Follett, James - Earthsearch 01 - Mindwarp (v1.0) Jacked. MINDWARP Prelude to Earthsearch a 120,000 word novel by James Follett REPRESENTATION: Jacqui Lyons Marjacq Scripts Ltd. 161 Bickenhall Mansions Bickenhall Street LONDON W1H 3DF Tel: 071 935 9499 FAX 071 935 9115 NB: The GoD (Guardian of Destiny) symbol above is based on the international circuit diagram symbol of the transistor. *** For George Markstein. Mentor and friend. Sadly missed. *** Part 1: Selection. Part 2: Training. Part 3: War! Part 4: Mindwarp. Part 5: Discovery. Part 6: Fugitives. Part 7: Escape. Part 8: Outdoors. Part 9: Flight. Part 10: Prelude. Part 11: Prologue to Earthsearch. *** Outdoors! Outdoors! Full of fire and fear, Outdoors! Outdoors! Where sinners disappear! Outdoors! Outdoors! Hell fires burn within, Outdoors! Outdoors! Throw the wicked in! Outdoors! Outdoors! Where flies and birds do dwell, Outdoors! Outdoors! Another name for hell! -Children's skipping rhyme. -Origin unknown. *** FOREWORD. Excuses. Excuses. Or, wriggling convincingly off the hook. It doesn't matter if you haven't read the other books in the Earthsearch series because this book is a self-contained novel. Also it's the Earthsearch curtain-raiser although it was not written first. Its appearance is a touch embarrassing, so if you find the spectacle of a writer casting about frantically for excuses is unedifying, you can skip this intro and plunge straight into the story. One of the pleasurable perks of being an author are the invitations to give lectures (I prefer to call them talks - it's less pretentious) around the country to arts festivals, library groups, writers' circles, and science-fiction conventions etc. During the question and answer session I'm usually asked by loyal fans of both BBC series if I have plans to write anymore Earthsearth books, to which I have usually answered: no. To my shame, the reasons I've trotted out are usually along lines about how I need to move on to develop new ideas. There's some truth in this pretentious twaddle, but the real reason is that I thought I'd played all the aces in both books. I was convinced that there was little left to provide fresh twists and turns in the plot and, above all, surprises. Like everyone else, I was thinking in terms of a continuation of the story from the end of the last book, not realising that a story I've had simmering since 1975 is, in fact, the beginning of the Earthsearch story: a failure of that most precious tool of the writer - lateral thinking. Let me explain about 1975. This was the year when I forsook an index-linked pension to become a writer, and had the good fortune to meet the late George Markstein, a partner in the literary agency, Marjacq Scripts. The other partner was Jacqui Lyons, who still represents me. George was the genius behind The Prisoner television series which he co- conceived and script edited besides writing some of the scripts. He was a great storyteller, and a master of indirection which he later demonstrated in his novels. He could also be a terrifying ogre, especially if he suspected a writer was not giving an audience or readership their best. Mindwarp was one of my very early ideas and George loved it. I still have his enthusiastic notes and suggestions on the shape the story should take, and I referred to them when writing this book. George said that Mindwarp had all the makings of a first class yarn of which the most important ingredient was its bizarre quest: the search for the mythical outdoors. The basic premise of the story was strong enough for Jacqui Lyons to persuade Thames TV to commission a pilot TV script, but there was something missing. Something important: Mindwarp did not have a convincing ending. Neither of us could come up with good one so the story had to be set aside. "Don't worry," was George's advice. "All authors have a file containing great ideas that lack a vital piece of the jigsaw. Sooner or later the missing piece will turn up. When it does, it'll be so glaringly obvious, that you'll wonder why you never thought of it earlier." He was right on all counts. The missing piece materialised in 1992 just as I was starting a four-week holiday having spent several months writing Savant. Mindwarp is the prelude to Earthsearch! The idea came as I was lazing in the Spanish sun, watching a beautiful girl emerging from the sea. I was so excited (by the idea, not the girl. Yeah... Okay then, the girl was pretty exciting too, and she's in this book) that I got straight down to work and wrote Mindwarp in a couple of months, tapping an unsuspected well of energy. For continuity I've included the prologue