My goal in the 2021 A2Z Challenge is to complete a novel I started a few years ago but which has languished for lack of love (writing!). Each Post, daily in April (Sundays excepted), will consist of some aspect of the novel plus a chapter from it. I hope that the Alphabetical items will give a bit of extra background, muse on the writing process, but most of all, help me develop certain ideas to improve the novel. Some 12 chapters are already written so I have a bit of a head start…

Please comment with any opinions good or bad – you have no idea how much I need feedback at this stage… 

A nod to “Gulliver’s Travels” ( Jonathan Swift, 1726), the character Jack Gulliver in my novel “Train Wreck”, is certainly on a journey as he travels through various aspects of life on Hawaii 2 which he had not encountered before.

I thought there might be a “Novel form” to describe novels like “Gulliver’s Travels”, “Candide”, “Don Quixote” (there must be more modern examples but they just don’t come to mind at this moment of writing) but if there is, I can’t find it – what’s in a name anyway? All of those three involves the central character being on a journey, although it is not their journey that matters so much, as the intellectual journey the author is trying to take the reader on. For they are all satire, books that get you to see your world in a “novel” light (pun intended!). I suppose all novels take you and the characters on some sort of journey which is perhaps why there isn’t a category of novel form that fits.

“Train Wreck” is not a satire and unlike the other three novels mentioned, is a futuristic (science fiction) book framed as, or driven by, a mystery – a detective novel if you will. But “Gulliver’s Travels”, whilst clearly a satire – takes us on a most fantastical journey where we encounter giants, minuscule people, flying cities and if it were not for the fact that these are all supposedly over the horizon of our very own Earth – they must surely be counted as Science Fiction. A journey to the ends of the earth in 1726 might as well have been a journey into Outer Space in terms of the length and difficulty of the voyage and the odds of making it back home. But it is not the actual journey that matters so much as the spiritual one and its effects on the protagonist(s) and of course on us.

Jack Gulliver visits emotional loss, fatherhood, friendship, the world of drugs, personal threat, religion, abuse and (teaser rather than spoiler) hubris…

Chapter 10
Jihad?

 Jack found himself headed back to Government House sooner than expected and sooner than he was really ready for, truth be told. An unmarked car had arrived outside Clem’s place early next morning, early that is for Lowtown. An official, surly, by the standards of Hawaii 2, knocked on the door and informed a bleary-eyed Jack that his presence was required by the President asap. Fortunately, he declined to come inside which gave Clem the chance to assess Jack’s state of mind. As he had promised there were no side effects or come down from whatever it was he had prescribed for Jack the previous evening but Jack, whilst feeling immensely rested, was a little dreamy for a meeting with the President so Clem dipped into his stash again and proffered a pick-me-up which Jack washed down with some coffee before flying out the front door, still adjusting his clothes. His dishevelled appearance did nothing to thaw the demeanour of the official who clearly thought that a venture into Lowtown was beneath him and who would say no more than that there had been a development. Stig was already in the President’s office when Jack was ushered in and there was an air of tension. Although Jack felt wonderfully alert thanks to Clem’s ministrations, he felt embarrassed to appear in the same clothes which had been a little the worse for wear even yesterday and he apologised for looking a mess. In the hasty departure from his mother’s house, Jack had not thought to pick up the luggage he had brought from home.

