The Foundling Saga: Revelation (7 page)

Eventually, they picked up a signal - two signals in fact. The screen display paused and started to buzz, showing stills of different depths and identifying two moving targets.

The Scouts knew this didn’t conclusively identify their missing Outsiders, but they were in a confident mood as they identified the location. In an unhurried manner, two of them gathered the supplies and equipment from their temporary base whilst the other two continued to monitor the ‘heat sources’. The scanner continued trying to discern if there were any more heat sources in the target environment. After 30 seconds the scanning would automatically return to the first two heat sources. The Scouts could see that they were moving slowly in an area of large ruins.

Once a heat source was identified it triggered the sound scanner. Residual sounds such as birds, rain,
etc.
were stripped out. Quite clearly the scanner identified occasional human voices. With sophisticated analysis it would feedback a relatively good quality recording of the words spoken and the voice patterns.

The scanner paused and the Scouts could pick up the conversation, "…. unless I happen to have a problem with mine. Tuck it into your tunic. If you think you are going to fall, make sure this light has a soft landing.... probably more valuable than the two of us put together.”

They played this back several times, whilst the scanner now remained on these two heat sources, recording further sounds for playback. “So, one of them is discussing a light of some sort and is cautioning the other to be careful with it – It sounds like they are planning to move into the ruin,” The taller of the group eventually said.

“The signal is getting weaker and weaker,” another said. The four were back as a group now and getting ready to move off. The scanner outlined the larger ruins. “They are definitely moving into this structure. The scanner hasn’t picked up any other sources, so let’s move closer.” With that the four set off at a brisk pace towards the centre of the town but still observing the safe rules of approach which they employed in these circumstances. This included ‘pause and observe’ techniques and maintaining a gradually-changing designated exit route should they need to act swiftly. In truth, this was rarely required for defence and tended to be for the sole the purposes of remaining hidden from a target.

The Scouts waited in an observation position in some heavy concrete ruins on a third level. Other levels had collapsed, causing the near destruction of the rear of the ruin but leaving part of what they assumed was the front still intact. They had climbed up this part hurriedly lest they lose the pair whilst they themselves were inside a ruin.

The ruin they were in had a wide ramp that wound around the side of the building originally. There were shorter ramps between floors. It was the building that Cormic had remarked as probably being a vehicle storage area originally.

Two of the Scouts set up the scanner on the parapet overlooking the great ruin on the other side. The other two scouted the area they were occupying to ascertain alternative routes into and out of their new temporary base.

The scanner didn’t detect any other heat sources in the area, so it was assumed the two Outsiders were still in the ruin opposite. The Scouts settled patiently and waited.

Eventually the pair were detected again, their heat source alerting the scanner and the sound feedback started to pick up their voices again. They were making their way toward the exit point, it being the same point they entered the ruin by.

The Scouts covertly observed them as they left the ruins. They were a little alarmed however, to see the two were carrying lethal weapons. They watched the pair move back along the highway and could see that they were taking precautions not to be seen. The scanner, however, was not going to have trouble keeping their position visible to the Scouts as long as they continued to move in the open.

Whether the Outsiders knew how to use the weapons, or if they had the relevant ammunition wasn’t clear to the Scouts. These weapons were either a very lucky find or they were hidden in readiness for some form of action. Whether it was for defence or attack wasn’t clear.

This would change the approach that the Scouts would now be obliged to take if they decided to apprehend the tall youth.

The four watchers primed their own weapons on maximum stun. This was intended to bring down a human target with such pain that they wouldn’t get up for five minutes and in some cases, would render them unconscious for a while. The lower settings allowed for less extreme measures, starting with a painful jolt. A sufficient enough warning to want to avoid a repeat; however, the victim would still be able to have some movement in limbs. Since these two Outsiders had the possibility of pressing a trigger with fatal consequences, the stun level would need to be high enough to impede any movement.

The Scouts had a plan that they hoped would not even require a confrontation with either of the men.

