‘Two, there’s a dirty great tunnel around here somewhere. Three, shall we get after the little crukker? Please?’ demanded Greeneye, and ducked into the gym. Hoff, August and Serif followed.

Aphasia remained outside, her finger in her mouth, pondering something she’d read as the family had marched through the building. ‘Maius Intra…’

Rocastle’s party rounded the top of the landing, and scattered down the banisters into pre-arranged firing positions, surprised to find that the only person they were aiming at was a little girl.

‘Miss!’ Rocastle hissed. ‘Miss! Would you please come here?’

Aphasia turned and saw them. She smiled. ‘Oh? Why?’

Hoff poked his head out of the gymnasium doors.

‘Aphasia, come on, we⁠ —’

Then he noticed the boys.

He slapped his weapon up to head height.

The wall exploded with gunfire, splinters bursting everywhere. Hoff ducked back inside.

Aphasia spun as the bullets caught her and slapped her to and fro, her chest and limbs erupting with bloody debris.

‘Cease fire’ screamed Rocastle.

The little girl fell to the floor, and struggled to right herself, her balloon lying burst across her shoulder. Only one arm seemed to be working, and her eyes were blinking at a tremendous rate, like a clockwork toy winding down. She put her teeth to her wrist, and pulled open the pouch there.

Rocastle noticed that a couple of his boys were standing up, about to go to her.

‘No! Wait for⁠ —’

Aphasia gazed at the black capsule inside her wrist, and a sweet smile crossed her face.

Then her head hit the floor, dead.

Hoff stepped out into the corridor, looked down at the body, almost casually, and turned to face Rocastle and his boys.

They were staring at what they’d done, appalled.

Hoff looked for a moment like he was going to say something, but then he just shrugged.

He raised his gun and ran a burst of blue light up the stairs.

A row of boys screamed, dissolved, were blasted sideways, tried to run, cannoned into each other, threw their guns aside, separated, exploded, bled. The banisters before them steamed away into a cloud of ugly smoke.

‘Retreat!’ screamed Rocastle. ‘Retreat!’

Amidst the smoke, a few boys did just that, running to his voice.

Hutchinson collided with him as they both sprinted up the stairs.

‘We got one!’ the boy laughed, clutching at his headmaster’s lapels. ‘Did you see, sir, we got one!’

Rocastle could only stare at him as the others bundled past.

‘Aphasia!’ Hoff stumbled back into the gym, dragging the body with him.

‘Aphasia!’