THE LIGHT IN THE NORTH

CHAPTER 10 - David and England 1

If anyone noticed the boy sitting by the window on the 9.21 to Preston, they wouldn’t have thought there was anything odd about his slumped position, with his jacket draped across him. He couldn’t have been more than seventeen; it was natural at that age, to slump if you possibly could. They might have noticed his long black hair, his clear skin, or his fine features, but no more than that. Certainly, they’d never have guessed that he was sitting as he was because he had a very young elf sitting in the crook of his arm.


David had thought carefully about taking Aesculus, before deciding it would do him good to see a bit of the world, and see some other elves. Even if there was trouble, or fighting, that wouldn’t do him any harm. It might get it into his head that when they told him to be careful, there were good reasons for it.
So far, he was glad he’d done it. Aesculus had been overwhelmed by everything he’d seen through the window, and he’d made David smile dozens of times, to see his excitement at all the new sights, but no matter how excited he’d been he’d remembered he had to keep quiet.
His mouth had been open in astonishment at the size of the buildings in Manchester city centre, and once they’d left the city behind he’d been enraptured by the speed of the train and by the plants growing along the track. Every time he’d seen a horse chestnut, he’d jumped and waved. He stared in amazement at the River Ribble deep below them in its wooded valley, and a wistful look crossed his face, as if he would love to go and play in a place like that.
“We’re nearly there,” said David. “Come on, hop back in.”
Aesculus was used to travelling in a back-pack. David had made the whole outward-facing section comfortable for him, with mesh sides for fresh air, a nice hole just the right height for him to look out of, a pocket full of bottles of water, and a soft blanket to lie down on if he got tired. As soon as he got inside, his hands and face appeared at the window, he didn’t want to miss a thing. David stroked the tiny hand.
“You’re being very good,” he said. “I’m proud of you. We have to go for a walk now, and catch a bus. There’ll be a lot of people about, so don’t forget to hide if anyone gets too close.”
“I’ll hide,” said Aesculus. “Can I get out again on the bus?”
“If it’s quiet enough you can,” David promised.


The train drew to a halt and David climbed down and slipped through the crowds getting on for a day in Blackpool. He crossed the footbridge and went out onto Fishergate, looking for the bus stop. Number 23… it didn’t take him long to find it, and when the bus came, it was a double decker. At this time of the morning, the lower deck was full of senior citizens on their way home from the shops. He and Aesculus had the upper deck to themselves.
“I like buses!” said Aesculus. “They jump!”
“Well, they’re not supposed to,” grinned David. “The driver’s a bit heavy on the brakes, that’s all. But it’s not a long journey, we’ll soon be there.”
“And you trick the bad elves, yeah! Bad elves hurt Madge.”
“Yes, they did. And they hurt Ace, last year. And they’ll hurt you too, if they catch you. So mind you stay in your hiding-place.”
Aesculus nodded, wide-eyed and serious. David didn’t know what kind of a picture he had in his mind of these ‘bad elves’ but he suspected it was the kind of exaggerated villain he saw in the cartoons he watched on TV with Adam. He needed to see that they looked just like any other elves, so he’d always be on his guard. It was hard that he had to grow up being so careful, but it was the only way to keep him safe. Madge had said that he’d be a valuable hostage for their enemies if things started to go wrong for them.
“I can see Madge today?” asked Aesculus.
“Yes, and Heather too, if the plan works out. And if you’re very good, you might be able to meet some real elf soldiers.”
“Will Ace be there?”
“No,” said David. “I’m sorry, titch, I know you’d love to see him, but he can’t come. He’s still in Norway, and he has to stay there. He’s learning to be a soldier and he has to do as he’s told.”


When they got off the bus, David found his heart was pounding with excitement. The part he had to play was so crucial, he was hoping he could do it, and that nothing would go wrong. But he was filled with determination, and that gave him courage. He felt so honoured to be a part of all this, and especially when it was his website that had made it possible. This wasn’t just a few sprites depending on him, but loads of them, and most of them he’d never even met. And one of them was the general.
General Gran Herdalen… the stories he’d heard from Madge about him… the most senior elf in the army, a legend in his own lifetime. David gulped nervously, but he was dying to meet him.


The building site was easy to find. Ignoring the main entrance on the main road, with its metal gates, where a small digger was reversing, David turned left towards a housing estate, then followed the quiet streets back until he was alongside the site again. There, to his relief, he found a side gate, and it was open. That was just too good a chance to miss, so he slipped inside and looked around quickly for a hiding place. The best thing on offer was a stack of huge canvas nets full of sand and cement. That would do for now – the first thing was to avoid getting caught by the real builders, and David was guessing they wouldn’t be needing fresh cement at this time on a Friday.
He moved briskly, but without running, nervously expecting to hear someone shout at him, but he got away with it, and sank down behind the cover. This was better than he’d thought. The nets hid him on three sides, and the fence was behind him – no-one would spot him now unless they came right over.
So far, so good, he thought, and checked his watch. 11.40 – he was going to have a long wait. Madge had said that the builders usually went home around 2 o’clock on a Friday.
He opened his backpack and let Aesculus out.
“We’re here!” he whispered. “This is the building site, so we have to be quiet. Climb up the top there, will you, and lie very flat and still, and tell me what you can see.”
Aesculus nodded, excited at having something to do, and climbed easily up the rough canvas, even though the height of the bags to him must have seemed like a cliff face.
“Can see man on ladder,” Aesculus whispered down. “Two mans looking in a hole. No elves.”
“Good,” said David. “We don’t want any elves here yet. That’s great, thanks. They’re still working, then, and we must just wait patiently. Come on down and have a drink.”
Aesculus climbed down out of sight and then jumped onto David’s shoulder. David passed him a tiny bottle of orange juice, and pulled out a Mars bar and a can of Irn-Bru for himself. When they’d finished those, they got as comfortable as they could on the hard ground, and waited, sometimes talking in whispers, but mostly just listening to the sounds around them.


