Scoundrels and schemers
From
the diary of Bernard MacGreggor, Esq. (deceased)
Captain Sparrow offered Mrs. Frazer a job as First Mate of his new
ship. Which she accepted. And Mr. Frazer has remained on the
Cowperthwaite’s ship looking after the children. The sergeant isn’t
likely to be seeing any new grandchildren soon if this sort of thing
keeps up! I’m going to win that bet after all!
Several of them went diving today. Lady Cowperthwaite, Miss Moriarty,
Wooster , and Sir Spencer. We were busy keeping an eye on the children.
They were all very interested, particularly after Miss Moriarty let
them help unpack the diving suits. Though once the divers went
underwater, it was quite boring top side. Watch Sir Cosmo fiddling with
the compressors. Watch the lines unwind. That sort of thing.
Until the fight with the monsters started. Then it became quite
exciting, as the hoses and lines jumped and jerked. Poor Mrs Wooster
became very distraught, whispering at the hose as if Wooster could hear
her. “Don’t die! I haven’t told you about them yet!”
I think Sir Spencer needs to add another square to that pool. “Babies?
What babies?” Right after the square that says, “Who are these babies
and when are they going home?”
Ah, well, not all brides can be as sensible as Our Helen.
Though going to the Moon! I wasn’t at all sure it was wise. I have to
admit Simon was correct, there was no smaller possibility of danger
remaining back on the boats while they flew up to the Moon. How George
managed that trick with the insane Shiva avatar, I’ll never know.
But, despite all the bullets and swords flying about, Helen kept her
head. Captain Sparrow nearly lost his. Mrs. Wooster took a nasty sword
thrust to the chest and temporarily joined us on this side, but Mrs.
Cuthbert pulled her back. Not yet her time, as Mr. Voach said to the
thin man with the little hourglass in his hand.
And that no good scoundrel, Ephraim Sloane, showed his true colours at
last. I told Simon, that man was a cold-hearted, inattentive husband to
my dear sister Eileen. He didn’t so much as shed a tear at his own
wife’s funeral! And he didn’t have the common decency to wait out the
normal mourning period to become engaged again.
Does Simon listen to me? He does not. He makes entirely irrelevant
comments about me! I wasn’t the best husband in the world, I admit
that. I wasn’t as good a father as I could have been. That’s all
patently clear to me, now. I have seen the error of my ways and am
doing what I can from this side to make up for it.
Ephraim, on the other hand…
He had his men pointing their guns at Helen! What kind of Uncle does
that?
And what did he get for his troubles? Shot by both Sir Cosmo and Lady
Cowperthwaite, then beaten to a pulp, It could not have happened to a
more deserving fellow.
They talked Lady Cowperthwaite into sparing him. As someone suggested,
it will be more humiliating for him to stand trial back in England and
be convicted of his crimes in full public view. His underling, Mercer,
was left behind. He appeared dead, though his spirit had not yet
manifested. When last we saw him, the ghosts of a number of his victims
were gathered around. I suspect justice will be done. His other
accomplices, Mr Munro, Mr Raikes, and so on, either vanished or don't
appear to have been along. I worry we may yet run into trouble when Sir
Cosmo and Sir Spencer finally talk to the commander of the HMS Icarus.
Our immediate concern are the 20 or more chinese-style ships sailing
this way under a flag no one in the party recognizes.
From the diary of Jyotiprakasa of
Vulcania, also known as Joop, or
Jupiter Smith, of the crew of Nautilus
It was a day of wonders. I have been to the moon. I have met English
who did not try to kill me as soon as they saw me. Though I have also
met more English who tried to kill both our company and these unusual
Englanders.
We found the Celestial Maiden, though she was not what I expected. She
did not give Captain the Moon Blade, choosing instead to give it to the
woman called Cowperthwaite. She has an English name but she is clearly
Hindi. She was traveling with at least two of my people, though they
each looked very different from any of my former tribemates. One has
red hair and a speckled complexion very similar to my former companion,
Herbert. The other looks more Hindi, though he was dressed as an
English servant.
The Auger says that there are at least five of my people traveling with
these foreigners. One is the daughter of the Celestial Maiden, though
the Maiden is not of our people.
The Auger has also said that I will meet some of my former captors on
this island, yet none have yet appeared. Maybe I should not listen to
the Auger.
Captain Sparrow travels with these English, and fights at their side.
Perhaps that is punishment enough.
From
the diary of Major Alfred Powell,
Military Attaché to the British Resident of Perak, formerly of
the Duke of Clarence's Own (37th and 39th) Lancers
15 March, 1875
Mrs. Voach had the sword the entire time! I do hope to be the one to
tell Sir Philip. Barring that, I pray that I am there to see the look
on his face when he finds out.
Nemo has the Star of Victory, which is not an optimal outcome, but is
better than some of the alternatives.
Lady Cowperthwaite has taken possession of the Sword of Sovereignty.
Which will frighten Sir Philip no end, I am sure. I know that as long
as Sir Cosmo is alive and well enough to say, “Excuse me, my dear, are
you certain you wish to do that?” then the empire will be safe. From
Lady Cowperthwaite, that is.
My mission now is clear. Sir Cosmo must be protected at all costs.
Curator's note: The
dates recorded by the various witnesses to the strange events of this
chronicle do not agree. This discrepancy occurred to other parties
spending time on the so-called Island of Souls (cf. "The Wreck of the
Cumberland " by Matthew Flinders). It has been theorized that the
passage of time in the vicinity of the island varies from that in the
rest of the world. Observers in the Cowperthwaite party put the events
chronicled above on the fifth day of May, for instance.
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