Yet another episode. Hope you like.
- Alistair
Braddock stood on the balcony outside the docker’s office and, leaning on the rail, looked out at the incredible scene unfolding before him. It was mid-morning by his reckoning and the docks were busier than they had been in years. Transports, flat-beds and hoppers were picking up and dropping off on every rail.
He thought of Alice way up in the crane’s cab. Poor lass, he thought. Nothing had prepared her for this. He should have swapped her out for a more seasoned worker but he needed them all on the platforms. And Braddock realised that he should have been out there in the thick of it but Peru hadn’t turned up this morning – he was sure her illness was getting worse – so he had to manage the office and the resulting paperwork. He kicked himself for not spending the time training up someone else instead of taking on the work but who could have known it would be so busy again?
He stood straight and stretched, years of hard work keeping the muscles in his shoulders and back tight, and watched as Gregor slid down the ladder from the third highest rail, named Ringlet, and jumped the last couple of feet to the floor of the docks. Braddock winced at how dangerous his beloved docks had become this morning. Gregor, of course, landed with ease and raced over to the office.
The docks office was above a small storeroom and wooden stairs, with a small landing halfway, led to the first level and to Braddock.
‘Good man, that Gregor,’ he said with his gravelled voice. He gestured through to the office behind him. ‘One copy goes in the tray, both get stamped. You know the drill.’ Gregor saluted sharply, which Braddock returned with a curt nod and a smile, and dashed inside.
Gregor found the stamp, spat on the dry pad, and banged the stamp hard there and again on the forms where he had been shown. He threw one copy down in the tray and ran back outside to return the copy to the driver.
He never noticed a solitary light blinking steadily on the console in the corner of the office. It blinked into life and a single line of text ran across the in-laid screen.
- Repositioning complete -, it said.
On the balcony Braddock watched Gregor race back along the dock and up the ladder to the Ringlet rail. He laughed to himself. The boy’ll sleep well tonight, he thought.
The light on the console blinked faster and faster then changed from amber to a steady red.
- System Error -
Braddock looked up at the Ringlet line. That hopper was on its way now and he saw a flat-bed waiting at the edge of the dome to come in. Gregor knew the drill, all the boys did. There was no reason to spend all his morning by the office. Working a sly flat-bed or two couldn’t hurt.
- Rebuilding Engine -
Braddock walked back into the office to retrieve his gauntlets from where he kept them. The screen in the corner was blank.
