by Paul Bristow
“Ok, now do we believe there’s someone living up the hills in a cave?” whispered Cam.
Before either TJ or Megan could answer, there was a low growl from behind the curtain.
Nobody had time to react.
The curtain was torn from its hooks as a huge tiger sprung from behind it. Cam and Megan both screamed – Cam just a bit louder. The tiger snarled angrily, displaying impressively massive fangs.
TJ positioned himself directly between the snarling tiger and Megan and Cam.
“Wait, wait, shoosh,” whispered Megan, “we’re upsetting it.”
“Really?” said Cam. “Only I’m quite upset as well.”
Cam and Megan began backing towards the mouth of the cave.
The tiger remained ready to pounce, now looking directly at TJ. It wasn’t calming down even though they were retreating.
And then it pounced, knocking TJ over and pinning Cam to the cave wall with its massive paws.
Chapter 22.
Time and Again
Megan took off and launched straight towards the tiger. Cam had instinctively turned gorilla, and was now, along with the tiger, taking up almost half the space in this tiny makeshift room. He pushed out, forcing the tiger back, while TJ scrambled to his feet and together with Megan, hauled the beast away from Cam.
It took them both a moment to realise the big cat wasn’t fighting back. The tiger looked from TJ to Megan to Cam. Gorilla-Cam raised his fists, preparing to end the argument, and knocked over the TV.
The tiger growled once more, then began to change, its teeth and fur retracting until only a straggle-haired, scrawny old man remained. He stood up slowly, steadying himself against the bookcase, sweeping his grey hair from his eyes. Seeing this, Cam also transformed back to his human form, staring at the old man all the while.
The old man stepped towards TJ first.
Megan stepped protectively in between them, holding a hand out as if to keep him away. “Stop right there!”
“Careful Megan, he’s stronger than he looks,” said Cam, still shaking slightly from the transformation.
“Sorry… you surprised me,” said the old man, shaking his head. “Really sorry… are you all ok?”
“No, a tiger just attacked me!” shouted Cam, checking himself for tiger cuts.
“Yeah… and then a gorilla knocked over my telly.”
“Who are you?” said Megan.
The old man looked at the robot and shuffled awkwardly.
Cam glared at him as he dusted himself down. “Megan, I think this is the Catman.”
The dishevelled man shot Cam an angry glance. “Don’t call me that.”
“Come on! Giant cat that roams the hills, strange old man that lives in a cave.” Cam pointed. “Catman.”
“But I don’t eat children,” said the Catman. “Though I’m considering making exceptions.”
TJ had not spoken or moved since the tiger had transformed. He just stared at the Catman, clicking and whirring in thought.
“You left me,” said TJ at last. “You tied me up in the bomb shelter and left me.”
The Catman hung his head.
“You did that?” said Megan.
“There was no light. Only the damp air, and my body slowly rusting. Thoughts disappearing,” said TJ. “You told me to wait. I did not know how long for.”
Megan took the robot’s hand.
“I was trying to keep him safe,” protested the Catman. “Is TJ still here? Yes. Did they find him? No. See? Safe.”
“Did who find him?” asked Megan, suddenly delighted they’d found someone else who might be able to give them some answers.
The Catman looked at her, and back to TJ, “Is that… is she…”
“Megan Stone. Granddaughter of Sarah Stone.”
He stared at her for a moment, before quietly saying, “You are so like her.”
“You knew my gran?” said Megan uneasily.
He nodded sadly. “A long time ago. I’m really sorry for your loss. And I was a big fan.” The Catman pointed to his bookshelf, where there were rows of Sarah Stone books – even lots of copies of the same ones, but with different covers.
Cam had started quietly picking up the bits of smashed television screen. “I’m sorry I turned into a gorilla and smashed up your living room,” he said.
“It happens more often than you’d think.” The Catman grinned. “Though normally it’s a grumpy tiger or a lonely polar bear doing all the damage. How did you find me?”
“Sarah Stone left Megan a map,” said TJ. “We followed it to Crowfell hospital and I remembered you. John Bone.”
“Wait. John Bone from the hospital list is the Catman?” said Cam.
“Please stop calling me that,” sighed John. “And Jimmy, what d’you mean you remembered me? Impossible to forget what we all went through.”
Megan stepped forward. “TJ had no memory when we found him. I’ve been updating his software.”
John winced. “So he hasn’t filled you in? Sarah didn’t plan for that?”
“Filled us in on what?” Megan asked.
“It’s starting again,” said John Bone. “I thought so. I’ve got a lot to tell you.”
Chapter 23.
Heart and Soul
John, still in his cave living room, was jogging on the spot and stretching, as if preparing to run a race. “Sounds like it’s time to finish the job we were all born for.” He turned to TJ. “Do you remember anything about the last time we were all together?”
“Pieces. Not everything,” said TJ.
“What are you talking about?” said Megan. “When were you last all together? What job?”
John was practically dancing around his cave now, clearly very excited. “Your job, Megan, and your gran’s before you,” said John. “And gorilla-boy’s, and mine, and Jimmy’s. We’re guardians.”
