Moving pictures

'Yes. Only Galena's calling himself Rock now.'

'I thought it was going to be Flint.'

'He likes Rock.'

From behind the rocks came the plaintive bleat of Silverfish wondering where everyone had got to just when he needed them. The girl rolled her eyes.

'Oh gods. For this I'm missing lunch?'

'You could always eat it off my forehead,' said Victor, standing up.

He had the satisfaction of feeling her thoughtful gaze on the back of his neck as he retrieved his sword and gave it a few experimental swishes, with rather more force than was necessary.

'You're the boy in the street, aren't you?' she said.

'That's right. You're the girl who was going to be shot,' said Victor. 'I see they missed.'

She looked at him curiously. 'How did you get a job so quickly? Most people have to wait weeks for a chance.'

'Chances are where you find them, I've always said,' said Victor.

'But how-'

Victor had already strolled away with gleeful nonchalance. She trailed after him, her face locked in a petulant pout.

'Ah,' said Silverfish sarcastically, looking up. 'My word. Everyone where they should be. Very well. We'll go from the bit where he finds her tied to the stake. What you do,' he said to Victor, 'is untie her, then drag her off and fight the Balgrog, and you,' he pointed to the girl, 'you, you, you just follow him and look as, as rescued as you possibly can, OK?'

'I'm good at that,' she said, resignedly.

'No, no, no,' said Dibbler, putting his head in his hands. 'Not that again!'

'Isn't that what you wanted?' said Silverfish. 'Fights and rescues?'

'There's got to be more to it than that!' said Dibbler.

'Like what?' Silverfish demanded.

'Oh, I don't know. Razzmatazz. Oomph. The old zonkaroonie.'

'Funny noises? We haven't got sound.'

'Everyone makes clicks about people running around and fighting and falling over,' said Dibbler. 'There should be something more. I've been looking at the things you make here, and they all look the same to me.'

'Well, all sausages look the same to me,' snapped Silverfish.

'They're meant to! That's what people expect!'

'And I'm giving them what they expect, too,' said Silverfish. 'People like to see more of what they expect. Fights and chases, that sort of thing-'

' 'Scuse me, Mister Silverfish,' said the handleman, above the angry chattering of the demons.

'Yes?' snapped Dibbler.

' 'Scuse me, Mister Dibbler, but I got to feed 'em ina quarter of a hour.'

Dibbler groaned.