Chapter 15
An hour later, the planetary expedition members had just finished enjoying a meal in the mess hall, when the Captain entered with Auryn Truran at his side. Both were wearing masks covering their noses and mouths. The Captain had concluded that the absence of any obvious illness amongst his guests meant that full suits weren’t needed.
‘Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, I’m Captain George VanDelden. I hope you enjoyed your meal. I’m afraid I have some bad news for you. Major Truran here has just returned from the Cornishman, which appears to have suffered a catastrophic engine explosion, killing everyone on board. At this stage, we don’t know why but, rest assured, we intend to have a comprehensive investigation in due course. I appreciate that you will all have had friends aboard who you will want to mourn. For now, I’m afraid that anything formal in that regard will have to wait for a short period. The Cornishman is secure and we have work to do elsewhere. To be blunt, you don’t fit with our current plans, so it is our intention to return to our own reality and drop you off there. In the meantime, please enjoy our hospitality. We’ll be returning to our reality shortly. This ship and its crew will be leaving again tomorrow morning to visit further realities. I will now leave you with Major Truran. Good evening.’
Will couldn’t believe it. Here he was, in Captain vanDelden’s presence again. Sat near the back of the mess hall, the Captain clearly hadn’t spotted him. ‘Captain. We meet again!’ called Will.
‘Hello again, Will. I had a feeling you might be the party member from another reality that the Major referred to. I’ll see you later, assuming you hang around long enough this time.’ With that, the Captain left the mess hall.
‘Good evening everyone. Please call me Auryn. As the Captain said, we have pressing business elsewhere. When we arrive in our system, we will dock at our space station, Columbus. The planet in our reality is called New Oregon and we’re in the Lincoln system. The main city on New Oregon is called Waterbeach. Don’t worry if you don’t remember all this, you will in time. I’m afraid you’ll be restricted in which areas of our military base on the station you can access until you’ve been certified medically fit and debriefed, especially as you’ve been roaming around a town full of dead settlers. We doubt that there will be a problem but we don’t know what you may have picked up down there. This will take place as quickly as possible and you’ll be able to discuss your future options with our staff and other government representatives along the way. The sooner we can find you some meaningful role that you feel comfortable with, the better it will be all round. For example, you may wish to settle in our reality and that ought to be possible, either as part of our military or as a member of our scientific community, depending on your background. This may or may not be at your current rank or position of seniority, as you will need to be reassessed. Either way, you will need to gain an understanding of our history, so a period of cultural acclimatisation will be necessary. Unfortunately, getting back to your own system will take some time, as we need to contact your own authorities in this system, which we’re not currently set up to do. We don’t even know what system or systems you’re from yet, never mind contacting your governments! We’re hoping, at the very least, to let them know what’s happened here. As much as anything else, they need to know about the Cornishman and those who died on board. At some stage, we’ll make arrangements for some of you to return to your camp to collect the items you left behind and, at some stage, we’ll send a more comprehensively equipped team to investigate what happened to the original settlers below. Some of you may well be included in that expedition, to guide any new people we can send and to pick up your research. We also need to send a team back to the Cornishman to investigate the accident more fully and remove your late colleagues, so they can be given proper funerals. Your input will be appreciated at that stage to identify them and guide us as to the protocols we need to follow to meet any religious or cultural requirements. I realise you may find it distressing to see your friends. Any questions?’
‘Hello, Auryn. I’m Major Sunil Modaley. I’m in charge, sorry, was in charge of the on-planet mission. This sounds a bit like you’re basically imprisoning us. Is this correct?’
