At first it was just a tickle, as if someone were teasing her arm with the tip of a pencil, but then it jabbed into her, a claw securing its ground. One tentative glance down confirmed the last thing Phoenie wanted to know: it was a leg; a long, hairy leg that could belong to one creature. Phoenie held the scream in her throat, her body trembling as a second leg unfurled from the hedge and dug another claw into her arm. Any sudden move and the guards would be onto them, if she stayed still, it would come after her! Of all the possible situations to be in…

Clank. Clank. Clank.

The guards would soon be passing by on the other side of the hedge, their crimson robes visible through the wall of leaves. Then a third and fourth leg emerged, and between the foliage Phoenie could see its body shifting, rustling leaves as its bulk pushed them out of its way. Why now? Why couldn’t it go away? Why her? Why?

Its eyes caught the dull light of the grey sky and she was certain it was looking at her. It knew how she felt, it understood her fear! It was coming to get her! It slipped out of the hedge and scrambled for her throat.

Lyra’s hand covered Phoenie’s mouth before the scream could escape, and it was only then that she realised the creature was nowhere near her. Doyle swatted it was with the back of his hand and was about to deliver a killing blow with his boot when Lyra pushed Phoenie out of the way and punched him in the arm.

“Leave it alone,” she hissed.

Phoenie took a deep breath and watched as the creature scuttled away. It was no bigger than the palm of her hand, but the mere sight of such a thing brought back too many painful memories.

And then the clunking of the guards stopped.

“What was that noise?” asked a startled voice.

Clank. Clank. Clank. All the guards had to do was look around the other side of the hedge. The students couldn’t even chance a run. They were trapped and defeated before they’d even infiltrated the base.

Clank. Clank. CLANK.

“Just a damned mutant,” said another voice over the sound of his stave grinding on the concrete. The rhythmic sound began again, and the guards continued along their way.

Lyra was trembling, her teeth grinding as if they were crushing the guards just as casually as the guards had crushed the mutant. Phoenie took her arm and pulled her away, as Doyle began the final race towards the manor, and the secret entrance concealed by holograms.

***

Chris was really starting to regret his decision now. Really. He’d had visions of storming an impenetrable fortress single-handed, while the other students languished in fear of the danger that awaited them. Except Elone, who would follow her new hero, only to be captured by the enemy and sentenced to inhumane torture Chris would save her from at the last possible moment. And then he’d rescue all the other girls that evil mastermind Wotan had captured, before delivering a witty put-down when the bishop’s own evil schemes doomed him to destruction. That was how it happened in the movies!

But, instead, Chris had been relegated to back-up duty by that annoying, do-gooding Little-Miss-Perfect-Student (freak student) Phoenix Rogan. And not only was it back-up duty, it was back-up duty with two of the most annoying boys he knew: spotty Joel Gibson and his perma-PMT (solid proof that guys suffered it just as much as girls!) and that creepy freak Dante Orpheus. Even having Elone around wasn’t enough to make up for that disastrous pairing, though at least she shared his frustrations.

Chapter 17
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