Kayleb was amazed to see so many people in the hall. They were all similarly dressed and wore white clothing. They did not seem at all alarmed by their arrival and it suddenly occurred to Kayleb that he looked extremely tatty and dirty compared to everyone around him. He felt embarrassed as he walked through the crowds. Kayleb had a thousand questions going through his head. He wondered where all these people had come from. They were certainly not wasters, yet these people were not from London either; they looked far too laid back to come from there. As he passed he listened into conversations and realised that they spoke several different languages. This was a strange place, yet he felt calm, maybe too calm.
David led them down a corridor to a room with a sign above the door, which stated that they were entering the visitors’ room.
Rowan was starting to cheer up. Perhaps this was the end of their task and his mentors would be in this room waiting to congratulate him. Rowan entered the visitors’ room eagerly. He was disappointed.
They were led into a large room furnished only with ornate cushions, lying in piles on the floor. Doors led off from this room into others which seemed to be sleeping quarters, as in front of each door was a pile of clean white clothes, bedding and a towel.
David turned to them all, smiled and began to speak.
‘This will be where you will be staying for now. There is a bedroom and shower in each of these rooms and here are clean clothes and towels,’ he said, pointing. ‘Please get cleaned up if you have to. I have to go back to the main hall and speak to everyone. When you have changed, please come back to the main hall and listen to what I have to say. It will help you to understand better who we are. After the speech, I will show you where you can eat and then you can choose if you want to stay or not. I hope you will be all right. I really have to go now,’ he said, looking more anxious now.
With that, David left the room, leaving the four looking at each other with puzzled expressions. Cornwall looked completely overwhelmed. Kayleb realised that she had never been inside a proper house before. There was a surprising lack of furniture in the dome, yet from the look on Cornwall’s face there was more than enough to see.
‘I’ll show you how the shower works,’ Kayleb said to Cornwall.
‘You’ll really like having a shower; it’s like standing in a hot waterfall,’ he continued, walking towards the nearest bedroom. Cornwall hesitated for a moment and then followed Kayleb.
Rowan did not look happy. He wanted to help Cornwall, but Kayleb had jumped in there; his classmate was really starting to get on his nerves now. He looked at Indigo who was looking a bit hesitant about the clothes he had collected from his pile.
‘Not my colour – white. Hopefully, there’s a dry-cleaner’s here, where I can get my clothes cleaned overnight. Well, I suppose they’ll do for now,’ he said, patting them and then headed off towards one of the rooms.
Rowan stood there stunned. Dry-cleaners were a thing of the past. Did Indigo really think everyone was going to fall for his charade? There was no way Indigo was a space alien or a time traveller. He wasn’t sure about Indigo at all; he was a misfit and would probably hold them back when they tried to get into London. Indigo was a hindrance to them all and would have to go.
Kayleb turned the shower on and a strong jet of water shot out from the showerhead. Cornwall screamed and started to back away. It had taken Kayleb some time before he got her to put her hand into the spray. Showing Cornwall how to use a shower was going to be harder than he thought. Slowly Cornwall relaxed and Kayleb felt it was time to go one step further.
‘Right, now you’re used to it,’ he said confidently, ‘you have to get undressed and let the shower wet you all over.’ He pushed the button on the soap dispenser so that it squirted into his hand. He held his hand out to show Cornwall. ‘Rub this all over you and in your hair until the dirt comes off and then shower off all the soap. Turn off the shower and then dry yourself with the towel. Do you understand?’ He tried not to sound patronising.
Cornwall nodded reluctantly and then started to untie her skirt.
‘No wait,’ said Kayleb, going red. ‘Wait until I’m gone. I’ll be outside when you’ve finished. You’ll be fine.’
‘Please wait with me. I’m frightened. I don’t mind if you see me. Please stay,’ Cornwall said pleadingly.
Kayleb sighed. ‘OK, but I won’t look, it’s not right. I’ll stand with my back to you.’
‘Please yourself,’ said Cornwall, undressing.
Kayleb flipped around so he couldn’t see Cornwall; he felt hot and uncomfortable as he waited.
Cornwall giggled as the hot water tickled her body. Kayleb relaxed; she seemed to be enjoying this experience.
Anxiety swept over him again. In London, women were not permitted to appear naked in front of men; apparently they were disgusting to look at. Mentors were only companions. They did not ever sleep together; it was forbidden. Curiosity was beginning to take hold of him. He really wanted to see what a woman looked like. Slowly he found himself turning little by little towards Cornwall, who was totally engrossed with the task of washing.
