The Case of the Wayward Professor (17 page)

‘We will not let you down, sir,' said Betula.

‘You already have. You allowed the professor to escape.'

‘The manuman disappeared while we were guarding the box.'

‘You are idiots, but it is of no matter. He served his purpose.'

‘What purpose? What does the manuman box do?'

‘Yes,' agreed Acer. ‘What are we doing?'

‘You will know soon enough. Bring the case to the raised ground.'

Dirk watched Buxus and Tilia carry the silver case up the aisle, whispering as they passed under him.

‘Why won't he come out?'

‘The boss doesn't like to be seen,'

‘Shouldn't we tell him about the Mountain Dragon?'

‘Strush up. He'll be angrious if he knows we let him get away.'

They placed the case on the stage by the feet of the tall woman wearing a black trouser suit and holding a baton.

‘Salix and Acer, keep watch at the door.' Vainclaw's voice continued barking out orders. ‘Do not touch any of the humans. It doesn't take much to knock these feeble bipeds out of their stupors. Betula, stay by the case.'

The Tree Dragons stood guard, Salix and Acer by the door, Buxus and Tilia on either side of the stage and Betula in front, sniffing at a girl in a black dress with one hand held to her mouth as if miming holding a microphone.

‘My voice was the first heard by all of these pathetic humans, which means that they will do whatever I tell them,' Vainclaw announced. ‘Mister James Thackley, please stand up.'

A man in the front row, with greying hair and a smart suit, stood up. Dirk recognised him as the Prime Minister of Great Britain. To the left of the hall stood his personal security guard, trained to lay down his own life in the course of duty if necessary, and yet smiling vacantly, as the man he was paid to protect obeyed every command of the deep voice from the speakers.

‘Approach the silver case on the stage, Prime Minister Thackley.'

The Prime Minister stepped forward.

‘Do you recognise this device?'

The Prime Minister gazed uncaringly at the box and said, as though in his sleep, ‘It's the QC3000. It's a weapon. I hope I never have to use it.'

A deep thunderous laugh came through the speakers and the Tree Dragons joined in, snapping their jaws together in appreciation.

‘Quiet!' hollered Vainclaw.

Dirk had to do something to stop the Prime Minister from operating the machine. He could easily snap him out of his stupor with a whack from his tail,
but to wake up the most powerful man in Britain in a room full of dragons would be as good as starting the ultimate war himself.

‘Kinghorns, too long has our species hidden from mankind,' proclaimed Vainclaw. ‘Too long have we cowered in corners, skulked in shadows, waiting for a disease to eradicate this pest from the face of the planet, or for them to blow themselves up with their own bombs. And why did we hide? Because we were too scared to fight. We should have destroyed these hairless apes the moment they climbed down from the trees. We should have killed them when they were still banging rocks together, trying to make fire. We, who breathe fire but are too afraid to use it. Soon, we will not be afraid and I will lead all dragonkind, united as Kinghorns, into war against these soft-skinned mammals.'

Throughout this oration, the soft-skinned mammals in the hall remained seated on their uncomfortable wooden chairs, the words flying past them like paper aeroplanes.

Dirk, meanwhile, had crept silently across the rafters, stopping directly above Holly. He retrieved Grendel's claw from where it was tucked behind his wing, held it above her head, took aim and, as Vainclaw's speech finished and the Tree Dragons cheered, he dropped it.

‘Ow!' A sharp pain in Holly's skull shook her out of the beautiful trance.

For a moment she felt sad and lost without the music, then a voice, as deep as a well, cried, ‘Silence'. She was disorientated but remained still and took in the scene in front of her. The Prime Minister was standing in front of the silver case on the stage.

By his side, a Tree Dragon looked up and said, ‘What was that?'

‘What?' replied the deep voice.

‘There was a noisound from the raised ground, Vainclaw, sir.'

Holly froze. The Tree Dragon jumped on to the stage, standing on its back legs. Holly copied the looks on the faces of the other band members, smiling vaguely and staring at nothing, hoping the dragon couldn't see her shaking hands.

‘Anyone awakious up here?' asked the dragon.

Holly kept her eyes fixed firmly in one spot.

‘It's nothing,' said the Tree Dragon, jumping back down.

Holly breathed a controlled sigh of relief and noticed that lying on her lap next to the trumpet was the dragon claw. Moving her head as little, and as slowly as possible, she looked up and saw in the rafters two yellow
eyes. Dirk's head appeared and then his paw, which he put to his mouth and acted like he was speaking into a microphone. He pointed to the back of the stage and repeated the mime.

‘It's time for these short-life creatures to do what they do best and die,' continued Vainclaw's voice though the speakers.

Holly noticed that Petal's microphone had gone and realised what Dirk was trying to say. Vainclaw was using it. In order to flush him out, she had to cut the sound.

She gently placed her trumpet on the floor, slipped the claw into her pocket and dropped down to her knees. Being careful not to knock over the music stands, she crawled between the other band members, watching the movements of the Tree Dragons through the forest of legs. The plug socket was along the edge of the stage.