‘I would say it’s more house arrest. Hopefully, it will only last a few days but it would probably be best if you stayed together for now anyway. You’re likely to be faced with a lot of unfamiliar things over the next few weeks, so you will need each other for support and to provide familiar faces to talk to. Before you decide what you want to do next, we’ll need to give you a flavour of our society and give you some ideas as to what you might be able to do if you decide to join us. Our society is likely to be very different to the one you’ve come from, so you need to have a basic introduction, at the very least. Short term, there is little chance of you returning to your home worlds, I’m afraid. Rest assured, it is not our intention to keep you imprisoned, as you put it, any longer than absolutely necessary. However, your presence is a complication we hadn’t expected and your repatriation is made far more complicated by the fact we come from a different reality to you. Consider yourselves to be refugees from another reality.’
‘OK, thanks for being honest with us. For myself, I’m just happy not to be living as we did anymore and will tag along for now. It would be reassuring to know that we’re all fit and well, though none of us has shown any signs of any illness since we explored the town. A decent shower, a shave and a haircut would be nice, never mind clothes that haven’t been lived in for what seems like forever. We’ll help with identification but none of us are trained to work in zero G’ replied Sunil.
‘What about the lab equipment? I’d love to process the stuff we’ve found on the planet. There might be some clues as to what happened to the settlers that we haven’t have the equipment to deal with’ asked Nik Martensz.
Before Auryn could reply, Jill Blake asked ‘what about our personal stuff? I don’t have much on the ship but I do have some personal things I’d be unhappy about losing.’
‘There are probably lots of things that need to be dealt with. I think you’ll need to sort these issues out once we’re back at Columbus and you’ve been processed. I don’t know how we will deal with your former colleagues but I would expect us to take them back to Columbus. You wouldn’t be expected to be involved in exploring the ship. It might even be possible, in time, to bring the whole ship back to this reality. I don’t know. I’m sorry but I can’t answer all your questions at the moment. Just because we will be leaving this reality doesn’t mean we can’t return. It’s just that we are currently on a mission and, to be blunt, you’re a side issue. Please don’t take that the wrong way. Please be assured that we will do our best to deal with your concerns’ replied Auryn.
Just as Auryn stopped talking, a voice came across the speaker system ‘Jump in one minute.’
‘What does that mean?’ asked Ana Salas.
‘It just means that we’ll be returning to our own reality in one minute. Just to warn you all that the sensation you will feel is a little odd but it quickly passes, so don’t worry. If you’d like to watch the monitor, I’ll give us an external view of the planet and you’ll be able to see our destination’ replied Auryn, reaching for the remote control for the monitor and switching to an external feed that showed the planet below. About thirty seconds later, the ship switched realities and the image changed to give a close-up view of Columbus, with New Oregon very much in the background, only partially visible behind the station. Will was also interested in the view, as he hadn’t had the opportunity to see the station from the outside on his previous visit. There were gasps from the party at seeing the station, especially as it was filling most of the screen.
‘Docking in ten’ came the voice from the speakers.
‘Looks like you’ll be sleeping on Columbus tonight, folks’ said Auryn. ‘I’ll leave you to watch the docking and catch up with you when we’re ready to disembark. Will, I’ve just received a personal message from the Captain
, asking me to escort you to his office.’
‘Yeah, OK, sure. Sunil, I’ll try and catch up with you later but, in the meantime, enjoy the show.’
‘I look forward to it. Before you leave, and whilst we’re all together, I would like to thank you for your work on our radio systems. Without your efforts, we’d still be stuck on the planet and would probably have died down there. We all feel that you saved our lives’ replied Sunil, extending his hand towards Will. There was a rousing cheer from behind Sunil as the rest of his team clamoured to shake Will’s hand, all thoughts of seeing the docking forgotten for the moment.
‘The feeling’s mutual, Sunil. If you guys hadn’t found me when you did, it could have been me dying down there. I’m ill equipped to survive in such a habitat.’
As Auryn and Will left the others watch the ever-expanding view of Columbus on the monitor, Auryn turned to Will and asked ‘So, what the hell happened to you?’