“Oh Jenkins,” called Stig to the departing surly official, “can you organise some fresh clothes for Jack here please – thank you.”
If Jenkins had seemed surly before, he now looked as if he had a mouthful of lemon whilst desperately trying to look polite and accommodating. Jack could not help but grin and caught Stig arching an eyebrow which showed that he shared the same feelings about the hapless official even if he wasn’t going to go as far as to crack a smile. As soon as the door closed behind Jenkins the mood returned to serious.
“There has been a claim of responsibility for the bombing!” said Stig.
“What! By whom? And why now?” exclaimed Jack.
“Two-million-dollar question young Jack!” replied Stig.
“We think they are false claims and we are trying to confirm that right now as a matter of some urgency.” said the President. “The claim purported to be from a Moslem sect but we don’t believe it was and the manner of its delivery which was direct to the media and not through official channels, has stirred up a hornet’s nest so we need to deal with things before they get out of hand. There are riots in the offing if not bloodshed.”
“Why am I here Sir, I will help in any way I can though I can’t see what I can really do?”
“I’ll come to that in a minute Jack. First, tell me, are you a believer Jack, do you belong to any religion?”
“No Sir, my family were always Rationalists.”
“You and most of the population of Hawaii 2. For whatever reasons, the powers that were in charge of the exodus to Hawaii 2 selected people that way although paradoxically they also included a number of groups of religious people too but they were in a definite minority and records show that they are in decline.” Mused the President.
“Strange, but my friend Clem and I were talking about that very thing last night!” said Jack.”
“Well, it might be regarded as one of the proofs of the success of our Utopian experiment. Well – it’s no longer an experiment – we are clearly an established and stable society and long may that last. Which is why this incident is so worrying. It is in the nature of Rational people to make allowances for and leave in peace, those of faith – as long as they do the same and to date, we have never had any trouble here before. But there was a lot of feeling about the train wreck, it cut off, however temporarily, our access to the only means of leaving the planet and whilst that means is as small as a keyhole, it has huge symbolic value. Then there was you and Anna, the whole planet was holding its breath over the pair of you. Things had died down a bit but with the birth of young Douglas, and then Anna’s death, there was an enormous surge of public emotion, you were still in a coma of course but there has been nothing like it in the entire history of Hawaii 2. We never made public that it was a bomb so this is a double shock for the people and they are angry for being deceived, afraid that what had seemed like a mere accident was a man-made threat and they are furious at the apparent perpetrators.” The President slapped the desk in front of him for emphasis.
 “They certainly are,” said Stig, “and they are talking up a riot. So we, are desperately trying to work out where the message came from, the tech boys are following a trail of proxies all over the planet. The very fact that the precautions taken by the sender are evidence that it is unlikely to be the Moslems, but we have to make sure before we move to quell the situation. I know this sect. They are Salafists, they adhere to the way of the Prophet in the first three generations after his death. Although they accept living in the modern world, they don’t go out of their way to embrace modern technology and moreover, the moment the claim was made they were denying it. Unfortunately, it didn’t make sense to the newsrooms that something that had just been claimed by email should immediately be denied, so they have somewhat underplayed the denials. In fact, they have chosen to focus on why the government lied about the bomb in the first place which is also not helpful.”
“But if it wasn’t them, then why would anybody claim that it was?” asked Jack. “We think it’s a diversionary tactic – maybe our friends from yesterday. Whilst we are fire-fighting we can’t be concentrating on tracking them down. And the reason we need you Jack, is that with the government’s image for truth tarnished, we feel that you might be the only person the mob might listen to if it comes to that and as things stand it looks like it might.” Stig said gravely. “You think so? I mean about me…” Jack suddenly felt very much out of his depth, “It’s not as if I am a statesman or have ever spoken in public…” “Exactly!” said the President “You are an ordinary citizen caught up in something but still with the best ideals of our society and you don’t want to see innocent people attacked for something they didn’t do. I can’t think of anyone better suited to the task – if you will do it, Jack, please?”
“You’re right Sir, I don’t want to see anyone hurt. But first, before anything else, would it be possible to talk to my mother and check on how she and Douglas are doing? As instructed, I haven’t tried to contact them on my ordinary phone.”
“Of course!” said Stig and he made a phone call. “The agents guarding her will set up a video link and we can go through to the communications room shortly.”
“Thank you Stig. Meantime I have something new to add to the possibilities.” And Jack conveyed Clem’s tale of Gervald and his theories about the fire and whether the proximity of that event to the train wreck could be connected. Jack apologised for revealing the truth about the bomb to another person even though that was now an irrelevant point. “That’s okay Jack – it sounds like we will need to bring Clem in to assist us – I assume that won’t be a problem?” “No, I am sure he will do anything he can to help solve the mystery well – mysteries…” Stig made another phone call to dispatch someone to fetch Clem. A moment later he took a call and announced that the video link to Jack’s mother was ready and they headed off to the Communications Room.

The moment Jack came off his call, Stig reported that the origin of the responsibility claim had been a hotel room on the other side of the city from the canton where the Moslem group who had allegedly made the claim lived. “Right Jack! If you are ready for it, I think we need to get down on the ground to try and quell the riot which appears to be building!” and he led Jack down to the waiting car.
“I have had a statement drafted for you if you want to read it out.” Stig handed a sheet to Jack as they sat side by side in the back seat of the government car speeding through the city. There are only two hundred and fifty Moslems left from the five hundred and eighty that originally shipped. They used to fill two cantons but are now more or less evenly spread between Eastfield and West View. Jack grunted in acknowledgement as he was trying to read through the announcement.

