by Jon Robinson
‘No coins,’ Pyra said. ‘I mean martial arts. You want to learn how to fight, Ryan?’
‘I can fight already. I was the toughest in my school.’
Pyra shoved Ryan hard. He fell back into the chair. ‘What’s the big idea?’
He got up and went to shove Pyra back, but she grabbed him and effortlessly flipped him off his feet. He landed with a thud, much to the amusement of the others.
‘Ha! The look on your face,’ Elsa said, pointing at him and grinning.
Ryan swatted her hand away and hopped back up. ‘You caught me off guard,’ he grumbled. ‘You’d never get me if I was –’
Before he could finish speaking, Pyra darted to the side, hoisted him across her shoulders and gently released him on to the floor.
Ryan expelled a gust of air from his mouth. ‘What are you playing at?’ he panted, a little winded, and swiped at her feet. ‘Trying to embarrass me in front of everyone?’
He caught Jes’s eyes and blushed a little, then made another grab for Pyra’s feet. She hopped away gracefully.
‘I think you should accept her offer,’ said Jes. ‘Looks like you need the training …’
Pyra reached down and helped Ryan get to his feet. ‘Once you understand how the Ability works, you can use it in all areas where there is some degree of chance … like influencing people … like fighting …’
Ryan shifted his weight and scratched the back of his neck.
‘It gives you an edge. An advantage. And that’s exactly what you’re going to need, until the Pledge is defeated.’ She looked at the others. ‘Anyone else coming?’
‘As much as I’d like to beat Ryan up, I can’t just yet.’ Jes smiled, patting her side.
‘Looks like it’s just you and me, Ryan,’ Pyra announced.
53
Alyn and Felix were sitting in silence in the kitchen in Felix’s penthouse. Although it was only a little after noon, the sunlight was struggling to pierce the heavy grey clouds. Alyn’s tailor-made tuxedo had just been delivered and was hanging from the door.
‘Stephen will react badly when we tell him he’s expelled from the Pledge,’ said Felix, the first thing he had said in some time. ‘But alone he is no match for the rest of us. And that’s not even including Emmanuel …’
Alyn looked baffled. ‘Emmanuel? You didn’t tell me there was another member.’
‘I haven’t introduced you yet. Emmanuel is my adviser. It was his suggestion all along that we start the project.’
This was enough to quieten Alyn, who until that point was convinced Felix was the mastermind behind it all.
‘They did a good job with the tuxedo, don’t you think?’ Felix said, changing the subject.
‘Look, Felix, you got me mixed up in all of this,’ Alyn said. ‘If you want me to help you, I need to know everyone who’s involved. Everyone.’
Felix pulled himself out of the chair. ‘Emmanuel and I are due to meet. Soon. Perhaps you’d like to join us.’
‘All right. When?’
‘I don’t know,’ Felix said. ‘Whenever he decides to show himself.’
Alyn frowned. ‘I thought you were leader of this whole thing.’
‘I’m the wealthiest man in the country,’ Felix announced sternly. ‘And I’m the leader of the Pledge. I hold reality in my fingertips. Me. Not Stephen, not Emmanuel. I’m the one in charge, Alyn.’
With a sigh Alyn got to his feet and walked over to the dining table. Hanging from the back of one of the chairs was a red demonic-looking mask. Alyn slipped the mask on and stared through the window, past his own face to the reflection of the chandelier. He focused intently on the almond-shaped lights in turn, until each one went out.
‘Did you do that?’ asked Felix.
‘Yeah,’ Alyn said, staring again at the city below. ‘I did.’
‘You blew each light bulb in a row,’ Felix said. ‘Remarkable. It would normally take a room full of you to do that, and there’s no telling when it might happen. This was … instantaneous.’
Alyn removed the mask and tossed it on to the table, a satisfied smile across his lips.
He walked past Felix, who was examining the chandelier with his fingertips. ‘You’ve got an exciting future ahead of you, Alyn,’ Felix said.
54
‘What’s the best thing to do when you’re confronted, Ryan?’ asked Pyra.