‘Sorry, Auryn. I’d hoped to hook up with you after we landed on Columbus, so that I could thank you for busting me out of Gott’s cell but I switched to another reality before I could. Then I switched to this reality only a week or so later, leaving even more people behind rather suddenly. Unfortunately, I don’t have any control over it, which is starting to become a bit of a pain. Had you not turned up and rescued me again, I would have been stuck on that version of the planet, unless I jumped out again.’
‘Well, I’m glad we found you all. Anyway, here’s the Captain’s office. Just press the button. Catch you later.’ With that, Auryn turned around and walked away.
‘Bye, Auryn. Thanks. I’ll look out for you when I get out from the Captain.’
Auryn waved and carried on walking. Will turned towards the Captain’s door and pressed the button.
‘Come’ came a voice from within.
‘Hello, Will. Good to see you again’ said the Captain, standing from a casual chair in the corner of his office. ‘Sit down. I think you’ve already met Sarah.’ He had removed his facemask.
Intent on looking at the Captain as he entered the office, Will had failed to notice Sarah Hirst, who he’d met on Astraeus 5. As with Auryn, her nose and mouth were obscured by a facemask. Even ignoring the mask, she looked different but he couldn’t quite place what it was at first. Then it dawned on him.
‘Hello again, Sarah. Lovely to see you. You’re wearing a different uniform’ said Will, smiling at Sarah and sitting down on a casual chair opposite the Captain and Sarah. Will noticed that Sarah’s upper face showed that she was smiling.
‘Hello again, Will. I’m pleased to see you too. It’s a long story. Briefly, because of the confidential nature of what happened on Astraeus 5, my team and I were immediately seconded, I think that’s the right word, into the navy. I’m now a Lieutenant. Not sure I have the experience to get to this rank normally but I was a Lieutenant in the Police service, so was allowed to keep the rank. The money’s slightly better than it was, which makes it even better!’
‘Sounds good, Sarah. Can we can catch up after we’ve finished here? Captain, you wanted to see me.’
‘Firstly, Will, I’d like to say we’re all relieved to know you’re OK. In case you’re wondering. I’ve taken my mask off because, to be honest, I’m too old to care whether you have any pathogens or not! Not sure I feel the same about the others we brought back. They were exposed somewhat longer than you were. Sarah’s not yet convinced. I’ll let the docs check me over when we get back to Columbus, just in case. Before we get started, I have something here which might help you should you reality switch again. While you’ve been away, Billy and some other techs have managed to construct a much smaller version of the two-way switch you found in the Astraeus 5 base but it only works one way, back to this reality. It was produced so that, if any of our personnel get stuck in the wrong reality, they can get back home. You probably need it more than any of them!’ With that, the Captain handed Will what looked like a large wristwatch.
‘If you ever get stuck in another reality, twist the rim anti-clockwise slightly. The cover will then pop open and reveal a button. Press it and it will return you to this reality. You need to be a bit careful, of course, to make sure, as far as you can, that you’re well clear of any buildings or anything else that could cause a problem by shifting with you. We’re also not sure, yet, whether the device will just cover the user, or whether anyone nearby could be affected. You’re the first guinea pig outside of the development team. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not!’
‘The way things are going, it could come in handy. I just hope I’m on land, as I’m not sure what would happen if I was in space and switched into a reality where there’s nothing there.’
‘Fingers crossed it doesn’t happen. Anyway, first things first. Would you like a drink? I’d like you to fill me in with what you’ve been up to since we last saw each other, and then I’ll run through with you what we’ve been up to. I suggest we only do a quick overview, or we’ll be here for days.’
‘I agree. You know some of it already as regards what I’ve been up to but I would be interested in finding out what you’ve been doing. A coffee would be nice, though, before we start.’
The Captain led them over to a small table in the corner, which had a coffee-making machine, mugs and a selection of cakes and biscuits on it. So that she could drink it, Sarah moved to the farthest part of the office, where she hoped she would be far enough away to remain unaffected by anything Will might have picked up on the planet.
