The Mandrake Effect– ONE– by P J Searle

The monolithic 1920’s Ridley Building, home to the Carnegie Space Agency headquarters, stands as sentinel of good taste to a chaotic jungle of angular skyscrapers. The interior––still in its original art-deco furnishing and fittings––contrasting sharply with the hi-tech equipment and attractive, scholastic people there employed.

Rex enters the main hall, followed, a step or two behind, by Hamish, who is busily attempting to placate a grouching Harry.

‘Will you cool it, Hal? You’re always complaining about food. Dear God, you had a steak sandwich just two hours ago! Didn’t they feed you on the plane?’

‘Just catching up with the jet-lag, Hamish, old luv,’ says Harry, patting his stomache, ‘I never eat when I’m flying… upsets the old Derby Kelly, do ya see?’

’Oh, drinking a goddam aircraft dry of gin and champagne is okay, is it? And don’t call me ‘old love’.’

Harry is about to retort. Rex moves between them. ‘First meet the team, then we’ll have a working lunch, then straight to it.’

Harry’s mood changes as he takes stock of his new surroundings. The place is bustling with attractive women. He is introduced to the numerous nubile ladies, all of who appear taken with his genteel Englishness, which, on his realising, Harry exaggerates with cavalier charm. He is now in top flirtatious form, appreciated, seemingly by all, especially a gorgeous black-haired, blue-eyed technician, Kate Ottman, standing a little way back from Rose.

‘Rose, this is Henry Mandrake,’ says Rex. ‘Mandrake… let me introduce Rose Hawkins.’

Rose smiles, ‘Hi, Henry’

‘Harry, please. I hate Henry... but I insist you call me Hal. I’ve heard so much about you, Rose.’ He takes her hand and kisses it. Rose is impressed and, for a moment, slightly flushed. She feigns comedy to hide her embarrassment.

‘Why, thank you kindly, Sire.’ She mocks a slight curtsy. ‘I guess you’ve heard a lot about me because there are two of me. You’ll be meeting the alien host, Rosette, as these morons call her, after lunch. We thought it better that way… she has a bad affect on some people’s appetite. She’s in sickbay.’

Harry looks puzzled. ‘Sickbay, Rose, how come?’

‘She’s very sick… cancer… of a sort. An acute cellular disorder.’

‘I’m sorry.’

‘I’m not,’ says Rose, with a flash of malice.

Harry shrugs. Rose looks away… the conversation seems to stall. He takes a small gift-box out of his inside pocket and offers it. ‘I’ve brought you a little gift, Rose. Been in the family a hell of a time, not expensive, not the family jewels, ha ha, but I’d like you to have it.’

Rose is totally overwhelmed – a simple costume-jewellery necklace, seemingly of some great age. As she puts it on she leans to Harry and kisses him on the cheek. There is a bit of chemistry mixing – Rex looks at Hamish and rolls his eyes. The other women also notice, especially Kate Ottman.

Rose smiles and leads Harry, Rex, and Hamish off to the restaurant where they are to meet Major, leaving the group of women to their tittle-tattle.

‘Jees’ what a dreamy guy,’ says Kate, barely letting them out of earshot, ‘I could eat him alive. How about you, Helen?’ They all laugh.

‘Me?’ says Helen, ‘Well… for my money, he’s a fag. No regular guy talks like that.’

‘Or dresses like that,’ adds the third woman, ‘An’ if he’s not a fruit, then he’s a goddam dyke!’

‘Talking of dykes,’ chips in the forth woman, ‘Rose seems to like him, fruit or otherwise. What you make out of that, Kate, what d’ya think?’

‘I’ll tell you what I think: I think she and her zombie-dyke sister really do think men are to eat.’ She turns to Helen, making a personal jibe. ‘Is that right, Helen, is Rose a dyke, you two were buddy-buddies, once?’

Helen looks embarrassed, ’Oh God, don’t start that again. We were not ‘buddies’, we were friends for a while, when I first arrived here – Christ, I’m friends with you, don’t mean I wanna slam into your goddam pants.’

‘You offering, Honey?’ says Kate, laughing and fluttering her eyelashes.

‘Gimme a break! We just did some shows and stuff. Leastways, you can find out if he’s gay,’ says Helen, forcing the subject on from herself, ‘you’re going to work with him. You gonna try it… Satchel Mouth?’

Kate, taking the retaliatory jibe in good humour, waggles her tongue in her ample mouth, ‘All the better to eat him with, Grandma!’

They all laugh.

Joseph Styles, the commander of EarthlabOne, a tall, executive-dressed man normally of steely and controlled temperament, sits nervously at his roll-top desk in the circular command room. He is staring, lost in troubled thought, into a hand-held mike, waiting for the line to connect. The moment it does he rams it to his mouth and gushes, ‘Major, we’re a man down!’ A moment passes. ‘Did you hear what I said? We’re a man down!’

Major’s voice booms over the radio-link, ‘Are you certain?’

‘Yes. He’s been missing for at least thirteen hours – he was off duty, so it could be as long as twenty-four. We’ve checked all the suits, they’re all present and accounted for.’

‘Have you checked the SBS?’

