“Halcyon is in the middle of an election!” said a patron at the Phoenix, a local pub that had sprung up near the waterfront in an unused storage building. “It looks like it’s going to be a close one between the old chancellor and Blackmore, the vice-chancellor.” Dave heard lots of opinions on the election when the pub’s patrons learned he’d just arrived from Botany Bay.
When the four companions finally left to head back to Socrates, they passed a university common where an election speech was being given. At Dave’s insistence they stopped to listen. Darwin Blackmore, flanked by Hobbes, spoke at length about the excesses during O’Reilly’s tenure as chancellor.
“Chancellor O’Reilly, although much appreciated for his service, is not the man to nurture our fragile democracy. He has been too ready to take action by himself without the consensus of the people; he has been too ready to fancy himself a dictator.”
Dave’s loyalty to Uncle Charlie flared up. “Don’t they realize that O’Reilly had to do what he did to pull us through?” asked Dave.
“I agree, Dave,” said Al, “but people are fickle, and it’s easy to think only of what’s been lost and not about what you would’ve done if you’d had to make the hard decisions.”
Dave didn’t want to hear any more. He sensed the mood of the crowd had turned against Uncle Charlie during his absence. It seemed that Uncle Charlie’s efforts to pull them through the first few critical weeks after the dislocation were now being viewed with contempt and condemnation.
Who am I to talk? Only a few hours ago I was railing against my own uncle because of his stance on Happy Berries. He felt in his pocket and was reassured to find his bottle of sedovarin.
He and Glenn reached their dorm room. Al handed him another vial before he went to his room. “You’d better remember to take two of these a day until the both bottles are empty.” Al looked at him for a long while. “I think you’re going to be all right now. It was a near thing, but I don’t think you were too far along. I do wonder what will happen to the others at Botany Bay. Many of them have been addicted since they got there, and there seems to be no way to get Henderson to stop supporting the habit.”
Dave closed their door. Glenn was already in bed, snoring softly. Dave also tried to get some sleep; however the trauma of quitting Happy Berries combined with the attacks on O’Reilly agitated his thoughts to such a degree that he tossed and turned on his bed. Finally, in the early morning hours, exhaustion overwhelmed him, and he caught a few hours of much needed sleep.
Election day dawned overcast with intermittent rain. Nevertheless, the sweet fragrance of summer filled the air; someone had taken the time to plant flowers in the flowerbeds just outside of Socrates. Brilliant daylilies and snapdragons added some welcome color to the otherwise somber day.
At least we have time for a little beauty in the middle of our struggle for survival.
The lineups were short at the polling station, and showing his weatherworn student card, Dave was able to cast his ballot within a few minutes.
The dorm now had a pay center, where Dave received nominal payment for his service on the mainland. Now that food was no longer rationed, he could use the old US currency and some of the new, metal Halcyon coins to pay at the cafeteria. Socrates was only about one third filled now, since the rest of the population was at Botany Bay. Still, Dave noticed that with the advent of the Halcyon monetary system, everyone had become part shopkeeper. One couldn’t go down the hallway without passing tables of items being offered for sale. Even the university commons served as marketplaces where Halcyonites could sell their belongings.
When Dave reached the cafeteria it was quite late, but he found he had a selection and chose a breakfast of eggs and fish. Eggs were an expensive delicacy since most of their chickens were kept as breeding stock and only a small fraction of the eggs were set aside for consumption. Nevertheless, like a sailor on shore leave, he felt that his long absence entitled him to spend his earnings lavishly.
During breakfast Dave watched the election coverage on the cafeteria television. Even at this early stage, the numbers were so heavily skewed in favor of Blackmore that it seemed certain Uncle Charlie would be defeated. Dave felt dismay wash over him, and with it, a renewed longing for Happy Berries. He took another sedovarin and went for a long walk, to Halcyon Lake and Halcyon Mountain on the southwestern end of the island. The rain kept most others indoors, but when he arrived at the dorm late in the afternoon, he was wet but refreshed.
He turned on the television and saw the broadcast of Uncle Charlie conceding the election and turning the reins of power over to Blackmore with a handshake. Blackmore spoke at length, praising O’Reilly and promising him a significant role in his own administration. Dave felt angry and sick. It seemed like a slap in the face for Uncle Charlie.
