14.
The Surface
General Clarke looked at the map on the wide and long table at his home at the twenty-four room mansion on the riverbanks of the river that flows through the city. It was his family home from his grandfather’s days. The elderly old man was in the colonies when he was informed of his inheritance by the barristers then. Ironically, he was fighting the same ruling class for the decent patch of the farm in the colonies. Once he was advised of the inheritances, the old man abandoned his quest from a farmer to that of the Lord. He absorbed the family into the ruling class with fine tutoring and rankings in the social circle with the hefty purse he had carried. His son which was Clarke’s father was given a rank of Colonel in the Army but the poor man died from overindulgence in opium. Clarke was of the younger generation then and had disclaimed all the family’s troublesome past to stay afloat on the influences of power and greed. Well, not all forms of greed. He was an avid gambler and caused him some pain where he lost at the cards but the former brought him the position as General. He gambled with his strategies and won most times. He was given the rank of General by the Army.
General Clarke was all familiar with the points on the map but he disliked the ones marked red. Those are the enemies; similar in blood and flesh but with a different view of the issue. Before him, there were the seventeen senior officers with the lowest-ranked Colonel. They were from the three divisions of the Army.
“General Allen, are your men ready?” General Allen heard the Senior General request. He was a single star General from the Armoured Division of the Army. They have the armored Mark I units with the rhomboid design and the long tracks coupled with the two rear wheels to steer the tank. Each tank weighed over twenty-seven tons each. Each tank held a crew of eight with the twin six-pounder cannons and three Hotchkiss machine guns. The twin side ‘sponson’ which looked like pigeon homes housed the cannons.
“Yes, General.” General Allen replied. ‘But we have an issue.”
General Clarke glared at the other. He then looked at the others around the table. He was not sure if they will support him in the war. They were once his command but with the shift of command during peacetime, he was unsure.
“General Clarke, we have an issue. Sir.” General Allen voiced out again.
“Then fucking cleared the issue.” General Clarke raised his voice. “We are soldiers, Allen. Not fucking stooges.”
“All of you listen up. See those red spots. I want the issues cleared.” General Clarke shouted out. “Dismiss.”
The officers all trooped leaving the General to himself by the table.
“You are losing your command, Clarke.” The voice belonged to Lord Stuart. The latter was seated on the far corner while holding the glass of brandy. “They need your voice to command and not to ignore them.”
“Ian, if I ever need your advice, remind me to call my mother. She had lots of it even she was not drunk.” General Clarke stepped away from the table. He then pointed at the table.
‘Those red spots represent the regiments or company that will not listen to my command. They are for the General who took my spot of command. Half of those bastards were promoted by me.”
“The promotions which you sow like the poppy seeds in the field then. I recall it very well in your exact words; ‘they are loyal officers and more to it, capable men.’ You thought you were feeding them for their loyalty, but apparently, your chosen men have lived to their mantle. They have grown their poppy plants to feed their own. They fought for their land and never the snob that sold the rights to the seas.” Lord Stuart gleefully sounded it out.
“This scheme was yours, to begin with, my Lord.” General Clarke replied with a cynical tone.
“It’s mine by birth, General Clarke, and ours when we nurtured it to near adulthood now. You can’t deny my birthright gave me the edge needed to foresee the benefits of it all if we continued nurturing it.”
“Damn you, Stuart. If it was not your planning, I may be still seated on the post.” General Clarke laments on his loss of authority.
“That post will not bear you the grandeur that your grand paddy once held. It was your father’s and your grand scheme to lose most of it at the cards.” Lord Stuart reminded the other. “It was my grand scheme if we are to succeed regained that loss for you.”
“The land cannot bear another war after the last one.” General Clarke sighed. “It was to take over Lord Henry’s idea and made it ours. No fighting on the grand scale.”
“And it should be. Your Army is to stand down. All three divisions and I will have Lady Jan’s do the fighting. She will annihilate the island named Jaws. After all, it’s at the boundary and none of our ships are capable of reaching it.”
