| Chapter Nine - "What goes up..." |
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The journey had passed swiftly, with our craft seemingly spurred on by the swell of positivity eminating from our hearts. We eventually
viewed our destination in the distance, where the patchwork quilt of farmers fields was eventually ended by the clear blue waters
washing against the cornish coastline. The sun was slowly descending in the sky and as we closed in upon a rural and sleepy settlement,
it had half set, bathing the twighlight sky and our surroundings in a beautiful rozy glow. It was fortunate that we had made such good
time, as attempting our first landing in near darkness would have been a most hazardous undertaking indeed.
We circled the area twice, looking for the optimum landing spot for our craft, one which would provide a certain amount of cover from prying eyes but would allow enough space for take off when it was time to leave. We found a suitable location on the boundary of what appeared to be a derelict and long-deserted farmstead. I would like to be able to say that my first landing was a graceful and controlled affair, however I would be stretching the truth more than a little to say so. We had obviously had no opportunity to put our theory to the test and thus our appoach and landing procedure was a little ungainly. We lowered our landing gear too early and had not slowed sufficiently, which left us out of shape and stuggling to level the craft to land safely. We collided with the earth with a heavy jolt with the craft swinging from side to side as we battled with to stop our beast before we would be assisted in our task by the wide slate wall which was advancing towards up with worrying speed. The ships structure groaned its disapproval as we came to halt agonisingly close from the decaying, neglected wall. The engine gave one last, bad tempered grunt and then stopped also, with a final hiss of released pressure. The captain and I sat in silence for a few seconds looking blankly ahead while we regained composure. "We really must work on that......" I whispered hoarsely while the captain hastily lit his pipe. We were both grateful to alight on the rich soil and survey our surroundings. We were a scant 10 minutes walk from a quiet, dimly lit and sleepy coastal settlement. The captain insisted upon arriving seperately in the village, with our destination and lodgings for the night being an inn, regularly patrionised by his contact. Returning to our impromptu cargo hold, we each packed a bag. The captain then bade me wait for 30 minutes after his departure before setting off, so that we would not be considered associates, at least initially. "I will contact you when the moment is right, dont run off old chap will you?" he imparted with a wry grin before descending our landing steps and disappearing into the dusk. I made myself busy tidying the interior following our somewhat heavy landing. It was fortunate that the captain's contact was not present to view our ungainly descent to earth or else we would be most unlikely to secure any kind of transportation contact, I mused. I hoped that we would not be entrusted with the carriage of anything delicate on our first "business" trip. The nets it seemed, had withstood the landing well however, with our stowed items showing no ill effects as a result of our abrupt coming to earth. Thankfully, the smell also seemed to be passing. It what seemed no time at all, it was time to depart. I descended the stairway, flipped open a concealed panel and turned the cog to raise it back up and seal the ship. Hefting the heavy pack onto my back, I commenced my walk to the inn. The first thing to strike me was the almost absolute silence of the vicinity. The only sounds to keep me company were the sound of the now keaning wind whipping in from the sea, the distant cry of seabirds, and, as I approached the inn, the sound of its rusty signboard flapping in the breeze, now dimly illuminated by a flickering torch struggling to keep its flame. The eyes of a bad tempered bull stared back at me from the faded sign. It was a reasonably large, white-stoned, coaching house style inn with a broad courtyard and stables, with the main building backing on to a steep cliff face. While appearing to have seen better days, the struture was solid and the door gave firm resistance as I leaned into it, swinging it open... |
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