Just sits there on her milking stool, having hysterics, banging her head on the cow’s side, crying with laughter.”
“I can just see it,” laughed Will.”You don’t have much luck with cows, do you? But how did you make her feel? Did she, you know, go like Rowan on you?”
“No. I think I made her laugh, more than anything. But no, that’s not fair, she grew fond of me, I know she did. But what really struck me was how interested she was in everything I said, and the intelligent questions she asked. Like, say, f’rinstance, when I told her about hibernating, she didn’t say, ‘What, like squirrels!’ like Gemma did. She just said, ‘Do you have good dreams?’ “
“Wow,” said Will. “That’s some understanding. More than David, even.”
“Exactly. Unless David understands more than he lets on. He might, you know.”
“True. He wouldn’t say as much, he’s not a girl. But it sounds to me as if she’d love to be an Ally. I bet David would like to meet her.”
“Yes,” Ace agreed, “but I’m not sure Rowan would.”
“Don’t worry about Rowan,” said Will. “She’ll grow out of it, you said so yourself. She just got stunned by your looks, that’s all. Marta sounds as if she’d still have loved you if you’d got a face like Hogweed.”
Ace thought about that, and nodded slowly.
“I think you’ve got something there. She won’t grow out of it. She was waiting for something, and she found it. This is for life.”


They sat quietly for a while, just thinking, then Ace shivered.
“I’m getting cold,” he said. “I don’t suppose you brought my jacket, did you?”
“Yes, I did. Sorry, I should have got it out, it’s in the bag.”
Ace pulled off the thin fleece he’d made from a bit of sheep’s wool, and slipped his own leather jacket on.
“Oh, that’s better,” he sighed. “I feel like me again, now. Race you up to that ridge!”
“Go on, then. One, two, three, go!”
They spent the rest of the day chasing about, just playing, delighting in being together, and stopping to chat over something else whenever they felt like it.
Will was filling Ace in on some news he’d missed.
“They announced who’d be doing weapons training with us. Not the goblins - they learn on their own - but all the imps, of course, and six of the fairies.”
“Is Dan one? She is? Phew. She’d have gone mad if she wasn’t. Who are the others? No, don’t tell me, let me guess. Crocus, definitely. Oh, and Jenny - though she’s nearly as mad as Kiefer - and Margherita. Er…Dan’s partner? What’s her name?”
“Very good! Carda, she’s called.”
“That’s it. Who’s the sixth?”
“Lilje. You know that Revebjelle who got lost, her friend. Gran Starheim’s team.”
“Oh, I know. So they reckon she’s a fighter, do they? Interesting. What other new classes are there going to be?”
“One’s Tactics. That’s just the nine team leaders, plus two others.”
“Oh, that’s dead easy,” said Ace. “You and Droz. I’m right, aren’t I?”
“Dead right. I wasn’t expecting that. But I’m very pleased, and so is Droz. He says that means they think we’re good enough to be leaders, only we happened to be in teams with even better ones.”
“ ’Course you are. You and Droz are better than some of the people who are leaders. I’m not sure Clover isn’t.”
“Clover isn’t doing weapons, so she can’t do tactics. You can’t lead armed people if you’re not armed yourself,” said Will, then wished he hadn’t.
He kept quiet. Ace could talk about it if he wanted to. If he was ready. Or not.

