by Mark Lingane
“What exactly are you plannin’ to do with that old relic?” Bruce said.
“It’s the best I got. The rifles are out in the coolroom.”
Merv spun and rested the muzzle over the stove, leaning on the hard metal. He gritted his teeth, squinted, and released a volley through the shattered wall. He turned and sat with his back to the stove. “Bloody hell, woman, it’s still hot.”
“Of course it is, love. You complain if the dinner goes cold.”
“As usual, you’s right, love.” He nodded toward Bruce. “This is no good. You think you can crawl over to the coolroom and grab the rifles?”
“I’ll give it a go.”
“Good man. I’ll try and distract them.”
As Bruce crawled over to the doorway, Merv leapt to his feet and grabbed a small box off the stove. He pulled out a long flare, lit the end and launched it into the clearing. The flare burned fiercely in the night sky, casting a brittle deep-blue glow over the surrounding area.
There was movement as a figure in black stepped back into the darkness of the forest.
Bruce returned with two rifles. He passed one to Merv, who cracked the rifle and checked the chambers were loaded. Two golden bullets glistened in the gaslight.
“That’s more like it.”
Merv leapt up and fired into the clearing. Bruce took a position by the doorway and fired as Merv positioned himself on the other side of what remained of the door.
“The wind’s pickin’ up. Bruce, you take the right flank. See if you can force them out into the center.”
Bruce nodded and slipped into the bushes without a sound as Merv fired a couple of shots into the darkness. He turned to Sheila. “Love, throw me the axe holster.”
Sheila slid over the leather strap. Merv slipped it around his shoulders, then slotted in the axe so it rested against his back. He turned and winked at Sebastian, then disappeared.
Sebastian stayed on the floor, huddled with the women. It was some time before he realized Bindi was holding his hand. She was smiling, but her hands were shaking.
A high-pitched scream echoed through the forest, followed by two more.
Eventually Merv spoke. “Okay, you lot, you can come out now. The coast’s clear.”
Sebastian walked onto the veranda. “My head doesn’t hurt, so that means they’ve gone.”
“These ones have gone, Seb,” Merv said. “Forever.”
Bruce came running out of the trees and leapt up the stairs. “Looks like first innings goes to us.”
The two men stood together on the veranda looking out into the silent darkness.
Eventually Merv nodded. “Ah, the serenity.”
“I’m so sorry,” Sebastian said. “More might come.”
“Let them.” Merv’s face was impassive as he stared out into the great dark wilderness. He broke into a smile and ruffled Sebastian’s hair. “It takes a lot to get past ol’ Merv, don’t you worry about that, squirt.”
“I need to go.”
“You need to go inside. I’m going to scout round, make sure we’re all clear.”
*
Sebastian felt a great relief when Merv finally returned. Bruce had been talking endlessly about the imminent threat of foreigners.
“What if they come back in numbers?” he was saying. “It could get serious. Might have to cancel the barbie.”
“No need to overreact, Bruce,” Merv said as he swung the axe off his back He placed his rifle on the table. He picked up his beer to take a sip, only for the bottom to fall off.
“That’s not good,” said Sheila.
“See,” said Bruce, “they’re even deprivin’ a man of a cold beer for a hard-earned thirst.”
“Let’s all calm down,” Merv said. “It’s been a bit of a shock, but we’ve dealt with worse.”
The others looked at him.
“Like when Jones’s bull got out.”
They all nodded in unison.
“It’s all because of me,” Sebastian said. “If I go now you’ll be safe. What if Bruce’s right and they come back?”
Sheila looked at Merv. “You can’t let the little tike go on his own.”
Merv nodded. “Furthest thing from my mind. I’ll take you to the main station at New Toowoomba tomorrow,” he told Sebastian. “We’ll be right till then. Bruce and I’ll watch out overnight. We got that bottle of Bailey’s sittin’ on the shelf, waitin’ to push us through to sunrise. Right, Bruce?”
“Oath, mate.”
