Ripple

by Tui Allen

  ‘Get a bit left behind did we?’ jeered Givan. ‘We’ve big work to do today. You’d better keep out of our way and let the minders look after us.’

  ‘Do you think I’d want to follow at your flukes?’ Ripple said.

  ‘We don’t know what you want,’ said Givan. ‘From what we hear, you don’t either!’

  ‘I’ve got better things to do than follow you around.’

  ‘Yes. We’ve heard how you’re searching for something.’

  Rush, Quin and Flip sniggered. Cosmo looked away.

  The way he said ‘searching’ made Ripple want to attack. But she controlled herself, needing all the restraint she’d learnt from Pearl. She swam away trying to suppress her anger so the boys wouldn’t pick it up. A little further off Ripple stopped and whacked a wave with her flukes. She saw Cosmo watching her and knew he had read her mood.

  Who cares what he thinks!

  Delph arrived back, punching through a steep westerly chop with the two minders, Hadar and Pollux. They were older dolphins and like most minders they had experience of practical astronomy but no longer worked at it.

  ‘I’ll allow Cosmo to travel with you today since you are not going beyond the moon,’ said Delph. He gave them a few last-minute instructions and sent the boys on their mission.

  Ripple remained beside Delph and the minders. She watched the boys make a V formation with Givan in front at the point, Rush and Cosmo to his right and Flip and Quin on the left. They sprinted and slowed, keeping perfect formation, which helped to co-ordinate their minds. The complexity of their moves increased as they settled deeper into their group mind and body alignments, each one taking a turn at controlling the moves. Once they were fully prepared for take-off, they slowed.

  They’re ready, thought Ripple . . . any moment now . . .

  The five dolphins made one final co-ordinated leap and . . . Ripple could almost see it happen as though their minds had leapt higher than their bodies, and gone on their way, without physical encumbrance. Their bodies slowed, with only essential brain areas operating. Ripple stayed close to the group as Delph had recommended. Hadar and Pollux took up their positions around the now-absent boys. When one began to drift too far away, Pollux gently nosed him back to the others. When one seemed to have gone too long without breathing, Hadar guided him to the surface and used penetrative sounds to stimulate his breathing zones.

  Ripple waited alongside Delph. She suddenly felt left out and almost regretted that she hadn’t studied astronomy well enough to be allowed to join in such an adventure.

  Love those sounds the minders make to get them to breathe. They could be useful.

  ‘I’m leaving now,’ said Delph. ‘You’re permitted to swim with the absent ones and let their minders keep you safe in your own work.’

  Ripple watched Delph departing and wanted to chase after him.

  Hadar said, ‘Feel free to start your work. Delph has asked us to give you the same care we give the boys.’

  Still she hesitated.

  ‘My work is different from theirs. I don’t travel away in mind.’

  ‘We’ve been told your mind becomes as lost within you, as theirs becomes lost in space, so don’t swim away. You’ll be safer here.’

  ‘My work is chaos to others. You may be bothered by it.’

  ‘You can relax with us. Hearing unusual brain activity is a normal part of our task.’

  It reassured her. She calmed a little and looked at the world around her.

  The southeast wind is fresh, a cross current making the waves leap; hear them hiss. Listen to the heartbeats of the absent dolphins . . . slow . . . slower . . . someone breathed; little Flip I think.

  She began to re-arrange the sounds including the distant boom of the surf on the beach of a nearby island. She was sliding at last into working mode.

  Her emotional relaxation deepened. She swam near the astronomy group but not among them. The first few quiet notes entered her mind and she arranged them into trills and flurries which grew gently into flowering fountains of sound as she surrounded herself with music of her own creation.

  The minders noticed that she seemed more comfortable working apart from the boys, so Hadar took it upon himself to watch her, leaving Pollux to concentrate on the others.

  ‘I’ll be within call,’ he said to Pollux.

  As Hadar followed her, he soon noticed the chaotic brainwaves building and fading. He wondered what was going on in her mind. Was it madness as the rumours suggested or was it just something no one understood?

