Doctor Who_ Transit - Ben Aaronovitch [61]
As the Doctor helped him get Kadiatu into the carriage a young man handed Blondie a pamphlet on the golden age of steam.
Adisham Station (European Heritage Trust: Dover Line)
Kadiatu was dreaming of the shadows that flickered under the corrugated-iron roof of the house in Makeni. Her eyes invented transitory images from the moving lines cast by the rafters. Big adult voices spoke around her, booming down from high above.
'You should have destroyed it.'
'It's not an it, it's a she.'
'Oh, that makes all the difference.'
'In some ways she's a normal child.'
'You saw the Imogen specs, Yembe. Her geneset's riddled with all sorts of deep-level conditioning. God knows what's going to happen when she hits puberty. You want to try dealing with an adolescent who can rip your head off?'
'There are suppression techniques.'
'You're going to use drugs?'
'On her metabolism? No. I was thinking of psychological techniques. Imogen was planning a lot of indoctrination. Without that she'll be almost normal.'
'You'll have to keep her away from the doctors.'
'That's not a problem. My main concern is that Imogen may reinitiate the project.'
'That is not a problem.'
It must have begun to rain then. Kadiatu heard it rattle on the iron roof. It was a heavy tropical downpour, battering down in rhythmical, lulling waves. The noise made it difficult to hear the voices.
'I suppose you've already given her a name.'
She strained to hang on to the voices but they were getting lost in the rain and blattermg sound of the house's methane generator.
'I named her after my great-grandmother ...'
The house began to sway with a rattling mechanical motion.
'Kadiatu.'
Hot sunlight in her eyes when she opened them. The noise and swaying remained outside of the dream along with the familiar drag of a train decelerating into a station.
'Wake up,' said the Doctor. 'This is our stop.'
Kadiatu looked around. They were riding in what she recognised as an antique railway carriage. Blondie was sitting next to her on a long fabric upholstered seat that ran the width of the compartment. The Doctor sat watching her from the opposite seat. Through the window green countryside moved past at an absurdly slow rate.
'I was dreaming,' she said.
There was a shrill whistle from the front of the train and another lurch as they pulled into a station made of brick and grey slate. A white sign on the station wall said 'ADISHAM' in black letters. Underneath was a logo and the words 'EUROPEAN HERITAGE TRUST'. The train gave a final lurch and stopped.
There was no handle on the inside of the compartment door. The Doctor had to stand up and slide the window down to use the exterior handle. He held the door open as Kadiatu and Blondie alighted. A man in a blue serge uniform leant out from the rear carriage and waved a red flag.
Behind the shunting sound of the engine Kadiatu could hear birdsong.
'Where are we?' she asked but the Doctor's answer was half lost in the gunshot sound of the carriage door closing.
'The Garden of Eden?' asked Blondie.
'Kent,' said the Doctor. 'The garden of England.'
It reminded Kadiatu of the countryside around Makeni during the rainy season. The plants were different but it had the same lush greenness, the same gently rolling hills and clusters of neat whitewashed houses with truck gardens in the back. Blondie took her hand as they followed the Doctor along a lane that wound between tall hedgerows.
She picked a plant from the verge. It was dark green and topped by clusters of pale cream buds. 'What's this?' she asked the Doctor.
The Doctor looked back over his shoulder. 'Cowslip,' he told her.
Kadiatu ate the top of the plant. It tasted bitter like cassava leaf. They continued down the lane, occasionally Kadiatu would sample some bit of green that looked tasty.