series of deafening explosions tore at their ear drums as the pilings holding the bridge up detonated one by one. Even the heavily-sprung buggy was unable to absorb the shockwaves and Tristram swore loudly as he fought to keep it on the bridge.
‘They’re destroying the bridge!’ shouted Billy.
‘Thanks for that,’ replied Tristram as cracks and holes began to appear in the roadway.
They were over half-way across, but the buggy was already going at full speed and it did not look like they had enough time to reach the far side before the bridge was swallowed up by the river. The buggy bucked and swerved as Tristram wrestled it between sections of road which were now falling away from one another. It was all the others could do to stay on board as they were tossed around by the bumpy landings and quick changes in direction. All the while there was still a hail of gunfire for them to contend with.
‘Isn’t this one of those times when a bit of Dreamweaving wouldn’t go amiss?’ shouted Ryan.
‘Maybe,’ returned Tristram. ‘I think we’re about to find out. Hang on!’
Daisy and Ryan craned their necks round and saw a gaping chasm opening up between them and the far end of the roadway. Unless Ryan had unwittingly fitted the buggy with wings and a rocket motor they were never going to make it. In a last breathless moment, the buggy left the final piece of crumbling roadway and plunged into the void. The engine screamed its objection as Tristram kept the accelerator well and truly buried. The three passengers braced themselves for the impact.
As the front wheels ploughed into the water everything around them was lost in a shower of spray. Strangely though, there was less of a sensation of slowing down than they expected, and a moment later Ryan realised why; they were still going forwards. A combination of their momentum and the buoyancy of the gigantic wheels was allowing them to stay afloat, while the thick rubber tread thrashed at the water, propelling them along.
‘What do you know? It works!’ cried Tristram in astonishment, as they headed between the pilings that held up the remainder of the bridge.
‘Yeah, but look out for that pillar!’ cried Billy as they careered towards a huge tower of concrete, sticking out of the water.
Tristram wrenched the wheel left, then right, but only succeeded in showering them all with water.
‘I’m afraid the steering is not quite what it was,’ he shouted.
He reached down to flick the buggy into reverse, but there was no time. The driver’s-side wheel crashed into the pillar, tearing the suspension off and sending the rest of the vehicle cartwheeling into the water. Ryan and Daisy, who had spent the past few minutes hanging on for dear life, finally let go and were hurled clear, landing in water that was waist deep and shatteringly cold.
‘Tristram! Billy!’ cried Daisy, almost before she had resurfaced.
Looking back, the remains of the monster golf buggy were upside down next to the piling, while their two companions were nowhere to be seen. Daisy immediately began wading back out towards it, but Ryan lunged forwards and grabbed her.
‘Dizz wait,’ he said.
‘Ryan, they may be trapped under there. We’ve got to help them.’
‘Billy’s with Tristram,’ Ryan replied calmly. ‘If they’re in any trouble, he’ll sort it out.’
Daisy looked despairingly at the stricken buggy, but gave little resistance as Ryan pulled her to the bank of the river. They dragged themselves out and sat watching as the last remaining pieces of debris fell into the water. There was no going back now. Aside from the short stretch they were now sitting under, the bridge was gone.
Suddenly a head broke the surface of the water next to one of the huge wheels and looked around wildly.
‘Tristram!’ cried Daisy joyfully, but Ryan immediately clamped his hand over her mouth. The cacophony that surrounded the bridge’s demolition had subsided, along with the gunfire, and he was all too aware of how close they now were to the other cluster of buildings.
They sat and watched as Tristram ducked back under the water, then reappeared a few moments later and began swimming over to join them. There was no sign of Billy. Ryan could feel Daisy’s body quivering and knew it had little to do with having just crawled out of a freezing river. For his part, he was feeling surprisingly comfortable.
Tristram pulled his dripping form out of the river and lay on the bank next to them.
‘Billy’s gone,’ he said, panting slightly.
He looked at them both and Daisy’s eyes widened in horror.
‘No, no, it’s okay. He’s just woken up,’ he added. ‘It’s probably for the best; one less person to keep track of.’
‘He’d probably just be slating your driving if he was here,’ said Ryan quietly.
