A 16-year-old boy attempted to murder two fellow pupils at a private school as they slept in their boarding-house beds by hitting them repeatedly with a claw hammer, a jury has heard. The boy, who cannot be named, had “fermented” a plan to kill the pair, who were 16 and 15 at the time, the jury at Exeter crown court was told. He also attempted to kill a member of staff, Henry Roffe-Silvester, who heard the commotion at Blundell’s school in Devon, and went to investigate. The defendant, now 17, denies three charges of attempted murder. In the aftermath, the defendant told other pupils he had been sleepwalking and dreaming. He claimed he had hammers because he had been watching horror films and needed to protect himself against a zombie apocalypse, the court heard. James Dawes KC, prosecuting, described the alleged crime as a “horrifying hammer attack on two sleeping teenage boys”. He alleged that at about 12.50am on Friday 9 June last year, the defendant “steeled himself” and put into action a plan that had been “fermenting in his mind” to kill two boys. Dawes said the boy had four claw hammers and is accused of selecting a hammer, or hammers, and quietly approaching the sleeping boys as they slept in cabin beds. The boy smashed both their skulls. One of the boys also suffered damage to his spleen and a broken rib pierced a lung. The defendant hit the upper arm of the second boy with the claw part of the hammer, gouging a wound, the court heard. Dawes said it was astonishing the boys had survived but both had suffered “long-term consequences”. The barrister said: “Sadly neither of them will ever be the same again. Both heads are permanently damaged and cognitive functions are not as they were. Mercifully, neither has any memories of these attacks – they were both asleep. They recall going to bed and waking up in hospital some days later.” The jury was told that Roffe-Silvester was woken by the noise and went to investigate. As soon as he opened the door of the bedroom, the boy, who was wearing only boxer shorts, allegedly attacked him, striking him over the head with a hammer six times. Roffe-Silvester wrenched the hammer from the boy as blood poured down his face. He said the boy’s expression was “unsettling” and he seemed to be “on a mission”. Other boys dashed to help. Both victims were lying on their beds in sleeping positions, covered in blood. One witness said it was a “bloodbath”. They tried to stem the bleeding with towels and sheets until the emergency services arrived, the court was told. The defendant allegedly told one boy he was “dreaming”. He said he was feeling “quite stressed” about school tests, an issue he had with a relative, and owing some money to a girl. He claimed he had been watching horror movies and had weapons to prepare for the zombie apocalypse and to protect himself. He told another boy: “I’m sorry, I was dreaming” and also claimed: “I was sleepwalking”. He said he had woken up and was hitting someone. The trial continues.