“I’d suggest you get your backside on the train to Toowoomba and find your mother. I’d take you there myself, but with those things out and about I don’t want to leave the family alone for too long.”
Sebastian sat down and closed his eyes. These people were so kind, and all he had brought was danger and destruction. Guilt weighed heavily upon him.
8
THE CROWING OF the rooster woke Sebastian. He was surprised to see everyone else up and about.
Bruce was putting the finishing touches on the new front door. Apart from the odd bit of charring, the house was looking like it had before.
Merv was sitting at the long table sipping a cup of tea. Steam billowed up from the water as he stared out the window toward the rising sun. Sebastian sat down next to him.
“I’ve been thinkin’—”
Sheila smiled. “He’s an ideas man, my Merv.”
“Yeah, thanks, Sheila. Like I was sayin’, those cyber-drongos fire that light thing, which bounces off shiny stuff. We got some ol’ flexi-steel sheets lyin’ out back. I reckon we could make some kind of light armor out of it to reflect the light.” He looked at Sebastian. “Could save you in a tight corner.”
“That’s very kind of you,” Sebastian said.
“No worries. Just give me ten and we’ll get on it.” He turned to the kitchen. “Sheila, get some grub for the boy.”
Sheila responded using a phrase Sebastian didn’t understand. A few minutes later Bindi came into the dining room with a plate piled high with cooked animal parts. He hungrily tucked into the food. Bindi was about to sit down when her mother called her to the kitchen. She harrumphed her way back.
After he had finished, he took his plate to the sink.
“No need for that, love,” Sheila said.
“My mother said I should always take the plate to the kitchen and clean up if someone else made the dinner.”
“She sounds like a very wise woman who’s raising a very fine young man.”
Sebastian blushed.
The sink was unattended so he placed the plate in the hot water and washed it. Bindi leapt over with the dishcloth. She tucked her hair behind her ear and smiled at him. He took the plate out of the water and Bindi clutched at it, making sure she touched his hands. She stood there for a moment. Sebastian looked awkwardly at Sheila. Sheila smiled. Sebastian pulled his hands away and made a dash for the door.
Outside he took a deep breath and wiped his hands on his tunic. He heard the sounds of metalwork coming from the shed. He walked over, pausing to gaze at Bruce and Brenda’s SUV.
As he entered the cavernous space of the shed, he could see sparks flying from behind Merv as he bent over a cleaning machine. His leg was furiously pumping away on a pedal, and a small spinning wheel turned against a piece of curved plating. He looked up and gave Sebastian a nod. Sebastian sat down on the long wooden bench that took up most of one wall and waited.
Merv kept modifying the metal in some way, pushing here, pulling there, trimming everywhere, occasionally glancing over at Sebastian. Finally he called Sebastian over and tested the sheets against his body. Bindi came in and watched them quietly.
Sebastian sat down on the long wooden bench. Bindi sat down next to him. She was very close. She fluttered her fan. He slowly moved away. She moved along the bench. She gave him a shy glance. He moved a little further along. She moved next to him again, and slowly reached out for his hand. He quickly slid along further. He hadn’t paid attention to where the bench ended, so he top
pled over the end and crashed into the buckets.
Merv glanced over and chuckled.
“Ohmygodohmygodohmygod,” Bindi said. “Are you all right? Do you need TLC? The kiss of life?”
“I’m all right,” shrieked Sebastian. He held up his hands in defense.
Merv straightened up. He held up his work and rotated it in his hands. Its shine was fierce. “I reckon we’re just about there. Bindi, go tell your mother I need the silk.”
Bindi gave her father a sullen look, wheeled around and stormed off back to the house. A few moments later Sheila arrived with a large pile of glossy white material.
“It’s my wedding dress,” she said. “I won’t be needing it anymore now that I have my Merv.”
“Bloody right, woman. You better not be gettin’ any ideas runnin’ off with some young jack or I’ll have your legs off.” He waved his axe comically.
“Oh, Merv, you’re so romantic.” The two embraced in a very long kiss.