Ace gazed away, into the distance. Then he shook his head, and smiled.
“Right, let’s make this tent.”
“You do it,” said Will. “You missed out on this, here’s your chance to catch up. There you go. Oak, canvas, and string.”
Ace did very well, and made a ridge tent that didn’t fall down. Will helped him peg out the guy lines, and Ace used his fleece to make a covering for the ground.
“That looks good,” said Will. “I’m ready for a sleep. Come and have a beer, you’ve earned it.”
“You brought beer? Wonderful. Oh, this is nice,” said Ace, as they sat outside the tent and watched the sun go down. “What a lovely day it’s been.”
He drained his bottle, happily.
“D’you want a sleeping bag?” he asked.
“No, it’s not that cold,” said Will. “We can just curl up together, like we did when we were little.”
“Oh, didn’t we make a fuss when Cory made us have beds of our own,” laughed Ace. “How old were we then?”
Will was laughing too.
“I’m not sure. About ten, maybe? And you went, ’But what if I wake up in the middle of the night!’ like it was the end of the world!”
“That’s right, and Cory went, ‘So? You know where he is! Don’t be a baby, Ace, you’ve got to learn you’re two people, not one!’ “
“Oh, dear,” Will groaned, aching with laughter. “He was so good to us. He knew what we were in for, all along.”
“He did. He taught us a lot about fitting in with other people, without us even knowing it. Just not very much about transforming!”
“I was thinking of that, when you broke your leg. Always left things to heal by themselves, didn’t he?”
“Yes, but at least it meant that this time I knew what to do. I had to set the bone myself, Will. That didn’t half hurt.”
“That’ll be why Marta called you that ‘so brave’ thing. And I’d say she was dead right. Has it healed straight, Ace? You’re walking and jumping fine, but I know you care about what you look like.”
“I think so,” said Ace. “Have a look, tell me what you think.”

They crawled into the tent, and pulled off their boots and jackets, and Ace wriggled out of his jeans and showed Will his leg.
“The break was just here,” he said, pointing. “Same leg, a bit higher than last time.”
“It looks good. Really straight. Let’s feel it - no, there’s not even a ridge, you and Marta did a great job. You’ve got a bit of a scar, though. It broke the skin, did it? You want me to fix that?”
“Yes, please,” said Ace.
Will sat quietly for a moment, concentrating, then saw the scar tissue fade away and smooth skin take its place.
Ace took a look.
“Perfect,” he said. “Thanks.”
“Anytime,” Will smiled. “Oh, Ace, this is so nice. It’s so good to see you, I can hardly bear to waste it, going to sleep.”
“Yet this will be the first good night’s sleep you’ll have had since the middle of August. I know.”
“You too? Keep waking up, because you’re on your own? Horrible.”
“It’s over. We’re together again. Oh, Will, come here. Just let me hold you.”
They were sitting as close as they could get, they didn’t want to let go. Ace was drowning with happiness, he couldn’t have asked for anything more, but then something happened which he couldn’t have wished for, because it was beyond his wildest dreams.
“Safe, on our own,” Will whispered to him, and gently kissed him on the cheek.
Ace swallowed hard, overwhelmed, and turned in amazement to look into Will’s eyes. He saw nothing there but love and trust, and he smiled, but didn’t say a word.
Then they curled up on the fleece, close together, so that if either of them woke in the night, he could touch his twin and feel him close by. But neither of them woke. They were both tired to bone-thinness, and all they needed was unbroken sleep. And at last, together again, that was what they had.


Flags were flying from every pole when they got back to camp, the army flag, the flag of Belgium, and the flag of the 1st Regiment, in which Tilleul Cherapont had served. Ace and Will could see everyone was gathering for the funeral, and also that they were all in uniform, so they dived into their barracks to get changed.
Ace found that someone had re-made his bed, with new sheets and blankets, and his uniform was lying on top, freshly washed and neatly folded. And that wasn’t all. All the things they’d taken, his wristband, and his penknife, had been returned.
“So thoughtful,” said Ace, as they scrambled to get ready. “Oh, it’s good to be back.”
He stared a bit when he saw Will pull out a comb and tidy his hair, but Will just laughed.
“Got to look smart,” he said. “You ready? Come on, let’s just slip in with the crowd. I don’t want any fuss.”


