The Foundling Saga: Revelation (13 page)

He was, however, in a heli trying to evade a renegade who had threatened him and his birth mother. It was ironic that his mother, who didn’t even know much about him until a short while ago, was now going to provide safe refuge for him. Her two acts in his life would both be taking great personal risks for him. He was overwhelmed with emotions and in many ways felt sorry for her, but he already knew in his heart that she wouldn’t want this. He had thought about this and dismissed any doubts that she was uncaring. He knew that it was highly likely that their separation after his birth had probably been like a darkness on her heart for the remainder of her life. The Suffolk Road people called this sadness of loss a ‘heart shadow’.

“Thank you, Captain. We will do what we can for Doctor Clark,” she paused and tilted her head slightly. “Keller, is that you?”

“Yes, it is.” Keller looked at her and saw a fine woman. Though she had lines around her eyes, he could see that her life was not one in the fields, but he decided that she had the look of a good person. He also wasn’t quite ready to address her as mother. “It’s me, Keller.”

The Governor observed him briefly, with a sad smile, nodded slightly and said “Good, we will have time later,” she paused and added, “soon.”

There was a silence in the heli briefly, as though all present realised this was a significant moment in the lives of two people. Keller noticed they barely moved a muscle. “Yes, soon,” he said. He saw his birth mother break her gaze and she looked down momentarily with a look of relief.

“Captain, come to Government house, we will prepare for you.” Governor Whelehan’s face then faded and another view took its place with numbers and characters displayed. The pilot and Ash looked intently at them and then seemed to relax.

“Nurse? Keller might benefit from a drink.”

The nurse introduced herself as Tane. She passed him a small container from a pocket in the large bag at her feet. “Nutrient drink,” she stated, as he removed the lid and examined the grey liquid. She passed one forward to the Captain and Ash.

“The heli should take about four and a half hours, Keller. Settle down and rest,” said Ash.

Tane offered him a small snack. “How are you feeling?” she asked.

“I’m apparently light years from where I was until recently. I’ve no idea what is going on, except that someone is trying to use me as fishing bait for my birth mother and I’m holding on for fear of falling out of this machine. One of the people helping me, who I had only just met, has been hurt and we left him behind. I’m tired. That’s how I’m feeling.” He didn’t smile when he spoke. He didn’t seem angry either, just resigned to what was happening, but Tane could see he was emotionally struggling, now that they were away from immediate danger. She glanced at Ash who seemed to be listening too, although he was pretending to monitor the viewers.

“Oh, but you just need to hang on for a bit longer. Those renegades are a serious threat. We still aren’t sure of their network, how far it reaches and how many of our apparent ‘friends’ are working with them. That they were able to conceal your travel and arrival is very worrying. However, they have no overall control anywhere, except possibly Macau B and the green guards are on their way there. Why not push your seat back and have a rest, Keller. You will want to be rested by the time we arrive at Plymouth Rock.”

It was starting to get dark outside. Ash told him a two hour ‘night’ was due. This was known as a shortnight, as the two suns aligned themselves inconveniently for a period before the true night, known as the longnight.

Keller did eventually settle down. However, he did have time to see some even larger helis pass them by before darkness fell. They communicated with both Ash and the pilot. Ash told him they were the green guards - the civilian reserve. These were made up of young men and women who took a year of part-time training as part of their education. After this they took one week a year of refresher training and then remained on call until they were 35 years old. They were led by experienced commanders who also formed part of the Governor’s personal guard and they had responsibility for her protection and that of her elected officials.

Rayleigh wasn’t self-sufficient and in this way was the same as the other worlds; their need for mutual cooperation wasn’t the only reason for avoiding war and conflict. The disaster that almost ended the human race was their inspiration for never making the same mistake again. History was full of conflicts, some of which seemed disastrous - however, none had touched the scale of the last war.

