It
had been a long hike across the hills only to be met at the end of it by a
stone wall. On the other side was a dense wood, he stood there for a few
moments, his arms wide, his hands on the stone and wondered what to do. In the
end he did the most sensible thing he could do, he sat down with his back to
the wall, opened his haversack and ate his packed lunch.
The stone wall was strong, well kept, and
quite obviously a boundary wall to some estate. He climbed the wall and sat on
it staring into the dense wood, then back over his shoulder before examining
the ordinance survey map he carried. According to the map there were cliffs and
the sea on the far side of the woods, which were shown on the map to be
crisscrossed by a number of paths. He decided to chance it, gauging that the
sea was closer than the cosy Inn that had afforded him shelter only the
night before, meaning if he was to spend the night out of doors, he might find
shelter under the trees. Throwing his haversack over the wall he climbed over,
dropped to the ground, picked up the haversack and whistling a tune he began to
make his way through the woods. The dense wood seemed to bring night on sooner
than expected, and he searched for somewhere to spend a comfortable night.
Ahead was a rocky outcrop, bushes at its base looked to make a cosy place to
spend the night. He gathered some large stones; put them in a circle, filled
them with twigs and dry moss and with the aid of his matches soon had a blazing
campfire. He took out the remainder of his packed lunch and the now half filled
flask from which he filled the tin cup with coffee, and heated up by the fire.
It was about 5 in the morning. The fire had
burned itself out, and he was just wondering what to do next whilst studying
his ordinance survey map, when he noticed there was a cottage marked on the
map. A cottage on the mouth of the estuary, he decided to make for that,
perchance he might obtain food and a hot drink after a night in the woods.
Slinging his haversack over one shoulder he set out with a firm tread and a
merry heart to make his way through the woods. He followed a wide path in the
general direction he wanted to go, a path which eventually led him out of the
woods and onto a cliff top. He stood there for a moment looking out across a
large expanse of sand, out across to the far side of the estuary. A gentle sea
breeze wafted his hair, and salt air filled his nostrils, he took a deep breath
and it filled his lungs. He turned and saw the small lighthouse; he didn’t
recall a lighthouse being marked on the ordinance survey map, unfolded the map
and studied it. He was right; no lighthouse was marked on the map, but then it
really wasn’t that much of a lighthouse. On closer inspection it had no light,
only a single bell hung inside the metal domed structure.
Turning away from the lighthouse he
clamoured down the rocks to the beach and strode out across the sand looking
out towards the mouth of the estuary, then turned and walked in the opposite
direction. A few yards on he came across a number of headstones in the sand, “a
curious place for a graveyard” he thought, what’s more the head stones had no
names, no inscriptions, only numbers! Walking on he saw ahead of him a white
cottage, this was indicated on the survey map but there was no indication of
the attached square squat tower. Apparently he had taken the wrong path through
the woods but had only taken him a little out of his way…….And then he saw it, the
village marked on the map that he had been looking for. He walked on, and saw
there was a large dome and a tall tower what he took to be a bell tower. And
there a sailing vessel, he could see its sail plain. Taking his telescope from
the haversack he pulled out the four drawers and placed it to his eye. The
sailing vessel was strange, unless his eye was deceiving him; it looked to be
part of the quayside, but the black sail was set. There was a large building
set some distance from the village itself, and yes the tower was a bell tower.
He stood openly on the sand studying what other buildings he could make out.
There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, the sun was bright, and there was a sudden
bright glint off the glass of the telescope, just before he closed it.
One of the Observers attracted the Supervisor’s
attention.
“Yes what is it?”
“I’m not sure sir, just for a moment there
was a dazzling light, as though the sun was reflecting off something for a
second.”
“Is it still there?”
“No sir, it’s gone” the Observer reported.
“Well perhaps it was a trick of the
light…..but on the other hand. Put up camera 34 on the screen” ordered the
Supervisor.
The large wall screen came into life and
displayed the expanse of sand.
“Scan” ordered the Supervisor.
The surveillance camera scanned the beach,
and then as large as life a figure was walking along the beach towards the
village.
“Zoom in” the Supervisor ordered.
The camera zoomed in on the subject.
“Get him as close as you can” the
supervisor said staring at the screen.
“Who
can he be?” asked one of the Observers.
“He’s not wearing village clothing”
observed another.
The man was tall, lean, he wore hard
wearing dark green trousers and a matching jacket and had a haversack slung
over one shoulder.
The Supervisor picked up the yellow ‘L’
shaped intercom “Get me Number 2 quickly.”
In the Green Dome the grey ‘L’ shaped
intercom bleeped, a man sat in a black globe chair leaned forward and picked up
the intercom.
“Yes what is it, what’s the matter?”
“Supervisor here sir, I have to report an
incident.”
“What kind of incident?” No.2 asked.
A white Mini-Moke with No.21 at the wheel
and two guardians in the passenger seats sped down the slipway and onto the
beach, making a beeline for the figure walking towards the village. The sight
of the vehicle heading at speed towards him was somewhat alarming, but he felt
sure that whoever was in the vehicle meant him no harm, perhaps they were
merely curious, at worst they would no doubt warn him that he was trespassing.
The Mini-Moke stopped and three men
alighted and approached the solitary figure.
“Who are you?” asked the dark haired figure
of No.21.
“I’m on a hiking holiday” the man replied.
“Where did you come from?”
“From the other side of the woods.”
One of the guardians grabbed the haversack
and tipped out its contents onto the sand,
“Those are mine” the outsider protested.
“You won’t be needing them” said one of the
guardians.
