Tempest Outpost

by Brad harmer-barnes

  THREE

  Anna guided Claire and Jazmin through what seemed like another hundred corridors, doors and flights of stairs, finally stopping in another cloakroom almost identical to the first they had entered off of the helipad. It was small, and wood panelled, with many winter coats hanging from bare metal hooks. Several electric fan heaters put up a feeble resistance against the Antarctic chill, and they all still shivered after having shrugged on and fastened up a heavy coat each. Anna checked that they were all wrapped up warm and had pulled up their hoods before elbowing open the door to the outside and leading them out onto the gantry.

  The cold and the wind hit them like a brick wall, and it took Jazmin a moment to realise that they were on a metal walkway three hundred metres above the freezing, black sea. She stifled a scream and grabbed desperately onto the handrail. Captain Anna smiled back at her, and shouted over the wind. “Here we are! This is the closest we can get to the Prospero. Obviously Betty and Roger – the engineers – can get up directly onto the drill if they need to, but we hope that never has to happen.”

  The Prospero hung directly in front of them, black and jagged like a rotten tooth. Claire could see salt crusted around the sharper edges and imagined the shock generated when its colossal tip crashed into the bedrock below. It was hard to believe that this was the creation of a seventeen year old kid; then again Cameron was a pretty weird kid. Not “weird perverted” but she knew exactly what he must have been like at school. One of the outcasts. One of the geeks. And not even the cool geeks who had their own little circles full of their own little fashions and hierarchies. He had to have been one of the plain outcasts. Still, he was the one who was laughing now. She knew how much his salary was. He could have retired – quite comfortably – at the age of twenty-one after just three months working here. He had now been here for two years, arriving at the same time as construction on the Prospero had begun. Cameron wasn’t in it for the money. He was in it because he wanted to be in it.

  Claire felt as though she could reach out an arm and touch the colossal bit of the Prospero. When she was around things like this, she liked to reach out and touch them. It gave her a connection with things. She liked the idea that she could touch the drill, and it would spin down into the ocean bed, perhaps carrying some part of her with it. It was a sensation she had first felt in a museum, surrounded by items full of history. She had wanted to touch them all, to feel some sort of connection with the events that they had experienced. “Do you come out here often?” she asked Anna. “I mean, it’s oddly beautiful.”

  “It’s way too cold for a walk when I fancy one. Jazmin, are you okay?”

  Jazmin was still gripping the handrail and hadn’t budged from right outside the door. She was just staring down into the ocean.

  Anna took her gently by the arm, and helped straighten her up. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah. It’s just…we’re really high up.”

  “You were higher in the helicopter. Didn’t that bother you?”

  “I guess I didn’t really think about it. You’re not going to send me home are you?”

  “No, I’m not; but I think we need to get you back inside.”

  Anna and Claire guided the intern back into the cloakroom, sat her by a fan heater and helped her get out of her coat. Claire squatted down and looked her over. “Hey, look, if you want to get on the chopper and go back home, no one will think any the less of you. It’s a hell of a thing for a girl your age to be out here.”

  Jazmin shook her head firmly. “I’m fine. Seriously. I guess I wasn’t fully prepared for it, that’s all. I assumed we were heading back onto the helipad or something. I just got surprised.”

  She jumped and flinched again as the door leading back into the rig banged open. Betty and Roger entered laughing and joking with each other, but fell silent when they saw the room was occupied. “Everything okay in here, Captain?” asked Roger, in a deep, warm voice.

  Anna gestured dismissively. “We’re fine. This is Jazmin Hayes. She’s staying on as an intern for the next six weeks. This is Claire Flynn. She’s a representative from Icecap who’s come to make sure we’re all doing a good job. You are all doing a good job, right?”

  Roger laughed. “Miss Flynn, the Captain here runs a very smooth operation. Jazmin, it’s a pleasure to have you on Tempest Outpost. We’ll get you out there with a spanner in your hand very soon, not to worry.”