Will took a sip of coffee then said ‘To be honest, there’s not a lot to tell. After we talked when I was with the Queen, I was shown around the city by one of her staff. The following morning, I was just on my way back to my room after breakfast in the hotel restaurant when I switched realities again. I got a hell of a shock, I must say, as I fell several feet onto the ground. Not long afterwards, Major Modaley and some of his team found me. I joined their party and sorted out their comms, which had been damaged when they crash-landed. Once I had it working again, we initially monitored it all the time, in case we had a response from the Cornishman but after a while it was obvious that wasn’t going to happen, so I rigged up an auto-transmitter at their crashed shuttle site, with a link back to the camp. That’s why it took a while for you to get a proper response to your reply. Had we not found some hand-portable radios at what had been the police station, it would have taken even longer to have had a reply from the Major, as they had been using some navy radios that were somewhat inadequate for what they were expecting of them when I joined them. You know the rest.’
‘That reminds me, we should let her Majesty know that you’re safe. Is there anyone else we should make sure knows what happened to you?’ asked Sarah.
‘Probably the main people, other than the Queen, are Josef, her aide, and my counterpart, Bill Hunt. You should also let Kat Brown, who has my communicator, know. She and her employer hadn’t seen anything like it and were hoping to make a lot of money from it. If nothing else, they may owe me some money! At the very least, I’d quite like my communicator back, as there is quite a lot of personal stuff on it that I don’t want to lose.’
‘Hmm. That raises a major moral dilemma that will need to be resolved, although, fortunately, not by us. How much technology can or should the realities share? How public can we be about the existence of the various realities? My suspicion is that the knowledge will have to be restricted, as far as possible. Now people know about both you and our mission, I’m not sure that will be easy. It could provide a wonderful opportunity for the unscrupulous’ replied the Captain.
‘I have to admit that I hadn’t thought of those things and was just enjoying meeting my alternates. I was also pretty desperate, as I only had what I had on me when I switched. I didn’t even have any footwear!’ replied Will, beginning to realise that there was a whole new side to the alternate realities issue that he hadn’t previously considered.
‘There’s probably a million other things we’ll
need to get sorted out. It’s going to take time. In the circumstances, I don’t think you can return to your original reality or job. Galactic Comms are going to get mighty peed off if you keep reality switching, never mind the fact that I don’t think we want to go too public with them just yet. That probably means we need to find you something in the navy and, probably planetside, at least for now. We can deal with it once we disembark.’
‘I agree with you but I’m not sure what I could do in the navy.’
‘We’ll maybe come to that but before we do, I need to give you a very quick overview of what’s happened since we got back here with the captured ships. Initially, the effort concentrated on understanding the switch box you found so that we could produce our own version of it. Billy was seconded into the team that did that. They then managed to produce the device you’re wearing. We discovered, inadvertently, that there was a device on the ships that switched between any one of eleven realities other than Gott’s. The team produced something that does the same job but are looking at ways in which they can improve it. They’ve also started to work on producing a means of communicating between realities. In the meantime, we’ve made quick visits to each of the realities that the ships could take us to and discovered that there are three Esperanto-speaking realities, two Chinese and one German, with four English-speaking realities and two that seemed lifeless but that includes the one you were on, which was reality ten when using the control system.’
‘A fair old mixture, as you can see, Will’ interjected Sarah, from the other side of the office.
The Captain continued. ‘Quite. We decided to revisit only those that spoke English and the empty realities at this stage but we recognise we need to visit the others in due course. Sarah and I are from reality three on the ship’s dial. Yes, it really is a dial! We first visited each reality in turn, starting with dial position one. Reality twelve or zero is Gott’s reality, so we now call it Zero, rather than Gott’s reality, as it’s quicker. Our initial visits were limited to less than an hour, so we could only get a feel for each reality. We didn’t want to risk being spotted, so didn’t stay any longer than we had to. We found English speakers in realities one, two, three and five.
