Chapter 5A

I'd like to say that the discussions about who was to be the first set of leaders of the community was easy and brief. I actuality it was neither. In one sense it was a good discussion in that no-one was pushing themselves forward as the obvious choice of leader, the trouble was no-one wanted to do the job. Any time one of them was put forward as a possible candidate, that candidate argued long and loud about how they were not really suited for the job.

In the end I put my foot down and told them that if they would avoid making a decision that the crew and Spirit would be leaving to find somewhere else to start the community.

"Listen up people, we are about to leave and we need to know that something is being set up for when we return with new people to join us. Where are they going to live? How are they going to be fed? What jobs are they going to be asked to do and who is going to organise it? What about protection from possible invaders?" I looked at them.

"All you can do is argue about how you won't do the job, well think again. Decide and decide now or we are leaving and we won't be coming back. There are plenty of other islands around here that can be colonised and I'll bet there are plenty of people who would be delighted to organise it."

Almost everyone started talking at once.

"Shut up!" I yelled startling them all into silence. "I don't want to hear your excuses any more. I don't give a damn about who thinks that they can or cannot do the job, I just want someone to get their heads out of their asses and make a bloody decision about it. You have an hour. If there is no decision in that time, then we're out of here and you can fend for yourselves. Stop acting like stupid children!"

I stormed out of the room and took my black mood out to the Lookout Point. We'd called the highest part of the island by this name since it gave a pretty good view all around the island. Obviously others had thought the same thing since it was directly above where the buildings were located and had a paved path and a small shelter at the top. I had not been surprised to find a telephone there as well since using a radio that high up, even a small hand held unit, was a bit like lighting a bonfire on a clear dark night, visible for miles.

After the allotted hour I went back to the meeting hall. I found the crew waiting outside for me and as I went through the doors they followed me in.

No-one said anything, not a good sign.

"Well, what is it to be?"

Smitty stood up. "Would you really abandon us if we don't decide?"

"Too damn right. You don't seem to have grasped the seriousness of what we are going to try and do here. We are about a hundred miles from the nearest land that is likely to be populated and from that place we have to find people and supplies and bring them back here without attracting unwarranted attention from people we would class as undesirable, people who would love to find somewhere like this ripe for the plucking and women for the fucking."

I heard several of the women give a sharp intake of breath at this crudity, but I think it was appropriate.

"That can't be done unless there is a solid base to work from right here."

Smitty looked apologetic. "We don't think it's quite as bad as that..."

"I don't give a tinker's damn about what you think, have you anything positive to say?"

He hesitated. "Ah, no, not really."

I noticed that Alison was biting her lip and acting like she had something to say. She'd been fidgeting all the time I'd been talking. I pointedly turned away from Smitty and looked at my wives.

"I think Alison wants to say something," I spoke softly so that the others couldn't hear.

"I think she's been told to be quiet as she's too young to contribute." Annie replied softly.

"I'd say the same thing." This came from Liz.

"Okay, I'm about to go out on a limb here will you back me up?"

I had nods from all of them including the rest of the crew who had gathered round to listen. I turned back to the home group.

"Alison," she started and looked at me wildly for a moment. "you seem to be wanting to say something."

"She has nothing to say, she's only sixteen."

I turned and looked at Pete and glowered at him until he couldn't meet my eye any longer and looked away. I looked back at Alison.

"Is there something you'd like to contribute to the discussion?"

"Well, I know I'm only sixteen and all, and the others are much more experienced..."

I held up my hand to interrupt her. "Age is not important, one of the rules of this community is that someone is old enough when they are old enough and not at some arbitrary age decided by old fashioned ideas." Out of the corner of my eye I could see that some of the others in the home group had the grace to blush at the reprimand, for that is what it was. "Please go on."

"Well, um, I'd like to do it." her last few words rushed out and then she blushed and stopped talking.

"Very good. We have one volunteer for the post of ruling council, who else is going to join Alison.

"But, she can't" began Pete and then fell silent as I looked at him again.

