The Londum Omnibus Volume Two (The Londum Series Book 12)

by Tony Rattigan

  He looked at the engine admiringly. ‘Truly this is an age of wonder.’

  Adele led him aboard and at a signal from Colonel Frost the guard blew his whistle and waved his flag and the train pulled out of the station.

  Bodies in Motion

  Cobb and Jim breakfasted in the Officer’s Mess with Admiral Collins, Captain Somersby and Lieutenant North. Once they had finished, Captain Somersby headed off to make sure the Pegasus was ready and waiting, the remaining four headed across to the marine compound, where the three sergeants were waiting for them.

  Cobb, Jim and Lt. North changed into their dark clothing while the sergeants did a final check on everyone’s backpacks. Once they were ready, Sgt. Forbes handed Cobb and Jim revolvers and leather holsters on belts to hold them. As they strapped them on he laid their rifles next to their packs. ‘I’ve cleaned them for you and they’re fully loaded, as are the pistols. It’s a way of carrying extra rounds so you don’t have to dig into the two hundreds rounds you carry.’

  Both Jim and Cobb took out their revolvers and tested the action, flipping out the cylinder and checking that it spun smoothly. When they were satisfied they fastened them securely in the holsters and then strapped their rifles to the packs.

  When they were sorted Sgt. Forbes took them upstairs and led the way to the briefing room. Once they were sure that everyone was dressed properly and their packs were ready they headed off to join the Pegasus.

  As they made their way out to the landing field they saw the first airships of the fleet taking off. It was an impressive site as the huge airships, seemingly vast, weighty beasts, simply floated up into the air like children’s balloons and then moved off to join together for their trip to the Lake District.

  Captain Somersby was ready and waiting to welcome them aboard. They quickly stowed their gear in the rear compartment as the Pegasus lifted off and headed north.

  They returned to the bridge and watched as the airship floated slowly over Chatham Dockyards, manoeuvring into their assigned position in the fleet.

  ‘So here we are,’ said Jim. ‘Off on what could be our last adventure together.’

  ‘Why do you say that?’ asked Cobb.

  ‘Because anything could happen, we might even get killed.’

  ‘Not me mate. I’ve been assured personally by the Creator of the Universe that I will live a long and happy life. When someone like that says that sort of thing you tend to believe them.’

  ‘Good, well when the bullets start to fly, I’ll stand behind you.’

  ‘That’s why you’re here isn’t it? To guard my back?’

  ‘Good point.’

  ‘Anyway, let’s not worry about that now, let’s see if cookie can rustle us up a cup of tea.’

  ***

  Later that morning Cobb stood looking out of the bridge window of the Pegasus. Jim came to stand beside him, yawning. Being ex-military Jim followed the old rules of “sleep when you can, eat when you can” as you never knew when you were going to be deprived of either.

  ‘Enjoy your nap?’ Cobb asked him.

  ‘Yes thanks.’ Jim looked at the countryside sliding past beneath them. ‘You should get some kip this afternoon; we’re going to be up all night.’

  Cobb looked at him, puzzled, ‘How do you do that, take it all so calmly? We’ll be going into danger tonight and all you’re worried about is getting enough sleep. Don’t you get the least bit worried?’

  ‘Well it’s not as if you’re afraid either. I’ve known you fight werewolves hand-to-hand, so don’t try and kid me you’re a coward.’

  ‘True I have, but when I find myself in situations like that I simply do what I have to do to survive. Not you, you seem to actually enjoy the danger. Don’t you ever get scared?’

  ‘To be honest ... I get scared every time but that’s why I do it. The adrenaline rush is what makes me feel alive.’

  ‘So you are anxious about tonight?’

  ‘Of course I am, I’m not stupid. The same with all the marines, they’ll be worried too, but it’s a good thing, it keeps you sharp, gives you an edge.’

  ‘Oh, okay ... I don’t feel so bad about being nervous then.’

  ‘I assure you, it’s only natural.’ Jim looked out of the window. ‘Anyway, where are we?’

