A Place Called Perfect (13 page)

CHAPTER 27

William’s Potion

Violet shivered, ‘It’s someone walking on your grave’ her Dad always said. She shook off the thought. Death was too close to joke about standing on the floor of the Watchers factory. Boy looked uneasy too though it could have been from his barrel rolling adventure. Violet eyed the door, then Boy, then the door again. Neither moved and after a few minutes she signed relief.

“I don’t think they heard you,” she whispered.

Boy breathed for the first time in a few moments washing away some of the odd blue colour that rested on his face. He was about to speak when the horn went off once more and the barrels began to move.

“I think it must be on a cycle,” he whispered as the noise stopped, “It’s every five minutes I’d say. Next time it goes we’ll open the door and get out of here; nobody will hear us in that racket. We need to find where they make the tea.”

“Will we split up?” Violet asked, “It might be quicker.”

“Okay I’ll go right, you go left.”

Violet nodded and they both waited nervously for the horn to sound again. On cue Boy opened the door. Suddenly the room flooded with steam. It was blinding and Violet’s eyes stung in the prickly hot air. Boy had already disappeared into the fog on her right, so she made her way gingerly from the barrel room onto the steaming factory floor. A haze of shadowy Watchers passed by busy with their duties. Reassuringly they also wore white coats and hats, Violet pulled her cap further down to blend in with the crowd.

The Watchers sped through the space well used to the foggy atmosphere. One of them brushed lightly past Violet while looking down at a chart. Her stomach churned. His face was wrinkly, so wrinkly it was hard to see his features lost to rolls of puffy pink skin. He looked like the tips of Violet’s fingers after she’d spent too long in the bath.

The noise stopped again. She had to concentrate. She had a task to do. There was a line of barrels just up ahead. If she followed them they might lead her to the tea. She reached the carousel just as a group of Watchers approached. Quickly she turned her back and pretended to inspect the line.

“Everything alright?” a Watcher said, stopping just short of her.

“Oh em…yes,” Violet replied, in the deepest voice possible, “just em… checking the barrels. Looks good!”

The Watcher nodded and walked away. Her knees shook as she waited for him to disappear into the fog then hurried onwards. Her lungs burned, it was hard to breath let alone see in the thick steam.

Keeping close to the carousel she was suddenly in the middle of the factory floor. It was a large circular area alive with activity. The horn went off again. This time the first five barrels in line moved forward into the circular space and were each shunted down a different shoot of the carousel to separate workstations. Each barrel was surrounded by three enormous steaming kettles linked by metal pipes to a huge tank suspended above the factory floor. It had to be the tea. Once the barrels were at their stations, the kettles tipped over one by one filling each with steaming hot liquid. Once full, the noise stopped, a Watcher secured the lid and the five barrels were shunted back out onto the main carousel. They moved off in a different direction and the next five waited their turn.

Violet had found the tea, now she just needed to find Boy. Suddenly someone grabbed her from behind and a hand flew up over her mouth.

“Ssh,” Boy whispered, “Follow me and don’t ask any questions.”

Violet nodded and calmly followed her friend towards a door straight in front of them. Walking confidently Boy looked like he belonged, why couldn’t she be that brave? He opened the door and Violet stepped inside. The room was dark. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust. Suddenly she screamed but Boy’s hand was in place to muffle the sound.

“They’re just dolls,” he whispered, “I found this place when I left you. I think it’s where they test the tea but it must have been the doll room when this place was a toy factory.”

The room was lined in shelving, packed with baby body parts. Rows of tiny, hairless, heads stared unblinking from plastic boxes. Mini arms hung off hooks and fatty dismembered legs dangled from drawers. Reams of paper and flasks of moldy tea rested on the workbenches.

“Did you see the tank?” Boy asked.

Violet nodded.

“It’s the tea. There’s a stairs that goes up to it,” he said, “but it’s full of Watchers and I’m not sure both of us would pass unnoticed…”

“Well then it’s up to one of us,” Violet interrupted.

“It’s not that easy Violet,” Boy replied. “There are Watchers everywhere. I don’t want them to know that we’ve been here, otherwise our whole plan will be ruined. We can’t be seen. We need to cause a diversion, I just don’t know how.”

“What about the barrels?” Violet said excitedly, “Maybe if we cause a blockage in the barrel room the whole operation will stop working. It’s all connected. The kettles will pour into nothing, there’ll be steaming tea all over the floor. The Watchers will be running about the place in a panic.”

Boy took a minute.

“That’s brilliant Violet, it just might work,” he eventually smiled, “I think you’ve been hanging around No Mans Land too long. They won’t want you back in Perfect now!”

“Hopefully there won’t be a Perfect when we’re finished.”

For the next hour the pair planned their attack. It had to be perfect. It was decided Boy would go to the barrel room and cause the diversion. Being a boy, he argued, meant he was stronger and better able to lift the barrels. His logic didn’t make sense since the barrels were empty and he was skinny. Boys were sometimes stupid. Once the diversion was working it was her job to climb the stairs undetected and drop the flask of William Archer’s liquid into the tank of tea. Easy.

