Post by Lorpius Prime on Feb 7, 2008 2:06:53 GMT -5
Jay could not sleep on the train. He was still tired, exhausted even, but his mind would not shut down and allow him to rest. It may have had something to do with the train itself. It was not like the last train Jay had ridden, he was sitting upright in a seat rather than lying on the bed of a sleeper car.
His mind wandered to that night on the track from London to Exeter. He hadn’t slept as much as he wanted then, either, instead suffering the interruption of an obnoxious and more-than-a-little tipsy Oxford professor.
It felt strange remembering that night. It had only been a few days, but to Jay it might as well have all happened a lifetime ago. Oddly enough, more than a few of the other passengers bore a striking resemblance to Winslow Bradshaw, or at least their mustaches did. It seemed to be a popular style in Bavaria.
Jay smiled at the memory, as disconcerting and annoying as it had been at the time, it was so much more trivial than his current woes. Jay would have been delighted if a confused old man was the greatest of his troubles now.
But it wasn’t.
The train crept along at an achingly slow pace. Jay wished he knew why. It certainly destroyed the stereotype of the German rail networks as among the best most efficiently run machines in the world. A cautious speed after dark was one thing, but this was ridiculous.
Unfortunately, none of the engineers or conductors was likely to pay his opinion the slightest heed, even if Jay felt like drawing attention to himself by raising the issue.
He wasn’t even sure the train had sleeper cars; they were far less common on the Continent, being a distinctly British luxury. At least the general seating area was cleaner than what Jay would expect from anything back in the homeland, and the seats were modestly more comfortable too.
He fidgeted in his, trying to prevent his backside from going numb. Jay had let Theodore take the seat by the window so he could take the aisle and have more room to stretch his longer legs. Unfortunately, that decision also left him without a window to lean against which might have helped him sleep. Jay could see that Theodore was taking full advantage of that convenience.
Jay scowled and grunted in annoyance at the other man’s good fortune.
The noise was apparently enough to wake him, because Theodore stirred and stretched his thick arms before him, knuckles cracking.
“Er, sorry,” Jay apologized.
“Hmmm?” Theodore blinked sleepily.
“I didn’t mean to wake you.”
“Oh, no trouble,” the stout little German yawned, “we must be nearly there anyway.”
Jay gazed past him through the dark window, “I don’t know. We don’t seem to be in much of a hurry.”
Theodore rubbed at his eyes for a moment before turning to the window himself. Jay couldn’t imagine that he could see anything out there either, but anyone could feel the ponderous slowness of their pace through the train itself.
“Well that is odd now, isn’t it?” Theodore agreed. “I wonder what the trouble is.”
Jay shrugged and wondered what Theodore was doing with his outstretched arm until he turned to realize that his companion had summoned a passing conductor.
A quick conversation is mushy German gutturals followed as Jay tried to shrink into invisibility. Fortunately, the conductor walked on after the exchange without a second glance to either of them.
“He says someone’s cattle wandered onto the track,” Theodore provided. “They want to avoid damage or derailment.”
Jay raised an eyebrow, “It’s been like this for quite a while now.”
It was Theodore’s turn to shrug.
“As if we were in India,” Jay grumbled.
“Excuse me?”
“Er, in India they sometimes have problems with cows on rail tracks. The Hindus think they’re sacred, and the beasts wander everywhere. It can play merry hell with the train schedules.”
“Ah! Yes I see!” Theodore grinned like an overly committed schoolboy. “Fascinating tradition.”
Now Jay shrugged again. The Indians were welcome to their traditions, and God knew his countrymen were only asking for trouble when they went about stepping on those toes, but he was glad he didn’t live there himself and have to put up with the related headaches.
There was a slight but noticeable jerk in the train’s movement. Jay didn’t think anything of it, assuming it was merely a small flaw in the tracks. He had all but pushed it from his memory when the brakes squealed and brought the train to a halt.
Jay huffed in frustration, “Well, now we’re not moving at all.” Jay realized quickly how stupid the comment was but he was too annoyed to regret saying it, much.
Theodore opened his mouth to say something but before he could the door at the front of the car slid open. Through it came a soldier in the black and white uniform of the Prussian Infantry, followed by another, and then two more. Theodore’s mouth stayed open but produced no words.
