The River of Life

From Lexicanum

A Plea for Help and a Rescue Launched

Gerald Halpin (formerly of the Queen’s Royal Lancers) was enjoying a leisurely lunch at the Cavalry Club with an old army friend, Maj. Henry Connolly (formerly of the Rifle Brigade), when a letter arrived! The letter (with an American postmark) was from Miss Annabelle Somerset, of Tucson in the Arizona Territory, who was the niece of Cyrus Grant who had led the expedition to the Moon, several months ago. Apparently Grant had returned to the Moon subsequently and his return was now overdue. Miss Somerset was seeking his assistance in launching a rescue expedition for her uncle. Never one to shirk the call of adventure, Gerald leapt immediately into action. Henry bored of life in Civvy Street, eagerly offered to render assistance. Calling for pen and paper, he quickly dashed off a response to Miss Somerset and then a note to Sir Henry art Rawlinson’s End and Wilhelmina Forsythe c/o the Foreign Office. Of the remaining members of the 1st Lunar Expedition, he knew that Rookwood and Miss Petheridge were halfway up the Zambezi and thus un-contactable, and he had no idea how to get in touch with the remaining members of the expedition Krapper and Sykes. Fortunately Henry knew an officer (Binky Featherstone) at Krapper’s old regiment who might know of the wily trooper’s whereabouts.

Next afternoon he received a hand-delivered note from Wilhelmina inviting him to lunch at the Ritz the following day. Henry arrived with word that according to Binky, Krapper could be found in lodgings in the East End in Brick Lane. Gerald headed out to call the old trooper to action, leaving Henry to investigate arrangements for sailing to New York. Krapper’s aid was swiftly enlisted on the promise of settling his bill at the boarding House and free food and board. One of his former crewmates signed on Board, Gerald and Henry then met Wilhelmina for lunch who was more than happy to join the rescue expedition.  When he returned to the Cavalry Club, he found a note from Sir Henry inviting him and his friends to dinner at Claridges. During a rather excellent dinner that evening, plans for the trip were made and arrangements made to meet at Euston in the morning to take the 09:00 to Liverpool.

The sailed on the Oceanic the day after and on arrival in New York a week later, they immediately made arrangements to take the train westwards. After six more days travelling westwards they finally arrived at their destination - Tucson. They were met by Annabelle herself,  a redoubtable young lady who quickly organised this motley crew of Englishmen (and Lady) to get them out to the C-G ranch in good order.

Over dinner that evening, they discussed plans for the expedition. Anabelle told them that her uncle had been intrigued by the glowing golden amulet given to them by the Selenites and had retuned to the Moon to find out more about it from them. She added that her uncle had taken a new ether flyer and that her uncle’s original ether flyer -  the Gossamer Wings - was stored in one of the barns on the ranch.The next day was spent in organising supplies for the expedition from the stores in Tucson and then they were finally ready to depart.

As Wilhelmina took the controls, Gerald and Henry took charge of the G&Ts for the six-hour trip to the Moon. Enduring  a couple of bumpy moments as they descended the great chasm on the dark side, Wilhelmina eventually settled the Gossamer Wings down near the entrance of the cave system where the Selenites lived. 

Swing, Swing,Together

After securing the Gossamer Wings on the ledge, the party led by Halpin headed off into the depths of Luna. Fortunately Krapper had retained a sketch-map of the cave systems from the first expedition, so they arrived at the Selenite village without incident – or getting lost in the caves! The Selenites  greeted their visitors excitedly and they were swiftly brought to their old friend K’chuck, who greeted them in broken English – or an approximation thereof, the words being mangled severely by his mandibles!

With some effort they could follow their friend’s conversation answer able to discern that Grant had gone exploring the lower depths of the canyon but had failed to return. The party were keen to chase after the missing scientist, but were prevailed upon by their insectoid hosts to stay for a feast and remain overnight.  At the feast - mostly composed of mushrooms - much to Krapper’s disgust! Sir Henry presented their hosts with gifts of brandy, cigars and brightly coloured glass beads. The gifts seemed to delight their hosts though they seemed unsure what exactly to do with them, munching delightedly on the cigars - until Connolly pointed out that tobacco was an insecticide!

