THE SECRET INVASION OF PORT ISABEL
The Fairweather Chronicles
BOOK 2
by
Mark Douglas Stafford
V41021142
Copyright 2014 Mark Douglas Stafford text and graphics
Discover other titles by this author at markdouglasstafford.com.
Other novels by this author
A Better Way to Stop Pirates
Dinosaurs Eat Paris
CONTENTS
Map
Frontispiece
Chapter 1 Sometimes Gap
Chapter 2 Fighting over Pancakes
Chapter 3 Brush with Death
Chapter 4 Town Square
Chapter 5 The Hall of Deliberation
Chapter 6 Another False Alarm
Chapter 7 Wild Goose Chase
Chapter 8 Memory of Vultures
Chapter 9 Dropping in on Pirates
Chapter 10 Iscariot Snake
Chapter 11 Chasing Rhinos
Chapter 12 Courage
Chapter 13 Cowards and Fools
Chapter 14 Keeping Enemies Closer
Chapter 15 The End of Harry Possum
Other books by this author
About the author
‘The important thing is not to stop questioning.
Curiosity has its own reason for existing.’
Albert Einstein
(circa 1959, The Machine Age)
CHAPTER 1
SOMETIMES GAP
A fire crackled in the hearth at the back of the Stinging Nettle Café as the ostrich waitress who had taken their order threw on another log and prodded the coals. Harry Possum could feel of its warm fingers on the back of his neck.
Larry Monkey used black hands with long fingers to push aside the crockery and cutlery as Flossy Fairweather spread out the map. It was tattered and rubbed with wax for waterproofing. The coastlines were skilfully penned with fine lines of black ink and rivers and seas and other landmarks were clearly labelled.
Everyone leaned forward to see.
‘This is the way I think we came,’ said Flossy. The feeble morning light made her golden hair glow, reminding Harry that the human girl was like no other animal living in Port Isabel.
She traced a long finger across unfamiliar stretches of land and sea, then up through an opening in the Southern Icewall that lead into the Gulf of Mexico.
Harry studied the map. ‘This map extends further south than any I’ve seen. It shows an enormous sea on the other side of the Icewall and part of an even bigger ocean beyond that.’ His voice quivered with excitement.
‘That’s your way into the great unknown, Harry. You were right; there is way out of the Gulf,’ said Reginald Elephant. He stood outside the café, under an awning, his head protruding through an open window with the shutters drawn back, for he was too big to fit inside. His trunk rested on the back of the bench seat facing Harry.
‘Where did you get it?’ Harry asked.
‘I swiped it from Pirate Pratt’s cabin on my way out the window yesterday,’ said Flossy, grinning. ‘There was a lot of other stuff there but I didn’t think I could manage to swim with more, and I didn’t have time.’
Harry remembered his surprise finding what he took to be a bald-faced monkey at the end of the long harpoon rope, dragged through the choppy ocean swell by the Interloper before she collided with the reef. He had taught the pirate dogs a well-deserved lesson and ended the threat to Port Isabel once and for all, a very satisfying outcome; achieved with Larry’s help, who had stuffed tight the rudder rope holes with two well place cheese wheels thus preventing the six-gun frigate from turning aside. But Flossy wasn’t a monkey at all. She was of the House called human, belonging to a race of animals not seen in this part of the wide, flat Earth for a thousand years, and long thought extinct. When he dragged her aboard the little Windrush sopping wet she was dressed as a pirate, and he thought her part of the Interloper’s crew. But he quickly learned she had been forcibly taken from her parents and held hostage by the dread Pirate Pratt, erstwhile captain on the Interloper, now wrecked on Kidney Reef and that he, Harry, was her accidental rescuer.
Harry used a claw to trace a possible route out of the Gulf. ‘If I take the Serendipity south-east from here I should be able to find that pass into the “Caribbean Sea”. There are dozens of islands there.’
‘I remember the islands but we didn’t stop. Some of them were just cones poking out of the sea and smoking like piles of leafs too green to burn. The pirates seemed anxious to go on,’ said Flossy.
