Anthony Camber

Pod is the protagonist and narrator of the Pod of Capricorn series – both Between Two Worlds and its sequel. In Earth terms he’s in the second half of his teens, but they’re not on Earth, and the word teenager is not part of the Capricorn Basic vocabulary. It’s not a like-for-like comparison.

I’ve dug through free photo sites and here’s a reasonable match for Pod as I see him – Pod’s skin is a little more copper in tone. Imagine this photo was taken shortly before Pod got his hair buzzed short, which happens a few days before Between Two Worlds starts.

Pod is of average height and skinny, and more of a runner than a fighter. He’s clever yet doesn’t think he is, and he doesn’t believe in himself. He shares a cabin with five others around his age — that’s how things work in Capricorn — but still he’s a bit of a loner. He doesn’t know where he fits or what he wants to do, other than (hormones being hormones) find a boy to pair with, and he’s having no luck there. He doesn’t have many friends beyond his cabinmates, and his relationships with them can sometimes be fractious.

Capricorn, the AI that controls the wheel, defines everyone’s course in life to a great extent and sets their daily schedule. At the start of the book, Capricorn is sending Pod to the academy in his nearest town to learn “Systems”. As far as Pod can tell, “Systems” is mostly about how the sewers work, and he fully expects to spend his life working in and around sewage pipes. It’s not what he wants to do.

His problem is that he can’t articulate what he does want. At least partially this is because of Capricorn, which defines Pod’s time so tightly — even when he can shower and when he can relax — that there’s little free will for someone like him. As a consequence he hasn’t given life a great deal of thought beyond today.

At the start of the book Pod’s frustration is growing. He’s obeying Capricorn only grudgingly and starting to assert himself. This is risky, because giving Capricorn too much grief can result in a mild or severe electric shock — a sparking — that can leave a disfiguring scar.

Pod’s best friend and bunkmate, Skylight, who works on the farms, tries to protect him from Capricorn’s ire. Skylight thinks Pod should exercise more, to build up his body — he believes Capricorn would then send Pod to work with him in the fields. But Pod doesn’t think he’s a farm boy either.

If only, Pod thinks, someone would come into his life and shake it up.

That’s the author’s view of Pod. But you’d rather hear from Pod himself, I think. Here’s a few words from him in the Capricorn Basic dialect of the books. This is exclusive to my blog/newsletter! Not in the book!

In Pod’s words

My name, it Pod. Seen a bunch of winterbreaks, enough to know I not want gifts, I want sleep. But I want gifts also. Last winterbreak, my bestie Skylight, he gave an old scythe he found back of some farm place, smoothed and sharped so I not fuss and cuss when I trim grass top of cabin. He sat crosslegs and watched me first time I held it, saying I gonna slice a foot off or some. I called him an asshole and I rolled him off the side.

He let me, course. He a farm boy, he strong. He got arms and shit, and I a skinny fireskin. But I got legs. I can run. Like I ran from Aerial last summerbreak when she angled to dock lips, and nope nope. I a guy guy, and she ent happy on it.

We got three others in cabin: Ring and Marzipan and Terracotta. All girls. Skylight, he gonna pick one, is it.

I gonna not.

I gonna step downtread to academy and Systems day day day cos Capricorn, C-dog, he chores me that. Teach at academy, he shows lotta pics of brown pipes on his screen. One day I gonna recyc slipping into a brown fat pipe, sure sure.

Skylight, he reckons I gotta lift more kigs and then I gonna join him in the fields. I ent. C-dog, he wants me learning Systems, so I learn Systems — else he gonna spark me to next weep. I not want a scar.

I not wanna learn Systems.

I want—

I not know.

Forest from next cabin, they laugh me in laundry chore when I spit mad, throwing unders and dirty shirts in my face. They grunt and they tell me I gotta calm and wait and shit, cos a guy gonna appear some tick, magic magic.

Sure. Sure he gonna.