by Ralph Kern
The three of them were seated in the lounge of the Reynolds’s suite. The older man next to her, holding her hand earnestly, while Jack sat across from them on the opposite sofa.
“You know I don’t like you using that kind of language,” John Reynolds admonished half-heartedly.
“Daddy, we’re on a ship, completely lost. We’ve come under pirate attack and you’re worried about a thirty-year-old woman’s language?”
“Your point is taken.” Reynolds leaned back.
“So what now?” Laurie said, looking between the admiral and Jack.
“We’re going to throw our lot in with the Navy ship. They can protect us from any more attacks until we figure out how to get out of this mess,” Jack said.
“And you say they’ve been here for two years?” Laurie said. “How the hell can that be?”
“There’s a lot we don’t know,” the older man replied. “You’re the science teacher. Maybe you could help figure that out.”
“Don’t patronize me,” Laurie said, standing and walking to the window. She gazed at the sun setting next to the island. “A sixth form teacher isn’t going to be able to figure this out.”
“Maybe, maybe not. But we don’t know how long we’re going to be here and you’ll have to keep yourself occupied somehow,” Jack cut in.
“And how are you going to keep yourself occupied?” She turned to look at Jack.
“Apparently, I’m the new head of security. According to Captain Solberg, anyway.”
On cue, the LED television switched itself on and Solberg’s face appeared on it.
“To all passengers. I will be making a personal announcement in an hour. I request you all to congregate in the ship’s promenade,” Solberg stated solemnly, looked straight out of the screen. “Captain Solberg, out.”
“Well, looks like he’s decided he’s going to tell everyone.” Reynolds stood up and straightened the shirt and tie he was wearing. “I suggest we go get some good seats for this and see how that... that arsehole breaks the news.”
“Yeah,” Jack said. “And I better go assume my new role and make sure no one decides to throw him overboard.”
***
The cavernous promenade, running nearly the full length of the ship, was filled to capacity. Over four thousand people clustered into the two hundred and fifty-meter-long space, having been summoned there for the important announcement from the captain. The sounds of conversation and revelry washed over the crowd, despite the recent attack.
Solberg stood out of view at one end of the walkway spanning the promenade and clenched his fists, trying to abate his nerves. He was used to speaking publicly, but never in front of this many people, and never with this kind of news.
Slipping off his glasses, he folded them carefully and slipped them into his pocket. Taking a deep breath, he nodded at Matthews, who handed him a wireless microphone.
Walking forward, Solberg reached the center of the span. The bridge was located halfway along the promenade, and he slowly did a full turn, taking in the masses of people. Slowly they began to notice him and quiet began to fall.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I have called this gathering for extraordinary reasons. As you are all aware, the last few days have been eventful for this ship,” Solberg understated matters. “We have recently learned that events are even stranger than we originally thought.”
Solberg looked at the passengers. The quiet had turned to complete silence, with every person hanging on to his words. Carrie Matthews’ written notes were forgotten in his pocket. How could anyone explain that the whole world had simply disappeared?
“Following the terrorist attack, we set course to return to Fort Lauderdale. On arrival to where it should have been, there was nothing. No sign of the Florida coast, and so we continued sailing due west...” Solberg faltered. Rallying himself, he began speaking again. “There was still no sign. Ladies and gentlemen, as far as we can tell, America has simply disappeared.”
A murmuring started in the crowd, a confused buzz emanating from the promenade.
“We have had no contact with anyone from the mainland in days, and no signal from any satellite for our navigation or communication systems.”
The murmur became louder. There were no distinct voices, the crowd had become an amorphous single entity, speaking its confusion and fear. Holding his hand out in a plea for quiet, Solberg continued, “We have now made contact with a United States Navy vessel, the USS Paul Ignatius, who has confirmed they are in the same situation along with several other boats and ships they have encountered. It is our belief that the terrorist attack was from others who have found themselves here as well.”
The crowd had dropped back into silence, staring at him. Solberg turned to face the other way, realizing he’d had his back to half the passengers throughout his announcement.
“Rest assured, with the help of the U.S. Navy, we are protected from further attacks and we will have the support we need to find our way back home. For the time being, we will be remaining by this island until we can establish,” better than saying figure the hell out, Solberg thought, “what is going on. You will continue to have full use of this ship’s magnificent facilities. The only difference you will see is that I have asked the ship’s catering crew to limit the menu options somewhat in the ship’s restaurants. I promise you, this isn’t because we are short of food, it is merely so that we can factor in a small reserve for if this situation continues. I am sure that adequate compensation for any hardship incurred will be claimable upon our return to port. “
The murmuring restarted. Solberg winced inwardly. No matter how he had dressed it up, he was talking about rationing.
“Ladies and gentlemen.” This time, Solberg didn’t wait for quiet to resume. He just wanted to get the hell away from the passengers, back to the safety of the bridge. “I promise you, we will return home soon. You just need to have a little patience.”
With that, Solberg walked back to Matthews. She had a furious look on her face, her carefully written speech totally unused. What she had worked out had been painstakingly considered to minimize any suggestion that they were so badly lost.