‘What’s that line weaving between the islands?’ wondered Harry aloud. He squinted to see. ‘There are pictures either side. They’re sea monsters. I think the line marks a safe route.’
‘That’s where the pirates attacked the Enterprise and took me hostage. Somewhere there.’ Flossy circled the mouth of a great river on the very edge of the map.
‘That’s a long way. Did you travel down that long river connecting the “Caribbean Sea” with the big ocean, the… ”Pacific Ocean”?’ Harry thought he had pronounced the names correctly.
‘If it was a river, it was the straightest I’ve seen.’
Harry leaned across the map and traced a word written beside the river. ‘Panama Canal,’ he read out loud.
‘Is it called a canal because it’s straight?’ Flossy asked.
‘A canal’s a made river, not a natural one,’ answered Reginald, swaying gently as elephants do. His voice rumbled and his eyes were full of warmth and friendship. He was a school teacher—or at least he was until the pirates destroyed his school with a well place cannonball shot fired from the Interloper as is sailed down the coast—and relished explaining things to his students, or anyone for that matter. ‘It’s a long channel cut into the ground and flooded so boats can be used instead of roads and carts. They’ve been around for donkey’s years, even before the Machine Age; though not in these parts. The ground has to be level, you see, or mechanically gated with ancient contraptions called locks. There’s no reason it has to be straight, though.’
‘If that’s true, who do think could make something like that? It would have to be a hundred miles long,’ said Harry, awed. ‘Were there giants in the Machine Age, Reginald?’
‘There are stories of giants in the old books. I remember one about a beanstalk and a boy named Jack. It was called—and this probably won’t surprise you—Jack and the Beanstalk. A giant lives in the clouds minding his own business and Jack climbs a beanstalk to reach him. I think a singing harp and a bird who lays golden eggs is kidnapped by Jack, or someone. Anyway, Jack murders the giant in cold blood by chopping away the beanstalk from under him,’ said Reginald.
‘The poor giant,’ said Flossy.
‘Yes, killed simply because he belonged to a different House, I suppose. That kind of ignorance was rampant in the ancient days. Fear and prejudice for anything strange.’
‘Fiction again?’ asked Harry.
‘Who can say?’ said Reginald, rolling his big head.
Harry looked past Reginald into the misty cloud filling Town Square and wondered if giants still lived above the clouds, and how clouds might be made to support the weight.
Picking up a spoon with his trunk Reginald traced the route that Flossy thought she had taken. ‘Do you think you could find “Sometimes Gap”, Harry? It doesn’t look wide and in hundreds of years no one has stumbled on it by accident. Except the pirates, I suppose.’
‘I don’t know.’
Harry sat back and inspected his bruised tail, crushed by someone’s hoof during the riot the night before. He looked up and asked:
‘Why do you think it??
?s called Sometimes Gap?’
‘Maybe because it’s not always a gap,’ Flossy said. The others turned to face her. ‘Maybe it’s because the way’s not always open. I was wondering why we kept sailing past the same part of the ice wall, then one day there was an opening wide enough for us to sail straight through. I was sure it wasn’t there the day before.’
‘Opening and closing like a lock in a canal?’ Reginald asked.
‘I suppose so, though I don’t know how one of those works. And it would have to be huge. The ice wall’s hundreds of feet high and holds back an ocean. Two, actually.’
Harry’s whiskers twitched. ‘That must be it. And that’s why we haven’t seen pirates for years. They couldn’t get through.’
Larry Monkey held up four black fingers.
He was a young chimpanzee with a flat face and bald pink ears poking out from the side of his fury head like wings. He stooped when he walked, knuckles dragging, as if he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders, and his eyes were sad. Harry knew something had happened to his parents but didn’t know what.
Until now he had sat in the corner of their café booth hiding behind an oversized mug and watching silently as the others talked, attention switching back and forth as if watching a game of tennis. He hadn’t yet tasted his hot chocolate and the plump, pink marshmallows were still lying untouched on his plate.
‘What is it, Larry? Why the fingers?’ Harry asked.