Fortunately no obvious harm seemed to be done, and next morning, accompanied by K’chuck they boarded the Gossamer Wings and commenced the descent to the lower depths of the chasm. The lower they weren’t they concentration of acidic glow-fungus increased till the glare was almost overwhelming. Suddenly, Halpin, squinting into the light from the forward observation porthole, called out a warning as the chasm appeared to be narrowing alarmingly! While Wilhelmina held the ethership stable, a hurried conference was held as how best to proceed safely. Quickly a plan was hatched to lower someone below the ship to help guide them safely down. A makeshift harness was constructed from some webbing from the ship’s locker and attacked to some rope and the much put-upon Krapper was gingerly lowered out through the airlock by a slightly sozzled Connolly. Swinging precariously below the ethership, Krapper found the dazzling light was even more blinding now he was outside the ship! However the stalwart fellow did his best shouting out instructions to Connolly which the major relayed to Miss Wilhelmina at the controls.   

At first all went well and they continued through the narrowing part of the chasm, but then disaster struck as the ship swung heavily against an outcrop of fungus, spattering the ship with acidic mushroom-juice which burned through control cables and the exterior of the gasbag. Wilhelmina  valiantly fought the controls as the ship lurched violently downwards. Krapper swinging below, struggled to avoid being slammed into the acidic fungus and desperately scrabbled to haul himself up the rope, assisted by Connolly and Sir Henry. As they plunged downward through the fungus,  the hydrogen gasbags deflated, Halpin suddenly spotted a large ledge and shouted at Wilhelmina to aim to that for a crash-landing. The members of the party braced themselves as Wilhelmina managed to  guide the crippled ethership down for a crash landing!

Fortunately no-one was badly hurt in the crash, and in short order they had set out to explore their surroundings. The wall of the chasm at this depth was smooth rock and rivulets of water poured from small cracks in each face of the forming a dual waterfall that collected in a pool at the floor of the chasm some 150 feet below. Further along the ledge they discovered Grant’s ethership safely parked , but there was no sign of the missing scientist. Eventually deciding they had no way to repair the damage to the Gossamer Wings, they resolved to climb down and explore the area in more depth. Fortunately Sir Henry had thought to  pack his mountaineering gear and, leaving Roberts to guard the ship, the descent from the ledge was accomplished without incident.

As they began exploring the lowest level of the Great Chasm, Halpin spotted what looked like a clump of trees downstream and they headed towards it. On arrival they discovered the “trees” to be another kind of fungus, somewhat of the consistency of balsa wood. They also found signs that some had recently been cut down. Halpin speculated that Grant had constructed a raft to explore the river, and suggested they follow suit.  Krapper, who had some experience of raft-building from his time in the  Sudan, took charge of the raft-construction.

 In the process of harvesting enough “wood” for the raft, they found a skeleton which clearly did not belong to a Selenite as they had an exoskeleton. The remains were man-like but Sir Henry, with his medical experience, advised they did not belong to homo sapiens. 

In short order the raft was constructed and, due to some miracle, it actually floated! They carefully boarded, using makeshift paddles constructed from branches they manoeuvred their way downstream, to a chorus of the Eaton Boating Song from Sir Henry. As they rounded a bend in the chasm the river narrowed and disappeared into a cave system, unflinchingly they steered into the darkness!

Jolly Boating Weather

They headed deeper into the cave system for several hours, choosing a left hand fork when one was offered to them. Eventually, deciding it was time to rest as Smith was getting tired from the exertion, they headed for a wide sandy ledge where Connolly had spotted some of the edible fungus growing. As they neared the shore however, something nudged the bottom of the raft hard - disturbing their delicate balance. Henrietta went tumbling into the icy water. A creature, somewhat akin to a cross between a snake and a centipede, reared out of the water and bit her, but the foul beast soon went down to a barrage of rifle fire  from the others.
 
After helping a sodden Henrietta to shore, Sir Henry set about offering first aid, kindly in his bluff manner, he liberally doused the bite with iodine before bandaging it, patteing her arm reassuringly throughout .In the finest army tradition, Krapper unlimbered the primus stove and soon had a nice pot of tea brewing to help restore calm to the situation. After resting several hours and harvesting some of the mushrooms to supplemennt their meagre rations, they set off again down the dark passageways, their made going more difficult as one of the oars had been lost in the upset.

Several hours later they were attacked once mor, this time by a huge catfish-lamprey like  beast that badly wounded Krapper before being summarily dispatched by a mass volley! Krapper,was tumbled overboard in the affray, was only retrieved from the icy water just before he drowned, thanks to the luminous dial in his watch showing his location in the watery darkness.
 
An hour or so later, the passage narrowed suddenly and the current increased to a torrent. Henrietta, at the makeshift tiller, managed to safely negotiate the white-water hazard and they went on their way. Suddenl0, shockingly,  they slammed forcfully into a large island that mostly blocked the passageway. Smith was catapulted into the water and dashed against the rocks several times before they managed (or bothered) to rescue him.