A long time later, David was alarmed to hear voices coming very close, but they went past him, and out of the side gate. Shortly after that, he heard two engines start, and realised that the builders were going out that way, to where they had left their own cars. He started getting excited again then. They were starting to go… it wouldn’t be long, now. In twos and threes, the workers left for the weekend, until finally David heard one of them say,
“Am I locking this gate?”
“No need – we’re not the last. Sam and Bobby are doing some overtime – said they’d finish off the garden for the sales office, and plant some stuff.”
“Rather them than me…”
The voices died away, and two more cars left.
This is it, thought David. Sam and Bobby must be the ones who were really elves, and this was his perfect chance to get into position, while they were messaging their friends in Special Brigade to let them know the coast was clear. And thanks to those two who’d just left, he knew exactly where to go.
“Come on, Aesculus, it’s time to move! Into the bag, and hang on tight!”

Keeping to the perimeter, David ran. He jumped across ditches and coils of plastic tubing, and ducked under timbers and machinery, his long legs eating up the yards. He reached the sales office with seconds to spare, and dived inside just before Sam and Bobby left the workmen’s hut and came towards him.
There were two rooms inside, and David went straight through to the inner one, and closed the door behind him. At once, he set down his backpack and opened it, and Aesculus jumped out, tottering around theatrically as if he was very dizzy. Despite his nerves, David had to smile.
“Sorry about that,” he said. “Are you OK? I had to move fast while I had the chance.”
“Can we do it again?” said Aesculus.
“What are you like?” said David affectionately, ruffling the glossy hair with one finger. “Not just now – we have to watch. Come on over to the window.”


The sales office was still a shell, not decorated inside. The glass in the window was thick with plaster dust.
“That’s useful,” said David. “Helps us to hide. Rub a little hole, Aesculus, the right height for you to look through.”
David did the same, and at once saw Sam and Bobby about ten metres away. They were unloading some small shrubs from a trolley, but they weren’t really looking what they were doing. All their attention was focused out towards the building site.
Thought so. This is the last direction they’ll look, thought David.
He knelt down so his head was on a level with Aesculus, who was standing on the window ledge.
“Did you see the men? Those aren’t real builders. They’re here to help the bad elves.”
He wasn’t going to explain that they were really elves themselves. He didn’t think Aesculus would be able to get his head around that, and he wasn’t sure how to explain it anyway.
“You mustn’t let them see you. This is your hiding place, and you must stay in here until it’s all over, and I come to get you. Promise?”
“Cross my heart and hope to die,” said Aesculus solemnly.
“Where did you get that one from?”
“Tony tell it me.”
“I might have guessed! Let’s watch carefully now. Tell me if you see any sprites at all.”


It wasn’t long before Special Brigade arrived. David sensed them more than saw them. If he’d hadn’t been watching so carefully he might never have spotted them, as they swarmed across to their chosen positions. It sent a chill through him to realise how good they were.
“David…”
“I see them, Aesculus.”
“Smart elves.”
“Yes…now you tell me, d’you think those might be our friends?”
“Yes, but where’s Madge?”
“No,” said David. “Those are the bad elves, titch.”
Watching Aesculus’ stunned expression, David knew it had been a good thing to bring him. But he didn’t dare look away for long. He had to watch really carefully now.


Sam and Bobby started planting the shrubs, and ignoring the new arrivals as if they didn’t even know they were there. The only give-away was that one of them kept checking a watch, as if he knew something was going to happen. They’d set their trap very well. There was only one place, really, that a fairy with a digital camera would be able to get a good, clear shot while staying in cover, and that tempting spot had been well-surrounded.
Over there, past the shed… Madge would probably aim for that upturned wheelbarrow, with a few bricks littering the ground in front of it. Would she emerge at ground level, or would she fly in? David wasn’t sure, so he kept his eyes flickering from one location to the next. But it was Aesculus who spotted her first.
“There, Madge!” he yelled.
“Where?” said David, looking around wildly.
“Down there! At the back, on top of the big thing, yellow thing!”
“The crane? How can you see that far… Aesculus, are you sure?”
“Saw her big skirt, it flapped when she landed.”
“Wow. Fair enough. Heather must be approaching from another direction, she might be behind us.” He checked his watch. “Any minute now… keep watching.”


The two outside turned their backs and went to fill watering cans. That made sense… they wanted to make it easy for their opponents, but not so easy that they got suspicious. And right then, Madge swooped down, a little blur of colour, and Heather came in from the opposite direction. They landed just in front of the wheelbarrow. There was a shimmer in the air, and suddenly their protection was there, half an army section to guard them. Looking stern, with their arms folded, they formed a semi-circle around Madge and Heather, facing outwards. From his angle, David could see them clearly, but they wouldn’t be so obvious from the garden, because of the bricks hiding them from view.
Then Heather climbed up the bricks until she could see over them… she was watching for their targets. Madge was getting something out of her basket, a slim, black object… David was puzzled. Had they decided to use a real camera after all, then? When he looked more carefully, he had to smile. It wasn’t even a camera at all, let alone a digital one. Madge was holding it like a camera, but it was only a sketch pad. Sam and Bobby came back, laughing and joking with each other, and Heather gave a signal. Madge flew up to the top of the heap of bricks, and at that point, Sam and Bobby, laughing uncontrollably, pretended to pose for a photograph. With a rustle of impressive unison, Special Brigade emerged from hiding.