  Jazmin smiled, but Claire felt a little affronted – why was he on first name terms with Jazmin, and yet she remained “Miss Flynn”? It wasn’t something that was worth getting wound up about, but knowing that made it even more infuriating somehow.

  Betty clapped Roger on the arm and headed to the door onto the walkway. “Nice to meet you all. Roger, we got a lot to sort before we start drilling tomorrow.”

  “What are the issues you’re having with the drill?” asked Claire.

  “Nothing major. It hit something pretty hard yesterday, so we’re playing it safe and checking it out for any stress damage. I don’t think we’ll find any, but if it’s out there and we didn’t find it, who knows what’ll happen.”

  “Maintaining the Prospero’s integrity is a very high priority for all of us, but especially the engineering staff,” added Anna. “You know how an A-10 Warthog is basically a gun with the plane built around it? Well, the Tempest Outpost is a massive drill with a rig built around it. If the Prospero were badly damaged enough, then this whole station could be structurally compromised.”

  “That’s right,” said Roger. “If the Prospero collapsed – and I’m not saying that it ever could or would – then there’s every chance the whole rig would collapse. That’s why Icecap Industries keeps such a skeleton staff aboard, and why it pays us so handsomely for our place here.”

  Claire’s glance flickered to Jazmin and wondered how little – if at all – the intern was being paid to work here. When she was a student, any work experience was always unpaid, although you might get travel compensation if you were lucky. She at least hoped that the ride in the Black Hawk had been complimentary. She shuddered to think how much that would cost.

  Betty scratched at her hair and lit a cigarette. “Anyway, we’ll see you lovely ladies later. Kurt was making noises about cooking dinner for everyone – a nice welcome party for the new members of the crew.”

  With a wave, Roger followed her out and onto the gantry. Claire looked back to Jazmin. “Are you okay now?”

  “Yes, I’m fine.”

  “Captain, I think we’d like to be shown to our quarters now, if that’s okay with you. It’s been a long day travelling, and we’re both exhausted.”

  “Of course. This way.”

  ***

  Anna gestured them into their rooms, which were much larger than they had been expecting. There was a bed, a desk with a PC, a television and what hotels referred to as “Tea and Coffee Making Facilities”.

  “You two are just across the corridor from each other. If you need more space, I’m happy to unlock a couple more rooms for you. As I mentioned before, we’re not exactly crowded in here and Roger’s place takes up five rooms. One just for his decks and vinyl. Feel free to shout at him if he gets too loud, but truth be told he plays pretty good stuff most of the time.”

  Claire looked around the room, trying to hide how impressed she was. “Looks great. I can’t wait to move in.”

  “The TVs work?” asked Jazmin. “I didn’t think you’d get broadcasts down here.”

  “We get digital signals, and Icecap are kind enough to fork out for the movie and sport packages for us. If the weather’s bad we lose it, though. In that case there is a database online that’s kind of a Netflix type thing.”

  “Wow.”

  “Hey, you’re here to work. You can catch up with Pretty Little Liars in your downtime.”

  “Of course, Captain.”

  “Come on, let’s go get your luggage from the Black Hawk.”

  FOUR

  Jazmin had a mixt
ure of feelings as she watched the Black Hawk’s rotor start to spin; feelings that only intensified once the helicopter was up in the air and sailing away from Tempest Outpost. The Captain had told her to take twelve hours off to recover from the flight and maybe get over a little of her jet lag, and while the offer was appreciated, it really didn’t help with her conflicted feelings. She was excited and full of adrenaline, which meant that she really wanted to get to work straight away, no matter what that “work” might actually entail.

  Yet, she was also exhausted, and – truth be told – pretty scared. It felt like her first day of University when her mum and dad had dropped her off at the halls of residence before a tearful goodbye. She had sat in her room and wondered if she’d made the right decision. She worried about her family, and wondered if they’d be okay. Of course, if she needed to get home it would only have been six hours or so on the train. Out here off the coast of Antarctica would be rather a longer commute. And the “trains” only ran every six weeks unless there was an emergency.

