The Ring of Five (31 page)

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reached into his pocket and handed her the little derringer. He understood the message--unknown delights would be his if he just pulled that lever, the brake....

There were two sharp reports by his ear and he jumped, his dream broken. He looked over the side and saw a long red speedboat with teak decks and polished brasswork keeping pace with the train. At the helm was Nurse Flanagan, and beside her was Longford, a long knitted scarf flowing out behind him. Nurse Flanagan, however, was examining with a scowl the neat hole in the exact center of her crisp white yachting cap. Dixie grinned and blew imaginary smoke from the barrel of the derringer.

"Are you okay?" Vandra was looking at Danny anxiously.

"Yes," he said, "I'm okay now."

"Look out!" Starling shouted. The engine swayed so violently that Danny was almost flung against the red-hot firebox. Then the Flying Westman was out in the open as she thundered onto a piece of track that was totally exposed to the sky above. Conal, seizing his opportunity, swooped. Vandra cried out as his bony hand caught her long hair. Danny, lying where he had fallen was too far away to reach her. Frantically his hands searched the pockets of his coat. He felt the outline of the tin of fingerprint powder. Vandra was lifted half out of the cab, Dixie clinging to one of her feet. In desperation, Danny ripped the lid from the tin and flung its contents at the Seraphim. The cloud of fingerprint powder caught Conal in the

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eyes. With a cry of pain Conal released Vandra and wheeled away, blinded. Still traveling at speed, the Seraphim struck the iron bridgework--so hard that Danny heard the clang--and dropped like a stone into the sea. With a scowl Nurse Flanagan slowed the speedboat and stopped beside the floating Conal.

"We're in the clear now," Dixie said. "Go, baby, go!" They could see the buildings of Tarnstone clearly in the cold morning light. But Starling looked worried.

"We're losing pressure, and the bridge is becoming unstable," he said. It was true. They could feel the bridge flexing below them, and at the same time, the engine slowing.

"Look!" Vandra said. There was a hole in one of the pipes leading from the firebox, and a jet of steam was escaping from it. Danny took the fake mustache from his pocket and jammed it in place with a piece of wood. There was a shudder as the whole bridge slipped sideways, and the Flying Westman's bell gave a mournful clang. The engine picked up speed again, the wheels struggling for grip on the tilted track. A tangle of iron girders fell off the bridge and landed with an enormous splash, sending freezing seawater over the cab.

"Hold on!" Starling shouted. The bridge lurched again and they were speeding through more spray, clinging on to anything they could find, and then the wheels bit and the engine shot forward. With an almighty crash the whole span of the bridge behind them collapsed into the sea. They were on dry land. They had made it.

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Grim-faced, Starling worked the controls as the train sped through the outskirts of Tarnstone.

"We're running out of time," he said. It was daylight now. There was smoke coming from some of the chimneys in Tarnstone.

"We need to warn Wilsons first, then get to the pumping station," Danny shouted over the noise of the engine.

"I know what to do," Dixie said. She reached up and grabbed a cord. An earsplitting whistle rent the morning air. She pulled again and again. As they passed a group of trees, a sleepy surprised face appeared on one of the lower branches--Vicky the siren rubbed her eyes and looked again. Dixie gave her a cheery wave and blew the whistle once more.

Several miles away, Devoy was the first to wake. He went to his bedroom window, looked out and saw the smoke from the train funnel speeding toward the school.

"Mr. Blackpitt?" he said. There was some mumbling; then a sleepy voice replied.

"Whassit?"

"Mr. Blackpitt. This is Master Devoy. I want the whole school roused immediately."

"The whole ... What ... At this time ...?"

"Mr. Blackpitt!"

"Yes, yes, of course, Master Devoy ..." This was followed by discontented muttering.

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Devoy dressed quickly. He went out into the corridor, where he met Brunholm, who wore a dressing gown with a garish rose pattern on it.

"I do believe our young agent may be returning to us," he said.

"In a tearing hurry too," Brunholm observed.

"Attention. Attention. All cadets, Messengers and instructors to be in the main hall in five minutes. General alert. General alert," Blackpitt intoned.