We then concentrated on those realities where English was spoken, as we thought we had a chance of getting support. On our second visit to reality one, we realised that, even though the people there spoke English, they seem to have given up on space travel, so were probably in a limited position to assist, so we haven’t contacted them as yet. However, we went to the base on their version of Astraeus 5 and removed two ships.
Reality two is your own reality and we found another pair of ships inside the base and a further three parked just outside, which was something of a bonus.
Your Chancellor Powell was supportive of what we’re trying to do but couldn’t help in the timescale. Fortunately, we had enough pilots and crew trained up to remove all five ships safely and get them back here.
Reality five turned out to be the one you were in when we first found you, with Queen Anne as the head of state. The navy there was very helpful and provided us with additional crewmembers, marines and provisions.
You’ve just come from Reality ten. Unfortunately, there wasn’t even a base on the Astraeus 5 equivalent but there was extensive mineworking of the surface. In light of Sunil Modaley’s comments, it seems likely that people from Zero, rather than the locals undertook the mining. Once we’ve dropped you off, we’ll be dropping in on six, seven and eight, where the locals speak either Chinese or German. We’re only going to the bases in those realities, so I’m hoping we won’t take long in any. After that, we’ll come back here, make sure we’re fully prepared, then we’ll pay Zero a visit. Hopefully, that will be within the next week or so. It really depends on whether we’re battle ready. The Admiral doesn’t want to go in until we know we’re ready to take on whatever they can throw at us.
Along the way, we’ve installed Reality Selection Controls, or RSC’s, as we’ve started to call them, into several of our own and reality five’s ships, provisioned all the ships in the expanded fleet and trained up several sets of ships crews, to both familiarise themselves with the controls and weapons systems and to get them comfortable working with the crew members from another reality. We now have more than enough crew members for the number of ships we have and a few more, in readiness for if we get any more when we visit the remaining realities.’
‘Sounds like you’ve been busy!’ interjected Will.
‘Docking in five’ announced the speaker in the corner of the Captain’s office.
‘With Gott’s intentions unclear, we feel we need to prepare ourselves and, at the same time, reduce his offensive capabilities. While we’re not planning to make contact, we’re planning to go to the remaining realities and see what we can find at the bases. I’m sorry, Will but I like to be in the chair when we dock. Although my XO is perfectly capable of docking, I just like to keep an eye on things. We’ll carry on this conversation once we’re docked and the engines disengaged. You’re welcome to join me.’
‘Thanks for the offer, Captain, but I’d like to catch up with Sarah, if she doesn’t mind and if that’s OK with you.’
‘Feel free, Will. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go to the bridge. I’ll catch up with you later. We need to discuss what you’re going to do next, assuming you don’t disappear again! You’re welcome to use my office, if you wish, so no need to get up. Help yourselves to drinks or whatever’ replied the Captain, getting up and making for the door to the corridor.
‘Thanks, Captain’ replied Will, who then turned to look at Sarah ‘Sorry I vanished like that. It’s getting to be a bit of habit of mine! So, what have you been up to since I last saw you, apart from joining the navy?’
‘To be honest, not much. It’s been all go since you last saw me. The Admiral was adamant that anyone who had been on Astraeus 5 when you were there had to be in the navy, where they could be kept away from anyone who wasn’t involved in the subsequent programme to prepare for a possible war with Zero. There was such a need to know mentality that, officially, our old work colleagues and friends were told that we’d been quarantined because of a possible bug that had been discovered on a ship we’d ostensibly searched. Even now, we’ve been instructed not to tell anyone who isn’t involved in what’s going on. Hopefully, we’ll be able to let people know once it’s all over but I have my doubts. The Admiral and Commodore are both firmly of the opinion that the alternate reality issue shouldn’t be revealed to the public but I doubt that the secret can be maintained for too long.’