  Captain Anna had gone back to her office, Claire had gone to her own quarters, so Jazmin went to the canteen to see if there was anything to snack on. Or anyone to talk to.

  She pushed open the doors into the cavernous interior – a reminder that the rig was built for a staff many times its actual complement – and found Cameron sat at a table, eating a sandwich and reading on a Kindle. She waved “hi” to him, though he didn’t seem to notice. She grabbed a bag of Doritos, an apple and a bottle of water from the canteen, sat across from him and tried again. “What are you reading?”

  “Oh, uh…hi…it’s Stephen King’s The Gunslinger. I heard they were doing a movie of it, and it’s always been on my pile of ones to read when I can get the chance. Have you read it?”

  “A long time ago. I remember thinking it was okay but I prefer his horror stuff. What do you think?”

  “I’m not even halfway through yet. So…what do you think of Tempest Outpost?”

  “It’s…pretty big.”

  Cameron laughed and opened a can of Coke Zero. “Yeah. It feels like a ghost town, or something out of The Walking Dead sometimes. I’ve been here longer than any of the others. I think I was one of the first on here after it was built, actually. Haven’t been home in a long time.”

  “How long do the rest of the crew work?”

  “They’re on a rota. It works out something roughly like twelve weeks on and six weeks off, or something like that. It’s nice when Anna’s in charge because she’s pretty laid back. Better than Fred. He’s a bit grouchy.”

  “Anna seems nice,” said Jazmin, with a yawn. “So, if you don’t work those shifts, what is yours?”

  “I haven’t been off the rig in…ten months now? I went home for Christmas. I think everyone did. Overwintering here isn’t a lot of fun, you know.”

  “I can imagine. The cold’s actually kind of terrifying out on the pad, or on the gantry.”

  “Yeah, I know. It takes some getting used to, and even then I try and stay inside as much as I can. I recommend you do the same.”

  The conversation trailed off. Cameron filled the awkward silence. “Look, everyone here is quite a bit older than us – I mean, maybe not that Claire girl, she’s only, what, twenty-five? But if you want, you can always hang out in my rooms?”

  Jazmin couldn’t stop her eyebrow from raising.

  “Oh! No, not like that! It’s just I’ve got a PS4 and an Xbox down there, plus I’ve got a Blu-ray player hooked up and a bunch of movies, so I’m not limited by the mainstream choices Icecap beams in here. I just thought…well, the invite’s there.”

  Jazmin smiled. “Sure. I might take you up on that.”

  “Cool. Anyway, I should be heading back to the control room. We’re drilling tomorrow, so I should check that everything’s in order.”

  “Of course. I’m going to head to bed for a bit, anyway. I’ve been awake for about twenty hours now, and it’s been a hell of a day.”

  “Sure. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  ***

  The following morning, Jazmin was woken by a sharp banging on her door. Rubbing sleep from her eyes, it took her a second to remember where she was – worried for a moment that she’d gotten too drunk at the student union again, and woken up in some stranger’s bed. She hobbled over to the door, still wrapped in a duvet, and opened it up. “Captain” Anna Morris was there, beaming at her. “Good morning.”

  “What time is it?”

  “It’s seven in the morning.”

  “Okay. Uh…shit. Was I supposed to do something?”

  “No, not at all. Consider this your friendly wake up call. Get washed and dressed then come meet me in my office. If you get the chance, do you think that you could swing by the canteen and grab me a coffee and a couple of Twinkies?”

  Jazmin wasn’t sure she’d be able to find her way around unassisted yet. The stairs and corridors of Tempest Outpost could only really be described as “labyrinthine”. “Uh…I guess.”

  Anna laughed. “Okay, forget the coffee. Head to the Prospero’s control room in an hour. You can manage that, right? It’s where you met Cameron.”

  “Yes. I can find it.”

