For all of the drama and tension, for all of Sarah's grief and anger and for all of the Captain's warnings, their trip through the streets of Fracture was, largely, uneventful. There was a tense moment when Tyler reported that he thought they were being followed, resulting in both young men disappearing off into the dark for a few minutes, but when they returned they both shook their heads and the journey resumed as it had been.
They passed through littered backstreets and bloody
alleys, statued avenues and battle-scarred boulevards, tree-lined squares and
rubble-strewn plazas. Everywhere they went they caught glimpses of
Fracture as it was intended to be - an ordered utopia - and Fracture as it now
was - divided, war-torn and chaotic.
Sarah wondered how long this battle had been raging. When had the Noble Society split? From what she understood of the group from
her conversations with Dimsun, its members were fairly independent, but shared
some common goals. Had Lakhma's return
been a step too far?
Thinking of Dimsun always threatened to bring tears
to Sarah's eyes. She struggled with
trying to hide it, to stay strong, and showing her escort that she was indeed a
weak, compliant woman and no threat at all.
The more she did the latter the more her tears seemed to burn in her
eyes. None of this was right, none of
it.
And then they were there. The first sign of their arrival came in the
form of a series of makeshift barricades: furniture, pieces of masonry, ripped
up street machinery - whatever could be found, clearly - stacked up across the
street and easily twenty feet high at its lowest points. A small, guarded gateway seemed to be the
only way through it and, as they approached, the Captain felt the need to
elaborate on the defences.
"It encircles the museum and a few other buildings
we're using as barracks and quarters for everyone. Took us a week to put up, and that amidst
fire fights and skirmishes. The Lakhma
faction hasn't broken through it since."
"It's very impressive," Sarah observed,
trying to sound more in awe than she really was. She wondered how bad this civil war had got
to require such a wall. Was it all
Doctor Barkham's paranoia, or was it really necessary. She thought of the tentacles in the sky -
dipping through rain clouds and wiping out buildings - and wondered what powers
such a deity might bestow on those that followed it.
"It does the job," the Captain replied,
but it was obvious he was proud.
In truth, Sarah just found it a depressing reminder
of the collapsed street they had left behind and the friend that lay buried
beneath it. She wished she could have
some time alone, a bit of space where she could just sit and cry until the
tears were done. Holding back her grief
was wearying and playing the damsel only made it worse.
The gate was guarded by another duo of young
men. Despite an obvious lack of any
planned uniform for this impromptu military force Doctor Barkham seemed to have
inspired, they all seemed to look the same, with their slightly unkempt clothing
and slight need for a haircut and a shave.
They eyed Diana with suspicion as they approached, but for Sarah their
gaze seemed a little closer to a leer.
She suppressed a shudder.
"These two need to be taken into protective
custody," the Captain said as he waved the guards aside.
"I guess I'll be volunteering for that duty on
the roster tonight," one of the young men, an arrogant blond, said,
"although I'll have to be pretty picky about what cell I watch
over." His laugh was dirty and harsh. Diana glared at him.
"Seriously," the other said," where
did you find these two? It's like Pretty
and the Pig!"
"I have a different fairy tale in mind,"
the blond said softly, still eyeing Sarah.
"That's enough," the Captain said,
although his tone suggested he found it more amusing than anything else,
"focus on the job you are doing for now, eh?"
"Aye, sir," the blond said lazily. His friend saluted with equal nonchalance and
then stepped aside so that the small party could pass into the compound beyond.
For a moment Sarah thought she was back on Earth; in
London, to be precise. The streets of
Fracture had often had a sense of some of that city’s Georgian grandeur, but
here, beyond the barricade, it was so much more pronounced. These were clearly the best houses, the
finest apartments and the most prestigious academies and museums in Fracture
and here Doctor Barkham had had them all sealed away to use as her base of
operations against the Lakhma faction.
At the heart of it all, surrounded by its own park and looking as large
and grand as any building Sarah had ever seen, stood the Museum of Hypostatick
Philosophy itself. It looked like the
British Museum and the British Library and the Museum of Natural History all
rolled into one.
But that’s where the similiarities to England’s
capital ended, for between the buildings and littering the streets were all the
signs of the chaos Fracture had been recently experiencing. There were tents in the street for a start:
hundreds of them, as the men of Barkham’s faction were too many (or too common)
to fit into any of the residences nearby.
Between the tents, more makeshift barriers were strewn, meaning that any
intruders who made it past the main barricade would still have a hard time
making progress across the compound. Lines
of washing were strung across opulent courtyards, hundreds of makeshift
uniforms, like those warn by Sarah’s escort, hung out to dry in the non-existent
breeze. Guards seemed to patrol
everywhere, each with his own stupidly large gun, probably designed by the
remnants of the Noble Society itself.
“I had no idea there would be so many of you,” Sarah
said, as the Captain dismissed Will and Tyler and took them towards the Museum.
“Doctor Barkham is very popular,” he replied, “many
of us signed up just for her.”
Sarah thought of all she had learned of the ‘good’
doctor and wondered how she maintained her image in Facture. Were they all oblivious of the things that
went on outside of their city? What
about the things that went on inside?
“That’s why our message is so important,” Diana
added.
The captain glanced at her suspiciously. “Of course,” he replied curtly, before
quickly looking away. It was clear that
Diana made him very uncomfortable. “We’ll
be at the Museum shortly and then we’ll see if Doctor Barkham can see you at
all.”
Sarah wondered how this would work. Was there any chance of them being trusted to
go anywhere near the Countess?
The great stone edifice of the museum loomed before
them, guards stepped aside as the Captain led the way and doors of glass and
brass swung open to greet them and then they were in. The foyer of the Museum of Hypostatick
Philosophy swallowed them whole and it seemed there really was no going back
now.
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