Jay, despite his fatigue, reacted much faster by shooting up out of his seat. That was probably a mistake, the four soldiers hadn’t been looking towards Jay but now their heads all turned at his sudden movement. Still, they were grouped at the front of the car and would be impeded by the narrow aisle. Jay and Theodore’s seats were at the back, they could probably dash out the car’s rear door before the soldiers could stop them. Jay reached for the suitcase under his seat—
And stopped when a powerful hand clamped down on his shoulder. Jay gasped sharply and turned his neck to look at the frowning face of another soldier. He and the three others behind him had apparently come through the back door through which Jay had intended to escape.
“Und wohin gehen Sie?” the soldier asked without releasing Jay’s shoulder. Jay didn’t understand the words, but the accusing tone was clear enough.
He looked at Theodore, but the young German just shrugged helplessly, eyes wide.
The soldier moved his hand to grip Jay below the shoulder and drag him fully into the aisle. Jay allowed himself to be turned to face the front of the train car, where he could see the soldier at the head of the first group picking his way down the rows of seats while his comrades stood guard at the door.
Jay was released when the Prussian reached the back of the car. Jay thought he was a non-commissioned officer of some sort but he didn’t know the insignia of the Prussians’ enlisted men very well.
“Feldwebel?” the soldier behind Jay asked.
The one in front of him looked Jay up and down, then frowned and rubbed his chin.
He met Jay’s eyes with a hard stare, “Wie heisst du?”
Jay opened his mouth but didn’t say anything. He actually did know that phrase, but he wasn’t sure how he wanted to answer.
“What is your name?” the Prussian repeated in English.
Jay made a decision, “John Mills. I— John Mills, yes.” He hoped the soldiers wouldn’t realize how much he was sweating.
The soldier examining him raised a suspicious eyebrow. Jay tried his best to look the other man in the eye without blinking.
“Deine—Your ticket, please, Herr Mills.” The soldier’s voice was only marginally more polite.
“I—“ Jay blinked and turned to Theodore again. Then he wished he hadn’t, Jay didn’t want to drag the other man into this.
Theodore didn’t hesitate, however, and he launched into a long explanation, presumably about how he had bought both of their tickets. Jay couldn’t follow Theodore’s German, either, but was able to observe that the young man’s accent was much less harsh than the soldiers’ and seemed to swallow a great deal more of the vowels.
Their interrogator didn’t seem pleased by whatever it was that Theodore said, and he barked a command while beckoning at Jay’s companion.
This time, Theodore did hesitate, and he frowned before reaching into his overcoat to pull out the tickets which had let him and Jay aboard the train. The Prussian took them with a grunt and held them up towards the ceiling lamps to read.
“Und dein Pass, bitte,” he handed the tickets back.
Theodore tensed, however, and did not take the tickets back. Jay’s eyes widened, he didn’t know what had just happened, but he could sense that it was not anything good. The soldiers sensed it too, and Jay heard buttons popping as pistols were taken from holsters.
Theodore took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. The Prussian infantryman had to be a head and a half taller, but Theodore glared at him defiantly.
“Ich heisse Philipp Theophrastus Aureolus Bombastus von Hohenheim, und Ich habe keinen Pass.”
The soldier had already dropped their tickets and was swinging his sidearm up towards Theodore, “Festhalt—!“
Theodore was slightly shorter than what Jay would have considered average height, but he was by no means a small man, Jay imagined the young German enjoyed a diet of richer food than even that typical of his countrymen. And even though Jay realized Theodore had to be in better shape than the Englishman, Jay never would have imagined that he was capable of the flying tackle which carried him over the intervening row of seats and onto his victim before the soldier could bring his weapon to bear. It was the kind of acrobatics Jay expected from the stars of the England National Rugby Team, not pudgy German kids who stood barely over five feet tall.
The two hit the ground with a crunch and Jay’s jaw dropped open. He just had time to notice an old woman at the front of the car, turned around in her seat and watching with a handkerchief over her mouth to cover a gasp before someone clubbed him over the back of the head hard. Jay’s vision blurred and took on a reddish tinge as he fell to his knees and from there forward onto his face, feeling like he was going to vomit.
Voices shouted and the train spun and not for the first time Jay wondered just how he had managed to get himself into this bloody mess.