“You are telling me to babysit the renegades while Lady Jan battle Henry’s fleet?” General Clarke asked
“Yes, remember the plan was to get rich again. We were supposed to fish but the fleet that Lady Jan brought was her fighting fleet. I had the data on it. She was trying to invade us.”
“That’s good news. But why tell me now?” General Clarke asked. “We have brought the enemy to our shores.”
“Good point but she had not landed. Her fleet stands off our shores.” Lord Stuart replied.
“The fleet is off our shores and you tell me we are not to worry.” The General shouted back. “I am to protect it.”
“Protect it you shall, General Clarke. Let our enemies fight among themselves. The victor side will be weakened and with that, we can overcome them. It’s called killing two birds with one stone.”
“Then explained to me one more time how can we win the war?” General Clarke asked.
“Our primary task is to fish in the deep sea. When we recruited the assistance of Lady Jan, we agreed to get her here so that we can take over the fleet. She won’t berth so that means she is not invading us. She will vanquish the predators and also Lord Henry. We will rebuild our fleet but that may take time. Meanwhile, Lady Jan will provide us the fishes to sell. We will be rich.” Lord Ian voiced out. “We will be stronger and no one can stand against us.”
“With the threat made by the new General, we have to make new plans. We will make her redundant. As for Lord Henry who had abrupt move pushed the deadline ever closer, he is the unknown factor here. We are not sure of his fleet and that infernal submerged ship of his.”
“Henry’s fleet is not fighting. It’s a fishing one.” General Clarke cut in. “He was not …”
“So why are you afraid of Lord Henry?”
“Lord Henry is resourceful. He will not be easily defeated.” General Clarke explained himself. “He had outfought me on the few occasions we met.”
“Twice beaten and you are ashamed to stand up again. By George Clarke, you are a disappointment to the family. Considering that I am your cousin, I ought to march you out for a duel for shame on the family name but we lived in a different era now.” Lord Stuart did not hide his distaste for the cowardly General. “Lord Henry is only flesh and blood. It’s how we handle the situation that will determine his demise.”
General Clarke then saw the arrival of the guest that Lady Jan was waiting for. The guest was an unkempt and poorly dressed man at her side. The lady was dressed in a knee-length dress with the flats. He had taken offense to the arrival for that man should not be allowed into the house. He knew that man and was to voice out his protest.
“Lady…” General Clarke was cut off.
“May I introduce to you gentlemen the man who will help us destroy Lord Henry”
The Depth
The only way to describe the sea cavern was that it was huge. Its entry was seen as a narrow outcrop by the ships in the bay there, but beneath the surface, there was the open mouth that will swallow the Sea King into its throat and surfaced inside the huge belly. It was akin to the tale of Moby Dick.
Stacy was not new to caving for in her seafaring tour, she had swum into the deep sea caves but each time she arrived at one, she was overwhelmed by the majestic feel of being inside it. For one to experience know what it was like in a cavern was to be become engulfed in the dark chamber. There was the accompanying feel of chill which will tinge your skin and the feeling of being trapped. The cold touch there reached out to your fear when your hands feel the cave walls. Then your reaction was to reach for the light. It could be a distance light that shone through some narrow openings or the reflection of your light or the lantern held by your friend. That was only part of the sensation then.
The other one was the silence. It was most times silent in the cavern and if you surfaced in some dry caves, there will be dripping waters from the ceilings or the side of the walls. Each drop will resonance across the cavern and echoed at times. Your hands will reach to feel the solid walls; it was your only secured feeling then. Your feet will grip into the nocks and cracks of the dark path. Each step was taken with a breath of prayer hoping it will prevail on and not be a deep crevasse and fell into the depths.
“Stacy...” She heard her name called. She looked back to the Captain.
“Are you okay?” Captain Arthur asked her. Stacy nodded and then turned to look at the glass window. They were surfacing in the cavern. She was told that it held a depth of a hundred feet and a height of equal with a length across over five hundred feet. The large bulbs of the ship were turned off but the smaller ones were still lighted. It shone against the wall and then the magnificent works of the tenacious breed known as Man.