“Remember to wait for my signal,” Boy said, as he left the room on the sounding of the horn.

Violet paced the floor. She’d always hated dolls even when she was younger. There was something scary about them. The plastic eyes followed her through the room. Imagine if they climbed out of their boxes and crawled after her? She shook off the image. She had to concentrate. A second horn had gone off since Boy left and still nothing happened. There was no signal. A third horn and nothing. Her heart pounded as she played with William Archer’s flask. Just then a sharp screech bounced off the walls. It cut right through her. The signal! She ran to the door and opened it just in time to see the chaos. 

Quickly she closed it again and rested her head against the cold metal. Placing the flask inside the waistband of her trousers, she took a deep breath and slipped out the room of dolls.

Watchers sprinted through the steam towards the carousel. Whatever Boy had done it worked. Kettles were pouring into empty space. Watchers rushed forward with buckets to catch the steaming liquid before it hit the floor. She looked out of place moving slowly through the madness so she sped up. The stairs was just ahead. She ran for it holding tightly to the flask through her coat. She’d just reached the first step when a hand grabbed her jacket.

“You! Come with me and take this,” a wrinkly Watcher said, as he thrust a bucket into her hand.

The flask slipped. The conical glass moved rapidly down the leg of her trousers about to hit the floor. She dropped the bucket to grab it.

“What’s wrong you stupid fool? Pick up that bucket and follow me. We’re losing gallons of that blasted tea and you’re playing with your pants!” the Watcher shouted.

Securing the flask once more in her waistband, Violet pulled down her cap and nodded. At the station she copied those around her and began to fill the bucket with tea. It smelt good, like ice cream and chocolate. Memories of all the glorious cups she shared in Perfect made her weak.

The tea was hypnotic. The tang of fizzy cola bottles hit her tongue and the tantalizing twist of ice cream and orange danced on her taste buds. She was swept away in a world of sweet sugar.

“Hurry up!” a Watcher growled, as Violet stopped to sniff the bucket, “You’d swear you never smelt that stuff before. What you say your name was again?”

Panic ripped away her sugary dreams. Her mind went blank as the Watcher stared. Ignoring his question, she filled the bucket and walked steadily back towards the barrel.

“Oi you sonny, I asked you a question!” the Watcher growled.

She kept walking her legs like wobbly jelly.

“Oi!” he shouted again, this time he was angry.

“Hey Bill shut your trap and get back to work. It’s not the time for fightin!” another Watcher yelled.

“I ain’t fightin mate!” Violet’s attacker replied.

“It looks like fightin to me ya big over grown lump of lard!”

A roar rose up behind Violet. She turned. Her Watcher was running head long for a man at the opposite station. Seizing the opportunity, she dropped her bucket and raced for the stairs. The Watchers now circled the fight. Violet sped unnoticed up the steps. Reaching the top she pulled the flask from her trousers. The landing was round and hugged the circumference of the tank. Violet ran around it but there was no opening to spill out the flask. A ladder on the side of the tank went up over the top of the steel cylinder. The Watchers were still focused on the fight but if any of them looked up they’d see her scaling the tank. She couldn’t worry about that. She took the flask in her teeth and grabbed the metal steps. Quickly she climbed to the top of the giant container. The ground was miles below, her arms shook, dizziness hit her. She steadied for a minute.

There was a small circular handle like the steering wheel on top of the tank. She crawled towards it. Grabbing the handle she twisted. It was stiff at first but quickly loosened in her grip. Her heart pounded as the sounds of the fight reached up from the factory floor. She pulled back the handle with all her strength and it opened up into the tank. Ripping the cork from the flask, she kissed the murky glass and emptied the contents into the tea below. Then she closed up the door and climbed back down the ladder.

She descended the stairs avoiding the fight and made her way back towards the barrel room. Boy, as he said he would be, was waiting there. With a quick nod, she followed her friend through the steam towards the exit.

Once outside, the pair sprinted across the yard, hid their coats in a barrel in the smaller shed and ran as fast as they could away from the factory.

CHAPTER 28

A Powerful Fear

They didn’t stop running until they were just outside the centre of No Mans Land.

“Did you…did you…?” Boy said, bending over by a tree to catch his breath.

“Yes,” Violet panted.

“No one saw?”

“No I don’t think so. They were all too busy with the fight.”

Boy looked confused and Violet filled him in on her adventures on their way to William Archer’s. It was early morning in No Mans Land and strangely all was quiet. There were hardly any stalls, nobody was begging and even the orphans had all but disappeared.

“That’s her!” a woman snarled, rushing out from her lopsided home.

Another woman, about Violet’s Mams age, grabbed her by the coat pulling Violet roughly back.

“The cheek of you!” the woman roared, “Don’t you think we have it hard enough without setting the Watchers on us?”

“Let go of me,” Violet screamed, “I haven’t done anything!”