  ‘Not sure exactly, somewhere south of Oxnaford, you can see the town spires over there in the distance, but we seem to be heading for that place.’ He indicated what looked like some kind of military establishment. Uniform buildings surrounded by a wire fence and even from this distance he could see guards on the gates.

  ‘Where’s the rest of the fleet?’ When Jim had settled down for his nap, the Pegasus had been part of a long chain of airships flying through the Albion sky in single file but now they seemed to have veered away from them and were flying solo.

  ‘Still heading north, I imagine. We seem to be on some other mission.’

  As the airship began to drop down in preparation for landing, Cobb asked, ‘Why are we landing here, Captain?’

  Captain Somersby didn’t reply, just looked to Admiral Collins who answered for him.

  ‘This is Harwell, our research establishment. They’ve got some fancy, new explosive for us so we’re picking some up for you to take on your mission. We’ll only be about an hour, so you might as well go over to their mess, have a cup of tea and stretch your legs while I take the marines to collect it.’

  Jim and Cobb looked at each other, both thinking the same thing. Jim replied, ‘That’s very thoughtful of you, Admiral. Sure we can’t help carry it?’

  ‘No, no. My men will take care of it. Best it were done by the military. Protocol, you understand.’

  ‘Of course.’

  The airship came in to land in one of the open fields surrounding Harwell. As the wheel under the gondola touched the field, the sailors jumped to the ground and grabbed the mooring lines while one of them went round banging in tent pegs to secure the airship to.

  A group of men came out from behind the wire fence where they had been watching the approach of the airship. Among them was one that Cobb recognised from Buck House. He didn’t know his name, just that he was one of the scientists that had been advising the king and the PM.

  When the airship was secured, the ladder was lowered and Admiral Collins, Jim, Cobb and the marines climbed down the ladder to meet the approaching group.

  ‘Professor Onestone,’ said the admiral. ‘Allow me to introduce Mr. Cobb and Mr. Darby. You may recognise them from Buck House but I don’t believe you were ever formally introduced. Might I suggest you have one of your men take them for an early lunch in your mess while the rest of us collect the explosives?’

  ‘Certainly, Admiral. Now then, if you gentlemen would care to follow me.’ He led them back through the main gate and into the establishment. The scientist who had been detailed to look after Cobb and Jim took them off in one direction and Professor Onestone led the rest of the group in another.

  Cobb and Jim’s minder settled them down with tea and sandwiches in the mess and then left them alone for a while. Both Cobb and Jim were aware that this was all part of the “Master plan” that they were being excluded from and neither of them was very impressed by it.

  When the scientist returned some time later and joined them in a cup of tea, they tried to wring some information out of him but he was very circumspect.

  Eventually, a sailor turned up at the mess door to inform them that the Pegasus was ready to depart and they followed him to the craft.

  ***

  Once the airship was airborne and on its route north once more, Cobb, Jim and the marines were invited up to the bridge for a briefing.

  ‘Well gentlemen,’ said the admiral. ‘When we were on the ground we had chance to catch up with the latest messages and instructions from Buck House. We now have the latest plans so I can brief everyone on the details of where we meet the rest of the fleet, the timings of the air raid and the insertion, etc.

  ‘Now th
en, first of all ...’ he tailed off as he saw Jim grimacing and holding his stomach.

  ‘Are you all right, Mr. Darby?’

  ‘Yes, I’m sure I’ll be fine, just a touch of indigestion. Carry on.’

  ‘Right, as I was saying ...’ this time Jim was bending over clutching his stomach.

  ‘I’ll be fine,’ said Jim. ‘It was probably just something “off” in one of those sandwiches. Just let me go to the latrine and I’ll be fine.’

  ‘Well I hope so,’ replied the admiral. ‘We don’t want you dropping out at this stage of the game.’

  ‘No, I’ll be fine, honest. Just carry on with the briefing and I’ll be back shortly.’

  Jim excused himself and left the bridge. Instead of stopping at the latrine, he went straight back to the cabin and began searching around for exactly what they had picked up at Harwell. He found it in a blue, canvas haversack, hidden under one the sleeping cots. He undid the toggles and examined what was inside.

