“Right next to where you placed your jumpsuit, on the opposite side of the cell, I told you these computers weren’t that stupid.”
“Bollocks. Another lead balloon.”
“Can you go and get dressed now?”
“I don’t know. I quite like it being naked. I like the freedom of my bits swinging unrestricted.”
“Oh please. This is disgusting. I cannot spend all day strapped around your waist watching your penis flop around between your legs whilst your testicles ballroom dance together. I’m a computer and I cannot barf but if I could I would.”
“OK if you insist.”
I walked over to my clothes and got dressed. I took all the bottles and rubbish back to my cockpit and I stretched out on the floor. For the rest of that day I talked to Adams.
“Did you finish the game Adams?”
“Yes. I think you would have enjoyed it.”
“That will be something else I will miss. Do you think I will ever see Claire again?”
“No.”
“Don’t break it gently, just say it as it is Adams.”
“OK, never.”
I fell silent because I knew Adams was right and there would be no escape. Even if I did get out of my cell what would I do? Taking over the ship would be impossible. When I eventually go to the zoo there would be no point in escaping from that because where would I go. If dangerous animals escaped from Earth zoos they usually got shot.
“How long have we been here now Adams?”
“Four days.”
“I guess we will be going into Hyper Travel soon.”
“I think it is imminent. I think it will be within the next forty eight hours.”
“Are animals treated well in the zoos?”
“I don’t know Roy.”
“Will they take you off me?”
“I doubt it. They will probably leave you as they found you which will mean I shall stay with you. However, there is a possibility that they may treat you as an animal and remove all your clothing as well as myself.”
I fell silent again and wished I was back on the station with Claire and my friends. Although I had Adams I think I would have given anything to be back on the station. I fell asleep.
Chapter 16 - Rescue
“Roy, Roy McCormack, wake up.”
“Not now mum. Let me have another five minutes.”
“Come on Roy wake up.”
“Leave me alone mum.”
“Roy.”
“No mum, five minutes more.”
“ROY!” shouted my mum.
I sat up startled to hear my mother’s voice.
“Fuck me mum. What are you doing here?”
Bang!
She clipped me across the head.
“Aw mum. That hurt.”
“And so it should. Don’t you dare use that language in front of me. I should wash your mouth out with soap.”
“What do you expect? I’m on board a prison ship in the middle of space knowing everybody thinks I’m dead and then you turn up. I’m sorry mum but you’re the last person I expected to see here and you’re wearing a white jumpsuit.”
“Well you can thank your lucky stars that I am here to rescue you.”
“I’m probably dreaming this, but I don’t understand how you got here.”
“Simon came to see me to tell me about your death but I told him I wasn’t having it and demanded to see the onboard footage from the other two ships. I had a sneaky suspicion about the freighter that you were trying to shunt.”
“Mum. How do you know all this stuff?”
“Ah, you remember how your dad and I drilled it into you about not lying?”
Yes, why?”
“That was so you wouldn’t end up like us. We might not have been wholly honest with you son. Your dad and I didn’t meet whilst we were at university that was a cover story.”
“So what really happened?”
“We both graduated with physics degrees but we didn’t know each other. We didn’t meet until Simon had recruited us. We met on the station.”
“You and dad were on the station? No way.”
“You don’t really think your dad spent all those years working abroad?”
“Of course I did because that’s what you told me.”
“Your dad worked on Earth Station Three. We both did but when I became pregnant, with you, I had to give up my job there. Your dad continued to work up until his death.”
“So how did he die if he didn’t die in Saudi Arabia?”
“This is the interesting bit. He was on patrol when he was asked to move a small freighter. As it was small he volunteered to move it by himself. He flew along the hull and as he was about to go underneath a missile was fired that hit your dad’s ship. When all the flames died down the only thing remaining was the casing of his Quantum Singularity Drive. It was assumed that the cockpit and connecting tube had been vaporised killing your dad.”
“But that’s what happened to me!”
“I know. When Simon came round to tell me the circumstances of your death I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and I couldn’t believe exactly the same accident could happen to two people even if there is a fifteen year gap between the accidents. I made Simon take me to the station so I could look at the footage. If you play back the footage from Peter’s ship very slowly you can see that although the mid section is vaporised the cockpit of your ship isn’t vaporised but is severed and blown toward this freighter. I borrowed the shuttle to come and get you.”
“How did you get past the missile?”
“That’s easy. The missile seems to be designed for ships that don’t move because everybody assumes their ship is indestructible. It’s really easy to outmanoeuvre.”
“So there’s a shuttle in the bay?”
“Yes and we can go home.”
“Thank God for that. Erm you are real aren’t you and this isn’t just another lie, is it?”
“You must have felt that I am absolutely real. Would you like me to hit you again to prove it?
“No thanks, I think I’ll take your word for it.”
“Oh well! But there is something else.”
“What mum?”
“The bigger picture.”
“I don’t get it. What do you mean?”