“Not yet young one but you’re trying, you and that boyfriend of yours. Just leave us alone! We’re as happy as can be expected here. We don’t need any trouble!”

“She hasn’t done anything,” Boy shouted pulling Violet away from the woman.

“They’re talking revolution in Will Archer’s place all night and day. Know anything about that do you?” the woman said, almost nose to nose with Boy, her rancid breath licked his skin.

Quickly Boy grabbed Violet’s arm and the pair ran off in the direction of William Archer’s. They raced through the tiny streets and without knocking pushed open the door of the ramshakled house.

The room was full with people and they had to slip through a sea of legs to get near the front of the gathering. Many were faces from the streets of No Mans Land but there were others Violet didn’t know at all. Some were happy but most grunted and growled as William spoke at the top of the room. The place was stuffy and smelt of old men, Violet held
her nose as she squeezed past another bulging belly.

“What about the Watchers?” a man shouted, from the back of the room.

“I’m not sure what will happen with them if I’m honest,” William Archer said from his pulpit, an old wooden stool, “I think we may have to fight. I’m not a young man but I am willing to give my fists an airing if you are gents…oh and ladies of course.”

“We’ll never beat them,” another man called.

“We will with a bit of luck,” William replied, “I am banking on the fact that our friends and families in Perfect will join us once they see we’re alive.”

“And how do you propose they’ll see us, hasn’t that been the problem all along William? I think it’s time to stop this talk. It’s doing none of us any good. We’re here to stay and it’s about time some of us accepted that!”

“A man of your imagination stands defeated Fredrick?” William replied, looking straight into the eyes of the man who spoke, “they will see again, I promise you.”

“Promises you can’t keep old man!”

“He can keep them,” Violet said, angrily stepping out from the crowd.

“Violet!” William exclaimed, jumping down from his chair, “Thank heavens you’re alright. And Boy is he with you?”

“He’s there,” Violet said, pointing to her friend who had shyly stepped back into the crowd.

“How did you get on?” William whispered anxious.

Violet pulled the empty flask from her pants and handed it to the old man. Grabbing it in both hands, William held the bottle tightly to his chest, and inhaled long and deep.

“They’ll see again,” he shouted.

Jumping back onto the stool he shoved the flask into the air for all to see.

“My two little friends made sure of that!”

The room began to whisper. William stared out at the gathered crowd until all had fallen silent then he explained the tea factory plan.

“It’ll take a few days, possibly two before the antidote begins to take effect. Then I assure you when we walk down the streets of Perfect our families will see us! After that we zap them with the Reimaginator and Perfect will fall.”

“The what?” a voice laughed, at the end of the room.

“The Reimaginator,” William repeated, “You see they are stealing our loved one’s imaginations; that’s how my brothers control them. Not only do they not see us because of that blasted tea but they also don’t question anything. Our disappearance, the regime in Perfect; nothing seems out of the ordinary to them as they have lost the ability to question. They’ve lost independent thought.”

“Well I’m delighted I stayed to hear you answer our questions William because now I know for sure that you are crazy. I’m out,” a big burly man said, walking to the door.

Others began to move towards the exit passing out in silence.

“Why now William?” another man asked, “I mean I was with you at the beginning but we all gave up. What’s happened to bring back your fight?”

“It’s Macula, Merrill. They have her. I gave up because I had nothing to fight for. I thought she’d left me. I didn’t exist. Then with the help of Violet and Boy here I found out she’s still alive. It’s brought back the fight.”

“Look we are in No Mans Land because we are different!” William shouted, addressing those slipping from the room, “Where has your imagination gone? Where is the fight? This is not Perfect but you are all acting like it is!”

“Grow up Archer! No Mans Land is our lot, what’s the point in fighting? If you draw the Watchers down on us you’ll have me to answer to!” a man roared at William as he left the house.

The crowd steadily filtered from the room and William Archer, accepting defeat, stepped down from the stool, crushed.

“They sound just like I did not so long ago,” he said, his head in his hands, “they’ve lost the fight. If only my brothers knew they didn’t need to steal imaginations to control us!”

Violet stepped forward.

“It’s okay,” she said, “we can still do it. I know it will be harder just us but we can do it.”

“Violet,” William smiled, looking up at her, “you’re a lovely child. Your enthusiasm knows no bounds but in this case, three against many will not suffice.”

“What about four?” someone said, stepping out from the shadows.

“Merrill! I presumed you’d left with the others?”

“No William, I thought about it I must confess,” Merrill smiled, “but I missed the old William and the adventures we had taking on your brothers. My toys serve me well but they are not a substitute for my family. It’s time to get them back! Where do I sign up?”

William Archer stood up from his stool and wrapped his arms around his old friend.

“Merrill Marx?” Violet asked.

“Why yes, have we met before?”

“No but I have just come from your factory.”

Violet was filling Merrill in on their adventures, when Boy, who had been sitting quietly by the window, rose and walked towards the group.

“I know where we can get an army,” he said.

All attention turned towards him.

“They might be a little small but they’ll have lots of energy,” he smiled.