4, p.7
4, page 7
Sam stood, squinting against the sunset. Suddenly there was movement, coming towards them. A big mass, as high as the wall of the temple.
‘What is it?’ Tobias said, standing next to him.
It took Sam a little while to make him out, but then he knew at once who it was. He’d dreamed this.
Sam smiled.
The next Dreamer was here. Number four.
Poh.
22
ALEX
‘What’s happening?’ Alex asked, breathless from running up to the command bridge. Hans was there. The ship’s crew looked spooked. The German Guardians had their weapons drawn.
‘That,’ Hans said. He pointed to a couple of dots in the sky.
‘What are they?’ Alex asked.
‘Drones,’ Hans replied. ‘They’ve found us. They just did a fly-by, and now they’re coming back around out there to come in on an attack run.’
‘Drones?’ Alex said, looking at the aircraft as they banked around in the sky to turn towards them. ‘Who do they belong to?’
‘Stella,’ Hans said.
‘Why don’t you just go stealth?’ Alex said.
‘We have,’ Hans replied. ‘That’s why I think it’s her. She’s the one most likely to have the hardware to see through our invisibility tech.’
‘Then what do we do?’ Alex said. He could see that the crewman at the wheel was turning the ship around so that the back, the bow, was to the attacking drones, presenting a smaller target.
‘We brace ourselves,’ Hans said. ‘And we fight!’ He motioned his armed men to go out to the decks so that they could counter-attack the aircraft.
‘But not you, Alex!’ Hans said. ‘You must go to the engine room. Now, go!’
‘But—’
‘It’s the safest place. Go!’
Hans shoved Alex towards the stairs and he raced down, meeting Dr Kader on the landing, and together they went down to the engine room. It was in the centre of the ship, below the waterline, with hallways and storage at either side that would form protection against their attackers. A crewman was there, working hard to get more speed out of the ship’s engines.
‘Can we help?’ Alex asked.
The man just shook his head, leaning back and rubbing grime and grease from his hands, then motioning them to a small area with a few chairs bolted to the floor and arranged around a small table.
Dr Kader sat down, his heavy leather bag filled with his most precious notes and artefacts clutched tight across his chest. The lights above still flashed red, and the alarm rang loudly in Alex’s ears as he took a seat.
And waited.
What will it be like, when those drones start shooting at us?
What will happen to the ship?
‘It’ll be alright, Alex,’ Dr Kader said, reading Alex’s expression. ‘This is a strong vessel—the hull is made for breaking through ice, the steel is strong. We will be OK.’
Alex nodded.
Then the sound of gunfire pierced the air.
Even down in the engine room, four levels below the deck and with the two big engines running at full speed, Alex could make out the sound of the German Guardians’ machine guns. It was not the pitter-patter sound of calculated shots. It was a frenzy.
Are they shooting at those aircraft? Could a small handheld weapon possibly shoot one of those things from the sky?
For a moment, Alex’s mind drifted back to the time when he was in Berlin, racing to help Sam, who was trapped in a fierce firefight between Stella’s and Hans’ forces.
And it’s still the same. They’re still fighting each other.
KLAP-BOOM!
The explosion rocked the Ra, the soundwaves shuddering through the ship, shaking everything loose to the floor.
KLAP-BLOOSH!
‘What was that?’ Dr Kader asked the crewman.
‘A missile,’ Alex replied. ‘One hit the deck above. Another hit the water.’
‘Missiles?’ Dr Kader said.
Alex nodded.
A radio squawked and the crewman picked it up, listened, then rushed from the room saying something about having to fight a fire topside.
‘You have heard a missile before?’ Dr Kader asked.
‘Yes,’ Alex said, recalling the time he was on the Enterprise helicopter that had been shot from the sky. ‘I had a close call.’
Dr Kader looked grim as anxious minutes ticked by.
‘It’s OK,’ Alex said, standing up. ‘Listen …’
Aside from the incessant alarm, there was nothing but the sound of the engines working hard.