The two of them bundled the outsider into
the Mini-Moke while No.21 got in behind the wheel and drove the vehicle back
into the village, coming to a stop at the steps of the Green Dome. The pair of
steel doors slid open and the outsider was manhandled into the purple walled
office, and unceremoniously dumped into a black leather chair. The two
guardians withdrew through the opening steel doors, there came a pregnant pause
in the proceedings, then……..
“How did you come to be here?” No.2 asked
from the comfort of a black spherical chair.
“It’s like I told those men, I hiked across
the hills, climbed over a stone boundary wall, and through the woods and there
was the village” the man said.
“Yes it would be” No.2 said considering the
situation.
“Well it’s on my old ordinance survey map.”
“Map?” No.2 asked.
“He had this on him sir” 21 said handing
No.2 the said map.
“Let
me see this map” No.2 said, and unfolding it he made a close examination “I
don’t believe it!” he exclaimed.
“I had some other things, they were tipped
out onto the sand, if there is somewhere I could replenish my supplies, perhaps
have something to eat I would gladly get on my way” the man said.
No.2 and No.21 simply looked at their
guest.
“If it’s a question of trespass I assure
you……”
No.2
put the map down on the desk “I’m afraid it’s a little more serious than a
question of trespass. Outsiders do not simply walk here and stumble across the
village by accident. You claim you came here from over the hills that you
climbed over a boundary wall, and walked through the woods. You didn’t find
your way here by sea?”
“By sea…..no.”
“You don’t have a boat then?”
“A boat, why should I have a boat, I don’t
have a boat. I told you…….”
“Yes you told us” No.2 said “you were not
sent here?”
“No-one sent me here, why should anyone
send me here, what should I do here?” the outsider protested.
“What are we to do with you now, that is
the questions, isn’t it?”
“Do with me, what do you mean do with me?”
“And there’s another problem you see, we
are an isolated village, people do not just walk here.”
“I did” the man said.
“So you say” No.2 said again considering
the seriousness of the situation.
“You know what this means don’t you Number
2” 21 said quietly in his ear.
“Yes I do, this man, this outsider simply
strolled in here right through the outer zone security precautions!”
“Precisely sir.”
“You are head of security Number 21, tell
me how he managed to do that?”
“I can’t sir.”
“Someone was sleeping on the job; I’ll have
his head for this. Find out who it was 21 and bring him to me” No.2 ordered.
“Yes sir, but in the meantime sir, we can’t
simply let this outsider go” 21 suggested.
“I realize that.”
“There’s nothing for it sir, we’ll have to
keep him here!”
“You can’t keep me here” the outsider
protested.
“Be quiet” No.2 said sharply “I haven’t
made my mind up about you yet. You could be telling the truth, or you could
have been sent here in order to infiltrate the village. Did he have a radio on
him, 21?”
“No sir, we didn’t find a radio.”
“What are your names?” the outsider asked.
“I am Number 2, this is Number 21.”
“We do not use names here in the village”
21 said “But while we are on the subject we do not know your name.”
“My name is Black, John Black” the outsider
told them.
“Well Mister Black, we’ll need to know
slightly more about you than that” No.2 told him “perhaps we should leave him
to consider his position in the peaceful atmosphere of the village, what say
you 21?”
“Or we could simply hand him over to the
doctor, you know how he loves to experiment” was 21’s suggestion.
“I don’t think we have to be so extreme just
yet, what say you Mister Black?”
“I work as a cartographer, and I study old
maps in my spare time.”
“Well what of it?”
“I found a German World war two map of this
area used by the Luftwaffe, it had this village marked on it” Black began to
explain.
“Why, why should a German World war two map
used by the Luftwaffe have this village marked on it?” No.2 asked.
“I don’t know, it raised my curiosity and I
compared that map to earlier maps of this area, and no such village was
marked.”
No.2 and 21 looked at each other “And you
expect us to believe that?”
“It’s the truth. So I took a fortnights
holiday to come hiking in this area.”
“In order to find this village?”
“Yes.”
“Have this man put through administration,
give him a new suit of clothes, issue him with the usual papers of identity and
the like, and give him the number……6d.”
“6d sir is such a number available?”
“I neither know nor care, that is to be his
number” No.2 said insistently.
“Very good sir.”
“A cottage will have to be prepared for
our….new arrival to the village. And you 21………..”
“Yes sir?”
“Can attend to your security details.”
“Yes sir.”
“You mean you intend to keep me here?” the
outsider said.
“Yes.”
“You can’t do that!”
“I think you’ll find we can” No.2 informed
the outsider.
“And what’s all this about a number?”
“For official purposes everyone has a
number, yours is 6d.”
“6d, that’s sixpence” 21 said smiling to
himself “that makes him not quite the full shilling!”
6d sat in the chair mulling over his
situation, not wanting to remain a prisoner in this village, or even to have
some doctor carry out experiments on him, he decided there was only one option
open to him. As No.2 was conferring with No.21 he got out of the chair and
dashed across the floor, up the ramp, through the opening steel doors, brushing
passed the diminutive butler in the foyer with No.21 giving chase. He didn’t
pause on the balcony, but dashed down the steps from the Green Dome and into
the road. The driver of the taxi sounded the horn but for 6d it was too late to
avoid the collision.
A crowd of onlookers had gathered, and
No.21 arrived on the scene to be greeted by a very apologetic taxi driver.
“He just ran out into the road, there was
no time to avoid him. I did sound the horn…….”
No.21 knelt by the body lying in the road,
he felt for a pulse, he could not find one “Perhaps it’s for the best” he said
quietly to himself, and stood up.
“Who was he?” a voice asked.
No.21 turned to the man standing next to
him “He was an outsider, like you were once upon a time Number 6, he would
never have settled down to life here!”
Be seeing you
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