The population of Hawaii 2 was divided into Cantons which were the base level groups of self-government. Based on the idea that the maximum number of people that one person could have meaningful relationships with is somewhere between one hundred and fifty and two hundred and fifty and that above that, some kind of policing of the community is needed. The theory said that this was all dependent on effort and communication being put in by the members of the group and so, in what was otherwise considered to be the most liberal of human societies, the one golden rule which was rigidly enforced was that everybody should attend at least three meetings out of six of their canton each year. Having said that, the meetings were very sociable affairs where the business was despatched as quickly as possible, grandstanding was frowned on, and food and drink followed on, turning the gatherings into a party which did as much if not more to create social cohesion than the good-natured governance that had preceded it. Of course, the nature of canton meetings varied according to the nature and location of the canton – rural cantons could be spread over a large area, but in such communities, social intercourse was even more vital to isolated farmers and their families. In Eastfield and West View, the cantons were much denser, urban communities and if the Moslem element had halved across two cantons. then those who had dropped their beliefs had probably moved away and made way for a more mixed canton population, Jack wondered how that was working out in terms of the governmental element and he imagined there wouldn’t be much alcohol at the after-party. It was with this thought that they arrived in a square bounded on one side by a mosque in front of which a few bearded men wearing long skirt like clothes were unhappily huddling behind the rare sight of a line of unarmed police who were managing to keep a restless crowd, some carrying placards, from reaching the Moslems. The policeman in charge opened the car door and stepped inside. Stig introduced Jack and asked for a report on the situation which the officer gave concisely before turning to Jack. “Pleased to have you here Jack! We’re hoping you might be able to speak to the crowd and get them to calm down a bit. If it’s alright with you, we won’t waste any time!”
“Okay, I’ll do what I can but this is all a bit new to me Sir.”
“You go ahead Jack, I will watch from the back of the crowd.” said Stig as Jack followed the police officer out of the car. The car slid away and out of the square. The crowd, who had been watching developments, parted for the two of them and a murmur spread as they recognised Jack. Someone shouted, “Where’s Douglas?” which produced a small ripple of laughter albeit somewhat nervous laughter. Jack was struggling with his own nerves – Anna had always been socially at ease whilst Jack had always hung back but now he found himself something of a celebrity with complete strangers having intimate knowledge of his family and circumstances – completely beyond his control. Now behind the protective police line, the police officer led Jack over to the group of Moslems and introduced the tallest of them as Mullah Yasin Omar, the religious leader of the mosque. He grasped Jack’s hand in a firm handshake and putting his other hand around Jack’s said. “As Salaam Alaikum, I am sorry for your loss Jack. Please believe me, this explosion had nothing to do with us, we are as horrified as anyone that such a thing should happen on our peaceful planet. Violence is not our way and this claim of jihad is an abomination to us!”
“I believe you Mullah Yasin and I will do what I can to defuse the situation.” Jack found in himself, a statesmanship he had not known was there, a depth brought out by the circumstances he found himself in, even though it felt as if he was acting out a part. A policeman handed him a loud hailer and led him to the top of the steps leading up to the mosque. He took the piece of paper out of his pocket and started to read. “Fellow citizens of Hawaii 2…” He paused and looked out at the crowd. They had quietened down when he started speaking but there was a surly demeanour, nevertheless. “No, I will use my own words!” said Jack.
He stepped down a step and asked the police line to move aside a little so there was nothing between him and the crowd. As he thrust the paper back in his pocket, he realized it had been the right move because the shoulders were going down as the crowd relaxed a little. He began again.
“I am sure you can believe me when I say that nobody wants to know more than I, who did this terrible thing on the train. I lost my wife…” Jack had to fight against welling up, the moment stretched on and still he couldn’t speak for fear of losing control and bursting into tears. Eventually, in a voice so tremulous that even with the megaphone, the crowd had to strain to hear him, he said “I lost my wife… and my son, lost his mother.” There was absolute silence in the square. “The government have no idea who the perpetrators are. We were approached by some strange men only yesterday and we think that they issued the claim of responsibility from a computer on the other side of town, as a diversion from the hunt for them. We are sure though, that it was not the Moslems who sent the message.” A murmur passed through the crowd as people conferred. After a minute Jack raised his hands high and the crowd focussed on him again, “Let me ask you, how many of you live in this canton or in Eastfield?” Perhaps a third of the hands went up. “What are they like, these Moslems, are they friendly?”
Out of a muttering, someone called out “They are!”
“And hand on heart, do you really believe they did this thing and then waited all this time to claim responsibility – it doesn’t make sense, does it?” More muttering before a chorus of “No!” from across the crowd.
Jack continued. “The authorities may have been wrong to keep the fact that it was a bomb from all of you but they felt it was best not to alarm everyone. It was a tough call. But now, they need your help, they need vigilance, they need information. If anybody sees anything unusual, out of place, anywhere on the planet, tell them! Now there was an affirmative murmur from the crowd. “I would like to thank everybody for the good wishes we received during the time we were in hospital and afterwards…” Jack had to swallow his emotions back again “they helped me, my family, to move forwards… So please help now by watching out for the requests from the police for information, they will be broadcasting them later today.” Jack turned his back on the crowd as a single clap became a great wave of applause. He turned back and mouthed the word “Thank you!” without the megaphone. He noticed the tv cameras this time and realised that his thanks had gone out to the whole planet which felt good.