‘I agree. There must be quite a number of people wondering what’s going on, even if it’s only a case of bumping into some of the people from another reality on the station. I probably let the cat out of the bag when I spoke to people in reality five. At that stage I didn’t realise that it was going to get much bigger, not to mention the fact that I had no ID, job, money or even footwear, so needed to try to get some sort of identity established. I even left my communicator with a company so that they could copy it for commercial gain.’
‘Not sure how the lid can be put on that one. At least, it’s only one reality, although we’ve taken people from there and, at some stage, they’ll want to return to their friends and families. They’ll get mighty pissed off if they’re not allowed back home. Anyway, you seem to have done the knight in shining armour thing again.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Despite getting stuck in yet another reality, you saved Sunil Modaley and his team’s lives. Had we not rescued them, they would probably have died there. Serendipity, again!’
‘I see what you mean. Again, I just did what needed doing. I’d no idea how long I’d be there and didn’t know when I started that the Cornishman would be a hulk.’
‘You’re way too modest.’
‘Not really. I just did what anyone else would have done with my knowledge and the situation they found themselves in. In any
case, I owe MY life to Sunil because, had they not found me, it might have been me dying down there. It would probably have been even sooner, too, as I’ve lived on a space station for over twenty years and that’s hardly the best training ground for surviving on a planet the hard way!’
‘What would we do without you? A knight in shining armour.’ Suddenly, she leant over and hugged him.
‘What did I do to deserve that?’ asked a slightly embarrassed Will.
‘I don’t know. I just felt I needed to give you a hug! Had I not been wearing this bloody mask, you’d have had a kiss! I missed you’ replied Sarah, unsure now whether it had been a good idea.
‘Oh, well thanks. You can do it again, anytime. I quite enjoyed it. I confess that I’ve been thinking of you quite a bit since I switched realities from this one but didn’t want to say anything in case you didn’t feel the same way’ replied Will, as he held her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.
Sarah’s cheeks turned red. ‘Really? I wish I’d known that earlier. I’ve been worried sick about you since you disappeared. Even though I thought I’d fallen for you, I hadn’t realised that you’d fallen for me. Fancy meeting up later and getting to know me better?’
‘I’d love to. Have you anywhere in mind?’
‘No. I don’t really care where. I’m very handy with a processed meal packet, if that appeals’ replied Sarah, the blush subsiding.
‘Sounds lovely!’
‘You won’t be allowed anywhere until you’ve been cleared medically. That shouldn’t take too long, as the medical team knows you’re coming.’
‘I can wait but the sooner I get back down to the planet again, the happier I’ll feel. I don’t fancy reality hopping again whilst I’m in space. What concerns me is that I’m likely to jump out again and leave you in the lurch again.’
‘With that bracelet, at least you can get back and, now we know it’s an option, I know you’ll try to get back if you can. I’m not sure I can get down there just yet, though. I can’t do that and be in the navy. I couldn’t even do it as a cop. My job keeps me up here. You would have about fifteen seconds before you lost consciousness to hit the return button. Would that be long enough?’
‘If I’m awake, then probably but I was asleep when I jumped out of this reality and wasn’t aware of it at all until I woke up and realised I wasn’t alone. I was in someone’s bed. It must have been in exactly the same location as the settee in the reality I’d been in.’
‘Could have been awkward!’ she said, resting her other hand on his. He didn’t remove it.
‘Oh, it was. More for Kat Brown than for me, as she only wears panties in bed!’
‘Ahh, embarrassing! Could have been worse, I suppose, she could sleep in the buff!’ replied Sarah, feigning shock.
‘Mmm, true! Confusingly for me, she was a doppelganger of an old girlfriend of mine. Luckily for me her girlfriend was at work at the time or I don’t know what would have happened. It could have killed both of us. Luckily, Kat and I sorted out the initial shock and she’s been really helpful. I never did get to meet her girlfriend as I jumped out again before I got the chance. Hopefully, I’ll get the opportunity one day.’