Sebastian scratched his scalp and then examined his fingernails. Eventually the two disentangled.
“Sheila, you’s the only one for me. Oh, the boy.”
Merv carefully cut a slim strip of silk from the base of the dress and rubbed it over the metal. His face was a mask of concentration as he painstakingly went over every part of the metal until it gleamed in the early morning sun. Sheila stood next to him, beaming at his expert handiwork, pointing out bits he had missed.
Merv picked up the piece and gave it a final inspection. He looked at Sheila, who nodded. “Finished. Okay, sport, over here and pop off your tunic.”
Sebastian removed it and folded it neatly on the bench.
“Can I get you to teach Bindi that?” Sheila said. “She just leaves her clothes crumpled all over the floor.”
Sebastian smiled. It was another thing his mother went on and on and on about. Remembering her reminded him of how much he was missing her. He felt his insides tighten, but now was not the time to be emotional. Not when he was being fitted with armor.
“It’s very light,” he said, as Merv fastened it around him.
“Yeah, good, isn’t it? Keep it under your tunic. Concealed but comfortable.”
“He looks so handsome, like a little knight in shining armor,” said Sheila.
“The sheilas’ll love it. Case in point,” Merv said. He gave Sebastian a mischievous grin and winked. “I guess that’s about it. I’ll get the horse sorted and we can get going.”
Sebastian felt a little disappointed, as he secretly hoped he could ride in the SUV. Merv disappeared then reappeared a few moments later with a huge black stallion in tow. He smoothed a blanket over its back and threw on a saddle. As he was tightening the cinch, Sheila and Bindi appeared.
Sheila was carrying a small backpack. She handed it to Sebastian. “You can’t leave here without any food. People may say things about our hospitality.” She gave him a warm smile.
Bindi burst into tears and gave him a big hug. Unsure of what to do, he delicately patted her sides.
Merv handed Sebastian his tunic then heaved him up onto the blanket in front of the saddle. “Back in a moment, loves,” Merv said as he forced his foot into the stirrup and swung up easily into the saddle.
“Sure you want him in front, love?” Sheila said.
“Best place to keep him protected,” replied Merv. “He can grab an ice pack at the other end if he gets a bit tender.”
“You take care of yourself, sport,” said Sheila.
“I will, love,” Merv replied.
“I meant him, you drongo.” She gave Sebastian another smile.
“I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done,” Sebastian told her. “You’ve given so much and all I’ve done is take. I hope one day to be able to repay you for all your kindness.”
“Don’t sweat it. You made it more interesting around here. Right, Bindi?”
Bindi let out a long wail and ran off back to the house.
“We better head out, love,” Merv said.
Sheila patted him on his thigh. “Be safe.”
Merv wheeled the horse around, then spurred it down the track and out through the gates.
9
AFTER THEY HAD been riding for a while, Sebastian said, “Merv?”
“Yeah, sport?”
“What if they do come back?”
“The way I see it, they’re after you. Which is bad. But you can sort of sense them. Which is good. I’ve never seen anythin’ like it. It’s like you’re are a new kind of person with special powers.” He laughed. Sebastian didn’t respond. “But don’t worry about us. I think the best thing is to check on your mother, see how she’s holdin’ up in Toowoomba.”
“The last thing I got from her was an instruction to go to the academy. She wouldn’t have told me to go there if it wasn’t important.”
“The Steam Academy? Out at Isa? Joshuz, that’s a long way. It might be important, but is it right? I’m not tellin’ you how to live your life, but I’d want to know about my mother.”
Sebastian sat in silence.
“Of course, knowin’ my mother, if I turned up to see if she was all right after she told me to go somewhere else, she’d give me a clip round the ear. So I guess there’s no easy answers. But family’s personal, we all need ’em at some point.”
“I really miss her.”
“I’m not surprised, son. Havin’ seen what you been through in the last day’s been bad enough. If it’s been goin’ on longer it’d cause me some concern. How long’s she been gone?”