Glenn was still out, presumably getting caught up with his Halcyon girlfriends, so Dave headed over to the cafeteria for supper. After supper Dave remembered to take more sedovarin and went to the gym to work out. When he returned to Socrates, he was amazed to see O’Reilly on his floor waiting for him.
“How’ve you been, Dave?” he asked.
Dave felt himself turning red. He must see that I have been using Happy Berries.
“I’m so angry about the election, Uncle Charlie!” Dave sputtered. “How could they not recognize all that you’ve done holding this place together and getting us on our feet!”
Uncle Charlie raised his hand, stopping Dave’s outflow of anger and sympathy. “Dave, I came over to see you, not to talk about Blackmore.”
“Doesn’t it bother you that you’ve been defeated?” asked Dave.
O’Reilly sighed. “It bothers me more than you could know. Blackmore is brilliant. He used his weekly television program to ingratiate himself with the Halcyonites. I’m not really a politician, and I realized too late what he was doing. Life isn’t fair. We should try to be fair ourselves, but it’s unreasonable to expect life to be fair to us. Even in this case, while we may inwardly oppose Blackmore and his cronies, we still have to try to do everything we can to make Halcyon not only survive but succeed as a society. I think we’re in for a great many more changes, but never mind that now. I have some news.
“In view of my ‘great service’ to Halcyon, I’ve been appointed Governor of Botany Bay, replacing Henderson. They’ve saddled me with the unpleasant task of letting Henderson know he’s been demoted to second in command, and so unless Henderson is an extraordinary fellow, he’ll have great animosity towards me. They’ve put me in a position where I’m bound to fail. Blackmore really just wants to get rid of me so I’m not a nuisance to him. Still, I could use a break from Halcyon. The politics, which I’ve always found distasteful, is getting to me, and I’ll be glad to be away from it.
“I have had to move out of the chancellor’s residence, so I chose to come here and take an empty room on the fifth floor so I’d be close to you. I’m afraid you’ll be seeing a good deal of me, perhaps more than you’ll like.” O’Reilly smiled warmly, and a year of care and worry seemed to leave him. He seemed younger and more relaxed than at any previous time since the dislocation.
Dave was relieved that Uncle Charlie never mentioned Happy Berries, and as he listened to the news about Uncle Charlie’s assignment to Botany Bay, he realized how much he loved his uncle. It would be good to have him close.
Chapter 9 Bay Trouble
Over the next few days of furlough, Dave and O’Reilly spent time together walking in the northern woods of Halcyon, stopping at a new makeshift pub after their long walks. O’Reilly spoke of his childhood growing up with Dave’s mother, and Dave talked about the happy times with his parents and siblings. The older man never mentioned Happy Berries, even though Dave was convinced the lingering orange tint of his eyes revealed his former addiction. The happy days passed swiftly, and the time came for both of them to travel to Botany Bay. Before leaving, Dave and O’Reilly visited the Halcyon armory attached to the metallurgy department. As ye
t, the manufacturing facility for sophisticated equipment hadn’t been built, but a factory for converting scrap metal into swords, spears, and axes was already fully operational. Dave and Uncle Charlie were charged with taking a load of these weapons back to Botany Bay, along with other newly manufactured goods from Halcyon.
Although old shell casings could be refilled with Halcyon powder, bullets were in short supply. If the hunting on the mainland were to continue, bows and arrows would be needed to supplement bullets. While at the armory, they saw the first prototype of a new steel crossbow that would soon be made in quantity.
With Dave’s help, O’Reilly loaded these supplies into the dinghy they were to use for the trip to the mainland. Dave was quite comfortable handling the dinghy for the crossing, and they reached Botany Bay in about an hour, a brisk northeast wind on their quarter.
The quay was on the north end of Boomerang Island. As they approached they saw a large raft about to get underway. Since the wind had backed to the northwest, Dave ran downwind to give the raft a wide berth and then ran close-hauled in along the coast to the quay. As the dinghy cut through the water, Dave had a chance to examine the southern end of the town. He could see that work had progressed even in the two weeks that he’d been away. Two new log bunkhouses had been erected at the southern edge of Botany Bay. A new pen for wild boar piglets had been built, and the first captured few now inhabited their new home.