“This is it! See you soon!” said David, and ran out of the building. By the time he got past the garden, Madge, Heather and the army elves had disappeared, but Special Brigade, not knowing he was coming, had been just that bit slower. Too slow… he could see them clearly, and his job now was to let them know it.
“Wow!” he shouted in mock amazement. He called over to Sam and Bobby, pretending to think they were really human. “Hey, look at this! Look at all these little creatures! Holy moly, they’re elves!”
He dived to catch one, and he was so quick, he managed it. The rest of them jumped away so fast he only caught the shimmer of their speed, but it didn’t matter. He’d seen them, they knew he’d seen them, and his work was done. He looked at the elf in his hand, who was fuming and struggling. Sam and Bobby came over, but they weren’t pretending to look surprised or stunned at all. David realised with a sinking feeling that this was where the plan started to go wrong. They weren’t staying in their assumed characters, which meant he was in big trouble.
“Who are you, and where did you suddenly come from?” said one of them suspiciously.
David backed off, trying to look calmer than he felt.
“Oh, I just came to meet someone after work, but it looks as if he’s left already,” said David. It was the story he’d had ready if he’d been challenged. “Just look at this! I mean, look at him! Aren’t you surprised? Have you seen one before? Do they live here?”
“Let him go. And don’t mess with things you don’t understand.”
“Don’t just stand there!” fumed the elf in David’s hand. “Get him off me!”
“Wow! You can talk!” said David, hoping desperately he wasn’t overdoing it. “It’s all right, I won’t hurt you. See, I’ll let you go.”
He set the elf down gently, and patted him on the head, feeling that Special Brigade as a rule would not like being patted, and least of all by humans.
The elf didn’t rush off or try to escape. He stood there with his arms folded, and addressed Sam and Bobby.
“Knock him out,” he ordered. “We’ll have to take him with us, we need to get to the bottom of this. I need to get back to my unit. Meet us in the trees as soon as you’re ready.”


David thought fast, feeling in a bit of a panic. That meant they were planning to transform him, and he didn’t want to be transformed, not by this lot. He thought about running, but was afraid of blundering into the wrong place, and spoiling the rest of the plan, and even more than that, he didn’t want to go far from Aesculus. He was going to have to fight, and hope that Madge turned up with something that would make these two run for it.
He lunged aside as one of them tried to grab him, and kicked the other one on the shins. But then the first one got his arms and twisted them behind his back, and pushed him sideways. His head crashed against the wall of the sales office, and rough wood scraped his skin. David felt he wasn’t making a very good job of this. But then he had an idea. Using all his strength, he pulled them with him closer to the window. If they did manage to transform him, he wanted Aesculus to be able to tell Madge exactly what he’d seen.
Then the one who had his arms pushed him to the ground, and the other one started kicking him. David could hardly think now for the pain, as blow after blow landed. He curled up as tightly as he could, instinctively trying to protect his head. Suddenly, he heard a ripping noise, then an almighty crash. A shower of broken glass fell around him, and his attackers were lying on either side of him, out cold, with a large wooden window frame on their heads.


Hardly daring to believe his luck, David crawled out from under the wreckage, to see two sprites looking at him with concern. One he’d never seen before, a tall and impressive elf with keen and intelligent eyes. David groaned. This had to be the general, and he had not really wanted to meet the general while crawling blood-stained and battered from beneath a broken window frame. The other one, he knew very well.
“Hi, Madge,” he said.
“Are you all right?” she demanded.
“Nothing that won’t mend,” said David.
“Sit still a minute and get your breath back,” she said. “We were so worried when we saw they’d attacked you. That wasn’t meant to happen. This is Gran Herdalen, David.”
David managed a smile. “Getting very good at emails, General,” he said. “I’m so excited to meet you at last.”
He held out the knuckle of his right forefinger and touched it to the general’s hand, that being the right way for a human to shake hands with a sprite.
“And I am very honoured to meet you,” said the general seriously. “I’ve met some good Allies in my time, but you’re the first to shed blood in the cause. I’m so sorry you got hurt. We’ll get you fixed up as soon as possible.”
“I’m just glad it wasn’t worse. Great timing.”
“Yes, great work with the window, Madge,” said Gran.
“Huh? That wasn’t me. I thought it was you?”
“No, I didn’t do it…then who… did someone else come over?”
“Oh!” said David. “It must have been… but he can’t have! That’s far too big for him, surely? He’ll have knocked himself out!”

Just then, Aesculus appeared on the window ledge, looking slightly dizzy, but crowing triumphantly and waving his fists in the air. David scrambled to his feet and went to get him.
“That was so clever!” he said. “Thanks, Aesculus. Come and see Madge.”
“Madge!” yelled Aesculus. He jumped out of David’s arms and ran towards her. She wrapped her arms round him and hugged him tight.
“So this is Aesculus,” said Gran. “Nice to meet you. Was that you, who made the window fall?”
Aesculus nodded, wide-eyed. “Was it OK? The bad men were hurting David.”
“It was brilliant,” said the general. “I should have guessed it was a Moseley. But they’re starting to come round, it’s time we weren’t here. Let’s go back to the base camp. David, you’ll have to take a detour over a bridge… Madge, can you guide him?”
Everyone moved fast. David grabbed his bag, picked Aesculus up and ran, just as Sam and Bobby were getting to their knees. Madge flew just ahead of him and guided him through the woodland and down some footpaths until he was completely lost. Eventually they came down to the motorway, and here he crossed on a footbridge, and followed Madge down even smaller footpaths until they arrived at a hidden glade with a small stream running through it. And there, on every side, were elves. And they were all cheering him.


