Read Fiendish Schemes Online

Authors: K. W. Jeter

Tags: #Science Fiction, #Fiction, #Steampunk, #General

Fiendish Schemes (7 page)

BOOK: Fiendish Schemes
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“Simply enough. The Mission’s leader is something of a naturalist as well as preacher, and rather better at the former than the latter. You are aware, I hope, that whales are capable of emitting extended sequences of noises, that some even describe as songs?”

“They might be capable of singing Italian operas, for all I know.”

“Take it on faith, then. Using a variety of devices, similar to those ear trumpets used by the incipient deaf—but modified to be lowered into the water—Father Jonah has made an exhaustive study of these songs and other sounds performed by the whales. He claims—and I have ample reason to believe this to be true—that he is at last able to understand what the whales are saying.”

“Indeed,” I said. “So both you and he have taken leave of your senses.”

“Not so.” Stonebrake’s retort was emphatic. “I have heard and seen the proof of these assertions. And more—Father Jonah has modified the pipe organ installed aboard the Mission’s ship, that before was used for the accompaniment of hymn- singing. With it, he is able to produce noises similar to the whales’ songs, and thus communicate back to them.”

“Really? And what do he and the whales talk about? Theology, or just the events of the day?”

“Mock as you will, but what I say is true.”

“I neither doubt it or accept it. For the time being, I will take an agnostic opinion on the matter.”

“Fair enough,” allowed Stonebrake. “As to the subject of their conversations, I fear that Father Jonah, due to his advanced age, has grown a bit senile. He seems only interested in preaching to the whales. Perhaps that is only to be expected. But I and other members of the Mission are more intrigued by another discovery made by the Father.”

“There seems to be no end to such.”

“But this is the most important one. The key to our fortunes. And it is this: The whales speak to others beside themselves.
They speak to the oceans.

I could see at last where his discourse was taking him. “And that is what intrigues you and your associates. You realize some speculative value in having the whales serve as emissaries between yourselves and the intelligent, active seas in which the whales swim. You might enlist the whales’ aid in obtaining clews about the impending actions and movements of the sentient ocean organisms—which information you could then provide to the various rival lighthouse corporations.”

“You have it in a nutshell, Mr. Dower. I can tell that you see the potential for profiting upon these discoveries.”

“Of course.” I shrugged. “You learn from the whales what the oceans will be up to, and Phototrope Limited or another lighthouse corporation learns the same from you. Then you rush off to the betting shop to wager everything with the Sea & Light Book, confident that your bets will prove true.”

“Genius, eh?” Stonebrake’s smile grew wider.

“I have but one question. If all these marvels are true, why are you revealing them to me? What do I have to do about it? You should just go and talk to your gossipy whales—I presume you do so behind this Father Jonah’s back—then make your wagers, collect your winnings, and leave me blessedly alone.”

“Ah. There’s the rub.” His expression turned to something more rueful. “That is what we’ve been doing—and we have not made our fortunes. And it’s not for lack of the appropriate stakes to put up; we have some of the wealthiest—and greediest—individuals in the nation as our backers. Alas, though, the information we obtain from the whales is often fragmentary and unreliable. Sometimes we win our wagers, and other times we still lose.”

“How regrettable. But still no concern of mine.”

“Bear with me,” said Stonebrake. “A number of our group, myself included, have determined that what we must do is not just employ the whales to communicate with the oceans, but
negotiate
with them. If we could find a way to enduce the oceans to act and move in certain ways, we would clean up on the Sea & Light Book.”

“I fail to see how I could assist you with that. My powers of persuasion are minimal, at best.”

“It would be a conundrum for the most eloquent. None of our party has come close enough to understanding the nature of the sentient oceans, so as to be able to determine exactly what they might want from human beings, so that they would agree to do anything for them. For us.”

“Perhaps they also wish to be left in peace.”

Stonebrake rubbed his chin in a musing fashion. “The person to crack that puzzle will be in a powerful and lucrative position. . . .”

“If you say so.” I could do nothing other than lift my shoulders in a shrug. “My best wishes to him.”

“How appropriate that such is your desire. For that person is none other than George Dower, Esquire.”

“Me?” I gaped at him in amazement. “Now I am certain you are insane. I have neither the desire nor the ability to negotiate with whales and oceans—or moonbeams either, for that matter.”