It was a very large crowd. None of the second years had left yet, they’d all stayed on for the funeral, and so had a lot of the visitors. They were gathering in their orders, so Ace and Will joined the elves, hoping they could find some other first years.
“Ace! Over here,” hissed Betch. As they turned in relief, he added, “It is Ace, isn’t it? You can’t be too careful round here. Ach, I can tell it is, Will’s smiling.”
“Hi, Betch,” grinned Ace. “Good to see you.”
“Welcome home,” said Wayne, and hugged him.
Fran and Peter had spotted them now, and joined them. They couldn’t say anything, because a great hush had fallen over the crowd, but they smiled, and fell in behind Ace and Will, as if they were guarding them. Their great height looming so close behind him made Ace feel loved and protected. It was a nice feeling, after being alone for so long.

Then General Herdalen walked out of the Great Hall, followed by six elves from Belgium 1, carrying the slight body on a litter, covered with lime leaves. A small band of bass brass began to play a solemn tune, and marched off towards the east, followed by the general and the bearer party. The rest of the elves fell in behind, while the imps and goblins lined the route, saluting as they went past. They moved off camp, and Ace and Will heard behind them the haunting melody of the fairies’ singing, as they gathered near the general’s house, to sing the song of death and re-birth.
The elves gathered at the Great Tree, no less awesome in the daylight, and laid the general’s body in the fallen leaves. Gran stood looking thoughtfully for a minute, then said simply,
“Goodbye, Tilleul, old friend.”
He saluted the Tree and moved away, and the rest of the elves followed him, the officers by order of their rank, and then all the recruits.
“Kindness,” said Will, when it came to his turn. “That’s what I’ll remember you for. Goodbye, sir.”
Ace was thinking of the day they’d arrived, and the sadness on the general’s face as he saw how few of them there were, and remembered how many there used to be.
“One day it’ll be heaving again,” he promised, “if I’ve got anything to do with it. And I’ll think of you, on that day, and be glad.”


They marched back to camp, and joined the rest of the sprites on the Concourse, and drank wine together to the general’s memory. And slowly, people started talking again, quietly, and began to look less solemn.
“The rumours that are going round this place are incredible,” said Betch. “But what I want to know is, why did the Commander come to our hut this morning?”
“What, inside it?” said Ace. “What did she say?”
“About the mess? She just looked a bit shocked, and gave us a bit of a stare. But she didn’t say anything. She just made your bed, and put your things on it, and left.”
“The Commander did that?” said Ace. “Flipping heck.”
“Er, look out,” said Will. “Here comes the rest of your team….”
Ace was swamped with hugs from all the fairies, even Dan.
“It’s wonderful to see you all again,” he said. “I’ve missed you all so much. But put me down, will you? I want to talk to Hogweed.”
He smiled up at the goblin, who was looking so happy.
“Thank you,” he said. “Thank you so much.”
That was all, but the look in his eyes told Hogweed how pleased he was, that someone had known that imposter wasn’t him.
Clover was talking to Will. She was feeling dreadfully guilty about misunderstanding him, and it made her a bit sharp.
“Have you stopped swearing now?” she demanded.
“Been bad, has he?” Ace laughed.
“I don’t know what you mean,” said Will with dignity. “Some words are just more expressive than others, that’s all.”
“But in front of the Commander!”
“Give me a break, Clover,” sighed Will. “I’ve got less than a week left in me, and I’m as strung out as wire. In the spring I’ll make the effort. Not now.”


The sergeants were moving round the crowd, ushering everyone into the Great Hall.
“The Commander wants to speak to everyone,” said Sergeant Olt. “Be quick, now. It won’t take long.”
As they joined the flow filing into the Hall, Ace spoke quietly to Will.
“Less than a week? You must be feeling pretty dead, then.”
“Hanging on. Don’t want to waste it, you know?”
“I know. Look, squeeze in here, behind Hogweed, where no-one can see us. Lean your head on my shoulder, and have a rest. That’s it.”
When everyone was inside, the Commander flew in through the open door and took her place on the platform.
“We have said goodbye to a great sprite,” she said. “Remember his words to us all on Graduation Night. He spoke those words from the heart. Don’t forget them. I had hoped that the circumstances of his death might not become widely known, out of respect for his great modesty. But I might have known this place would be full of rumours within a day! I’ve changed my mind. It is better that all should know the truth, and that the truth should go out to the colonies, and spread through the realm. Tilleul Cherapont was murdered.”

