Julius and the Watchmaker (29 page)

‘We might as well have a look, now that we are here,' said the professor as he steered Julius towards the sign saying:

The Great Exhibition
Crystal Palace—Ticket Office
.

Once inside, the professor found a few coins in his pocket with which they purchased a pot of tea. They sat under an oak tree, while all around them excited humans and automata hurried from one exhibit to the next.

‘Aaaaahhhh,' said the professor after he had taken a sip of his tea. ‘The divine brew. I feel immeasurably restored.'

‘Have you noticed something, Professor?' said Julius, taking a sip from his own cup.

‘Yes, Julius—the absence of Grackacks. Not a single one in sight.'

‘Does that mean the Grackacks were defeated? And the clockmen, they seem to be, I don't know… different?'

‘We are in a possible future, Julius. According to this,' said the professor, perusing a pamphlet the girl at the ticket office had given him, ‘we are in the year 1851. A mere fourteen years in the future but far enough ahead for many possible timelines to have been established if things have gotten a little out of control. Who knows? In this timeline there are no Grackacks and clockmen walk around like gentlemen, but there might be another possible future where the Grackacks have taken over completely, where we could be sitting having tea with only Grackacks for company. Let's just be thankful that all seems peaceful here, wherever on the tree of timelines we are.'

‘Um.'

‘I must thank you for rescuing me, Julius. Even if the method was a little unorthodox. But I see Mr Flynn is not about?'

‘No, Professor. I was on my own. We had a plan. I was disguised as a navy cadet and I was going to make friends with the clockmen so that they would let me see you and I was going to give you Shelley's pocketwatch so that you could time-jump us to safety. It didn't work though.'

‘Plans seldom do, in my experience. Still, well done. You got us out of a pickle,' said the professor. ‘The best laid plans of mice and men, and all that. The Watchmaker makes the best of every circumference, though. You have done very, very well.'

‘Circumference?'

‘I beg you pardon, Julius. Circumstance, that's it. The Watchmaker makes the best of every
circumstance
.'

The professor sipped his tea thoughtfully for a time.

‘The last time I saw you, you were about to be executed, if I recall correctly. I was doing a bit of spying in the Grackack realm at the time, in my persona as high-ranking official in the Ministry of Control and Command. I heard that a violent goblin had been arrested. It was the talk of the town—you made the headlines in a parallel realm, Julius. How many boys can claim that?'

‘None that I know of, Professor.'

‘Somehow I knew I had to take a closer look. Sure enough, when I got to the execution chamber there you were. I had in my mind a daring rescue from under their noses using my own pocketwatch. But when you told me that they had Shelley's, I could not leave it there. As you saw, I placed a strand of your hair into a compartment within it. That, my boy, made the timepiece yours.'

‘Mine?'

‘Yes, that was why you were able to command it to time-jump just now rather than merely lighting it up like a lucifer. The first part of my plan went well. I was going to fling you into the future by three years, out of harm's way. I was to join you seconds later to consult and then together we were to time-jump back to our own time. But, well, the executioner was so furious at the loss of his victim that he threw a spanner at me. Knocked me out cold. At least I think it was a spanner, I saw it for only an instant. Unfortunately, I had no opportunity to use my samurai skills on that occasion—I was looking forward to a bit of a skirmish. Now my own watch is lost, what an irony. And a Watchmaker without a watch is like a…like a fiddler without a bow.'

They sat under the oak tree inside the giant glasshouse in silence. The professor appeared to be lost in his own thoughts.

‘But enough of that,' said the professor, snapping out of his reflections. ‘Tell me was happening during my confinement? Quite a lot, I would imagine.'

Julius tried to tell the tale of London in the grip of the Grackacks, of Emily's gang, the bare-knuckle bouts with the clockmen, and Springheel's elevation into high office. Then there was Mr Flynn's part in the whole rescue mission, and his own short-lived naval career. But the professor appeared to be having trouble concentrating and dozed off a couple of times. Julius looked at the rings under the professor's eyes—he looked to be a very tired and sick old man, his vitality seeping out through every pore.

‘Professor? Professor?' said Julius, gently nudging the Watchmaker.

‘What? Yes?' he said, waking startled.

His eyes darted around for a few moments, as he tried to recall where he was. The few seconds of alertness tired the old man, and he sank back into his seat and sighed.

‘Oh dear, oh dear, I need a long rest, Julius. The wise man knows when he is beaten, eh, my boy?'

‘What do you mean, Professor?'

‘I have been inside the mind of a Grackack inside a cage for how many years? With only flies and weevils for company. I am worn out, like an old oily rag cast onto the ash heap. Remember, I told you, Julius, we Tibetans call them hungry ghosts. That is because their minds are like a pack of starving dogs. They crave for anything beyond what they have. Their minds are never satisfied to simply be content in the moment, as it were. I tried to fight it, Julius, I really did. Sitting alone in that cage, hour after hour, day and night, I tried to calm my mind, to take it to a place of peace and tranquillity. I concentrated on the simple ebb and flow of my breath, and I tried to imagine a blue sky in my mind. I succeeded for a long time, but…the effort required was too great. I grew tired. My mind turned into a raging torrent of animal craving. I kicked out and railed against the bars of my cage, tormenting myself even more. I could not help myself. I…I descended into a pit, my boy, a terrifying pit of despair and hatred and frenzied desire to be free. The Grackacks knew what they were doing to me. They knew imprisonment was the worst thing they could do to one of their own kind.'

‘They didn't suspect that you were something else?'

