Deborah Hockney (6 page)

‘Well, hurry up!’ he snarled. ‘And bring all those untidy belongings with you!’ he added, glaring at their things scattered around the carriage. They quickly gathered them up and followed him down the corridor.

‘He hasn’t even told us his name,’ David whispered in Jocasta’s ear, as they hurried to keep up with the portly officer.

‘Yeah, and how come such a fat bloke can walk so fast down these tiny corridors?’ Jocasta replied, turning to David and lowering her voice to make sure the sergeant wouldn’t be able to hear her.

‘And,’ she went on, ‘how do we really know that he is an Elite officer, he never showed us any I.D. Perhaps he’s an impostor.’

‘Well, we’re soon going to find out, I think he’s slowing down.’

Sure enough the sergeant had stopped outside one of the doors and was peering intently at the display overhead.

‘Here Wetherby, this one’s yours. All you’ll need for the night is in here, and some other cadet,’ he dragged the last word out as though it caused him pain, ‘will join this transportation during the night. Buzzer sounds at 7.00 hours. Morning call at 7.15am.’ He jabbed at the entry panel with undue ferocity and as the door opened he gave David a none too gentle push on the shoulder which sent him tripping over the entrance strip. Luckily he managed to regain his balance and turned to mouth ‘Good luck!’ to Jocasta.

As the cabin door closed automatically Jocasta was left alone with the overweight sergeant who quickly turned on his heels and gesticulated for her to keep up and follow him further down the train.

Having no option but to obey Jocasta trailed along behind the Elite officer, waiting patiently as he stopped every few steps to peer at the names and numbers illuminated over the doors. He stopped, at last, outside the one marked Berth 67 and grunted at her that she would be spending the night there and that another traveller would be joining her later on.

Jocasta imagined a large, formidable female Elite officer squeezing into the compartment with her and wanted to ask who her fellow traveller might be; but she kept her thoughts to herself and managed to politely mumble a few words of thanks as she slipped quickly through the berth door. There she discovered a very small compartment that consisted of two narrow bunks, a small storage area for stowing bags and enclosed, behind a sliding door, a tiny, but perfectly adequate shower and toilet room.

She washed her face, quickly brushed her teeth and changed into her night things, remembering to remove her identity ring from her nose and place it on her finger. Now, which bunk to choose? It was as she climbed the little ladder to peer at the top bunk that she noticed her name and number illuminated on a small display panel. Ah, problem solved, she thought to herself, and quickly scanned the lower bunk for the name of its vacant occupant. She tried to imagine what the person with the name Nikita Kayukova was going to be like.

She decided she was much too tired to stay awake to find out and carefully re-climbed the narrow ladder and clambered into her bunk. Pulling the covers up around her shoulders she listened to the swish and clunk of the train. Soon its rhythmic rocking movement worked its soothing magic and she was gently lulled into a dreamless sleep.

Several times during the night, Jocasta’s sleep was disturbed by the train slowing or stopping at a station and she was aware at one point of someone entering the compartment; but she never woke properly until chinks of light appeared at the edges of the streamlined blind.

Needing the loo, but not wanting to disturb her travelling companion, she descended as quietly as she could to the floor. She glanced at the girl lying fully clothed and fast asleep on top of the blankets and caught sight of a mass of brown curls and a cheek flushed red against her pale skin. By the time she had showered and dressed Jocasta was feeling hungry again and was wondering about breakfast as she carefully slid the door open to see if there was anyone about.

The corridor was empty but a sleepy ‘Hello?’ from the bottom bunk made her turn round, just in time to catch the sight of an unstifled yawn as the curly haired girl tried to stretch her arms without hitting the walls or the base of the overhead bunk.

‘You must have slept well,’ the girl continued in a soft but clear voice with just the slightest trace of an accent, ‘You didn’t stir at all when I bumped into this tiny hole at about 2am.’

‘No wonder you didn’t bother to undress then,’ replied Jocasta. ‘You must still be really tired. Sorry if I woke you.’

‘No worries, it must be time for breakfast soon, anyway,’ the girl answered with a friendly smile. ‘I’m Nikita by the way, though mostly people just call me Nikki.’