“Guardians of what?” asked Cam, still hoping that this treasure hunt might actually feature some treasure.
“The sigils!” said John. “I take it you’ve got the sigils?”
“What are sigils?” said Megan.
John looked at TJ. “Have you forgotten that too?”
“There are five,” said TJ.
“That’s right Jimmy,” said John. “Five sigils, one for each guardian. Sarah had to hide them, remember?”
“The coins,” said Megan, “are the sigils like coins?”
“Yes!” said John. “Do you have them?”
“My gran left me a map… we haven’t found them all yet,” said Megan. Cam shot her a warning glance. “So my gran was one of these… coin guardians?” asked Megan, changing the subject.
“It wasn’t the coins themselves we were guarding, it was what they could do,” said John.
“So what can they do? Why did Gran hide them?” asked Megan.
John ignored her, walked over to his bookshelf and pulled one of Sarah Stone’s books out slowly. “Your gran… was magnificent. She dipped and twirled like a beautiful bird on the wind.”
John handed the book to Megan. Inside was an old photo, yellowed and creased, of her gran as a young girl. She knew this not because she had seen lots of pictures of her gran when she was young, but because it was like looking in a mirror. Standing beside her was a handsome boy with a lopsided grin and scruffy hair.
“I had better teeth then.” John smiled, rather proving his point. “So how long have you been flying?”
Just for a moment, Megan was caught offguard by the question; it was asked in such a matter-of-fact way, as if it was no longer a secret.
“A few months,” she said. “I’m still learning.”
“Course you are,” said John. “The smartest folks are always learning.”
John then stared carefully at Cam. “I know your powers best of all. What can you do? Wolf? Eagle?”
“Hamster,” said TJ.
“And gorilla! I can do gorilla, you saw me!” protested Cam.
“So,” said John, “has it bee
n easy finding the sigils?”
“Really easy apart from the giant robots,” said Cam.
“Giant robots?”
“Yeah, they’ve turned up at two of the places on the map so far,” said Megan, wondering when it had become normal to talk about giant robots.
“And have these robots attacked you?” asked John, sounding genuinely concerned.
“Well… pretty much,” said Megan, “but they haven’t managed to hurt us badly yet.”
“I smashed one of them right up,” said Cam, who was really happy to be able to tell someone else about that.
“Gorilla?” asked John.
Cam smiled and nodded.
“How many sigils have you got now?”
“We found two,” said Megan, “but we lost one. Should we have found one in the tunnel where TJ was hidden?”
“I don’t know. Only Sarah knew where the sigils were hidden. But I doubt she would have hidden TJ’s sigil where we planned to hide TJ himself.”
“Why did only Sarah know where they were?” asked Cam.
“We were all in charge of one sigil each at first – our own secret, passed down through our families – but when we got into trouble Sarah protected us all by hiding them herself.” John looked away at this point, his shoulders low and heavy. “Those robots will be wanting the sigils just like Clutha Chemicals did back in the day, Jimmy.”
If TJ recognised the name, he did not respond.
“Who are Clutha Chemicals?” asked Megan
“Really nasty bunch,” said John. “They were the ones doing all the tests at Crowfell Hospital.”
For some reason, the name seemed familiar to Megan, but she couldn’t think why. Perhaps she’d heard it in one of her gran’s stories.
“I can tell you all about that later,” said John, “but if these robots are after the sigils, whoever programmed them is up to no good. We need to be ready for them. I can help you.”
John smiled wonkily and put his hand out for them to shake.
Megan wasn’t convinced. “I want to believe you. But if my gran knew you were here all this time why did she never mention you? Why did you never visit?”
“I did!” said John. “Now and again. Your gran and I would meet in secret. But it wasn’t safe. They might still have been watching…”
“Who might have been watching?” Cam asked loudly.
“And you still haven’t told us what the sigils are for! How can we be guardians if we don’t know what we’re guarding?” asked Megan, annoyed at herself for getting distracted by John’s photograph and his questions about flying. “You haven’t given us any proof that we should trust you. It’s not like Gran put this place on the map.”
John ran his fingers through his long, lank hair, and shook his head. “I can explain everything,” he said, “but not all at once, not right now.” John looked like he was in pain, and faint stripes rippled across his face before disappearing.
“Why not?” said Cam. “Why should we believe you? You could be anyone.”
“You attacked us when we came in!” said Megan.
John leaned over and made a low noise. To Megan it sounded eerily like a growl – not an angry growl, but the sound of a trapped animal.
TJ stepped in front of the Catman. “He is John Bone. There are five. Stone is one. So is Bone. You can trust him.”
Cam glanced at John, whose face was still rippling with stripes, then back at Megan. He gave a nod only she would have noticed. She knew he meant they’d learned all they could today and should head home. Carefully, still slightly unsure, both of them shook John’s hand.
“Thank you,” said John, “thank you.”
He took one of TJ’s hands as well, then slapped him on the shoulder. “Jimmy, where you staying right now? There’s always room for you here.”
Megan and Cam stared around the tiny cramped room, not entirely convinced, but it was becoming more and more difficult for TJ to stay hidden at home. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea.