Whilst there were various pacifist movements, there were no wholly pacifist nations or worlds. All worlds had some form of security and would use force if necessary to protect their communities and resources.

Keller had asked Cormic many years ago about pacifism, after hearing his Aunty Nerys talking passionately on the subject. He remembered her quietly walking out of the tent one day during a family meal. “Look at where we are and why we got here - yet some of you men still seem to be bent on total destruction. Haven’t you done enough?” She had said before leaving. This was in response to a discussion that had taken place after Keller asked about the Tehanos. These were an ancient Polynesian people from New Berwick. He had been taught about the Tehanos by his Aunty Ida from her set of books. The Tehanos seemed to Keller to have had lives similar to the Outsiders. They had led simple lives devoid of the technology of others in their world, although both Tehanos and Outsiders would have benefitted from technology provided by their neighbours, such as medicine and tools. Keller had mentioned that two stories had stuck in his mind, if these historical stories were true then both seemed ironic.

The first story involved the peoples of a group of islands called Larane Islands. These were inhabited by the Wraomi, a Polynesian people. Their environment was harsh. It was believed that they practiced pacifism to avoid the type of waste that resulted from warfare and conflict. They needed to cooperate to survive. They had apparently followed this way of life for three hundred years or so after a particularly devastating conflict amongst various tribes and it was strictly adhered to. This had some parallels to mankind in the 24th Century, Keller had remarked.

However in 1842, so the story goes, when the population was about 1300 Wraomi, some 750 Tehano landed from New Berwick. They arrived with guns and other weapons. Many arrived ill and the Wraomi nursed them back to health. Accounts written at the time suggest that the Tehano started to massacre the Wraomi. A council of Wraomi chiefs gathered urgently. The young men wanted to resist the invaders with weapons. The elders apparently dismissed the idea. The law of pacifism that they followed could not be violated as it was a moral code. The majority were massacred and many of those not immediately killed, were enslaved, and gradually cannibalised by the Tehano. Thirty years later, there were barely 80 Wraomi left. Much of this apparent genocide, slavery and injustice was done under the eyes of the more so-called civilised Europeans who didn’t intervene.

The second story, involving the Tehano from the same region of New Berwick took place a few years later. Ironically, this was almost overlapping the period of terror that other Tehano from the region were supposedly inflicting on the Wraomi on the nearby Larane Islands. This was at a time when Tehano land was being taken by the Europeans. When the Tehano resisted with weapons, they were defeated. This group of Tehano was led by a man who was educated in tribal customs and decided to adopt a passive resistance approach. He and his elders persuaded Tehano warriors to resist the loss of land without weapons. In 1865, he convinced 2,200 Tehano to actually welcome European soldiers into the village by offering food and drink. Many of them were later arrested for opposing land confiscation, albeit peacefully. This passive resistance had prevented massacre at the hands of the European soldiers and helped reduce the land loss that violent resistance would have cost.

Keller had re-told the story at this family dinner. He wondered how the same people could be so apparently violently genocidal in the first example, but on the other hand follow a passive resistance approach when they themselves were threatened.

This had inspired Cormic to ponder aloud. He wondered, in general, whether pacifism was only ever extolled by those people who lived in the comfort of the knowledge that someone else would do their fighting for them when they were threatened. “Maybe we should call it cosy pacifism,” he had said. Whereas, in the case of the Wraomi, this was pacifism in its pure form and in fact it led to almost annihilation. Cormic had then offered his opinion that in its simplest terms pacifism meant that you were as good as dead or someone died for you, neither of which was satisfactory.

Aunty Nerys at that point, had got angry, although normally she rarely added to the conversation. Her view, shared by many, was that nothing could be worse than going back to the old ways of ‘war, hatred, and destruction’, as she put it. The impact of the last war, and the lack of healthy children should be lesson enough for all of mankind. Such talk against pacifism merely brought the day nearer and nearer when mankind would start the next conflict. Keller understood Cormic’s innocent remarks, but he also understood Aunty Nerys. He had watched Merna and Ida leave the tent frowning at Cormic. This was when Keller realised why the Outsiders chose a simple life. The mantra from his family’s elders was that technology should be used sparingly.