The Flying Westman halted at the end of the Wilsons branch line in a cloud of steam. Danny and the others got Les to his feet and helped him down. Moving as fast as they could, they made their way through the trees, coming out on the edge of the parade ground.

"They haven't broken through yet," Vandra panted. Danny lay down and put his ear to the ground. He could hear rumbling, and what sounded like shovels, very close.

"They won't be long!" Half carrying and half dragging their friend, Danny, Vandra and Dixie ran across the lawns behind Starling. A knot of students had gathered around the front door. There was a stunned silence when they saw Danny.

"Where's Devoy?" Danny shouted.

"I'm here," a calm voice replied. Danny turned to see Devoy and Brunholm behind him.

"There's an invasion," Danny said, gasping for breath. "They're coming up under the parade ground. A tunnel."

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"Options?" Devoy barked.

"The pumping station. We need to reverse the pumps."

"Good. We'll get all able-bodied personnel to the parade ground to hold them off. Marcus--you and I will take the pumping station!"

"We need to get the soldiers from the beach," Danny said. "They're no good down there now that the Cherbs are going to get in behind them."

"Yes," Brunholm said, "yes, of course. The soldiers. I'll deal with it directly."

Two miles away a red car sped along the road between Tarnstone and Wilsons. Nurse Flanagan was at the wheel, Longford in the passenger seat.

"We'll be just in time for the fun," Nurse Flanagan trilled gaily. A few hundred yards up the road, Vicky the siren, at her most alluring, lips parted, eyes modestly cast down, stood by the side of the road. She wanted a lift to Wilsons to see what was going on, and no motorist had ever been able to resist her.

Nurse Flanagan, however, was immune to her charms. As she drew level with Vicky, she swung the wheel violently, so that the bumper was heading straight for the siren. Vicky stared in disbelief, then launched herself into the air. The bumper swept through the space where she had been standing, and Vicky landed face-first in the bottom of a ditch filled with filthy water.

"I do find sirens rather irritating, don't you?" Nurse

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Flanagan said to Longford. "It's always 'me, me, me' with them."

Vicky lifted her head from the ditch. Her hair and clothes were wet and muddy. She stared after the car, her fists clenched and her mouth set in a hard line.

Ten minutes later all the students and teachers were outside the Stores, and the Storeman was handing out pistols, sabers, cudgels, brass knuckles and canisters of tear gas. Vandra was making Les comfortable in the hallway. Mr. Jamshid came down in the lift and examined Les, shaking his head gravely. In the hallway Messengers milled around, some of the women still in dressing gowns and curlers. Vandra could hear complaints about being got out of bed so early, and demands to know what all the fuss was about.

"Why don't you lot do something?" she demanded crossly.

"Us?" An elderly Messenger who resembled a bird with a long pointy beak looked at her in astonishment.

"Everybody else has gone to fight the Cherbs and you're just here complaining. You could fly over them and drop things or something!"

"Don't be so vulgar," another Messenger said.

"Here. Help me," Jamshid said to Vandra, getting Les to his feet.

"What's going on?" Gabriel demanded, arriving in his dressing gown.

"This ... this physick wants us to ... to fly!" the birdlike Messenger said in a whiny voice.

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Hot tears started in Vandra's eyes.

"Les was out trying to defend you lot, and look at him now!" She pointed to his broken and twisted wings. "At least you can fly. He'll never fly again!"

"How uncouth." The Messenger looked at the others for support. There was a murmur of agreement.

"I always said physicks were ill-bred," another Messenger said. Vandra kept her mouth shut tight. Gabriel stared at her with mournful eyes.

The pupils and teachers were gathered around the parade ground. The Storeman, armed with an ancient blunderbuss, perched on the roof of the Stores. Duddy, in disguise as a grenadier guardsman, crouched on the ground, clutching a rifle. Docterow had a baseball bat, while Exshaw swished a samurai sword through the air. Valant practiced a variety of martial-arts moves.

"Right," Devoy said, "the pumping station!"

"I think it's a bit late for that," came a man's voice. Devoy's face betrayed nothing. Longford and Nurse Flanagan appeared on the path to the pumping station.

