Ringships

by Peter Claisse

  ‘The God of this place has sent you a sign.’ Lynella spoke to the silent people around her. ‘Be fearful’.

  They had little trouble convincing the crew of the King Solomon to return to the ways of the old religion. The crew members from the Atlanta gathered later by the dockside. It was almost dark but still warm as they sat on the stones of a fallen building. Captain Turner had called the meeting but made no attempt to become the centre of attention. Paul knew that he formed a bridge between the two cultures, they all expected him to tell them what was happening. He told them all he knew.

  ‘I can’t help feeling that we might be like the primitive tribes that thought that they were seeing gods when the first saw explorers arrive with ships and guns.’

  ‘There’s just one problem.’ The captain replied. ‘I’m not saying that I am convinced by anything that I have seen so far, but I would like to feel that I could be convinced by something. A mind that is completely closed to new ideas might as well be dead.’

  ‘The ring in the church was just some sort of plasma.’ One of the officers cut in. ‘And the way she flew between the pylons was just some sort of magnetic levitation’.

  ‘But do you accept that the exact mechanisms went well beyond any science we know about?’ Paul asked.

  The officer agreed. The captain turned towards him. ‘Is there anything that could happen.’ He asked. ‘That would convince you that it had a supernatural cause. Or would you explain absolutely everything as being some unknown development of science.’

  Almost without thinking Paul looked down at a mooring ring near the man’s feet. Focussing on it he made it move. The anchorage to the stone edge of the quay had rusted through and, having lifted slightly the ring moved to the edge and fell, sending ripples across the still water of the harbour. Everybody looked at him, he could see fear in their expressions.

  ‘Sorry – I shouldn’t have done that.’ He said. ‘I don’t know how I do it and I don’t really know what makes me do it in the first place.’

  ‘Do you yourself think that there is a supernatural presence doing it?’ The captain asked.

  ‘What do you mean by supernatural.’

  ‘I mean some sort of independent intelligence. Not just your prophet in the network that could just be artificial intelligence, I mean the actual God that they talk about.’

  Paul didn’t know.

  16

  A month later, in the warm spring sunshine of a late afternoon, Paul and Lynella stood in the middle of a partially cleared field. At one end, men from Angus’s village were felling the trees with axes. The first product from the workshop that the technicians from Atlanta had set up was a trailer. This was being used to haul the logs away to build fishing boats and fuel fires for heating and cooking. Finally, Lynella was using her power to operate a winch and cable to haul the stumps out. The combination was effective, behind them and entire clear field had already been sown.

  With their work done, they walked back to the city. One street was now clear all the way from the fields to the docks. Most of the heavy stone paving had survived intact but where trees had broken through they had been cut down to level. Originally there must have been gardens with ornate trees to either side of the roadway. These had mainly only been cleared where they had grown against houses that were being used. This left an impression of an overgrown but still magnificent avenue. Some of the houses had partially collapsed; but even in this state they still showed the grand proportions with which they had been built.

  Soon they came to the workshop. Captain Turner greeted them at the door and asked them how the day had gone in the fields.

  ‘Another good day’. Paul replied. ‘Not far to go now’. They knew that the people from Adam’s village had only been able to bring a limited amount of seed corn with them. Some of the fields would have to wait until next year. Their few seeds of high yield crops from earth would take years to develop.

  ‘It’ll make a good start.’ The captain replied. ‘We’ll just have to get used to eating fish for a little while.’

  ‘Or fruit from the forest.’

  The captain was less sure about this. The more he looked at the walls the less he liked the idea of sending his men outside them. He decided to change the subject. ‘Come and have a look at this.’ He said leading them into the workshop.

  They had seen inside before, but it never ceased to amaze them. The building had originally built for the use that it now had, a workshop. The difference was the type of machine that was used. The two types now stood side by side. Ancient machines built by the Mages for mysterious purposes were standing next to small tools and electronics that had been secretly accumulated in the days before they escaped from Atlanta. The captain was showing them one of the former. It was a small metal sphere the size of an orange surrounded by six rings. The sphere and the rings all had bands of gold inlay etched with runes. They were arranged on a carved stone pedestal so that one person could stand in front of each of the rings and were connected with a network of golden wires. Other plastic insulted wires led back to electronic instruments on a bench.

  ‘I have checked the response of each of the rings.’ He said. ‘Each one is different, they were all set up so that six different people could power them and send that power into the sphere. The amazing thing is that the sphere in the centre has a response which is different from any of them. It’s also different from anything else we have checked in here. We think that this machine was used to make jewels. The centre of the sphere is stone.’ He pointed to a small hole in the top of the sphere. ‘Their power was so strong that they if they put raw material down there into the middle of it they could get it hot enough to make a jewel.’

  Paul pictured a child coming of age, starting to learn about their power. Six adults, probably the parents and their friends, would make rings for this machine and use it to create a jewel exactly to suit the child. He thought of her own jewel that he had stolen from the dead body on the island. Had that person stood here and watched it being made?