  Then he noticed an aspect of her work very different from the ways of the astronomers. Their bodies moved slowly while their minds were far away, but this girl went through various phases of movement ranging from slowness very like the astronomers, to highly energetic displays of gymnastic skill. No wonder she preferred to keep separate from the boys. It was dazzling.

  With chaos pouring from her mind, Ripple flung herself into a fantasy of fluid movement, leaping as Hadar had never seen a dolphin leap; spinning and rolling in rhythmic patterns of grace and power.

  His years of practice at dealing with preoccupied minds helped him to cope with the task of guiding without distracting her, so that her gymnastics did not take them too far away.

  After an hour the minders exchanged roles.

  ~~~

  On this first day of Ripple’s working alongside them, the boys travelled a short astral voyage mostly within the confines of Azure’s atmosphere. They circled the globe in various directions, flying in and out of night and day to practice navigation skills Delph had taught them. They crossed blazing deserts, mountain ranges, steaming rainforests and both the frozen poles. Navigating was Givan’s responsibility but Delph expected all five to understand the process. Givan as leader was also responsible for the overall care of the group. The boys included a quick trip into inner space orbiting the moon once before returning to Azure over a northern hemisphere landmass. They soared in a curving southward course back to the Northern Islands where their bodies waited. The whole session took no more than two hours.

  Once he knew the boys had returned, Hadar informed Delph by distance thoughtstream. Pollux, being truly adept at his task, interrupted Ripple without causing stress or shock. He swam back with her to rejoin the others for the wind-up of the day’s activities. Delph was there already and discussing their trip with the boys. In late afternoon sunlight, the eight males set off towards the main school with Ripple listening in close behind.

  ‘We had a race with the daylight!’ said Flip. ‘We raced the sunrise over a whole continent and then we turned on our flukes and went back into the night to see what the animals did on land in the dark. Some scurried into holes and some lay on the hard ground, (that must feel so bad!) and some started hunting, just like we do at sea.’

  ‘Well observed, Flip,’ said Delph. ‘I promise you most land creatures would be almost as frightened in the deep ocean at night as you would be to lie on the hard ground. What did you all think of the moon trip?’

  ‘Journey score one hundred percent. Destination, two percent,’ Quin said.

  Delph laughed. ‘Dolphins rarely find much to admire in a lunarscape. How was the navigation Givan?’

  ‘It went smoothly. Quin’s data was spot on and we took turns, as you required.’

  ‘Cosmo?’ said Delph.

  Cosmo had never been into space before and was still not quite ready to speak of the experience, but he rallied at Delph’s query.

  ‘This was the highlight for me.’ He shared a picture of the blue planet floating huge against a background of space and stars.

  Ripple felt a wave of music rise at the scene he’d painted on her mind. She crushed it down. This was no time for disruption.

  ‘Well done all of you. And Ripple? How did your work go?’

  She hesitated.

  ‘I was very satisfied with what I created. ’

  ‘Hadar streamed me that your methods were visually spectacular and you
showed commitment to your mysterious task.’

  Delph dismissed them and he and Ripple swam away to their families. The boys did not immediately split up.

  ‘What was all that about?’ said Rush.

  ‘No idea,’ said Givan, ‘What commitment does she have?’

  ‘Her task is certainly mysterious,’ said Rush, ‘He was right about that.’

  Cosmo was also puzzled by Delph’s comments but his curiosity was aroused. How could a girl like her have been ‘spectacular’ enough to impress a minder who’d travelled to the stars?

  ~~~

  Months passed. Ripple worked alongside the absent bodies of the astronomers, becoming relaxed and productive under the care of the minders. Her music developed well. During the workouts that preceded the astronomy sessions, Ripple stayed out of the boys’ zone sensing their need to bond without distraction from anyone outside. Even Delph now rarely trained with them in person for this reason. She usually swam out of sight in an opposite direction, returning for the start of the main session. She didn’t begin her work until the boys departed astrally, to avoid unsettling them.

  The daily physical training was not as vital to her since she worked hard physically during her work sessions. She soon came to think of it as free time and often picked up a snack. The boys came to accept her presence, once they realised she wasn’t likely to push herself into their working zones.

