Shen Ark: Departure

by John Hindmarsh

  Under Wychwood was one such village. Sasha’s home was just off the village High Street and fortunately possessed a very large atrium facing south, where Freddie could sit and enjoy the sun.

  This was his third day of recuperation and he was under the care and ministration of Sasha and her younger sister Sally, comfortable in the knowledge that their nursing efforts were being overseen by both parents. Their father, Miles Cochrane, was the local GP, and their mother, Sara, was a trained nurse, so his carers had professional supervision. Most of his aches had eased, and his arm, while immobilized, was not as painful as he had expected.

  Sally was twelve years younger than Sasha and was waiting for the results of her last year of high school, before finalizing her University course selection. As a result, Sally was pestering Freddie for his opinion as to what her course selection should be.

  “Leave the poor lad be,” chastised her mother, Sara. She was sitting in an adjacent chair, equally as comfortable as the one Freddie was using. “He’s recuperating, not working as your own personal and private careers advisor.”

  “Oh, Mum, Freddie doesn’t mind,” she turned to Freddie, flicking her red hair over her shoulder and batting her eyelashes. “Do you, Freddie?”

  They all laughed. Freddie recognized the light-hearted exchange as typical for this family and he was comfortable, relaxing into their comfortable family structure. “I don’t mind, as long as you get me the cup of tea and slice of your mother’s cake you promised. And scratch my back, where I can’t reach, because of this.” He added a woeful expression to his request as he attempted to lift his bandaged arm.

  Sally smiled and hit his good shoulder as she left to get the promised refreshments.

  “Are you certain you don’t mind? I think Sally’s suffering from a case of hero worship and she’ll continue to pester you, I know,” said Sara.

  “Mrs Cochrane—Sara,” Freddie was shy about addressing his hostess informally. “I really don’t mind. I can repay your hospitality in part if I help Sally.”

  “Now you don’t need to do that. Sasha has told us of your loss of family, and of course, about the terrorist attack on the Embassy. We worry about her, as well.”

  “We’ll all look after Sasha, you can rest assured. She’s a critical team member. His Highness would be lost without her help with his contract negotiations. And from what I heard,” Freddie had been keeping up with his emails, “the English police have identified the people who organized the attack on the Embassy and they should be under arrest by now.”

  “A mother worries. Although I’m pleased Sasha’s working from home for the next couple of weeks. Some family nurturing will be good for both of you.”

  Sally returned juggling cups and cake on a tray. “I brought enough for three of us. When Sasha comes back, if she wants some, she’ll have to get her own.” She set out the cups and plates on a small glass-topped table. “I’ll be mother,” she said, as she sliced cake and then poured three cups of tea.

  Freddie thanked her as he sipped his tea. Sally sat down in the chair opposite her mother and looked at Freddie. “Why does everyone call you Engineer?”

  “It was a call sign I was given, and the Rats think it describes me accurately. I have surrendered—I don’t protest—once they make up their minds, there’s no changing them.”

  “But why—”

  “Sally—,” cautioned her mother.

  “Aw Mum, Freddie doesn’t mind, really.”

  “No, I don’t mind.” He smiled. “I’ve been friends with some of Sam 32nd’s family and we learned to fly, and they liked an aircraft my Uncle was building and then they formed the Rat Air Force, and now I’m helping their Star Team purchase the starship from the Shen.”

  “Now that is just too much information packed into one sentence, Dr. Engineer. All right, I have two weeks to wheedle the details out of you. Be warned, I’ll know all. Even if I must hack into your computer.”

  Freddie looked momentarily alarmed, and then relaxed as he realized he was being subjected to casual family teasing. “You’ll regret such a threat, young lady,” he chastised. “When I’m mobile, and when your father permits me to do more than sit and enjoy the sunshine, I’ll deal with you.”

  “Good luck with that,” advised Sara. “We’ve been trying to achieve some balance in our lives for the last eighteen years, and when I think we’ve succeeded, it simply disappears.”