‘You think that they’re gone?’ Dr Kader asked.
Alex waited, shrugged, then went over to the ship’s internal radio system and picked up the receiver. It was dead, there was not even static on the line.
‘Should we go back up?’ Dr Kader said. ‘See the damage?’
‘I don’t know,’ Alex said, looking at the door that led to the steel stairs.
‘Maybe we need to evacuate—we could be sinking,’ Dr Kader said. ‘I mean, we might not know …’
A shiver ran down Alex’s spine at the thought of having to leave the large ship in the middle of the ocean and make do on a tiny life raft.
‘You said this ship was built strong,’ Alex said. ‘You changing your mind now?’
‘Ships and fires don’t mix,’ Dr Kader said.
Alex swallowed hard. He looked at the engines. Each was the size of a single bed, each shiny and well-maintained and vibrating fast as it continued to produce its maximum power. ‘We can’t risk it,’ he said. ‘Those aircraft might just have passed and are doing a big turn through the sky like they did before, getting ready to make another pass at us.’
‘So we wait,’ Dr Kader said, leaning back and clutching his case.
Alex sat down on the chair and braced himself, preparing for the worst.
23
SAM
Poh rode into the Angkor Wat temple complex on an elephant. The majestic beast swayed gently as it walked in with huge, lolling steps. As Poh slid from its back, the enormous animal stopped to drink water from the moat. Poh threw open the huge baskets on the animal’s back to bring it food. He scurried around the animal, tending to it, checking it over, talking to it and giving it a pat on the head and a treat of bananas.
‘It’s beautiful,’ Sam said to Poh, coming over to stand by the elephant.
‘She is magnificent,’ Poh replied. ‘I call her Dara—it means star, or precious, in my language.’
‘I’m Sam,’ Sam said, ‘and this is my friend, Tobias.’ He pointed to Tobias who waved genially as he strolled over, his casual manner concealing his alertness.
‘You are much taller in person,’ Poh said to Sam. Poh himself was only up to Sam’s shoulder, slightly built, wearing oversized shorts and a sloppy yellow t-shirt, which was ripped in places and looked like it had never had a wash. ‘In my dream, we were looking at one another eye-to-eye.’
‘You’ve dreamed about me?’ Sam asked.
‘Many times.’ Poh smiled. ‘Every night for these past twenty nights.’
‘That’s incredible,’ Sam said, and he looked to Tobias, who shrugged. ‘Poh, have you dreamed of us finding a Gear?’
‘Gear?’ Poh said. He picked up some tightly bound branches, undid the twine and fed it to the elephant, stroking it gently as he did so. It had now attracted a large crowd of the last tourists who posed with it and took happy snaps. Tobias did his best to keep the crowd at bay.
‘A brass disc,’ Sam said, keeping close to Poh. ‘A brass disc with teeth, or cogs, all around the edges. Like the gear on a bicycle.’
‘Ah, yes,’ Poh said. ‘A gear.’
‘Yes, you have seen it?’ Sam replied.
‘I have seen plenty of bicycles. But I only ride elephants.’
‘I mean a brass disc, in your dreams. That’s what you are meant to have a dream of.’
‘No,’ Poh replied. ‘I have not seen such a thing. But I do know what you mean. I will dream of it soon.’
‘We need to find it.’
‘I know.’
Sam was confused. ‘How do you know?’
‘Because we had this conversation, in my dream,’ Poh said. ‘Which is lucky for you, because now you are saved the trouble of explaining my destiny to me, because I already know.’ He beamed a dazzling smile, displaying unbelievably white teeth as he tied an old rope around the foot of the elephant and tethered it to a metal stake that he pushed into the ground.
‘I don’t think that rope or stake will hold her,’ Sam said, imagining the elephant would have no trouble pulling out the stake or breaking the rope and simply walking off.
‘It’s not meant to,’ Poh replied. ‘She knows to stay here, with me, and this is just a reminder to her, so that in the night she doesn’t wander too far. She is a good elephant—she never tries to run off.’