Kayleb stood there mesmerised; he couldn’t help himself. Cornwall was beautiful. Her slim body was curved and her breasts full. He had experienced an ICE in London with a woman who had been wearing only nightclothes but had switched off when the virtual woman spoke to him. Just seeing her in a dressing gown was too much for him. He wasn’t ready to find a companion then and had found the experience unnerving. Companions were to be treated as friends and any feelings of lust were frowned upon and punished. Watching Cornwall was intriguing and he felt as if he had been misled about women. He was cross with London for leading men to believe woman were repulsive under their clothes.
Kayleb was confused. Sexual relationships were forbidden and yet teenage boys were released into the wilderness with the possibility of finding women who did not care about covering up. Boys were used in the stud pens so they were obviously fertile but no man in London was able to produce children. Kayleb wondered why. Was part of the task to see if you could resist temptation? Was this part of his test? Was he being watched? He felt guilty for looking and turned away quickly and, what was worse, he felt excited by what he had seen and was starting to panic. He had to leave the room. Cornwall turned off the shower. He fled towards the door and had just reached it when Cornwall called out to him.
‘Wait, Kayleb,’ she called.
Kayleb ground to a reluctant halt.
‘What is it?’ he said breathlessly without looking at her.
‘I saw you looking at me.’
‘Oh ...’ Kayleb didn’t know what to say. ‘Oh ... I’m sorry.’
‘I’m not,’ she said simply.
Kayleb sped off towards his own bedroom, shaking his head. He would have to control himself. He wasn’t sure what had happened in the shower room with Cornwall. Maybe he was ill.
Kayleb was last to join everybody in the lounge. Having a hot shower and putting on fresh clothes had left him feeling invigorated. From now on he would ensure that he wasn’t left alone with her. As he walked into the room determined to be in control, he felt his heart pounding again just looking at her lying on one of the cushions. She smiled at him and he felt his cheeks redden.
‘This is heaven,’ sighed Indigo, still drying his hair. His curls were now tight ringlets and made his head look much smaller.
‘Normal people at last!’
‘I don’t know about that,’ said Rowan sulkily. ‘Why should we be taken in, treated so generously and all for nothing. It feels wrong; there’s bound to be a catch.’
Kayleb nodded. ‘I have been thinking along those lines myself. You don’t think they’re going to brainwash us into staying here. Maybe they’re some sort of religious cult,’ said Kayleb anxiously. David did say we could leave later, though. We need to get back to London, to our homes. Maybe we could stay one night?’
‘I think they’re good people,’ said Indigo. ‘We’d better go to the meeting and then we’ll have a better idea. Come on.’
Indigo led the way towards the main hall. He couldn’t make his mind up about David. He had an aura about him; you could feel his presence penetrating your soul. He was somehow more than human.
They reached the hall and were surprised to see how many people were there. Cornwall found an area that was clear next to an enormous potted palm. They quietly sat on the floor with everyone else. David had changed and was now wearing similar clothes to the rest. He had already started talking and stood on a small platform in front of them. He was a long way away but everyone could hear his voice quite clearly.
‘Our new visitors have joined us now and I welcome them to our gathering.’
Kayleb could feel his cheeks burning. He was wearing white like everyone else, yet he felt like he stuck out like a sore thumb.
‘Now I know some of you were alarmed by the jet that went over this afternoon and I can confirm that everyone affected by the memory gas has been treated and is now fully recovered. I suspect that this gas was meant for us and not the Long Men. The cities are becoming aware of our strength and like the Long Men feel threatened. I suspect that perhaps they’re aware of our plans. We are quite open about our intentions. Our numbers have almost trebled since I last spoke to you and I think we are ready to enter the cities and begin our operation.’
‘I’ve heard it all now,’ Rowan whispered to Kayleb. ‘We’ve only found ourselves in a colony of weirdoes. I’ve had enough, I’m off.’
Rowan stood up, but was tugged back down by Indigo.
‘I don’t think leaving is a wise move at the moment. Did you hear, they’re all going to enter the cities soon? That means London too,’ said Indigo urgently
Rowan sat down slowly. David had stopped talking and looked directly at Rowan. Rowan felt unable to leave; he felt weak and needed to sit down.
David continued.
‘I think it is best if I explain everything to our newcomer, as we may sound a little “weird” to some. If they could wait behind at the end, then I will be able to explain. The main point of this meeting tonight is to inform you that some of us will be leaving at sundown tomorrow evening in our groups, so it is essential that we are ready. Tomorrow evening, please assemble at the appropriate exit and make sure you have everything that you need. If you have any problems, please see me in the morning in my quarters. Well, that’s it. Good luck, everyone. I will be in your thoughts so you won’t be alone. The kitchens are ready now. This will be our last meal together for some time, so please make your way there.’