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤

Mullah Yasin took Jack’s shoulder and steered him inside the mosque. “Thank you Jack my friend, may I call you friend?”
“Of course, I was only glad I could help.”
“Can I offer you a cup of coffee Jack?”
“Thank you, that would be good.”
The Mullah signalled to someone and led them to some seats and a low table. “Do you know anything about Islam Jack?”
“Not really, though I always heard that you guys were serious, peaceful and well…”
“Go on Jack.”
“Well I heard your numbers were falling off.”
“Yes its true!” said the Mullah with a deep sigh.
“We have the perfect set of rules to live by, the prospect of Paradise to come Insha’Allah and still our numbers are – dropping off – as you say. Perhaps it’s because life here on Hawaii 2 is so much better, peaceful, happy, and when this life is half-way to Paradise… My father told me that in the old days, on Earth, there were always reverts attracted to the faith, driven to escape a life of crime or drugs or poverty and Islam offered rules, consistency, moral certainties, brotherhood, and true support, one for another. Brothers might lapse, but there were those new reverts to boost the numbers. Not here.”
“What are reverts?” asked Jack.
At that moment a woman with a headscarf covering her hair brought a tray with fragrant coffee and some little cakes. She set it down and then turning to Jack, said “Thank you! We were all very worried.” and walked away before Jack could reply.
“I am sure Fatima speaks for all the people who took shelter here in the mosque. Here let me pour you some coffee. So, ‘reverts’. In Islam, we believe that everybody is already a Moslem, they just don’t know it. Sounds a bit hollow when we can’t even hold on to our existing brothers doesn’t it?”
“I am sorry Mullah Yasin, you are being very frank with me, I should never have mentioned it, it’s clearly very upsetting for you.”
“Jack, everything is written down already, if it is the will of Allah that our numbers decline, so be it, it’s not for us to question. Besides, it is your honesty with the crowd that saved our people from an ugly situation and the least I can do is be honest with you in return. I don’t often speak of these things.”
“Well if you don’t mind my asking, what is this Jihad mentioned in the claim – the false claim?”
“Okay Jack, Jihad is an Arabic word and it means the duty of a Moslem to further or preserve the religion. At times on Earth, there was a justified war against those who waged war on Islam but it could equally apply to my very personal battle to stop the haemorrhage of brothers here on Hawaii 2 or even the most personal battle to preserve one’s own faith. But there have in the past been young hotheads who believed in a violent struggle to promote Islam and this is a wrong interpretation of Jihad. Fortunately, nobody of such a persuasion was selected to come to Hawaii 2.”
“I see. So whoever posted the claim was just trying to stir up old fears?”
“Yes Jack, that’s about the strength of it.” At that moment someone came and whispered something in the Mullah’s ear. “It seems the government car is waiting for you at the back door Jack. Please promise me you will come back soon and let us thank you with a proper meal.”
“I will definitely do that and I would like to see the mosque properly if I may.” “Of course, Jack, it would be an honour.” The Mullah ushered Jack into a corridor that led to the back of the building and shook hands firmly with him as he let him out through the back door. A figure in a suit opened the darkened glass doors of the car and Jack climbed in expecting to see Stig but instead, the man in the back seat reached over and put a cloth over his face and after a moments struggle, everything went black…