Winged: A Novella (Of Two Girls) (4 page)

By noon, everyone clustered near the
auditorium, waiting for more news. A major factory, situated near
London central, had exploded. It was a factory processing metals
and ores. Alethia said that there was an explosion of red and
orange in her head, just when the jolt hit the academy. It scared
her to the core and her face was still ashen.

Captain Sagan regrouped her College and gave
them words of comfort and encouragement. It was an Age of Invention
and Discovery. But nobody said anything about Safety and Health.
The air smelled distinctly of burning and of metal.

The leo-fins had been dispatched to help
with the firefighting. London burned with a ghastly yellow-green
light, turning the layer of smog into something out from Hell.
There were the faint sounds of bells as water-bearing teams rushed
to extinguish the raging fire.

For a while, lectures were suspended as some
of the lecturers had gone to pilot the leo-fins. Even Captain Sagan
took her leave and left with her leo-fin to help combat the
fire.

The academy throbbed with undercurrents of
disquiet and fear. There was a sense of desolation in the academy
grounds and in the Manor while the whole of London was in turmoil.
Fortunately, no more explosions followed and by late night, the
fire was contained.

Everyone – even the cook and her maids –
kept vigil, watching the skies for the returning leo-fins. In the
cold Autumn night, students huddled together in small groups,
sitting around gas lamps and watching their breaths plume white in
the air. Alethia was the most affected – her father was in London
central. She perched, white and silent, beside Katherine who draped
a blanket around her thin shoulders and only prayed for the
best.

Suddenly, Alethia became ramrod straight and
said, “Rainbows. They are back.”

Immediately, someone shouted and pointed at
the skies. “They are back!
They are back!
”

Eyes peered into the foggy darkness lit
intermittently with flashes of yellow-green. There were bright
spots in the sky, like stars. The stars gradually became brighter
and brighter, until they became the form of lamps on leo-fins. A
flight of leo-fins, all six of them, appeared, bold as courage, and
lifting everyone’s spirits instantly. Everyone cheered and watched
the leo-fins land in a disciplined V-formation on the Flying
Field.

Doctor Ash strode forward, medical bag in
hand, in case of any injury on the part of the pilots. The first to
appear was Pilotmaster Lee, pulling his dark goggles off from his
tanned face tiredly. The second was Captain Sagan who had her right
arm in a makeshift sling and causing a few pangs of horror in the
breasts of her College students. Ash spoke to the pilots quietly
and examined Sagan’s arm with a careful eye, nodding as he listened
to her exhausted explanation.

A few other pilots followed slowly behind
the more senior pilots, their bodies showing signs of weariness.
Their leather uniforms were covered with soot and one or two looked
as if they had very minor burns.

Students surged forward to their lecturers,
questions on their tongues, eager to know what had happened. Lee’s
face had a warm smile though.

“The Queen is safe. Buckingham Palace is far
from the fire and Her Majesty is away at Windsor.” He said,
accepting a bowl of hot clear broth from Cook thankfully.

Alethia pushed herself forward. “Sir?”

“ Miss Forrester, your father is safe,”
Sagan’s voice was calm and Alethia’s furrowed brow became
smooth.

After this brief interlude, the pilots were
led back to the Manor by Doctor Ash, no doubt for further questions
and examinations. Katherine tugged Alethia gently on the arm. It
was past Last Light and she was starting to feel really sleepy. The
wave of excitement was finally fading away.

It was then she got sight of a familiar
face, amongst the few pilots straggling from behind.

“Eddington!” Katherine breathed and the
familiar face turned to face her, surprise writ on the handsome
features.

~*~

“It was very hot, like hell-fire. We had to
fly directly above the flames, just to pitch the water in. It was
quite a challenge! Wes got himself burned when he flew too closely
to the fire but it was a minor burn.”

Richard Eddington sat with a mug filled with
warm cider and a bowl of beef stew, courtesy from Cook. It was
noontime when Katherine had the opportunity to meet him. The
lectures and lessons were back in schedule.

He had scrubbed up well and was looking like
his old dapper self. He had changed his uniform for a simple brown
coat and trousers, looking like a relaxed gentleman out on an
afternoon jaunt. Only the dark shadows around his eyes spoke
eloquently of his exhaustion.

They had met before. It felt like another
lifetime. In fact, Eddington had flown her over from Dorset to
London.

“The fire was hard to contain. It was a
raging beast. But by Jove, we tamed the beast!” Eddington said with
a bright grin and drank the cider deeply.

“You made it sound as if it was a walk in
the park!” Katherine laughed.

“Well, it is part of a pilot’s job, doing
chores and running errands, even something as big as this fire.”
Eddington tasted the stew and began to shove it down with gusto.
“Just look at you. You look different!”

Katherine felt self-conscious and stared at
her booted feet. Her face blushed, a slow heat pooling in her
cheeks.

“You have become more … self-secure.”
Katherine did not like Eddington’s expression as he gazed at her
appreciatively. “Definitely more self-secure.”

“Richard Eddington!” She snapped at him.
Within her chest, something blossomed, something like joy.

The man laughed and went back to his beef
stew. Katherine sat quietly, watching him. A shadow fell across the
table and it was Captain Sagan, her arm still in the sling.

“Now, Mister Eddington,” Sagan was
half-amused, half-stern. “It is unseemly of you to sit with female
students.”

“Captain Sagan, madame!” Eddington stood up
and snapped to attention. His eyes though gleamed with mischief. “I
was once a student!”