A ripple of talking spread through the Hall, and its tone was angry.
“He was not the intended victim,” the Commander continued. “Knowing that this month his time would come, he courageously volunteered to take the place of General Herdalen, whose death was being planned. And so he was murdered by a captain from Special Brigade, who has been living among you for six weeks, in the likeness of Ace Moseley. This captain is now under arrest - and so is Envoy Mecsek, who gave him his orders.”
She had to stop again, the gasping and whispering and talking were getting too loud. She gave them a moment to give vent to their feelings, then quietened everyone with a stare.
“I’m not here to talk about politics,” she said. “But a nasty plot has been foiled, of danger to Parliament as much as to the army, and the peace of the realm has been preserved. The credit for this goes to General Herdalen, who master-minded a counter-plot of such cunning that I’m still not sure I’ve got my head round it!”
That made everyone laugh. The Commander was usually so serious, to hear her making little jokes made even the goblins realise something very good had happened.
“I wanted to give him a medal. But he declined, on the grounds that he was only doing his job. But the same cannot be said for Ace and Will Moseley, whose courage and fortitude in this matter have gone far beyond what anyone would expect of first years. How much they have endured and suffered, I will leave to them to tell you what they wish. But medals they will have, whether they like it or not. And I’m sure they don’t. Where are they? Hiding behind Hogweed? Come on, you two. Get yourselves up here.”


The Commander declared that the rest of the day would be free time. Wisely, she realised that they’d get no good work out of the first years until they’d had a chance to talk it all over, so she might as well let them get on with it. They were milling round Ace and Will as they went back out onto the Concourse, clamouring for the story, until Ace called out,
“OK, OK! We’ll tell it once, to everybody, then that’s it. I’m not talking about it again. So if you want to hear it, here goes.”
They told it together, making it funny when they could, glossing over the hardships and dangers, and skimming very lightly over the things that were a bit too private. But even when they’d finished, a lot of people had questions, and one of them was Rose.
“But Ace, how did they know where you were, to capture you in the first place?”
“I know, I was racking my brains about that one. But in the end, I reckoned it must have been one of those goblins who captured you. When the fight broke out, one of them took a good look at me, and legged it. I wondered if they’d been bribed to let someone know if anyone strayed into their territory.”
“Madge was right,” Rose whispered to Clover. “Just asking for trouble, going about with long hair.”
“I know,” sighed Clover. “But they do seem to be able to handle it.”

“Extraordinary,” said Sergeant Olt, startling Ace, who hadn’t known he was there. “I never spotted it wasn’t you. Just thought your work had slipped a bit. He did all right, that imposter, but nothing really special. But the other day, when you did the last exercise, he was brilliant. Well up to your standard. Strange, that.”
“Oh,” laughed Ace, “that really was me. I was nearly home, you see, and close enough to message the whole team. Will was describing to me what was happening…”
“…and you were directing an operation you couldn’t even see? Nice work, Ace. Very nice work indeed.”
“Thanks, Sergeant. Oh, it’s so good to be back, and see you all again. But that’s enough about us, that’s more than enough. We’ve got a free day, and we’re not swimming? Come on, let’s get in that pool!”