“Captain, what the hell was that?” she hissed.
“You try standing in front of thousands of people and telling them America has disappeared,” Solberg said, pushing the microphone into her hands. “I’m going back to the bridge. Put on some music, Carrie. Do your job and keep them entertained while we sort this mess out.”
Red-faced, Matthews turned away as Solberg walked over to Jack. “And you, it’s about time you find out where that kid has disappeared to.”
“The kid?” Jack asked with forced civility.
“Grissom. He’s been missing for two days. Now is not the time to be losing crew. You’re now the head of security—find him.”
“Yes sir.” Jack said confusedly.
“As for the rest of you, we need to figure out just what we’re going to hand over to that Slater woman for her ‘protection’.” Solberg held his two forefingers up, mimicking speech marks.
***
Well, they ain’t happy at all, Grayson thought as he stood in the middle of the crowd, sipping from a beer bottle. The reaction of the crowd ranged from near hysteria to terrified to, well as near as Grayson could figure, vague disinterest.
“Do you think its terrorism? Maybe they’ve nuked America, and that’s why it’s disappeared?” one old lady said in tears.
“I’ve got to contact my kids!” a man said, frantically trying in vain to get a call through on his mobile phone.
“I can’t think of a better place to be stuck,” a young woman shrugged resignedly, taking a sip on her wine glass.
“My god, we’re lost,” an elderly man said.
Yup, you most definitely are, and welcome to the club. Grayson remembered his first few days, weeks, and even months in this place. How he went from scared to depressed, to resigned. Finally, he had been given a purpose by those who had found h
im, bobbing in a life jacket after... after that day. To find new targets for the increasingly desperate pirates he had fallen in with. And then, of course, there was Kristen...
Not for the first time, he thought his lot was better on board this ship. If it were only himself he had to worry about, he would have probably just stuck with the Atlantica and kept up the guise that he had been found adrift rather than planted in the arrival zone as a scout. Unfortunately, he had his wife and child back on Titan, and that changed things for him—a lot.
Making his way through the simmering crowd, he exited the promenade and threaded through the corridors until he reached the muster deck near where he had murdered Grissom. Glancing around, ensuring he was alone, he pulled the CB radio out of his pocket.
“Rain,” Grayson gave the code word to show it was him speaking. A security measure he had instituted when he had begun scouting for Vaughan and Bautista.
“Desert,” the correct response came after a moment.
“We’re staying with the Ignatius,” Grayson said.
“Good,” the reply was prompt. “I have a new set of instructions for you. They come from the man himself.”
Chapter 18 – Day 5
“I must say, I’m glad you decided to stay.” Commander Slater gazed at them from her seat at the conference table.
“For the moment, it seems like the sensible option until we can properly evaluate our situation,” Solberg replied.
“While you decide to remain with us, the Ignatius will offer you our protection, of course.”
“For a price,” Solberg said, looking her straight in her eyes.
“For a price,” Slater replied with the slightest of smiles. “Captain Solberg, I can tell what you are thinking. The Ignatius has turned into a mercenary vessel, offering her services out to whoever can pay. The situation is more complex than that.”
“Enlighten us,” Solberg rested his elbows on the table, steepling his fingers.
“It’s as I was saying before. In an ideal world, the military is paid for out of U.S. tax dollars,” she said calmly. “It is not a free commodity; it is merely free at point of use. All told, defense spending accounts for around sixteen cents in every dollar you give the federal tax man.”
“Thank you for the economics lesson,” Solberg said testily. “Although I must say, I consider this the point of use.”
“My point, Captain,” Slater said, ignoring his barbed comment, “is that if you want defense, it needs to be paid for. This isn’t so my crew and I can live like kings and queens, I assure you. It’s so I can keep my ship running.”
“So what do you want?” Reynolds cut in from his position next to Solberg.
“Fuel is my main concern. Without fuel I can’t even run my generators, let alone sail my ship. Food is also an issue. Potable water is something we’re always on the edge of running out of. I have a crew of three hundred twenty officers and crew, and another two hundred persons who have fallen under our protection prior to your arrival.”
“How are you feeding them now?” Reynolds asked.
“We have some farming facilities set up on Nest Island. We supplement that with fishing the local area using a pair of trawlers who have joined with us.”
“That island is hardly huge,” Reynolds said. “I’m no farmer, but it must struggle to support you.”
“Yes it does, Admiral. Like with our water reclamation and distillation facilities, we’re constantly on the edge.”
Reynolds leaned back, a frown on his face. “Commander, we’re bringing to the island the better part of six thousand people. Now, I’m hoping and praying that whatever situation we’re in will resolve itself relatively quickly and we can all go home, but if it goes on for any amount of time and we exhaust Atlantica’s stocks...”
“Then we’ll starve,” Slater said simply.
“That is hardly worth giving up our fuel for. A slow lingering death,” Solberg spoke up. “We’d be better off just taking our chances and sailing on.”