  It was three circular steel bands, held in position by four steel rods, equally spaced around the bands to form a tube-shaped frame, approximately two feet long and six inches wide. The steelwork was highly polished and machined. Inside this frame was suspended a smaller steel tube, with a ball shaped protuberance at either end. At one end of the interior tube was a device made up of, what looked to Jim like, an amount of plastic explosive. Wires ran from the plastic explosive to a battery controlled by a switch. To engage the switch one first had to remove a safety pin and then manually throw the switch. Jim looked around but there was no timing device of any description, not even one of those simple pen detonators he was familiar with. Whoever threw the switch would go up with the bomb with no chance to make a getaway.

  He picked up the haversack and made his way forward to the bridge.

  ‘Ah Mr. Darby, feeling better?’ asked the admiral as Jim re-entered the bridge. ‘I see you-’ he stopped abruptly as he saw what Jim placed on the deck before him.

  ‘Care to explain about this?’ Jim challenged him.

  There was a long pause and then the admiral spoke, ‘Captain Somersby, I’d like you to clear the bridge of your men and take the wheel yourself.’ Once this had been accomplished, the admiral warned him, ‘And you will not remember a word of this conversation, is that understood?’

  ‘Understood, sir.’

  Satisfied, the admiral turned back to Jim and said, ‘What exactly is the problem, Mr. Darby?’

  ‘I know a lot about explosives, Admiral, and I’ve never seen a bomb like this before. This is more than just a superior explosive, isn’t it?’

  ‘Yes, Mr. Darby it is. I might as well level with you as you’re the one putting your life on the line, not me. You’re right, it is more than just a bomb made of higher grade explosives. This is something that our scientists have been working on for some time. Named the Sunburst Weapon, its core material is made from a particular ore. The explosive you see drives two pieces of that ore together at high speed in that central tube. This causes some kind of cataclysmic reaction that I can’t explain to you as the science is beyond me. What I can tell you is that this reaction gives it a blast radius of several miles.

  ‘It was thought that there should be a backup plan if you and Mr. Cobb failed in your mission. If you couldn’t steal the Dark Matter and thereby disable the portal generator, then the generator itself would have to be destroyed so that the Elves could no longer use it. My men also have instructions that if the mission was seen to be failing then they were to detonate the weapon. Due to the nature of the explosion they would only have to be in close proximity to the portal generator, not inside it.’

  ‘But I checked, there’s no timer,’ Jim protested. ‘Once you throw the switch it goes off immediately with no chance to escape. Cobb was right, you never did plan on us coming back alive, it’s a suicide mission!’

  ‘Mr. Darby, a timer would be pointless. With the blast radius of this weapon there’s nowhere you could possibly escape to in time, without leaving such a long delay that there’s every possibility that the enemy would find it and disarm it. It’s simply not practical. Besides, it’s only meant to be used if there is simply no other option.’

  ‘I see,’ said Jim, somewhat mollified by the explanation. ‘I’m beginning to understand your point.’

  ‘But Jim,’ said Cobb. ‘You’re not saying you agree with the admiral? A weapon like that is monstrous, it would kill hundreds if not thousands.’

  ‘Cobb, you have to see it from their point of view, the military point of view. If we fail then it may be the only way to ensure the generator is destroyed and our world is made safe. I’m ex-army and I accept the fact that we may have to use it to win the war. It’s them or us, Cobb.’

  ‘Okay, you win but I want the marines to promise that it will only be used as a last resort,’ Cobb demanded.

  ‘Of course,’ agreed Lt. North. ‘We want to survive this mission as much as you do. I give you my word, only if our backs are against the wall and the mission is about to fail, will I give the order to throw the switch.’

  ‘There, are you satisfied with that?’ the admiral asked Cobb.

  ‘Yes, now are there any other secrets you’re keeping from us?’

  ‘No, that was all. Now, may I continue with the briefing?’

  ‘Go ahead.’

  ***

  As the Royal train rattled north through the Somerset Levels, heading towards the Lakes, King Arthur and Adele settled down in armchairs with Victor and Eloise, in the main carriage. Apart from the Aide-De-Camp and a few footmen, they were alone.

