eSteampunk Vol. 01 No. 03

by Anthology

  “I’ll get Tom to do it tomorrow,” he said to himself. Then a pair of hands grabbed him.

  “Tom?” he tried to say, but a rag was stuffed into his mouth. Trust realized this was not a friend, and began to wriggle out of the grasp of his abductor. From another position a cudgel rapped down on his head, and Trust’s last thought before blacking out was that he had to remember that evildoers may not be alone.

  * * *

  Trust awoke to find himself tied tightly to a thick oak chair. His eyes quickly adjusted to the minimal light. It seemed to be some sort of study. He saw the shadowy spines of books lining the walls. A small round table supported a globe and another held a vase of flowers. He was facing the windows and a large desk. The door creaked open behind him.

  “Are you awake?” asked a feminine voice, laced with an odd accent that was refined but sprinkled with sweeping vowels and soft consonants.

  Trust remained silent.

  “If you do not answer my questions, this will go badly for you.”

  “It’s already going badly,” Trust finally spoke.

  “True, true. But it could get much worse,” said the accented voice.

  The person had slowly circled around the tethered boy, and now stood behind the desk. From the outline of the body and the sound of the voice, Trust was sure it was a woman. She reached towards the wall and lit a gas lamp, illuminating her features. She was dressed in a tight gown with long sleeves and a high collar helping to cover her entire body. Trust looked at her face, and even that was hidden by a dark veil.

  The woman sat in the leather chair behind the desk and to Trust’s surprise picked up a pair of long needles and began knitting.

  “You have been an active boy, assisting Mr. Horn.”

  “If you mean apprehending criminals like you, I can do that without the help of Jasper Horn!”

  “How darling. What makes you think I’m a criminal?”

  “Besides the fact that you had me kidnapped? I can smell a villain a mile away.”

  “The young boy is full of sand. You did say so, Mr. Savage.”

  Trust realized another person had come into the room. Bill Savage came to stand next to the desk.

  “That’s him, alright. He was there with Horn,” said Savage.

  “What is this, revenge for busting your gang?” said Trust.

  “Of course not,” said the woman, “The men were inconsequential.” Savage looked a bit distressed, and the woman added, “Except for you, my dear. No, we want to know where the blueprints are.”

  “The blueprints?” asked Trust. ”Oh, those papers in the satchel. You’ll have to ask Jasper Horn. He’s the one that took care of them.”

  “Not according to the Daily Gazette, dear.” The veiled woman held the paper up to her face.

  “After singlehandedly apprehending three dangerous outlaws, Jasper Horn mentioned that a young student named Romeo Worthy helped him to recover the stolen items, including gold that belonged to the First Bank of Baxter Mills and important documents owned by the General Railroad Agency. The spunky boy assisted the famed detective in securing them in at a safe location.”

  “Your parents must have been very excited to see your name in the paper.”

  “You want the blueprints, not the gold,” said Trust.

  “I wanted both,” said the woman, “but I prefer the blueprints.”

  Trust firmed up his nerve, “I don’t know where they are, and even if I did I wouldn’t tell you.”

  The woman rose from her chair and stood next to Trust. He could see one of the long pointed knitting needles held up to his face.

  “I know I don’t have to give you a speech about what I’m willing to do to get my information,” she let the tip of the needle tickle his cheek. “So I’ll just give you some time to reconsider. Come, Mr. Savage.”

  Savage chuckled as the two left the room. Trust sat in darkness again. He struggled at his ropes to no avail. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness once more, he saw the glitter of the knitting needle resting on the table. Realizing that his legs weren’t tied, the boy thought that if he could get a little closer he might reach the needle with a foot and use the tool to undo his ropes. With Herculean effort he tried to slide the heavy chair towards it. The legs of the chair made a sharp screech on the floor as Trust moved slightly. Then the door opened. Trust hesitated, afraid he had been caught.

  “Mr. Worthy?”