  “What disappears? And where’s my cup?” Sasha had returned from her chore in the village. “There are strangers everywhere. Freddie, I think we’re being overprotected, there are enough Rats and humans around to guard Fort Knox. The poor village will never be the same again. Some of the old dears are quite entertained by it all, they think we must be entertaining royalty, and I didn’t disabuse them of the notion. Mum, you’ll be famous, because of Freddie.”

  Freddie looked concerned. Sara tutted. “Don’t be so disrespectful,” she chided her daughter. “You’ll need to get your own cup, I’m afraid your sister couldn’t count higher than three.”

  Freddie could not account for why the first week went by so rapidly. His aches had almost disappeared, his bruises were fading and his energy was returning. He was now walking every day along daffodil-bounded footpaths which took him through the occasional copse and along hills and ridges with hedgerows marking out farmers’ fields. A startled fox or rabbit would bound away, unsettled by his passing, and on rare occasions he saw a deer or two in the distance. Sally usually escorted him on these walks, in case, she explained, he had a relapse and fell over. Freddie thought it was so she could continue her questioning. Neither noticed the thread of sparkling silver which linked them as they walked along the country footpath.

  “Dr. Engineer,”—it was now her favourite opening—“tell me why do you and the Rats have such a close relationship?” She was aware their Cotswolds country outings were carefully monitored by his Guards, and there were subtle and some not so subtle indications of the presence of numerous police officers, far more than usual for the village.

  “It’s a simple enough story. We—my family and I—befriended one of the Royal Rat younglings. I was only seven or so at the time, and Sam was a runaway; apparently his parents were very concerned. I took him to school and we got into tremendous trouble. He lived with us and we took flying lessons; he was a very good, an exceptional pilot. He saw my uncle building an aircraft, a replica, and persuaded Uncle Charles to design and help build one so he could fly it. Sam then decided he had to form the Rat Air Force and persuaded his father to let him build a number of aircraft based on my uncle’s modified design, and to have Rats trained as pilots. Sadly, while I was at University, Sam was killed in a battle against Cats. After Sam’s death, we cared for another Sam, and then another. I think they enjoyed the contrast of an involvement with human culture, in a family environment. And Rats arranged a scholarship for me, which helped my mother pay my way through University.”

  “And?”

  “And when I got my doctorate, especially with our mutual interest in space, Sam 32nd recruited me—I think I was hijacked rather than recruited—and now I’m helping them with their Star Team.”

  “Helping? Or more than helping?” Freddie decided she was either an astute young woman, or else she had been talking with her sister.

  “More than.”

  “Will you go with them on the Shen Ark?”

  “Yes, of course.” Freddie did not think there was any doubt. “I’m committed to building my bubble warp drive for the starship. It will take years and years to develop. I need to design and build a prototype first, prove it works, and then we can build a real drive. It might need more than one prototype. However, Rats will not sit still while I experiment; they want to travel in space. Either slowly or quickly—either at point five of light speed, or by bubble warp drive, speed unknown.”

  “I read your dissertation, you know.”

  “Did you? And?”

  “I didn’t understand a word.
Well, not quite true. I understood parts. And I understand the concept of space curving. I don’t have the underlying knowledge to understand most of it.”

  “It’s a very difficult discipline to study.”

  “Yes, I arrived at the same conclusion. And I’m sure it’s not for me. Now tell me, what skills will you and the Rats need on Shen Ark once it is underway? Travelling either fast or slow? Will you have humans on board?”

  “His Highness said we should plan on at least five or six thousand humans, with an upper limit of about ten thousand. And there will be millions of Rats, probably three or four million or more. The Shen starship is very large, and while we haven’t comprehensively surveyed it, Shen say it has about three thousand square miles of habitable interior space. It has multiple levels, you see. And that much space works out to only one thousand Rats per square mile, so it’s almost empty. Oh, there’ll be Mice, even a handful of Shen and some other species. However, nowhere near enough to crowd the starship.”

  “Will you own part of the Shen Ark?”

  “You’re a curious young lady, aren’t you?”

  “So that means yes. How much? What percentage?”

  “I think I need to have a word with Miles, to tell him at least one of his daughters needs some extra discipline.”