  ‘Your Majesty?’ said one of the footmen.

  Both Arthur and Victor turned to him and said, ‘Yes?’ There was an embarrassed silence.

  ‘Forgive me,’ apologised Arthur. ‘I hadst forgotten this was no longer my domain. Please, go ahead.’

  ‘Coffee, Your Majesty?’ The footman proffered a tray.

  ‘Yes, please, just leave the tray, we’ll serve ourselves.’

  The footman left the tray on the table between them and withdrew.

  ‘Shall I do the honours?’ offered Adele.

  ‘Thank you, that would be good,’ responded Victor.

  Adele dutifully poured everyone a cup of coffee and realising that Arthur would have no idea how to prepare it, she added milk and sugar for him.

  Arthur sipped his coffee with obvious enjoyment. ‘What ist this splendid drink?’

  ‘It’s called coffee,’ King Victor explained. ‘We take the beans from the coffee bush and soak them in hot water to extract the flavour.’

  ‘Are these beans grown in Albion?’

  ‘No, they come from another country called Amerigo. Briton has an empire that spans a quarter of the globe but beyond that we trade with the rest of the world. Anything we can’t grow or make ourselves we import.’

  ‘And what maketh it so sweet, was it that white powder? Ist it some kind of dried honey?’

  ‘That’s sugar, it comes from a plant called sugarcane. Once again, it is grown in our colonies and shipped back to Albion.’

  Arthur nodded, obviously impressed by how much the country had advanced since his time. ‘May I ask thee a favour?’

  ‘Of course,’ replied Victor.

  ‘Wouldst thou tell me what happened to Guinevere and Lancelot after I ... left. Didst they finally get the chance to be together?’

  ‘Don’t you know?’ asked Eloise, puzzled by his question. ‘Excuse me but aren’t you with them on the … other side?’

  ‘Alas no. I didst not go on to heaven when I passed. I hadst made a vow to my people that should they ever need me to defend Albion again, I wouldst return. Therefore the Gods did not take me onto the next plane of existence but instead kept me in a long sleep. I have no memory of what happened between when I closed my eyes at Avalon so long ago and when the witches summoned me back today. For me the centuries all passed in the blink of an eye.’

  Victor and Eloise looked to Adele as the r
esident Arthurian scholar. ‘According to the legends, after Camlamm Guinevere retired to a nunnery and Lancelot ... well, he went off into the wilderness and was never heard of again.’

  ‘So they didst live the rest of their lives apart?’ Arthur asked, sadly.

  ‘I’m afraid so,’ Adele told him.

  ‘Forgive me if I am prying, Your Majesty, but you seem upset by the idea that they never got together,’ said Eloise. ‘Didn’t you mind about their relationship?’

  Arthur hesitated for a moment then smiled ruefully. ‘Well, what doth it matter now? They are long dead, it cannot hurt them. It was like this, a country must have a king and a king must have his queen. Gwen fulfilled her duty to Albion by marrying me and I’m sure she didst love me in her own way, but it was never the way she didst love Lance. “The heart wants what the heart wants” I suppose. The love between Lancelot and Guinevere was ... real, whereas the union between her and I was purely political.

  ‘I saw this but I didn’t interfere because I reasoned that although fate had decreed that I had to sacrifice everything for my country, it wasn’t fair that everyone around me should have to as well. If they couldst find joy in each other’s arms then “May the Gods bless them”, was all I couldst say.’

  King Victor nodded sagely. Eloise stared resolutely out of the window and Adele dabbed discreetly at her eyes with a handkerchief.

  To break the awkward silence Victor took a cigar and lit it.

  ‘By the Gods!’ exclaimed Arthur as Victor puffed out a cloud of smoke. ‘Hast men grown into fire-breathing dragons in mine absence?’

  ‘No no, King Arthur, no need to take on so. It is just a cigar made of tobacco.’ He handed over an unlit cigar for Arthur to look at.

  Arthur examined it carefully. ‘To-bacc-o? What is tobacco?’

  ‘The dried leaves of the tobacco plant. We import it from Amerigo.’

  ‘And why dost thou breathe in the smoke?’