steps.
“It’s funny,” Hollister said. “I came here to prevent Caesar’sassassination and instead. I’m going to be the one who kills him.”
“Of course.” said Lucas. “Caesar and his wife are murderedin their bed. the Egyptians turn up missing. and Cleopatra gets the blame. Verygood. Captain. That’ll change the whole scenario. For a piece of last- minuteimprovisation, that’s not had at all. I don’t suppose there’s any way that Icould talk you out of it.”
“I’m afraid not, Colonel. I’ve got my orders. Sorry.”
“Hollister, wait.” said Lucas quickly. “Listen to me. Youcan’t ever go back again.”
“I know that.”
“I give you my word of honor as an officer and a gentleman thatif you surrender to me. I’ll see you’re treated well. And I’ll guarantee thatthe men we’ve taken prisoner from your unit will get the best of treatment.”
Hollister smiled. You know something. Colonel? I believeyou. And because I believe you. I’ll make you a deal. I know you’d be willingto die to stop me. but you’d never make it, so why die for nothing? You give meyour word that you’ll see my people are well treated and I’ll let you live.Sorry. but that’s the best I can do.”
Lucas sighed. “Damn you.” he said softly. “All right. you’vegot my word.”
“Thank you. Colonel. Now, just to make sure you don’t attemptany last-minute heroics, would you be so good as to lie face down on the floor?”
Lucas hesitated.
“Now. Colonel,” Hollister said.-Unless you want me to burn ahole in your kneecap.”
If I dive across the bed, thought Lucas, he might not killme with his first shot and I may have a chance to-
Hollister fired and Lucas screamed with pain as his legbuckled underneath him. He fell to the floor, clutching his kneecap and moaningin agony.
If it’s any consolation to you. Colonel, you never would’vemade it,” Hollister said. “I’m a dead shot. Remember, sir, you gave your word.”
He raised his laser and aimed it at Caesar’s sleeping form.
Hollister cried out as the weapon was struck from his handand clattered to the floor. The blackthorn walking stick whistled through theair once more and Hollister crumpled to the floor, unconscious.
Lucas looked up, grimacing with pain, and saw Dr. Darknessstanding over him.
“Got yourself shot again, I see,” said Darkness. cheer up.At least you didn’t get killed this time.”
EPILOGUE
“Feel up to some visitors?” the nurse said, smiling. Lucaslooked up as Finn, Andre, and Travers walked into the room. Forrester came inbehind them and the nurse left to give them some privacy.
“How’s the knee?” asked Forester.
“They tell me it’ll be fine after I’ve had some therapy.”said Lucas. He grimaced. “First a bionic eye, now a nysteel kneecap. If I keepthis up, before too long I’ll be a cyborg. How’s Hollister?”
“He’s busted up a bit, but he’ll live,” said Forrester. “Darknessfractured his skull and broke his wrist. He asked about you too, by the way.”
Lucas smiled wryly. “He could easily have killed me.”
“Why didn’t he?” asked Andre.
“Because he was concerned about his men. He said he’d let melive if I gave my word as an officer and gentleman that they would be welltreated.”
“They will be.” Forester assured him.
“Hollister’s a good man,” said Lucas. “he just happens to beon the other side. In a way, I feel sorry for him. I trust the rest of themission went all right?”
“The mission was totally successful,” Forester replied.
“Capt. Travers tells me that there weren’t any problems withCleopatra’s reinsertion. Or with Caesar and Calpurnia. With the bodyguard outof the way, the conspirators were able to move against him and he died onschedule, in the Senate. Congratulations. You did a hell of a job.”
“Thanks,” said Lucas. He glanced at Travers. “How does itfeel to be back?”
“A little strange,” Travers replied. “It’s going to takesome getting used to, but I’ll have plenty of time. I’ve already started workingon my book. You’ve given me one hell of a final chapter. I’m going to dedicateit to Col. Steiger’s memory. and the other men who fell in battle.”
Lucas stared at him, stunned.
“Oh. hell,” Travers said with a stricken look. “You didn’tknow?”
Silence. After a moment, it was broken by Delaney.
“Creed didn’t make it, Lucas,” he said softly. “he caught itduring the assault.”
“Oh, shit,” said Lucas.
“Nobody saw it happen,” Andre said, “but we know who did it.Creed took out his own killer. It was a man named Simmons, a former field agentwho was involved with the Network. It’s possible that he was involved with theUnderground. as well, but if he was, the Underground probably didn’t know abouthis Network connection. They don’t knowingly cooperate with those people.”
“Damn,” said Lucas. “How did it happen?”
“We figure it had to be Marshall.” Delaney said. “He’s theonly one who could have alerted the Network to our presence in Rome. so he musthave been involved. Creed obviously never suspected that. He figured thatMarshall had just deserted to the Underground because he was burned out, but hemust have done it because he was afraid to be exposed. When Creed showed up. hemust have panicked.”
“So it was Network that intervened when the S.O.G. tried toambush us?”
“We think so,” Delaney said. “They couldn’t afford to have atimestream split go down any more than we could. The only one we found wasSimmons. so either the others got away or they pulled out when our reinforcementsarrived.”
“Simmons was a real hard case.” Forrester said. “AfterSteiger formed the I.S.D.. he busted up several Network operations. One of thebiggest ones he exposed was headed up by Simmons, only we never got him.”
“We never found Creed’s body,” Andre said. “but we foundSimmons. He’d been shot through the heart with a laser. ‘there was a disruptoron the floor beside him. The way we reconstruct it. Simmons got onto thegrounds when the assault was in progress. He was wearing Kaufman’s uniform, sohe must have taken it off Kaufman after he was killed, or maybe he killedKaufman himself in the confusion and took his disruptor. Then he waited for theright moment and made his move. They must have both fired at the same time.”
“So Steiger went down fighting,” Lucas said. He sighed “Iguess it’s the way he would have wanted it.”
“He was a good man.” said Forrester. “His name’s going to beadded to the Wall of Honor. At the same time as we take yours off. Officially,you’re back among the living.”
“What about Darkness?” Lucas asked.
“He disappeared again after the assault,” said Delaney. “Wehaven’t seen or heard from him since.”
“If it hadn’t been for him, Hollister would have beaten us,”said Lucas. “One more second and Caesar and his wife would have both been dead.”
“Maybe there was a time in which that happened,” said Delaney.“A scenario in which Hollister had won. If Darkness hadn’t changed your destinyback in Afghanistan, somebody else would’ve been in that room with Caesar. Thatcould have made all the difference. Maybe it would have been me or Andre, ormaybe Steiger. Perhaps his death was the price we had to pay to get historyback on the right track.”
“But is it?” Lucas asked. “What is the right track I wonderif we’ll ever know.”
“All we can ever know about for sure is our own past,” saidForrester. “To Darkness, his past is still our future. And for all we know,there may well be other people from the future in our present, and our past.trying to influence our actions in an attempt to compensate for whateverdisaster lies up ahead. Chances are we may not even live to see it.”
“I remember something a Roman centurion once told me. aboutthree thousand years ago,” said Travers with a smile. “It was on the nightbefore we crossed the Rubicon. when this whole thing started. He said, ‘If itis my fate to die tomorrow. I would prefer not to know of it tonight.’ And thenhe put his hand on his sword hilt and added, ‘I would sooner trust my fate tothis than to the prophecies of oracles and soothsayers.’ He was just a simplesoldier,
