Jaak’s Cabin – The Valleys

Following the early start and highly successful day getting Lizzie the engine up and running again, Jaak had curled up in his bed for an early night straight after supper. He had fallen asleep almost before his head hit the pillow. That night his dreams were spent in the land of Steamtopia, flying from one great cloud of steam to another, all the while avoiding the huge black clouds of sooty smoke that rose from the great belching stack, and the angry dive-bombing birds looking for their lost nests. It was not unlike playing some kind of video game – only weirder.

The sun found its way through the gap in the curtains. Jaak uncurled lazily in his bed and stretched himself – head down, backside up, his tail twitching from side to side – making a yawn so cavernous that the casual observer may have caught a glimpse of last nights supper.

Jaak wandered out still in his boxers, to the combined kitchen / living area of the cabin to find his father already sitting at the table drinking coffee.

Jaak was a little surprised and taken aback that his Dad was showing an interest in his project. He had fully resigned himself to indifference at best and outright opposition at worst – expecting another long lecture about the culture.

Truth was that Altai was feeling just a little envious of Layan and Tenzing helping Jaak out to get the donkey engine going again – something he as an engineer could of easily done himself. Yesterday, was simply the end-stop on a growing realisation over the last few weeks that he needed to make a little more effort with his son. The years where Jaak might still want to hang out with him were slipping by. It was also true that he did not really know Jaak that well, as visits since his divorce from Eliza – Jaak’s mother, had been infrequent while Jaak was growing up. There were the usual excuses – distance, weather, work commitments – along with the deeper unspoken ones. The unexpected transition a few months ago from living alone in his small off the grid cabin, to having a growing, energetic, always hungry teenager now sharing his life and larder, had not been easy for Altai either.

Jaak’s ears wiggled in opposite directions – which they did when he was unsure about something.

Jaak’s ears eagerly perked forwards.

Altai had just at that moment taken a mouthful of coffee and on hearing Jaak’s name for the engine – he snorted coffee everywhere in surprised bemusement.

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Gazza’s Gas and Grease

Soon after breakfast, father and son jumped in the pickup and headed down the valley road to the end of the ridge spur that then led around and up into the next valley over. Altai and Jaak chatted about the Lizzie the engine, with both the former and latter grateful in their own different ways to have a topic of conversation that they could both engage in without the usual indignant chuffing or eye-rolling. Altai was genuinely impressed at Jaak’s understanding and grasp of the steam engine’s workings and how it could be connected to an alternator to charge up a bank of batteries.

They passed several small farms, then the green-houses, and finally pulled up at the filling station, mechanical shop and wrecker yard known as Gazza’s Gas and Grease. They jumped out of the pick-up to look for Gazza – an earthy, neko-human from the planet Kangastralia who ran the place. The small shop – come living quarters, at the front of the yard did not yield their quarry – so they wandered out back to the assorted mechanical repair workshops and out-buildings.

Gazza’s buildings and yard was one of those maze type places that you might wander into and never be able to find your way out again. They heard some metallic banging coming from a large barn like building at the rear of the yard. They rounded the corner to hear a sound which was a bit of a keening mix of a band-saw and raspy-wailing. It turned out to be someone singing – or at least attempting to.

All they could see was the butt end of a pair of blue-jean dungarees – a tail swaying from side to side, mostly but not quite in time with the singing – disappearing into the engine bay of an old 50’s style pickup truck. This was the source of the metallic banging and the keening singing.

The tail stopped swaying, and a moment later a torso and head appeared.

^{Character image courtesy of – newcarpathia.com}

Gazza disappeared into the dimly lit shed that was packed chock full to the rafters of all manner of auto parts, some of the aisles between the shelves so narrow it was a wonder anyone could get through – let alone find what they were looking for.

Altai turned to Jaak.

Jaak just grinned, as if to say – Kangastrali – they talk funny!

This left Jaak alone for a few moments. He wandered over towards the haphazardly stacked piles of old junker cars and trucks – and gazed absently minded at them wondering what all their stories were and what kind of lives and owners they’d had. However for most, their semi-stripped bodies and missing engines stood as a silent witness of journeys long past.

Startled by the unexpected intrusion into his automotive daydream, Jaak suddenly became aware of a very small skinny boy peeking out at him with big blue eyes.

The boy was squeezed in a very narrow space between an old rusting 70’s pickup and a beat up sedan with no hood and no engine, which was stacked on top of the pickup, making a small cave like space in the pickup tray. Jaak could see that there were a couple of old blankets and a pillow crammed in there as well.

The boy wiggled himself through the small gap like grey and white stripy toothpaste squeezed out of a tube. He was wearing only a pair of shorts and no shirt even though the temperature was still quite cool for the time of year.

He looked vaugely familiar – as if he had seen him somewhere in the crowd at school, but couldn’t quite connect the face with a name or year.

Even though they had only just met, something about Tag and his common interest in things mechanical, immediately clicked. Jaak liked him.

Just then they heard the honk honk of the pickup horn. Both boys hurried over to the shed where Altai had backed up the pickup.

The batteries were heavy and it took both Jaak and Tag working together to heave them one by one into the pickup tray. Gazza also had an alternator, drive belts, several lengths of wiring, assorted auto lights, and a variety of switches and connectors ready in a large box.

With that, Altai and the two boys, one shirtless piled in the pickup and headed back to the cabin.

Previous – Episode 7 – Steamtopia
Next – Episode 9 – Lizzie