A constant trickle of young people managed to get away from the icy theatres of war. They somehow eluded the military authorities and escaped by boat to the nearest islands in the southern Archipelago. They inevitably landed on one of about twenty islands adjacent to the war zone – the fighting was confined to a particular plateau on the northern coast of the continent, an immense and hellish plain of ice, frozen snow and broken rock.

These islands were in the sea facing the zone. They therefore received most of the deserters, who soon discovered three salient matters. Firstly, that they were not the only ones who had made the dangerous journey, and many others had attempted the escape before them. That the people who lived on all those islands were expert in sheltering and hiding the young conscripts who turned up from the chilly sea. And that well armed escouades of military police were also waiting, ready to capture them and return them to their units. The presence of the escouades on these islands was itself an outrageous breach of the Covenant.

The twenty islands of the south were considered heroic by the rest of the Dream Archipelago, and known informally as the Underground Islands.

The people of the Underground Islands had developed many ways of deceiving and eluding the military police. Most of the deserters were safely smuggled to other islands, further to the north and therefore more beyond the reach of authority. This was a process known as shelteration, a defiant and proud island tradition. Most islands had their own shelterate laws, differing in detail according to the nature of each island, but essentially the same.

Once free to travel, if at constant risk of discovery, some of the young deserters headed for their home countries. Islanders gave all the help possible, but expressed no opinion on this, nor offered advice, because they knew that even if they should reach home the young people would face arrest and imprisonment if and when caught.

The journey home was an unavoidably long and arduous one, crossing from one island to the next, necessarily passing through the unrelenting heat of the tropics. The majority of the deserters eventually lost the homeward urge. Most found an island where they felt particularly at home, settled into the community, began adopting their outlook and relishing the unaggressive ways of the islanders.

All islands had what were known as havenic laws and practices. These gave permanent refuge to the former deserters, with financial and practical help for those who wanted to stay, and who in time became islanders too.

Every troopship incident, and there were several every year, was a subject of immediate and intense local interest. Many outcomes were possible.

This latest accident was little different from most of the others, although the fact that the ship had been damaged and the conscripts were trapped below decks gave it an extra edge of nervy concern.