  Trust was happily startled to recognize the tinny voice of Bucephalus. The metal paws tapped on the floor and soon Trust could feel the Metalliferous Hound loosening the ropes securing him.

  “Beau, how did you find me?”

  “No time for that, we have to get out of here. Follow me.”

  “I can barely see you,” said Trust.

  “We need a leash of some sort so that I can lead you.”

  “Hold on,” said Trust. He felt his way to the basket that had the knitting needle in it. From it he produced a ball of yarn and tied the string around Bucephalus’s neck.

  “How is it you can see?” asked Trust.

  “Mr. Edison modified me with his photoreceptor eyes. I can see in the dark.”

  Trust followed Bucephalus out of the room.

  “I still don’t understand how you found me.”

  A hand grasped Trust’s shoulder. The boy reacted with a wild swing of a fist, but it was blocked and suddenly both his arms were trapped.

  “Hold still, junior. I’m here to help.”

  It was Jasper Horn. Artemis gave a low growl.

  “Horn? What are you doing here?”

  “Finishing the business we started. I’m after Bill Savage.”

  “Where are we?” asked Trust.

  “An old estate on Washington Street.”

  “But how did you find me? Beau sniffed me out, didn’t he?”

  “No, Metalliferous Hounds odor receptors are only good for a short distance,” said Bucephalus.

  “Tell him about the badge, Jasper,” said Artemis.

  “The badge?” said Horn, “Yes, well. The badge I gave you is made of Tracing Iron, with a magnetic attraction that Artemis can sense for miles. Your hound gave a Distress Howl when he discovered you had disappeared.”

  “I found your Capacitor Gun on the way back to the house,” added Bucephalus, “and immediately recognized foul play was involved. Jasper Horn had warned me something like this might happen.”

  The import of Horn’s revelation struck Trust like a ton of bricks.

  “You set me up! The newspaper article. The badge. You knew the outlaws would come after me, thinking I would know the new location of the papers. And once they took me to their hideout, you could track me down with this stupid badge.”

  Bucephalus gave an interrupting cough, “We don’t have time to discuss this.”

  “He’s right,” said Artemis, “We need to get a move on. We shut off the gas lighting in the house, but they’ll get it back on soon, and we’ll be sitting ducks.”

  Beau tugged at his leash, and an angry Trust followed, escorted by Jasper Horn and Artemis. As they trod down a wide staircase they heard confused voices and men groping about in the darkness.

  “We can get around them,” said Bucephalus.

  “Good,” said Jasper Horn. “Take Trust out, and Artemis and I are going after Savage.”

  “Oh no, not without me you aren’t!” said Trust.

  “Don’t be foolish, boy.”

  “You can’t tell me what to do,” protested Trust. “I’m tired of being used by you.”

  Gas lights suddenly flared on. Jasper Horn whirled like a tornado and had his revolver out, firing at the startled men. Bill Savage was there, and Trust saw the veiled woman. Two men went down from Horn’s bullets a
nd a third tangled with Artemis and Bucephalus. Savage pushed another man in front, to be shot by Horn, and tossed the riddled body at the Pinkerton Detective. Before Horn could move the obstruction Savage was on top of him.

  “I can’t outgun you, Horn, but I can outfight you,” he said.

  The men grappled with each other, swinging around and knocking over furniture. Trust was about to help the hounds, but he saw the veiled woman escape through a hidden door. He decided to follow after her. He heard heels echoing down a narrow set of steps, and pursued the sound. He found himself in an underground chamber at the bottom of the house, a small room with several crates and no exit. The veiled woman stood calmly next to a series of levers on the wall. For a moment Trust was unsure what to do.

  “You won’t hit or accost me, will you?” she said meekly.

  “Um, no ma’am.”

  Her voice changed, dripping with contempt, “Such a polite young idiot. Really, it makes me quite infuriated.”

  “Why?”

  “I’ll have you know I am more than capable of beating your Jasper Horn in hand to hand combat. It goes without saying that I can best you, a little boy. Why should I be deprived of a good fight, just because I am a woman?”