“You had an accident and everybody thought you were dead.”
“Yes.”
“Fifteen years ago, your dad had the same accident with an identical missile and freighter.”
“So everybody thought dad was dead. Dad’s still alive!”
“Don’t jump the gun yet Roy we don’t know what this freighter actually does.”
“I do, Adams told me. It travels the galaxy looking for specimens for a zoo.”
“That’s terrible.”
“I know. I was dreading being the monkey exhibit.”
“Free food for the rest of your life and you’d be the centre of attention, there’s always an upside.”
Mustering my full gamut of sarcasm I responded, “Gee thanks mum. I hadn’t considered there being any beneficial side!”
“However, we still don’t know where this freighter is going to go.”
“Can we leave some sort of tracking device? Adams?”
“Yes Roy?”
“Do we have some sort of device we can leave here or stick to the hull that will track this ship?”
Adams popped a panel open. “You will have to apply it to the outside hull of the ship because there is some sort of jamming device inside this ship which is why I cannot communicate with the station. I suggest sticking it to the back of the freighter because there will be less interference.”
“How can we do that?” asked my mum.
“Place it in the shuttle’s waste disposal. I can eject it into space and momentum should do the rest.”
“It could be weeks before we get any information back,” commented my mum.
“I think it will be more like months mum.”
“It could even be years,” added Adams.
“Come on Roy, let’s go home.”
I stood up, walked over to the panel that had opened, grabbed a small black box and walked back to my mum.
“Do you need a hand getting down mum?”
“I think I can manage, after all according to you I’m not some decrepit old granny.”
I jumped off the edge of my cockpit and saw the shuttle parked next to us. It was a sight for sore eyes and a great relief. I could feel the tension leave my body as I realised I was going home. My mum sat on the edge of my cockpit and shuffled her way to the floor. We entered the shuttle and the hatch closed behind us. I sat in the pilot’s seat and was about to buckle up when my mum tapped me on the shoulder.
“What do you think you’re doing?” she asked.
“I’m going to take us home.”
“I think you’ll find I’m the pilot of this ship and you’re the passenger, shift it!”
“But mum I’m a good pilot.”
“I’ve seen what’s left of your ship and the evidence suggests otherwise, now budge over.”
“But that wasn’t my fault.”
“I was flying ships when you were a twinkle in your father’s eye. Now move because you’re not too old to go over my knee.”
I got up and my mum took the pilot’s seat and I sat in the passenger’s chair behind her.
“Computer?” asked my mum.
“Yes Margaret?”
“Take us out of here and manoeuvre to the back of the freighter. If we get any missiles I want you to keep one hundred meters in front of it for ten kilometres and then I want you to turn and Hyper Travel as close to the back of the ship as possible.”
The ship reversed through the plasma glass and out of the freighter. It quickly made its way to the back of the ship.
“Computer can you open the waste disposal?”
“Yes Margaret.”
A small lid popped up on the floor close to where my mother was sat. I got up and dropped the black box into the hole.
“Computer,” commanded my mother again, “align the ship so when the waste disposal is ejected the contents will connect with the back of the ship.”
“Yes Margaret.”
The ship moved slightly to the left and there was a quiet hiss. We watched the box for a few seconds as it drifted toward the hull but we were interrupted by my mum’s computer.
“We have incoming, collision in ten seconds. Do you want me to outrun it?”
“No, I want you to turn and Hyper Travel straight to the station.”
The ship quickly turned through one hundred and eighty degrees and all the screens went black for a second apart from the front screen which had a pixelated view of the outside.
Chapter 17 - Back to the Station
The sight of the station was something I thought I would never see again and I couldn’t wait to see all my friends. Mum ordered her computer to take the shuttle to the shuttle bay rather than the hangar bay.
“Why not?” I asked.
“You have to see Doctor Philberts first for a check up.”
“Oh, OK.”
“Your Mac Viewer is a pretty nifty idea Roy. Well done, I’m so proud of you.”
“Thanks mum but not as proud as I am of you for coming to rescue me.”
“I had to fight a few people off to come and get you. I insisted it would be me but there were so many that wanted to do it. You’re quite a popular person with more friends than you know.”
“Really?”
“Oh yes. Claire obviously wanted to come and get you and so did a lot of others like Simon, Peter, Amelia and your ground crew. There was even a barman and a hairdresser and they can’t even fly.”
I chuckled “That will be Russell and Gary.”
“Claire is such a beautiful girl. You’re a very lucky boy so I also had a word with Claire and told her you wanted to marry her.”
“Mum! You can do things like that.”
“She seemed quite happy about the situation.”
“She’s probably totally embarrassed. She’s hardly likely to tell you that she’s not interested because she’s been put on the spot. You’ve got to stop doing things like that because she’ll end up dumping me because I have a pushy mother.”
“I think you’re afraid of commitment. I spent a couple of days with Claire and you are a very lucky person. You need to get a ring on her finger as soon as you can because you won’t meet anybody like her again.”