"I'd say that she was showing a great deal of maturity about now, unlike the older people in the group. What reasonable arguments do you have to say why do you think she is incapable? Her lack of age is not reasonable nor is her lack of experience since none of you have that either."

I waited, there was silence in the room. Finally Cathy spoke up. "I'll do it too."

I smiled at her. "Thank you. Who's going to be the third."

There was a dreadful silence. I was determined not to be the first to say anything. As far as I was concerned it was make or break time. Finally I saw Smitty straighten his shoulders look at his wives for a moment and then he stepped forward.

"I'll do it."

Hallelujah!

"Good, we now have a ruling council. I suggest that Alison, being the first to volunteer, be the chairman, not only for that reason but also because the others have other jobs to do as well.

"Your job is to organise the community, or to organise the organisers when there are more people. We all vote on substantial matters, 75% majority as before but for day-to-day stuff the council makes the decisions.

"The rest of you, your job is to support the council. They cannot make decisions if they are not informed about things. You are expected to get on with your assigned jobs but when there are things you need to tell them, then tell them.

"My final piece of advice to the council is this: delegate, you can't do it all. Alison, over to you."

She went dreadfully red as I started to applaud her and the council. The crew quickly joined in and then the rest of the house group. I was delighted at her courage. Finally the applause died away and we looked at Alison. She was still embarrassed but bravely held her head high and started to talk.

"After the Spirit arrived I thought that everything was going to be fine and wonderful, just like it was before, but it didn't take me long to realise that it wasn't going to happen like before as nothing now is like it was. I've been reading in the library about small communities and survival and I have some ideas of what we need to do.

"I'll need to talk to the other two about some things but for now we should get ourselves a lot more organised than we are."

She turned to Moe & Pete. "You two are our resident botanists and I'd like you to take a look at what can be grown on this island to support our need for food. Spirit is going to be going on foraging runs to the mainland so don't limit your ideas to what we have here but to what will grow here successfully."

She turned to Daisy. "You know more about building and things so your job is to assess how we can build more living quarters and what we will need to achieve it. Again the limit is not what is here on the island but what we can get brought here."

Next up was Sarah. "You are the one with the most organising skills after Harry so you are in charge of keeping track of everything and assessing how long things will last and so on." Sarah nodded.

"Cathy, I know you're on the council too, but we desperately need you and Kate to devise an education plan for our new life. Kate will be teaching the younger ones onboard but will need to be teaching older ones when they are found. Also the rest of us need to learn how to learn and research things. Smitty," she turned to face him.

"You are going to be our facilitator. If you are anything like our old postman that delivered our post when we lived on the mainland, you talked to everyone and knew just about everything that went on in the town." I noticed that Smitty had a big grin on his face at this, he could see as I could, just where she was going with this.

"So, you are going to be the community gossip, talking to everyone about everything they are doing and making sure that the right information gets to the right person."

Mary and Josephine had been talking quietly to themselves for several minutes by this time and chose this moment to raise their hands.

"Yes?"

"We want to cook. Sorry, we volunteer to be the cooks for the community as it is now. We're like one big family anyway and will be very over worked until others come along, so we'd like to do this. When other families do join us then they can do their own cooking. Please say we can."

I was quietly amused at two nineteen year olds asking permission from a sixteen year old to do something.

"That's a good idea and I think you could liaise with Jenny since she has training in dietary stuff. I think Jenny should also organise our morning exercises and make sure that any sprains and so on are looked after properly."

Then she turned to me. "James, we need you to find us at the very least another doctor or nurse. Other skills we will need are likely to be builders, especially carpenters, farmers and animal handlers. We need animals as well but that will have to wait until we can find a way to get them here. We also need people who have knowledge about how we can protect ourselves so we need people with firearm and tactical skills. I'd also really like for us all to learn some martial arts."

Cathy chose that moment to say something. "I think we will also need to put teachers on that list, there's no way that Kate or I can teach everything that is going to be needed in the next few years. We'll need people that can teach practical skills and we need a way to preserve the knowledge that we have."