  Their evening meal was, as predicted, fish. Maria insisted on preparing all their food. Lynella was well aware that, in this small community, everybody needed to help, and nobody should be spending their time as a servant to another. Maria, however, insisted that she should do it and everybody else refused to ask her to do other work.

  Lynella walked across the fields and climbed the steps to the top of the wall above the gate. She was quite alone on the wall, it was so high that nobody had thought it worth the effort of keeping watch from it. She stood looking out across the forest at the mountain. The remains of a road led straight towards it from the gate below her. The road was heavily overgrown and would be difficult to go along. Occasionally dragons could be seen on it. Wisps of steam rose from the bare rock summit of the mountain and, even from this distance, she could sense that it had a field that was even stronger than the source, which would make it easy for ring ships to fly. The city had no ring ships and going on foot would be hard and dangerous. The danger from the dragons was not all. The books said that Christian’s people lived in a village near the mountain. She had no doubt that they would try to stop her. Despite all of this, Lynella knew that she must go.

  17

  From ground level, the road looked even more dangerous than it had from the top of the walls. The paved surface could only be seen in small areas between the trees that had grown up through it. To either side there was impenetrable undergrowth. Glimpses of stone showed that this had once been a major highway. The paved surface had been wide, and it had ruts which had been worn down by the wheels of thousands of carts and carriages. But now it was just a slight gap in the forest, a tangle of branches, each one concealing the dangers that lay behind it.

  Paul looked back through the gate. A crowd had gathered on the neatly cleared field. Every one of them had volunteered to come; but he was sure that they were secretly relieved to be left behind the security of the walls which towered up above them, higher
than the tallest trees. He saw Lynella turn to look back and the massive iron gate slowly closed.

  They moved on in single file. Soon they were out of sight of even those who had climbed to the top of the wall. At the front of the line, Angus moved forward at a steady pace cutting a path through the undergrowth. He carried a gun and had used some of their limited supply of ammunition to practice with it, but Paul knew he would still be reluctant to use it. He was massively built and looked as if he had been born to fight with a sword. Like all of the others who had come, he had simply refused to be left behind.

  Paul followed behind Angus. He knew that, as the only person from earth, his stamina would be put to the test. He carried a gun but also kept his jewel ready. He had trained hard and knew that his power was getting stronger.

  Almost as soon as they were through the gate he sensed movement in the forest. He could not see it, and first thought that it was just fear working on his imagination. Without having to say a word, he could tell that Lynella had also sensed it. He looked back quickly but not before James caught his eye. James was immediately in front of Lynella and now also turned to see her. Seeing her expression, he looked around ever more cautiously. He was young, but he was now an experienced soldier and well-practiced with his automatic rifle.

  Maria followed Lynella. Her knowledge of the history of the mages in the kingdoms was of little use in this land, but nobody had even tried to stop her coming. There was no sound from behind her, but Adam was there. He was also carrying a gun, but Paul thought that he could probably kill a dragon with his knife. He was sure that he would try if Lynella was threatened.

  He could sense that Lynella’s mind was being probed through her jewel. Pulses would come into it and jump back in confusion. He longed to stop so he could concentrate and call out to them but knew that they must keep going to find some open ground before nightfall.

  They moved steadily uphill. Periodically they heard noises away to either side; brambles tearing, branches breaking. They would stop briefly to listen, but they always went on. On the brow of the hill they found the ruins of a tower. They stopped briefly to look at it. Trees had grown up, but they could not conceal the distorted remains of thick metal walls and charred stone and timber. It had been smaller than the tower at the source, but still a formidable structure to suffer such complete devastation.

  Eventually, after several hours, Angus turned to Paul. ‘Where do you think we should stop?’

  Paul knew that the question was meant to see how far he could go with his heavy pack in the heat of the day. He replied that he was doing well, but he sounded breathless.

  ‘Let’s hope for open ground in the next valley’. Angus’s reply seemed optimistic. Paul saw no point in telling him about their unseen company. Angus already knew that the dragons were out there.

  At the top of the next hill, they found the ruins of another tower but no view or break from the trees. In places the road became difficult to follow, and Angus had to go ahead to look for signs of the stone surface reappearing from the debris on the forest floor. They were wasting more and more time and making little progress.

  In early afternoon, they suddenly emerged into a small clear space where a large tree had fallen. Looking along it, Paul saw a dragon. As he looked, it vanished into the trees, but he had time to see that it was different from any he had seen before. It was slightly smaller, meaning that it might be a younger one. He suddenly realised why this made it so different, it had no metal mask. This meant that mages could not hurt it with their power. His caution turned to fear, but it was too late to go back before dark.

  The gap in the trees gave them a chance to look across the valley and, directly opposite, they saw a tower which appeared to be undamaged. Angus took one look and said that it was too far away to reach before dark; but they had no option, so they moved on.