  “Ma’am. You’re not making any sense.”

  “Stop calling me ma’am!” she screamed, and slammed a hand on a crate, rattling the wood.

  “Yes ma’am,” said Trust, startled.

  “Remember this, young Romeo Worthy. Given the chance women are the equal of any man, in any physical or mental arena. More than their equal, we are superior. Susan B. Anthony and Lucretia Mott were too short sighted, seeking only the right to vote. We are meant to lead! This country, this world, will be best served when it is run by a sensible female authority. No more wars, no more corruption, no more old fogies drinking their port and ignoring true progress. Your Mr. Horn may have uncovered us this time, but our day is soon, Romeo, and you had better be prepared.”

  “Prepared for what?” asked Trust, but he did not get an answer. Instead, the veiled woman pulled a lever on the nearby wall and the room exploded in smoke and fire. Trust was knocked to his back.

  Stunned, he barely managed to crawl up the stairway as flames tickled at his ankles. The fire followed him, and soon the house crackled with a sea of flames. Making his way back to the parlor, he saw Bill Savage and Jasper Horn continue to struggle. The outlaw kicked ferociously at Horn. The detective leaned back to avoid the blow and grabbed Savage’s foot. With a ruthless twist Trust heard the bone snap. Savage collapsed to the floor screaming.

  Horn looked down at the defeated outlaw, “I guess maybe next time you should try fencing.”

  Horn saw Trust. “Come on, we have to get out of here now. Help me with Bill Savage.”

  Artemis and Bucephalus had chased the surviving outlaws out of the room. Trust hurried over and helped Horn support their crippled prisoner and convey him out of the burning house.

  Trust was still in shock, “The woman. Did you see her?”

  Horn nodded, “Briefly,” he said.

  “She was daft, saying all sorts of crazy stuff to me, and then blew up the house.”

  “What did she say?” asked Horn.

  “Stuff about how she was better than any man, and that the world should be run by women.”

  “Was that it?”

  “She said she could best you in a fight.”

  Horn laughed, “That is crazy,” but then he looked serious.

  “Do you know who she was?” asked Trust.

  “Maybe. Have you heard of the women suffragists?”

  Trust nodded, “They want the right to vote, same as men.”

  “Most of the suffragists campaign for these rights legally and non-violently. But there has been a rumor of a militant branch of women suffragists calling themselves the Suffra-Gladiatrix. Their leader is a mysterious Italian woman named Milicent Bellona.”

  “Her accent! I thought it was Russian, but I bet it was Italian.”

  “Then that could have been her. Those blueprints our thieves were after had military secrets. In the hands of the Suffra-Gladiatrix it would have been very dangerous.”

  Horn faced the boy, “No hard feelings, I hope. I won’t forget you helped me out a second time.”

  Horn put a hand out, and Trust took it reluctantly.

  * * *

  Trust returned home early in the morning. He was nervous because he had been gone all night. He knew he would have to tell his parents the truth about his risky undertakings as a Pinkerton Agent. Even Bucephalus was unusually nice as Trust stashed the Metalliferous Hound in the old shed. With a sigh, the boy opened the door. His mother and father stood there, sleepy eyed but smiling. They must have been up all night, thought Trust, and are delirious with disapproval.

  “Well, you are finally home,” said Trust’s father. “Go wash up and get some rest. You should probably stay home from school today.”

  Trust waited for the angry outburst. Both his parents could apply the rod when they felt it was necessary.

  “Go ahead, Romeo,” said his mother, “you must be dead tired.”

  “That’s it?” said Trust, standing in the doorway, not sure if he was at the right house.

  Mr. Worthy waved at him dismissively, “Of course. We’ll want to hear all about your late night project later, but Mr. Horn’s Metalliferous Hound. . . ”

  “Artemis, dear.”

  “Yes, Artemis filled us in on the nighttime lessons.”

