Extreme Difference (16 page)

‘Pick up the lamp on your way,’ Sandy called out calmly, ‘or you’ll have to go back again.’

Ben scooped up the lamp as he passed, letting out the breath he had been holding with a great whoosh, and nearly knocking Sandy over as he drew level.

‘Good God man, what’s the rush? You should be able to hold your breath longer than that.’

Ben took up his sitting position against the tunnel wall again, while he tried to get his breathing under control.

‘What’s that thing you picked up?’ asked Sandy, sitting down beside the still panting Ben. ‘It looks metallic from here.’

Ben handed over the object he had found without thinking, his head still spinning from lack of oxygen.

Sandy turned the shiny metal object over in his hand, examining it carefully in the soft light of the oil lamps.

‘My memory is coming back in big chunks, I think I know what this is,’ he exclaimed excitedly, ‘it’s a gun!’

‘What’s a gun?’ asked Ben, not showing the interest he would normally have done.

‘It’s a thing for shooting with, like the gas guns you have up top. It propels a missile out at high velocity. I wonder why anyone down here would need one of these?’

‘Don’t suppose he lived down here,’ Ben commented, ‘he probably came from up top, as we do.’

‘Probably, as you say, but what’s he doing with a weapon like this? We don’t have anything like it, nor do any of the other groups, or we would have found out about it long ago.’

Sandy pointed the gun down the tunnel, and gently squeezed the firing stud. A thin beam of red light made a tiny red dot on the tunnel floor, just past the scattered bones of its previous owner.

‘Don’t think that would stop very much,’ said Ben, not in the least impressed.

Sandy increased the pressure on the stud without really meaning to, and a section of the tunnel floor exploded in a mist of fine particles, leaving a quarter metre hole.

‘Now I’m impressed, said Ben, ‘but how does it do that? There was no bang like our guns.’

‘Not sure yet, but I think the red light is used for finding the target, and when I pressed a little harder on this stud, the floor blew up. As you said, there was no bang, and certainly no kick back, so it must be some form of energy beam. It would have been a little more humane, and definitely more effective than our flame-thrower, had we had it earlier.’ he added thoughtfully.

As there was little else they could do with regard to exploring the tunnel system, because of the gas pocket, it was decided to return to the surface, neither of them realizing just how much time had gone by since they began their exploration that morning.

Halfway up the long spiral slope leading to the digester room, Sandy called a halt, as both were out of breath.

‘Still got your container of water?’ he asked an equally exhausted Ben.

‘Yes, and a couple of dried meat strips, want one?’

After a much needed drink, they both began to chew on a meat strip, leaning against the tunnel wall for support.

As the strips softened, they were able to break bits off and swallow them, easing the emptiness of their stomachs.

‘God, it’s tough, but it tastes good, and is probably nutritious.’ Ben said, Sandy nodded, his mouth too full to speak.

Another drink of water meant their supplies were all spent, and the long haul up the seemingly never ending spiral slope was continued.

Reaching the digester room, they both paused for a rest before the last short climb to the domestic section of the complex. They wondered how much time had passed, and if they had been missed.

As there was no sign of life in the tunnels, they assumed rightly that the group had assembled for a meal, but which one they had yet to find out.

As the pair entered the main cavern, a few weak cheers went up, but these soon faded away as Nan drew himself up to his full height, with a face as black as thunder said,

‘And where have you two been? We’ve been searching for you ever since mid morning.’

Suddenly realizing the trouble they had caused by not advising any one of their intentions, Sandy decided a contrite response was called for, along with humble apologizing,

‘I’m sorry, Nan, we should have told someone what we were up to. We just didn’t realize how long it would take us, and we have no means of measuring the passage of time.’

‘You still haven’t said where you were.’

‘We’ve been down the tunnels below the digester room, and you’ll be amazed what we found there.’ Sandy added quickly, hoping to divert some of Nan’s anger.

