Opaline-a FalmouthVerse Side Story

You're back! Nice to see you wanted to learn more. I thought you would return. It's quite the page turner, my life, isn't it.

I can only assume the column is doing well in terms of readership? It should be. I mean, who wouldn't want to know about my life? Like it or not, I have partly achieved my goals. I was Queen of this land, though it were only for a few hours. My face was everywhere, and my actions will be in history books they will teach to generations of children to come.

I am aware fame is preferable to infamy, but as they say in marketing all publicity is good publicity. My name will be remembered, even if for that. I mean, they remember Hitler and Stalin, and they both did infinitely worse than anything that kangaroo court charged me with.

Where was I? Ah, yes. You want to learn about the night that changed everything for me. Which put me on the course to what I am today.

I recall the night with almost perfect clarity. It was a cold, rainy day in March of 1958. The rain was pouring downwards most of the day, much heavier than would normally be the case. The streets were full of water, and the drains were blocked up thanks to all the rubbish being collected in them. (The drain cleaners were on strike, you see.) As the day progressed, the rain showed no sign of letting up, keeping the world dreary and dark.

But that didn't mean our work was over. Oh no.

Quite the opposite, as a matter of fact. Britain is not the sort of country to stop moving because of some bad weather. From Africa (hot), to the Falklands (not), we always kept moving no matter what sort of weather. Probably the reason we controlled so much of the world.

Most of my duties involved guarding a shipment of highly secretive equipment that was being shipped to the aforementioned building.

What do you mean, the aforementioned building? I mentioned it to you last time we spoke.

Yes, the one which we weren't allowed in, and had prompted all sorts of strange discussion about what might be inside. Do try to keep up.

I had wondered what was inside the container, as it seemed to oddly glow as it sat there on the back of that lorry. But I decided that to dedicate too much thought to that would have been foolhardy. Not to mention going in there would cost me my job, which I was quite keen on maintaining for obvious reasons.

Once all was done, I was permitted to head home for the day. I bid my team farewell and headed to my home for some rest. I had only just put some soup on when suddenly I got an unexpected call from Derby works. On that note, don't try the soup here; it's basically flavoured water. Utterly devoid of any taste. Personally it's what I imagine American cheese tastes like.

Anyway, I'm getting off topic. Safe to say I was surprised, given I had been there only a few hours earlier. So I put the soup into a flask so I could have it with me, popped it into a bag, and set off back into the rain towards Derby itself.

The sun had set by this point, so the sky was pitch black. The rain was still falling, and this meant the only thing cutting away at the oppressive blackness of the night was the street lamps, which glowed a sickly yellow in the night. Most people in Derby still had coal fires at that point, so smoke was a constant problem. I'd gotten used to wrapping a scarf over my mouth and nose in order to not inhale the fumes. Many people did the same. Your generation is lucky they will never have to experience that- the Clean Air Act was, I will begrudingly admit, a good thing.

As I made my way down the street, I couldn't help but notice people behaving erratically. Some were shambling around as though they'd spent a little too long in the pub. Which was possible; I've never touched the stuff myself as it dulls the senses. Makes it difficult to focus on the important things needed for life.

I also passed one person with bloodshot eyes, and another person who appeared to be not entirely with it. I also saw some strange substance in some of the water that was running into a drain. What was going on?

Once I had arrived, myself and my team were assembled at the briefing room. The head of security, it turned out, had a very special mission for us. Something that connected to what I had witnessed earlier.

Remember the container I mentioned earlier? Turns out that had been a bit of a problem. There had been some sort of leak in the building, and it was our job to go and investigate the problem. For the very first time, we were being given clearance to enter the building and investigate whatever may be inside it that was causing so much trouble on the ground.

My first query was why a higher level team wasn't being sent. It turned out there was a simple reason; they had, and they hadn't reported back yet. They were supposed to be checking in every fifteen minutes or so, and had missed several checks already.

So it was up to us to go and find them, check if they were alive, and then report back. I suspected the worst, to be honest. If our best team goes missing it doesn't bode well for the rest of us, does it?

So, it was off to the armoury to equip ourselves with the weapons and armour needed for the task. We were issued with our standard body armour and helmets alongside some other useful equipment such as a knife. We also got given grenades, which were not part of our usual equipment.

Since I had first joined our other equipment had improved considerably. Gone were the Sten guns. In their place was the vastly superior L1A1 rifle. Devastating at short range, with plenty of firepower. Not to mention less prone to jamming usually because they weren't being pumped out to suit an ongoing planet spanning war.

Once we had our equipment packed and loaded, and our ammunition secure, we headed out into the rain once more. I spotted several other security squads on the move. Many of them were heading for the gates of the facility, which seemed to be oddly busy. Large numbers of people stood outside them, as if queuing for something. That didn't explain the load moaning noises they were making.

One could only wonder what in the world had just happened to that lot. Still, it wasn't my problem, so that was that.

We climbed aboard the lorry and took our seats, the rain splattering down on the tarpaulin that had been put up as a makeshift roof. I was on point at the back, scanning for anything following us as we were driven across the site. As I saw our comrades vanish into the distance, I could only wonder what in the world was going on.

After a few minutes of travelling across the facility, seeing locomotives being stabled, I noticed something very odd. British Railways seemed to be moving large amounts of rail equipment away from the area and onto the Midland Mainline, heading towards Leicester. Why were they removing so many locomotives and coaches? Was something wrong?

I had plenty of time to consider this, before focusing my mind on the mission. We had to move in, get the main team out, then investigate whatever was going on here.

Even so, the things I had seen more than made clear this was more than just a simple incident. Nothing like this had ever been seen before in my time in the security services, and as such I was more than a little suspicious that British Railways knew more than they were letting on.

Sure enough, we eventually arrived at the building. The structure, which was hardly the most inviting of places at the best of times, looked even more threatening in the dark. A single light shone from the top of the roof, casting its cold eye down upon us.

We got off after the truck stopped, and then walked to the building entrance. We formed up in front of it, ready to enter the facility.

But. alas, we must stop there, as we're out of time once more. Not to worry. A little bit of suspense never hurt anybody, and I always was a master storyteller.

I shall, therefore, see you again at some point, even if that some point is well into the future. In the meantime, it appears as though I need to go back to being stuck behind bars.

But you never know. Stories have a way of surviving, even when suppressed.