Junkyard

7/6/2021

Cross the railway tracks and hopscotch down the stone steps that lead back home, a young woman in an oversized dress sighed at yet another day of work. The wages were terrible for the number of duties she had to complete each week, but what else can a seventeen-year-old Asian like her get after leaving home? After a month living jobless and close to being kicked out of the rented loft, it was a huge blessing to be able to secure even a small place in the rat race.

But it was so boring! She loved sewing but day in and out at the factory, with the supervisor's bossy demands for perfection, had quickly put her off. Now she lived on simple, stiff clothing she was able to purchase at the downstairs store.

She dared not request clothing from her mother. Afterall, the town her family lived at was nowhere close. Now living in the outskirts of Sydney – a town that many were hailing as a city – everything was super super expensive. Besides, she was supposed to be the one sending supplies or money back, not the other way around, she reminded herself time and again.

A golden gleam among the grasses made the woman pause mid-step. It was by the edge of the ditch next to the road, and it gleamed because it was made mostly out of heavy metal – she was unsure what type, but it would surely fetch a high price. The part that was metal was hollow and curved in a 'C' shape. The other half was shaped like a box with numbers printed on it like a numerical version of the typewriter. Circled by these numbers was a large panel engraved with the upward-tilted shape of the metal object.

The young woman cast a look around, hid the mysterious object in her satchel and hastened her steps back home. She was not sure what it was, but the metal part could be gold, something that was popular at the moment and extremely marketable.

"Gwendolyn, is that you?" The voice of the landlady and shopmistress called from the back of the house once she opened the rickety gate. "Don't forget to keep your laundry! They must be all parched by now in this summery hell."

"Yes, ma'am! Thanks for reminding me!" The young woman yelled back. She was just debating where to unveil the object since there was little to no privacy even in her little loft upstairs. The landlady would often go up to make cleaning inspections. With the reminder of laundry, she figured the knoll where the clothes were hung would be an ideal location.

It was a grassy location that the landlady and her husband rarely visited due to the distance from the house. Why was she hiding it from them? Well, curiosity and fascination with the strange thing warred against necessity.

Now that she had the chance to properly examine it, she found that it was extremely beautiful. The artisan must be very very skilled to have engraved on that metal C such uniform and repetitive patterns. They looked like ribbons but put together made the object look like a corn cob. While she still could not tell what the material of the other part was, it was infinitely lighter than wood and she could even see her reflection on it!

Her finger hovered over the circular panel with the engraved upside-down C. It might be a clue as to what this whole thing was and so she lightly put pressure on the panel.

Nothing happened.

Just as she was about to try again, a sound crackled out of the metal C.

"Gooooood morning! This is Yu-ne speaking, from the...World Help Organisation. May I know to whom I am speaking to?" The voice was young with a strange lilt, but it sounded her age.

There was no mistake it was coming from the metal object. Is this what a voice transmitter looks like? She'd heard of an up-and-coming machine that could connect two people's voice from far away.

"Hello? Uhh, is this Jay? Or maybe Mrs Venette?" The voice paused. "Ahh, maybe you're not sure how to use the telephone? Can you hear me? Please answer a yes or no so I can help you."