Ace and Will relaxed in the pool, it was lovely. They didn’t win any races, they were far too thin, they’d lost too much muscle, but that didn’t worry them. But after a while, Ace thought someone was trying to message him, but he couldn’t make out what they were saying. He heaved himself out of the pool, and shook the water out of his hair, and Will joined him.
“Was that Gran? I couldn’t make it out.”
“Yes,” said Will, “I thought he might want us to report to him. Come on, we’ll just slip off and get dressed.”
Gran had messaged Will first, asking him to report in. But he’d added something.
When I’ve finished, I’ll ask you if you want to go for a walk. Make some excuse, Will, and don’t come. If I can, I want to help Ace get over this problem he’s got about knives. It might be easier for him….
Got you, said Will. I gave him the chance to talk about that yesterday, but he didn’t take it. If he can’t talk to me, maybe he will to you.
It’s got to be sorted, said Gran. Thanks for understanding, Will.


“Good gracious, the pair of you are nothing but skin and bone!” said Gran, when they reported in. “You need some sleep.”
“Never mind, it’s nearly winter,” said Ace. “How come you can get out of having to have a medal, and we can’t!”
“Oh, you’d have to be at least a colonel to get out of that,” laughed Gran. “Shouldn’t take you long. Anyway, got a bit of news. Norway 1 have tracked down the rest of Jasan’s unit, the ones who were holding you, Ace. This will help when they come to trial. What’s the matter?”
“I’m not hearing you clearly…did you say, ‘stilt for retten’?”
“Oh, that’s because you’ve learned some Norwegian. It’s coming through as a mixture. I’ll talk more slowly…is that better?”
“Det var bedre,” said Ace, grinning.
“Get you,” said Will. “Stop it, Ace, that’s weird, you sound like Gran.”
“Hang on, now someone’s messaging me,” said Ace. “Excuse me a moment…”
They saw his face go sad, but Will cautiously winked at the general.
“That was Rose,” said Ace. “She needs some help. Clover’s really upset, breaking her heart because she was mean to you, Will.”
“Oh, no,” Will groaned. “I can’t handle this. It’s over, what does it matter, now? Fairies are weird.”
“I think you’ll have to go and cheer her up,” said Ace uneasily.
Will looked the picture of misery.
Gran messaged him. Very subtle, Will.
Had to be something good, to take that one in.
“OK,” Will sighed. “Shall I go now, sir?”
“Perhaps you’d better. I’ll explain to Ace about the trial, and he can tell you later.”

Gran explained the legal complexities, and how Jasan would be transformed back into himself.
“You’ll both have to come,” he said. “The judge will want to see you, to verify how they did it. And Will will have to testify. They’ll be very, very careful, you see, with someone of Mecsek’s importance. His rank won’t save him from prison, but it will guarantee him a very scrupulous trial.”
“He won’t get off, will he?” asked Ace.
“Not a chance,” grinned Gran. “Well, that’s my work finished for the day. I’m going for a walk. Want to come?”
“That’d be nice,” said Ace.

They wandered up through the forest, past the perimeter, to a great rock where you could catch the last of the sun, and gaze down on the camp.
“Tilleul liked this walk,” said Gran, “Thought I’d do it today.”
“Oh,” said Ace quietly.
“Hey, don’t be sad,” said Gran, sitting on the rock. “You’re too young to understand, he was tired. He was ready to go. Så tapper.”
Ace laughed.
“So brave. Yes. Easy to underestimate people who are old. Didn’t know he was so brave. Didn’t know Major Inari was so clever. Won’t make that mistake again.”
“Ah, yes. You only had my word for it that you could trust him. Obeying that order was the bravest thing you did.”
“It took some doing,” Ace admitted. “But it wasn’t as brave as what Will did. I couldn’t have done that.”
“Why not?” asked Gran gently.
“I’d have forgotten the order, when it looked like you’d be killed. I’d have lost it when…well, you know.”
“When he pulled a knife on me?”
“Just…don’t like knives. Never have.”
“There’s something wrong with people who like them,” said Gran. “They’re usually a bit unsound. But to be honest, Ace, you’re not going to get much further unless you learn to handle one.”
“I know. Weapons training. Time’s running out. Will’s carrying a knife now. Everyone is, except me.”
“Do you know why you don’t like them? Was it a dream?”
“Yes.”
“Who were you killing?”
“I don’t know!” said Ace desperately. “I couldn’t see a face! An elf…my head’s full of noise…and I’m sliding the knife into his heart. Slowly. Feeling the flesh part…and I’m enjoying it…oh, I’m going to be sick!”

