The Broken Sun

by Darrell Pitt

  ‘Please,’ Jack said. ‘We want to help you.’

  The stranger lay back down on his bunk, his lips moving as if reading words on the ceiling.

  ‘What’s wrong with them?’ Jack asked Scarlet.

  ‘I don’t know. It’s as if their minds have been affected.’

  ‘From the war?’

  ‘Possibly. Many men were left shell shocked from battle. They suffered a kind of mental trauma from the stress of being in such a terrible environment.’

  ‘But what are they doing here?’ Jack asked. ‘They should be in a hospital.’

  ‘Could they be part of Darrow’s plan?’ Scarlet’s eyes went wide. ‘Could they be the men he uses in his machines?’

  ‘They must be! Darrow must have kidnapped them from the battlefields and brainwashed them.’

  The thought was horrible. If Jack was right, these men had been kept in captivity for years. Injured in battle and scarred by their experiences in the war, they has been brought here to further manipulate their minds.

  ‘What will we do?’ Jack asked.

  ‘First things first,’ Scarlet replied. ‘Let’s get out of here.’ She produced her lock pick and undid the cell door.

  Jack crossed to Phillip’s cell, placing his face near the bars.

  ‘Phillip,’ he said. ‘My name is Jack. I’m a friend of your father. I want you to come with us.’

  Phillip had been staring unfocused at the floor. His eyes now shifted to the ceiling. ‘Father,’ he whispered.

  ‘Jack,’ Scarlet said, gently touching his arm. ‘We can’t take Phillip.’ She motioned to his damaged legs. ‘Not without a wheelchair.’

  ‘Phillip,’ Jack called. ‘Can you move? Can you travel with us?’

  But he still didn’t answer.

  ‘We’re coming back for you, Phillip,’ Jack said. ‘We’ll get you out of here. Your father is waiting. He’s been waiting for years.’

  ‘Jack.’ Scarlet pulled at his arm. ‘We have to go.’

  Jack turned to all the men. ‘We’re coming back for you. You’re going home. You’re all going home.’

  Scarlet had eased open the door and peered through. A man sat on the other side, reading a newspaper. Leckie.

  ‘Excuse me,’ Jack said.

  Leckie looked up in amazement.

  ‘Is this the way to Piccadilly Circus?’ Jack punched him in the chin and knocked him unconscious to the ground. Jack picked up his gun.

  ‘Jack,’ Scarlet said.

  ‘What?’

  ‘You know what your aim is like.’

  He handed over the weapon. While Mr Doyle did not allow them to carry firearms, he had let them practise in a shooting range. Jack had hit the ceiling, floor and walls more times than the target. Scarlet was a far better shot.

  ‘Just don’t shoot my foot off,’ he said.

  She checked the gun. ‘I’m not making any promises.’ Jack led them in the other direction, following the corridor until it turned, ending at an oak door. A small window, laced with bars, was set into it. Beyond lay an overgrown path. And freedom.

  ‘This looks good,’ Jack said.

  Scarlet pushed against it. ‘It looks good, but it’s not opening. It’s bolted on the other side.’

  A distant shout echoed down the tunnel.

  ‘Oh dear,’ Scarlet said. ‘They’ve found Leckie.’

  Jack gave the door a shove. ‘I might be able to get this open if you can buy us some time.’

  Scarlet went back to the turn in the tunnel to keep a lookout as Jack threw his shoulder against the door. The sound of men’s voices grew closer. ‘I advise you not to proceed any further,’ Scarlet called to them. ‘I am armed with a weapon and prepared to use it.’

  The sound of laughter rang down the tunnel.

  ‘You’re a nice girl,’ Johnson yelled back. ‘Why don’t you put that gun down before you hurt yourself?’

  ‘Why don’t you come and take it?’

  A gunshot followed and a man started screaming.

  ‘She shot me! She shot me in the leg!’

  ‘I’ll aim for your eyes next time!’

  Scarlet continued firing as Jack redoubled his efforts with the door. ‘I think you’d better hurry,’ she said.

  She was running out of bullets.

  Jack’s shoulder was starting to ache and it didn’t look like the door was going to give way anytime soon. You’ve got to open, he thought. Come on. Come on!

  Craaack!

  ‘Scarlet,’ he yelled. ‘Quickly!’

  They tumbled out into bright sunlight. Jack breathed the air in deeply, but there was no time to relax. An old bench was nearby. Jack closed the door and jammed it against the handle.

  They raced away down a path into some dense woods. The coast was only a few minutes away. Jack glanced back at Scarlet. Her cheeks were flushed, the wind ran through her red hair, but she wore an expression of grim determination. Her eyes met his.

  ‘Blinkie would be proud of you,’ he said.

  ‘It’s Brinkie, you idiot!’ she yelled and they both laughed.

  A small bay came into view with a dock and a few boats tied up at it. A man was just coming in on a small steamboat and, as they raced up the pier, he started to reach into his jacket.

