Fantasy Bound by the Light (Completed)

[ArcticFox]

The panic did not leave her face, only further filled it, as the woman stumbled backwards to get away from Margaret.

When Margaret reached the engine room, she found a small group including Finch and the ship's captain, Royce, clustered around the limp form of the ship's engineer, who was bleeding profusely from the scalp.

Margaret's trained eye spotted that the injury seemed to be two separate wounds. One was minor - would have caused unconsciousness, but not severe injury - but the other was serious indeed.

Perhaps he hit his head twice, both times the ship lurched? But there was something odd about the second wound. The oddness niggled in the back of her brain, but she could not put a finger on it, not without a medical textbook.

"Can you hurry that along, Blackwood?" Finch turned to Margaret as soon as she inspected the engineer. "We really need to talk with him."

She had an abbreviated concoction kit tucked into her uniform pocket, and it did in fact contain a small amount of a stimulant. She had used this a couple of times in her missions while in the army, where she needed to stay alert and awake for a prolonged time. It would also server to wake the engineer up, but also possibly cause him medical problems..

- Do it.
- Don't do it.

 

[Ezri]

Margaret knelt over the unresponsive engineer, her own head throbbing as she examined his injuries. Something here was definitely strange... as desperately as she searched for an answer, none came. Not yet.

She nodded to Finch and fished the stimulent out of her other supplies, her brow furrowing. While it might have gotten her through some seemingly endless nights, she really didn't like the stuff. And after what he'd already been through, it could negatively affect the engineer's condition. But there were more lives at stake than one, more than even her own and Finch's... if there was any chance they could get some help from him, that was a risk worth taking. Sucking air through her teeth, she got ready to administer it.

 

[ArcticFox]

Finch nodded in approval, moving aside so Margaret had a clear view of the gaping open panel behind the engineer's head. Something had been ripped out of it, leaving wires and cables dangling.

"As you can see, this was no malfunction." The captain spoke. "This was sabotage. Someone has carried off the regulator, and the engineer is the only one who might have any idea who."

When Margaret stuck the needle and injected the stimulant in the engineer's forearm, he came awake with glassy, unfocused eyes, hands twitching and clutching with pain. It looked like his vision was unfocused and he seemed to find it hard to answer the captain's questions. He did not know who committed the sabotage. He knew only that someone hit him over the head. Whoever it was entered the engine room very quietly.

The poor engineer lapsed back into unconsciousness, and Finch turned to his assistant. "Straighten up, lad, we need you. You know this ship's engines as well as your senior, surely. How much trouble are we in?"

"Q-quite a lot, sir." The boy stuttered. "The regulator that was stolen, that's what controls the coal for the boiler. That there." He pointed to the panel. "It keeps track of how hot the boiler's got to. When the pressure's too low, it dumps in coal. No fuss, all orderly. One day it'll be like that on all ships, air and sea, that's what they tell me."

"With the regulator missing..." Finch concluded slowly. "The system is not adding coal to the boiler. Without the boiler, the hot air is cooling."

The engineer's assistant nodded.

Finch looked at Margaret first and then at the captain. "We're going down. Where are we?"

"Halfway across the Channel." The captain's expression was grave.

"Can you get the ship to land before we hit the water?"

"No."

- Suggest working on the lifeboats and getting people safely evacuated.
- Suggest searching for the missing regulator.

 

[Ezri]

Whoever their adversary was, they were serious -- they had stolen just the right object to cripple the entire ship, and without anyone seeing them. Unfortunately, it looked like they might actually get their wish. The saboteur could easily blend in with the other passengers among the chaos, and it could take a while to find them if they found them at all. And if they somehow recovered the regulator, would there even be enough time to right the ship before it crashed?

"Damnit." she hissed, getting back to her feet. She gave Finch a pained look before continuing, her hands balling into fists. "The priority should be making sure that the passengers are safe. And... I'm assuming this isn't necessarily a suicide mission. The saboteur will be trying to get off with everyone else."

 

[ArcticFox]

"We can trying finding the regulator." The captain said, but his expression was quizzical. "But, whoever took it might have just tossed it over the side!"

"In which case, it will be as well to have the lifeboats loaded." Finch added as he reached toward Margaret drawing her aside with a hand on her arm, turning her around slightly. "I'm gonna need your help here, I'm sure the captain will have the situation above in order."

The captain sighed, then strode out into the corridor and started bellowing orders. Crewmen came to carry the engineer to a place where he can be tended. Other crewmen came with instructions to stand guard and let no one else enter the engine room.

