“Thank you, Your Majesty for giving us this life-changing learning experience,” Connie said, as she shook the royal hand for one last time.
Dr Schultz added his farewell to the set, along with The Night Watchman and The Deputy Prime Minister.
“Can’t stay long as I have a lot of work to do tonight,” said The Deputy PM. “But it’s been lovely getting to know you”.
“Likewise,” said Claudia.
“Good luck,” said Dr Schultz. “And well done on your achievements.”
“We would say well done on yours,” replied Graca.
“You’ll be early to bed tonight, won’t you?” laughed The Night Watchman. “You know you have a long day ahead tomorrow. But I do wish you well.”
The sets mingled and exchanged views on their experiences, each still intrigued as to what Joanie’s last surprise would be.
“One thing’s for sure, we won’t have long to wait,” said Hamish, collecting a glass of wine from one of the circulating waitresses.
“What are your thoughts on leaving The Island?” Marie asked Terry.
“We are all going to miss The Island, but at least we will not miss each other.”
“That’s very true,” said her Dutch principal.
“What has impressed you the most?” the Brazilian gent asked Claudia.
“The way in which everyone works together. Here, people think in terms of how they can each contribute to the whole, not just what they can get out of somebody else. It’s a quantum leap in the way in which people think about the world and each other. And you?”
“I agree with you, but I have been especially surprised at how Joanie and her staff manage to get the most out of people. This place can only ever be a force for good in the world.”
Presently The Chancellor stopped playing his soft lament. Joanie then made a few brief remarks.
“Well. That’s it, apart from my one last surprise. I would like to say a big thank you to you all for being such hard working and dedicated learners. Tonight I especially thank The Queen’s chef, Bob, and his team for keeping us so finely fed and watered.”
Bob and his team of eight assistants bowed their heads.
“You are all model citizens in every respect,” Joanie continued, “It’s been a pleasure and a privilege to have been able to train and equip you for the tasks which lay ahead. I will be seeing you again very soon. Sleep well, and remember, don’t be late for the train.”
*
The train left promptly at ten o’clock the next morning. It was full to capacity as it left The Town station with all 240 setmates on board. Swiftly it steamed northwards through the now deserted stations of Sabfelt and Aldebaran. On board the setmates studied the instructions that Joanie had given them the previous morning.
“At The Cavern Station, proceed along the platform to the large steel door at the end and await further instructions,” recited Connie.
“I expect it will make more sense when we get off the train,” said Michael.
“Where on earth is The Cavern Station?” questioned Anne.
“As Joanie said, it’s for her to know and for us to find out,” Carl replied.
The train slowed down as it entered The Palace Gates station, but where ordinarily it would have come to a halt here, this time it did not, and for the first time the setmates travelled on a piece of track that had, until now, been sealed off. The train slowly rounded a bend before entering a tunnel that led deep into the mountainside. It then steamed on for a further eight minutes before finally coming to rest in an underground station named The Cavern where the tunnel ended. Now the mystery of this strange station was finally revealed.
The setmates followed The Usherette along the station’s single platform to the large steel door at the far end. When all of the setmates were assembled in position the door opened to reveal a wide winding torchlit passageway. There then followed a long, winding walk that took some fifteen minutes.
“Does this ever end?” questioned Elena, excited and intrigued, after twelve minutes.
The passageway ended abruptly at another steel door. This then slid open to reveal a large circular chamber with another steel door opposite. Inside there were two long tables, one with tea, coffee and snacks placed upon it, the other with a total of 240 mortar boards and gowns. On the first table was a card upon which were written the words ‘Put on your graduation outfits. Then rest awhile until called by the anthem’. A welcome water closet had also been provided.
This rest break lasted about twenty minutes, before the steel door on the far side of the chamber opened to reveal another winding passageway similar to the first, but somewhat shorter. As the setmates advanced the opening chords of Gustav Holst’s ‘Jupiter: The Bringer of Jollity’ were heard, quietly at first, then louder. The Island’s national anthem ‘I vow to thee my Island’, cloned from ‘I vow to thee my country’ then rang out.
Together the 240 setmates marched along the 100-yard long tunnel which then opened out to reveal a large chamber with an oak door to the left and a pulpit to the right as one entered.. Facing the pulpit were two banks of pews separated by a red carpet. To the left of the pulpit was a long table with artefacts on it and a throne behind. On the other side of the pulpit was a smaller bank of pews, next to which was a black curtain, the significance of which was, at this point, unknown.
As the setmates entered The Usherette was ready to direct them to their various allotted positions. The setmates then began to fill the pews. Then, when they were all seated, a small group of masked adults followed from behind to take their places in the pews immediately to the right of the pulpit and beside the mysterious black curtain.
“Who are they?” and “What’s behind that curtain?”, the setmates whispered.
When the masked visitors were seated Joanie, The Chancellor, The Concierge and The Reverend took their places at the end of the front row of the left bank of pews facing the pulpit.
“Please be upstanding for Her Majesty The Queen,” The Chancellor ordered.
