Chapter 31 - The Kraken Gate
Two things interrupted my work that afternoon; the rumble of the steam engines being tested for an entire turn and Lieutenant Scott. The engines, I could ignore, as long as they didn’t plan to run them overnight. Benjamin Scott’s appearance was more disruptive. He had Banks in tow.
‘Ms. Derringer and Ms. Tremain.’ Lieutenant and Captain both bowed as they entered our office. ‘Delighted to meet you, Ms. Tremain,’ said Benjamin. He shook her hand formally. Banks, followed suit but he was noticeably slow to release Ellen’s hand. I chalked another one to her account.
Benjamin seemed to have forgiven me for laughing in his face the previous day. He asked solicitously after my health, commenting that the bruises around my neck had nearly gone. There was a bell cord in the office. Ellen pulled it and one of the housemaids came to take our order for tea.
‘I hope your preparations are going well. Captain Banks and I are here because we feel it’s time to begin some joint planning. We would have come sooner, but we’ve given ourselves time to reconnoitre the grounds and come up with some ideas.’
‘Great. More ideas,’ I said without enthusiasm.
‘We’re going to give a mission briefing to our men at the eighteenth bell today. We’d really appreciate it if you joined us and said a piece about the Charg.’
‘The only people in my team who’ve seen them didn’t make it back.’
‘I understand that, Ms. Derringer, but you have taken first-hand accounts from witnesses, yes?’
‘Alright, fine, but you should hear from Evershed too. He has seen one of them.’ A thought occurred to me. ‘Shouldn’t you be more concerned with our human enemies?’
‘We are, Ms. Derringer. As you point out, our main concern is to keep us all safe here on the estate, but Director Harman is insistent that we understand the risks in case the Charg get through the gate.’
‘If any Charg get gets near the gate,’ I said, ‘the only thing anyone here needs to worry about, assuming they survive the failsafe, is avoiding flying masonry in the fallout from the explosion.’
‘Forgive me, Connie…ah, Ms. Derringer. Our instructions are explicit. We are to consider every possibility, including one in which the failsafe doesn’t trigger.’
Again! I don’t like all this talk about the failsafe not working.
‘You’ll be wasting your time,’ Ellen put in firmly. ‘It wouldn’t be a failsafe if it didn’t trigger. It’s been tested hundreds of times.’
‘And yet, we have our orders.’ Benjamin looked apologetic. ‘Some of us will be accompanying you through the gate; we’ve already discussed this. We need to know what to expect.’
I agreed. Anything else would have been unprofessional. Our tea arrived, providing a distraction, and Benjamin turned the discussion to the attack on the air-train. He asked me to recount what had happened again so that Banks could hear it first-hand.
‘You did well to come through that,’ said Banks when I finished. ‘It sounds like they were very determined. I’ll send a message to my office. S.I.S. may be able to identify some of the attackers if any of the bodies are recovered. Who do you think is behind it?’
‘I’m not sure. The one in my home had to be Nallian. The coat, the machete and the night-vision goggles…’
‘And the ones on the train?’
‘They were in civvies.’ I tried to think back to when I’d first seen them on the platform. ‘We didn’t really get closeup, but they didn’t look Nallian. They could have been Emberlanders or Caddrians.’
‘Sounds like a local crew, possibly hired by Nallians.’
Neither Benjamin not Captain Banks knew about the incident in Lannerville town the previous day. I was going to tell them about it, but decided not to, although I couldn’t have said why. Ellen agreed with Banks.
‘It must be the Nallians. They failed to get Ms. Derringer at home, so they sent a team to get her on the way here.’
‘I’m not sure. The methods seem so different.’
‘Are you suggesting we wait until we’ve got more information?’ said Ellen.
‘No. We can’t afford to wait,’ said Benjamin. ‘Whoever these people are, they’ll be back, and soon. We need to secure these premises. Captain Banks and I brought forty men. I’m beginning to think we should get a message to the chancellor requesting reinforcements.’
‘They sent six people, against which forty aren’t sufficient?’
‘Who knows how many they will send next time!’
‘Stop!’ I interrupted them. This was getting silly. ‘You may send for reinforcements when the Nallian cavalry shows up here. I will not permit more people be brought here, on any other pretext. Am I making myself clear? The more people we bring to Lannerville, the greater the risk that this operation is infiltrated.’ I picked up the stack of profiles that Ellen and I had been working through. ‘Vetting is tough to do and can’t be guaranteed to be flawless.’ I waved the papers at Benjamin. ‘Ellen and I have already identified two of your people who need to be sent home.’
Lieutenant Scott opened and closed his mouth a couple of times before finding his voice. ‘That’s absurd. Captain Banks and I can personally vouch for each and every one of them.’
‘Well then, I guess that puts both of you at risk of going back to Emberly as well.’
‘We are here to help you, Connie,’ Benjamin said with emphasis.
Banks appeared to be less troubled. ‘I checked everyone’s backgrounds. Which of the men are you talking about?’
Ellen found the two folders we’d set aside and handed them to the captain. I had picked up the stack of people we’d cleared. I dropped them back on the table while Banks looked at the notes. A moment later he looked up.
‘Alright, I can see why Private Dester is a concern. His parents are immigrants. Father is Gulreimian and the mother is originally from Nallia. I understand your need for caution with him, but what about Private Kelly?’
Ellen stepped in. ’He did a brief spell in the navy before getting a transfer to the army, didn’t he?’
‘He did, yes.’
‘Are you aware that the ship he served on during that time was captured by pirates?’
‘Yes, I am. In fact, there were two ships in the convoy. Coincidentally, Private Arthur Kelly’s twin brother, Private Francis Kelly, was on the second ship. The crew on Arthur’s ship managed to overpower the pirates on the third day and made good their escape. Francis and the crew of the second ship were never seen again. Naturally, Arthur doesn’t like to talk about it.’
‘These pirates, operating from the Bakostan Peninsula, are known to receive funding from Nallia, are they not?’
‘They are,’ replied Benjamin, looking nonplussed. ‘What does that have to do with Private Kelly?’
‘Look at the birth certificate at the back of the folder,’ said Ellen. ‘We insist on birth certificates being included in the materials for the clearing process. See the section “Identifying Features”?’
‘Yes,’ replied Banks. ‘It says he has a birthmark on his lower back.’
‘Have you seen this birthmark?’
Captain Banks and Lieutenant Scott looked at each other.
‘Take a look at his enrolment medical records,’ said Ellen. Banks riffled through the various documents in the folder.
‘It’s not mentioned.’
‘No. No mention of the birthmark under the same heading.’
Benjamin looked at me. ‘Birthmarks sometimes fade.’
‘Sometimes they fade,’ I agreed. ‘But what if this one was just replaced. Imagine the surprise on First Seaman Arthur Kelly’s face when his long lost brother, Francis, shows up one day and sinks a knife into his heart, eh?’
‘You think Francis took his brother’s place? You think he’s a spy? There’s no proof of that.’
‘Actually, the missing birthmark is a significant piece of evidence, but we don’t need proof. This isn’t a courtroom trial…yet. What you or the army do with him after this isn’t my business, but what happens here is. We can’t take any chances. There’s too much at stake. I’ll cooperate with you, and we will work together as requested by Director Harman and Chancellor Gordon, but Privates Dester and Kelly go home on the next train from Lannerville, under armed escort. Is this clear?’
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