When they approached the southern edge of Boomerang Island, Dave saw his first Happy Berry bush, and dread seized him. His supply of sedovarin was exhausted. He dragged his thoughts away from the bushes, now stripped of berries in the vicinity of the town.
“Are you expecting much trouble, Uncle Charlie?” asked Dave, resuming a conversation they’d had on the trip.
“Well, Henderson is in a difficult position,” said O’Reilly. “Until today he was undisputed king of his domain. Knowing how Blackmore operates, I fully expect the sealed letter I’m carrying from the elected chancellor—explaining my new position—will come as a complete surprise to Henderson. It’ll only serve to make relinquishing power more painful for him.”
They reached the quay, made the dinghy fast, and scrambled onto the wooden planks. O’Reilly’s suspicions seemed to be correct. There was no official party to greet the new Governor. By this time even the few colonists who had lingered to see the raft away had left, and Dave and O’Reilly were alone on the quay.
“Is there anything I can do to help?” asked Dave.
O’Reilly put down his kit, which he’d just hauled out of the boat, and turned. “There is one thing. I think it would ease my mind if Henderson didn’t know that you’re my nephew. When this sort of change happens, people become angry and look for a way to get even. I’m afraid that Henderson, or one of his subordinates, may take his anger out on you because it’s hard to get to me.” O’Reilly paused. “You mean a great deal to me, and I can’t express how much the last two weeks have encouraged me—you’re like the son I was never able to have—but I think it’d be better if we maintained a little distance, at least until I can see how the wind blows.”
“I understand, Uncle Charlie.” O’Reilly, his eyes brimming with tears, took Dave by the shoulder and gave him a surprisingly powerful hug.
Dave felt a profound sense of affection for his uncle. “Uncle Charlie, why don’t you go on ahead? I can unload the supplies.”
Next to the quay was a wooden shed, where wheelbarrows were kept for hauling supplies. It took four trips for Dave to get their cargo to the armory and to the general store. When he had finished his task, he walked the well-worn path back to his camp. He met Darryl Wyndhurst just as Wyndhurst was crossing the causeway from the mainland.
“Ho, Dave!” Wyndhurst said. “You’re back! What’s new at Halcyon?” His eyes had a bright orange tint. It gave him a malevolent, predatory look.
“Well,” said Dave, “they just finished an election, and we have a new chancellor, Darwin Blackmore.” He immediately regretted bringing up the election.
“I didn’t even know they were holding an election,” said Wyndhurst. “But I’m not sorry to hear old O’Reilly has been given the boot. By all accounts Blackmore’s a good man. He’s making sure we’re going to get home by Christmas.”
“What’s new here?” asked Dave, trying to change the subject.
“Not much,” said Wyndhurst. “We’ve managed to locate quite a supply of these along the shore farther south. They don’t seem to grow inland though.” He was holding out a handful of Happy Berries.
Dave’s flesh crawled at the sight of the red berries. “You’d better get rid of those,” he said.
“Why?”
“Since O’Reilly lost the election, Blackmore has appointed him Governor of Botany Bay.”
Wyndhurst cursed. “The old reactionary! He outlawed Happy Berries on Halcyon, and he’s going to outlaw them here too! Well, he’s going to have a fight on his hands!”
That doesn’t sound very good! Excusing himself, Dave headed to his tent to catch up on some sleep, leaving Wyndhurst to continue his rant to himself.
Dave rejoined his work crew the following day and tried to focus on his job. Even though he avoided any talk about the new Governor, he could see the agitation of the townspeople. Henderson’s supporters spoke loudly and openly about putting O’Reilly in his place, even if they had to use force. Dave could almost always tell, by the orange glint in a person’s eye, how strongly he or she opposed O’Reilly.
Later that week, Dave was walking home after working on a new bunkhouse when he found himself surrounded by four burly men. Malevolence poured out of their orange eyes.
“So you’re O’Reilly’s pup!” said the first, giving Dave a shove. Dave was big and strong, and the shove proved ineffectual. This seemed to infuriate the four, and they jumped him. As Dave was going down, he caught one assailant solidly with an elbow to the solar plexus. The fellow grunted and went down on one knee. The other three brought Dave to the ground. One had him in a headlock, while the other two began to punch him.