Keller was awakened by Tane and he saw that light had returned outside. “Keller, Keller! Wake up,” she said pushing his shoulder. He was in a deep sleep and didn’t understand where he was until he felt the familiar lift of his stomach. He also noticed a change in the sound of the heli. He could hear Ash and the pilot talking urgently. Then Ash gestured towards the viewing screen.

Tane pushed Keller again, more urgently, “Keller, don’t be alarmed. The heli is cruising to a landing position but we have no drive. A laser has knocked out our battery. The heli can glide to a halt, but we may need to move quickly when we land.”

Keller sat upright quickly “A laser?”

“Renegades, we presume, that’s why we must get moving quickly. We are about two hours flight from Plymouth Rock but that’s about a six day walk in these forests,” said Tane, who herself looked a little panicked.

Ash explained “Keller, I am sorry. They have been monitoring us. Support for the renegades is sparse. However, they clearly have some support out here in the middle of nowhere and they are acting against us. We are on the edge of the forest; however we have room to land this between the forest and the mountains. The heli is designed to glide down in the event of no power.”

Keller looked through the plas glass. The ground was coming up towards them slowly. He could see a dense area of trees ahead. Immediately below them, he could see a valley sitting between the two mountains. There was also, what he assumed to be, a freshwater lake in the valley with a small river snaking its’ way towards the trees. Tane was gripping her seat but maintaining her composure now - perhaps for Keller’s benefit. The pilot sat more upright and Keller could tell he was concentrating hard on the approaching valley.

There was a popping noise above them. Had Keller understood helis, he would have realised what was happening. The blades had disengaged and four parachutes mushroomed out from the centre of the heli darkening the cockpit as they shielded the brighter of the two suns, Mizar. The other sun, Alcor was barely over the horizon.

Initially the heli seemed to be in a stomach-churning pendulum swing as the four parachutes filled unevenly and then finally bloomed. The heli was being caught by an easterly wind and was driving to the side of the large valley.

Ash was communicating hurriedly with a face on the screen when the pilot shouted “Brace yourselves. This may be bumpy.”

The heli landed with a bump and lifted again slightly. The parachutes detached automatically and the heli landed with a slightly harder bump, collapsing on one side as one of the supports gave way. The heli was leaning alarmingly to the left with Keller and Tane clinging white knuckled to the seat arms. Ash turned immediately and could see the two of them were okay, albeit obviously slightly shaken. “We’re on solid ground. We’ve just hit some rock on the left side and lost a leg. We need to disembark quickly.”

Keller and Tane undid their straps and followed the lead of both the pilot and Ash. They both opted to exit from the right hand side. Ash helped Tane and then Keller exit.

Tane introduced Keller to the pilot, a man called Bula. Tane slapped him on the back and thanked him for guiding the stricken heli to what was a relatively good landing in rocky terrain.

Keller looked about him. They were near the base of the valley by a narrow river. Trees had established themselves higher up on the sides about a 100 metres from where they stood. They were on a rocky area and it was uneven to walk on, although there were areas of flat rock and other vegetation nearby. A type of grass grew between their rockier area and the river. It was a flowering grass, with bright green leaves and various shades of orange and yellow for the flowers here and there. The ground looked damp nearer the river and Keller assumed that Bula hadn’t attempted to land there as it appeared swampy. A low mist hung over the grassy area in places, a nearby stream made its way lazily from the forest to the river.

The trees were a fairly bright green with tight leaves. Tane stood by the heli as Bula entered the rear compartment and passed some bags and equipment down to her. Ash was urgently talking to the viewer again. “Keller, take these and put them over there - we’re going to need them,” said Tane, passing him some packs and indicating a flat rock nearby.

