Day of Rebellion by Johnny O'Brien

annex across the courtyard. It was luxuriously appointed, except that there were no windows and the door was locked behind them. Jack sat on a low bed and put his head in his hands.
    “This is a nightmare.”
    “Tell me about it. But what I don’t get is that Backhouse recognised your VIGIL device. He must have seen one before. He said that this Babbage guy had one exactly the same back in England… but how can that be?”
    Jack looked up. “Incredible isn’t it? I’ve been trying to work it out… Want to know what I think?”
    “We’ve got all day.” Angus gave a crooked smile.
    “OK. I think Babbage somehow got hold of a VIGIL device like our one and studied it meticulously. That’s what helped him and the Cambridge Philosophical Society create all these new inventions we’re seeing which shouldn’t exist in 1860. The conference that Fleming mentioned was twenty-five years ago, so the inventions have had time to develop and they’ve seeped from Britain across the rest of the world, including to Backhouse’s Taiping friends right here.”
    Angus nodded. “Right, I can understand that – Babbage musthave got hold of the device years ago – but how did he get it in the first place?”
    Jack shook his head slowly, “That’s what we need to find out. I can only think of one way it could have happened. A VIGIL agent must have travelled back in time and given it to him.”
    “But why? VIGIL would never do that. It’s against all the rules.”
    Jack nodded in agreement. “I know, Angus, I know. But how else could it have happened?”
    “You’ve heard of this Babbage guy before?”
    “Yeah. He’s famous. He was a genius. In ‘real’ history he invented computers about a hundred years before anyone else. He called them ‘Engines’ – there was a ‘Difference Engine’ and an ‘Analytical Engine’ – basically they were calculating computers but with metal cogs and levers and dials and stuff. I can imagine that if someone that brilliant was given a VIGIL device he could easily use it to make up some of the designs it shows. There’s some pretty detailed stuff in some of those apps.”
    Angus nodded.
    “There’s something else I’ve been thinking about…”
    Angus raised his eyebrows, “What?”
    “It’s two days since we left Shanghai… remember what the Taurus log said…?”
    “You mean – your Dad?”
    “Right. He’ll be in Shanghai shortly and we’ll be stuck here in this festering pit more than two days away…”
    “And Fenton must be here already…” Angus grimaced.
    “Yes, waiting for Dad. But there’s one thing we needto remember…” Jack reached into his torn undervest to the special pocket. He pulled out the time phone.
    Jack smiled. “They were so excited at finding the VIGIL device that they forgot to search the rest of me. Whilst we’ve still got a time phone, we’ve still got hope.”
    Angus grinned. “Of course… no signal I guess?”
    They peered at the time phone.
    “Stupid thing is always dead when you need it most. We just need to be patient.”
    “When we get a signal, we can time travel and be ready to meet your Dad when he gets to Shanghai.”
    “We just have to keep ourselves out of trouble until then.”
    “Can’t see that being a problem.” Angus smiled. “Way I see it, Backhouse and his Taiping cronies need to look after us – they think we’re the ones that can help them use the VIGIL device.” He nodded at the time phone, “You better put that somewhere very safe – you don’t want them to get hold of that as well – then there’d be total carnage.”
     
    There was a rattle at the door. Backhouse, Rengan and two burly guards entered the room. The guards handed each boy silk robes to put on and then they were led away from the pavilion and back through the palace. They crossed a large courtyard – fringed with miniature trees that sprang from ornate flower beds. Ahead, Jack could see a great archway.
    “The Inner Temple.