Smitty also thought of something to add. "We'll also need to add medicines to the list of supplies we need and alternatives. Our library doesn't extend to alternative herbal remedies so we need that information as well. Perhaps we should think about starting up some form of apprenticeship system like the one found on Pern."

"You just want to find a dragon or two." I jested, "Joking aside, that would be the very thing to look into. Perhaps our resident researcher, Alison, could look into that." She blushed again.

"I'd like to get Spirit on her way in a week or so, would it be possible for you to get sufficiently organised by then?" I looked at the council members.

They looked at each other for a moment. "Yes, I think so. You will be preparing Spirit for the journey?" Alison, I thought, was going to make a fine leader.

"Yes, we have a fair bit of work to do and I'd like to try and find someway of keeping in contact with the home group while we are away."

There was a moment of silence. Before Alison spoke.

"Those of you who do not have specific jobs yet go round the others and ask if help is required. No-one is to skip work for reason except a medical one. Has anyone else anything else to add?" Apparently no-one had. "Okay, you all know what you need to do, so this meeting is adjourned, we'll have another in two days."

She stopped talking, looked around and finding the nearest seat sat down heavily. I went over to her and heard her muttering to herself.

"Oh God, oh God, oh God..."

She gripped her hands together tightly in her lap as she swayed back and forth a little. I guess she was a little shocked.

"That was very well done, little one, but I bet you feel like shit right now."

She looked up at me blankly. I opened my arms and she virtually leaped into them and burst into tears. I held her for a while just letting her be comforted. Suddenly she pushed herself out of my arms her eyes wide.

"I need the toilet." and she dashed off.

I turned to find Bob and Harry waiting for me.

"I'm going to talk with Sarah about organising things, most of the others are on their way to the Spirit to get started on preparations." She leaned forward and kissed my cheek before leaving the room. I looked at Bob.

"I think you need to come and see this." His enigmatic tone raised my eyebrows but I duly followed him.

"I was out walking about an hour before you called the meeting and I found a door that I hadn't seen before. You'll see why in a second."

We turned round a bend in the corridor we were walking along that led to the generator house. Bob stopped in front of a blank wall. Then he walked back a few metres and unscrewed a light bulb so that the only light came from around the corner.

"I came down to replace the bulb. I came out of the generator room and noticed that it had blown, so I went and go a spare one. When I came back along the corridor I saw that." and he pointed to the blank wall, except that it wasn't. Illuminated from the side there was quite obviously a door in the wall, you could see the outline. I walked to the door and ran my hand lightly over it. It seemed to be slightly raised which caused a shadow when light shone on it from the side. The other light shining directly on it made it virtually invisible.

"I couldn't seem to find a handle or a lock so I reversed the lighting." He screwed the bulb back in, went round the corner and unscrewed the one there. Once again the result was obvious. In the wall at right angles to the door was a small raised section about ten centimetres square. Once again I ran my hand over the raised section.

"I pushed and prodded and tried all types of things but nothing seemed to work. So I thought about how one would want to open a door that is not obviously there. I once worked in a place that used biometrics to open doors, you put your hand on a special place which measured certain things and if they matched one that had been previously entered the door would unlock. However, it looked very different from this. This one looked like one that needs a special key put on it or near it that has some type of radio in it and that opens the door." He sighed.

"So I went looking and finally found these." He reached into his pocket and took out two pieces of plastic about the same size as a credit card but about half a centimetre thick.

"I haven't tried them yet as you called the meeting, but I thought we ought to look at what is behind the door."

"Sounds like a plan, let's try it."

Bob waved one of the plastic boxes over the raised panel and was rewarded by a click from behind the hidden door. He pushed the section of wall that was the door and it smoothly opened and an instant later a light came on in the area behind the door. We looked in and then went inside. Bob let the door swing closed behind us after he had found a handle on the other side to open the door again.

A corridor led about five metres in front of us to another door which had a handle. We opened this to find a room about 5 metres square with no less than five other doors, each with a handle and each closed.