  ‘Don’t!’ Scarlet snapped, waving the gun at him. ‘Get in the water!’

  The man took one look at her and jumped into the bay.

  Climbing into a boat, Jack quickly worked out the controls and accelerated away from the pier.

  ‘I thought you were going to shoot him,’ Jack said.

  ‘With what?’ she asked. ‘I’m out of bullets.’

  Jack brought the engine to full throttle as Scarlet fed coal to the furnace. They were soon out of the bay and into the channel heading for the coast. Jack glanced back. A larger ship was in pursuit.

  ‘Wave your gun,’ Jack said. ‘Pretend you’re going to shoot them.’

  ‘I don’t know if this is achieving anything,’ she yelled. ‘But it makes me feel better.’

  He kept their small boat at full throttle, but the other ship, with its bigger engine, continued to gain. They heard an explosion and a whistle, and something whizzed over their bow.

  ‘That was a cannonball,’ Scarlet yelled.

  Jack swung the wheel around, zigzagging the boat so they presented a more difficult target. Another cannonball sailed through the air. The ship was growing closer with every passing second.

  ‘We’re not going to make it!’ Jack said. ‘Do you have any ideas?’

  ‘There was a Brinkie Buckeridge story where she attached a bomb to a dead body and floated it towards an oncoming ship!’ Scarlet shouted. ‘It acted as a mine, blowing it to pieces.’ Jack stared at her, speechless. ‘You said you wanted suggestions! I didn’t say it was a good one!’

  Again, Jack swung the boat about. ‘Hang on!’ he said. ‘And be ready for anything.’<
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  ‘Certainly, but we’re now heading directly towards the other ship.’

  ‘I know. We’re on a collision course.’

  ‘I’ve heard of captains going down with their ships, but this is ridiculous.’

  ‘Get ready to jump.’

  The ship fired its cannon and this time it slammed into their bow. Timber exploded in all directions and their small craft lurched to one side. Scarlet was thrown to the floor as Jack hung onto the wheel, trying to keep them aimed at the other craft.

  ‘Get ready to jump!’ Jack cried. ‘Now! Jump! Jump!’ Jack and Scarlet leapt into the water as the oncoming ship fired another cannonball that sliced through their deck. But nothing could stop their boat’s forward momentum.

  Cra-ash!

  Jack surfaced to see the pursuing vessel listing badly with a football-sized hole in its side.

  Scarlet bobbed in the water next to him. ‘Not as good as the exploding body,’ she said. ‘But it will suffice.’

  ‘We need to swim for it,’ Jack said. ‘They’ll be on us in a minute if they don’t sink.’

  Scarlet peered doubtfully at the coast. ‘It’s still a mile away.’

  ‘There’s no other choice.’

  The water was freezing. Their clothing made swimming difficult. Jack considered ditching his green coat, but he wasn’t prepared to lose the portrait of his parents or his compass.

  He glanced back to see their little fishing boat disappear beneath the waves. The other ship was now aimed in their direction.

  ‘Jack!’ Scarlet yelled. ‘They’re not slowing.’

  The ship was now so close that Jack could see the man behind the wheel. It was Leckie.

  ‘He’s going to run us over!’ Jack cried.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  A great shadow fell over them. This is it, Jack thought. This is how it ends.

  But the ship didn’t slam into him. Instead, shots rang out and Jack looked up to see blue sky and an enormous silver balloon with the name Enforcer emblazoned on the side.

  ‘It’s Scotland Yard!’ Scarlet yelled. ‘And they’re armoured.’

  The Enforcer swept in low over the water, aimed a cannonball and fired. The ship exploded. Jack and Scarlet ducked as debris splashed all around them. What remained sank within seconds.

  ‘Good heavens,’ Scarlet said.

  ‘I think we’re saved,’ Jack said. ‘But who…?’

  The airship descended and a window slid across. Three heads simultaneously appeared.

  ‘Mr Doyle!’ Jack yelled.

  ‘And Clarice and Phoebe!’ Scarlet said.

  Jack and Scarlet scrambled up a metal rung ladder. Cheers erupted on board.

  ‘How did you find us?’ Jack asked. ‘Where have you been?’

  ‘We did a quick spin of the art gallery first,’ Mr Doyle said, his eyes twinkling. ‘Then a trip over to Brighton Pier. Fed the seagulls and…’

  ‘Ignatius!’ Phoebe said. ‘Don’t tease them!’

  ‘Then I will be concise. Thanks to the efforts of Mr Spaulding and his men, we all escaped. Tobias Bradstreet, Kip and Tan were shot, but will live. Likewise, the crew of the Explorer survived the crash into the sea. Many were injured, but made it to shore before the vessel sank in shallow waters.

  ‘At first, all seemed grim as we tried to find you. Then we sighted Darrow’s airship leaving the island. We found your tracks and realised you had been taken.’

  ‘But how did you escape the island?’ Scarlet asked.

  ‘You recall the equipment on board the Explorer?’