‘I see,’ Sam said.
‘We will camp here,’ Poh replied. Guards were dispersing the tourists, emptying the temple for the night.
‘I’m not sure we are allowed to,’ Sam said, as a couple of security officers walked over their way.
‘I will talk to them,’ Poh said, his voice peaceful. He ambled over and spoke quietly to the guards, pointing back to the elephant and his two new friends. The security guys nodded and continued to empty the temple complex of the remaining sightseers.
‘OK?’ Tobias asked Poh.
‘We can stay,’ Poh replied.
‘They don’t mind?’
‘Why would they mind?’ Poh said, and he went to a large rucksack and brought out equipment to make camp.
Sam and Tobias shared a look and this time Sam shrugged. ‘Stranger things have happened, I guess.’
24
EVA
The roar of the crowd was deafening as Eva, Zara and Xavier re-entered the arena, this time dressed in their red Stealth Suits.
At least we look the part now.
Xavier waved to the spectators, who filled every seat in the four sections. He smiled and called out to well-wishers, looking every inch like he belonged there. Zara had been swept up in his enthusiasm during their prep time and was equally as charming.
And that’s our team covered for being good sports, then. Let’s hope they get focused in the comp so we can find those Gears and get out of there. Meanwhile I’ve got to fend the others off for the prize.
Eva glanced nervously at the other competitors as they shook hands and smiled for the official photographs. A dark-haired boy from the South-West quadrant leaned over to her. ‘My name is Juan, a pleasure to meet you, Eva,’ he said, shaking her hand vigorously. ‘I look forward to beating your team in the Doors. We may not be last 13, but we are powerful Dreamers, all the same.’
Eva looked into his face and saw no malice, only what she suspected was an overdeveloped sense of competition and quite possibly jealousy. ‘I look forward to proving you wrong, Juan.’ She forced herself to beam her best smile.
Zara appeared to be getting along famously with one of the South-East team, laughing at some joke the small girl from Indonesia was telling her. Xavier was already surrounded by a gaggle of admirers and was signing autographs.
How come I’m the one who cops the unfriendly guy?
She sighed and tried to ooze confidence and edged towards Lora for support.
‘It’s OK,’ Lora soothed, reading Eva’s expression. ‘Friendly banter and competition is all part of the game. Stay focused on your mission to keep the construct open for the others.’
‘You’re right,’ Eva said. ‘I will, I’ll do my best.’
‘Of course you will,’ Lora replied. ‘That’s why we chose you.’
Without much more ceremony, which Eva suspected was largely orchestrated by Lora who seemed as eager as she for the contest to begin, Zhang announced the prize to find that year was a small handheld mirror. He displayed an image of the ornate silver object to all the teams, then promptly announced the Four Corners Competition open.
They were ushered to their respective seats and technicians fussed around them, getting them ready. The North-East quadrant would be driving the dream as the previous year’s winners. Their leader was a tall, wiry girl called Imena. She smiled broadly at Eva as they settled into their chairs for the comp.
They obviously know who we are. Does that mean they’ll go easy on us or . .?
‘Remember, Dreamers,’ Zhang was saying, ‘you must trust the construct—let go of your subconscious mind and let it guide you to your prize. Fight hard, fight fair and may the best Dreamers win!’
The crowd burst into applause.
Eva gave Lora a final look before they went under. The last thing she remembered was seeing Lora’s face smiling back at her and watching the flags waving high above their heads fade into a dreamy haze.
25
SAM
‘What is it?’ Sam asked, worried. He’d watched and listened as Tobias spoke on the phone. He’d insisted on touching base with the Professor but Sam could see that whatever news he had was worrying.
‘It’s the Dreamer Doors—’ Tobias began.
‘Eva?’
‘She’s …’ Tobias looked like he was struggling to explain it. ‘She’s fine, they all are, but someone has taken over the dream construct.’
‘How do they know? Why doesn’t Lora just wake them up?’