David sank to the ground, completely overcome. He’d thought he was used to elves, but seeing so many of them, all at once, was almost incredible. It seemed as if Aesculus was feeling the same, because he was not jumping down off David’s shoulder, but nestling close to his neck, the way he did when he was scared. David looked around carefully, smiling and acknowledging all the friendly greetings. How different they all were; for the first time, he really took in the different shapes and sizes, noticed the likenesses to their trees, noticed the different personalities shining through. They weren’t even all dressed the same. There were all kinds of clothes, from that one dressed all in green, almost like he would once have expected an elf to look, to that tall thin one with the white hair, who was wearing smartly-pressed camouflage fatigues. That was the one who came forward now and spoke to him.
“So this is the last Ally,” he said. “Splendid work, young man, absolutely splendid. I am Colonel Pentreath, and these fine troops you see before you are my section, England 1.” He smiled happily, though something about his face told David that that wasn’t his usual expression. “But you’re injured… we must do something about that, first of all.”
“Exactly what I was going to suggest, Colonel,” said Madge.
Heather coaxed Aesculus down by getting him to come and watch what Madge was going to do.
“Don’t worry, David, it won’t hurt,” said Madge. “All you have to do is keep still.”
David felt something like a tickle, as if an insect had brushed his skin. He touched the side of his face and found that the grazing and deep cuts had completely disappeared.
“Thank you, Madge, that’s fantastic,” said David. “So, did it work? Did you arrest them all?”
“All but one,” said Gran. “Worked like a dream. You timed it perfectly, David, came out so fast that they were slow to react, just as we’d planned. They made for the trees as fast as they could, and at first, they only saw the ones who’d been guarding Madge and Heather. They got ready to fight it out then… until the rest of us stepped out from among the trees. Now, Special Brigade are supposed – ha! – technically supposed to ‘have regard for the rank of army staff officers’, not that they usually do, of course, but when they saw me, they weren’t sure what to do. I just said very sorrowfully that I would have to arrest them all, for the serious crime of letting themselves be seen. It’s a good job they didn’t know you were an Ally, or they’d have known that it wasn’t actually illegal at all.”
“Won’t they have guessed, by now?” asked David.
“Yes,” grinned the general. “They’ll have figured it out that they were set up, but it’s too late now.”

“The best bit,” said Madge, “was when Gran told them the police were out on manoeuvres with us, and they would take charge of them. They cheered up then – they were trying not to show it, but you could tell that they thought that their cronies would let them go, as soon as our backs were turned. So they let themselves be arrested without too much fuss, thinking it would all soon be over. But then the police came in sight – led by their own general, our very own Inula Saal. Oh, you should have seen their faces then! No-one in the police would dare step out of line when he’s around, and they knew it.”
“You won,” said David. “I’m so glad it worked. It was an awful thing they were trying to do here.”
“Yes, they made a lot of people ill,” said Gran, “and it would have got worse. But don’t say ‘you won’. We won. Great team work! I just wonder what happened to their officer. That’s why they dithered when they saw me, they were looking for a lead from someone, someone who wasn’t there.”
“Oh, that must have been the one I caught!” said David. “I thought it would look realistic if I tried to grab one of them, and I actually managed it. And yes, he must have been an officer, because he told the builders to knock me out so they could take me with them.”
“He was planning to transform you? Ruthless, then, and suspicious, too. I wonder who it was? Can you describe him?”
“Medium height,” said David thoughtfully. “Not as tall as you, sir. Jet-black hair, cut very short, almost bristly. I don’t know what tree he was, but his streaks looked very like that – I’m sorry, I don’t know your name,” he said to one of the elves, “and I’m sorry to pick on you like this, but his streaks looked a lot like yours.”
“No problem,” said the elf. “Alnus is my name, I’m an alder.”
Madge burst out laughing, and General Herdalen broke into a broad grin. So did the alder, who’d heard of his notorious namesake.
“Really? Could it really have been him? Oh, this is fantastic. Diolkos himself. He’s a colonel, you know.”
“Oh, whoops,” said David. “And I patted him on the head. I had a feeling he’d hate that.”
“You patted him on the head? Huskvarna’s second in command? Oh, I am having a very happy day, here,” grinned Gran. “And when he gets back, and tells them his whole section was arrested… boy, is he going to have some explaining to do.”


More elves were arriving, coming back from helping the police escort the prisoners. Gran explained that General Saal would stay with the local police until the trial, just keeping an eye on things, and he was just waiting now until everyone else was back, as he wanted to speak to them all. David was happy to stay too, just chatting to Gran and Colonel Pentreath, and Madge and Heather. Aesculus got bored with this and wandered off a bit closer to the younger elves, who were starting to play, in high spirits after the successful operation. He watched them chasing about, still shy. But he was edging closer, very interested, until one of them said, “Come on!” and pulled him in to play. After that, there was no stopping him, and he was jumping the stream and whizzing through the trees with the best of them.
David was delighted.
“I hope you didn’t mind me bringing him,” he said. “I thought it would be good for him – that he’d learn a lot.”
“I think it was a good idea,” said Gran. “You’re doing a fine job with him. How old is he… about eighteen months, isn’t it? He did a good job with that window. He’s learned there that if you really, really want to do something, it helps a lot.”
They sat watching the game for a while, when suddenly, someone called, “Here’s Ace!”
Aesculus screeched with joy and bounded off in that direction.
“What?” said David. “Is it?”
“Oh dear,” said Madge. “Wrong one. Come on, we’d better go and cheer him up.”