“You are the most significant vessel that has arrived in this area,” Slater said. “With your resources and our capabilities, we will have many more options than we have now.”
“It strikes me that you need us more than we need you.” Solberg grinned.
“Captain, without us those pirates will follow you to hell and back to get your vessel. You may have fought off an opportunistic assault on your ship by one of their scouts, but you will not survive against a concerted and planned attack.”
“Okay,” Reynolds said, holding his hands up. “So let’s be clear. We need you for defense, you need us for provision. The question is—and let’s assume we are stuck here—what do we do with our... alliance?”
“Our objectives should be to establish where we are, why we are out of contact, and get our asses home,” Slater said. “Failing that, we will need to find a large enough landmass to sustain us indefinitely until we can service those objectives.”
“Let’s concentrate on the assumption we’ll get home,” Solberg replied.
“We can’t just ignore the possibility that may be impossible. Clearly something has happened to the rest of the world,” Reynolds rubbed his chin in concentration.
“I’m not quite willing to write it off yet,” Solberg snapped. “Let us consider a tentative alliance, for the time being.”
“That would be a prudent choice, Captain Solberg.” Slater nodded.
“As a gift, we have a small bowser of aviation fuel. You have helicopters and we don’t. You may as well have that as a... thank you, for the support.”
“Very magnanimous, Captain.”
“As a second gift, Atlantica has the ability to generate a small amount of power through her solar cells. It isn’t much, however it will take the load off your generators and save fuel on just keeping your systems running. We can run auxiliary power lines to Ignatius.”
“That would help immensely, Captain. Thank you.”
“Thirdly, if we are going to ally ourselves with you, we better get to know you, your crew, and the island. May I suggest you host a party? We will, of course, bring a few bottles.”
“My crew has had an enforced state of sobriety for the last two years,” Slater said with a smile. “A party would help with morale.”
“Don’t get me wrong, Commander. I’m not willing to give up any fuel just yet. But one small step at a time, and we’ve got more booze than we know what to do with and we can certainly bring food, as well.”
“Captain, shouldn’t we be rationing?” Kendricks said in a concerned tone.
“Actually, the captain is correct regarding the food,” Matthews responded for Solberg from across the table. “You’d be horrified if you knew just how much food we trash at the end of a cruise as it’s gone off halfway through. I think we could put together a reasonable spread without impacting on our food supply. There’s a lot of stuff we’d have to toss in the next day or so anyway.”
“Absolutely. It will be an efficient use of food stocks and hopefully build morale. Something I think is sorely needed right now,” Reynolds agreed.
Chapter 19 – Day 6
“So you have no idea where this officer is?” Jack asked Kendricks. They were perched on stools at one of the smaller bars on the ship, below decks next to the casino. Since the announcement, the air on the ship was subdued, even more so than what the attack had caused. People were worried; worried for themselves, worried for their homes, and worried for their loved ones.
“Nope,” Kendricks took a swig on his bottle, his left arm still wrapped in a sling. “Last we saw him was the night before the attack. We had sent him to try and use the stars to navigate by, but he never came back to the bridge.”
“And you never checked in with him at the time?”
“It’s not great management, Jack, but it was late and we had lots on,” Kendricks said quietly.
“Okay,” Jack nodded before frowning. “I’m not a cop. I don’t have a clue where to start.”
“The only ex-cops we had on the crew were in the security team. They’re... gone now. And we don’t exactly want to start telling any who might be passengers that we have disappearing crew members.”
“Yeah, I get that. There are more than enough reasons for the passengers to panic without adding more.” A thought occurred to Jack and he pointed at Kendricks’s smartphone, which was set on the bar. “Don’t you all have these phones like the one you gave me?”
“We do, and so did Walt Grissom. It’s been going straight to voicemail for days.”
Jack drummed his fingers on the edge of the bar, racking his brain where to start the ball rolling to find someone on a ship with as much floor space as a respectable town. “Can you track them? I mean, I know my iPhone has a mode where if it gets lost or stolen it can be traced.”
“No, we don’t have that ability. It was the first thing I wondered and I ran it past IT. Apparently for that track to work, it need to triangulate off a number of mobile phone towers. We only have one on the ship which then feeds through the communications array and then back to the mainland. That’s all we needed.”
“Maybe he just decided to end it all... maybe go overboard for some reason?”
“He was a happy guy,” Kendricks said. “I mean he was pissed off that we were lost, but at that point we didn’t know how far up shit creek we actually were.”
“Fair enough.” Jack looked up, and gestured with his beer bottle toward the ceiling. “There’s CCTV all around this ship. Has anyone done a playback yet?”
“No, we haven’t had chance what with the attack. The security staff ran the CCTV and there’s not exactly many of them left.”
“You know, about that...” Jack said, as he flicked his eyes to the few other patrons in the bar. “If we are going to be stuck here for any time, we’re going to have to start giving people jobs. It can’t hurt to regenerate our security force using passengers. Others are bound to have military experience.”
“Regenerate? You mean recruit some new ones?”