“Not anymore, young scoundrel,” Sagan’s tone
remained stern, even though her lips curled up slightly. “You are a
proper pilot now. Should you be on a flight run by now?”

“Aw,” he rubbed his jaw. “A tired pilot
makes a careless pilot.”

“Do not be glib,” Sagan shook her head.
“Just for a hour and no more.” She saluted and walked away
slowly.

Katherine stared at him. “You are
impossible.” She stood up, preparing for the afternoon lectures.
She was about to leave with her dignity still intact when he
spoke.

“So, we will meet again?”

~*~

The activities before Last Light buzzed
mainly about the London factory fire, everyone with their own
theories of the origins of the fire. Some said that the factory was
an ammunitions factory and something caught fire in that, causing
the inevitable explosion. Some said that the fire was just a
careless mistake, caused by negligence. Everyone became quiet and
wondered to their selves if the company who owned the factory was
to be shut down. The broadsheet writers and the union movements
would have aired their irate complaints by now.

Alethia retired early, drained by the
aftereffects of the fire. Katherine made her way out of the Manor,
to catch some fresh air, suddenly finding the dormitory hall too
warm and stifling to her liking.

Richard Eddington left in an hour, exactly
as he had promised Captain Sagan. Katherine saw his leo-fin lift
off and disappear into the distance. She was surprised to feel a
sense of bittersweet melancholia and suppressed the feeling
quickly.

It amazed her that she could still see
snatches of stars in the night sky. London was normally cloudier
than Dorset, because of the greater numbers of factories and
refineries. Dorset had one factory and even then, the smoke
obscured the sky occasionally. She looked up. It was a clear night,
exceedingly rare. It seemed as if the heavens pitied London and
gave her a starry night to cheer her waning spirits.

She stood, inhaling deeply. The London fire
was shocking. However, by the end of the year, people would have
moved on and the fire would have become just a memory, something to
talk about during salon gatherings. “People are more concerned when
their bellies are concerned,” her mother once told her in one of
her rare conversational moments.

Katherine gazed at the stars while the
constellations spun their slow orbits around her.

The next few weeks were frenetic and filled
with activities, as if the academy plunged back into routine to rid
itself of the overhanging anxiety brought on by the fire. Over in
London, there was uproar and argument over the damages from the
fire. The broadsheets and papers breathed indignation and
threatened to expose the culprit who caused the fire. It was also
edging towards Winter with the weather becoming considerably
colder. The first snowfall came, a day after All Hallows’ Eve. All
outdoor training stopped with most Athletics activities being
confined to the Exercise Hall.

With Winter came a sense of gravity. The
Great Manor was solemn and quiet. Everyone walked in thick coats
and scarves, shuffling about in their boots. Winter also ushered in
a period of Examinations. The games had stopped during Last Light
with students going back to their books.

Katherine found that she loved the solitude
provided by this wintry time. Wrapped in a warm scarf and a
comfortable woollen jumper, she studied by gaslight. She loved
Mathematics, barely tolerated Biology and was intrigued by Physics.
Engineer Morley thought well of her and said that she would make a
fine engineer.

She studied with Alethia during the
designated study times. The blind girl read by running her
fingertips over raised notches in special books.
It is
Braille
, she explained to a curious Katherine once.
Braille
is designed for the blind as a kind of tactile alphabet. We can
feel our letters.

Then, Examinations descended upon them like
a sudden rush of wings. Cook commented how mouse-quiet everyone was
at mealtimes and how her soups were ignored by tired and pallid
students. “They will lap it up like eager puppies once Examinations
are over!” She declared to Captain Sagan after a desultory turnout
during Tea.

For Katherine, the Examinations did not faze
her. They felt like extended homework, timed by harsh taskmasters.
During this period, her dreams involved flying quill-pens and
overflowing inkpots. To her relief, Miss Sharpton did not make an
appearance and she slept relatively undisturbed.

~*~

“Do you plan to go back to Dorset?” Alethia
said, soon after their last Examination subject. “Are you
celebrating Yule?”

Katherine was in high spirits after this
paper. The questions were easier than she’d thought. However,
Alethia’s question shocked her. She had not planned to go back to
Dorset. She did not have the courage to face her parents.

“I am going to stay here during the Yule
holidays,” she said quietly.

Alethia tilted her head to one side like a
bird. After an uncomfortable silence, she smiled and said, “You are
going to spend Yule with me. You are going to visit London.”

“No… I …” Katherine shook her head,
overwhelmed by Alethia’s generous offer.

“The Great Manor is going to be exceedingly
boring,” the girl continued and placed her hand gently on
Katherine’s arm. “You are going to taste the best baked turkey in
the world.” In the cold chill of a winter’s afternoon, Katherine’s
heart was warmed by a simple offer of hospitality.

~*~

The Examinations results were released,
pasted on large wooden boards outside the Administravia. Students
thronged before the boards, searching for their names. Someone had
clearly and painstakingly arranged and written down all names in
alphabetical order and with the attached grades. After a fair bit
of good-natured jostling and pushing, Katherine edged her way to
the board under the letter ‘R’. She scanned the board intently.

Found her name: RILEY, KATHERINE. Written in
quaint and neat black ink.

With trembling finger, she traced her name
and the grades.
Athletics – Alpha. Basics of Flight – Beta.
Humanities – Beta. Engineering – Alpha. Languages – Beta,
Mathematics – Alpha
. Her heart dipped.
Science –
Delta
.

But she passed and she was thankful. That
would mean another year at the academy and a chance for her to fly.
Deep inside, she felt guilty that her parents were paying straight
from their pockets.