CHAPTER 6
I had a few years of fun, after that. I was really lucky, we were lucky, never to do a tour in Ulster, but Stewie and I got to see Hong Kong a couple of times before it was given to the Chinese, and we had more than a few joint exercises with the Dutch Marines, and more than a few fights, and much, much more than a few beers.

CHAPTER 4
I knew it was going to be a long walk as soon as I heard about the Conveyor. We had helicopters, but nowhere near enough to move all of us, and we were the poor sods sent out on Shanks’s.

I have taken a number of small liberties with history here, this being fiction after all. I apologise if any of the real folk who were involved in this feel I have wronged them in any way. This tale is offered in the deepest respect. And of course I affirm copyright, 2010, in both my real name as held by the site operators and the name Cyclist.

UNIFORMS.

Not even first light. The chop was making my teeth rattle as the blunt bow slammed into each wave the LCU met, and a couple of the lads were already being sick. The bergen weighed far too much, but I’d managed to snaffle a Mao suit and, much to my surprise, managed to squeeze it in. We were in the second wave, and as we had heard nothing from the shore so far it looked as if we were going to be unopposed. Thank fuck my new boots had come. Too many of the lads were still in ammo boots, but I had done more than enough on Dartmoor in mine to know exactly how bad they were.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 54

It was finally over, the women getting three years each for the conspiracy and the Marines declining to press charges for the assault, although their assailants did get a few hundred hours Community Service for affray.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 52

EXTREMELY UNPLEASANT MATERIAL BELOW.
I was not required as a witness, as my “evidence” was simply the initial recognition of Alfie Smith’s face. Naomi, however, was called, and when the day of the trial came up we made a party of five for the trip up to Croydon Crown Court, us, Naomi and Albert, and Sally.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 50

And so a car park and a recreation ground filled with dancing couples, couples of all sorts and shapes.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 49

We went straight to the police station. This was the sort of thing where clothes would get disposed of, if we didn’t act quickly, and unless Smith and his friends were even stupider than we thought they would have heard the news.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 47

Geoff was off to work early on Wednesday morning, after our trip back from the festival.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 44

Thursday night and we were off. Driving past London on a Bank Holiday Friday is not my idea of fun, so Geoff and I were meeting up with the rest of the clan at Oxford before spending the Thursday night in a motel near Telford.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 41

This was it, the moment I had dreaded. Her hand stayed where it was for far too long, and she glared at me with what seemed like real hatred.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 39

And then we were there, with hundreds of other cyclists, going through the rigmarole of registering riders and support vehicles.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 37

I have already said more than once that real life is not like a film, dramas don’t happen every five minutes and there aren’t plot devices to unravel. Real life also doesn’t stop with a “and they all lived….” like a fairytale. It just carries on from day to day, and it is no less valuable for that.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 36

This is the last one for a few days. I am off to dance and play and drink ALE.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 34

And Sue was indeed stocious, as a rat. We had formed up in one of the Crawley bars that sold more bottles of coloured liquid than real ale, the sort of drink known as “tart fuel”, and that was exactly what it was like.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 32

The Friday was spent on the Horseshoe, that classic circuit of Yr Wyddfa that takes in Crib Goch, Y Garnedd Ugain, the top of “Snowdon”, and Y Lliwedd before returning to the Pen y Pass car park.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 30

Being without a bike, I took a taxi home. Vanessa had given me the rest of the day off after calling me to her office for a debrief. She has a very raucous laugh, and when Nigel mentioned the “I know where it’s been” comment, she brayed.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 29

The internal Governance people were due the next day, and I had been coached by Naomi for hours in how to answer them.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 28

That was indeed a bombshell, and it took me a while to work out what was going on.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 26

There was fallout from the prank, of course. But nowhere near as spectacular as the fallout we all witnessed that night.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 24

It’s a long walk back along the cliffs to Bosherston, The wind was at my back and my hair was streaming out, showing me the way home. I could get a lot of my bits and pieces onto the bike, and it was only a short ride back to Pembroke railway station.

Something to Declare by Cyclist

Chapter 23

We had other things to do, of course, such as keep Geoff’s legs turning. He had been pushing me for some time to try a 300 or 400 together, blithely ignoring the fact that 300 was the most I had ever done.