“You underestimate yourself.” Stonebrake placed a fingertip against my chest. “You are your father’s son, and that quality is what makes you the man of this hour. One of the category of devices invented by the senior Dower were intricate clockwork systems of violinlike strings and rosined wheels that could, when properly tuned and arranged, simulate human voices. Do you recall any of those?”

I could barely forget one of the damnable things, try as I might. In an abandoned London chapel, years before, I had had an unsettling experience with a pack of automaton figures crafted by my father, a mechanical clergyman and accompanying choir all given voice by the mechanisms described by Stonebrake. Their creaking and groaning blasphemies still had the power to evoke nightmares.

“Such devices created by my father have, with any luck, been dismantled. Even if any were still intact, I don’t see what value one could be to you and your fellow conspirators.”

“Use your imagination, man. If human voices could be so simulated, then why not whale voices? The pipe organ that Father Jonah modified to communicate with the whales doesn’t do a good job of it, quite frankly. This has no doubt led to the erratic and undependable nature of the information that we have received from them. What hope would we have then of plying the whales to negotiate with the oceans on our behalf?”

“You’re right,” I said. “Best to give up this whole mad scheme.”

“And lose the fortunes that are almost within our grasp? Never!” Stonebrake’s previous steely resolve displayed itself again. “We have reason to believe that your father created a larger and more versatile device for simulating voices, capable of infinite degrees of adjustment. This
Vox Universalis
machine would be exactly what is required for the successful furtherance of our plans.”


Would be,
you say?” I peered more closely at him. “The implication is that you don’t actually have the device in your possession.”

“We soon shall. You may rest assured on that point. A matter of days, at most. And when we have it, we shall then need the assistance of the creator’s son— you, to be precise—to adjust it as needed for our purposes.”

I could feel the blood draining from my face. “I rather think . . . you overestimate my facility in that regard.”

“How so? Who more fitted than the living progeny of that great inventor? Surely you inherited at least a modicum of his skills.”

“You would probably be better off taking a bash at it yourself.”

“Nonsense,” insisted Stonebrake. “Gather your courage, man. An hour or so before, you were about to put a bullet through your brain. I offer not only wealth to you, but your life itself. Would you refuse it?”

“If I were as intelligent as you believe me to be, I probably would. This is madness.”

“Again the admirable skeptic.” He gave an approving nod. “I did not anticipate that I would be able to cozen you into acceptance with mere words. But perhaps I can purchase—or at least rent—your interest.”

As I watched, he reached into the pouch fastened to the belt of his diving garment and extracted a leather packet. As soon as I received it in my hand, I knew from its weight and muffled clinking noises that it contained a sizable sum of money.

“There is more than enough,” said Stonebrake, “to settle your bill at the inn. And provide for comfortable transportation to London. You will find as well a card with an address inscribed upon it.”

I had managed to undo the packet’s watertight fastenings, and discovered all those things inside it, though the sliver of moonlight was too dim to read the exact words.

“Of course,” he continued, “you are free to make what use of the funds you will. You might, for instance, pay out your landlord here . . . then use the remainder to scurry off to some other cheap and wretched hiding-place, scraping out a few more weeks of cheese- paring existence.”

The thought had already occurred to me.

“And when those days have inevitably wound down to their end, you would be exactly where you were before. In a shabby room, with a gun pressed to your brow.”

To that bleak observation, I could make no reply.

“Decide as you see fit, Mr. Dower.” Reaching behind himself, Stonebrake pulled the hood of his diving garment onto his head. He then uncoiled the rubber tube of the breathing apparatus. “I hope to see you again.”

I heard but did not observe him splashing through the oncoming waves, then disappearing beneath the roiling water. I stood in silent contemplation of the small but weighty packet in my hand. And remained so, until the first reddish light of dawn tinged the cliffsides above me.

The innkeeper was already up and about when I returned to my temporary lodgings. “Thar be summat maun say yer bill—”

“Will this suffice?” Standing on the inn’s doorstep, I handed him one of the larger-denominated coins that had been bestowed on me. The man’s eyes widened at the sight of it in his grubby fingers.

I gave him another. “Hire me a carriage,” I told him. “I must go to London.”

PART TWO

OF MATTERS URBANE

CHAPTER
5
Mr. Dower Observes
Giant Serpents
in the English Countryside
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