And then he heard a cry as Ebenezer stumbled. Jogging backwards over this uneven ground was much harder than on the road. Lewis had to stop and haul him up, leaving their side unprotected for a moment. The grown-ups weren’t fast, but they were coming steadily from every direction. It was like trying to hold back water. You swept it away and it just flowed right in again. He got Ebenezer to his feet, but he could already feel hands grabbing at his armour. He was glad of it. It made him feel slightly clumsy, but it kept him protected. The grown-ups were near enough for him to feel the heat of their breath and hear the saliva rattling in their throats. The fat, bloated body of a father pressed against him and Lewis pummelled it with his elbow. There was no room for him to get his blade up and all he could do was hammer at the grown-up with the pommel. Ebenezer was having similar problems. His javelin was even harder to use this close up. He was using it like a staff and shoving grown-ups away with it.

Lewis was amazed at how quickly they’d got swamped. The field had looked half empty to begin with, and now he couldn’t move. Brooke came to him, yelling at the grown-ups and whacking them with her own sword, and for a few seconds Lewis thought he was saved, and then he was down, knocked over by a bald mother carrying a branch. Now they were on top of him and he was lost in a tangle of legs and shuffling feet. It was too dark to see anything and, as he thrashed about, he felt fingers rake his face.

And then a shout.

‘Keep your head down.’ It was Ed.

Lewis pressed himself to the ground, not wanting to be decapitated by that heavy sword, got a faceful of grass and dirt. There were thuds and shrieks from above him. Bodies fell away and blood showered down on him. An arm fell at his side. Two legs, not attached to a body.

‘Up! Up! Up!’ Ed again and he heard Kyle’s voice too, bellowing obscenities at the grown-ups. Lewis got to his feet and forced himself up. Ed and Kyle had cleared a patch around him, cutting bodies down like grass. Ed was swinging his sword with both hands, his scarred face something out of a horror film, splashed with blood. His eyes had taken on a crazy gleam. He looked like a completely different person.

‘Move it!’ he shouted, no hint of friendliness in his voice. It was a barked command. ‘This way!’

The field had opened up a little. The grown-ups had formed into a clump where Lewis and Ebenezer had stopped, leaving the rest of the ground relatively clear. The mob was milling in a confused knot, tripping over the fallen, unaware that Lewis and Ebenezer and Brooke had got away.