WWWWWOOOOOOOOOOSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHH!
Alfred was being propelled through the water so fast he thought he was going to end up in outer space. The water in the Underground tunnel was black and he had no clue whether he was upside down or inside out.
He fanned out his hands to try to slow himself down, but it was no use.
THUD!
His body was hurled against an underwater wall.
Alfred grimaced at the pain, but no bones were broken. He pushed himself up and away from the wall, and gulped a mouthful of much-needed air at the surface.
GASP!
He was alive.
Just.
Right ahead of him he saw a half-submerged sign that read GREEN PARK.
It was an ancient platform notice. If they had reached what once was Green Park Underground station, they were now very near Buckingham Palace.
An old vending machine bobbed in the water.
PLOP! PLOP! PLOP!
Such a shame I don’t have a 50p piece to buy a chocolate bar, thought Alfred, who was starving.
There was a faint glimmer of light dancing on the surface of the water. Not far off, he could just make out the outline of the HMS Sceptre. He could see that the vessel was at an angle, which was why it had become stuck in the tunnel.
At once, he began swimming towards the submarine.
Then WHOOSH!
Mite shot out of the torpedo tube and smashed SLAP BANG into him.
BASH
“ARGH!” he cried.
“That was COOL!” exclaimed Mite.
“I am still alive – thank you for asking,” said Alfred sarcastically.
“Come on!” said the girl, and she powered through the water towards the submarine, leaving him flailing behind.
Just as he was catching up, Alfred felt something bashing and scratching at his head.
BOSH! BOSH! BOSH!
He turned round to see a cloud of bats flying towards him!
SQUEAK! SQUEAK! SQUEAK!
“ARGH! BATS!” he screamed.
“Yes. I should have mentioned them,” said Mite. “The place is crawling with them.”
SQUEAK! SQUEAK! SQUEAK!
Alfred dived so he could shake them off. After a few strokes, he’d reached Mite back at the submarine.
“Look! This is the hatch here,” she said.
“Now did Enid say the right lever or the left? And was it clockwise? Or anticlockwise?” asked Alfred.
“I wasn’t listening.”
“I thought you were.”
“That was the boring bit.”
“Oh, for goodness’ sake! You take that one, and I’ll take this one.”
After they had both yanked their levers to and fro for what seemed like an age, eventually the hatch opened.
CLUNK!
SUCCESS!
There were cheers from the ladies below deck.
“HURRAH!”
One by one, they began climbing on to the surface.
The Queen.
Enid.
Agatha.
Virginia.
Beatrix.
Daphne.
Judith.
“Thank you, son! You saved us all,” said the Queen.
“You took your time!” remarked Enid.
“Now, can you all swim?” asked Alfred.
“Doggy paddle, yes,” replied Agatha. “I have my twenty-five-metre badge.”
“Then let’s go,” commanded the prince.
Together, they swam towards the light at the end of the tunnel.
The light grew dark, as if a thundercloud had passed over it.
“I should warn you,” began Mite. “We need to look out for—”
But before Mite could say “bats” the swarm of creatures dive-bombed them.
SQUEAK! SQUEAK! SQUEAK!
As much as the old ladies attempted to bat the bats away with their hands, still the creatures attacked without mercy.
“ARGH!”
“GET OFF!”
“FLYING RAT!”
“SUBMERGE!” ordered the prince.
One by one, their heads bobbed under the water, and they swam as far as they could below the surface.
As soon as any of them bobbed up for air, the bats would strike again.
SQUEAK! SQUEAK! SQUEAK!
Eventually they reached the underneath of Buckingham Palace.
“Where are the steps that lead up to the palace vault, Mite?” asked Alfred.
“I’m trying to find them.”
“Well, please try to find them a little bit faster!” called Agatha. “I’m not sure how much longer I can tread water! I never got my badge for that!”
Mite’s hands scoured the top of the Underground tunnel, until she finally found the bottom step.
“HERE!” she exclaimed.
One by one, they hauled themselves on to the steps. Then they scrambled up them until they reached the top.
Above them was the large stone in the floor of the vault. Together the prince and Mite pushed it up and aside.
CLUNK!
Alfred climbed up first, and then helped the others into the palace vault.
Little did they know who was waiting for them, looming in the shadows…
