Adam and the Arkonauts Read online

  ‘Look,’ said Adam suddenly.

  Standing at the next crossroads, dressed in a smart, perfectly pressed white uniform, with a whistle in his mouth and pistol in his holster, was a policeman.

  ‘We will ask him.’ The Doctor strode directly up to him. ‘Good day, my good man. I am looking for –’

  PHEEEEEEP! PHEEEEEP! The policeman blew loudly on his whistle.

  ‘Thank you,’ said the Doctor drily. ‘My ears were in need of a cleansing blast of high-pitched sound. Now, I was wondering if –’

  ‘Do not distract me. I am directing traffic,’ the policeman snapped.

  The Doctor and Adam looked left and right. There wasn’t a vehicle in sight.

  ‘As there doesn’t appear to be any traffic perhaps –’

  ‘You give me no option,’ said the policeman. ‘It is a crime in Buenos Sueños to distract an officer in the course of his duty. I am imposing an on-the-spot fine. Diego, come here.’

  A small man with a ponytail, who had been hidden in a shady corner, rushed over. He was carrying a can of paint and a brush.

  ‘Paint a spot, Diego,’ the policeman instructed.

  ‘Immediately, Officer Grivas,’ said Diego.

  He dipped his brush into the pot of red paint and, with a practised hand, painted two perfectly circular red spots on the ground.

  ‘Stand on the spots,’ Officer Grivas ordered Adam and the Doctor. ‘You have been found guilty of endangering the life of the innocent citizens of Buenos Sueños by attempting to sabotage the smooth running of the Buenos Sueños transport system in contravention of Section 81 of the Buenos Sueños Crime and Punishment Code. You are officially classed as dangerous terrorists. Fine: two pesos,’ he announced.

  ‘This is an outrage,’ said the Doctor.

  Officer Grivas shrugged.

  His face reddening, Doctor Forest reluctantly handed over two pesos.

  ‘You may go on your way,’ said Officer Grivas, waving them off. ‘But no more of this terrorism, you understand.’

  A moment later: PHEEEEP! PHEEEEEP!

  They turned round.

  ‘Back on the spot, please.’

  ‘I don’t understand, Officer,’ said the Doctor testily. ‘You said we could go.’

  ‘I didn’t say you could vandalise the streets of Buenos Sueños. That is a crime under Law 22.’

  ‘Vandalise the streets?’

  Officer Grivas indicated the ground with his pistol. Coming from the newly painted spots they had just been standing on were two sets of red footprints.

  ‘But this is madness,’ protested the Doctor. ‘If we get back on the spot now, we’ll get our shoes covered with wet paint again, and as soon as we get off we’ll commit the crime once more.’

  ‘You are stuck in a cycle of crime,’ observed Diego, contemplating his paint brush philosophically. ‘You offend. You are punished. You offend again. You are punished again. And so it goes on. Tragic in its inevitability.’

  ‘Wait a minute,’ said Adam. He bent down and removed one shoe, stepping out of his spot with his bare foot as he did so. He then removed the other and placed his two bare feet outside the spot. His feet appeared to be crime free.

  ‘Ingenious, Adam,’ his father complimented him, removing his shoes in exactly the same way and stepping from his spot.

  Barefoot, and carrying their shoes in their hands, they set off to look for the town hall, noticing a large number of red spots painted on the ground in every street they turned into. Buenos Sueños, it seemed, had a very serious crime problem.

  .

  CHAPTER 4

  As they walked rapidly through the streets, their feet burning on the sizzling cobbles, Adam asked the question which had been niggling at him since the moment they had moored in Buenos Sueños harbour. ‘How did Mum end up in such a weird place? There are so many cities in the world – why here? And why is everyone so obsessed with rules and laws?’

  ‘I’m afraid I can’t enlighten you,’ Doctor Forest admitted. ‘Since the first travellers stumbled upon it, Buenos Sueños has developed a reputation for eccentricity, fostered by its remoteness. Perhaps it’s that no one wants to be the odd one out in such a close-knit community. I’ve often observed this kind of behaviour in other animal groups.’