He ran off, and Gran stayed where he was, thinking hard. It was no good telling youngsters that dreams didn’t always mean what you thought they did, or that they could come from evil sources as well as good ones. To him, it seemed as clear as day that this dream had been sent to frighten off a potentially great leader from ever succeeding in the army. But it was no use telling Ace that now. All he could see was the horror of actually killing. But he was brave. And he could listen….
Ace came back, looking pale and a bit shamefaced.
“Sorry, Gran. I really was sick. Used to do that when I saw blood. Pathetic.”
“It’s not pathetic. Pathetic is hiding from blood in case you’re sick. Bet you never did that, did you?”
“Well, no,” said Ace, perching on the rock again, beside the general. “And I’ve got used to it, now. What are you saying? That I could get used to knives?”
“It’s possible. You’d have to want to. Take it in stages. First get used to touching one. They can be quite beautiful, in a way. Get used to handling one, drawing it fast…there’s a lot of skill in that, you’d enjoy trying to be fastest, you know you would.”
“Well, maybe. Just talking, I can see that. But when I actually see one, that all goes, and all I can see is that image.”
“So let’s think about that. How old were you?”
“Sixteen. Right in the middle of the bad time.”
“I know. I remember. The resentment, fighting to be yourself. Frightening, to realise you’ll never be free, that your happiness depends on someone else. All twins go through that, Ace. And it resolves itself, into hatred or love. If you dreamed that dream now, it wouldn’t frighten you.”
“What, because I’m older?”
“Because you’re older, and you’ve seen more. But when you were sixteen, how many elves had you even met?”
“Two,” said Ace, smiling a bit. “Only Cory and Will.”
“The reason it’s haunted you is not because you’re afraid of knives or because you’re afraid of killing. It’s because you were afraid it was Will you were killing. Because at sixteen, deep down, there were times when you could cheerfully have killed each other, weren’t there?”
Ace just looked at him.
“But even deeper down, that was the last thing you wanted. That’s what upset you so much. So you bottled it up, against your own nature, and look what it’s done to you. Where do you think dreams come from, Ace?”
“I used to think, from memories of things that hadn’t happened yet. Like part of you already knew your own future. But now I think, maybe it’s the Tree.”
“If the Tree wanted to warn you that one day, you would be required to kill, do you think he’d have done it like that? Sent it at the worst possible time for a twin?”
“No,” said Ace. “That’s a good point. So who sent it?”
“Someone who’d like to be sure you never complete your training. But the Tree wants you to. That’s why he gave me the inspiration to help you.”
“By this, you mean?”
“No, Ace, by sending you off on your own together. Something good happened yesterday, didn’t it? Something so good it’s given you the strength to face even this.”
“Yes,” said Ace.
“Then there’s your proof. I’m not saying your dream wasn’t true prophecy. It might have been. The evil was in the timing. You going to let it beat you?”
“No…if I don’t let go of this, I’d be letting Will down. I never really thought about it before, but it’s like saying I’m still not sure of him, when he’s let go of every barrier he had, to show me how much he loves me.”
“And all the time you had a barrier of your own.”
“I honestly never realised it was that,” said Ace. “But it’s no wonder I could never talk to him about it. But how do I let go? I can’t forget the image, I’ve tried that so often.”
“Look at your image again, now. Go on, you can do it. Look at the blade in your hand, and describe it.”
“It’s silver,” gasped Ace. “It’s shining in the moonlight. Long, slim, plain…is that enough?”
“That’s enough. OK, have a breathe. Now this one,” said Gran, pulling a knife from his pocket, “is not silver. It’s plain steel, not particularly long, because it’s exactly the right size for you, and you’re…not very big. And the blade’s not plain, either, look.”
He didn’t put it into Ace’s hand. He waited for Ace to put his hand out and take it from him. It was beautiful, in a way, Ace had to admit. So perfectly proportioned, so skilfully made. As he turned it, the blade caught the light, and he saw his own name etched along the blade, in beautiful lettering, Acer.
“You made this,” said Ace. “You made this for me, and you made it beautiful, so I would like it, and knowing I’d be glad of it because you gave it to me. And you made it totally different to the one in my dream, which only the Tree could have told you, so I’d know that it could never be this one that did that thing.”
“It does sound pretty clever when you put it like that,” said Gran, pleased. “Do you like it, then?”
“Yes, I do. Thank you, Gran, I’ll treasure this. So what do you have to do?”
Quietly and calmly, Gran showed him, well-pleased to see that Ace wasn’t shuddering or suffering, just curious and interested, like any other recruit.
“I think you’ll be all right now,” he smiled. “You might have a dodgy bit when you actually start fighting, but if you do, think of yesterday. That was given to you to wipe away that dream.”


