Through Glass Darkly Episode 1 (3 page)

We should’ve had that ridicule thrown back at us then, even repaid tenfold for the injustice, but instead as the world teetered on the edge a single man drew us back. A deeply flawed and fractured soul, but a soul with the harnessed ambition and drive of a god.

Our hope appeared in the night skies, above the cities and towns of almost every country in the world. A flotilla of sleek bronze and gold goliaths, their selachian lines spoiled only by the obvious protrusions of arcane equipment and weapons. They appeared apparently from nowhere and travelled quietly over the world below and the countless wondering and worried faces, before stopping over the world’s major cities. And then they simply waited, ignoring all attempts at communication, beyond the reach of governments or weapons, silent and lifeless. Only then with a film makers panache did he announce his intentions via a thousand identical film reels delivered into the hands of the worlds press at the same hour and minute worldwide.

________________________________________

‘Ladies and gentlemen of the world, above your capital cities you will have seen armed and equipped airships of my design. Aboard each one of these ships are but a skeleton crew, the barest minimum necessary to steer and fly them to their current locations. . . and to teach those who you choose to put aboard how to use the various devices and apparatus that they will find there.

‘I know that many of you will have gazed up at these machines, with uncertainty and even worry, for which I now apologise.

‘And now to answer what I’m sure will be your next question. Why have I created these machines and then positioned them above your homes and workplaces?

‘In the simplest possible terms, I have done this because I believe it was necessary.

‘To begin with, I did like many of you, hope that the unsettling events which have been reported from the far flung corners of our world were, somehow just the exaggerated tales of storytellers and fantasists, or possibly the misunderstood or misinterpreted consequence of some natural event. But unlike many of you I was persuaded otherwise, and convinced that these events were not only very real, but that they would continue to grow in frequency and severity the longer they were ignored.

‘The ships which you now see in the skies above you are the products of that conviction.

‘I wish there had been a better way in which I could have achieved these same goals, but the great peril which now threatens our world, but there was simply no more time. These subtle unearthly intrusions which many are only now beginning to recognise are, as predicted, growing at a pace which I believe leaves us with no choice but to act.

‘I also wish that I could tell you the machines which I have created, could solve or prevent any more of those dangerous events, like those reports which have reached us in recent weeks. But I must tell you now, that while these craft are both powerful weapons, and valuable exploration, rescue and research vessels, they are even in my own estimation only capable of slowing the rate of invasion. A front line, which cannot hope to hold indefinitely.

‘They will however buy us the precious time we need to better prepare, and ultimately find a way in which we may prevail.’

CHAPTER 4 - REFLECTIONS

Hughes’ famous announcement was fresh in my mind as I awoke. He’d not been seen in public for several years before the broadcast, and although there had been countless rumours about how the eccentric millionaire was choosing to live his life, nobody was really prepared for the changes he had somehow wrought upon himself when he did reappear.

Gone was the slender young filmmaker and light hearted amateur pilot, and in his place stood a powerfully built, focused and resolute individual. Gone were the elegantly cut designer suits, in their place some kind of pragmatic military clothing, complete with armoured panels, and a number of arcane attachments and tools, all worn with the ease and familiarity that spoke of long use.

But it was when he addressed the world through the cameras lens that the difference really became apparent. For gone also was the showman, and all trace of the awkward or overly confident youth. Now when he spoke, he did so with no hesitation, no theatrics, no stylistic touches or elaborate language. Just the intensity of a man who knew he was right but had neither the time nor inclination to persuade or convince others.

I don’t know why the image of that broadcast was so clearly in my mind as I awoke, but it was still with me as I once again felt the golden weight of sunlight upon me through the hospital window. It was a feeling I would’ve been content to lie and enjoy, had not the terrible experience of the day before still also been burned into my memory.

I knew I was in a better state than most of my crew-mates, and the only member of the senior staff in any kind of good condition, so as soon as I came around I pressed the button to let the nurses station know I was awake again. It was the same nurse on duty, who appeared almost instantly at the door. The same two agents following close on her heels, both still knowing better than to attempt to get past her until she gave the all clear.

I almost didn’t notice the third man, as the nurse bustled around me, helping me to sit up and bringing forward the table ready for my breakfast. But then something about him in the corner of my eye pulled my gaze toward the door where he stood, and I felt my heart almost stop.

It was Hughes, just standing there looking at me. I could barely believe my eyes when I first saw him, and was about to start asking him questions when I noticed he was wearing a suit again, and his face was tanned. And then a dozen other subtle and obvious differences started to jump out at me until I realised this wasn’t the man I knew.

It wasn’t like looking at a twin, or a look alike. There was still so much that was the same, but it was like looking at an earlier version of the man I knew. The same age as he would be now, but without so many of the changes which had been apparent in his famous broadcast.

As soon as I grasped that fact, the differences were obvious, and I found myself thinking that the Hughes I knew had simply matured beyond the point that this man had reached. I noticed his gaze searching my face then, as though he too were looking for something, and I realised he must have already seen his own dark reflection, but had not yet been able to understand what his eyes had shown him.

‘You’ve already seen him, haven’t you?’ I asked, without artifice, seeing the answer already written in his eyes.

‘Yes,’ he answered after a moment. ‘Though I do not pretend to understand how it can be possible.’

‘We contacted Mr Hughes yesterday,’ Jenkins explained, after a momentary silence. ‘Thinking it would be a simple matter to. . . confirm your captain’s identity.

‘As it turned out Mr Hughes was already here in New York and after we explained, he kindly offered to give us some of his time. So with his permission we began by comparing finger prints.’

‘And discovered they were identical?’ I guessed.