They found Aesculus beside himself, crying his eyes out, and Ace Foxfield looking absolutely stunned and wondering what he’d done. Madge fluttered to Aesculus’ side and cuddled him, and wiped his tears away.
“Cheer up, sweetheart,” she said. “You’ll see your Ace again one day. Lots of sprites have the same names, you know. There’s probably another Aesculus somewhere!”
As she’d intended, the new and startling thought drove his tears away.
“Aesculus, this is Lieutenant Ace Foxfield. Lieutenant, this little chap is Aesculus Moseley.”
“Ah,” said the lieutenant. “Now I understand. I know your Ace, he’s my friend. And d’you know what, he misses you too. He can’t wait to see you again. What shall I tell him when I see him? How high can you jump now? Want to show me?”
“Yes!” said Aesculus. As happy now as he had been sad a few moments ago, he sprang up into the nearest tree, clearing ten feet easily.
“Well done!” said Gran. “That was very good. And I’ll tell him what you did with that window, too. He’ll be so proud of you.”


The final unit got back then, and Gran called them all together. He knew very well that this section didn’t receive much praise or encouragement from their austere colonel, so he made a short speech congratulating them on their splendid teamwork and timing, and thanking them for their efforts.
“Some of you have come a long way to participate in this,” he finished. “All your efforts were worth it. We’ve won, and whatever Special Brigade try next, it won’t be rapid degeneration. That foul plan has been completely discredited, thanks to you, and thanks to David. Well done, all of you, and thank you.”
They gave the general a cheer, and after that, Colonel Pentreath began to issue orders about the way they would disperse, and where different units were to go next. David could see that it made sense that they couldn’t all go at once. He was in no hurry to get home, and had a long chat to Ace Foxfield while Aesculus was still playing. He got to hear all about the terrible time Ace and Will had had lost inside the mountain, and the pneumonia.
“Trouble seems to find them wherever they go!” David exclaimed.
“They do seem to be magnets for it,” said Ace. “But they always come out on top. Any messages for them?”
“Yes, please,” said David. “Could you tell them that I had an email from a girl called Marta, and she sends her love to both of them.”
“Email, Marta, got that,” said Ace. “I’ll remember. I guess I’ll be going back there soon, when Major Arley and Major Rhaeadr do. Have to take care of them!”


Madge and Heather, along with Ace’s unit and one other, were staying in England to give evidence at the trial. Once all the other units had left in different directions, it was time for Gran to leave too, to head back to Norway.
“I may as well come to the station with you, David,” said Gran. “I’ve got an idea. How about if Aesculus does the journey with me, by jumping?”
“Sure, no problem,” said David. “That’s a great plan, he’ll learn a lot.”


Aesculus was sad about saying goodbye to Madge and Heather, but excited about going jumping with the general. He hugged them both, and Ace too, then jumped off.
“Come on! You can’t catch me!”
“Not so fast!” shouted Gran. “David doesn’t know the way!” He rushed off, muttering. “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea…”
David couldn’t stop laughing. “I can find the motorway bridge,” he called. “Meet you there!”
He looked around him, his heart full of a kind of serious joy. He’d never had a day like this. People just had no idea.
“Goodbye, Madge, goodbye Heather! Till we meet again. Goodbye, elves!”
“Goodbye, David!” His ears were full of their voices, as he ran off to catch up with Gran.


It was very late when he got back. Adam was already in bed, and he just told his mum casually that he’d had a great day, thanks. He went up to his bedroom and lifted Aesculus carefully out of his backpack. He was fast asleep, and he didn’t wake up. David laid him gently on his bed and pulled his little boots off, then covered him up with a blanket. He looked down at him, smiling fondly. Clutched to his chest was a peaked cap, General Herdalen’s very own cap, that he had given him, and on his face was a very happy smile.
David smiled too, then switched on his computer and sat down to tell the latest news to the rest of the Allies.



In a way, Sergeant Olt had been right. The way he’d organised the mock battle had cleared the air, just not in the way he’d intended. The divisions hadn’t gone away. If anything, they were even more firmly entrenched now, but the knowledge of how close they’d come to killing each other had given them pause. The days after the battle were notable for thoughtful behaviour and generosity of spirit shown in equal measure by both sides. Through the long days of June, when the grass grew lush and thick, and the limpid light lasted all through the night, life on camp settled back into its normal routine.