Perhaps somewhere in that room was a clue about a person who ripped out the regulator.

- Search the hole where the regulator was.
- Try to remember what felt strange about the shape of the engineer's wounds.
- Review the information you have so far.

 

[Ezri]

"Let's just hope the thing is actually still here somewhere." Margaret nodded, ready to get to work. She doubted that he meant it to, but Finch's request was somehow grounding. This was just a job like any other, and the two of them could handle it.

Margaret turned to look around the room, but the subject her thoughts was no longer present. The engineer's wounds hadn't left her mind -- what was bothering her about them? It was almost more bothersome that she just couldn't remember, but it didn't feel like a feeling she should ignore. Learning more about the attack could give them some insight about the attacker.

 

[ArcticFox]

Well the saboteur was someone who moved very quietly, yet someone who had enough strength to knock a man down with a blunt object, yet enough restraint or sympathy not to kill him. But then again he was ready to bring down the whole airship with more than two hundred people. That was a strange profile.

"Oh, look." Finch said in a tone of satisfaction. As Margaret looked up, out of her thoughts, he was already standing before the ripped regulator panel, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together. "There are little splatters of clear oil in the cabinet. If the regulator continued to drip oil as it was carried off, we might have an actual trail to follow. We just need something that will adhere to the oil. As you can see the oil is unfortunately clear. Oh, right..." His gaze went over the engine room and then he took off toward a table stated in one corner, returning with a bowl full of cigar ash. He sprinkled some in the cabinet, and Margaret could see how it clung to the oil spots.

Finch was already into the corridor, scattering ash.

--

Oil droplets led away from the engine room, bringing the two of them to the door of the main storeroom.

A storeroom on a vessel of that kind should be large enough for the saboteur to hide in. The door was locked from the outside, though, which did not provide proof about the saboteur staying inside that long. But the regulator might be hidden there.

- Find the steward or the captain to unlock the doors.
- Ask Finch if he knows how to pick a lock.
- Break down the doors.

 

[Ezri]

"Good thinking, Finch." Margaret said, although it was hardly a surprise. It would be more alarming if he hadn't thought of some ridiculous idea that miraculously ended up working. She thought of herself as a decently well-read and educated person, but she still didn't know where those thoughts of his came from. He just had a unique way of thinking, perhaps.

But sometimes, she thought as they stood in front of the storage room, simple ideas work just fine. She lightly tapped Finch's chest, gesturing for him to move back, and after briefly getting into a sturdy stance she kicked the door's lock with all the strength she had. One or two of those should do it, if it was an ordinary door -- if there was one thing she had been trained to do in the military, it was enter a room by force.

 

[ArcticFox]

Margaret had been taught safecracking and lockpicking, as had all Woodsworth's operatives, and she was competent enough, but sometimes the direct approach worked the best. The doors creaked and buckled underneath her blows.

"Remind me not to get on your bad side." Finch said pushing the door open with a smirk.

No one was hiding inside the storeroom, but the floor was coated in spilled flour and there was a partial footprint at one corner, suggesting that someone had been there recently. The regulator was not hidden behind or inside the sacks of flour, sugar and raisins.

Outside the door, the oil drips continued, making the two of them follow.

The panicked clamor above grew louder as the oil drips took the two Detectives up to the galley.

They found a ship officer there trying to calm down a terrified woman in a cook's apron. "But what about my son?" The cook protested. "There aren't enough lifeboats even for the gentlemen passengers, let alone the workmen of the crew!"

"Shhh!" The officer hissed, trying to get her to stop spreading alarm, but it was too late, both Margaret and Finch heard her.

Finch looked at Margaret, their gazes making contact and it was clear what he was thinking, it was not anything good. The dirigible was going down over the ocean. It wouldn't hit gently, and the water was icy cold. Even if there were enough lifejackets to go around, anyone not in a boat would surely die of exposure long before a ship came looking for survivors.

- Reassure the cook.
- Ask the cook to help you by telling you if she saw someone suspicious around.
- Tell the cook you can secure a spot for her son, in exchange for information.

 

[Ezri]

The look Margaret gave Finch was determined; she moved without hesitation. The cook was clearly distressed, and not be inclined to talk to them long without some incentive. It was hard to blame her; to the cook, the safety of her son would be much more important than some search she knew nothing about. And this was hardly the time to worry about rules.

"Ma'am," Margaret started, approaching the woman and the officer. "We're working with the crew -- I can find a place for your son on a boat if you'll be willing to talk with us. Has anyone unusual come through here?"