of the first Earthsearth book at the end of this book. Any suggestion that it's there as a commercial - to whet your appetite and so persuade you to buy the Earthsearch books (to be reissued soon and available from all good bookshops, so place your orders) - is, of course, a monstrous calumny. A final twist in this odd tale is that this book contains the seeds of the continuation of the Earthsearch story, offering those essential twists and turns that had eluded me 10-years ago. Which means that a fourth book is now a distinct possibility. Thinking about a fourth book has given me an idea for a fifth, and even a sixth! And maybe a seventh! They've even got titles which means they're as good as written. All this from someone who was saying no more after the second book! Wriggling over. Even if you were unimpressed by my explanations, I do hope you enjoy the book. Now read on as they say. James Follett Godalming, Surrey England February 1993. PART 1. Selection 1. An image of a blonde appeared on the wall screen that dominated the huge reception hall where over 300 milling, whooping, boisterous children were gathered with their parents. She was wearing the high neck, pink uniform of a government information officer. The mothers and fathers quickly hushed their charges and looked expectantly up at the screen. It was the mid-morning war report. "Good morning, fellow citizens of Arama!" The blonde was smiling blandly. There was a collective easing of the sudden tension; a smile meant good news. "The Department of Defence has announced the result of yesterday's war. Our glorious army of Arama has suffered this number of dead..." A row of logo-like graphic representations of soldiers appeared along the foot of the screen. Each figure was clutching a plasma discharge weapon. They shone out on a background of shimmering gold. "And the profane forces of Diablo sustained these huge losses..." Several rows of sinister black figures appeared below the first set so that it was possible to visualise the imbalance without an understanding of the numbers. For most people of Arama, counting beyond ten was difficult because they had to visualise the entire quantity as a string of units. "We have now won the war on six consecutive days," trumpeted the blonde. "A record, fellow citizens! A glorious achievement which his excellency, the First Secretary has decided to commemorate with an extra decra for every five decras earned today. And now some important messages." The blonde's face was replaced by a friendly cartoon character telling the audience that plastic was fantastic, but fibron was right on. The commercials ended and the stern still picture of the Emperor of Arama appeared on the screen. It was the same picture that was displayed in all public places throughout Arama. Kally released Tarlan, who had squirmed in her arms during the announcement. For the five-year-old to keep still for even 30-seconds was a misery. The boy immediately made a lunge for Ewen. The brothers rolled on the floor, kicking and punching. Ewen put up a spirited defence. He was two years older than Tarlan, and much stroner despite his skinny frame, and could have beaten him easily had Kally not dragged them apart. Her consolation was that the behaviour of many of the restless children in the reception hall was not much better. "You promised me that you'd both be on your best behaviour!" she scolded them equally. "He started it!" Ewen yelled defensively, rubbing his calf where Tarlan had kicked him. Kally thrust her youngest offspring into a moulded chair and threatened that she'd send for the technicians if he didn't behave. It was a threat she hated using. Not only because of its seriousness, but because of its echoes of a miserable childhood with a brutish, overbearing father. "You do as I say, my girl or I'll send for the technicians to throw you to the outdoors where the Diablons will get you and eat you!" Well she never went that far. She had never frightened her children with talk of the eternal damnation of the outdoors and the Diablons. "Hardly any technicians in our sector. Takes ages for anything broke to get mended," said Tarlan belligerently. But the look of anger in his mother's dark eyes stilled further aggression. He scowled sulkily at Ewen. It was always Ewen who got all the attention. Ewen this, Ewen that. Ewen had been given a toy hot air balloon for his birthday that he wouldn't let anyone else play with. They were even here because of Ewen. He hated his older brother and wanted to kill him. A voice boomed around the hall. "Blue badges! All ...
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