One afternoon, Will quietly left General Széchenyi’s office and wandered absent-mindedly towards the Southern Forest. It was a free day, he’d been working on a computer problem, and he felt very close to a solution. It’d mean some kind of receiver at Harevollnipa… but if he could do that… and if he could get the angle right, so that the signal lost none of its strength…

He was jerked out of his thoughts as he tripped over a root. He put a hand out to steady himself, suddenly aware of what was going on around him, and frowned in surprise. He could hear an engine… two-stroke, by the sound of it. Curious, he followed the noise, then gasped out loud with delight when he saw a motorbike, all gleaming blue metal and sparkling chrome.
“Wow! That’s fantastic!” he exclaimed in admiration.
The elf who was working on it looked up, grinning, and Will’s smile faded a little as he saw that it was Rob.
Rob’s smile faded too, and Will suddenly felt that this was ridiculous. What was the point being nice to your enemies if you couldn’t be nice to your friends? Making a big effort, he smiled again and crouched down beside Rob.
“Cheer up, I don’t bite,” he said. “Well, not much, anyway. That really is awesome, Rob. Have you done all that today?”
Rob looked startled, and responded warily.
“Not the engine,” he said. “I’ve been making that for weeks. But the team got fed up of it cluttering up the hut, so I thought I’d bring it out here and make the rest of it.”
“You’ve nearly finished too, haven’t you? Fast work. Are you going to ride it?”
“I’d love to,” said Rob. “I rode on the back of one once – you know, when I was a human – and I saw what to do. D’you think anyone would mind?”
“You might get a bit of an audience,” said Will. “But I can’t see that anyone would mind. The worst you’d get would be someone shouting at you to go further away because of the noise.”
Rob laughed. “They are a bit noisy. But I’m dying to have a go of it. If only I could get the brakes to work! This cable just doesn’t seem to have enough strength. D’you think it ought to be thicker?”
Will had a look at it, then thought very carefully before answering.
“You know far more about bikes than I do,” he said. “But to me, that looks like a stronger version of the brakes you’d use on a push-bike. Don’t motorbikes have hydraulic brakes?”
“Hydraulic?” said Rob. “Fluid… cables with fluid in… that’s how they get the pressure!”
“I think so, yes,” said Will.
“Come on!” said Rob. “What are we waiting for? Let’s get cracking!”


All awkwardness gone, they worked together fast and well. Rob stripped out the cables and replaced them with hollow tubes, and Will concocted a viscous fluid to fill them with. This time, when Rob squeezed the brakes, the wheels stopped in a very satisfactory manner.
“Off you go!” said Will, delighted. “This’ll really wow them.”
“Don’t be daft,” said Rob. “Hop on the back, we’ll have a ride together!”
“Can I?”
“’Course you can! It would never have worked without you.”


Will didn’t need telling twice. He slipped onto the seat behind Rob, and felt a thrill going through him as the engine revved. He hadn’t realised how much he’d been missing things like this. He clung on tightly as they moved off across the bumpy ground, then gasped with excitement as they came out of the forest and picked up speed. He hadn’t a hope of seeing where they were going, not over the shoulders of someone the size of Rob, but he didn’t care. The connection with the machine was awesome… to be actually sitting on top of the engine, to feel the wind in your face, to lean into the curves… he was enjoying every minute of it.

Rob kept to the quieter paths on the west side of camp, but Will could see people stopping to stare, and some of them cheered or waved. They’d just cleared the big bend near the gatehouse when Rob slowed down, and Will leaned round to see why. There, crossing the path in front of them were Lilje and Revebjelle, pushing a cart loaded high with clean sheets. The fairies stopped to stare, then tried to hurry out of the way. They stepped back, then seemed to change their minds and rushed forward instead. Rob swerved one way and then the other, and then suddenly he veered off the track, going even faster.
“Jump, Will!” he shouted. “The accelerator’s jammed!”
“Change down!” Will yelled back, but either Rob didn’t hear him, or they were going too fast for it to make any difference. They didn’t get time to jump. The next thing they knew, they were flat on their backs, listening to an ominous crashing sound and the noise of breaking glass.

Will sat up, feeling very dazed, and saw the bike upside down with its front wheel still turning, surrounded by the remains of one of the walls of the night duty room.
“Whoops,” said Rob.
Lilje and Revebjelle came running over.
“Are you all right?” Lilje demanded. She didn’t make any cutting remarks about human inventions, but just checked they weren’t injured. They were bruised and shaken, but they insisted they were fine, so finally the two fairies went to get on with what they were doing.
“Better get this fixed before anyone notices,” said Rob.
“Dead right,” said Will, though he had a feeling it was a bit optimistic to think they’d get away with it, this close to Police HQ. Sure enough, not a minute later, Corporal Dwingeloo came to investigate.
“Hmm,” he said. “You’re doing a good job there. Get it finished. But you’ll still have to report it. Major damage is major damage, even if you fix it.”
“Oh, give us a break, Corporal,” said Will. “There’s no harm done.”
“Can’t help that,” said the corporal. “That’s the rules. Report to Sergeant Kopec. Nice bike, though,” he added, as he wandered away.


