little while to coax this one up the hill.’
The gazelle next to him trembled under the weight of several dozen stares. He ushered it to a seat and then made his way down to the lectern. Every eye in the room followed him, many fixed on his enormous claws, which looked like they could probably shear a horse in half. Ryan glanced at Sophie and was hoping she wasn’t thinking the same thing.
As Madame Birchwood retreated to the back of the stage, a deathly hush fell across the assembled newcomers. They knew that their answers were coming.
‘Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls,’ boomed Rockwell suddenly. ‘Beasts, birds and extra-terrestrial beings. Robots, androids, mechanised creatures all. Spirits, elementals, plant-folk and the weird and wonderful offspring of everything in between – in which category I include myself,’ he clicked his claws loudly, which brought a smattering of laughter from his audience. ‘Welcome! Welcome to you all! This is the place where dreams are made, and it is our job to make them the best they can possibly be. Here at the Academy we look after the dreams of our countrymen, making sure that those who would seek to disrupt them fail in the attempt.
‘Make no mistake my friends; the sleeping world you enter every time you settle down into your beds is just as dangerous as that of the waking, and while people such as yourselves have the capacity – although perhaps not yet the ability – to defend yourselves, there are millions of others on earth who are vulnerable when they are asleep. Presidents, business tycoons, religious leaders and celebrities; some of the richest and most powerful people on the planet, all rendered weak and helpless the moment they close their eyes at night. This is because they lack the wild imaginations that we are all blessed with. It is our job to protect such people from those who would wish to take advantage of their vulnerability.
‘And mark my words, such people exist; people very much like us, but who have taken their gift and chosen to misuse it. They seek to harass the weak-minded; to twist their dreams and corrupt their thoughts to further their own wicked ends, be they political, financial or even terrorism.
‘We need you all to help us to stand up to the ever-growing challenge faced by the Academy; to foil these people and ensure that balance is maintained throughout this realm and the one beneath. We will train you to use your gifts – your own limitless imaginations – to make anything and everything happen, from manipulating the world around you, to creating something out of nothing. You will share adventures, experience new sensations and see things that most people could never and will never dream of. Again I say welcome. We are the Academy. Your future awaits.’
He stepped back from the lectern and immediately a flurry of conversation and excitement swept around the amphitheatre. Ryan gave Sophie a dubious glance that she returned blankly. Down on the stage Madame Birchwood had returned to the lectern and was gesturing for silence.
‘You will be divided into groups in which you will learn to develop and use your abilities. As you progress, you will be assigned practical tasks that will further your learning and also aid the cause of the Academy. I will now read out names, and when yours comes up please make your way down to the front and I will assign you to a tutor.’
Four people got up from seats at the side of the stage and joined her. One was a woman dressed in pirate garb, while another was a donkey whose feet clattered noisily as it trotted across the stage. The third was an enormous herbivorous dinosaur that somehow Ryan had failed to notice up until that point. The fourth person was Tristram.
As Madame Birchwood prepared to run down her list, Rockwell strode forwards again and whispered in her ear.
‘I understand that several of you are acquainted with one another in the waking world,’ she said, addressing the room. Ryan’s heart began to sink. ‘As such an occurrence is unprecedented we have decided to keep you together to see whether your friendship aids your learning. Would you all please come down to the front.’
‘Great,’ said Sophie. ‘Just what I wanted; Billy Richards in my group.’
‘You really don’t like him do you?’ said Ryan, getting reluctantly to his feet.
‘He just does my head in,’ replied Sophie, following him down the stairs. ‘Always has done.’
They reached the stage at the same time as Daisy and Billy arrived from the other side. The motley assortment of figures on the stage peered down at them. Tristram gave Ryan a wink.
‘An interesting mix,’ said Rockwell thoughtfully. ‘I’ll be watching your progress keenly. I hear that you are already acquainted with Mr Ainsworth. You’ll be glad to hear that he will be looking after you for the time being. He is more than just a pretty face and you will learn a lot from him. Welcome.’
The four kids looked at one another with expressions ranging from utter joy to total apathy. Daisy smiled and leapt up on stage next to Tristram. The others reluctantly followed her example.