Larry made a fist then held up four fingers again. Then he touched his ear.
‘I think he’s saying that the pass only opens every four years. Four fingers is four years. And ears is years, you see,’ said Reginald.
Larry grinned and sat back in his seat.
‘But pirates aren’t seen every four years,’ said Harry.
‘Ah, but he’s right,’ said Reginald, ears flapping forward. ‘Do the numbers.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘They aren’t seen every four years but when they are seen, the time since their last visit can be evenly divided by four.’
Harry thought for a minute. ‘He’s right! I saw the Interloper eight years ago and then they hadn’t been seen for four years before that. Then there was a long absence so we’d thought they were gone for good. I think it was… sixteen years, yes it was. They’re all evenly divisible by four.’
‘Four? But why four?’ Flossy asked.
Larry put two fingers together and used them to jump the salt shaker, which was lying on its side.
‘Not only are the visits four years apart,’ said Reginald, smiling, ‘but Larry says they’re leap years. And so they are. He’s a clever chimp.’
Larry looked down shyly. His cheeks were pink and Harry could see a tiny smile.
‘What’s a leap year?’ Flossy asked.
‘Every four years a year is 366 days long instead of 365,’ answered Reginald, happy for a chance to share his knowledge. ‘It keeps the seasons starting on the same day each year, which helps the farmers know when to sow their seed and when to harvest. Without a leap year the first day of winter would eventually overtake spring, spring would overtake summer and so on. Crops would fail and people would starve. So we add a day every so often, you see.’
‘But why would Sometimes Gap only open on a leap year?’ asked Harry.
Everyone was silent, wondering. Harry thought: perhaps the giants who made the canal open up the Gap every four years for some reason. But he dismissed the thought. Giants were only in stories told to keep young animals in their beds at night. He would have to go and see Sometimes Gap for himself, while it was open, and find out what caused it to open and close so punctually. But he would need to act quickly. It might be the only way out of the Gulf of Mexico and it could close at any time. He couldn’t bear waiting another four years for it to reopen.
Larry ran his finger down the map through a picture of a submerged reef and then straight through Sometimes Gap. He made a sign like he was looking into the distance with something in his hands. He opened up one hand above his head and made his fingers twinkle.
‘Larry says the Gap can be found using that reef, Gateway Reef, the North Star and a sextant,’ said Reginald. ‘All you have to do is find the reef then head south and you’ll find the Gap and a way out of the Gulf.’
Larry grinned with all his teeth and nodded, eyes twinkling.
‘It’s spooky how do you do that, Reginald,’ said Flossy. ‘How do you know what Larry’s saying all the time?’
‘I can read minds, of course. Like all elephants can. Comes with the big brain, you see. Didn’t you know?’
Flossy looked uncertain, as if she didn’t know whether Reginald was joking.
‘Think of a number between one and a hundred,’ he said.
‘Okay, I have one.’
‘What’s the number?’ Reginald asked.
‘Ah, sixty-five.’
‘Exactly!’ said Reginald, triumphant.
Flossy looked blank for a moment, and then half-laughed. Harry groaned and Larry smiled.
‘Not a very good joke I’m afraid, though it always trips up my younger students. And you know I’m only joking about the mind-reading, Flossy. No one can read minds. Larry and I have just been around each other long enough to develop a little non-verbal language of our own. And I think I’m beginning to understand how he thinks.’
Harry studied the map. ‘There are dozens of islands in the Caribbean Sea. This map changes everything. I have a way out of the Gulf. I’d love to know who or what lives on those islands.’
‘Maybe Flossy’s parents? Pirates don’t always drop their captives in the sea,’ Reginald ventured.
‘Or eat them,’ Harry added.
A looked of horror filled Flossy’s face.
‘Oh, I’m sorry, Flossy. That was thoughtless of me. Reginald’s probably right, they’ll be one of the islands. When I see them, I’ll be sure to them where to find you.’
Harry turned back to the map.
Flossy stiffened. ‘You’re not leaving me behind Harry, I’m coming with you!’