‘Yes, I saw your name over your bunk, pleased to meet you Nikki, I’m Jocasta and I’m glad you’re not a big unfriendly Elite officer, ’cause I had visions of this scary person arriving in the middle of the night, taking over the cabin and bossing me about.’

‘Oh is that what you think of us Ukrainians is it?’

Jocasta shook her head quickly, hoping she hadn’t insulted her new acquaintance.

‘No not at all, and you don’t sound Ukrainian, even without my FX translator.’

‘Oh that’s because my mother’s half Scottish and I learnt English alongside my native language. And,’ she added, ‘as you can see I’m not big, scary or an Elite officer but I do seem to have taken over the entire floor with my belongings,’ Nikki giggled, looking at her things spread across the floor. ‘We’d better… I mean I’d better tidy up, in case they come in and inspect us!’

‘Oh, I’ll help.’ Jocasta bent down, starting to clear a space, relieved that Nikki hadn’t taken offence. The two girls soon had the compartment looking neat and tidy, when a buzzer sounded making them both jump; a strained voice came over the loudspeaker inviting
all Elite trainees to show that they are awake by registering their right thumb print with the logging mode of the in-train communication panel.

‘Sounds like Sergeant Connelly’s had a rough night,’ Nikki giggled again as she located the communication panel on the wall and jabbed it with her right thumb. ‘Your turn Jocasta, get your thumb at the ready before they send out a search party for you.’

As there were no further instructions issued for them Nikki decided she needed to shower and freshen up.

‘Don’t eat all the food when the breakfast arrives,’ she implored Jocasta. ‘I’m starving!’

A few moments later there was a knock at the door and the smell of warm croissants and hot chocolate filled the compartment. Nikki quickly emerged from the shower, her nose wrinkling in pleasure with the smell of food and her wet hair framing her face with ringlets.

As the two girls cleared away the remains of their breakfast the train began to slow and gradually shuddered to a halt. Lifting the blind at the window they could just see the side of the track, with its steep incline edged by a row of sparse trees dotted along the top. Realising that the train must have stopped for signals, the girls began to discuss what lay ahead of them when they reached Mars. Jocasta knew from previous reports that they would be divided into four sections within the Elite, each being connected somehow to the four elements, earth, wind, fire and water. She was mentioning this to Nikki who replied, ‘What’s your handicap then? That’s how they sort us, but I’m not sure exactly how.’

‘Handicap?’ Jocasta looked puzzled. Her father played golf occasionally and she knew there was some aim there to reduce your handicap, but she didn’t think this was what Nikki meant.

‘Well I had a slight squint in one eye when I was little, but they fixed that with laser treatment.’

‘Oh come on, silly,’ went on Nikki. ‘Your gift then. Or talent, as some people call it– the
reason
you’ve been chosen. I call mine a handicap as it’s more than just a little annoying having to stop myself turning into an animal every time I think of a cat or a fox.’

Jocasta’s eyes widened in amazement and her mouth dropped open in disbelief as Nikki’s hands seemed to start changing into what appeared to look like the paws of a cat. It only lasted for a few seconds and then they reverted back to normal.

‘But how does it happen?’ she squeaked, her voice strangely high. ‘I can’t do anything like that!’

‘Well I’m not meant to,’ replied the other girl. ‘Not yet anyway. We’re all going to be coached and packaged for the Elite once we get to Mars. Maybe,’ she continued kindly, ‘you don’t know what your gift is. Some people have to find out later on. It’s not always obvious straight away, and besides it’s always hushed up on Earth, as the masses don’t like us being different– that’s probably why you’ve never heard about us. Though I’m quite surprised that you’ve no idea about yours. Haven’t you ever felt slightly odd or different from everyone else?’

Jocasta racked her memories trying to think of something that might have counted as her ‘handicap’, but try as she might, she couldn’t; perhaps it was all a big mistake and she shouldn’t be here at all. But Nikki was still talking,

‘My parents just told me I was special and not to talk about my abilities to anyone else; and for a time I thought that everyone must be able to do what I could. It was only when I started being teased at school, because whenever animals were mentioned I had to go into a kind of trance for a few seconds to control myself that I understood not everyone realised what was happening. Luckily, now I can just flick a switch in my mind and nobody but me knows what’s going on.’