  “You wouldn’t dare, I’d make life hell for you. Come on, tell me. I think it’s important, please tell me.”

  “All right. Please don’t blast this from the rooftops. Yes. One percent. Possibly more, if my bubble warp drive works the way we need it to.”

  Sally was silent. Freddie thought she was overwhelmed by the information he had provided, details to which very few people had access. Sasha had drawn up the papers, all signed and conditional on actual purchase of Shen Ark, and a copy was lodged with the Bank of England. However, he was very mistaken. Sally was not overwhelmed, she was plotting.

  ~~~

  Sam 32nd could not stay away, thought Freddie, smiling to himself. When he and Sally returned from their walk, they could see the waiting convoy parked along the High Street. Hundreds of Rat Guards stood around, on full alert. Neighbours peered from behind curtains or stood on the High Street, mouths agape. A Rat helicopter circled overhead, very high. Freddie would not have been surprised to hear there was a Shen stealth shuttle hovering overhead as well.

  “His Highness must be here. You might get an opportunity to meet him.”

  Sally’s eyes almost glowed. “Truly? I’d really like to.”

  “Miles will think his house has been completely taken over,” sympathized Freddie as they approached. “Perhaps I should return to London? After all, I am feeling better.”

  “Oh no, you can’t leave yet. I’ll make sure Daddy keeps you here. The doctors in London said two weeks, and you have been here only one. You need to make sure you’re fully recovered.” Sally almost hissed the last words.

  “We’ll see what Miles thinks, all right?”

  He pushed open the atrium doors and allowed Sally to enter first. Freddie was correct. His Highness was sitting in the atrium, enjoying a full serving of hospitality from both Sasha and Sara. He introduced Sally and sat with Sara on the longer couch.

  “Freddie, you’re looking very improved. How are you feeling?”

  “He’s not ready to return to work,” Sally rushed to explain. “He’s only been here one week, and the doctors all said he needed to—”

  “Shhhh, Sally.”

  “It’s all right, Mrs Cochrane. I understand, Sally. I wasn’t rushing him back to work, truly. I was and am very concerned with Freddie’s welfare—no, not just because he’s part of our Star Team—mainly because he’s a very good friend of ours. And we look after our friends.”

  “Oh,” Sally was chagrined. “I’m sorry. I was just worried you might want him back. Early, I mean.”

  Her sister and mother laughed, and Sally turned an interesting shade of pink. Freddie smiled at her and then spoke to Sam 32nd.

  “I’m being well cared for. Miles supervises and three very lovely ladies take care of my every whim. Except I cannot scratch my back here, and no one helps.”

  Sally hit his good shoulder again.

  Sam 32nd continued, “I see. Well, I’ve given Sasha some work to do, because she doesn’t have the excuse of a fractured arm. If you could spend an hour,”—he emphasized the effort required as Sally commenced to smoulder—“only an hour, that’s all, I promise. Give Sasha any additional direction or suggestion you think might be helpful. Oh, and you will all be pleased to hear the police arrested some people today, including a very senior politician. Well, pleased in the sense they have the people responsible for plotting with the Eastern Bloc to attack our Embassy. We think—and my people, especially Zen, my Star Team security chief, are very cautious before they make a claim like this—we think they have all of them. There’ll be some interesting trials through the summer. Freddie, you’ll need to be a witness, I believe. Also, while I think of it, we’ve arranged accommodation for you, when you return to work, close to the Embassy. That way, we can protect you better,.”

  When Miles arrived home, Sam 32nd had to supply the details of the arrests again. Sally rushed to enlist her father’s aid to ensure Freddie was not somehow whisked away before he had fully recovered, which in her mind required him to stay a further week. Miles agreed.

  “Why, of course. I can see significant improvement, and I’ve checked him every day to make sure he’s recovering. He is,” he added, not hiding his surprise, “remarkably resilient. I had his arm x-rayed yesterday and there’s now no trace of the fracture. I know it was a mild fracture; however, I would normally expect to see some indication for another two or three weeks, at least.”

  “Very good.” Sam 32nd stood. “Well, I need to return to more onerous duties. Please continue to care for my friend. Our friend, I should say, for Engineer is highly regarded by all Rats.”