’Yes. We’ve checked again with video on. He’s not moving about, I’m certain… I wouldn’t have said if I wasn’t. There’s something else, Major: We’ve found decomposed tissue, human residue similar to that in the Junairo… we’re still testing it. And something has been jettisoned without authorisation. That’s where we found the residue, in the tube.

‘You have to take precautions–’

‘Jesus Christ, you don’t have to tell me that! The whole crew is crapping themselves… the can-seat hasn’t cooled all day. I want a complete change of crew, Major. Immediately!’

‘No way!’ yells Major, still sitting in the agency restaurant, ‘No fucking way! We’re coming up – Listen to me Buddy, you’re under contract. Shape up or you’ll lose the lot. You hear me?’

‘A new crew, Major – You hear me?’

Major smashes a hand down on the dining table and hisses into the phone. ‘Now you get this: No-one gets access to the SBS. Keep everybody off. I don’t care what work’s being done. Close it down. If you won’t do it, we’ll pull the plug from down here. You understand what I’m saying?’

‘Yes. Do you understand what I’m saying!?’

Major calms slightly. ‘Listen, Joe, this affects us all… all we’ve worked for.’ He is silent for a few seconds. ‘Okay… Now, get as many people together as you can. Try not to leave anyone alone, keep your people in threes if you can. We must keep up morale. I’ll be with you in ten hours. Keep this line open. I’ll be in constant communication. That’s it for now. Come through for me, Joe… you won’t regret it. In ten hours – Out.’

Major puts the receiver down, then picks it up again and makes another call. He speaks immediately it connects, ‘Make ready the Orion. And there’s a special job I want you to do.’ He slams the receiver down again and stares icily into infinity.

Across the crowded restaurant, Rose and party approach. Major shakes away his thoughts and looks up. ‘Rose! … And this must be Henry Mandyke.’ They shake hands.

‘Man, drake…’ corrects Harry, ‘… drake.’

‘Drake!’ says Major, looking at him bewildered. They take their seats at the table. Major continues to all. ‘We’ve got a problem. We got to go back to EarthlabOne. They’ve lost a man, one Erick Ronan… a weather technician… Anyone know him?’ Nobody answers, they all look at each other. Major continues. ‘Okay. Now, here’s the bit, they’ve found decomposed flesh residue, same as the Junairo.’

Rose looks shocked. ‘Exactly the same?’

‘Yes, exactly the same… Sounds fishy to me. The whole crew is on the verge of panic, so the commander says. They all want out. We’ve got to get up there and show some grit.’ He looks from one to the other, ‘Understand this, if this gets out we’re finished. If we miss a Mars rendezvous, that’s a whole goddam season wasted. And, after that elapse of time, we probably won’t be needed.’ He studies Harry for a moment. Harry nods understanding. Major continues. ‘They say he’s been missing thirteen to twenty-four hours, that means he possibly stowed away with us. I reckon he stole some of the sealed containers and scattered residue in the tube to fuck us up, to throw us off the scent. Probably took some copy data. It would be worth a fortune to the international market, to say nothing of the press. I don’t think he could have got shots of Rose and Ro–’ he stops and corrects, ‘–the double. You were never together on the station, at least not where Ronan would get access. Were you, Rose?’

‘No, I don’t think so… maybe.’

Major makes a fist and hammers his forehead. ‘God, if he’s got a shot of the two of you… Okay, this needs sorting. None of this gets out, not to anybody! One word could finish us. We must contain it.’ He looks to Hamish. The big man stands and without word walks off. Rex follows.

Major leans towards Rose, takes her hand and speaks softly. ‘Do you mind going back, Rose? I wouldn’t ask but the whole goddam sack is about to split… We must go.’

‘Suits me – the further away from the freak the better.’

Harry, feeling uncomfortable at Major’s intimacy with Rose, takes her other hand. ‘What is the latest on the host, Rose?’

Rose pulls away from both hands. ‘Very sick, Harry, dying, thank God. You’ll be okay for a day or two, Kate will show you around?’

Harry nods. ‘We’ll take a rain-check on that dinner, yes?’

‘What? Oh, yeah… yes,’ she smiles, then looks to Major, slightly embarrassed. She shrugs and turns back to Harry. ’All that you asked for, Harry, has been installed in your office. Your ‘Roller’, as you call it, is in your own park-bay. It’s got your name on it – the bay that is. Oh, and you have full accreditation.’ She hands him some credit cards and car keys. ‘Make the most of the time, Harry… we need you desperately.’

Harry lifts her hand offering the cards and keys, and kisses it yet again, at the same time deftly palming the offered.

Rose smiles, ‘Hey! Quit that. You’re making Major blush.’

‘See you later, Rose. You take care, now.’

Rose and Major start to leave. They stop at the swing doors, to talk to Kate, who has just entered. Rose looks back and nods another farewell to Harry, and then they are gone.

Kate joins Harry, giving him a sensuous, ‘Lo, Harry.’

‘Kate. How nice. I understand you’re going to work with me. I’ve got a little pressie for you. It’s been in the family for ages. Don’t worry, it’s not the family jewels.’