The pursuers had now stopped near a taller ruin and observed quietly. The Outsiders had gone inside the ruin and had initially appeared at the openings on two of the sides, but had not stayed long. They were possibly looking for any other sign of life in the area. Again, it was another sign that the two were being cautious for a reason. This seemed to increase the likelihood that the Regent who alerted the troopers had the right instincts. Why else would the two be acting in this way?

The scanner allowed them to both watch and listen. The hideout was clearly a base. The Scouts rested and ate, being reminded of their stomachs when they overheard two Outsiders discussing the contents of their food wraps.

The Outsiders’ conversation allowed the Scouts to confirm that the pair were concerned about being followed. The concern shown by the older one for the younger Outsider, who they now confirmed as being named Keller, was protective in its nature. This highlighted again that any later action against Keller would likely cause a strong reaction from the older one.

They also determined that two of the dwellings at the far end of the same block were being used for toilet purposes, and furthermore that they had chosen one each. Thus a refinement to the Scouts’ plan was possible, particularly as the pair appeared to be settling down for an overnight rest.

The four Scouts now broke up into pairs. They decided to act before the light faded. Two of them moved towards the far end of the large ruin that had become the Outsiders base. The ruin had a second exit stair on the far side. It was in a collapsed state and covered in ivy but, with some care, they felt they could move up this to the second level at least.

The two who remained behind entered a ground floor room and waited. They had left the scanner in the opposite ruin, but kept the monitor so they could be alerted to any movement from the Outsiders.

The second pair of Scouts quietly entered the dwellings apparently being used as toilets. They clearly were. They had determined which of these was used by the younger one from scanned conversation. The sole purpose of this visit was to gather several samples and make their way to the ground floor of the structure. They took care in their approach. They ensured no sign of their visit was left to the alert the Outsiders when they returned to these ‘toilet’ areas. Underfoot, they had to take great care to avoid making a significant sound whilst stepping around the long rested debris that was lying around.

An hour later they returned to the other pair. To test the samples, the Scouts had a basic health analysis tool in which tiny samples could be placed to analyse the health of a person. These then produced various results over a period of 10 minutes. It also had a DNA analysis function as a by-product. The apparatus required two samples be placed in two small vials which were then connected to the apparatus for mixing with a solution. The readings were displayed on the same general purpose monitor that was used for the scanning.

The health analysis of the first sample showed, amongst other expected dietary information, that the subject had high levels of Salmonella bacteria, but no signs of the subject being obviously affected by this. A Londoner would have suffered illness quite severely with this level of Salmonella in their body.

There was also a small amount of blood which could be symptomatic of colorectal cancer, something unfortunately not uncommon in Outsiders. Finally, the DNA Analysis showed that the DNA had signs of permanent damage in several forms of gene mutation. This was something the Outsiders had to contend with as a result of their exposure to radiation, mainly in previous generations. By its very nature this was passed down from one generation to another. This mutation confirmed that the older of the subjects was an Outsider and so were his birth parents.

The second pair of samples showed some evidence of roundworm, again not uncommon in Outsider communities. However, there were also traces of Vermox which indicated that the subject was taking preventative measures. Medicines, such as Vermox, would have been supplied by Londoners at trade areas such as the Arpo. Other than the dietary information indicating both subjects shared the same diet, there was nothing of note in the otherwise healthy sample.

They then examined the DNA Analysis. The DNA of the second subject was perfect.

The Scouts looked at this in silence for a few seconds, it was a rare thing. Many Londoners, despite the host of precautions over the last few generations still carried certain DNA defects. The subject was either the offspring of an off-world community and/or the offspring of wealthy parents.

In London at the time of the devastation subsequent occasional winds from the north or the east had bought gradually lowering levels of contamination. Those in power had been able to protect against this. The healthy became the wealthy over time having become the most likely to produce viable offspring.

The taller Scout moved his hand around the screen tapping rapidly, then looked at the others. “I’ve transmitted this back to London. They’ll want to see this.”

He then switched the monitor back to the hidden screen which was still scanning for heat and sound, to alert them to any significant movement.

“Pack up the equipment. We have to take this Keller back with us and I think we need to act tonight. We will need to have a mediheli authorised – it will be the quietest and quickest way to return him to where he originally came from.”