‘That area is forbidden. You have no right to go there, it isn’t meant for us to use. That area belongs to the Great Light, that’s why you die if you trespass on its sacred ground.’

‘There’s nothing sacred down there,’ Sandy’s patience was beginning to falter, ‘just a mass of tunnels, and a cavern the size of which you wouldn’t believe, in the middle of it

‘You have no right to go there, it is forbidden.’ Nan thundered, his face going an even darker shade of purple.

It was too much, Sandy was tired, desperately wanted something to eat and drink, and his patience finally snapped.

‘For Gods sake, Nan, grow up,’ he shouted back, ‘get into the real world, such as it is. There is no Great Light lording it over us, there are no sacred caves or ground, and nothing is forbidden, there’s just this bloody crater, and us.’

All heads turned to look at Sandy in the deathly hush which followed his outburst, ‘I agree.’ someone said, but it was impossible to see who the heretic was.

‘I shall confine you to your cave, until I can find another group who will take you in, and that will be difficult. Ben has been contaminated with your heretical views, and he must go too. After this meal, we will all wrap ourselves up well, endure the cold, and pray to the Great Light to forgive us for this trespass on their holy grounds.’

The others around the table looked as shocked as Sandy felt, hardly able to believe their ears.

‘For God’s sake, shut up, you stupid old fart.’ Sandy could no longer constrain his feelings, and released the pent up frustration which had been building over the last few days.

This time the silence was even longer, except for the soft rustle of clothing as heads turned this way and that, wondering who would release the next verbal blast.

Slowly, a series of quietly muttered comments grew in volume, until there was a loud bang from the other end of the table. Greg had risen to his feet, lifted his feeding bowl, and brought it down hard on the table top. Everyone jumped, releasing the tension which had built up.

‘The time has come for us to make a decision which will affect the group into the foreseeable future.' He paused, to make sure he had everyone’s attention, which he had.

‘Nan has done a great job of leading us in the past, but unfortunately his wheels have finally dropped off, and is no longer capable of making rational decisions any more. We must have a sane, strong leader, in order to survive, and I propose we elect Sandy to take his place. All those in favour, please raise a hand now.’

Nearly everyone raised a hand, some raised both.

Greg did not even bother to count the raised hands, so overwhelming was the result, but being fair to Nan he asked,

‘Does anyone disagree?’

All hands fell as one, and no others were raised. A few had not shown their wishes, abstaining from the vote just in case Nan did manage to hold his position, and seek retribution in the future.

Nan had sat down, his head buried in his hands, mumbling something about the Great Light, but no one took any notice of him.

‘So that’s decided then, Sandy is our new leader,’ Greg made it sound like an order rather than a question, and turning to him asked, ‘do you accept?’

‘Yes, if that's what you wish. I don’t want to change anything, just improve some things, so that our life is a little better.’

‘I understand,’ said Greg, who was still standing, ‘that you have some views on this place, and us, and why we are all here. I think we would all like to hear them.’ A chorus of ‘yers’ and other affirmations gave Sandy little chance to avoid the issue.

‘All right, you may not like what I have to say, and it may not be the whole truth, but it is based on what I have observed and reasoned out.’ He paused to gather his thoughts, and decide just how much to reveal to his attentive audience.

‘This business about the Great Lights. There’s nothing mystical or holy about them, they’re just the lights on a vehicle which can travel through the air, and is responsible for dumping us here. Why we are left here, I’m not totally sure, the only reason which makes any sense to me is that we have been a nuisance, to a greater or lesser degree, to someone or something, who wants us out of their way.’

If he had said anything to shock his audience, it was not apparent, all eyes were on him, giving him their undivided attention, and he felt uneasy at the deference shown.

‘Why we have been sent to this desolate place, I can only guess at. Maybe it was all they could find, or perhaps their thinking was that we would be so preoccupied with survival we wouldn’t have the time or inclination to try to do anything about it. One thing is for sure, all our minds have been tampered with, such that we can’t recall anything from the time before our arrival. I, and a few others are fortunate, or unfortunate, depending upon your view point, in that a little of our past is leaking through the barrier they have created, and our memories are returning, bit by bit. The more we try to remember, the better it gets, so don’t be afraid to try to recall the past, it could help in our survival.