 

[ArcticFox]

"You can? You will?" The cook stared at Margaret with wide eyes. "Of course. I'll do anything." She was almost too frightened to think, but she still did her best to remember. "No one really suspicious. The head steward came through. And there was a young lady and a young gentleman who seemed to be looking for a quiet place to, um, behave improperly. And there was a middle aged lady who said she was lost but then wanted to see the kitchen, and a university student who asked me what sort of work I did and if I was well treated. As if I had time to chat, with all these people to feed!"

Finch nodded. "We'll need you to come upstairs and point all these people out to us if you can, on your way to the lifeboat."

The three of them walked back to the main deck and then to the top one, where a scene of utter chaos unfolded before their eyes.

The deck was tilted at a sharp angle, crowded with frightened passengers pushing to get into the lowering lifeboats. Officers tried to push them back, shouting instructions about how to board and put on a lifejacket, but not many seemed to be listening.

The cook was able to point out the steward, the university student, and the young couple. She was less certain about the lost lady.

Margaret's eye fell on a figure in a dark suit and helping to load the lifeboats. Mister North.

"You need to take your coat off." He was explaining to an older lady. "I know it's cold, but the lifejacket won't fit otherwise, you see? It will only be for a little while before they send a ship out to get us." Margaret knew that technique, she used it in medical situations. Act calm and cheerful, and you can inspire calm cheer in others. The old lady moved toward the boats with a more relaxed expression.

Mr North turned away from her, and in the moment when he thought no one was watching, he looked terrified.

"There." The cook snapped her out of it. "That lady there, in the black veil."

"Right." Finch turned to Margaret, handing the cook off to an officer. "We'll split up. Who do you want to question?"

- The steward.
- The student.
- The lady with the veil.
- The couple.
- Go to North first.

 

[Ezri]

As much as she tried to focus on the cook's words, Margaret couldn't help but keep North's actions in the periphery of her vision. That was good of him to do, and she felt a little bad that she underestimated him. Despite his fears he was helping to the best of his ability. It might be good to praise him some, she thought, if she ever saw him again.

For now her efforts were better spent trying to recover the regulator. It was still too difficult to rule anyone out, except possibly the couple, so they would just have to go with their instincts. "Right, I'll talk to the woman with the veil. Wish me luck."

 

[ArcticFox]

After all, it was very odd indeed that a lady would wander far enough below decks to become lost near the galley. She must have been up to something else. Margaret made her way across the crowded deck to her.

But she was stopped halfway through by a hand on her sleeve.

"Miss?" It was Mr North. He lowered his voice to speak to her. "I need you to tell me something. Truthfully. The officers won't give me a straight answer, but I've counted, and I can't see how there could be enough lifeboats. There aren't, are there?"

- Say there's nothing to worry about, you've got it under control.
- Suggest he finds a place in a boat for him.
- Tell him the truth and warn not to frighten other passengers.

 

[Ezri]

At first Margaret was filled with a swell of annoyance when she felt someone else trying to get her attention. How many times was she going to be interrupted? But after seeing who it was she softened a little. If she were in his position, she would want to know the truth herself.

"If you've counted then you already know the answer, don't you?" she said, matching his volume and with a tired smile; he was obviously a smart man, and he'd probably see through any excuse she could make. "Keep it to yourself, alright? Causing a panic will only make things worse."

 

[ArcticFox]

He nodded his head, pale but determined. "I will."

Movement at the corner of Margaret's vision caught her attention, and she saw Finch prowling step by deliberate step in the direction of the young university student.

The student really should have aroused everyone's suspicions much earlier. He wore old fashioned high topped boots that would be more appropriate to a horse than a ballroom, and his suit and cap both seemed somewhat shabby for the gathering, too loosely cut for his frame. He could be hiding anything at all, including a piece of the ship's engine, under his overlarge coat.

The student was not facing Finch, but he edged away as Finch approached anyhow, as though knowing he was pursued.

- Go through the crowd to cut off his escape.
- Approach him quietly and carefully.
- Shout for the ship's officers to catch him.

 

[Ezri]

Margaret gave North a grateful nod in return and left without explanation, focused intently on Finch and the student. Looking at him now he was the very picture of a suspicious person, but luckily at least Finch had caught on.

They couldn't alert him and risk him running further towards people since there was no telling what he could do. If he had the regulator he might just try to toss it now, or get the other passengers involved. If he was focused on Finch, maybe he wouldn't notice her as she moved further into the crowd, keeping him out of the corner of her eye and trying carefully to place herself exactly where he looked to be heading.