Book One, Chapter:
-1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17-18-19-20-21-
-22-23-24-25-26-27-28-29-30-31-32-33-34-35-36-37-38-39-40-41-42-
-43-44-45-46-47-48-49-50-51-52-53-54-55-56-57-58-59-60-61-62-
Appendix: -A-B-C-
His mind wandered to that night on the track from London to Exeter. He hadn’t slept as much as he wanted then, either, instead suffering the interruption of an obnoxious and more-than-a-little tipsy Oxford professor.
It felt strange remembering that night. It had only been a few days, but to Jay it might as well have all happened a lifetime ago. Oddly enough, more than a few of the other passengers bore a striking resemblance to Winslow Bradshaw, or at least their mustaches did. It seemed to be a popular style in Bavaria.
Jay smiled at the memory, as disconcerting and annoying as it had been at the time, it was so much more trivial than his current woes. Jay would have been delighted if a confused old man was the greatest of his troubles now.
But it wasn’t.
The train crept along at an achingly slow pace. Jay wished he knew why. It certainly destroyed the stereotype of the German rail networks as among the best most efficiently run machines in the world. A cautious speed after dark was one thing, but this was ridiculous.
Unfortunately, none of the engineers or conductors was likely to pay his opinion the slightest heed, even if Jay felt like drawing attention to himself by raising the issue.
He wasn’t even sure the train had sleeper cars; they were far less common on the Continent, being a distinctly British luxury. At least the general seating area was cleaner than what Jay would expect from anything back in the homeland, and the seats were modestly more comfortable too.
He fidgeted in his, trying to prevent his backside from going numb. Jay had let Theodore take the seat by the window so he could take the aisle and have more room to stretch his longer legs. Unfortunately, that decision also left him without a window to lean against which might have helped him sleep. Jay could see that Theodore was taking full advantage of that convenience.
Jay scowled and grunted in annoyance at the other man’s good fortune.
The noise was apparently enough to wake him, because Theodore stirred and stretched his thick arms before him, knuckles cracking.
“Er, sorry,” Jay apologized.
“Hmmm?” Theodore blinked sleepily.
“I didn’t mean to wake you.”
“Oh, no trouble,” the stout little German yawned, “we must be nearly there anyway.”
Jay gazed past him through the dark window, “I don’t know. We don’t seem to be in much of a hurry.”
Theodore rubbed at his eyes for a moment before turning to the window himself. Jay couldn’t imagine that he could see anything out there either, but anyone could feel the ponderous slowness of their pace through the train itself.
“Well that is odd now, isn’t it?” Theodore agreed. “I wonder what the trouble is.”
Jay shrugged and wondered what Theodore was doing with his outstretched arm until he turned to realize that his companion had summoned a passing conductor.
A quick conversation is mushy German gutturals followed as Jay tried to shrink into invisibility. Fortunately, the conductor walked on after the exchange without a second glance to either of them.
“He says someone’s cattle wandered onto the track,” Theodore provided. “They want to avoid damage or derailment.”
Jay raised an eyebrow, “It’s been like this for quite a while now.”
It was Theodore’s turn to shrug.
“As if we were in India,” Jay grumbled.
“Excuse me?”
“Er, in India they sometimes have problems with cows on rail tracks. The Hindus think they’re sacred, and the beasts wander everywhere. It can play merry hell with the train schedules.”
“Ah! Yes I see!” Theodore grinned like an overly committed schoolboy. “Fascinating tradition.”
Now Jay shrugged again. The Indians were welcome to their traditions, and God knew his countrymen were only asking for trouble when they went about stepping on those toes, but he was glad he didn’t live there himself and have to put up with the related headaches.
There was a slight but noticeable jerk in the train’s movement. Jay didn’t think anything of it, assuming it was merely a small flaw in the tracks. He had all but pushed it from his memory when the brakes squealed and brought the train to a halt.
Jay huffed in frustration, “Well, now we’re not moving at all.” Jay realized quickly how stupid the comment was but he was too annoyed to regret saying it, much.
Theodore opened his mouth to say something but before he could the door at the front of the car slid open. Through it came a soldier in the black and white uniform of the Prussian Infantry, followed by another, and then two more. Theodore’s mouth stayed open but produced no words.