The cavern was lined up with three platforms that were built into the solid wall with the wood piling and planks. Each platform reached out to the water and there it supports the ship while it berthed. When the Sea King was anchored by the ropes, the walking planks were extended out and then the hatches opened. The fresh air was inhaled with relief by the crews after their exhausting five hours of recycled air.
Stacy was assisted out by the cavern crews to the platform. It felt strange to stand on the firm ground then. She saw that each platform was about fifty feet across and there were crates of supplies and equipment there. She saw the large closed structures on the far end of the cavern. She was to ask when she saw the Captain and the others were lead to the nearby staircase. They mounted it up for over five levels before they appeared in the open mouth cave.
Some structures housed the cavern crews with the rail tracks that allow the small metal carriages to move the supplies in.
“The island was once a mining colony for iron ores. I bought it and changed the interior.” Lord Henry told the newly arrived guests. “This is the entrance to Small Jaws, and up here we called it the Gooseneck. I don’t know why but it got stuck to the name.”
“Big Jaws in on the other side of the island where the fishing trawlers get to seek shelter during the storms. In the center of the Island is my Fortress of Solitude. It stretched from there back to Big Jaws.” Lord Henry explained. “It’s more of a home to the ones who stayed here. It’s fortified with guns but for defensive purposes. We are living in dangerous times now.”
“I say, old boy.” Jones quipped in while nudging at the Sergeant Major’ left ribs. “Is there a tavern here?”
“Yes, Corporal. It’s on Big Jaws.” Lord Henry replied. “If you walk, it might take you half a day climbing over the volcano there. Or you could take the train. It should not take more than an hour. The train not due for another hour.:
“Aye, my Lord. I am on my way. We can walk.” Corporal Jones dragged the Sergeant Major by the arms.
‘We will wait for the train.” The later was reluctant to leave but his Lordship gave the consent.
“Entertain the Corporal, Sergeant Major. He needs the air and walks.” Lord Henry then led the others to his home on the volcano side. It was a small house on the Small Jaws side. He uses it for short rests.
“Living dangerously had always been my life.” Lord Henry then held his brandy after having refreshed himself at his home. They were all seated at the cushy settee in the house. “When I saw this island on one of my reckless sails, I sought out the owner and bought it. I stayed here for over a month to explore the place and found the cavern. It was an explorer dream then.”
“During the war, I did bring Arthur here. We hid out here and planned our missions here. It was him who introduced me to deep-sea fishing. I was intrigued and then invested in it. The fishes will be the bridging supply to our dwindling land-based food supply. Of course, we never bargained for the predators but then again, which every frontier does not have its predators.”
“I could not just have the island to myself. I had to make it useful for others too. The sea is huge and we are pawns to its emotions. I developed Big Jaws to become a safe harbor.” It was the elderly man sighed. “I never thought the Chamberlain will play dirty. Damn! He was a good friend then.”
The dark uniformed officer stepped into his Lordship Hall. He was an elderly man with a stern look and a firmer frame. He was armed with a Webley strapped to his waist belt.
“My Lord, we are in need to speak.” The elderly man had on the thick curled up mustache that was the trademark of Senior Sergeants.
“You may speak freely, Staff Sergeant Hamley. We are among friends here.”
“So be it, my Lord. Three trawlers came to berth last week. They sought shelter on the grounds of repairing their boats.” Staff Sergeant Hamley spoke up. “We never turn anyone away. They turned out to be Far Eastern in their looks and talks.”
“I suspect they are not fishermen’s but pirates or at worse killers.” Staff Sergeant Hamley continued. “I was on the Mediterranean and seen my share of those booties killers.”
“Their strength, Staff Sergeant?” Lord Henry asked.
“About five on land and another twenty-five on the boats. They have weapons, rifles, and pistols next to their cleavers.”
“Put them under surveillance and give me a daily report. They could be genuine pirates or Lady Jan’s hired killers.” Lord Henry gave the command. “Gentlemen, it’s time we visit Big Jaws.”
