Johnny O'Brien - Day of the Assassins

“Look — they’re retreating,” Pendelshape gestured over to the German lines. In the distance they could make out the figures of hundreds of men picking their way from the German front line. “They’re evacuating following the bombardment. Come on… we can take refuge in there.”

They followed Pendelshape and careered forward thirty metres to the German lines. First Pendelshape and then Jack tumbled over the side, landing on the fire step above the bottom of the badly waterlogged trench.

“It stinks in here,” Angus said.

Pendelshape glanced left and then right. The trench was deserted apart from a single corpse that lay face down in the water only metres from where they had landed.

“Quick — over there.”

A small bunker had been honed from the earth on the opposite side of the trench and they stepped inside gingerly. A makeshift bed had been set up in the subterranean room and there was even a small table and chairs. There were papers strewn everywhere and a chess set lay on the table with the pieces scattered.

“Should be safe here for a moment.”

Jack sat down on one of the chairs, “I’ve had enough. Let’s see the time phones… now!”

First Angus, then Pendelshape placed their time phones on the table. The telltale yellow bar on each of them was burning fiercely.

“We still have a signal — we can get out of here. Now!”

Pendelshape seemed to hesitate, “Well, hold on…”

Jack was incredulous. “You’re not seriously suggesting that we hang around?”

“Well, now we are here…”

Angus interrupted him, “Sorry, sir — you’re mad if you think we’re staying.”

“Yes — I think we’ve seen enough already,” Jack added.

Pendelshape replied, “Good. As you have now observed, the consequences of war are indeed horrific… so we can travel back… back to your father now?”

Jack couldn’t believe it. Pendelshape seemed to be almost… smiling. It was at that moment, seeing that smile, that Jack knew he couldn’t go along with Pendelshape or, for that matter, his father.

Jack spoke calmly but there was steel in his voice, “In the last week, we have been shot at, chased half way around Europe and seen three good people… friends… die and now you’ve brought us here. You and Dad have taken terrible risks with our lives and those of many others… for your own… ambition.”

Pendelshape stood up, “But we have to change history; we have to change it so it’s all better, so it’s all good… don’t you see? We must…”

“You might think you have to, so might Dad. But I don’t.”

“What do you mean?”

Jack’s heart was pounding, “We don’t want anything to do with this. We’ve got our own lives to lead. We belong in the present and we should stay there,” Jack tried to steady his voice, “Look — I think what you and Dad have done is…” he shook his head, “…incredible. Really. Creating the Taurus. All that. But it’s dangerous. Just one example — Angus and I worked out that if we had done what you and Dad planned — he wouldn’t even exist.”

Pendelshape waved his hand dismissively, “We can fix that… it would just be another variant of Simulation 0107…”

“The point is: we belong in the present. I know that puts me at the mercy of the Rector and Inchquin and VIGIL.”

Pendelshape was incredulous, “What? But they might kill you!”

“No they won’t. They would only threaten that if you and Dad were to use your Taurus. If you don’t — they won’t touch a hair on my head. So it’s simple, really. If you and Dad promise not to use your Taurus, then we will be safe… We’ll be left alone.”

Pendelshape stared back at him goggle-eyed, “So you’re going to make yourself a willing hostage to VIGIL? And stop us fulfilling our life’s work?”

“It’s nothing to do with you or your life’s work. It’s to do with us. I’m doing it because in the last few days we’ve already seen too much death — more than enough to last a lifetime. I don’t want any more. The past should stay where it belongs — in the past.”

Jack knew what he was saying was right.

“So, you set your time phone to go back to Dad’s base. We need never know where it is — so VIGIL will never know and you’ll be safe. I know you’ve also got the codes for the other Taurus at school. So you set Angus’s time phone so me and Angus can travel back to school. Simple…”

“But…”

“And do it now before we lose the time signal again,” Angus said.

“I can’t — your father… He will never forgive me.”

But seeing the expression on the boys’ faces, Pendelshape knew his cause was finally lost. He leaned over the time phones and started to tap.

“Good. Hurry up.”

From outside the bunker they heard a distant whistle.

“What’s that?”

“The British are going over the top. They’ll be here in a minute.”

Angus breathed into Pendelshape’s ear, “Well you’d better get on with it!”

“I’m going as fast as I can!”

Jack jerked his head at Angus to move away from Pendelshape.

Suddenly, there was an explosion further along the trench.

“What was that?”

“A shell?”

“Or a grenade?”

“The Brits must be here already.”

Angus turned back to Pendelshape, “How long?”

“A minute… at most.” Pendelshape was sweating.

“Go faster!”

“You’re not helping.”

There was a sudden commotion from outside the trench.

A British voice shouted, “Check down that end, Corporal!”

“They’re clearing the trench,” Jack said. “We must hurry — they won’t take any chances — they’ll just assume we’re the enemy…”

At last, Pendelshape lifted his head and slid Angus’s time phone across the table, keeping the other for himself.

He had a sad look in his eyes, “It’s recoded. You can go home.”

“No funny business, right?” Angus said.

Pendelshape looked resigned and shrugged, “No. I am disappointed, and your father will be too, Jack. We may not see each other again. Certainly not for double history.”

Jack flipped open the time phone. The bar was still shining bright yellow.

The British voices were now very close.

“In there, Corporal! I heard someone!”

“Any grenades left, Jim?” There was a pause. “Good — just chuck it in!”

The door to the bunker flew open and a grenade rolled menacingly across the floor towards them.

Angus moved close to Jack so that they were both touching the time phone. Jack put an arm round his friend’s shoulders and stabbed the time phone with his thumb. There was a flash as the grenade exploded.

Jack looked up at the massive dinosaur. Two eye sockets, way above, leered down at him from a large white skull. If the creature had still been in possession of its prehistoric eyes, maybe it would have winked at him, knowingly. Instead the vast skull and the huge skeleton, to which it was attached, hung there lifelessly — a monument to past glory. Normally, Jack liked this place. Particularly the dinosaur exhibit. The Royal Edinburgh Museum. He liked its open spaces and polished floors and the hushed voices that would echo through the exhibition halls. You could happily wander around for hours, lost to the world. But today, he knew there would be no time for that.

“So why did we end up here?” Angus asked for about the fifth time.

“I told you — no idea. Just be grateful that the grenade didn’t get us before we escaped and we got back to approximately the right time and location.”

“Close one. Do you think Pendelshape made it?”

“I should think so. He pressed at the same time as us.”