  In the last light of the day, they reached the bottom of the slope, crossed a crumbling stone bridge over a steam and started up the far side. They moved closer together but still the sharp leaves of the ferns tore at Paul’s clothing and cut into exposed skin. All around them now he could hear the dragons. He dared not use lights for fear of attracting attention, although he never really thought that the dragons could not find them. They were waiting.

  It was now completely dark. The dim starlight was blocked by the dense canopy of trees. He could hear Angus probing the ground with his sword to make sure they were still on the road. A successful clink of steel on stone and they struggled forward a few paces.

  ‘It’s level here.’ Paul whispered. We must be right by it.

  A light gust of wind blew, he smelt them. Overpowering and sulphurous. The dragons were there. Stopping to listen, he could hear each breath. He staggered back.

  He used his torch, quickly scanning. To one side dense undergrowth and tree trunks. To the other just blackness. One of the dragons took a step forward, making him jump back, towards the blackness. He shone the torch again. It was a black and featureless wall. He placed his hand on it… It was cold iron. Working with Lynella he searched for a door. Probing the smooth surface, they found pathways leading to one side. Angus ran ahead, slashing at the thorns with his sword. Then they sensed it, a clear line, then another. They tore the undergrowth away from it. One last burst of energy and it swung open. Rushing inside they could still hear the beasts breathing behind them. Lynella put power into the lights and locked the door shut.

  They found themselves in a comfortable room. The chairs had been untouched for hundreds of years. Sealed by the mages so nothing decayed. They smelt dry and dusty. Angus asked Lynella if they could sit down.

  ‘I’m sure there aren’t any traps.’ She replied. ‘I don’t know if the owners would have wanted us to be in this place but since we’re using their rooms we might as well use their chairs.’

  Soon they were sitting round the table in the centre of the room eating some of the food they had brought with them. They had found plates in a cupboard and even some cutlery.

  ‘What do the dragons want?’ Angus asked. ‘Will they let us carry on?’

  ‘I don’t know what they’re doing. It was as if they were talking to me in a foreign language.’ Paul explained. ‘I’m sure they were trying to communicate with me like they do with Christian, but nothing got through.’

  ‘Only one of them communicated with Christian.’ Maria corrected him. ‘And none of us saw him do it, we just heard about it. We don’t know what he could say to it, it may have just been simple ideas like telling a dog to come or stay’. She asked Lynella what she had heard.

  ‘They didn’t even try to talk to me.’ Lynella replied. ‘I just got an image of total confusion and frustration.’

  ‘I got that when I used my jewel.’ Paul observed. He knew that Lynella wore hers all the time. She said she felt blind without it, helpless and vulnerable.

  After the meal, they went up to the roof of the tower. It was just level with the top of the trees.

  ‘They must have had something at the mountain that could destroy these towers.’ Looking out in the starlight Angus found that they were not at the brow of the hill and he could not see the mountain. ‘They couldn’t get this one because it was out of sight. That must be why the city had such thick walls.’

  Far below them they could see the faint light glistening on the dragons’ scales. They were crowding around the tower, packed tightly among the trees. When Paul and Lynella looked down, they started moving, pushing forwards against the walls. Then one roared with a deep resonance that spread across the forest. Others joined it and soon the whole structure seemed to be shaking with the noise. Everybody on the roof shrank back from the edge. Now Paul could hear the claws scratching at the walls.

  ‘Can you scare them off? Is your power with your new jewel strong enough to fight this number?’ Angus asked Lynella.

  ‘Why? They can’t get in. It’s something we’re doing that is making them do this.’

  She stopped for a few seconds
. Reaching slowly for the gold chain she lifted it over her head and held out her jewel. Paul looked at her, hesitating, and then took it carefully from her. Now she unclipped the necklace, passing it to him. Still moving slowly, she walked right up to the low parapet. He reached out to pull her back but there was no need. Quite suddenly the noise subsided.

  She stood, motionless, looking down for several minutes. Paul came up beside her to watch. The dragons were still moving around, but the motion was more deliberate. The older ones with the metallic masks were moving back. Younger ones, indistinct shapes, were moving forward. They all gathered immediately below her and fell silent. Finally, she withdrew. They went back quietly into the edge of the forest.

  18

  Paul woke in the night to the sound of dragons fighting outside. Even through the thick metal walls he could tell that this was no play or mock battle, this was dragons, young dragons he thought, fighting to kill. He could hear them crashing into the tower directly below where he was as if they were trying to hurl themselves right through the massive structure. Suddenly he noticed that Lynella was not there. He turned on the lights. She was nowhere in the room. He shouted out her name. Only Maria shouted back asking what was wrong. Then he saw Lynella’s jewels lying in a lifeless discarded pile on the floor.

  In panic, they ran up to the roof. Looking down, they could see vague shapes moving fast in the trees outside the door. For a moment, it was quiet. Then roars of anger were followed by crashes of breaking branches and the clash of scales as the dragons met. They could even hear the claws tearing at flesh and roaring, now of pain, as the attack pressed home.

  ‘Paul!’ Maria had called his name. She stood beside him holding a lighting sphere above her head in both hands.