 

[ArcticFox]

As Margaret ran straight the student made it to the prow. All at once he turned to face the crowd, whipping out a pistol and pointing it upward. "Nobody move!"

Everyone nearby froze instantly. A stray shot from a firearm could hit the dirigible, and then the ship would shoot into the sea like a meteor, instead of sinking like a balloon.

"I don't want to kill you!" The young man spoke in a clear, ringing voice. He kept his back pressed against the railing, so no one could flank him even if someone were foolish enough to try. "This piece of obscene luxury is an insult to every man, woman and child slaving in Mercia's factories, and I want to see it plunge into the sea, but my associates and I never intended to kill innocents who paid a penny for a lottery ticket. It's not our fault Her Majesty's finest dirigible doesn't have lifeboats enough for its passengers!"

A gasp ran through the crowd from everyone who was too agitated to count lifeboats earlier.

The student continued. "Let everyone here see that we who resist the viles of the Kingdom care more about its residents than those on the throne!"

He threw down a mass of steel and wire that he had been hiding under his coat. The regulator. Then he abruptly took of his coat, tossing it over the regulator.

"Free Mercia!" He shouted, backflipping over the railing.

Margaret was among the first to reach the rail. The man fell like a stone, but only for an instant - then fire shot out of his boots. He rocked backward slightly, steadying himself, then looking up to give Margaret and the rest of them at the railing a cheeky wave goodbye. The boots carried him in a controlled fall down a moderate incline, toward the ocean and out of reach and sight.

"Who was that?" The head steward asked no one in particular.

"Never mind!" Finch shouted, grabbing the regulator, and sprinting for the engine room.

- Run after him.
- Stay and help with the lifeboats.
- Get North and run after Finch.
- Tell North to help with the lifeboats and run after Finch.

 

[Ezri]

Margaret watched the man fly away in a mixture of awe and disgust, although even if he escaped at least they had the regulator. Was he from some sort of extremist group? More than anything else it was his callousness that bothered her -- he cared so much about them the people that he would endanger all of their lives! What a joke.

"Stay here, help how you can!" she barked at North despite knowing how much she was asking. Even trained professionals were going to have trouble keeping this crowd under control now that they knew how ill prepared the dirigible was. Margaret herself followed after Finch -- even if things were looking grim, reinstalling the regulator could possibly solve the most pressing of their problems.

 

[ArcticFox]

North gave her a small nod, turning to address the most panicked of the people, giving his best despite his own fear.

In the engine room, the engineer's assistant was waiting for them.

"Sir." He spoke in a shaking voice, looking down at a manual that trembled in his hands. "There's two things that must be done. The regulator's got to be reinstalled and all the cables and wiring connected up again."

"Is that something you know how to do?" Finch demanded.

"Um." The assistant looked miserable. "Well, not exactly, sir, but I can read the diagrams in the manual."

"So that's a two-man job." Finch said. "You to read and interpret, and someone else to follow your instructions. And the other task?"

The engineer's assistant gestured overhead. "The saboteur did another bit of harm we didn't have the chance to notice until now. He wrapped a bit of metal round the main drive chain. Someone's got to climb up into the frame and untwist the metal before the propeller will go again." It was quite a way up.

- Reconnect the wires with the assistant's help.
- Climb into the frame and untwist the metal.

 

[Ezri]

Margaret's gaze followed the assistant's gesture, her brow furrowing. 'Climb up into the frame'... it was probably a job better suited for her, since she was smaller than Finch and could probably navigate more easily, but she couldn't help but feel a little daunted. That propeller did not look like a fun or safe thing to be near, and the thought of climbing around up there drained some color from her face.

But no, no. Between the two of them, Finch was much better at meticulous, detailed work. His strength would be with reattaching the regulator. She coughed and shook her head, speaking with much more confidence than she had. Surely the task looked worse than it actually would be. "All right then. Leave the propeller to me."

 

[ArcticFox]

Finch nodded once, and moved immediately toward the cabinet. "All right." he said to the engineer's assistant. "Talk me through it."

Mararet started to climb.

It was terrifying at first. The ladder was tilted as everything else on the dirigible, requiring a great deal of strength from both leg and shoulder to keep balanced. He foot slipped a couple of times, making her hold on for dear life.

Finally she reached the top after a couple of uncertain moments. Up close, she could see the problem plainly. The twist of metal wrapped around the propeller's chain. She locked one elbow around the frame, planted her feet firmly, and used the other hand to work the sharp-edged steel free. Steadily, easily, not hesitating, not going so fast to risk more damage.

