Time Agent | ONC2024

8. The Encounter

(This chapter is dedicated to @ravenwood666may and her mystery story for the ONC2024, Rogan the Detective. Join the quest for the truth!)

Jack leant comfortably against the retaining wall, watching the smoke from his cigarette spiral into the night air.

He'd cut back his cigarette consumption in response to the latest reports about the suspected health risks of smoking, but he still liked the occasional drag. Surely, four or five a day wouldn't hurt anyone. But if he lit up in the flat, Jean would make a big fuss over the smell, so he'd agreed to smoke outside. It was easier all round.

And, truthfully, he appreciated the solitude. It was quiet up on the roof and he could let his thoughts wander without interruption.

The city lights were particularly bright tonight, the strong northerly breeze in the afternoon had blown the smog away, leaving the air clearer than usual.

He was just on the verge of stubbing out his cigarette, when he was startled by a bright light, flashing from somewhere behind him. He spun around, an arm going up to protect his eyes, and saw a figure stumbling around the roof. The light had vanished, along with his good night vision.

"Where the fuck did you spring from?" He didn't realise he'd spoken the words aloud until the figure froze and stared at him.

Jack couldn't make out many details in the dark but he thought it was a man. A young man. He switched on the torch he always carried when he came up here, expecting to see a fellow resident, but the man was a stranger.

"Who are you?" he asked. "And how did you get up here?" He frowned. The building was supposed to be secure. Tenants and personal guests only.

"I-I just arrived."

Jack could understand him, but the man had a strong accent.

"A new tenant?"

There was a pause before the man spoke again. "Yes. A new tenant," he repeated, in rather stilted tones.

Perhaps English is not his first language, thought Jack, charitably.

"Glad to meet you, I'm Jack Brown. Who are you?"

"Seven Three."

"Sven Freier? Are you Danish, then?" That would explain the accent.

"Uh...I...Danish?"

Was this guy firing on all cylinders?

Jack remembered how the man had been stumbling around when he first saw him. He couldn't smell alcohol on his breath, but you couldn't always tell. In any case, drunk or ill, the man appeared disoriented.

"Are you alright? Would you like to come downstairs for a cup of coffee?"

The man gave him an odd look, and Jack winced, wondering if perhaps he thought Jack was trying to pick him up.

"Just for a coffee," he repeated, a little stiffly.

"That's very kind of you, if it's no trouble." The stranger smiled, transforming his whole face, and Jack's heart gave a little leap. He cleared his throat.

"You're welcome. It's this way."

~

Seven followed his new acquaintance through a metal door and down an odd arrangement that Jack had called stairs. He made sure he hung onto the railing until he got the rhythm right. He was still feeling rattled by the whole encounter. He'd expected to have some quiet time to gather his thoughts, and then to slip quietly away to prowl through the building at his leisure.

He'd had a shock when Jack spoke to him on the roof top. The new identity he'd carefully memorised had gone clean out of his head and he'd blurted out his real name. Luckily, it had evidently sounded sufficiently like something a local might use. Sven Freier. He had to remember that.

He hoped he was doing the right thing, going with this stranger. He hadn't intended to get involved with anyone here, at least, not until after he had located the time travel device, but he decided rejecting the invitation might be more dangerous. This man, Jack, seemed friendly enough. And if he turned out to be otherwise, Seven had no doubts he could take care of the matter.

He'd been reacting to circumstances as they occurred since he arrived, but perhaps this would work out better than his original plan. If Jack lived in this building, he might very well know where the device was kept.

It would just be a matter of persuading him to share the knowledge.

They left the stairwell through another door, and came out into a long passage, dimly lit by small round lights fixed in the ceiling. For the first time, Seven got a clear look at his companion, albeit from the back.

A little shorter than himself, but well-built, with square shoulders and a fluid stride. His hair was a pale shade of brown, and longer than Seven had been allowed to keep his. He studied what he could see of the clothes Jack wore. They were separate garments instead of a bodysuit, but that was about the only similarity to the outfit Seven was wearing.

In fact, the garment on the top half of his body made Seven feel slightly queasy. His scanner told him it was made from a dead animal. Bos taurus, a 'cow' in English. The trousers were normal enough, a plant material named 'cotton', dyed a dark blue. He had more dead animal skin on his feet. What sort of world had he come to?

(Author's Note - Second Milestone achieved! 8144 words, not counting author's notes.)