"You can't stop us, Longford." Brunholm stepped forward.

"No," Longford replied, "but they can."

Behind Longford, rising into the air, appeared a deadly host of Seraphim. At their head was Conal, dried blood caked on his temple.

"We have reached the end, Devoy." Longford smiled.

"Perhaps."

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Longford pointed to the middle of the parade ground. The earth started to shift; then part of it fell inward. A Cherb soldier started to clamber out of the hole. An object hurtled through the air and struck him on the head with a loud, hollow sound. As Spitfire's wooden-backed duster fell to the ground, the Cherb tumbled back into the hole.

Nurse Flanagan reached into her hair. In one easy movement she removed a long hairpin and flung it at Spitfire. The deadly pin flew straight for the teacher's heart. Danny grabbed the Knife of Implacable Intention and threw it, intercepting the pin.

"Ah, yes, Danny," said Longford, "you'll be coming back to Grist with us tonight."

"I won't be going anywhere with you."

"You're part of the Ring of Five. Treachery is working in your heart, and sooner or later you'll betray all that you hold dear. I don't know what they tell you in the Upper World, but you are the true-born Fifth."

Danny could hear their voices in his head telling him to walk across the parade ground and join them. He imagined the rush of forbidden pleasure as he turned back to the instructors and cadets and saw the betrayed look on their faces.

"Come on, Danny." He heard Nurse Flanagan's voice in his head, low and musical. Danny shut his eyes. What would happen to his friends if he crossed? An image of Les and his broken wings came into his head. He opened his eyes.

"I'm staying here," he said, barely able to get the words out of his mouth.

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"Very well," Longford said grimly. "Attack!"

As one the Seraphim rose into the air and swooped on the defenders, the younger cadets shrieked with terror. Two Cherbs clambered out of the tunnel, followed by Rufus Ness.

"Steady now," Exshaw said, his samurai sword at the ready. "Steady!" And then the Seraphim were on them.

A mile away Vicky the siren walked up to a large building with wooden walls, talking to herself like a sulky child.

"It's not right, putting Vicky in a ditch like that. Her good dress ruined. And mud in her hair. And her shoes all wet."

Still complaining, Vicky leapt lightly up to a first-floor window and worked the latch loose.

"Thinks she's smart in her big red sports car. I was charming men off ships before Flanagan ever slapped lipstick on those two big lips of hers. I had frocks of finest satin from the trunks of poor drowned and departed ladies...."

Vicky dropped lightly to the floor inside. The shed was dim and noisy. All along one wall, large machines moved great arms up and down. Vicky jumped onto the walkway running alongside the machines.

"The Ring think Vicky doesn't know what they're up to. They must think she's stupid or something. They think this little old siren doesn't see them sneaking up here and working at night."

Vicky stopped at the first machine and examined it.

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There was a long lever on one side. She grasped the top of it and hauled until it pointed at the floor. The great arm on top stopped, then slowly began to move in the other direction. Vicky watched it with satisfaction. There was a whoosh and a loud gurgling noise from under her feet. She moved to the next machine and then the next. Soon all the pumps were moving in the opposite direction, and the whooshing and gurgling underfoot had increased. Vicky looked along the row of pumps with an air of satisfaction, skipped back up to the open window and was gone.

The sky darkened as the Seraphim fell upon the Wilsons defenders. The younger cadets shouted in terror at the sight of the lordly and stern faces. And the Seraphim sang a dread song as they descended. The instructors tried to rally the cadets. But the braver ones who stood their ground were felled by blows of the heavy maces that the Seraphim carried. Some cadets gathered round Duddy, who kept up a steady fire, while Exshaw drove off a group of Seraphim who had swept the Storeman off the roof of the Stores and were trying to finish him off. There was a loud scream from Smyck as he pointed to a forward party of Cherbs bursting from the tunnel mouth. Exspectre backed up against the wall of the Stores. To Danny's amazement Exspectre's body took on the colors of the wall, so that he faded completely into it.

"Now we know what his gift is!" Dixie said, and disappeared, to reappear in front of the leader of the Cherb