Connolly took charge of the situation and immediately began organising everyone (excepting of course Henrietta) in an herculanean effort to portage the raft across the island. Wearied by the effort hauling their gear and the raft up the rocky shore, they decided to rest on the island that night before setting off again.
 
Next “morning” they set off again, dealing with another set of rapids before being shot out into a huge cavern and calmer waters. Scanning the area, Smith spotted a set of islands some miles to the north and a sandy beach somewhat closer to the south. They decided to head for the beach. Suddenly Sir Henry was attacked by a large bat-like creature swooping down from above. The moon-bat  was swiftly dealt with by a fussilade of shots and they settled down on the beach to rest for the night. While the others set up a rough camp, Sir Henry and Connolly had a perfectly splendid time taking pot-shot at the moon-bats on the roof.
 

Assault on the Moon Men          

They decided to camp on the quiet beach for a couple of days to allow Krapper to recover from his wounds – at least enough to take up his rowing duties. Sir Henry and Wilhelmina looked after the wounded soldier while Connolly and Halpin sat about the camp moodily, Connolly relieving the boredom by taking occasional pot-shots at the moon-bats rooting above! Eventually Krapper felt well enough to return to duty and loading up the raft they decided to recce the island they had seen to the north.

After a couple of hours rowing they arrived and beached the raft on the shore. The island was dominated by a large copse of the mushroom-trees, and as they debarked Halpin though he saw something move in in the darkness beneath Calling out a warning to the others, he moved forward cautiously. Again he saw something move in the undergrowth and this time Connolly too spotted the furtive movement. Deciding to flush the beggars out, Halpin moved round the side of the copse. He warned the other to ready themselves and suddenly launched into action, yelling loudly and beating at the undergrowth with his sabre to flush out whatever was hidden within.

Immediately four moon-rats emerged out of the thicket, only to be met by the now traditional volley fire from the assembled other members of the party. Three of the moon-rats were slain instantly , however  the fourth somehow managed to make it to the water and started swimming towards one of the other  islands. Having cleared the island of any potential threats, they settled down to create some replacement oars ( and a few spares). While the others produced somewhat rough-and ready results, Halpin seemed to excel at the task producing a finely balanced oar that looked as if it had been turned out on a lathe, however in characteristic fashion he demurred from any praise, pointing out flaws none of the others could perceive.

They rested another day on the island before setting off again -  heading down a passageway that exited the massive cave to the east. After a couple of hours, the passage narrowed again and the current increased dramatically, made worse when the passageway suddenly dropped several hundred yards over some rapids. but Wilhelmina somehow managed to steer then safely through, and they emerged, battered but not bruised,  onto what appeared to be best described as an underground sea.

Getting out the binoculars, Halpin and Connolly spotted a group of islands to the east and decided to make haste towards then. Without the current aiding them, the going was somewhat hard, but between them Krapper and Sir Henry managed to keep up a goof pace on the oars – Krapper wincing occasionally at the pain from his wounds! As they neared the island, Halpin spotted smoke rising – perhaps they were finally catching up with Grant!

The centre of the island was dominated by a low row of large dunes or small hills, and the island was heavily covered in mushroom-trees and some new variety of moon-fern. Beaching the raft, they briefly debated route-marching across the middle of the island, before decided it might be more prudent to scout ahead cautiously. Halpin immediately volunteered and made his way through the undergrown and up the side of the hill. Arriving at the summit his eyes met an unexpected sight. Rather than the rough encampment he had expected it looked like a small village! Peering through the binoculars, he could see several domed building as well as some rough stone huts and a corral. He could also see the native inhabitants -  short stooped humanoids with bluish skin. Some of the Moon-men wore iridescent tunics and carried what looked like carbines, while the majority were dressed in rags and obviously prisoners of some kind. The was also a stone jetty next to which a gleaming submersible was moored.

Halpin called the others forward and after a brief confab, they decided on direct action. As his friends took up position in the thicket, Halpin drew his sabre. Assuring himself his friends were ready, he swung the sabre down sharply, calling out “Fire!”  Immediately a ragged volley of fire slammed into the unsuspecting natives below, two of whom dropped poleaxed. The Moon-men guards dived for cover and began returning fire, their carbines spitting out silver darts eerily silent compared to the loud volleys from the humans. The Moon-men prisoners headed for the cover of the stone huts while the bullets flew around them. With their superior position the humans soon prevailed, though all had taken hits from the silvery darts.