When Ace got back to camp, he could tell Will was in the team hut, so he headed that way. Rose and Clover were with him, and so were Dan and Hogweed.
“You OK, Clover?” he asked.
She’d been crying, he could see.
“I am now,” she said. “But we’ve got a bit of an emergency….”
“What’s up?”
“I really am sorry about this, Ace,” said Will. “I knew there was something else I meant to tell you. You’re doing the music tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow! I haven’t touched my guitar for weeks!”
“Dan’s tuned up for you. Plug in to the practice amp, will you? We can’t do much until I get the big amps working, and the battery’s gone flat.”
Ace didn’t waste a second. Dan passed him his guitar, and he tried to get his fingers going over the strings.
“Oh, it’s no use,” Will groaned. “Acid level’s too low. I’m going to have to drain it, expand what’s left, and re-fill the thing.”
“We can do that for you,” said Rose.
“Hydrogen, sulphur and oxygen,” said Clover. “H2SO4.”
“Stone the crows,” said Will. “Thanks, Clover!”
“Brilliant,” said Ace. “So, what are we doing? Had you chosen anything?”
“No, it’s your choice,” said Dan. “But Will said you might want to do Phoenix Rising, so I’ve been practising that.”
“Oh, definitely,” said Ace. “It just fits so well. And, it’s not too difficult. But we mustn’t repeat ourselves, so nothing we’ve done before.”
“If you want an easy one, do Running Free,” said Dan. “We’ve not done that here.”
The word ‘free’ gave Ace an idea.
“Let’s get political,” he said. “Give everyone something to think about. Open with Phoenix - gently remind everyone what we’ve been through, that we’ve earned the right to have our say - then crack into Running Free. Then, when we’re into our stride, we’ll do The Clansman, and get everyone singing on the chorus. Singing, ‘Freedom’, Droz’ll love that.”
Hogweed chuckled to himself. He’d warn all the goblins to join in at the tops of their voices. It’d be brilliant.
“And then,” said Ace defiantly, “then we hit them with the new song. Our own song.”
“Excellent,” said Will. “The time’s right, you feel?”
“The time’s perfect,” said Ace. “Let’s go.”


