I am so sorry about the lateness. I meant to get this out forever ago. That said and out of the way, this chapter's twice as long! Plus, I have some cool things coming up. A good friend of mine drew a cover page for this story and it is simply amazing. As soon as I can find a scanner, I'll put the link on my profile. Super cool.
Next, this November is NaNo. I will try my hardest to get another chapter out before this hectic time comes around, but otherwise an update won't be coming that month. Sorry.
Special Thanks to Narin Tani!
Disclaimer To worried about NaNo to think up a funny disclaimer. Sorry, but I don't own the Castaways.
Titanic
Chapter 9
Despite what he had told Seamus the pair ate a quick lunch first, not knowing how long it would be before their task was complete. So far, they were unsuccessful in locating the Captain, but of course they hadn't asked outright. Ben knew enough about social classes to know that someone in his position couldn't just walk up to the captain of Titanic and have a chat.
"Huh. If I was the Captain all voices would be heard on my ship!" thought the dog while he sat alongside his friend.
"All right then, let's take over the ship." Joked Ben, knowing his dog wouldn't take him seriously. "Then you can be Captain."
"Oh boy! I always knew piracy was for me!" said the dog in mock enthusiasm, "Where should we start?"
Ben thought for while. At the moment they were hiding behind a lifeboat, near the bow of the ship. The boy glanced upwards briefly, looking at the stack emitting black billowing smoke.
"Ned." Ben stated, to get his dog's attention.
"Yeah Ben?"
"We're on the same floor as the ship's bridge right?"
Ned nodded. "Yeah, but the door was blocked by that ship hand, remember? We tried that."
"I know, but I was thinking that I could climb onto the floor above us and perhaps find an unguarded way in."
"And how do you plan on getting to the roof?"
"There's a ladder attached to the wall over there." Answered the youth, indicating the way by tilting his head.
The dog's tail drooped dejectedly. "I can't climb ladders."
"No, you can't." agreed Ben.
Ned's head sank until it was resting on his paws, and then lay down. He gave Ben a sad look, but said, "Well go on without me then. Just don't get caught."
Ben hugged his dog briefly, and then asked, "Where will you be shipmate?"
"Oh I'll be here, asleep most likely. Just give me a shout if you need me."
The blond headed boy straightened out from behind the lifeboat and started to walk towards where he had seen the ladder leading to the roof above. "I will. Do you want me to take over the ship while I'm there?"
"No." said Ned closing his eyes. "Not today. We have the whole week to kill."
The ladder was only a few yards away from where they had been hiding, and Ben leaned against the wall, the perfect picture of innocence. There were few people on deck, (most people were still eating lunch), but Ben waited until no one was looking before acting.
Turning, he gripped the cold steel bars. Quickly and cautiously, Ben scaled the ladder, checking to make sure he hadn't been seen when he reached the top. Ducking low, he made his way to the wheelhouse, careful not to let his shadow show on the deck below him.
He passed the spot where the deckhand stood guard and crept towards a spot where he could drop to the floor below and still be out of sight from watchful eyes. Carefully he lowered himself down feet first, and then lowered himself until he only hung by his fingers.
He blinked. The wall he was facing was made entirely of glass; meaning Ben was completely visible from the inside. The second the youth realized this he dropped and crouched down behind the half wall. Breathing as quietly as he could, he mentally counted to ten, then, when no one showed up to ask why there was a strange boy wandering around the wheel deck.
Peering out from his temporary hiding spot, he looked into the room. Inside was a man, the Captain he supposed, inspecting some machine or another. The only reason why he hadn't been seen was because the Captain was facing the other way.
Ben knew he would only get one shot at this. Taking a deep breath, he reached for the door handle. A hand clamped down on Ben's shoulder causing him to jump.
The boy struggled, trying to get free, but the person who had grabbed him had a grip of steel. Twisting his head around, he could see the person who had a hold on him.
The man was short, only an inch or two taller than him, but was thicker and much more powerfully built. He had the air of a boxer about him and Ben knew there would be no way of escaping, at least not without causing possible harm to the man, or himself. The Eternal chided himself for being caught, but adopted a half -hearted smile; hoping to be let free.
The ship worker frowned down at the lad, face full of disapproval. "Eh. Yer not supposed to be here are ya?"
Ben didn't think the man would like the idea of him wandering around the roof of the wheelhouse, so he hoped the man wouldn't ask how he had gotten past the guard. Instead he stood up straight, (or as straight as he could while still he being held) and said, in a confident voice, "I came to see the Captain."
The man's face twisted into a sneer. "Did ya now? And what makes you think you could do that?"
Before Ben could answer the door behind him opened revealing a tall man in ship's uniform. He had a white beard and mustache, complete with a Captain's cap. About him was such an air of leadership and sea-worthiness that Ben could tell, just by looking, that this was a man who had spent decades on the sea. In the back of his mind, Ben wondered if he himself had this air of a salt about him, but at the moment he had more pressing matters to see to.
The Captain glanced at Ben, then did a double take, as so many did when they saw the boy's eyes. They were the exact color of the sea around them, though even now they seemed to change to a lighter shade, masking a distant storm from view. A storm that was centuries old.
The crewman who had grabbed Ben meanwhile, released him and saluted at the Captain. "Captain Smith Sir!" he said in an official tone. "I found this urchin lurking outside the wheelhouse. I was just about to take him back to his class's commons."