Seeing there was no help for it, they quickly finished mending the wall, and wheeled the bike along with them.
“Is it all right?” asked Will.
“I think so,” said Rob. “I must look at that accelerator, though. Sorry about that.”
“Hey, don’t worry,” said Will. “I loved every minute of it. Let me know if you want any help. And thanks for the ride. It was glorious.”
They shared a guilty grin as they knocked on the door of Sergeant Kopec’s office. Will felt a bit silly, getting in trouble as if he was a first year, but he wasn’t expecting anything too drastic by way of a punishment, as they hadn’t really caused much damage. But Sergeant Kopec didn’t see it like that. He wasn’t impressed at all.
“You two are known supporters of the cause,” he said sternly. “You’ve brought it into disrespect by such silly behaviour. Not everyone is sure about human technology, and if you make things you can’t handle, and cause disruption, they’ll only be confirmed in their prejudices. And how’s that going to help?”
They had no answer to that, not having thought of it that way at all.
“Take an hour under the clock, Rob Royden,” said the sergeant, “starting now. And mind you think about what I’ve just said. As for you, Will Moseley, you’re a second year and you ought to know better. Confined to barracks for twenty-four hours, starting midnight. Report it to your team leader.”
What? thought Will, horrified. He just managed to keep his wits enough not to argue, and somehow they got outside. Will pulled himself together. He didn’t want Rob to think he was blaming him.
“At least he didn’t tell you to get rid of the bike,” he said.
“True,” said Rob, cheering up. “I guess it could have been worse. But it was worse for you. I’m sorry you got in trouble.”
“Listen, Rob,” said Will cheerfully. “Anytime you want to go riding through walls, you call me first, d’you hear?”
“OK, Will,” Rob grinned back, and there was nothing forced about the smile they shared that time. Each of them knew that he’d made a new friend.


It was usually Ace who liked to get bad things over and done with quickly, and Will who preferred to put them off as long as possible, but not today. The only thing worse than having to tell Ace he was in trouble was the thought of someone else – Phil, perhaps – telling him first.
He stood still, concentrating. Ace had been going to referee a football match between the first and second year goblins, but that had been hours ago, he could be anywhere now. After a moment, he had the direction, and decided Ace must be in the swimming pool, so he messaged him.
No rush, he thought. But when you’ve finished, I need you. Meet me in the hut?
Was just finishing, anyway, Ace thought back. I’m on my way.


There was no-one in the hut, but someone – probably Stella – had been in there earlier, for the place was fresh and clean and the window was open. Will sat down in his own chair, the one with willow leaves carved on the back, and leaned his arms on the table. He was dreading this. He didn’t know if Sergeant Kopec had done it on purpose, but he could hardly have dreamed up a more embarrassing punishment.
Will laid his head on his arm, idly tracing the outline of his streaks with his finger, and wondering what on earth he was going to say. He wasn’t going to get long to think, because Ace was coming pretty fast.
“What’s wrong?” said Ace, as soon as he came in the door.
Will opened his mouth to answer, but no words came out. He screwed his face up, thinking.
Ace obviously realised this was going to take some time, and came to sit down opposite him.
“This is really embarrassing,” Will groaned.
“What is? Hey, come on. There’s nothing you can’t tell me… is there?”
“Actually, I think I’m supposed to stand up,” said Will. “But if you’ll let me off that bit, I’d be profoundly grateful.” He took a deep breath and clenched his fist. “I have to make a formal report to you,” he gulped. “As team leader. That I’m… well, I’m confined to barracks. Tomorrow. All day.”
Will laid his head down on his arms again, and screwed his eyes shut.


Ace was completely quiet for a moment, then he ruffled Will’s hair.
“Noted,” he said gently. “Cheer up! That’s the worst bit over and done with, isn’t it? What did you do?”
“Crashed into the night-duty room and knocked a wall down. On a motorbike. With Rob. He got the clock. From Sergeant Kopec, it was. But not for the damage… he was more bothered that we were damaging the cause, by making things we couldn’t control.”
“That’s daft,” said Ace. “People like Cor aren’t going to be impressed by motorbikes, whether they’re well-controlled or not. Are you OK? Did you hurt yourself?”
“No, I’m fine, thanks. We were thrown clear, the throttle jammed, that was all. It’s a beautiful bike. Rob made it… I just helped him at the end, with the brakes, and he took me for a ride.”
“You’ve made it up? You and Rob? That’s brilliant.”
Will just nodded, with a smile, feeling more at peace now.
“Then I’d call that a great day’s work,” said Ace. “I have to admit, you two really puzzled me and Phil, why you didn’t like each other, when in a lot of ways, you’re quite alike. But Clover said that was why.”
“She’s probably got something there,” said Will. “I think it’ll be all right now. He really understands engines. But tell me the worst. Have you got your instructions for tomorrow from Sergeant Olt? What am I going to miss?”
“I wish I could tell you it was something boring,” said Ace, “but it isn’t. The elves have to cross camp without touching the ground… and you know we’ve been practising windsurfing in unison. We’re allowed to use that, if the wind’s right. The fairies are supposed to stop us, but only using whistling as communication, which is what they’ve been practising.”
Will groaned and banged his head on the table.
“That’s going to be well good fun. Oh, not fair, not fair!”
“I know,” said Ace. “But what you have to hang on to here, is that making friends with Rob is worth missing even this.”
“I suppose,” sighed Will. “This’ll be why we had to learn the different whistles in Tactics. If you understand them, it’ll help you avoid them.”
“Yes, and help our own fairies, if I can,” said Ace with a wicked grin.
“Always one step ahead, aren’t you? Great thinking, Ace.”