Madame Birchwood stepped forward again and lifted up a ream of paper.
‘Joseph Ajomo!’ she called.
A dark-skinned boy with the legs of a zebra rose to his feet and strode confidently down the stairs. Madame Birchwood appraised him as he approached.
‘Very good Mr Ajomo. Please join Miss van Arnen on stage.’
Joseph suddenly looked uncertain. Madame Birchwood smiled.
‘It’s okay young man. You can’t miss her.’
She nodded in the direction of the huge dinosaur, who peered down at the boy with a broad smile. Ryan looked at the scene and tried to convince himself he was not going bonkers. Joseph climbed onto the stage and stood next to the dinosaur, whose knee was at the same height as his head.
‘Stelios Aragounis,’ called Madame Birchwood.
A tall lad dressed like a Trojan warrior stood up and made his way down towards them.
‘Right, we’ll stick you with Captain Ancona,’ said Madame Birchwood, indicating the pirate woman.
‘Zheng Li Cheung.’
Down came a robotic praying mantis. Madame Birchwood raised her eyebrows.
‘Well, that’s the first one of those we’ve had,’ she said, looking over her shoulder at Rockwell. ‘I think Captain Ancona should deal with you too.’
The mantis scuttled onto the stage next to the pirate.
‘Helena Dimitov.’
A girl whose body appeared to be made entirely of water rose and flowed her way down to the front.
‘Ah, an elemental,’ smiled Madame Birchwood. ‘Dr Chebinski will be happy. Won’t you doctor?’
‘Most certainly,’ said the donkey in a thick Russian accent. ‘A most interesting specimen.’
And so it continued, until the last of the newcomers had been called down and assigned a tutor. The groups were roughly even in number, with a mixture of avatar types in each. Madame Birchwood had taken a group of her own.
When they were done, Rockwell took a step down from the stage and turned to face them all.
‘We live in interesting times,’ he said. ‘I’m relying on each of you to fulfil your potential. Don’t let me down.’
And with that, he made his way up the stairs and left the amphitheatre.
‘Well then,’ said Tristram, turning to his group. ‘Best get started hadn’t we? Let’s find somewhere to sit down and I’ll answer any of your remaining questions.’
He ushered them up the stairs and out of the room. They followed him down one level and out onto the balcony, where they were once again able to appreciate the phenomenal view out across the island. Tristram took them to one side and perched himself on a railing, while the others gathered round him. In their group was a fairy and a boy with the head of a goat and mechanical legs much like Ryan’s. There was also a cowboy, a girl made entirely of stone, a bird shaped like an eagle but coloured like a scarlet macaw, and a lad whose skin appeared to change hue to match his surroundings.
Tristram smiled broadly at them all. Clearly there were no real surprises in the group.
‘I thought I’d bring you out here as it’s much more pleasan
t than the stuffy classrooms across the way. You’ll see people coming and going but it should be pretty quiet. Everyone comfortable?’
The group had seated themselves in a semicircle round him and they all nodded, although the sun was in their eyes and many of them had to squint to look at him. Tristram spread his wings out to shield them from its glare.
‘Okay, for those of you who haven’t met me before, my name is Tristram Ainsworth and I’m an Inductor here at the Academy. My job is to familiarise you all with this place and teach you the basics of becoming a Dreamweaver. Now, do you all understand why you’re here?’
‘Because we have good imaginations, no?’ offered the goat-headed boy, who sounded French.
‘Well, that’s how you came to be here, yes, but do you all understand why you’ve been brought to the Academy?’
‘To fight some nasty army who are invading people’s minds,’ said Billy flatly.
‘A bit crude, but in essence that is correct. Here at the Academy our resources are stretched and we are in need of new recruits to aid in our work. Now, does anyone have a problem with that in principle?’
The kids looked at one another to see who would speak up. Eventually it was the eagle who asked the question that was on most of their lips.
‘Will it be dangerous?’ came the female voice. An Irish lilt was clear, despite the beak.
‘Maybe,’ said Tristram openly. ‘Less so at first, but as you progress the challenges will increase. However, we will