Ryan had changed into a black hooded jumper for his training session. The pair were stood together in a deserted playground a hundred or so metres from the tower block, surrounded by scattering leaves.
Ryan shrugged. ‘Depends how big they are, I suppose. If they’re this big,’ he said, measuring with his hands, ‘then a headbutt should do it. Any taller than that and I’d probably just kick ’em in the –’
Pyra gestured for him to stop. ‘The best thing to do when you’re confronted is to run away, not fight. Fighting’s always a last resort. I mean, you really think Harlan and Julian could’ve fought their way past that gang?’
‘Harlan and Julian?’ He grinned. ‘Ha, not likely …’
‘You know what I mean. It could’ve easily been you and Jes there. Or you and Elsa. You ever heard of parkour?’
‘You mean, like, jumping over stuff?’
Pyra nodded. ‘The art of escape,’ she said.
She took several steps back and ran at the metal railing. Placing one hand gently on it, she sailed over effortlessly and used the momentum to sprint towards a brick wall. She leapt at the wall, using her feet to push herself up, and then pulled herself to the top. She walked a few steps along the narrow edge, turned and back-flipped. Ryan had watched the whole thing in awe, and with a sinking feeling in his stomach.
‘If you use the Ability, you’ll find it a lot easier,’ she said. ‘You’ll be able to make jumps and landings you probably wouldn’t be able to otherwise.’ She walked back over and stood beside Ryan. ‘Start with jumping that railing.’
Ryan lowered himself. He looked at Pyra, who nodded permission. After a deep breath, Ryan charged at the railing, yelling what sounded like a battle cry. As he neared it, he slowed, positioned his hands cautiously, and attempted to vault. Almost immediately he folded, his legs tangled together and he landed crumpled across the horizontal beam. He hung there, suspended for a few painful seconds, before slowly unrolling and landing on his back.
Before Pyra could say anything, Ryan was back on his feet and speeding at it a second time. Again, his feet caught and he tripped mid-air, slamming against the rubber playground surface with a dull slap.
‘Hey, I appreciate that you’re giving it another go, but –’
Ryan was up again, red-faced and yelling at the railing. He threw himself up at it, this time misplacing his hands and tying himself in a knot.
Once more he landed on his back, panting, and was a lot slower getting to his feet.
‘Ryan, you’ll be black and blue at this rate. They’ll think I beat the crap out of you. You have to really want to do it. You need to see it in your mind and convince the world and all its elements around you that you are going to make it.’
‘I can do it,’ he wheezed. He limped into a starting position, leaning into his knees. ‘I won’t let it win.’
He sprinted at the metal railing, this time in silence, his arms chopping at his sides. As he neared it, Ryan outstretched his hand and vaulted. He could see his legs rise up out of the corner of his eye. I’m doing it, he thought. I’m over …
He hit the ground with a jolt and let the momentum carry him a few extra metres.
‘Good,’ Pyra said, clapping.
‘Yeah!’ he agreed, trying to reclaim his breath. ‘It was pretty good, wasn’t it?’ Maybe this thing isn’t so bad after all.
He wiped his forehead with the sleeve of his jumper. ‘You said something before about the Ability. About it being good for fighting …’
‘And running away …’
‘And changing someone’s mind?’ Ryan asked. ‘That’s what
I want to learn next. When will you show me that?’
‘Manipulating people is something we try to avoid,’ said Pyra. ‘There are a lot of ethical problems.’
‘Sure. But you would show me at some point, right?’
‘Once you pass the basic training, maybe,’ Pyra said. ‘Whose mind are you trying to change anyway?’
‘Oh, no one’s,’ he said.
‘Go on – tell me, Ryan.’
He shrugged. ‘Just this girl,’ he said. ‘I used to fancy her a bit …’
Pyra frowned. ‘You’re trying to get her to like you?’
Ryan looked down. ‘Nah. Not really. I mean, I was just wondering.’
‘Jes,’ said Pyra. ‘That’s who you’re talking about, isn’t it?’
Ryan felt himself going red. He shook his head.
‘I could have you kicked out for saying something like that,’ Pyra said, struggling to control her anger.