The anthem then rang out again as The Queen entered, holding her head high as she strode along the red carpet to the throne, dressed in her finest ceremonial blue and gold robes.
“The assembly shall be seated,” she announced as she took her place.
This provided the cue for Joanie to advance to the pulpit.
“Your Majesty. Your graduates are presented to you. These are the privileged individuals who have come here to live the dream that you made possible. These are the people who have been fortunate enough to have each received one of the 240 Tickets that you issued. They were hand-picked by our representatives in various countries, some of whom are now seated to my right, having been adjudged to have had what it takes. They have all now proven themselves worthy of the Kamchatskiy Celebrity Degree. They will each now play a part in helping to lead world reform in the new political economy.
These setmates have earned their right to be here. We have had fun and all enjoyed the past year, as well as working and studying in this special place. I now ask that you all stand behind our Queen as we pledge our allegiance to her. Setmates please say, we pledge our allegiance to you.”
“We pledge our allegiance to you,” the setmates responded.
“I will now ask Her Majesty to present to you the awards to which you are now entitled. In a few moments I will ask our newest citizens to file past Her Majesty to receive their certificates, personal files with some of their best moments carefully caught on camera, the coveted Island passport, and complimentary tickets to the next Non-Olympic Games. I will now ask my ever-faithful Chancellor to read out the names and for Sylvia to take snapshots of each setmate with their awards. When you have received your awards I will ask you to stand in line behind the black curtain that you see to my right beside The Friends of The Island’s Benches. These good people are, by the way, some of The Queen’s closest friends, whom many of you have to thank for your being here. They have been invited here specially to wit
ness the graduation. Your parents and families will also be given a recording of this ceremony, of which they can be justly proud, since lives that otherwise were likely to have been grossly sub-optimised have now been guaranteed a great and glorious future at the forefront of the world’s greatest ever revolution.”
The music of ‘Viva Kamchatskiy’ played as the setmates filed past The Queen, Her Majesty wishing each and every one of her new subjects the very best for the future as she shook their hands and handed them each their awards. They were then guided by The Usherette to stand in line behind the black curtain. When they were all in line the music stopped and Joanie returned to the pulpit.
“Your Majesty, we thank you. That brings us to the end of today’s formalities, but not the end of today, for I know that you are all asking what lies behind this magic curtain. I will now give you a clue, and that is to prepare for the longest journey of your lives, the trip of a lifetime. None of you are nervous, are you? You aren’t afraid of anything are you?”
There were a few looks of astonishment from the setmates, hardly believing what some of them now suspected, that they were about to take a journey into space.
“No, of course not,” she continued. “Island citizens are afraid of nothing. Kamchatskiy graduates are afraid of nothing. Fear has been driven out.”
The setmates shook their heads in affirmation.
“You will love it, I promise,” Joanie said as she pulled the lever that lifted the curtain. “The SGV or Space Going Vessel Katie is a fabulous ship. It will take off from here, orbit the Earth for three days at a distance of approximately 30,000 miles, then touch down into water in the North Pacific before gliding in seacat mode to Petropavlovsk Kamchatskiy just in time for your onward rail connection to your new houses. All aboard please.”
The setmates then began to ascend the ramp that led on board. As they did they passed The Friends of The Island, who pulled back their masks and shook the hands of some of the setmates.
“Deirdre,” Gary gasped as she turned her head towards him and shook his hand. “It was I who sent you The Queen’s Ticket. Good luck Gary.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Into Orbit
The craft was spear-shaped, with a distinctive bubble-shaped protrusion at the top of the front end that was carefully protected by two retractable re-entry shields.
Entering the spacecraft was not too dissimilar to entering a large aircraft, with a long straight ramp leading to a dedicated takeoff and landing seated area on the starboard side. Stewardesses directed each person to their allotted seats for take-off. Setmates naturally were seated in the main body of the take-off and landing section of the craft, with the first-class area beyond.
When everyone was in place the obligatory ‘FASTEN SAFETY BELTS’ sign became illuminated and the captain introduced himself.
“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen,” came the man’s voice. “I am Captain Vladimir Orkovsky and I am pleased to welcome you aboard the Kamchatskiy Aerospace Space Going Vessel SGV Katie. It is one of three sister ships, the oldest being the SGV Neville, and the newest the SGV Aub. The Katie is just over three years old and, like the others, was built by the Kamchatskiy Aerospace Space Division in Yuzhno Sakhalinsk and has a 100 per cent safety record.
As you know we are going into space. This is therefore no ordinary airline flight.
You will see from the plans that everyone is currently in the main shuttle capsule, which, in the event of an emergency on takeoff, or in space if there is time for everyone to reach it, is detachable from the rest of the craft and is designed to return safely to a suitable runway on Earth. Cabin crew will soon demonstrate the procedures for emergencies of this type, which broadly correspond to those of a conventional aircraft. Should the emergency occur in space directions will be given to assemble at an appropriate muster station, similar to those on ships. Small shuttles can then be used in the event of this capsule being damaged or inaccessible as a result of an accident.