‘I suspect that Nan’s theory about the Great Lights may be implanted, just to cause confusion, so please don’t blame him totally for his ideas, I’m sure he meant well. Do you have any questions?’

After a very long silent pause, someone hesitantly asked,

‘Where is this place, I mean, what is this place?’

Sandy took a deep breath, marshalling his racing thoughts,

‘It’s the crater of a vast volcano, far bigger than any I have ever heard of, so I assume it must be on another world to the one I came from. Why it is filled with sand, I don’t know, that too is something I’ve never heard of before. I think there is a way out of this hell hole, and that is what Ben and I have been trying to find out. If we can find a means of escape to a better place, you will all be given the chance to join us.

‘From the things we have found out so far, I think this place has been modified to accommodate us, like a prison.’

Comprehension could be seen dawning on several faces as they digested what Sandy had just said, adding it to what some of them had worked out for themselves.

‘What I find most astonishing,’ Sandy continued, ‘is the high level of population in the crater. If the whole rim is as densely populated as the area around this part, and we have no reason to suppose otherwise, then it amounts to a very large number of people, and if that is the case, then the probability of this being a prison complex of some sort, is reinforced to the degree of almost being a certainty.

‘This raises another point, they, whoever they are, will have made it very difficult for us to get away from here, so don’t expect to escape immediately, it will take time to find an escape route, and probably longer to find somewhere to go to. If you have no further questions, I suggest we finish our meal. You are all welcome to come to me at any time if you have questions, and I will keep you informed of our progress.’ Sandy sat down, to a round of applause, which made him feel even more uncomfortable.

Mop came to the rescue with a bowl of hot stew, the aroma from which reminded him of how hungry he was.

‘Ben, perhaps you could find someone who would be suited to looking after Nan, we can’t just leave him to his own devices. The poor old sod’s cracked up at last, and we owe him at least that.’ Ben agreed to attend to it right after the meal, as Nan was now tucking into his food as if nothing had happened.

‘What’s next on the agenda?’ asked a bloated Ben, who had cajoled Mop into giving him a generous second helping.

‘I think the tunnel in your storeroom, the one we found today won’t get us anywhere, as interesting as it is.’ Sandy was more concerned with a good night’s sleep after his meal.

Word about the group’s new found fame must have spread around the crater faster than the proverbial bush fire, for by next morning they had received three requests for flame-throwers, five for new clothes, and Mop had two suitors from a neighbouring group who could not even speak her language.

This caused a great deal of amusement to those present, as the overtures had to be passed to her by way of an interpreter, who found the whole thing a great embarrassment.

She declined the offer as gracefully as she could, being quite content with her relationship with Sandy, although it was a little one-sided.

The rejected suitors were astonished at her rejection, as within their group they were considered to be the most desirable of men, despite their ragged clothing and the accompanying aroma of unwashed bodies.

Nan seemed his old self again, much to everyone's amazement. He went about the complex issuing orders which no one took any real notice of, but what was more surprising, he seemed oblivious to the lack of compliance.

Once the morning meal was over, Sandy and Ben went down to the storeroom to continue their exploration of the tunnel they had discovered in one corner of the cave.

Ben had enlarged the entrance a little, so that they were able to enter the passage with ease, and now they had the oil lamps, further penetration of the upward sloping tunnel could be attempted.

They had left word with Mop of their intentions, just in case anything went wrong, being mindful of the upset caused on the previous day by not doing so.

With the lamps refuelled, a spare container of oil, one of water, and some strips of dried meat, they were ready.

On their last exploration of the tunnel, they had only been able to go up the slope for a few metres, as the light from the gas lamp in the cave soon faded out. Now they could clearly see the surface of the walls, and both agreed it was a natural tunnel, caused by the flow of molten lava.