‘Suspect? That would require imagination, Julius. No, the Grackacks are not very imaginative. Resourceful, yes; cunning, yes. But imaginative? No. They lack the freedom of mind to explore, how shall I put it, possibilities? You saw their judicial system, did you not? They thought you were some kind of supernatural goblin and were going to put an end to you and keep your pocketwatch. That was as far as they wished to go in trying to understand the strange events. In the end, they got my pocketwatch—took it while I was out cold. They're probably poking at it at this very moment in some other timeline, trying to make it do tricks.' He sighed and paused for a few moments before continuing.

‘I suspect they imprisoned me in the human realm so they would not have to answer any awkward questions about goblins and their rescuers to others of their kind. Politics in the Grackack realm is an even more sorry affair than in our own. There are factions waiting to pounce on any show of weakness. If they executed me they would have had to draw up a warrant, and they can do nothing without the correct paperwork, you see. But, to make me disappear? They only had to send me over to the newly found Goblin Realm, for that is what they call us, and their problem disappeared.'

‘I see,' said Julius.

‘Yes, thankfully the Grackacks are strangers to logic and reasoning. It worked in our favour on this occasion, in a manner of speaking. They remind me of the Middle Ages in our own human realm. I have been there on a number of occasions—a frightening time, my boy. They used to put animals on trial, you know. I went to one such case. Very amusing, though not for the piglet concerned of course.'

The professor called for more hot water and they drank more tea. Julius looked out the window. The broken masts of the
Bountiful
could be seen between the top hats of the people milling around outside. Dotted throughout the crowd he could see dazed convicts and crew, both human and clockwork, wandering around like small children lost in a fairground.

‘What do we do now, Professor? This is all a bit of a mess isn't it?'

‘Oh, it's not so bad, Julius. We are in a possible future, remember. I think we can safely make our way out of this timeline without too much concern. But this “Great Exhibition” seems like a wonderful idea. And this building is magnificent. Our own timeline could do with such an event, don't you agree?'

‘I thought we were not supposed to interfere in the flow of events, Professor.'

‘Quite right, my boy. But, I might just mention it to one or two people when I get back, if I have the time.'

‘But what do we do now, Professor?'

‘We'll follow your plan, I think, Julius. We'll time-jump back to before the incursion and fix that Springheel blighter once and for all, leaving our timeline as it should be.'

Julius walked out into the park with the professor leaning on his shoulder.

‘Professor? Can I ask a question about Mr Flynn?' said Julius.

‘Yes, my boy.'

‘Have you known him very long?'

‘Many years. Let me see. We first met in a dark alley. I was seeing off some ruffians sent by the dastardly Count Otto Flick. That was the case of the Crystal Skulls, a very interesting turn of events indeed. Danny Flynn waded in to assist. Not that I needed it but it was thoughtful of him in any case.'

‘So how long ago was that? What year?'

‘Oh, let me think. Gosh, my head is in such a muddle.'

‘Do you know anything about his past?'

They came to an area of open ground near a flowerbed in the colours of the Union Jack. ‘This will do,' said the professor.

‘Do you know anything about him, Professor?'

‘Yes, of course I do. The Guild of Watchmakers does not employ associates unless they are of a certain calibre and standing, you know.'

‘So you know him well?'

‘Of course. His integrity, courage and honesty are beyond question. Why do you ask?'

‘So if he had, I don't know, a secret of some sort, you would know about it?' said Julius taking out Shelley's pocketwatch.

‘We all have secrets, Julius.' The professor looked closely at Julius. ‘Now look here, if you have something to say I would like you to say it. Danny Flynn is especially fond of you. I know that for a fact. Whatever misunderstanding has occurred while I have been imprisoned can easily be settled once we have sorted this little Springheel matter.'

‘He's especially fond of me?'

‘Of course. He was waiting around the corner when I picked up the note and the gold key from you. When was that…'

‘That was Monday 3rd of July in 1837. You appeared in our backyard and enquired about Harrison's diary.'

‘Yes, that's right. I remember now. As soon as he saw that the note was signed by a certain Master Julius Higgins, he said, and I quote, “If that young fellow is in trouble you can count on me, Professor.” He said that he had had a falling out with your grandfather before you were born. They have not spoken since, but he wished to make amends by helping you—by giving you a chance to shine. When you ran away at our meeting at the Thames, it was Danny who insisted on getting you out of harm's way and on you joining us on our little escapade.'

‘It was?'

‘Yes, that's why he visited you in Clements' pawnshop. He wanted to see that you were all right—to persuade you to go home to your grandfather or…to come with us.'

‘Really?'

‘In fact, I had the feeling that what he really wanted was for you to join us on the adventure. We did a good job of reeling you in, didn't we,' said the professor.

‘Oh.'

‘Glad you came then, Julius?'

‘Yes.'

The professor swayed slightly and patted his brow with his handkerchief.

‘Are you all right, Professor?'

‘I'm weary, my boy. Let's get Springheel fixed up and then I'll have a nice long sleep. Now hand me the watch, please.'

‘Are you sure we should be doing this, Professor?'

‘Doing what, my boy?'

‘A time-jump in plain sight?'

‘Of course, of course. It can do no harm. You saw what happened when the
Bountiful
crash landed in Hyde Park. Everyone thought it was all part of the exhibition. One tiny, little display of time-jumping will be one more piece of entertainment to round off the afternoon. Trust me, my boy. Time-travelling can become an overly serious business if we don't allow ourselves a little levity from time to time.' The professor chuckled to himself then breathed in deeply. His plan seemed to be having an invigorating effect.

‘Ladies and gentlemen, gather round, gather round. See the invention of the century,' called out the professor like a barker at a sideshow.