  Trust stepped in to the room, and finally saw Jasper Horn’s hound sitting near the fireplace. Somehow the hound had arrived at his home before Trust. She was so still she appeared like an ivory sculpture, and then turned so that she met the surprised gaze of the boy. He swore it looked like she winked.

  “We fed her some coal,” said his Father, “and she was quite polite.”

  “Thank you very much,” said the hound, and turned to Trust, “I have given them a report on the field trip to the Pinkerton House for Apprentice Agents, and that the lessons happened to last late into the evening. Romeo is an exemplary student.”

  “Thank you,” said Trust slightly perplexed, as his parents beamed at the praise from Jasper Horn’s Hound.

  Artemis rose to leave.

  “I am grateful for your hospitality,” she said as she exited.

  ”Wait,” said Trust, and met Artemis outside.

  “Artemis, I have to return this to Mr. Horn.” Trust held out the badge Jasper Horn had given him.

  “Romeo . . .”

  “It’s not ‘cause you used me as bait, though I am still kind of ticked off about that. It’s just that I may not be exactly . . . official . . . as a Pinkerton Detective. I don’t think I deserve this badge.”

  Artemis nuzzled her snout against Trust’s hand, pushing the badge back to him.

  “Consider yourself official, Trust Worthy.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Jasper Horn meant for you to keep it. He is deputizing you. You’ve handled yourself as well as any agent I’ve known.”

  “Thanks,” said Trust.

  “Jasper Horn has been known to deceive friends in order to get the job done. But I think that is a quality you share with him.”

  Artemis nodded back at Trust’s home where his unsuspecting parents were.

  Trust blushed with guilt.

  The hound continued, “But you also embody the traits that Mr. Pinkerton desires from all his agents. Integrity and diligence. So long, Romeo Trust Worthy, and stay vigilant. Remember, We Never Sleep.”

  Trust waved as the hound galloped off.

  “I hate to break it to you,” Trust said to himself with a yawn, “but I think I’m going to sleep for a couple of days.”


  A Review of

  Progress the Webseries

  Official Teaser

  Lisa Finch

  The teaser video for “Progress the Webseries,” produced by Armando Saldanamora and Nicole Wright, makes me anxiously await its ten upcoming episodes. Meticulous attention to detail in its technical devices and believable characters help create suspense. Oscar Lerwill (played by Ben Whalen), expert computer hacker of the Victorian era, uncovers files posted by Jack the Ripper. He learns that the next victim will be his love interest, cam-harlot Lila DeClide (Rebecca Lynch). Enigmatic foil character, Adam Rhett (Derek Houck), delights not only in computer wizardry, but also in playing mind games with Oscar. What does Adam stand to gain from this? Viewers are left to ponder this and bigger questions. Can Oscar save Lila? What is he willing to risk?

  The teaser uses several cinematographic techniques to create a chilling tale. It opens with synchronous sound: steam, chugging machines, film rolling, a Victorian computer. This fades, and we see a corpse; the image jumps across the screen. Then the camera pulls away revealing the back of Oscar’s head. I love the intensity here; it shows us what to fear, sets the scene, but doesn’t immediately show us Oscar’s face. Is this an allusion to the typical client/cam-harlot anonymity? Oscar tells Lila, “You’re Jack the Ripper’s next target.” The next scene reveals just the cloak and gleaming knife of Jack and one of his victims. The lighting effect on the knife is excellent. Equally impressive is the low key lighting used throughout the teaser to create a dark, brooding mood. Fast motion technique is used when Oscar works feverishly on his computer. A sense of urgency prevails. The use of breaks between scenes provides a dramatic effect, giving us glimpses of the scene before moving onto the next. Graphics loom across the screen: A K1LLER ON TH3 LOOSE. It’s the attention to even these smallest details (the number 1 replacing the “I” , the number 3 replacing the “e”) which makes this teaser so well produced. Every technique used lends itself to the overall effect; nothing is wasted. Behind the words, we see gears and levers, a steampunker’s delight.