“It’s been a few months. My aunt came to look after me, but she got sick like all the others. Then the cyborgs got her when they destroyed the town.”
“So you got no home?”
“No.”
“That’s not good.”
The two rode on in silence. The landscape crawled past and the heat settled in for the day. Demented flies buzzed around their hands and the rear of the horse. It occasionally flicked its tail, sending another thousand buzzing annoyingly around them. From time to time Merv handed the water canteen to Sebastian, who took long sips. Merv ignored the sobs as the horse trotted along.
To while away the time, Merv recited some of the epic poems his mother had forced him, at knifepoint, to learn. He explained that it wasn’t as bad as it sounded as the knife was made of chocolate. But that was what his mother was like. Large of heart and bosom; long on discipline; and short on shirking off chopping the wood.
*
Halfway through the epic Cloudstreet drama they hit the outskirts of New Toowoomba. It was the biggest city Sebastian had ever seen, and boasted a population of over eight thousand people. They entered through the valleys, a pass that was an occasional floodplain. The houses were built on tall poles to keep them safe when the water came through. As they rose up into the hills, the SUVs and buildings became plentiful.
In the center of the city, at the highest point, was a massive building. It had an impressive tower that had a clock on each of the four faces. Three of the clocks were working.
“Just in time for lunch,” Merv said. “Little Tracey’s about to chime. You can dig into the tucker the girls made.”
And, on cue, long booming clangs from the bells rang forth, deafening everyone in close proximity. Merv dismounted as they reached the front steps of the station. The stone steps led up to the glass doors underneath a great brass dome. People from all walks of life streamed through the doors. The clangs echoed away as the sounds bounced off the nearby mountains.
“Some people say this place is a thousand years old,” Merv said. “It survived the Reckoning. Hasn’t changed a bit. Apart from bein’ fixed up now and then. Survived everythin’ except poor maintenance, so it’s only fallen down a dozen times.”
He lifted Sebastian off the horse, placed him gently on the ground and ruffled his hair.
“Thank you for everything, Merv. I hope I can meet you under better conditions in the future.”
Merv tu
rned and swung himself back up onto the horse. “No worries, squirt. You learn on the land that most things are uncertain, but that’s okay. Look forward to meetin’ you again. I’d join you but the rains’ll be comin’ soon and I gotta get the crops in before the big wet. The community’s gonna need the contribution this year ’cause Barry’s got his bad leg and Trev’s back’s been out.”
Sebastian nodded, but he knew the real reason Merv wanted to get back. Protection of the family came first.
“Best way to Isa’s on the express train,” Merv explained. “It’s a bit pricier, but it’ll get you there in a couple of days instead of a week. But don’t forget Toowoomba.”
“But Merv, I don’t have any money.”
“Check your pockets, kiddo. Good luck, Seb, I’ll be thinkin’ of you.” He tapped his finger to his Akubra and wheeled the horse around. He dug his heels into the sides of the great beast and took off back to his family with a determined look on his face.
Sebastian checked the pockets of his tunic. He found about a hundred dollars scattered through them, in notes and coins. And a letter written on pink paper with lots of x’s at the end. He didn’t want to read the detail yet, so he placed it in his chest pocket, beside his mother’s letter, next to his heart.
He slung the pack over his shoulder and marched up the large stone steps. People jostled around him as he entered the large doors. The expanse inside was impressive. It was the biggest indoor space he had seen. He felt dwarfed by it. People pushed him aside as they fought their way inside. He estimated that all the buildings in his town could fit within the confines of the walls.
Three train lines were evenly spaced across the area, each one going directly out through the open expanse of the far wall. The roof was epic, the brass dome reaching all the way across the other side where the trains exited the building. Down each side were dozens of small shops selling an array of supplies. Tables were scattered liberally thought the center of the space. People were sitting at them, drinking tea or eating lunch.
Trains were releasing steam, whistles were blowing and conductors were shouting. And everywhere he looked there were people. He noted a nearby booth with TICKETS displayed on a sign above the window.