“Roy.” Interrupted Adams.
“Yes Adams.”
“All contact with the tracking device has ceased. The freighter has obviously entered Hyper Travel.”
“Will you tell me when it makes contact again?”
“No problem Roy.”
The shuttle went through the plasma glass, settled on the bay floor and the hatch close to where I was sat opened.
“Come on Roy,” said my mum, “let’s go and see Doctor Philberts.”
*
When I entered the medical centre Claire was there.
“Roy!” She shouted and ran over to me to give me a big hug. I could feel the air being squeezed out of me and thought she was going to crush a few ribs. She eased off and then gave me a long kiss. When she stopped I could see a tear in her eye.
“I thought you were dead,” she said.
“You can’t get rid of me that easily.”
“I’m so glad to see you again. Your mother was fantastic. She wouldn’t give up. Simon said her evidence was very flimsy but she fought to get a shuttle to go and find you and we all volunteered to fly it.”
“So I hear. Hang on, where’s your jumpsuit?” Claire was wearing jeans with a pink blouse.
“We’ve made a few changes to the UK sector.”
“Thank God for that. I cannot wait to get out of my jumpsuit.”
“Well I like the jumpsuit,” chipped in my mum, “I’ve always thought it looked futuristic and modern.”
“You weren’t by any chance on the station in nineteen sixty eight when the decision to wear jumpsuits was taken were you mum?” I asked.
“I may have been,” answered my mum.
“Did you watch any science fiction films?”
“Well there was this one film that I must have seen ten times. We all did. It was the most popular film on the station at the time. Why?”
“Only asking.”
I kissed Claire again and heard Doctor Philberts cough to get our attention.
“Mister McCormack, could you please come and sit here.”
I sat in the chair he had pointed at and waited as he looked into a screen. After a minute he looked back at me.
“You’re fine Mister McCormack. You will not need any reconstruction. You’re a bit under nourished so I recommend a few pizzas and lagers.”
“I’ll have to pop over to Australia later.”
“Come on Roy,” interrupted Claire, “There’s a reception in the main square for you. Everybody’s there and it’s like a big party for your return.”
Claire grabbed hold of my hand and pulled me out of the chair. When I got up she linked arms with me and we walked out of the medical room followed by my mother. When we entered the corridor with all the pilot’s apartments the colour scheme had been changed dramatically. All the doors were different colours and the buildings were all brick, like an English village. As we turned at the end of the corridor I could see that Sam’s Bar had mock Tudor beams.
“This looks so much more homely.”
“We really like it.”
We started walking to the middle of the square where everybody had gathered. Rather than a sea of jumpsuits there were various types of clothing being worn. It was like walking through any town you would visit except for Doncaster because nobody was wearing a shell suit. I was greet
ed by warm smiles and slowly pushed towards the bar area.
“Nice shirt Gary. Love the pink colour and the frills down the front.”
“Ooh thanks Roy. I have another if you’d like to borrow it.”
“I’m good thank you Gary. Are those chaps you’re wearing?”
I was pushed forward again and when I got to the bar I saw that Russell was serving.
“Welcome back Roy. What would you like to drink?”
“Vodka and coke hold the vodka?”
“How about a lager?”
“Lager?”
“Yes, real full fat lager.”
“No way.”
Russell started pouring me a pint of cold lager.
“We are now serving alcohol like all the other sectors.”
“I still might want to get a Tooheys and a Chinese every now and again but a good English lager will do me nicely right now.”
When he finished he handed it over and I held it up to the light to admire its golden hue.
“Ladies and gentlemen.” Shouted the familiar voice of Simon. “Ladies and gentlemen, can we have a few seconds of silence for a toast from Roy. Roy the stage is all yours.”
I held my pint up high “Here’s to my mum for rescuing me, here’s to my dad where ever you are and here’s to all my friends.” I took a sip of lager and Claire squeezed me and gave me a kiss on the cheek. I was home.
That night I had the first of a series of disturbing dreams about being stranded on a desert planet.
The End
What’s the story behind Roy’s father? What happened to Doctor D’Eath? Is ‘The Kidz Alright’ really the worst band in the galaxy? Who are the aliens Doctor D'Eath has been dealing with?
Find out most of these answers in the amazing sequel - The Rings of Uranus! Only most of the answers? Yes, because the comic masterpiece Inside Uranus will finish the saga (probably).
*
About the authors
Stewart Bruce
I was born in Lincolnshire. After living in several places and countries, due to my father being in the RAF, my family eventually settled in South Wales. After completing a music degree and teacher training I moved to North Yorkshire in 1989 where I still live and teach.
Nigel Moreland
Born and bred within the sound of Cloughies voice in sunny Derby.I have a Diploma of Classical studies from the O.U. Much of my working life was spent as sales representative in the electrical industry. I am now a full time carer for my wife who has Multiple Sclerosis and have been heavily involved with the Multiple Sclerosis Society, even serving for a while as a Trustee of the Society