Suddenly there was a shout and Dave felt one of the attackers pulled off of him. Dave was strong enough to break the headlock of the other and landed a solid punch to the body of the third. The assailants had had enough and disappeared around the nearest building.
Dave looked up and saw Glenn. “Hey, Glenn, am I glad to see you!”
“What are you doin’ picking fights? Aren’t they workin’ you hard enough? Too much excess energy?”
Dave slowly got to his feet, gingerly felt his ribs, and winced.
“I didn’t. I was minding my own business,” he gasped.
“I know. Let’s get out of here.”
Glenn helped Dave walk back to camp. “You know,” said Glenn, “it’s all over town that you’re O’Reilly’s nephew. He’s not popular here, you know.”
“I wonder how that got out?”
“If you ask me,” said Glenn, “it wouldn’t surprise me if Blackmore and Henderson had something to do with it. Blackmore still sees your uncle as dangerous competition, and Henderson is now a valuable ally of Blackmore’s.”
“How do you know all this?”
“Well, there’s a pretty young woman at the communications center—”
“The communications center?” interrupted Dave. “I thought you were seeing that lumberjack woman?”
“I am. Don’t call her a lumberjack; it sounds—well, it sounds too burly.”
“Okay, okay!” said Dave. “Tell me how you found out about the Blackmore connection.”
“Well, as I was saying, a young lady at the communications center has found my charms irresistible and has provided me with some useful information—as well as a good time, I might add. Being of an inquisitive nature, she managed to read some messages from Blackmore to Henderson, and she told me about them.”
The next morning Dave received an invitation to have breakfast with Uncle Charlie. They made small talk for a few minutes, and then D
ave steered the conversation toward Blackmore. “How are you settling in as Governor?” he asked between mouthfuls.
“It’s been tough—pretty much as I expected it. But I’m worried more about Halcyon than I am about Botany Bay,” said O’Reilly.
“Is it Blackmore?” asked Dave.
“Yes, it’s Blackmore. I ask myself whether or not it’s simply my resentment at losing the election. But I don’t think so. Darwin Blackmore is a fanatic. I don’t know exactly what he’ll do, but whatever it is, it won’t be good, either for Halcyon or for our freedoms.”
“What do you think he might do?” queried Dave.
“Do? I don’t really know. I think he still sees me as an enemy and as trouble. I think he’s been in touch with Henderson and is working to make trouble for me here. That could just be politics—one political opponent eliminating a competitor. But my worry about Blackmore goes deeper. Blackmore isn’t only ambitious, he views the world and the people in it as machines, and he’s convinced that he’s the one to pull the handles and push the buttons.”
They resumed their breakfast. Dave enjoyed the fresh biscuits and wild raspberry jam. At last, after O’Reilly had wiped his mouth with a well-worn cloth napkin, he changed topics. “Dave,” said O’Reilly, gesturing at Dave’s black eye, “I heard about what happened yesterday, and I’m worried. Henderson isn’t strong enough to take me on yet, but now that he knows about you, you’re in danger.”
“So you know about Henderson’s information about me from Blackmore?”
“Yes, I do. That’s the main reason I asked you to breakfast. There’s no longer a need for secrecy.”
“Well, don’t worry about me, Uncle Charlie. I can take care of myself. You should have seen the other guys.”
Uncle Charlie laughed. “Yes, I heard. But seriously, if you won’t listen on account of your own safety, listen on my account. As long as you’re here, Henderson will hold you as ransom, threatening to attack you if I govern according to my best judgment and eliminate Happy Berries. It would ease my mind a great deal if I knew you were out of his reach. Listen, I have an idea. Before winter, I’m sending Floyd Linder on an exploration expedition, and I want you to go with him.” He unrolled a hand-drawn map that showed Botany Bay in the center. “We’ve sent out short expeditions in the vicinity of Botany Bay looking for resources, and from the little we know, we seem to be stopped on every side. In the north there’s a great river. On the other side of the river are marshes. If one goes south, after about sixty miles or so one reaches a swamp. But I don’t know what lies more than a day or so inland from here. We can see the coastal mountains about sixty miles inland, but we don’t know how to get through them or what lies beyond them.
The Halcyon Dislocation Page 7