Keller moved various packs from beside the heli to the rock. Ash continued to talk on the viewer. Bula climbed down from the heli and Tane and he helped Keller move the various items over to the flat area.

“We are going to need to get moving. We have to assume that whoever disabled the heli is now on their way here to locate us. We have four packs we can carry on our backs but we can’t take everything as it will be too heavy. We are only half way to Plymouth Rock and it will take days to get there so we are going to need to find a safe place on the way and arrange a pick up,” Bula explained to them both, as he started dividing up some of the kit.

Ash remained talking on the viewer and was now cursing. Tane and Bula were discussing the kit urgently - after prompting from Ash, who had yelled that they need to get going quickly.

Ash then stepped away from the heli and walked quickly towards the trio, eyeing the kit as he approached. “Split everything into four as best you can. We may have to split up along the way.” This thought had concerned Keller but the frown on the Captain’s face made him keep it to himself.

Bula looked at Ash, “What about the green guards? Their helis only passed us about two hours ago. Are they able to get one out here to pick us up?”

“Possibly - they are three or four hours away. They were travelling at the same speed in the opposite direction. They are already on the ground and are struggling with renegades who have come out of the woodwork. Either that, or the rebels are using prisoners to assist their cause. Macau B is hotting up at the moment. We may be able to get help from one of the interior settlements or Plymouth Rock – they’re working on it.” He then looked at Keller and Tane, “Are you two okay?” They nodded their assent.

“We’re going to have to move. It’s too open here. Let’s see what kit we have,” he said.

They went through the packs and decided to leave some items behind such as a duplicate medical kit. The heli had survival equipment on board such as waterproofs, food, water purifying tablets, cooking aids, night gear for warmth, medical supplies and a portable monitor. Ash picked up the monitor and he told the others that it was their lifesaver and he couldn’t risk it being damaged.

They had one backpack per person and they helped each other put these on, checking the various straps for comfort. One of the problems they were going to face was that neither Tane nor Keller had shoes suitable for a long hike. Bula looked down at their footwear. “Let’s hope we aren’t walking too long, just watch your footing.”

Bula returned to the heli and cut off the remaining power, thereby closing down the viewer and lights. Although it wasn’t an easily detectable heat source when it was on low power, he told Ash they may as well make it as hard as possible for anyone trying to track them.

They set off heading west for some trees, walking against a chilly breeze that was sweeping the valley. Ash wanted them to get under cover where they could then try and plan the journey ahead. He had already indicated that they needed to get clear away from this area first. After that, it would depend on advice he was receiving through his earpiece. His job, he told the trio, was to keep them safe until rescued.

They approached the forest canopy. There was enough room to walk between the trees. The ground was covered in a layer of branches, leaves and a strange oblong nut that some of the trees bore. It was like walking on a bed mat covered in horse chestnuts and Keller thought progress through this was going to be slow.

Having reach the trees, they stopped and looked back at the heli about 100 metres from where they now stood.

Ash sat on a fallen trunk and looked at his viewer. Bula and Tane looked over his shoulder. He called Keller over.

“I had been studying the viewers before we left the heli. There seems to be an additional complication. The renegades, or rather Kurk is seeking support and is reported to be broadcasting that the Governor, who herself came from Earth, and by implication had a conflict of interest, was bringing her son to prepare him to take her place. He is saying that we are to become a nepotistic state.”

“But that’s a total lie, they are the ones that brought me here” protested Keller.

“We know, Keller, calm down, we know that. This Kurk is clever enough to have back up plans. It occurs to us that if Governor Whelehan hadn’t eventually capitulated to his blackmail scheme, then you would have been paraded by them as evidence that the Governor had a plan to retain Rayleigh through nepotism. Perhaps for personal gain? You would be the young man from Earth, an Outsider at that, with no apparent abilities or experience and would control the future and prosperity of a population already made nervous by its relatively precarious existence.”