Jay, despite his fatigue, reacted much faster by shooting up out of his seat. That was probably a mistake, the four soldiers hadn’t been looking towards Jay but now their heads all turned at his sudden movement. Still, they were grouped at the front of the car and would be impeded by the narrow aisle. Jay and Theodore’s seats were at the back, they could probably dash out the car’s rear door before the soldiers could stop them. Jay reached for the suitcase under his seat—
And stopped when a powerful hand clamped down on his shoulder. Jay gasped sharply and turned his neck to look at the frowning face of another soldier. He and the three others behind him had apparently come through the back door through which Jay had intended to escape.
“Und wohin gehen Sie?” the soldier asked without releasing Jay’s shoulder. Jay didn’t understand the words, but the accusing tone was clear enough.
He looked at Theodore, but the young German just shrugged helplessly, eyes wide.
The soldier moved his hand to grip Jay below the shoulder and drag him fully into the aisle. Jay allowed himself to be turned to face the front of the train car, where he could see the soldier at the head of the first group picking his way down the rows of seats while his comrades stood guard at the door.
Jay was released when the Prussian reached the back of the car. Jay thought he was a non-commissioned officer of some sort but he didn’t know the insignia of the Prussians’ enlisted men very well.
“Feldwebel?” the soldier behind Jay asked.
The one in front of him looked Jay up and down, then frowned and rubbed his chin.
He met Jay’s eyes with a hard stare, “Wie heisst du?”
Jay opened his mouth but didn’t say anything. He actually did know that phrase, but he wasn’t sure how he wanted to answer.
“What is your name?” the Prussian repeated in English.
Jay made a decision, “John Mills. I— John Mills, yes.” He hoped the soldiers wouldn’t realize how much he was sweating.
The soldier examining him raised a suspicious eyebrow. Jay tried his best to look the other man in the eye without blinking.
“Deine—Your ticket, please, Herr Mills.” The soldier’s voice was only marginally more polite.
“I—“ Jay blinked and turned to Theodore again. Then he wished he hadn’t, Jay didn’t want to drag the other man into this.
Theodore didn’t hesitate, however, and he launched into a long explanation, presumably about how he had bought both of their tickets. Jay couldn’t follow Theodore’s German, either, but was able to observe that the young man’s accent was much less harsh than the soldiers’ and seemed to swallow a great deal more of the vowels.
Their interrogator didn’t seem pleased by whatever it was that Theodore said, and he barked a command while beckoning at Jay’s companion.
This time, Theodore did hesitate, and he frowned before reaching into his overcoat to pull out the tickets which had let him and Jay aboard the train. The Prussian took them with a grunt and held them up towards the ceiling lamps to read.
“Und dein Pass, bitte,” he handed the tickets back.
Theodore tensed, however, and did not take the tickets back. Jay’s eyes widened, he didn’t know what had just happened, but he could sense that it was not anything good. The soldiers sensed it too, and Jay heard buttons popping as pistols were taken from holsters.
Theodore took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. The Prussian infantryman had to be a head and a half taller, but Theodore glared at him defiantly.
“Ich heisse Philipp Theophrastus Aureolus Bombastus von Hohenheim, und Ich habe keinen Pass.”
The soldier had already dropped their tickets and was swinging his sidearm up towards Theodore, “Festhalt—!“
Theodore was slightly shorter than what Jay would have considered average height, but he was by no means a small man, Jay imagined the young German enjoyed a diet of richer food than even that typical of his countrymen. And even though Jay realized Theodore had to be in better shape than the Englishman, Jay never would have imagined that he was capable of the flying tackle which carried him over the intervening row of seats and onto his victim before the soldier could bring his weapon to bear. It was the kind of acrobatics Jay expected from the stars of the England National Rugby Team, not pudgy German kids who stood barely over five feet tall.
The two hit the ground with a crunch and Jay’s jaw dropped open. He just had time to notice an old woman at the front of the car, turned around in her seat and watching with a handkerchief over her mouth to cover a gasp before someone clubbed him over the back of the head hard. Jay’s vision blurred and took on a reddish tinge as he fell to his knees and from there forward onto his face, feeling like he was going to vomit.
Voices shouted and the train spun and not for the first time Jay wondered just how he had managed to get himself into this bloody mess.
Book One, Chapter:
-1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17-18-19-20-21-
-22-23-24-25-26-27-28-29-30-31-32-33-34-35-36-37-38-39-40-41-42-
-43-44-45-46-47-48-49-50-51-52-53-54-55-56-57-58-59-60-61-62-
Appendix: -A-B-C-