‘Dragons will once again take their rightful place as rulers of the world,' continued Vainclaw.

Holly waited until the Tree Dragon swung its hideous head the other way, then made her move, lying flat on the stage floor and wriggling forward. The Tree Dragon looked back and she blended to avoid being seen. She felt its eyes on her. She could hear it breathing. She waited a couple of terrified seconds then
opened one eye. It had turned away.

‘And I, Vainclaw Grandin, the first up-airer, will …'

Holly reached forward over the side of the stage and flicked the socket off.

The voice cut out.

‘What's happened?' shouted one of the Tree Dragons.

‘I don't know,' said another.

Holly remained hidden as the backstage door was pushed open. Heavy grey smoke billowed out, as though the whole building was on fire. The smoke thinned a little as it filled the hall and Holly could see a Tree Dragon cowering fearfully in the corner. In the doorway, a shape shifted inside the smoke and two yellow eyes opened. Head first, a dragon stepped into the hall. It was a Mountain Dragon, like Dirk, but its underside was a deeper green, almost the colour of Dirk's blood, and its back was crimson red. It was larger than Dirk too and, as it passed, its tail seemed to go on for ever, snaking behind its body, swinging from side to side.

The Tree Dragons bowed their heads low and whispered reverently, ‘Vainclaw Grandin … Master.'

‘Get up, you fools,' snarled the dark Mountain Dragon. His head swung round and Holly could see his face, lean and angular, his eyes, sharp and predatory,
grey smoke billowing uncontrollably from his flared nostrils. ‘Boy, why does this voice projector device no longer work?'

The door opened again and a small dark figure stepped out of the backstage room, shaking with fear, smoothing down his greasy black hair. It was Callum. ‘I …I…I… don't know,' he stammered. ‘It could be a fuse or a …'

They were using Callum. Holly realised they must have forced him to switch Petal's backing track with the Dragonsong. He must have done it when Miss Gilfeather handed him the CD.

‘Never mind,' snapped Vainclaw. ‘I will finish this face to face. Come, boy, and watch your father at work.'

The Tree Dragons snapped their teeth at Callum, and he whimpered quietly, muttering, ‘They're in my head …I can control them …'

He followed Vainclaw fearfully to the stage, where the Mountain Dragon lifted his head level with the Prime Minister's, inspecting him like a waxwork in a museum.

‘Prime Minister Thackley,' he said. ‘Open the QC3000.'

All five Tree Dragons had gathered around the silver case, their pale green eyes focused on the Prime Minister, fumbling to open it. Above them, Dirk watched from the rafters as Holly snuck back to her seat on stage, unseen.

‘Finally, we will clasp mankind's precious technology in our claws and turn it against them,' said Vainclaw.

‘How does it work, boss?' enquired Betula.

‘Is it a bomb?' asked Tilia from the other side of the stage.

‘Or a missile?' added Acer enthusiastically.

Vainclaw looked at the Tree Dragons disdainfully and growled, ‘Just keep watch and stay quiet, Bark-backs.
You'll know soon enough.'

The Prime Minister must have found the switch because the case opened, its lid lifting automatically and words appearing on the screen, illuminating his blank, expressionless face. The machine spoke in a flat electronic voice:

‘Prime Minister Thackley, please raise your right hand,' said Vainclaw.

The Prime Minister obeyed.

‘Boy, stand close and watch your father initiate the dawn of a new era.'

The Tree Dragons grunted approvingly, nudging the terrified-looking boy forward with their jagged noses. Dirk shifted in the rafters so that he was directly above and prepared to swipe the Prime Minister's hand away
with his tail, but before he could act, Holly jumped up and ran to the front of the stage. She reached out her hand to stop the Prime Minister, only to find her way blocked by Callum.

‘Callum,' she said, ‘get out of the way.'

But Callum grabbed both her wrists and clamped her down against the stage floor.

‘Do it,' he snarled, turning to Vainclaw. ‘Make him do it.'

‘Prime Minister,' said Vainclaw. ‘Place your hand on the screen.'

The emotionless voice continued to count down:

The Prime Minister reached his hand towards the screen. Dirk swung his tail, knocking it away. The Kinghorns looked up in confusion as Dirk swiped his tail again, whacking Betula on the side of the head, sending her flying across the hall.

He dropped to the floor, and reared up on to his hind legs, claws drawn, ready to fight.

‘Who is this? Get him, kill him,' ordered Vainclaw.

Acer flew at Dirk, but he ducked, whacked the back of her head and sent her crashing into the front row of
the audience. Principal Palmer, Petal's mother, Holly's dad and his wife instantly awoke from their trances to find themselves underneath what seemed to be a rather angry tree with sharp teeth and claws. They screamed and it jumped off.

‘The trees are attacking,' yelled Principal Palmer hysterically. ‘Run for the door.'

Acer flew over their heads and landed in front of the door, snapping her teeth and hissing, ‘Stay where you are, manumans.'