  Outside of the astronomy class, the boys had other classes to attend and so did Ripple. Having found her vocation, she was not a perfect student, often skipping classes that interested her little, such as mathematics. She did continue to take interest and achieve well in poetry, history, and home-based astronomy since these enriched and inspired her music.

  The boys suspicion of Ripple dissipated but their understanding of her had little chance to grow. The nature of their work meant that although they worked side by side they could hardly have been further apart.

  Delph required all the boys to take a turn as minders. He was now occasionally sending them to inner space to explore other parts of the solar system. Cosmo was not allowed beyond the moon’s orbit, so when the team took these more distant routes he stayed behind as extra minder alongside Hadar and Pollux. At these times, Cosmo hid his disappointment well.

  ~~~

  Read on, or if desired . . .

  Return to Table of Contents

  Chapter 17: Io Mission

  Givan, Rush, Quin and Flip soared through the dust rings of Jupiter on course for Jupiter’s moon Io, in orbit beyond the rings.

  Io expanded before them; about the same size as Azure’s moon but without craters; just a rocky surface of pitted plains dotted with towering mountains. The only liquids were lakes and rivers of boiling lava. Quin became absorbed in estimating the temperatures of features he saw. Rush translated Quin’s figures for Flip’s benefit:

  ‘Hot enough to turn a whale to cinders.’

  ‘Colder than the South Pole.’

  They cruised above Io’s surface. Its harsh colours contrasted with the soft caramel swirls of Jupiter covering most of the sky above.

  ‘The crust of this world is thin,’ said Givan. ‘And the tides so strong, they drag the land around. Look!’

  An area of rock bulged visibly.

  ‘Is it a tidal bulge?’ asked Flip.

  ‘No, it’s volcanic action, caused by those tides though. It’s about to blow. This’ll be a story to take home.’

  ~~~

  Back on Azure, Hadar and Cosmo kept their eyes on a group of sharks prowling nearby. The sharks were non-threatening, cruising deep and seeking smaller prey than dolphin. Nevertheless, they kept themselves between the sharks and the absent astronomers.

  Pollux arrived back and Cosmo went to take his place guarding Ripple a few minutes swim away. That was when the minders noticed a change in the sharks’ behaviour. They were now moving in lazy circles, rising slowly, directly below the dolphins. Time to recall the astronomy team.

  ~~~

  The bulge on the surface of Io swelled upwards. Rocks tumbled and bounced as the crust stretched like a mountainous monster trying to escape an underground prison. A great fissure ripped across the bulge, an evil mouth opening to grin at them. It vomited red-hot rock in vertical rivers that jetted past them into the sky. Clouds of soot from the lava fountain blackened the colours of Jupiter above. The volcano couldn’t harm them in their bodiless state, but Givan knew it could endanger them emotionally. He began a hurried team-check.

  ‘Rush, rock-stable as always, Quin, hardly distracted from his calculations. Flip? . . .’

  Givan felt a sudden tug. Something was dragging at him.

  ‘Recall!’

  The fires and volcanoes of Io vanished in an instant and Jupiter became a fleck of light in the black sky. Cool water lapped their skin as they thumped back into their bodies on Azure.

  ~~~

  We were impressed by the speed of the dolphins’ response to the emergency, both on Io and on Azure, but we’d noticed a problem they had not yet picked up for themselves; a problem more worrying than sharks, and the absence of Delph and Cosmo.

  ~~~

  ‘Where’s Cosmo?’ said Givan.

  ‘He’s bringing Ripple in,’ said Hadar.

  Rush located Ripple and Cosmo approaching from the north-east. They arrived, a bewildered Ripple still clearing veils of music from her brain.

  ‘We’ve called for fighters to back us up,’ said Pollux.

  ‘We may not need them,’ said Givan. ‘No point fighting now we’re together. We can out-swim them; let’s go.’

  A large shark chose that moment to charge. Ripple leapt in fright as it lunged past her towards Flip.

  ‘Flip!’ shouted Givan. Flip did not respond. Givan deflected the shark just in time with a clumsy sideswipe.

  If this is how they defend themselves, thought Cosmo, I’ll have no option but to help out.

  The minders rushed to Flip’s side.

  ‘He’s not back!’ said Hadar.