“Just one thing I’m not sure about,” said John. “Where are the others?”
“What do you mean?” said Cam. “There’s just the three of us.”
“No other friends?”
“We’re hanging about up the hills at night with a rusty robot and a tramp,” said Cam.
“We don’t really do parties,” explained Megan.
“No. I mean, there should be more guardians, more of you with powers,” said John.
“There are five,” said TJ.
“We did wonder… TJ says that a lot,” said Megan, “but we didn’t know how to find out.”
“Is there, like, a special guardian signal or a secret base or anything?” asked Cam, looking round and hoping this wasn’t it.
“Afraid not, Cam,” said John. “We’re going to have to figure things out on our own again.”
In that moment, Megan saw something flicker across his face, the same troubled look she’d watched her gran fail to hide that day at the dam. “Did you all figure things out ok last time?” she asked.
John smiled sadly to himself, as if he were reacquainting himself with an old memory. “Enough stories for tonight, eh? You’d best get home. Need your rest.”
“How come?” asked Cam.
“Because tomorrow, you begin training to be superheroes.”
Chapter 24.
Rivers and Monsters
It was one of those rare, glorious autumnal Sundays which turn up after three or four weeks of grey rain. On those blue-sky days, you could see the mountains across the river stretching off towards the Highlands. The river itself was still as glass, reflecting the two medieval castles that stood on opposite shores. Even the gap sites and rubble at the riverside looked pleasant.
So a morning walk up into the moorland behind the town wasn’t a bad idea. Going on that walk with a shape-changing old man and a badly rusting robot maybe wasn’t so clever.
Megan and Cam had spoken for hours about whether they should trust John Bone or not – mostly they were taking TJ’s word for it. But then again, TJ still couldn’t remember everything yet. The only thing they were both sure of was that John had tied TJ up in the bomb shelter. Cam insisted he could totally sympathise with this, but all the same, it seemed a bit much. Eventually they had decided that if John turned out to be evil, Cam would turn into a hamster and bite him, then Megan would fly them both away. It wasn’t the best plan, but it was all they had right now.
“I don’t think I realised there was this much countryside behind the town,” said Megan, staring around wide-eyed.
TJ had stomped ahead towards the brow of the next hill to survey the area. “This will do,” he shouted, shattering the silence and startling birds. “Low visibility from roads, no overhead cables.”
John waved his approval. “Right you two, run up there and…”
“Sorry what?” said Cam. “Run?”
“Yes run,” said John. “We’re here to train. You need to be fit to fight giant robots.”
“Is this going to be like extra PE?” asked Megan. “Because if it is, Cam will get a note from his mum.”
Cam scowled at Megan. “Very funny.”
“Seriously. Only it usually says ‘Please do not excuse Cam from PE – he needs the exercise’.”
“My mum’s a nurse,” explained Cam.
“Very good advice,” said John. “Now, go! Don’t make me turn into a tiger.”
For a moment, Megan and Cam stood still, assuming he was joking. Slowly, yellow and black stripes started spreading across John’s face, his toothy grin sharpened.
“Go!” yelled Megan.
***
Up on the hill, the moorland plateaued out, stretching for miles of flat, empty green and brown. Cam puffed up the slope behind Megan. “Blimey, that’s a really boring view.”
“No it’s not. It’s beautiful.”
“Needs more cows,” said Cam.
John arrived shortly after them. “Y’know if I’d been
you two, I’d have flown up, or turned into a rabbit or something to get up here sharpish.”
“You said run,” said Megan.
“D’you always do what you’re told?”
They looked at him blankly.
“Right. From what I’ve just seen we’ve got a lot of work to do, and not much time. I’ll be expecting you both to be out exercising as often as possible, whether that’s flying or galloping or whatever. Up here you can practise your powers without being spotted. Ready for your next task?”
Megan and Cam nodded, though mostly out of fear and politeness.
“Megan first. I want you to fly, just from one end of this field to the other.”
Megan immediately began floating up towards the blue sky.
“…Ah no. I mean really low. So close you can touch the moss.”
“Won’t I bump into things?”
“Only if you’re not careful.” John smiled. “Now, Jimmy will keep an eye on you while I put Cam through his paces.”
Cam groaned. “This is actually going to be worse than PE.”
***
For the next hour, Megan dodged and weaved between stray rocks and heather, while John had Cam change quickly between rabbit, gorilla and even hamster.
“The change itself takes a lot of energy, so you’re always going to feel a little weak when you’ve first turned.”
Cam, now simply Cam again, crouching and out of breath, nodded. “Totally,” he gasped.
“But you can’t let them know that. So for those crucial few seconds after you change, use whatever you have that allows you to keep still. Distract them with a roar, rear up as if you are about to bite. Hiss and squawk. Whatever. Half the time they’ll run, giving you a wee chance to get yourself together.”
Cam took a swig of his bottled water.
“Your main problem will be low blood sugar and dehydration. Animals burn calories faster than we do, so be sure to drink plenty of sugary drinks.”
“Wait,” said Megan, looping slowly over the field, “isn’t that really bad for him?”
“Shut up, Megan, this is the best advice I’ve been given since this all started.”