Once we are safely in orbit around the Earth, the safety belt signs will be turned off and advice given when it is safe to proceed into the other parts of the craft and when the artificial gravity unit has been switched on. The workings of these units will be explained to you later. Should there be a failure in one or more elements of the gravity unit an alarm will sound and you should proceed at once either to this capsule, or to muster stations as directed if the fault is temporary. Instructions will then be given as to what you must do. It shouldn’t happen, but you are kindly requested to study the safety procedures carefully whilst on board.
Hopefully our three-day voyage into space will pass off pleasantly, and the vessel will transform itself into seacat mode somewhere to the south of the Aleutians. For this you will return to this capsule for re-entry. The vessel will then continue to its dedicated terminal at Petropavlovsk Kamchatskiy, where you will then disembark.
I now ask that you sit back and relax as we prepare for takeoff for the trip of a lifetime that is normally reserved for millionaires. I say this as the SGVs are a nice little earner for The Island when in commercial use. So, the safety demonstration please.”
A dull rumble followed, indicating that the main thrusters had now been activated. A short while later the whole craft tilted upwards and began to rise smoothly, the significant g-forces serving to remind everyone just exactly why it was vital to be seated and strapped firmly during the fifteen minute acceleration to a velocity of over 5,000 miles an hour.
At the end of its ascent the tilt of the vessel flattened and the ‘FASTEN SAFETY BELTS’ sign was turned off. Then the captain again addressed everyone on board.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to report that our ascent has now stabilised and we are now on course for our parking orbit which we will reach in a little under six hours from now, when the Earth’s gravitational field will act to hold us in place until we complete the burn that will propel us homeward.
In a few minutes the doors at the aft of this shuttle section will be opened allowing free entry into the main body of the SGV, which you are free to walk around for about an hour. Dinner will then be served in the Atrium, followed by an informative talk and some evening entertainment. We will then be asking all of our new setmates to attend the short marriage ceremony in The Wedding Chamber, after which there will be starlit dancing and an all-night bar for those who wish it. The sleeping quarters are on the deck below the Atrium and Wedding Chamber, and we suggest that you refer to the plans of the vessel so as to familiarise yourselves with the location of your own specific sleeping quarters. Some are on the port side of the vessel, others are on the starboard. Breakfast will be available in the Atrium from 8 a.m. Island time. The rest is holiday as if on a cruise ship.”
The Atrium was a large open-plan area with a bar at one end and a dance floor in the centre. Its roof was of transparent super toughened plastic and convex, some twenty feet above the dancing area, and, with its shields retracted, afforded a perfect view of the heavens, completely free from all of the distortions and interference of the Earth’s atmosphere. At the far end was a stage with a screen behind. A total of fifty tables each seating up to twelve people had been set covering the whole dance floor, with one larger and more ornate top table, where the senior Island staff and VIPs would sit, nearest the stage.
Inside Joanie, The Concierge and The Reverend again mixed with the new unmarried setmates. Children were also present, some of whom Gary recognised from his earlier experiences on The Island, which by now seemed a very distant place. Presently The Reverend approached Gary.
“So, what does it feel like being in space?” he asked him.
“It’s a strange feeling, that seems almost unreal,” replied Gary as he looked up at the transparent roof and observed the crystal clear view of the heavens. “All those prolonged g-forces and then this palace in the sky. What are the other SGVs like?”
“Well, the Neville is about the same size as this, but it’s older and slower and has f
ewer facilities. It also carries fewer people and is heavier with bigger engines and a larger gravity unit. The Aub on the other hand is smaller and faster and can travel further, as far as the Moon and back, but again can’t carry as many people as this craft. It has only just completed its maiden flight and will eventually be owned by the new King.”
“Have you been on the others?”
“The Neville yes, the Aub no. These marriage ceremonies in space only began five years ago when the SGV Neville was built. Lots of people at the time were unsure if it would work. Nobody knew what to expect. Now it’s as routine as going on a cruise.”
“How often do these things fly?”
“This craft and the Neville usually take off three or four times a year, as there is no shortage of millionaires from around the world queuing up to buy tickets.”
“Hello Gary, how are you?” Joanie asked as she approached his set.
“I was just telling him about the SGVs,” said The Reverend.
“Great pieces of engineering,” said Joanie. “Though nothing compared to Moonbase Alpha.”
“Is that entirely Island owned?” Gary asked.
“Not entirely,” said Joanie. “It’s multinational, but The Island has the majority share in its ownership, which comes largely from our initial investment which no other nation was prepared to make. Other nations therefore effectively buy their rights from us. The Russians have helped us a lot though with their wealth of expertise, so we do a lot of concessionary exchanges with them. Unfortunately most of the capitalist countries have tended to see Moonbase Alpha as something far too ambitious and expensive to get involved with to any great extent. As well as that once the Russians became committed with us they have been keen to ensure that it is something between them and us, so the involvement of others has been kept to a minimum, but not so much as to prevent other countries from wanting to cooperate with us. At the end of next year we are hoping to launch a manned mission to Mars with a multinational crew from Moonbase Alpha, which I shall be overseeing, so I’m really looking forward to it.”
The Island of Dreams Page 28