The Surface
General Clarke looked at the map on the wide and long table at his home at the twenty-four room mansion on the riverbanks of the river that flows through the city. It was his family home from his grandfather’s days. The elderly old man was in the colonies when he was informed of his inheritance by the barristers then. Ironically, he was fighting the same ruling class for the decent patch of the farm in the colonies. Once he was advised of the inheritances, the old man abandoned his quest from a farmer to that of the Lord. He absorbed the family into the ruling class with fine tutoring and rankings in the social circle with the hefty purse he had carried. His son which was Clarke’s father was given a rank of Colonel in the Army but the poor man died from overindulgence in opium. Clarke was of the younger generation then and had disclaimed all the family’s troublesome past to stay afloat on the influences of power and greed. Well, not all forms of greed. He was an avid gambler and caused him some pain where he lost at the cards but the former brought him the position as General. He gambled with his strategies and won most times. He was given the rank of General by the Army.
General Clarke was all familiar with the points on the map but he disliked the ones marked red. Those are the enemies; similar in blood and flesh but with a different view of the issue. Before him, there were the seventeen senior officers with the lowest-ranked Colonel. They were from the three divisions of the Army.
“General Allen, are your men ready?” General Allen heard the Senior General request. He was a single star General from the Armoured Division of the Army. They have the armored Mark I units with the rhomboid design and the long tracks coupled with the two rear wheels to steer the tank. Each tank weighed over twenty-seven tons each. Each tank held a crew of eight with the twin six-pounder cannons and three Hotchkiss machine guns. The twin side ‘sponson’ which looked like pigeon homes housed the cannons.
“Yes, General.” General Allen replied. ‘But we have an issue.”
General Clarke glared at the other. He then looked at the others around the table. He was not sure if they will support him in the war. They were once his command but with the shift of command during peacetime, he was unsure.
“General Clarke, we have an issue. Sir.” General Allen voiced out again.
“Then fucking cleared the issue.” General Clarke raised his voice. “We are soldiers, Allen. Not fucking stooges.”
“All of you listen up. See those red spots. I want the issues cleared.” General Clarke shouted out. “Dismiss.”
The officers all trooped leaving the General to himself by the table.
“You are losing your command, Clarke.” The voice belonged to Lord Stuart. The latter was seated on the far corner while holding the glass of brandy. “They need your voice to command and not to ignore them.”
“Ian, if I ever need your advice, remind me to call my mother. She had lots of it even she was not drunk.” General Clarke stepped away from the table. He then pointed at the table.
‘Those red spots represent the regiments or company that will not listen to my command. They are for the General who took my spot of command. Half of those bastards were promoted by me.”
“The promotions which you sow like the poppy seeds in the field then. I recall it very well in your exact words; ‘they are loyal officers and more to it, capable men.’ You thought you were feeding them for their loyalty, but apparently, your chosen men have lived to their mantle. They have grown their poppy plants to feed their own. They fought for their land and never the snob that sold the rights to the seas.” Lord Stuart gleefully sounded it out.
“This scheme was yours, to begin with, my Lord.” General Clarke replied with a cynical tone.
“It’s mine by birth, General Clarke, and ours when we nurtured it to near adulthood now. You can’t deny my birthright gave me the edge needed to foresee the benefits of it all if we continued nurturing it.”
“Damn you, Stuart. If it was not your planning, I may be still seated on the post.” General Clarke laments on his loss of authority.
“That post will not bear you the grandeur that your grand paddy once held. It was your father’s and your grand scheme to lose most of it at the cards.” Lord Stuart reminded the other. “It was my grand scheme if we are to succeed regained that loss for you.”
“The land cannot bear another war after the last one.” General Clarke sighed. “It was to take over Lord Henry’s idea and made it ours. No fighting on the grand scale.”
“And it should be. Your Army is to stand down. All three divisions and I will have Lady Jan’s do the fighting. She will annihilate the island named Jaws. After all, it’s at the boundary and none of our ships are capable of reaching it.”