‘Eh? Why are you getting so uptight about it?’ he said. ‘It’s not like I even believe all this rubbish anyway.’
Pyra glared at him and walked away. ‘You can find someone else to train you.’
The Guild had been discussing their plans in private for the past hour. A curious Elsa was loitering outside in the hall, pressing her ear against the oak doors. It was no good; she couldn’t hear a thing. She skipped round to the adjoining corridor and paused in front of the locked door at the end.
Had she really heard something coming from there last night? After all, it had been late and buildings made all kinds of creaks and groans in the night as they got cooler and contracted. That’s what her parents told her anyway. Then again, she’d woken them so many times with claims that she’d heard ghosts – and monsters – in her bedroom that they’d probably have told her anything to keep her quiet.
And what she’d heard last night hadn’t sounded like anything she’d heard before.
As she was standing there, in silence, Elsa thought she heard something. A soft scraping sound. It sounded like it came from behind the door, she thought.
She paused, then slowly brought herself level with the keyhole. ‘Hey, is someone in there?’ she whispered and immediately her pulse quickened.
Nothing. She moved closer still, pressing both hands to the door.
Again, a scrape, a shuffle. More distinct this time. Then another sound: a tap.
She got down to her knees and tried to peer underneath.
‘I thought you were told not to come here,’ said Luthan, from behind her.
Elsa gasped. ‘Oh, I’m sorry, I just – I thought I heard something.’
‘It was probably the floorboards.’ He put a hand on her shoulder and steered her away. ‘You’re under our care, which means you live by our rules. Understood?’
Elsa nodded, looking back at the door a final time.
‘So have you been practising with the coin? Do you think you might be ready to take your test soon?’
Elsa shook her head. ‘If Harlan can’t do it, I’ve got no chance.’
Luthan smiled and gestured to her and Jes’s room. ‘Your friends are all in there. Please try not to wander.’
‘Are you OK, Elsa? You look confused,’ said Jes, as Elsa came in.
‘I’m fine,’ she said, still thinking about her peculiar encounter with Luthan. ‘So what have I missed?’
‘Our favourite person,’ said Harlan, who was gazing out of the window. ‘Look.’
Elsa pushed past him and leant out. Below them, walking quickly across the frost-covered grass towards the tower block, was Julian.
‘Julian!’ Elsa shouted out of the window, waving to him.
The Guild member on guard duty approached Julian threateningly.
‘It’s all right!’ Elsa yelled down, cupping her hand round her mouth. ‘He’s one of us!’
‘I wonder what he’s after,’ Jes said. ‘Does this mean we have to watch our backs?’
‘Knowing Julian, he’s probably on the Pledge’s side by now anyway,’ Ryan remarked, cocking an eyebrow.
‘No big welcome then?’ Julian declared, extending his arms from his sides, as he was escorted to the boys’ bedroom.
‘We weren’t sure you were even coming back,’ Harlan said.
‘Changed my mind. I’ve come to make you an offer,’ he said. ‘I’m going after the Pledge.’
‘For what? Revenge?’
Julian smiled. ‘Is there anything more noble? Besides, I’ve had a few run-ins with a certain young billionaire, and I’ve taken great offence to him thinking he can outwit me …’
‘Yeah, well, you’re too late.’ Ryan sighed, folding his arms. ‘This bunch are already on it.’
‘The Pledge will be at some stupid opera thing tomorrow night,’ Elsa explained. ‘But the Guild is already planning to attack and take a hostage!’
‘And we aren’t allowed to join in,’ Ryan grumbled, flopping his head back on the pillow of his bed.
Julian wandered to the window. He breathed on the glass and made a squiggle shape with his finger. ‘The opera house it is,’ he said slowly. ‘I say we join them.’
‘And do what?’ Harlan said. ‘We’ll be walking into the lion’s den. We don’t even have a plan …’
‘There’ll be a room full of powerful and influential people,’ Julian said. ‘There’ll be cameras. And, let’s not forget, all of us are technically missing. What better time or place to tell them our story? And there’s no way the Pledge will send their thugs after us – not in front of everyone.’