  ‘Of course.’

  ‘And what was stored in the hull?’

  Jack thought for a moment. ‘You don’t mean—’

  Mr Doyle nodded. ‘The submersible. Phoebe is an excellent diver, as it turns out. She was able to dive to the wreck, causing the submersible to surface. We made it operational with the help of Mr Bradstreet and his remarkable crew.’

  ‘But you couldn’t make it back to England in the submersible.’

  ‘No, that distance is too great. We were, however, able to reach the African coast. From there we hired an airship—’

  ‘—and that’s how you got back to England.’

  ‘Exactly.’

  ‘But how did you find us?’

  ‘Fortunately, thanks to Clarice, we had the name of George Darrow. I had also taken note of the registration number on the side of his airship. We contacted Scotland Yard upon our return—and here we are.’ Ignatius Doyle grew serious. ‘Unfortunately Professor Clarke and Gloria are still afflicted by the Sleeping Death. Their prognosis is not good.’

  ‘Wait!’ Jack cried out so suddenly that everyone jumped, even Mr Doyle. ‘I have the plant!’

  ‘The plant?’ Phoebe’s eyes grew wide.

  ‘We found New Atlantis!’ he yelled, dragging the remains of the ivory leaves from his shirt.

  ‘What?’ Phoebe gasped. ‘Tell me! What was it like?’

  ‘That can wait,’ Mr Doyle said. ‘We need to get this plant to the hospital immediately.’

  The hold of the Enforcer contained a small runabout that could start back to London as soon as possible. A pilot was assigned, and Phoebe offered to accompany Clarice on the journey.

  After they departed, Scarlet turned to Mr Doyle and said, ‘We have some rather important news.’

  ‘What is it?’ he asked.

  Jack briefly described their journey to Smollett’s Island and what they found in the underground cells. ‘And Mr Doyle,’ he finally said. ‘We found Phillip.’

  The detective went pale. ‘You’ve both been through a lot…’

  ‘He was in one of the cells,’ Scarlet said firmly. ‘Phillip is alive.’

  ‘We’re not crazy,’ Jack said. He went on to explain the condition of the men and the theory that they had been brainwashed. ‘I don’t know what Darrow’s intentions are, but he is planning something.’

  ‘It…it’s almost too much to take in,’ Mr Doyle said. ‘We must journey to the island and rescue Phillip and those men.’

  The airship came in to land a small distance from the castle. A police sergeant by the name of Brock appeared and told them to wait while he and his men did a sweep. Several minutes later, he returned.

  ‘The castle appears to be empty,’ he said. ‘But one of my men reported seeing a black airship heading towards the mainland.’

  ‘They must have left around the far side of the island as we arrived,’ Mr Doyle said. ‘Are you sure there’s no-one at the castle?’

  ‘What about downstairs?’ Scarlet asked. ‘In the basement?’

  ‘We found a room filled with cells,’ Brock said. ‘But all the doors were open and the cells empty.’

  ‘So Darrow has escaped,’ Mr Doyle said. ‘And he’s taken Phillip and the other men with him.’

  They made their way to the castle where they met with Inspector Greystoke from Scotland Yard.

  �
��What have you found so far?’ Mr Doyle asked.

  ‘Very little,’ the inspector said. ‘I think this is only one of Darrow’s bases. There are notes about two other sites in England.’

  ‘So you’ve found nothing?’

  ‘There was evidence of illegal Darwinist experiments in the basement.’

  ‘What sort of experiments?’

  The inspector shuddered. ‘Hideous things. Snake-rats. Dogs with double rows of teeth. Some had to be put down immediately because of their deformities.’

  ‘Was there any machinery?’ Scarlet asked. ‘The men on the island wore exoskeletons.’

  ‘We’ve seen nothing like that. That research must have occurred elsewhere.’ He paused, studying Mr Doyle. ‘You may wish to sit this one out, Ignatius.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘We’ve found a room where the men were brainwashed. It’s…unpleasant.’

  Mr Doyle took a deep breath. ‘I need to see what my son endured,’ he said. ‘I have to know.’

  It was a dungeon at the other end of the castle, with walls covered in photographs taken from the battlefield: images of men lying dead and wounded in muddy trenches.

  A phonograph player and a pile of records were positioned at the front with a chair fitted to restrain arms and legs. A slide projector, the same used at magic lantern shows at the theatre, sat in the middle of the room.

  Inspector Greystoke played a record. It crackled before George Darrow spoke loud and clear from the bell-shaped horn:

  The government is our enemy. It must be made to pay. Revenge must be taken for the crimes against our people. Only through attacking the people responsible…

  Greystoke turned it off.

  ‘People have experimented with mind control for years,’ Mr Doyle said, slumping into a chair. ‘Rarely has it succeeded.’

  ‘We think Darrow may have been drugging the men as well,’ the inspector said. ‘There are empty vials of medication in a rubbish bin. Darrow’s family has been involved in the pharmaceutical industry for years.’