Knowing this would be his only chance to say his piece, Ben spoke. "Please Sir, I only had some questions to ask. They wouldn't take much of your time!"
The Captain seemed to consider Ben for a moment and the youth felt as if the Titanic's Captain was staring through him rather than at him. Finally the Captain pulled out a golden watch on a chain from his coat pocket and examined the time. "I suppose I have a minute or two before I'll be needed."
Ben let out a sigh of relief. He was actually going to be taken seriously.
The man behind him seemed against his cause, for he said in a curt voice, "Pardon my speaking Sir, but you are need elsewhere. We have mere minutes before we leave port."
Again, the Captain looked at his watch, then looked at the man. "Send for Mister Gunnery."
Sensing his Captain had dismissed him, and ignored him, the sailor turned without another word and left. Turning around, the Captain opened the door and held it open to walk in.
Inside, the floor was made of gleaming polished oak. Attached to the walls were telephones and levers the likes of which Ben had never seen before. There, in the middle of the floor, stood the wheel; engraved with ornate carvings and made of good solid wood. For Ben, it was the anchor to the past, the one thing that hadn't changed in seafaring life.
For the Eternal, it was a comfort.
The Captain crossed over to the wheel and ran his hand along the carvings. "Of course this is mostly for show," he said, nodding at the wheel. "These contraptions are just as important as the wheel once was."
Ben nodded, showing he understood. The Captain turned and stared again into the Eternal's eyes, trying to decipher the mystery hidden there. All his years experience seemed to mean nothing in the presence of this boy.
The tow headed lad cleared his throat noisily and the Captain gave himself a small shake. He gave him a curt nod. "You said you had some questions?" he said, not unkindly.
Ben nodded again and spoke hesitatingly, "Sir, I have heard people call this ship unsinkable. I've been on a lot of ships, and all of them could sink." Granted, some of them had sunk while he was still on them, but that was hardly his or Ned's fault. "What I'm asking is what makes this ship special?"
He had decided that this was the most pressing question, since in the visions showed the ship taking on water. If the ship really did prove to be unsinkable, then he and Ned would keep on the look out for their purpose, minds at rest.
The Captain scratched his bearded chin in thought. "The chance of collision on open sea is small, the Titanic is so large that any other ship would know to avoid it, they'd be crushed if they didn't. The only other obstacles are icebergs, which can be just as easily avoidable. Did you see what happened with the New York? Well in any case there are completely empty holds to contain any water can as they say, spring a leak." He finished with a sense of pride in his voice.
Ben was far from being reassured. In the visions he had been engulfed in freezing water. Maybe we're taking these too seriously; maybe they're not real.
"What about lifeboats Sir?" asked Ben. His voice was steady, but another thought had just entered his mind. "It didn't look like there were enough on deck for all the passengers."
The master of the Titanic dismissed the question with a wave of his hand. "This is a simple transport to New York. I hardly think there will be need for them. To answer you question there are enough lifeboats for half of her passengers.
The boy's mouth opened, but no words came out. This was against the rules of seafaring, or at least it had been. These strange times…
A knock sounded against the window and the door opened. A man with chestnut brown hair and a pointed nose walked in and stood to attention.
"Ah, Mr. Gunnery." Said the Captain as he switched his attention from Ben to the man and then back to Ben. "If you'll excuse me, I have business to attend to."
Ben knew he had been dismissed so turned without a word and strolled over to the door. As he reached for the handle, the Captain called out, "I never got your name boy?"
As the Eternal turned, Captain Edward Smith felt a pang of pity surge through him for the boy when they made eye contact. "Ben Sir, just Ben Sir."
Then he was gone.
Ben found Ned a few minutes later. He was indeed asleep, but woke up to listen to what the Captain had said. He stood up indignantly when Ben told him about the lifeboat problem. "I bet I know which half will be loaded onto them first!" He said in a dark tone.
Ben inclined his head, "Aye, the first class half."
They looked out from behind the lifeboat at the people lining the rails. The ship's whistle blew and smoke was flowing from the stacks. In moment the ship would move, leaving land for the last time. The pair stared out at the rolling green hills in the distance, longing clear on their faces.
It happened like a flash. The sun's light was snuffed out and was replaced with the twinkling lights of stars. "Not again!" Ben mentally groaned. Ned stood beside him, so that was reassuring at least. The feeling didn't last long. Ben only had time to register his breath coming out in mist and feel the cold before he fell onto his back and began sliding backwards, Ned yelping in alarm.
They were moving too fast for Ben to see everything around them, but people were screaming and sliding with them. His fingers found Ned's scarf and clamped down on it with a death grip. He swung out his other arm and caught hold of the railing bar.
It felt as if his arm was about to be pulled out of its socket and he heard Ned gasp as pressure was applied to his neck but the thick fur kept him from choking. Panting, they both looked downwards. "What a nice place to hang out." Commented Ned, even as Ben's grip on the bar began to slip.
Ben gritted his teeth and tried to hold on, but he knew it was only seconds until they would be falling again. Was it possible to die in this vision dream thing? He was praying to the Angel now, asking to be let free of this monstrosity. This had to stop!
It did. But not before he slipped.
If anyone has read my other story the Tale, you'd know that long ago, Ned told Ben not to slip. (Evil Grin)
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