Next morning, Ace came back to the hut after breakfast with a big mug of tea in his hand, to find Will resignedly starting to clean the hut. Will was grateful for the tea, but watched Ace warily. He’d been pretty sympathetic yesterday, but Will was quite sure he wasn’t going to get away without any winding-up, and he was right.
“Lovely day out there,” said Ace brightly. “Sunny and bright, not too hot… and the wind’s getting up.”
“You’re really enjoying this, aren’t you?”
“Well, I like new experiences, you know that. This’ll be one in the eye for certain fairies I could mention, who think that you’re basically a well-behaved sort of person, and that it’s always my fault when we get into trouble.” He shook his head sadly. “How wrong can you be?”
“Carry on,” said Will. “You enjoy yourself. Oh, this is going to be so boring.”
“It’s meant to be,” said Ace, trying to look very serious and not managing it. “It’s supposed to make you think over your bad behaviour. Well, I’d better leave you to it.”
“Yeah, you get off, Ace, you’re going to be late.”
But he didn’t go, he just leaned against the bunk, looking at the floor.
“What’s the matter?” said Will.
“I… oh, nothing, really. I just have a bad feeling about today, that it won’t go well. Nothing goes well for me when you’re not around.”
“Oh, Ace, you mustn’t feel like that! You’re getting a bit superstitious about this. It won’t make any difference. You think of all your great ideas on your own, don’t you?”
“I know, but it’s because you’re there that I can do it.”
“Remember what Gran said? We have to be able to operate independently when we need to.”
“That’s true. You’re right, of course… but it does make a difference. You won’t be there, grinning and giving out all that calm confidence that nothing’ll go wrong, and understanding what I mean without having to explain everything.”
“Is that what I do?” Will thought for a moment. “Well… swap shirts, then.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Trust me, just do it.”
Ace pulled his shirt off and put Will’s on.
“This is disgusting, Will, it’s got an acid burn on it and it stinks of oil.”
“Yeah, I know,” grinned Will. “But you won’t feel I’m not there now, will you?”
Ace smiled, gave Will a quick, fierce hug, then headed for the door.
“Get thinking about your heinous crimes,” he said, then ducked out before a boot hit him.


Whether the shirt had made the difference, Ace didn’t really know, but he was feeling happy about how the day had gone when he came back early in the evening to see Will. The elves had won, overall, but Ace had made sure that the points his own team had gained hadn’t been at the expense of their own fairies. That had taken huge amounts of concentration and listening, so he was pleased he’d managed it, and you couldn’t complain about being up in the canopy on a windy summer’s day. The windsurfing had been great.
He didn’t go on about that to Will, though, just told him what had happened.
Will stopped what he was doing to listen with interest, but Ace could see he’d been busy. His bunk was covered with papers. There were sketch maps, sectional drawings, equations, diagrams and page after page of notes.
“This for the Internet?” asked Ace.
“Sure is,” said Will. “Today’s been a big help. It was so quiet, the final piece fell into place. Basically, it’s just using wi-fi, so we can share the connection with Gran’s Ally in Hella. Working out the number of antennae we’d need and where to hide them – that was just map work, really. I knew we’d have to transmit the signal up the mountain. The problem was how to get it down again. But I’ve got it now, and it’s really simple. All we need is a parabolic dish. The signal strength will be really weak by the time it gets here, and the connection speed will be appalling, but it’ll work, that’s the main thing.”
“Genius,” said Ace. “This is so exciting. I can’t wait to answer Marta’s message. And we’ll be able to get news from home! Are you going to make all these things yourself?”
“No, it’d take too long, and the stores here don’t have the right materials. Colonel Dünnwald’s going to organise it. All I have to do is work out how to do it, then write it all down. Gran’s going to send it to him using the new code.”
“And that’s what all these pages are, is it? There’s loads of it!”
“Can’t send diagrams via Signals,” Will explained. “Everything’s got to be described in full. But if I keep at it, I’ll finish it tonight. I’m almost there.”
“Can’t see Gran patiently transcribing this lot into code,” said Ace. “You know what, Will, I bet he when he sees this, he’ll send you the code-word.”
“I don’t mind if he does,” laughed Will. “It wouldn’t take me as long, because I already know what it says.”
“I was coming to keep you company for the evening,” said Ace, “but I guess you’d rather get this done, wouldn’t you?”
“Yeah, I’d better,” said Will. “But thanks for coming. You get yourself off to the mess. You’ve earned it.”


The mood was cheerful in the mess that night, as they all laughed over the day. The fairies were trying to teach the elves how to whistle, and getting nearly hysterical over their feeble attempts. In the officers’ mess, there was quiet cheer too, as some news that had just come in passed from one to another. For once, Special Brigade hadn’t got away with it. They’d all got six months, and Colonel Diolkos had been convicted in his absence. Better still, Madge and Heather had been listened to, and the story of what had really been going on there was now passing through the realm.


But not everyone was happy. At his desk in Signals, Collen Dolfawr was feeling quite distraught.
“D’you think it would help if we counted the votes again?” he said, running his hands through his hair.
“We’ve already counted them twice,” said Poppy. “It came out the same each time.”
“Then we’ll have to make an exception this year. This is never going to work!”
Poppy folded her arms and drew herself up to her full height.
“This is a very ancient tradition!” she exclaimed. “Are you seriously suggesting that we abandon a tradition, at a time like this?”
“I know, but…”
“But nothing,” said Poppy. “They won, fair and square. You’ll have to let them play.”
Captain Dolfawr’s face was the picture of misery.
“I think you’re right,” he sighed. “But what sort of a Midsummer’s Eve is this going to be? How on earth can we have the music for the ring dancing played by a heavy metal band?”


At midnight, as soon as his time was up, Will slipped out of the hut and posted a thick wad of notes under Gran’s door. Then, feeling tired but satisfied at a job well done, he wandered back, enjoying the cool fresh air and the light night after being cooped up indoors all day. Half an hour later, he had a message from Gran.
Great work, Will. Don’t understand a word of it, but I can see it’s brilliant.
Thanks, Gran. Want me to do the transcribing?
You’re a star. I hoped you’d say that. Colonel Dünnwald’s code-word is ectoplasm.