As their comrades fell two of the Moon-men made a desperate rush towards the waiting submersible, only for the leader to fall in a hail of lead. The last remaining guard,. Threw his carbine down and began waving his hands over his head, jabbering loudly in some benighted foreign tongue. Their victory assured, the humans moved down off the hillside and into the village, Sir Henry binding their wounds as they went.

Entering the village, Connolly discovered that one of the prisoners actually spoke broken English and had obviously met Grant. The prisoner, Blim,  informed them that Grant had been taken to the City. Meanwhile with the help of the sole surviving guard, Halpin and Krapper began exploring the submersible 

A Daring Rescue

The group spent the next several days resting under Sir Henry’s rough-and ready medical care.  Blim’s grasp of English improved dramatically over the week as he helped Wilhelmina familiarise herself on the controls of the alien submersible and although she made good progress on going forward and back never quite got the hang of up and down.  Krapper took control of the engine room, sticking bits of paper scrawled with notes over the alien switches and dials that controlled the “Flow Engine” that powered the submersible. They also discovered that the “Moon-men” were not in fact from the Moon but were in fact survivors of the lost planet Vulcan. They discovered that the moon-men had a rigidly hierarchical society where innovation was discouraged and in fact most of the “political” prisoners on the island had been guilty of the crime of doing things differently.  Several plans were discussed (and discarded) concerning their best course of action to retrieve Grant from the mysterious City. There was general agreement from Connolly, Halpin, and Krapper that without significant artillery support a frontal assault on the city was probably inadvisable. Eventually they decided that a mix of boldness and stealth would be just the ticket, they would take along several of the prisoners dress them as guards and march boldly into the city as prisoners.

They set off cautiously in the somewhat crowded submersible with some trepidation. However, following fairly detailed entries translated by Blim from the Captain’s Log, they arrived without incident at the City of Light two days later. They had hashed out the detail of the plan based on what little intelligence Blim  cold give them, deciding that once they were delivered to the Dungeon to attempt the rescue their friends would melt off into the City and create what diversions they could. As Wilhelmina maneuverer the submersible into a free mooring the others prepared for  action, reluctantly forgoing their heavier weaponry, and in Halpin’s case his trusty sabre, they secreted handguns about their persons and attempting to adopt demeanours appropriate for prisoners, prepared to infiltrate the alien city.

Armed with the alien carbines and dressed in the uniforms of slain guards, the prisoners led by Blim escorted them past the dock-workers, who seemed to barely notice the strangers in their midst.

As they were marched deeper into the city, past strangely uncurious citizens, Blim pointed out various sights of the city. Suddenly, as they neared their destination,  Halpin realised they had forgotten to charge up the submersible before the left, but there was little time to ponder the consequences as the time for action was now upon them as Blim stopped before a low block-like building. Drawing their weapons, the humans quickly headed for the doors, while Blim and his friends dashed off to create a diversion elsewhere.

Crashing through the doors they were confronted by four startled guards. A swift uppercut from Krapper dealt with one while the others fell before a hail of bullets, barely managing to get a shot off before falling. The unfortunate Sir Henry was the only one to be wounded and in short order the humans had secured the entrance hall to the Dungeon.  While they pondered their next move Connolly proposed that if they Moon-men were anything like humans the cells would be in the basement, and led the way down a flight of stairs. Another group of guards were swiftly dealt with before they discovered that Connolly had been correct and they were indeed at the cells. Halpin began opening al the doors freeing the prisoners, though they did gaze at him in dazed incomprehension as he requested the swear fealty to the  Queen! Grant was indeed secured in one of the cells, waiting his execution as an “anomaly” he informed them, and without further ado they made their way back onto the streets. Judging by the fleeing citizenry, their moon-men friends had managed to create considerable chaos. Unfortunately it appeared that they had chosen to create it between them and the docks!

 For a brief moment they pondered heading in the opposite direction and taking refuge in the low foothills to the east of the city, but Connolly and Halpin were determined to retrieve their gear, and they made their way cautiously through the chaos working their way back towards the submersible. As they arrived at the docks an unwelcome sight met their eyes, the submersible was listing heavily to one side and had taken-on considerable water. Wilhelmina however, it transpired, was an excellent swimmer and volunteered to retrieve their gear.

Reunited with their treasured possessions ( with the exception of the gin, which Wilhemena declined to return for) they pondered what to do, staring glumly at the sunken submersible. After a while Grant suddenly pointed out that that by a happy coincidence there was a perfectly serviceable boat moored about a hundred yards away. Marvelling at the fortunate nature of finding a boat in dockyard, they unmoored the craft, and  made good their escape!