Her hand was bleeding from a dozen small cuts by the time she freed the chain.

She climbed carefully down, reaching the deck just as Finch turned from the reattached regulator.

"Done." He announced. And then, to the engineer's assistant. "Now what? Just pull the lever?"

"Pull the lever." The assistant confirmed. "Soon as the regulator gets the boiler hot enough, the propeller will turn and the envelope'll get hot again."

Finch reached out, puling the lever. The regulator made a whirring sound, lights flashing. The clockwork pieces around it creaked into motion. There was a hiss... but no clatter of falling coal followed, and the hiss abruptly died into silence.

Finch reached to try the lever again, but before he could touch it, the clockwork whirred a second time... and for a second time, nothing happened.

It seemed almost like the ship was falling faster. The engineer's assistant whimpered, frightened.

- Look through the manual in case something was missed.
- The ship was about to fall, run to find shelter.
- Watch in silence.

 

[Ezri]

With her feet back on the closest thing they currently had to solid ground Margaret felt a wave of relief, although the cuts on her hand were still stinging and raw. After the effort it took to stay up in the frame and how banged up she'd gotten when the ship first lurched, she had a feeling she would feel even worse tomorrow morning.

If they made it to tomorrow morning. Her relief only lasted for a moment before the cogs made that weak, futile sound, and Margaret felt her heart drop into her stomach. "Is it not heating? There has to be something...!" she hissed, yanking the manual from the assistant engineer's hands and frantically reading over the page herself. The assistant was young and nervous beyond description, with what seemed like very little practical experience -- there was a chance that there was some detail he had missed or simply forgotten.

 

[ArcticFox]

"There's no fault." Finch said, whirling into motion. "We repaired the clockwork. I hope eventually it dispenses the coal, but if it doesn't, we'll hit the water hard." He looked all around, settled on a corner, and hurried to clear it of debris. "We need to be shielded from the impact and from flying equipment. And then the instant we're no longer falling, we'll get out of the engine room and as high up as possible."

The corner was small enough for a few people to crouch against the bulkhead and be protected by the dirigible's own structure from shocks or flying debris.

"Come." Finch grabbed Margaret in a hurry, pulling her toward the shelter.

Out in the engine room, she could hear the regulator whirr, the clockwork gears creak... and a slight sighing sound instead of the clatter of coal.

"Damn." Finch said softly, close to Margaret's ear. He probably appeared calm to everyone else, but she knew him too well to be fooled. He tried to smile. "Well. We had a damn good try, didn't we?"

- Reassure him.
- Hug him.
- Panic.
- Stay silent.

 

[Ezri]

As she huddled next to the bulkhead and cursed Margaret thought that it would almost be better if there was something wrong, because then at least she could occupy herself trying to fix it. It was hard to swallow the thought that there was nothing left to do but wait and hope.

The realization that even Finch was scared didn't help. It was easy to rely on his confidence, so without it the situation seemed even more dire.

"We did. This is just our luck, isn't it?" She tried to laugh, but it was a sorry attempt. Failing that, she took his hand and gripped it probably far too tightly. "But don't talk like it's already over. There's still a chance. Any second now..."

 

[ArcticFox]

Finch tensed slightly as she took his hand, but soon enough he squeezed back, exhaling. "I'm glad you are here." He whispered, barely audible.

And then, with a roar that half-deafened Margaret, coal cascaded into the boiler, and the deck jerked under their feet as the propeller engaged.

The ship would take time to regain altitude - the air that filled the envelope cannot be reheated all at once. But meanwhile the propeller was once more driving HMS Colossus to shore and safety. The engineer's assistant gave a choked, disbelieving cheer, and Finch's grip tightened around Margaret's hand before he leaned back, relaxed and exhausted.

--

In the end, the casualties proved to be mercifully light. Many people were hurt, some of them severely, but only four people died. Three passengers, who perished of injuries received during the panic on the boat deck, and the fourth was the ship's engineer. It could be that his death was caused by the effect of the stimulant Margaret injected, but it did not matter now.

The HMS Colossus affair caused significant embarrassment to the dirigible's manufacturers and to Her Imperial Majesty's government. Before the week was out, every man, woman and child in the Empire would hear about the lack of lifeboats, the lack of officer training, the general incompetence with which the evacuation was handled, and the fact that a saboteur walked right through the ship's security and into the engine room. Woodsworth was furious.

- Be angry at the saboteur.
- Be glad you are alive.
- Be sad it all happened.