‘We’ll be getting in the Guild’s way,’ Elsa declared.
‘Or they’ll be getting in ours,’ Julian answered. ‘Time’s running out. Who’s with me?’
He waited until the group had each raised their hands before giving a thin smile. ‘Then we go,’ he said. ‘Tomorrow night.’
55
It was soon Friday afternoon. After a morning of practising the Ability under the watchful eyes of Guild members, the group at last had the chance to assemble in Jes and Elsa’s bedroom for a secret meeting. They sat in a circle on the floor, while Julian gazed out of the window, his agile eyes darting back and forth in deep concentration.
‘This thing starts at six,’ Ryan said, ‘so we’ll need to leave as soon as we can to get there before everyone arrives. Trouble is, how are we gonna get in? There’ll be bouncers.’
Elsa looked at Harlan. ‘Can’t you use the Ability to make them let us in?’
‘You mean manipulation?’ Harlan shook his head. ‘That’s too advanced. I only know the basics, like affecting gravity.’
Julian snorted. ‘Put too much faith in that stuff and you stop using this,’ he said, tapping the side of his head. ‘There’s a back entrance down a side alley. If we get there early enough, the door should be unlocked for staff. What to do when we’re inside is another matter.’
‘We just need to get to the stage,’ Jes said. ‘We can announce it as soon as the performance is finished. I bet there’ll be some cameras. We’ll run on and tell the entire crowd what’s happened. It’ll be on the Internet in no time.’
‘But they’ll have plenty of security,’ Ryan said. ‘They’ll drag us off before we can say a thing and then we’ll have given ourselves to the Pledge.’
‘But we’ve got ibises!’ Elsa exclaimed. ‘A couple of us can hold them off until we get our story out, right?’
‘Count me in,’ Ryan said. ‘Never was one for speeches. But what can we say? What’ll make them listen?’
‘We tell them our names and when we went missing,’ Harlan said. ‘We tell them about the others in the prison. It’ll be all over the news. Our parents will see us …’
He looked at Elsa, whose eyes lit up at hearing this. She imagined the headline: TEENAGERS HIJACK OPERA. But when the media understood they had all been missing for several months, she was sure someone would sit up and listen. It would only take one interested party to check the forest and they’d find the prison soon enough.
; ‘They’ll realize we were telling the truth,’ she said, beaming. ‘They’ll lock up the Pledge and throw away the key … and we’ll be safe!’ She looked out of the window at the patrolling guard below. ‘Guess they thought we’d try to leave. Now we just have to find a way past him.’
‘I have an idea,’ Jes said, gathering the sheets from the beds. ‘Come with me.’
The group stealthily made their way down the winding stairwell to the second floor, avoiding the Guild members who were busy with their own preparation for the event. Jes crept along to the nearest door and turned the handle. It opened into a vast, empty open-plan room with dusty wooden floors. Jes beckoned them over to the wall of windows at the rear of the building and peered outside. From this floor, the drop was only about five metres to the grass below.
Jes tied a bedsheet round a pipe next to the window and tugged to make sure it was secure. She took another sheet and fastened both together with a firm knot.
‘Wait,’ Ryan urged, as Jes was reaching out of the window. The Guild’s sentry was ambling slowly past, looking back and forth.
‘Now,’ he urged, once the man had disappeared round the corner.
Jes dropped the bedsheet rope out of the window and turned to Julian. ‘Go on.’
‘I’m not going first …’ He backed away and gestured for Elsa to go before him.
‘Why is it always me?’ Elsa huffed under her breath. ‘Does this bedsheet thing even work in real life?’ she asked.
‘We’re about to find out,’ Julian said with an encouraging shove.
Fortunately for the group, it did, and minutes later all five were free from the tower block, hurrying to the nearest tube station.
56
‘Opera isn’t really my thing, Alyn,’ Felix said, adjusting the mask, a white half-moon shape that sat a little clumsily across his face. ‘This masquerade party is quite enough, let alone having someone warbling at me for hours.’
Alyn fiddled with his tuxedo. ‘When are we done?’ he said, before clarifying. ‘Our agreement, I mean.’