  Before they could discuss things further, they reached a little square with a fountain where they could surreptitiously bathe their burning feet and wash the red paint from the soles of their shoes. A little alley led to a much grander square beyond. And there, on one side of the church, was the ‘Ayuntamiento’ – the town hall.

  After a brief wait in the cool, whitewashed foyer, the Mayor’s secretary, Señorita Ratti, announced that he was ready to see them.

  ‘Doctor Forest,’ said the Mayor warmly, standing up as they walked in. ‘Welcome to Buenos Sueños.’

  ‘Thank you, Mayor Puig,’ said the Doctor. ‘Please allow me to introduce Adam, and this is . . . Sniffage!’ he said in a severe tone. ‘Get out of there at once!’

  Sniffage pulled his head out of the Mayor’s bin – his jaws gripped tightly around a mouldy sandwich. He padded over and dropped it at the Doctor’s feet.

  ‘Blue spotty mould – that’s my favourite,’ woofed Sniffage enthusiastically, pointing out what to him seemed to be the strong advantage of the half-eaten sandwich.

  ‘I thought you preferred yellow mould,’ said Adam.

  ‘What?’ said the Mayor.

  The Doctor gave Adam a warning look. Together they had taught the Arkonauts to understand some of their own language. But the Doctor was very clear that Adam should never speak an animal language in front of anyone else nor say anything that would hint that he understood one either.

  ‘It’s just he brings so many mouldy yellow things back to the Ark,’ Adam explained a little desperately.

  ‘Thank you, Adam,’ said the Doctor. ‘I’m sure the Mayor doesn’t want to hear about that. Sit down, Sniffage.’

  Obediently Sniffage sat.

  ‘Now, Mr Mayor,’ said the Doctor, ‘I am immensely grateful for your telegram and, as I’m sure you understand, after ten years’ silence I am very eager to read the message you have received from my wife.’

  The Mayor leant forward conspiratorially.

  ‘First, there is something I need to . . . share with you. I am standing for re-election in a week’s time, an election which, until two weeks ago, I was certain to win. I had no opponents because my policies were supported by almost everyone: I hoped to embark on an amazing programme of reform, to change Buenos Sueños for the better, for ever. But then a terrible crisis befell Buenos Sueños, and straight away another candidate entered the mayoral race, promising to solve it. I fear that people’s faith in me may be ebbing. Buenos Sueños’s one chance to change, to rejoin the world it has been separated from for so long, might be about to slip away. And I thought that, while you’re here, you, a man rumoured to be the greatest scientist in the world, might be able to help me tackle this crisis.’

  The Doctor had been reading angrily between the lines of the Mayor’s speech. He could contain himself no longer.

  ‘You are saying there is no message? We travelled all this way under false pretences?’

  ‘No! No! You don’t understand,’ said the Mayor anxiously, leaning even further forward. ‘Of course I have the message. But I was hoping that you might . . . give something in return. Bad forces are at work. A terrible thing is happening to our citizens.’

  ‘What do you mean?’ said the Doctor. ‘What terrible thing?’

  ‘Let me tell you . . .’ began the Mayor, but then he glanced at his watch. ‘Better than that, let me show you. Come with me.’

  He beckoned Adam and the Doctor to follow him. His office led directly on to a balcony which overlooked the main
square – all white except for the large number of red spots painted on the ground.

  ‘Look at the clock on the police headquarters.’

  The Doctor and Adam looked at the building directly opposite. Standing on the balcony, smoking a cigar, was a man in the bright white uniform of the police, but even at this distance they could see the gleam of medals on his chest. Above him was a clock showing the time at precisely 3.29.

  ‘Three . . . two . . .’ counted down the Mayor, ‘one.’

  The minute hand of the clock clunked to half past the hour and at exactly that moment they heard a sound.

  BRRRRIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNGGGGGGGGG!

  It was the loudest sound they had ever heard.

  .