  ~~~

  Sterne and I were glad someone had noticed at last. Flip was alone beside an Ionian volcano while sharks targeted his body on Azure.

  ~~~

  The discovery gave Givan no option.

  ‘We can’t leave Flip,’ he said. ‘We stay and fight!’

  ‘We have two minders, three astronomers, one untrained female and Cosmo,’ said Quin. ‘Will that be enough until the fighters arrive?’

  ‘One less,’ said Givan. ‘I have to go back to Io for Flip.’

  ‘We’re not allowed into space alone,’ Rush reminded him.

  ‘No choice,’ said Givan. ‘Failed recall shock could kill Flip at any moment. He and I need the rest of you to protect us until we get back. Ripple and Cosmo, first priority is to evade sharks that approach you. Help to fight if you can. At least try not to get in the way.’

  Cosmo did not respond.

  Givan positioned his body beside Flip’s and attempted to return to Io, but his survival reflexes kicked in. The shark threat made it impossible for him to relax enough to escape his body. The harder he tried the more he tensed. Quin thumped away a shark that approached open-mouthed from beneath.

  ‘I can’t get away!’ said Givan.

  ‘Give me the navigation figures,’ said Cosmo. ‘I think I could manage it.’

  Givan glanced at the hungry sharks and shook off his hesitation.

  ‘Give him the figures, Quin.’

  Cosmo felt the data bullet thump into his brain.

  ‘Once you’re on Io, the volcano is easy to find,’ said Quin. ‘It’s the only one erupting in the leading half of the subjovian hemisphere.’

  Cosmo employed the fighter’s technique of relaxing the mind to control the body under stress. It was the work of a moment. He over-rode the survival reflex and took off for Io. It was clear to all of them that he’d gone.

  ‘How could he do it when I couldn’t?’ asked Givan as he turned to face the fray.

 
The astro team were strong and fit but had only rudimentary training in the arts of defence and attack. Ripple had none whatever and the minders were old dolphins; cunning but no longer as efficient as they’d been. And now there were two absent astronomers to guard.

  More sharks arrived. Ripple evaded one that charged her. The sharks had not yet noticed Cosmo’s absence and were still targeting Flip. Quin deflected another hit on Flip at the same moment as both Givan and Pollux evaded interested sharks. No blood flowed so battle pace was slow.

  The dolphins split into two groups. One contained Flip, Quin, Givan and Pollux; the other had Ripple, Rush, Hadar and Cosmo.

  ‘We must protect ourselves,’ ordered Givan. ‘But co-operate to protect Flip.’ He streamed a message across the gap. ‘Rush, your lot do the same for Cosmo.’

  At first the sharks seemed more interested in the group containing Flip. But they quickly noticed Cosmo’s vulnerability. Cosmo’s group soon had as many sharks circling them as Flip’s. Rush dodged a charge and deflected an attack on Cosmo. Cosmo began sinking. Ripple nudged him upwards and made sure he took a breath while a shark swam close below both of them. Her flipper touched its gritty skin as it passed. The speed of the sharks’ open-mouthed charges increased.

  ~~~

  From our vantage point in The Hereafter we divided our attention between sharks threatening dolphins on Azure and events on Jupiter’s moon Io.

  ~~~

  Cosmo navigated into the zone of Io’s orbit of Jupiter. He found Io, then easily located the erupting volcano which created a beacon so perfect he had no need of co-ordinates. Molten lava still roared from the gaping fissure on Io’s surface. He sent out wide-range thoughtstreams to locate Flip. There was no response.

  Recall shock must have stunned him, he thought.

  He sent stream after stream into the ash-blackened space over Io’s surface.

  ‘Flip! Where are you? Wake up!’

  At last he heard a weak response from a dense cloud of volcanic ash close to the eruption. There it was again – a wisp of intellectual existence trying to assert itself. Cosmo entered the cloud and homed in on the signal. Flip was half-conscious, but trying to drag himself awake. Cosmo streamed reassurance. Moments passed before Flip’s first blurry thoughtstream.