  “Dr. Engineer,” breathed Sally. Freddie smiled, and Sara frowned.

  Sam 32nd laughed. “Yes, I can understand the double title. I promise I won’t tell anyone, otherwise Freddie will probably not speak to me again.”

  Farewells were said and Sam 32nd’s Black Guard escorted him to his vehicle. With a beep of sirens the convoy headed off, back to London.

  “Aren’t you pleased?” asked Sally.

  “Why?” Freddie was bemused.

  “I rescued you from returning to work before your recuperation had properly completed.”

  “I’m well enough to work.”

  “No, you’re not. Ask Daddy.”

  Miles did not want to venture into this discussion and he attempted to temporize. “Freddie’s recovered remarkably quickly and I would think he’s almost ready to return to work. However, his London doctors did say two weeks.”

  “See, you have another week with us. Cope with it.”

  Freddie knew he would enjoy another week in the relaxed family environment. He also knew as the week passed he would be more and more anxious to return to work. He could foresee a conflict and knew Sally would berate him unmercifully if he tried to depart before his second week of rest had concluded.

  They continued their country footpath walks. Freddie found he was becoming very interested in his young companion and also he realized Sally was young, far too young for any serious relationship. He balanced his growing interest with the knowledge that he was preparing to leave earth aboard the Shen Ark and that the Rats had absolutely no intention of returning to earth. He shared their intention to travel, to explore space.

  Sally did not share these apprehensions. “Oh, nonsense,” she told her mother one evening. “Freddie’s the nicest person. A gentleman in the real sense. I can read him, through and through. He’s worried I’m far too young. He’s committed to the Shen Ark and to developing his bubble machine. I can help him, I know.”

  “Are you sure?” Sara was concerned for her daughter. “Do you really understand what your commitment will require?”

  “Yes,
mother dear, I do. Don’t worry about Freddie making improper advances. I’ll have to do that.”

  Sally waited until it was almost the end of the week. She and Freddie were sitting on the bank of a small stream, eating their lunch and watching the bird life. Freddie was especially pleased to have seen the flash of a kingfisher swooping up a small fish. She edged closer to him on the rug she had spread out on the bank.

  “Dr. Engineer”—she paused until Freddie turned to look at her—“Do you still have that itch that needs scratching?” She reached up to his shoulder. “And I’m sure your other arm is now fully functional.”

  ***

  Chapter 22

  Sammy’s scavenger concept had taken some months to establish. Now, a year later, she had a large number of intermediate collection points established across England, and more across Europe. These collection points, in reality small warehouses, were responsible for forwarding scavenged material to more central locations, and after further sorting and evaluation, these units forwarded the final products to warehouses in London and Portsmouth.

  When she set up her Scavenger organization, Sammy had focused on England and Europe, although some Eastern Bloc Rats were successfully scavenging valuable material and smuggling it across to Europe, along the old Silk Road. She also ignored more distant locations such as South America and Australia. Rats had no access to North America, and the land mass now generally was regarded as a frozen wasteland. The Middle East still buzzed with radioactivity resulting from numerous internal Spring rebellions which finally resulted in a disastrous nuclear war between multiple factions including Israel, Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia (which had its own civil war), Pakistan and India. The region supported very few survivors and Rats avoided all of the region because of radioactivity.

  On the successful conclusion of her negotiations with the English government, Sammy had taken control of Whale Island, which had been part of the Royal English Navy base in Portsmouth. The Royal English Navy had inherited it from the old Royal Navy. The island had been the Navy’s Command headquarters and also home to what had been the Navy’s oldest shore training base, until the Flood. The Navy had lost most of its larger ships in the devastation caused by the almost ceaseless storms and currently possessed only small number of coastal vessels intended for coastguard and fisheries protection duties. Whale Island had been unoccupied for nearly fifty years and its buildings, those which had not been destroyed in the storms, were in a major state of disrepair.