  CHAPTER 5

  Even with their ears covered it was deafening. It rang out across the whole city, over each narrow street and white house, through the main square and onwards and upwards into the hills and the mountains, echoing and intensifying as it bounced off sheer rock faces. It drove Adam and the Doctor and the Mayor off the balcony and back into the Mayor’s office, where they cringed under its assault, their fingers jammed in their ears. It rang until Adam and the Doctor were convinced their ears could bear it no more and then, as suddenly as it had started, it stopped, its echoes drifting over the harbour and out to sea. All was quiet for a moment apart from the distant hum which seems to linger after a great noise.

  ‘Wow!’ said Adam. ‘That was really loud.’

  ‘Two weeks ago this started,’ said the Mayor sadly, ‘and now, every day it happens. And every day it is getting louder and longer.’

  ‘It’s certainly very annoying,’ agreed the Doctor. ‘But things could be worse.’

  ‘Worse?’ said the Mayor. ‘Forgive me, Doctor, but how could things be worse?’

  ‘Imagine if it was three thirty in the morning. Everyone would be asleep.’

  The Mayor’s brow furrowed and his dark brown eyes flashed with anger. He poked a stubby finger at the Doctor.

  ‘Are you joking?’ he demanded, his moustache quivering in anger. ‘Have you not heard of the siesta?’

  ‘Ah, yes,’ said the Doctor awkwardly. ‘How could I have forgotten?’

  ‘What’s a siesta?’ asked Adam.

  The Mayor turned to him in disbelief.

  ‘The siesta is the most important part of the day in Buenos Sueños. In the morning you work. But in the afternoon it is too hot to work so you return to your home, eat a big lunch and then have a siesta.’

  ‘Is it like a pudding?’

  ‘A pudding?’ said the Mayor in horror.

  ‘I thought you said it came after lunch,’ explained Adam. ‘I’m a big fan of custard.’

  ‘Boy, a siesta is a sleep.’

  ‘A sleep?’ Adam repeated.

  ‘Of course.’ The Mayor nodded. ‘Here in Buenos Sueños we pride ourselves on being the best sleepers in the whole world. We have a saying: “Any man can get up, but it takes a clever man to stay in bed.”’

  ‘Most inspiring,’ said the Doctor drily.

  ‘In his later years,’ continued the Mayor proudly, ‘my own father slept almost constantly.’

  ‘Really?’

  ‘May the saints forgive me,’ the Mayor added sadly, ‘but I am almost glad that he did not live to see these terrible days. The Dreadful Alarm has destroyed the siesta.’

  ‘But why can’t you stop it?’ asked the Doctor.

  ‘We would if we could,’ said the Mayor, ‘but you must remember that Buenos Sueños is an isolated city without many modern resources. Still, of course I have done everything I could. I asked the police to investigate but they had almost no success.’ The Mayor shook his head. ‘In fact they seemed more concerned with minor offences than with the appalling sound that was plaguing the city. So instead I asked Fidel Guavera, my chief political adviser, to try to discover what was happening. He was convinced he was close to finding the source of this Dreadful Alarm, but then, without warning, the police arrested him.’

  ‘What for?’ said the Doctor.

  ‘He apparently acted in contravention of Law 478, which bans “brandishing a pole in the street”.’

  ‘I suppose that could be dangerous.’

  ‘It was an opinion poll! I have protested, but he is still in jail. So with the police failing and my own best man failing, I have been forced to beg for outside assistance. Without your help, I fear the city will be lost.’

  ‘Lost?’

  ‘Lost,’ repeated the Mayor. ‘The election is coming and if my opponent, a man whose name I will not speak within these walls, is victorious, then the city will return to the dark ages.’

  ‘I don’t understand,’ said the Doctor. ‘Surely the people would not vote for such a candidate. Surely they would not vote against their own interests.’

  ‘That was true once,’ the Mayor replied solemnly. ‘But then the Dreadful Alarm came. The citizens have not had a proper siesta for weeks. In their sleep-deprived state anything could happen . . .’ His speech trailed off. He seemed almost on the point of tears.

  The Doctor coughed awkwardly.

  ‘Mr Mayor, if you can produce the letter from my wife, then . . . I give you my word to do what I can to help you.’

  ‘Thank you,’ said the Mayor, suddenly pulling himself together. He rushed round the desk, grabbed the Doctor’s hand and pumped it enthusiastically to demonstrate his gratitude.