“You are telling me to babysit the renegades while Lady Jan battle Henry’s fleet?” General Clarke asked
“Yes, remember the plan was to get rich again. We were supposed to fish but the fleet that Lady Jan brought was her fighting fleet. I had the data on it. She was trying to invade us.”
“That’s good news. But why tell me now?” General Clarke asked. “We have brought the enemy to our shores.”
“Good point but she had not landed. Her fleet stands off our shores.” Lord Stuart replied.
“The fleet is off our shores and you tell me we are not to worry.” The General shouted back. “I am to protect it.”
“Protect it you shall, General Clarke. Let our enemies fight among themselves. The victor side will be weakened and with that, we can overcome them. It’s called killing two birds with one stone.”
“Then explained to me one more time how can we win the war?” General Clarke asked.
“Our primary task is to fish in the deep sea. When we recruited the assistance of Lady Jan, we agreed to get her here so that we can take over the fleet. She won’t berth so that means she is not invading us. She will vanquish the predators and also Lord Henry. We will rebuild our fleet but that may take time. Meanwhile, Lady Jan will provide us the fishes to sell. We will be rich.” Lord Ian voiced out. “We will be stronger and no one can stand against us.”
“With the threat made by the new General, we have to make new plans. We will make her redundant. As for Lord Henry who had abrupt move pushed the deadline ever closer, he is the unknown factor here. We are not sure of his fleet and that infernal submerged ship of his.”
“Henry’s fleet is not fighting. It’s a fishing one.” General Clarke cut in. “He was not …”
“So why are you afraid of Lord Henry?”
“Lord Henry is resourceful. He will not be easily defeated.” General Clarke explained himself. “He had outfought me on the few occasions we met.”
“Twice beaten and you are ashamed to stand up again. By George Clarke, you are a disappointment to the family. Considering that I am your cousin, I ought to march you out for a duel for shame on the family name but we lived in a different era now.” Lord Stuart did not hide his distaste for the cowardly General. “Lord Henry is only flesh and blood. It’s how we handle the situation that will determine his demise.”
General Clarke then saw the arrival of the guest that Lady Jan was waiting for. The guest was an unkempt and poorly dressed man at her side. The lady was dressed in a knee-length dress with the flats. He had taken offense to the arrival for that man should not be allowed into the house. He knew that man and was to voice out his protest.
“Lady…” General Clarke was cut off.
“May I introduce to you gentlemen the man who will help us destroy Lord Henry”
The Depth
The only way to describe the sea cavern was that it was huge. Its entry was seen as a narrow outcrop by the ships in the bay there, but beneath the surface, there was the open mouth that will swallow the Sea King into its throat and surfaced inside the huge belly. It was akin to the tale of Moby Dick.
Stacy was not new to caving for in her seafaring tour, she had swum into the deep sea caves but each time she arrived at one, she was overwhelmed by the majestic feel of being inside it. For one to experience know what it was like in a cavern was to be become engulfed in the dark chamber. There was the accompanying feel of chill which will tinge your skin and the feeling of being trapped. The cold touch there reached out to your fear when your hands feel the cave walls. Then your reaction was to reach for the light. It could be a distance light that shone through some narrow openings or the reflection of your light or the lantern held by your friend. That was only part of the sensation then.
The other one was the silence. It was most times silent in the cavern and if you surfaced in some dry caves, there will be dripping waters from the ceilings or the side of the walls. Each drop will resonance across the cavern and echoed at times. Your hands will reach to feel the solid walls; it was your only secured feeling then. Your feet will grip into the nocks and cracks of the dark path. Each step was taken with a breath of prayer hoping it will prevail on and not be a deep crevasse and fell into the depths.
“Stacy...” She heard her name called. She looked back to the Captain.
“Are you okay?” Captain Arthur asked her. Stacy nodded and then turned to look at the glass window. They were surfacing in the cavern. She was told that it held a depth of a hundred feet and a height of equal with a length across over five hundred feet. The large bulbs of the ship were turned off but the smaller ones were still lighted. It shone against the wall and then the magnificent works of the tenacious breed known as Man.
