Page 7 of Palaces and other Prisons
Mr. Healy gave him a grim smile. “Yes. Exactly.”
Brett leaned back and crossed his arms. “Any ideas on how we’re supposed to communicate with them?”
“No. No one has given me any guidance, and I’m sure you’ve been following the news the same as everyone else,” Mr. Healy said.
“I’ve read a report where the scientists claimed they collapsed the mythological world into ours by accident. Is that true?” Katrina rested her elbows.
“I saw that too,” Dawson said. He’d also seen the violence both from humans and from the mythological people. But the soldiers hadn’t attacked, only watched and waited.
Which meant they were waiting for them to do something.
“That seems to be the case,” Mr. Healy said. “This island appeared out of nowhere. We have confirmed that we did not move.”
What did it matter if they had or hadn’t moved? The fact was, they were stuck on the platform with no help arriving anytime soon.
“The company has asked that you sign these waivers before you leave the platform. Please take your time to read through them, and if you change your mind, let me know. Otherwise, if you agree, you will descend at eight tomorrow morning. If you were due to work tonight, you have the night off.”
Dawson stared at the two-page document. While he wasn’t a lawyer, it seemed to be a statement that they were volunteering and that they understood it was dangerous. It was a cover your ass for the company, even though they needed someone to volunteer, or everyone was going to die on the platform. A few fights had already broken out as tensions rose.
Dawson would rather take his chances on the ground. He signed the paper and pushed it toward Mr. Healy. “I will be ready at eight.”
CHAPTER 6
Dawson had packed a small backpack, which included his journal, a raincoat, and a bottle of water. It felt as though he’d packed too much, but since no one knew what was going to happen, perhaps it was too little.
He met up with the others, and they descended onto the island. The moment his feet touched the grass, he expected the soldiers to rush towards them, but that’s not what happened. They remained sitting near their tent, watching.
“What do you want to do? Head toward the river for water or greet the people who have been waiting for us?” Joe asked.
They couldn’t collect enough water for everyone, but that wasn’t the goal today. All they needed was to get a sample to ensure it was drinkable. Given the situation, Dawson figured any water was drinkable once it was boiled. It wasn’t as though they had the luxury of being fussy.
“We can’t stay here, and it is rude not to say hello since they have been waiting,” Katrina said.
“Joe, why don’t you and Matt get the water sample, and we’ll greet the soldiers? Just watch out for those cows.” Brett, who was in charge because he was the engineer, pointed at the gray beasts, which were much bigger up close, grazing not far away.
Sure, the cows looked slow and harmless now, but they all had dangerous-looking horns. Dawson would rather take his chances with the soldiers.
Brett led the way, and Dawson and Katrina followed. The soldiers, who had been sitting around the fire and enjoying their morning before going about their jobs, stood. Or at least three of them did. The other two remained sitting and watchful.
The one who appeared to be human gave them what sounded like a greeting. Brett said hello, and Dawson waved like he had every morning from up on the platform. He glanced over his shoulder to see if anyone was watching from the platform. There were a few people on the deck peering down. He didn’t blame them. This was the most exciting thing to happen since the collapse. It also meant that there’d be witnesses to their deaths if that’s what came next. But the soldiers hadn’t reached for their weapons even though they were armed with swords and knives.
The human-looking one spoke rapidly, pointing at them, the platform, and then at Joe and Matt, who were on their way to collect water. It was easy to imagine that he wanted to know who the hell they were and what the fuck they wanted because that’s what Dawson would be doing if a bunch of randos had arrived on his island.
Brett stood there staring at the two blue-skinned guards. His mouth opened a couple of times, but nothing came out.
“Do something,” Katrina whispered.
Why didn’t she do something? Or was it because she was the only woman standing there? No one had thought about that before they descended, or perhaps they had, but they needed volunteers so badly that it was fine.
“Hi, I’m Dawson.” He put his hand on his chest. He pointed at Katrina and said her name, and then repeated the process for Brett. Establishing names seemed like a reasonable first step.
The guard with horns said something, and there was a rapid conversation between the five of them. While Dawson had done bits of French and German in school and picked up a little Spanish when he’d been on holiday, the language they spoke wasn’t anything like any of them. But then why would it be when blue-skinned people with tentacles, and men with horns and hooves hadn’t existed until a few days ago?
The human soldier, who must have been nominated to deal with the human-looking invaders, spoke more slowly and pointed at Matt and Joe.
“I think he’s asking what they’re doing,” Katrina whispered.
“No shit.” Dawson pulled his drink bottle out of his bag and gave it a shake before pointing at it and then at Matt and Joe. He pointed at the water bottle again and up at the platform and shook his head, hoping they got the idea that there was no water up there.