  ***

  When Jazmin arrived, Anna, Claire and Cameron were watching the Prospero revolving gently, as though it were limbering up like a gymnast. Anna tapped her cigarette into a foil ashtray, and rested a hand on Cameron’s shoulder. “Think it’ll break through this time?”

  Cameron smiled. “Yes, Ma’am. I think it could have done so yesterday, it was just Roger and Betty weren’t so convinced.”

  “Do you have any idea what it was that the drill struck to cause such a shock?”

  “No,” murmured Cameron, clicking some switches. “I still got nothing. I was reading up on the geology of the area all last night, and there’s nothing that can account for it.”

  Jazmin clicked the door shut quietly behind her. “Could it be something man-made? Like a shipwreck or something?”

  Anna shook her head. “This isn’t exactly a shipping route. A wooden ship would have rotted to nothing by now – or at least provide no resistance to the Prospero.”

  Cameron interrupted. “Oh, please. The Bismarck wouldn’t provide any resistance to the Prospero.”

  “No-one’s insulting your girlfriend, Cameron,” said Anna, punctuating it with a playful slap to the back of the head.

  Jazmin stepped closer to them. “Is there anything I should be doing? I mean…what would you like done?”

  “Just watch and learn,” smiled Anna. “This is pretty much the heart of what we’re here to do.”

  Cameron adjusted a dial and threw a lever on the control panel in front of him, and the drill kicked up a gear, spinning faster and obviously more powerfully. A grin lit up his face and Anna knew that this was the highlight of the job for him. Truth to be told, it was for her as well. There were days - sometimes weeks - of downtime, and this was the only real excitement there was between supply drops. Another switch was thrown and the drill began to telescope down.

  Anna noticed that Jazmin’s jaw was wide open. “Pretty impressive the first time, isn’t it?”

  “It’s amazing,” whispered Jazmin, turning to Cameron. “You really designed that all by yourself?”

  Cameron was too immersed in his work to turn away from the drill and the control panel. “I’m not just a pretty face, m’lady.”

  Anna cuffed him again. “I’ve told you to stop calling women ‘m’lady’. It makes you sound creepy.”

  “Sorry, m’lady.”

  Cameron threw another three switches in rapid succession and Anna held her breath as the Prospero span, telescoped and crashed down into the water below. They were two or three hundred metres above the ocean, but the drill went with such a crash that droplets of water still spattered across the window in front of them. “Well, we’ve reached the water…” she whispered.

  The rig shuddered and vibrated slightly, and Anna felt Jazmin ca
tch onto her arm for support. “It’s okay. That’s pretty normal,” she said, noting that Jazmin hadn’t moved her hand away yet.

  “Approaching bedrock in five…four…”

  Anna held her breath, her cigarette ash growing long.

  “Three…two…”

  There was a screeching sound that caused her and Jazmin to slap their hands over their ears.

  “Okay, I misjudged it a little,” muttered Cameron. “We’re at bedrock and…we’re through.”

  “We’re through?” squealed Jazmin. “Really?”

  “Of course we are. The Prospero was designed by a genius, you know.”

  “So, what happens next?”

  FIVE

  Betty and Roger watched the drill descend from the gantry where Jazmin had had her panic attack the day before. Betty sparked up a joint and watched the colossal drill spin and extend downwards. “Reckon it’ll make it through this time?”

  Roger pulled a face. “I expect so. I mean, what can be down there that something that size can’t smash through?”

  “Ice. Alien spacecraft. An alien spacecraft buried in the ice.”

  “That one of your stupid sci-fi references?”

  “Of course not.”

  Roger chuckled. “You know you’re just as big a nerd as Cameron. Surprised the two of you haven’t started up a little Dungeons and Dragons club.”

  “If we found something buried in the ice, we’d all just have to mark its perimeter and then it’d slowly dawn on us all that we were standing around a flying saucer.”

  “Do you watch any normal movies?”

  Betty took a drag of her joint and replied in a tight, high voice as she held her breath. “You mean movies about car-jacking and street racing and shit like that? Yeah, sure. So long as there’s monsters in them.”