‘They can’t. They realised something was wrong almost immediately but it was already too late to wake them. They’re working with all the technicians now to try to bring them out. Until then, all the competitors are still in there. They probably don’t even realise something is wrong. But with unknown elements involved, who knows what might happen. We have to trust that they’ll get them all out.’
‘Stella?’ Sam shuddered.
‘Maybe.’
‘It has to be Stella! Those Tesla Coils she was researching—she can access the Dreamscape with them.’
‘No, it can’t be the Coils, we’ve got those locked down. Shiva’s there, along with a couple of dozen armed Enterprise Agents. No way would they let them fall into Stella’s hands again.’
‘Then how else is she doing it?’
‘Some way that we haven’t discovered yet.’
‘And Eva? What will happen to her and the others?’
‘She’ll remain asleep until she finds her own way out of the construct.’
‘What?’
‘That’s how a dream construct works—once you are in there, the only safe way out of it is to choose the exit yourself.’
Sam didn’t know what to say. He felt sick in his stomach for his friends.
‘That’s why dream constructs are not used in any other circumstance, and why the Dreamer Doors are accessed by only the most capable Dreamers.’
‘But Eva, Zara and Xavier weren’t chosen because they were the most-skilled Dreamer students but because we wanted them to use the construct to help find the missing Gears, isn’t that right?’ Sam queried.
Tobias looked worried. He nodded.
‘Damn it!’ Sam said and stormed off. He grit his teeth and clenched his fists.
What can I do? What can we do?
Surely Lora can figure it out, the Professor too. But how?
‘There is trouble?’ Poh asked. Concern creased his face.
Sam looked at the newest Dreamer. Poh’s peaceful eyes stared back.
‘Some of my friends are in trouble,’ Sam said.
‘Can you help them?’ Poh asked.
‘I don’t think I can,’ Sam replied.
Can I?
‘Maybe you can help them find a solution,’ Poh said, ‘in your dream, tonight? You can talk to them, just as you talked to me in my dreams and told me to come here.’
Sam was taken aback. ‘Maybe I can …’
Poh smiled.
‘What did we talk about in your dream?’ Sam asked Poh.
Poh looked back at his elephant which was now relaxing after being fed and watered.
‘Life, family, dreams,’ Poh said. ‘The last thing that you were asking me about was fear.’
‘Fear?’
‘Yes. You explained that you were afraid of fire. I told you my fear—that I was afraid of stepping on cracks. Such a silly superstition, I don’t know why I let it bother me. Sometimes when the big things feel like too much, the smaller things become easier to fear. Right?’
Sam looked down at Poh’s feet. He stood on the cobbled ground of the temple complex, lined with joins and cracks.
‘See,’ Poh said, looking up from his feet and meeting Sam’s gaze. There was a sureness there that Sam took comfort in. ‘You helped me in my dream. Now you can help others.’
26
ALEX
‘This is a map made in 1513, known as the Piri Reis map,’ Dr Kader said. ‘Piri Reis’ own commentary indicates that some of his source maps were from the time of Alexander the Great in 332 BC.’
‘Ah, yeah, that’s cool,’ Alex replied. It had been five minutes since the missiles had gone off. Five minutes, and nothing since. The alarms still sounded and the lights still flashed. The engines still ran at full power. No-one, not Hans, nor any of the crew, had reappeared.
But all was quiet.
Too quiet.
But Alex could see that Ahmed Kader’s default position in times of stress was to talk, to get his mind off the here and now. So he’d taken some papers from his bag and was showing them to Alex, who did his best to feign interest in the face of a history lecture.
‘It’s more than cool,’ Dr Kader said with a chuckle. ‘It is a pre-modern world map compiled in 1513, long before one could calculate longitude with any certainty.’
‘So you’re telling me that …’ Alex’s voice trailed off as he heard what he thought was more gunfire, but it turned out to be one of the engines starting to backfire. He went over to it. ‘What do we do?’
Dr Kader joined him.
The engine was starting to shake on its mounts, something was clearly wrong with it. Thick black-blue smoke started to pour from it.