‘Anyway, getting back to the matter in hand, I think you need to get down to the planet as soon as possible, in case you reality-jump again. Before you do, you need to discuss with the Captain what you might do there.’
‘After the last few weeks, I could do with a short holiday if that’s possible, especially if there’s a certain amount of pampering available. Even though the past few weeks haven’t been overly difficult, I think I want to get myself straightened out both physically and mentally before I do anything else of any note, especially as regards any decisions about my career.’
‘Makes sense. I’m due some leave, so I could show you around Waterbeach, if I can be spared.’
‘I’d love that. Before that, I’d like to see Billy and his family again. I left in something of a hurry!’
‘Hopefully, something can be arranged. I assume the Captain will be back shortly now we’re docked, so we can sort it out then.’
As if on cue, the Captain entered his office. Sarah promptly removed her hand from Will’s but not before the Captain noticed the movement. ‘Looks like you two were more pleased to see each other than you let on!’ he said, smiling at the two of them.
‘Hmm, yes, Captain’ replied Will, feeling slightly embarrassed. Sarah just sat there, feeling slightly taken aback. She’d hoped he hadn’t noticed.
‘OK, that’s your business. Anyway, Will, have you had any thoughts as to what you’d like to do?’
‘After the last month or so since first switching, I haven’t really had much time to properly rest. Before I make any major decisions, I’d like to get my breath back, so to speak. Sarah has suggested, and I agree with her, that I’m only likely to be safe if I were to be down on the planet, or I could jump to another reality and find myself in space. I’ve been lucky so far but I don’t want to push it.’
‘I understand. Longer term, I don’t believe that there are only twelve realities, so I’ll be recommending to the Admiral that we need to try and see how many more there are. That may be more complex than it may seem. I would expect there to be an almost smooth transition between realities, so how will we know when what can be considered one reality becomes another? How much change between one and the next is enough? To be honest, I’ve no idea. On top of that, the devices we have from Zero are clearly switching to realities that are not in any kind of sequence. For example, going from reality nine to ten takes you from an Esperanto-speaking system to an uninhabited reality but carrying on to eleven takes you back to an Esperanto-speaking system. We need to understand what really happens when we go through the realities in a meaningful sequence. The safest place to do that would be planetside. Would that appeal to you as something you could do to contribute to our understanding of the alternate universes?’
‘What about helping Billy?’ asked Will.
‘I think they’re far enough advanced on their current investigations that you might be more of a handicap. Either way, we can move them to the planet or you could just use a vidlink to the station. We would have to discuss the options on that one with Commodore Powell and Angela Loughlin, who’re managing that particular project. I do know the Admiral wants us to look at how we can communicate between realities and there could be a role for you there but I’m not sure if Angela and her team have started on that line of investigation as yet. For now, I think that going planetside might be the safest option. Do I take it that you’d like to join him, Sarah?’
‘If that were possible, Captain. I do have some leave coming.’
‘Consider it approved. I’ll let Auryn know. We ought to be able to accommodate you on the Lakenheath base on New Oregon. I’m afraid you’ll need to be checked over medically first, which might delay things for a day or two.’
‘I appreciate that, Captain.
‘No need for Will to remain on the base once he’s cleared, Captain. I still have my apartment in town. I still use it whenever I get the chance, especially when I visit my mother, who still lives in Waterbeach.’
‘If you’re happy with that, I don’t see why not. It’s probably handier than being on the base, anyway. I think you need to tell anyone who asks that you were taken to a special medical unit at the navy base after the suspected infection. While you were in quarantine there, we offered you the opportunity of a secondment to help on a new initiative we’re working on. As it’s currently top secret, you can’t say any more. Will is one of your new colleagues, so is also not at liberty to say what you’re working on. You two can embroider the story beyond that but the less you say, the easier it will be all round. Will, I need to consider how we can best use you but I agree with Sarah that the safest place for you is on New Oregon.’