Cormic woke up with a blinding headache and his body ached all over. He presumed this may have been because he had worked too long in the airless environment yesterday, whilst recovering the weapons they had found. However, something didn’t feel right. He pulled himself up and could see that Keller wasn’t asleep beside him and he had cleared away his mat. It was light, and he was hungry.

He called out to Keller as he climbed from his sleeping position but there was no response. He presumed he was visiting the toilet. Cormic sat on the edge of the bath and rubbed his temples. He felt like he had drunk a bellyful of Ida’s gooseberry wine. He was cold but saw the sun’s rays hit the top of the wall facing the room he was in. This made him suddenly panic as he could see by the sun that he had missed half the morning. Keller may have let him sleep on, but where was he?

Keller’s backpack was missing. Cormic moved suddenly to look over the walls which once held the windows. He couldn’t see movement. He ran to look east and then he crossed through the doorway opposite and did the same. He glanced towards the toilet areas as he crossed the walkway but would look into those in due course.

There was no sign of Keller. Cormic ran down towards the toilet areas. He could tell these hadn’t been used since the night before and doubted Keller would have gone elsewhere. Keller was certainly not going to have wandered off with his heavy backpack to casually investigate the area whilst Cormic slept.

Keller had disappeared.

Cormic returned to the dwelling deciding to get some things together and go and look for Keller. He gathered his fish knife, plas light and harness, two food wraps and a drink. He stopped suddenly and then it occurred to him that one of the weapons had gone from the bathroom. He then noticed that all four green bottles that came with the weapons were gone. He paused, not understanding this. Had Keller really taken a weapon and the means to make them lethal?

With a grim look on his face, he again rubbed his temples as though to massage away the pain in his head, but it seemed worse now. He drank, and then ate some food as he thought about where he was going to start looking for Keller.

Claudius Ptolemy (Born AD 90, Died AD 168) was a Roman citizen who lived in Egypt. Amongst his other interests, he was an astronomer and one of his many achievements involved listing 48 constellations which became the standard for the next 1800 years. One of those constellations was Ursa Major (the Great Bear), which is visible all year round in the northern hemisphere. The seven brightest stars form what is known variously as the Plough or the Big Dipper and sometimes the Saucepan.

The Plough is also a useful pointer towards north (it points to the North Star). If you then imagine that it is indeed a saucepan we can identify the second star of the handle as being Mizar. In the same line of sight of Mizar is another star, known as Alcor. In the 21
st
Century a fifth new planet in the area was identified and named Rayleigh. This is the only habitable planet in this region and, by 2090, the planet had indeed been visited several times. It was targeted by the United Nations as the third habitable planet for colonising. This being to ensure the Earth’s population could be re-distributed in the hope that peace, tranquillity and wealth were not impacted by the alarming growth in population on the home planet.

For the next eighty years there was constant migration to seven of the main habitable planets, including Rayleigh. There was a never-ending search for more planets. This lead to a dozen satellite populations working on viability projects on other candidate planets. If it didn’t work out they would shut-up shop and move on when these proved too hostile an environment. Some of the satellite populations were, indeed, clinging on by their fingertips and very dependent on supply visits in order to continue. Where these populations were sometimes moved on, they occasionally left mining communities in situ so that precious metals or other riches were available for extraction and export to a more hospitable environment elsewhere.

All in all, the United Nations had achieved a safety net for the survival and prosperity of the human race by 2260. The sacrifices were deemed worth it. Several population centres on some candidate planets had perished or had been abandoned. This was as a result of disasters caused by unforeseen events such as quakes or catastrophic storms, volcanic activity, or in one case when an unstoppable viral disease reduced the population to an unsustainable level.

Speed-of-travel innovations meant that Rayleigh could be reached in just under four months, and sure enough a relatively slow growing population was established over the next century. Craft from the home planet were now meeting halfway on a regular basis for lucrative trading with any merchant who was happy to send his or her traders away for the four month round trip. This meeting point was now an established space station whose sole purpose was to act as a huge marketplace. This enormous hub station was known as New Exeter. Several other colonised planets would send delegations to New Exeter for the same reasons.