The Toymaster's Castle

Chapter Fifty-Three - Two Shots, Centre Mass

Then two things happened pretty much at once.

The world basically exploded... and then somebody tripped over my foot.

That explosion was astonishing... totally overwhelming. Even though I had my eyes closed and was looking down, somehow, that flash was dazzling in the pale light of dawn and the noise seemed to roll around that little valley.

But, when I looked up, there were people all around us. They looked like enemy soldiers... or maybe their auxiliaries. And they looked pretty stunned at the explosion too but they all had knives and clubs and things.

Then Rambo and Jake were charging towards us with fixed bayonets, flying bullets and terrifying screams. They must have seen that we were surrounded by the enemy and were doing the only thing they could think of to rescue us. It seemed to be working too because the people around us were running away.

It was only when Jake was scythed down that I realised that some men had come out of the farmhouse... the farmhouse which looked as if it was on fire. They were hiding behind the Land Rovers and things and shooting at our two guys. Rambo made it a bit further but then he was smashed to the ground too. He just lay there, twitching a bit.

Daniel was shooting back at the men but I couldn't do anything. I was just completely numb... utterly overwhelmed. I huddled down behind that little mound and wished that it would all go away.

Then Daniel stopped shooting and I realised that he was looking at me. And his eyes were doing their utterly cold 'No soul' thing. I sort of knew he was telling me something but I just couldn't imagine what it might be.

And, suddenly, he wasn't lying next to me anymore. He had climbed to his feet and was shouting, "Don't shoot!"

Then he was walking towards their positions... and he wasn't even holding his rifle properly... he had it in one hand down by his side.

"Come out, Angus!" he shouted. "Come out, you bastard, and show yourself! All my men are down."

And I suppose it was true, really. All his men were down.

But he still had one girly left!

"So you've worked out that you've lost," a familiar voice sneered. There was some sort of movement from behind the Land Rovers. "Then drop it and get down on your knees!"

Slowly, as if his body was reluctant to obey, Daniel did as he was told.

"You always thought that you were so much better than me," Angus went on, not even trying to hide the jubilation in his voice, "but you never were, really... It's just that, for some reason, father always thought you were the clever one."

There was more movement back there... some sort of poorly defined shadow against the flickering flames of the farmhouse.

"I hear you've got married," Angus said, "and you didn't even invite me to the wedding! I'm going to have so much fun with that bint. I mean... I know you've made some effort to tart her up but you know what they say, 'Beauty is only skin deep; ugly cuts to the bone!'"

There was more movement. The shadow was becoming a bit clearer now.

"Of course I don't want her," Angus went on. "She's much too old and ugly for me! But I thought I might give her away... first to my men and then to my auxiliaries... as a kind of celebratory fuck. The only real question is whether I leave you alive long enough to watch!"

And then the stupid pillock stepped forward so that he was clearly silhouetted against the firelight. I could even see that he was wearing a crown. I mean... what sort of crazy, arrogant bastard puts a crown on to go into a gun battle? Maybe he had it on when he was in bed and hadn't got round to taking it off yet!