bows had become arrows. A flute whizzed past Alex’s ear, puffed like a blow-pipe dart from the horn of a trombone. Panpipes came humming past, crashing into the pianos. On the edges of the charge were nimble drum-riders on rolling bass drums and snare drums. Trumpets blared in rage, drums rolled out thunder, piccolos piped shrill anger. This really was a serious attack by the so-called Music Makers: the air was full of missiles and the noise level could not be louder if they had elephants and horses.
‘Look out!’ cried Alex.
A rider on his bagpipes tried to climb one of the pianos to get at the board-comber but the girl reached forward and thrust with the point of her sword. Her weapon pierced the bagpipe bag. It gave out a flarrpping sound and immediately deflated. Its rider fell off it, letting out a loud curse. The girl laughed and shook her sword at her enemy. Then another tried to mount the barrier and the colourful board-comber dealt with this attempt in the same way. Soon Alex found he was having to defend himself, piercing bagpipes with his sword and warding off ‘arrows’ with his shield.
‘Watch out for the lurs, serpents and crumhorns!’ cried the board-comber. ‘They’re trying to sneak up on our flanks.’
Alex turned to see snakelike instruments whizzing through the air at him. He swept them aside with his sword-blade, sending them back into the bouncing ranks of hurdy-gurdies. Massive cymbals rolled with knife-blade edges and sliced into the pianos. Ceramic ocarinas, thrown like hand-grenades, exploded on the piano tops, sending deadly shards of pottery flying around Alex’s feet. An oboe spear was aimed at his head but he managed to chop it in the air as it flew towards him.
‘Look out!’ cried the girl.
The enemy had taken an upright piano and sent it rolling at speed towards Alex. However, its castors must have been loose because it veered off course and slammed into one of the big oak pillars. The pillar juddered violently with the impact and bits of debris fell from the rafters above. Alex looked up, alarmed. However, the support was only shaken loose in its joints and remained fast. It didn’t fail in its job of keeping heaven and earth apart, though there had been a moment …
‘You have to watch those pillars,’ Alex yelled at the board-comber. ‘If one of them comes down, the whole world will collapse.’
‘Don’t exaggerate,’ she laughed, warding off a flute-arrow.
‘I’m not. Don’t you believe me? If one comes down, they’ll all go, one after the other. The pressure will be too much for them.’
‘If you say so,’ she called back grudgingly. ‘Now watch your flank – there’s a sneak attack coming!’
He turned to face the danger.
Finally, Alex and the board-comber routed the attack. They had a good defensive position which was difficult for the enemy to surmount. They also had the owl whose swivelling head and keen eyes helped to warn of any sneaky tactics. Alex and the girl stood back to back. They cut this way and that with their swords, protecting themselves with their shields. In the end the two warriors of the boards sent the enemy running.
While his rival was thus engaged, warding off attacks, the Organist crept forward towards the great pillar. In his hands was an object wrapped in brown greaseproof paper. In his pocket was a crudely printed pamphlet dated 1917, with the title A Simple Explosive Device. The grammar and spelling on the pamphlet were poor, it having been written by some anarchist group whose main concern was the destruction of property and not the correct use of the English language.
The Organist was a tall, sly, sallow youth, dressed all in black capes. He had on a long mournful mask which he had worn for so long it had fused with his face. Now he could not remove it. His pale long-fingered hands were the only parts of his body visible in the dimness of the interior. Those hands were engaged in carrying the home-made bomb he had fashioned. Home-made it might be, but it was very powerful, having enough explosive to rip the pillar apart and blow the watches to pieces.
The Organist was aware that the Removal Firm would hear and investigate, but the bomb would go off on her territory, not his, and he was sure that she would get the blame for the explosion.
Once he got to her collection he quickly scooped away watches from the base of the