‘Yes,’ he continued, a note of surprise in his voice. ‘It was quite a sight to see them both in the same room together,’ he continued, getting back into his stride. ‘But for these two men to also share the same prints. . . Well I don’t quite know how that can be possible, but it is.’

Even with all the evidence, the hundreds of dead, dying and injured, they’d still somehow thought we might be a trick. I couldn’t imagine what it must be like for them, but it was time we sorted things out.

‘Unfortunately the only man who might be able to explain any of this to you,’ I said. ‘Is lying unconscious on his back in a room on the other side of this hospital.

‘I don’t mean to suggest that you are by your nature a secretive person,’ I continued, indicating the man stood before me, and trying to lighten the mood. ‘But, even amongst the senior crew aboard our ship, it was a widely held view that we weren’t being told everything by the Captain, either about the Expanse, or the various capacities of the ship we sailed in.’

Even as I spoke, I realised from their body language that something had changed, and for a moment thought the Captain must have taken a turn for the worse.

‘I don’t suppose the doctors have thought of something else they could try?’ I asked hopefully.

They didn’t answer straight away, but instead looked over toward the new Howard Hughes.

‘Your captain’s condition appears to be worsening. I don’t know the details, but you should know I’ve offered to donate some of my blood.’ He said looking closely at me. It’s being tested now. But, if we are as similar as we appear, then apparently the risk from the transfusion should be reduced.’

I couldn’t believe he’d be prepared to do that for a complete stranger, but couldn’t bring myself to doubt him openly.

‘Mr Hughes, as I said earlier on, I think that might be rather premature, not to mention dangerous.’ Broke in Jenkins with a surprising tone of deference to the man before me.

‘I appreciate your concern Special Agent Jenkins,’ responded Hughes, with a degree of cool confidence that for the first time truly resonated with the man I knew. ‘But it is now clear to me that something truly incredible, if not astonishing has happened over this city, and no matter how unexpected, we need to deal with it first and worry about it afterward. I have made my decision, if you feel uncomfortable with it, now would be the time for you to contact your director.

‘Frank,’ he said turning to address another man just outside the door. ‘I’d like you to ask my doctor to join us straight away, along with a specialist on blood disorders. I’d also like you to get my best avionics engineering team down here as well.’

And then, before Jenkins could even get into mid sputter, he simply turned his attention back to me and asked. ‘Can you walk Mr Hall?’

If being poisoned and appearing over New York City in the middle of a thunderstorm had seemed disorientating, then trying to keep up with the eccentric billionaire as he took control of the situation within the city was a positive blur. I had no idea how big his retinue of staff was when he turned up, but within twelve hours the place was filled with his people. Some of them who’d clearly never worked for him before were slightly star struck, the rest just moved with a practiced efficiency, which again reminded me of life aboard the Goose.

And then before the daylight had even started to fade, we were again sharing a room with the stricken form of the real Howard Hughes, captain of the giant bronze airship which still hung above the city.

His double, now lay calmly on another bed beside him, while the specialist and his personal physician, a doctor Zimmerman monitored the blood transfusion which was passing now between the two reflections of the same man.

It was a mesmerising moment to see the blood being taken from one man to pass into the second. It was both a slow process, the quiet broken only by checks being performed by the various doctors on their two patients’ blood pressure and other vital signs.

And then, two hours after the transfusion had been completed, and just as I was beginning to wonder if anything would happen, the eyes of my captain first fluttered and then opened.

CHAPTER 5 - REVIVAL

He was still clearly very weak, but as the doctors busied themselves about the two hospital beds, the man I’d known gradually returned to the land of the living.

The first questions he had were the obvious ones. What had happened? Where were we? And of course: How had the rest of the crew fared? And as the only available familiar face, it had been decided that I should be the one to explain it to him, especially the bit about the world being somehow changed and there being a double of him in the next room.

It all gave him further time to recover, but eventually he was ready to answer a few questions so we brought the others back into the room.

Even though I’d explained about his double, I couldn’t help but wonder how he was going to react when they finally met face to face.

‘Thank you.’ Was all he said to begin with, as he shook the hand of his double.

‘And my thanks also to the rest of you for helping my crew in our most desperate of situations.’ He continued, before resting a moment to remove his breather mask.

I’d seen him do exactly the same thing a hundred times, so I don’t think I’d have noticed anything out of the ordinary if the doctor attending to him hadn’t started as he did it.

Unaware of the doctor’s reaction, Hughes addressed the rest of us.

‘I know you have questions, some of which I hope I can answer, but there are clearly others,’ he said, hesitating momentarily to look at his double. ‘Which I’m afraid I will only be able to speculate about.’

‘Well, I for one would prefer to hear the things you’re sure about first of all,’ answered the other Hughes.

Expecting as much the Captain simply nodded before commencing.

‘Ashton has I believe explained our version of how we came to be here,’ Hughes began. ‘And in the process has discovered your recollection of the past four years is somewhat different to our own?’

It was the closest thing I’d seen to a genuine smile on Jenkins’ face, as he held up a hand to stop the Captain.

‘I’m a straight-forward man Captain Hughes, so why don’t we put our cards on the table. The story I’ve had from Mr Hall here is not somewhat different, it’s entirely different, and if it weren’t for that ship of yours hanging above our heads I wouldn’t be the only one thinking he’d lost his mind.’

‘Yes, of course,’ replied the Captain with a weak smile of his own. ‘Perhaps, I should start again.’

‘The reason why you have no memory of the events which Ashton has explained to you. Why I am at the same time lying here in this bed, and standing beside it, is because this is not the world we left, it is I suspect only one of many imperfect copies.’