Chapter Six

Jocasta was becoming more and more confused. She scratched her cheek absent mindedly and the kingfisher fluttered under her fingertips. She wondered what on earth her talent could be and who might know about it. Did her
parents know? Did any of her teachers know? And if they did, then why hadn’t they told her? Someone, somewhere must know; of that she was sure. Otherwise why had she been picked to go to Mars? When she thought about it she vaguely remembered people at school telling stories and spreading rumours about why the Meyer triplets had been chosen for Mars. Something to do with telepathy…

With a jolt which brought her out of her musings, the train started moving again and Jocasta had no more time to dwell on her gift, or handicap, as a short, sharp announcement on the train’s intercom instructed all Elite trainees to disembark at the next station.

‘Quick,’ Nikki spoke as she started gathering up her belongings. ‘Let’s try and be the first off.’

‘Ok, but I can’t find my jacket, have you got it with yours?’

‘No, I don’t think so.’

The girls searched the compartment and eventually found it lurking under the covers at the bottom of Nikki’s bunk. Jocasta’s relief evidently showed on her face as Nikki exclaimed: ‘Come on, don’t look so worried, we’ll soon have to be on our toes when the officers get into their drill mode. Only joking!’ she added, seeing the look of panic in Jocasta’s eyes. ‘I’ve no idea what happens next, I’m as much in the dark as you.’

‘Yes, but at least you know what your, uh… talent is, so you do have an advantage over me…’ Her voice trailed off as her eyes strayed to Nikki’s hands. ‘Sorry, but it’s all come as a bit of a shock I suppose, and I’m just wondering what else is going to be in store for us.’

As the girls jostled with the other trainees to get off the train Jocasta looked around for David, a familiar face was just what she needed right now. She caught sight of him, struggling like everyone else it seemed, with bags and coats sticking out at different angles, as he made his way down the narrow train corridor.

‘David!’ she called. He turned briefly and tried to raise a hand in acknowledgement but she saw he was hemmed in by bodies and luggage. He gave a wry smile and then turned back to the immediate task of getting off the train with, hopefully, she thought, all his baggage intact.

A few moments later a tall Elite officer beckoned them into a small side waiting room where Jocasta was able to manoeuvre herself next to David. She really wanted to find out if he knew about his gift, and if so, then why hadn’t he told her? But with so many people within earshot she just asked him how he he’d found the journey and if being on a 121 loco was as good as he’d hoped.

‘Just wicked,’ he beamed back. ‘Such a neat bunk and I slept like a log till Bozo here- ’ he indicated a fresh-faced boy standing next to him, ‘woke me up with his snoring.’

‘Sorry,’ the boy apologised, with a slight quaver in his voice, ‘but it was time for the check in anyway.’

‘Yep, and we might have missed breakfast, so perhaps you did me a favour, mate.’ David sensed he’d probably embarrassed the poor lad. ‘This is my friend Jocasta –Casta meet Felipe. He’s from the South of France, as you can probably tell by his accent. And,’ he continued, ‘he knows almost as much about trains as me.’

This brought a smile to Felipe’s face, and for one awful moment Jocasta thought they might launch into a full scale discussion about different trains and tracks but there was no time for further talking as the Elite officer had begun to call out names and was dividing them up into four separate groups.

The next few hours passed in a bit of a dreamlike state for Jocasta. She felt disorientated, stuck between two worlds, which she mused was actually the truth; although they hadn’t actually left Earth yet, her immediate future lay on Mars and she hated this hanging around in unfamiliar surroundings, waiting for the next stage of her life to begin.

Once in their groups they were told that some of the new trainees had failed to turn up. As those missing were believed to be on the next train, which wasn’t due for another couple of hours, everyone was going to have to wait patiently in the adjoining building. Here they would be kitted out in Elite uniforms and given refreshments. There were one or two murmurings of disapproval amongst the other officers who had arrived to assist in the practicalities, but they were soon silenced by a withering look from the tall officer, who was apparently in charge. Jocasta wished that they didn’t act in such an aloof and contemptuous way, as not one Elite officer had so far introduced themselves.