Harry looked up. ‘I can’t guaranty your safety. You may be tall for an animal but only because you walk on two legs. You’re still only a child.’ Harry was thinking of Flossy’s safety, and of protecting her from the pirates who would want her back. He thought very highly of her and knew no other young animal as capable or courageous. He’d heard about how she’d bested a mountain gorilla on Port Isabel’s slippery rooftops before the riot that destroyed the museum, and the way she dived into the ocean in pursuit of Larry left him in no doubt.
Flossy darkened. ‘I can take perfect care of myself. I may be “only a child”, as you say, but I know my way round a ship and I know how to fight. My time on the Interloper wasn’t completely wasted. I knew I’d only get one chance when the time came so I determined always to be ready. I learned everything the dogs were willing to teach, and I trained with the sword every day.’
Flossy looked earnestly at Harry. ‘I will come with you Harry and I will work my keep. You’ll find me an apt sailor and a good friend in a pinch. And if you don’t take me, you can’t have my map.’ She picked up the map.
Harry placed a paw on her hand. ‘Very well, you can come on one condition,’ he said, holding back a smile.
‘It’s a deal then.’ She put the map back down.
‘Don’t you even want to know the condition?’ Harry asked.
Reginald and Larry watched, wondering.
‘Harry, you seem like a perfectly reasonable animal. And so I can’t believe the condition would be worse than the alternative of staying here knowing my parents are out there looking for me, and I know it will be infinitely better than playing cabin-girl to Pirate Pratt and his filthy, flea-ridden mutts. So, no, I don’t need to know to agree.’
Harry grew thoughtful as he warmed his paws on his half-empty mug. ‘Are all humans as impulsive and quick to action, Flossy? In the short time I’ve know you, I’ve seen you dive into the
sea after Larry without knowing who Larry was or what he was doing, you just jumped. I’ve seen you stand between me and Mayor Lion who, judging by his deafening roar, was not at all happy to see you. As far as you knew at the time he was going to tear you in half, yet you stood there brandishing your skewer-sword against the whole town and shouted: “Show yourselves, cowards!”’ He mimicked Flossy as he said this but it was a poor attempt and Reginald laughed. ‘You then leapt after Larry across slippery rooftops in the dark and fog even though you’d known him only a few hours. I even heard that you took on a fully grown mountain gorilla, and won! And here you are agreeing unconditionally to my condition without any idea what the condition is.’
Harry grinned. ‘If there are other humans out there and they’re like you, well, I sure want to meet them.’
‘I don’t know if they’re others like me, Harry,’ said Flossy, serious. ‘I’ve really only known those aboard the Enterprise, my parent’s ship. But I do know I can trust you. You saved me, with Larry’s help.’ She smiled warmly at Larry who turned away, abashed. ‘And the look on your face this morning when you discovered Larry and I were alive told me all I need to know: that you care about people, no matter what their ilk. You ran to us with your arms wide, a big grin on your fury face.’ Flossy rested a hand on Harry’s paw, eyes glistening. ‘I didn’t tell you, but my father’s a navy man. In fact, my whole family’s an old navy family. And you know what belonging to an old navy family teaches you?’
Harry shook his head.
‘The value of a leader is measured by the quality of care shown to those in his charge. You’re a leader, Harry, and I trust you to do right by me. So I agree to your condition even though I don’t know what it is.’
‘Oh, for goodness sake,’ said Reginald. ‘What is the condition, Harry? What could be so onerous as to inspire such wonderful, heart-wrenching speeches? Tell us, Harry, what is this all-important condition?’
Harry paused and looked at each friend in turn as the ostrich waitress, polishing a table nearby, pretended not to listen.
Harry sipped from his mug.
‘Well?’ said Reginald, ears flapping impatiently.
Harry put down his mug and licked the chocolate powder from the fur around his mouth. ‘I was only going to insist that Flossy give me her last marshmallow, as she clearly doesn’t want it.’
Reginald, Flossy and Larry stared at Harry unbelieving, and then simultaneously burst out laughing.