“It’s crazy! It would be better if you could just get me back home and then they would know I have no interest in this. I didn’t ask to come here.” Keller was stunned and felt helpless.

“Keller, it has complicated matters but we can regain control of the situation. It’s just likely to take a little longer,” said Ash.

Ash believed that the minor rebellions would be quelled and various renegade groups would be brought back in line when they realised the government wasn’t going to be cowed. However, they would need to be isolated first and it wasn’t clear how widespread they had become. Keller was a pawn at the moment and Ash said his presence could confuse matters for some of the population, now that Kurk had changed tactics.

Keller sat down on a trunk by himself and looked miserable. The other three discussed the next steps and were considering what direction to aim for.

Tane then came over to Keller. “It looks like we will follow the stream through the forest for some way. It’ll take us up and then across to the next valley which is some way from here. There is a small settlement about 10km away and it may be a good pick up point.”

Ash came over to Keller. “Katherine, sorry, Governor Whelehan, is aware of what has happened here,” he said nodding towards the heli. “She is in the process of quelling a local rebellion. It’s not good, but the rebels are failing to get a foothold there and she has good people supporting her. Macau B is a different matter. There have been casualties among the green guards. Kurk really seems to mean business and he could destroy everything we have built here.”

Keller noticed that Ash had called his birth mother by her first name. A slip, he thought. He look closely at Ash who had turned away quickly to look back into the forest. Keller wondered at their relationship for a moment. “Ash?” he asked, “can we be tracked? The Scouts who picked me up in England said they had tracked me by body warmth.”

Ash turned back to Keller, “A heat signal you mean? Yes. We would have to be in a line of sight. Alternatively, a satellite could do it - but it requires a lot of patience and time, sometimes just luck. At the moment, their best bet if they have the resources is to get to our heli and track us from there. So we need to get moving towards a safe place. At the same time we have to use tactics to avoid detection. The first move is to get out of this valley and into another. They can track us at the moment by simply standing by the heli with a scanner and they will eventually pick one of us up. It’ll get harder as we put more trees between us and them.”

They set off at a steady, brisk space.

It was hard-going. Keller thought it was tough on Ash, who followed behind the other three. Keller knew that Ash would have been able to make much faster progress on his own, as would Bula. Keller’s muscles and lungs had not been tested for a long time. He wasn’t sure at the outset how far he could go before he would need to slow down or stop for a while. Tane didn’t look particularly fit but she was still fitter than the Regents back home, and she didn’t seem to be struggling with her pack.

He didn’t want to let these people down.

The thought that there were casualties back at the prison and around Macau B was a shock. He wondered what it meant when Ash said ‘casualties’. The worlds weren’t perfect but the deliberate killing or wounding of a fellow human was usually restricted to local and domestic disputes. A declining population doesn’t normally waste its people. Food, and certainly land, were plentiful compared to other periods of history. There wasn’t a world that could afford to waste people, its greatest resource; even those who made up the low prison population worked shifts since labour was in such short supply.

Tane waited for Keller at a narrow pathway that Bula had come across. “We have a few hours before longnight so try to keep going as best you can.” This time of year, longnight would be five hours long.

“This is an animal track,” Keller said to Tane, looking up and down the path.

“Is it?”

“Yes, far too narrow for a man. It looks like it’s frequently used,” Keller said.

Tane looked at Keller thoughtfully. “You probably have a better grasp of field craft than me or Bula. I have primarily been working out of Plymouth Rock and other population centres; even as a child I had a relatively urban upbringing. Bula would have been the same,” she added.

“Foragers have made this path - they eat the tubenuts that fall from the tree and various root vegetables,” Ash said catching them up. “They’re harmless enough, not good to eat though – they taste foul. They eat too much of those awful tubenuts which are acrid. The forest workers call them ‘The Stink’ and prefer hunting almost anything rather than a Stink,” he added. “Let’s move on,” he said, looking back through the trees.