The cavern was lined up with three platforms that were built into the solid wall with the wood piling and planks. Each platform reached out to the water and there it supports the ship while it berthed. When the Sea King was anchored by the ropes, the walking planks were extended out and then the hatches opened. The fresh air was inhaled with relief by the crews after their exhausting five hours of recycled air.
Stacy was assisted out by the cavern crews to the platform. It felt strange to stand on the firm ground then. She saw that each platform was about fifty feet across and there were crates of supplies and equipment there. She saw the large closed structures on the far end of the cavern. She was to ask when she saw the Captain and the others were lead to the nearby staircase. They mounted it up for over five levels before they appeared in the open mouth cave.
Some structures housed the cavern crews with the rail tracks that allow the small metal carriages to move the supplies in.
“The island was once a mining colony for iron ores. I bought it and changed the interior.” Lord Henry told the newly arrived guests. “This is the entrance to Small Jaws, and up here we called it the Gooseneck. I don’t know why but it got stuck to the name.”
“Big Jaws in on the other side of the island where the fishing trawlers get to seek shelter during the storms. In the center of the Island is my Fortress of Solitude. It stretched from there back to Big Jaws.” Lord Henry explained. “It’s more of a home to the ones who stayed here. It’s fortified with guns but for defensive purposes. We are living in dangerous times now.”
“I say, old boy.” Jones quipped in while nudging at the Sergeant Major’ left ribs. “Is there a tavern here?”
“Yes, Corporal. It’s on Big Jaws.” Lord Henry replied. “If you walk, it might take you half a day climbing over the volcano there. Or you could take the train. It should not take more than an hour. The train not due for another hour.:
“Aye, my Lord. I am on my way. We can walk.” Corporal Jones dragged the Sergeant Major by the arms.
‘We will wait for the train.” The later was reluctant to leave but his Lordship gave the consent.
“Entertain the Corporal, Sergeant Major. He needs the air and walks.” Lord Henry then led the others to his home on the volcano side. It was a small house on the Small Jaws side. He uses it for short rests.
“Living dangerously had always been my life.” Lord Henry then held his brandy after having refreshed himself at his home. They were all seated at the cushy settee in the house. “When I saw this island on one of my reckless sails, I sought out the owner and bought it. I stayed here for over a month to explore the place and found the cavern. It was an explorer dream then.”
“During the war, I did bring Arthur here. We hid out here and planned our missions here. It was him who introduced me to deep-sea fishing. I was intrigued and then invested in it. The fishes will be the bridging supply to our dwindling land-based food supply. Of course, we never bargained for the predators but then again, which every frontier does not have its predators.”
“I could not just have the island to myself. I had to make it useful for others too. The sea is huge and we are pawns to its emotions. I developed Big Jaws to become a safe harbor.” It was the elderly man sighed. “I never thought the Chamberlain will play dirty. Damn! He was a good friend then.”
The dark uniformed officer stepped into his Lordship Hall. He was an elderly man with a stern look and a firmer frame. He was armed with a Webley strapped to his waist belt.
“My Lord, we are in need to speak.” The elderly man had on the thick curled up mustache that was the trademark of Senior Sergeants.
“You may speak freely, Staff Sergeant Hamley. We are among friends here.”
“So be it, my Lord. Three trawlers came to berth last week. They sought shelter on the grounds of repairing their boats.” Staff Sergeant Hamley spoke up. “We never turn anyone away. They turned out to be Far Eastern in their looks and talks.”
“I suspect they are not fishermen’s but pirates or at worse killers.” Staff Sergeant Hamley continued. “I was on the Mediterranean and seen my share of those booties killers.”
“Their strength, Staff Sergeant?” Lord Henry asked.
“About five on land and another twenty-five on the boats. They have weapons, rifles, and pistols next to their cleavers.”
“Put them under surveillance and give me a daily report. They could be genuine pirates or Lady Jan’s hired killers.” Lord Henry gave the command. “Gentlemen, it’s time we visit Big Jaws.”
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