They practised late into the night, and the next day, although they had lessons, Sergeant Olt let them off early, knowing they hadn’t had much time. Hogweed’s friends came to carry things, and Betch and Peter got the lights out and rigged them up. The whole camp turned out to hear them, some because of what they’d done last time, and some despite it, but wanting to show their appreciation of their recent actions, if not of their music.
But the band didn’t start loud, this time. It was a gentle, almost acoustic sound. And Will was singing. That wasn’t how they’d started. Ace had taken the tune, and Will the backing vocals, as usual. But Dan had put her foot down and insisted they changed over.
“Use your sense!” she’d said. “The backing comes in a third higher! That tune’s too low for you, Ace, you make it sound growly, when it should be all wistful, quiet but strong. And the backing’s too high for Will. Swap parts!”
So they had, and it worked. Will had been very dubious, but everyone kept saying it was good. And it fitted. He was the one who’d been bereft, had the person he loved snatched away from him. So he poured into it everything he’d felt, and the terrible pain and haunting beauty made everyone cry. By the time they got to the final chorus, their voices rang out together, and the look they gave each other was too much for Gran Herdalen, who’d carried that pain half his life. That was close, much too close. He had to slip away and fight his tears. But he came back, smiling. Strength and hope were in the song too.
.
Running Free cheered everyone up, and reassured the goblins that there was still going to be plenty of noise. Then Ace sang The Clansman, and by the end, Droz was on the table, and the goblins were roaring.
Then, a bit nervous, Ace introduced the last song.
“This isn’t a cover,” he said. “We wrote it ourselves. And we mean every word of it. If you’ve never thought what we’re up against, think about it now.”
Then he hammered out the hard, accusing verses, laying out all that was wrong, and everyone was spellbound. This was human music, but the words weren’t. This was right out of their own experience, and it knocked them sideways.

There’s an enemy here in the realm, he is all around you
In the forests and fields, in the mountains and towns, in the air
He is watching and waiting, you know that he wants to control you
And the law is the whip he will use on your back, so beware

We can’t do as we please. we can’t go where we like, we are breaking
We can’t make what we want, we can’t live where we choose, do you care?
We are sleeping and not even noticing all they are taking
It’s time to wake up now, it’s time to fight back, do you dare?

Raise your hands, raise your knives
Pledge your hearts, pledge your lives,
We will rise,
We will fight,
We will be free.

Do you remember a time when the realm had a queen, times were good then
No prisons, no parliament, laws that were ancient and few
We had Allies and friends, there was strength in the realm, we were true then
If you want to know what it was like, then you know what to do

Every goblin and imp, every fairy and elf, here’s an anthem
There’s a star in a tree, and away in the north shines a light
Times are hard now, but that’s no excuse to be losing our freedom
We are gathering now, come and join us, we’re ready to fight

Raise your hands, raise your knives
Pledge your hearts, pledge your lives,
We will rise,
We will fight,
We will be free.

Then the whole band sang the chorus, until everyone had got the words, and nearly everyone was joining in.
Captain Dolfawr came to speak to General Herdalen.
“Powerful stuff, music, isn’t it? This lot would go to war right now, if you wanted them to.”
“You’re right,” said Gran, in wonder. “Two tiny elves from nowhere special, and they’ve brought half a generation onto our side.”

The Commander was just as impressed. She told Supplies to bring out some beer, knowing that when their hearts were open, and their tongues loosened, the young sprites would talk late into the night, and that tonight, they would talk of serious things, and many of them would come to important decisions about where they stood.
But just at first, the conversations were far from serious. Ace and Will had their heads down on a table, completely exhausted by their efforts. All you could see was their hair, flowing together, blond and black, while their team sat around them, making comments.
“I don’t know how we never guessed,” said Betch. “He hadn’t got the flair, not really.”
“He hadn’t got that sort of sparkle in his eyes,” said Rose, “when he knows what he’s going to say is outrageous, but he’s going to say it anyway.”
“He hadn’t got the optimism,” said Wayne. “You remember that day with the big bell tent? And he said, ‘It’s not going to work’, before it collapsed? We should have guessed, then. You’d never get a real sycamore saying something like that.”
At that, Ace managed to raise his head for a moment.
“There’s only one Ace Moseley,” he said, then collapsed again.
“One is more than enough,” said Clover.