rope, his counterarguments came back to mind as more weapons were discharged.
Norr heard bullets smack into the wall around her as she discovered how diffi?cult it was to climb one-handed, yelled a warning to Rebo, and threw the lamp up over the top. Then, with both hands free to grab the rope, and the runner pulling from the other side of the wall, the variant was able to “walk” up the vertical surface as a half dozen guards pounded their way across the courtyard.
Then Norr was on the top and poised to cross over, when the musket ball slammed into her back. The sensitive fell into a pool of blackness, felt her spirit exit her body, and knew she was dead.
Rebo screamed “No!” caught his lover as she fell, and half carried, half dragged Norr toward the waiting hearse. The stern-faced nun ran to help. Together, they lifted the sensitive up into wagon bed. Though unsure of where the object had come from, the sister saw the lamp and tossed it to Rebo. Moments later she was up on the driver’s seat with the reins in hand. She issued a shrill whistle, and the hearse jerked into motion.
In the meantime Rebo held a wad of fabric against Norr’s wound as he cradled the sensitive in his arms and whispered into her ear. “Hang on, Lonni, please hang on.” But there was no answer as the wagon rumbled through the streets, and tears streamed down his cheeks. Something had been gained—but the runner was afraid that something much more important had been lost.
There was a hiss, followed by a roar, as jets of hot water mixed with a powerful disinfectant struck Tepho and his attendants from every possible angle. All of them were nude. And, since the administrator never allowed anyone other than his handpicked staff to see him naked, the rest of the expeditionary force, including Shaz and Phan, were scheduled to follow once the technologist was fully dressed and ready to receive them.
Once the cleansing process was complete, Tepho and his attendants padded into the circular room where the star gate was housed. Boxes of food, equipment, and ammo had been stacked against the walls. Dry clothes were waiting for the administrator, as was Logos, who had taken on the appearance of a vest.
Mindful of the fact that the fi?rst group of Tepho’s subordinates would be along shortly, the attendants hurried to towel the administrator down and help him into his clothes. Shaz and Phan arrived shortly thereafter. Neither was the least bit embarrassed by their nudity, although Tepho was staring at Phan, and the assassin wished he wouldn’t. Then, once everyone was dressed, it was time for one last conference. Because, unlike the tiles that represented planets like Seros, Ning, and Thara, the square labeled zeen remained dark and therefore nonoperational. Or so it appeared. But Logos, who claimed to be able to monitor all of the star gates via Socket, had the power to bring it back to life. Or so he claimed. The proof, as with everything else, would be in the doing of it.
The technologist forced a smile. “Okay, then. . . . What are we waiting for? Let’s load the boxes labeled t-1 onto the platform.”
It took the better part of fi?fteen minutes to get the fi?rst load of equipment and people onto the relatively small service platform, but once everything was in place, it was Shaz who reached out to press the tile labeled zeen. The square lit up, just as Logos had predicted it would, and the usual spiel began. The combat variant listened with eyes closed, but the explosion of light was so brilliant that he could see it through his eyelids. Then, as his body was literally ripped apart for the trip through hyperspace, Shaz momentarily ceased to exist. Then, as the operative’s molecules were reassembled, he was conscious once more. He experienced a sense of relief, quickly followed by the nausea that typically accompanied a transfer and exposure to the star gate’s power core.
Judging from the grimy walls and the thick layer of dust that covered the fl?oor, it looked as though the chamber hadn’t been utilized in a long time. Tepho was the fi?rst to speak. “Okay, Shaz, time to earn your pay. . . . Take a com set with you and let me know what you fi?nd. I’ll get things organized here.”
The administrator clearly had no intention of venturing out of the chamber until he knew it was safe to do so, but Shaz didn’t fi?nd that at all surprising, and grinned at Phan.
“Ladies fi?rst.”
Given the fact that they had no idea what might await them beyond the confi?nes of the star gate, both the combat variant and the assassin elected to keep their clothes on as they checked their weapons, approached the door, and cycled through. And that was just as well, because when they stepped out into what should have been the decontamination chamber, most of it was missing. What remained bore a close resemblance to a cave, which judging from the bones lying scattered about, had recently been home to a large carnivore. Filthy tiles covered most of the right-hand wall, plus portions of the fl?oor, but the rest of the facility had been damaged. Roots had pushed their way down through the ceiling, and the left-hand wall had been ruptured, allowing soil to spill out onto the fl? oor.
In addition to a brace of semiautomatic pistols, Shaz had armed himself with a fully automatic assault weapon, which the combat variant held at the ready as he advanced toward the bright oval of daylight visible where the hatch should have been. Phan followed close behind.
Seconds later, they were standing at what had once been ground level, looking down into a broad valley through which a river wound back and forth. A herd of animals could be seen grazing next to a marshy area, skeletal-looking birds circled above, and the shadows cast by clouds caressed the land. “It looks like the ground dropped away,” Shaz observed. “There must have been a quake or something.”
“Yeah,” Phan agreed phlegmatically. “I sure hope Logos knows what he’s doing.”
“Oh, I think he knows what he’s doing,” the combat variant replied cynically. “But for whom?”
No sooner did the hearse rattle through the nunnery’s gates, than a shout was heard, and half a dozen nuns came running. There was a bang as the wagon’s tailgate fell, and Rebo was brushed aside as Norr was literally snatched out of his arms before being rushed inside.
Rebo, still dazed by what had taken place, grabbed the lamp and followed the nuns into what turned out to be a spacious medical clinic. It was the only facility of its kind available to the city’s poor. The operating room was tiled, spotlessly clean, and better equipped than the runner would have expected. Sister Kartha was present, as were two capable-looking assistants. She ordered the runner into a corner while she washed her hands. In the meantime, the other nuns proceeded to strip Norr of both her weapons and clothes prior to turning the sensitive facedown on the operating table. Once that was accomplished, the two women went to work mopping up what looked like an extraordinary amount of blood, and began to prep the area immediately around the blue-edged wound. “So, she’s alive?” Rebo ventured tentatively.
“Yes,” Kartha replied irritably. “She is. No thanks to you. But just barely, and truth be told, I have no idea why. By all rights your wife should be dead.”
“She isn’t my wife,” Rebo said dully, his eyes fi?xed on Norr.
“No?” the abbess inquired caustically as she waved her hands to dry them. “And why is that?”