  ‘But,’ the Doctor added, withdrawing his hand as quickly as he could without seeming rude, ‘I can offer no guarantees.’

  ‘Of course not, of course not,’ said the Mayor. ‘But now that you, a wise and worldly man of science, are here, I feel there is hope for us.’

  ‘And now,’ said the Doctor more sternly, ‘if I might have the message that my wife left with you.’

  ‘Of course,’ said the Mayor. ‘Whatever must you think of me?’

  He hurried to a picture behind his desk. He pulled it back to reveal a dull metal safe. Instinctively, the Doctor and Adam leant forward in their chairs.

  ‘Now what was that combination?’ the Mayor muttered, scratching his head.

  However, he was distracted by a knock on the door. Señorita Ratti poked her head round.

  ‘We have found your daughter, Señor Mayor. She is waiting outside.’

  At the mention of his daughter, the Mayor’s face darkened.

  ‘Send her in!’ he said.

  .

  CHAPTER 6

  The door to the Mayor’s office swung open and through it came a pretty girl with dark hair and a mischievous look in her eyes. She was about the same age as Adam.

  ‘This is my daughter, Anna,’ said the Mayor.

  Anna winked at Adam.

  ‘She is the only person in the whole of Buenos Sueños who has not been affected by the Dreadful Alarm,’ he continued.

  ‘Why’s that?’ Adam asked.

  ‘Because she’s deaf,’ said the Mayor.

  ‘Oh,’ said Adam. ‘I was going to say hello.’

  ‘Please do. She can lipread every word you say and speaks with her hands.’

  ‘Hello!’

  Anna winked once more.

  ‘Unfortunately,’ continued the Mayor, ‘my daughter has been up to her tricks again. I have just had to listen to yet another complaint from the Chief of Police about her behaviour. Anna, can you explain to me why it was necessary to put itching powder in his underpants?’

  Adam couldn’t help himself. He’d lived a sheltered life with the Doctor and he’d never heard of a trick as audacious as that. He burst out laughing.

  ‘Adam!’ the Doctor snapped.

  Anna signed an answer to the Mayor.

  ‘An accident?’ shouted the Mayor. ‘Y
ou deliberately sneaked into the laundrette and found his underpants.’

  Anna signed something else.

  ‘It was an accident because you meant to put the itching powder into his pyjamas?’ cried the Mayor in disbelief.

  Anna nodded.

  ‘You are a very bad girl!’

  Anna signed once more, her hands and fingers moving rapidly.

  ‘Don’t try and shift the blame on to me. I may not like the man, but that doesn’t justify this sort of behaviour,’ interrupted the Mayor. ‘You must not do this again.’

  Anna nodded.

  The Mayor turned to the Doctor with a sigh.

  ‘What can you do with these unruly children?’

  The Doctor made a sympathetic noise.

  ‘I do what I can, but still she seems to get into trouble.’

  As soon as the Mayor had turned away, Anna’s solemn nod of regret became a defiant shake of the head and a bright grin. The moment the Mayor turned back to look at her, the nod of regret returned. The timing was so perfect that Adam couldn’t help bursting into laughter again.

  ‘Adam,’ the Doctor warned sternly.

  With the Doctor and the Mayor’s attention fixed on Adam, Anna took the opportunity to pull an extraordinarily strange face behind their backs. It made Adam laugh even more.

  But the Mayor, who knew his daughter well, suspected she could be at the root of Adam’s laughter and swung round, to find his daughter not only looking remorseful but also seeming to wipe away the beginnings of a sorrowful tear. The Mayor was not wholly convinced.

  ‘Perhaps an afternoon in your room will be enough if you promise not to misbehave again. Do you promise?’

  Anna nodded solemnly.

  ‘Good,’ said the Mayor. ‘Off you to go to your room to think about what you’ve done.’

  Anna turned to go, but as she did so Adam was sure he caught the very slightest hint of a wink in his direction.

  ‘I apologise for the delay,’ said the Mayor. ‘Now, where were we?’

  ‘You were about to give me the –’ began the Doctor, but yet another knock at the door interrupted him. Señorita Ratti came into the room.