‘Probably,’ replied Tristram with a smile. ‘Hey, we’d best find some cover. Our furry friends will most likely come looking for us soon.’
They climbed to their feet and crept up the shallow bank to where it met with the road overhead. With daybreak only minutes away it offered them a dark place to hide while they considered their next move. They were not a moment too soon. Barely had they hunkered down next to the large concrete support that held up the edge of the roadway, when a squad of soldiers appeared close by and marched down to the water’s edge to survey the wreckage.
Tristram immediately came to a decision and indicated that they should move off while the hamsters were looking the other way. They crept round the support and up to the edge of the road. Crouching down, the three of them peered over the parapet and saw a similar blockade to the one they had annihilated minutes before. It was flanked by two wooden buildings, while just beyond them the road swung to the right and began zigzagging its way up the steep mountainside. It was quiet; almost too quiet. There were no guards manning the barrier and no sign of activity in the buildings.
Ryan felt Tristram nudge him in the ribs and saw that he was pointing at another building close to the foot of the mountain. Ryan hadn’t noticed it before, but now they were closer he could see that it was a cable car station. The two lines coming out of it tracked parallel to one another up the slope until they disappeared through a cleft between a pair of low-lying peaks. Tristram clearly thought that it was their best bet for reaching the castle.
‘Are you sure?’ Ryan hissed.
‘Yeah, what’s the problem?’ Tristram asked.
‘Well, you’ve knackered the last three vehicles you’ve used and, to be honest, I’m a bit sick of flying through the air.’
‘At least your trousers were done up this time,’ smirked Tristram.
Ryan glared at him.
‘Okay, okay, I won’t mention it again, I promise,’ said his tutor. ‘Besides, I won’t be driving this one, so what could possibly go wrong?’
‘Apart from us plummeting hundreds of metres onto jagged rocks? Can’t we walk it?’
‘That’s the last thing I’d expect coming from you.’
‘Actually, Ryan has walked to and from school every day for the past week,’ put in Daisy.
‘Thanks Dizz.’
‘Well, you’re welcome to give it a go, but the chances are that this will all be over by the time you get to the top,’ Tristram shrugged.
‘So you’re going to use it no matter what?’
‘Of course, it’s part of the dream. It’s got to be there for a reason.’
Ryan looked at Daisy and rolled his eyes. She gave him a smile in return.
‘That’s the spirit,’ said Tristram, clapping them both on the shoulders. ‘Follow me.’
Keeping low, he led them over to the corner of the nearest building and carefully peeped through the window.
‘Not a furry soul in sight,’ he whispered. ‘They must have been really bored.’
They crept round the back of the building and still there was no one to be seen. They were now only thirty yards from the cable car station. Tristram checked to make sure that the coast was clear, and then, with a shrug, led them quickly across the open ground and into the bui
lding.
It was dark inside, but they resisted the temptation to find a light switch and continued on in the gloom. A cable car was hanging next to the platform, its doors enticingly ajar. They were about to take a look inside it when a noise from the far side of the open-ended room caused them to stop in their tracks.
It was a scuffling noise, but in the darkness they had no idea what was causing it. Tristram silently bade Ryan and Daisy to stay where they were while he crept forward to investigate. They watched breathlessly as he made his way along the far wall towards the open end of the station. Ryan couldn’t tell whether or not their tutor had used his Dreamweaving skills to conjure up a weapon, so, just in case, he tried to focus his mind on an image of his dad, so that he had something to use if things went sour. Tristram had almost made it to the end of the building when a high-pitched voice squeaked out of the darkness.
‘Who goes there?’
Tristram immediately flattened himself against the wall. Ryan’s first thought was that it had to be another of the hamsters, but the accent didn’t quite fit and the tone of the voice was much higher than that of any of the rodents they had encountered thus far. Sensing that danger was not imminent, Ryan beckoned to Daisy and the two of them crept over to where Tristram was standing, motionless.
‘I can hear that,’ came the voice again. ‘Who’s there?’
They were close to the open end of the building, which afforded them a little more light to see by. Looking along the wall, Ryan noticed that the last few