“The Tokugawa family is reclaiming this blade, Doctor.” Toru ripped a strip of silk from a robe in Carr’s display and used that to quickly tie both ends of the scabbard so he could throw it over his shoulder. Carr cringed at the defacement of one of his artifacts. “Attempt to stop me and I will spill your bowels with it.”
Sullivan shoved Carr toward the exit. “Walk.”
“Do you intend to kill me?”
“If you don’t tell me where you took Francis, you’re gonna wish I had.”
“I can cut off his feet,” Toru offered. “I have found that makes men talkative… briefly.”
Carr’s lip quivered beneath his gigantic mustache, but he didn’t speak.
As they hurried toward the outside, a trembling could be felt through the floor. This bunker had been meant for the command staff of the old Peace Ray project, so it had been built solid, but the whole place was shaking like it was about to fall down. Heinrich had talked about some sort of hole, but Sullivan really didn’t know if that could be causing an earthquake. He got his answer when they made it out into the courtyard.
The main building was gone. In its place was the top half of an expanding ball of black. It cast off an eerie light that seemed to make light colors glow. It was forty feet tall and lightning played back and forth across its curved surface. Wind howled past them as it was gobbled up. On one side, the darkness reached the outer wall of the bunker and the bricks immediately began to dissolve into it, while on the other it reached one of the ruined trucks. The front end lifted into the air as the rear dropped into space. Within seconds it had consumed the entire truck.
“Is this your doing?” Sullivan grabbed Carr by the jacket and shook him hard.
“I don’t know what that is!” the Coordinator gaped at the blackness. “All my work… All of my research was in there. It’s all been ruined.”
More like all of the evidence of your wrongdoing’s been erased. They especially had to keep Carr alive now. Without physical evidence to turn over to J. Edgar Hoover, they were still in hot water, probably more so now since they’d just attacked a government facility and killed a mess of government employees.
“I believe Francis may have been responsible for this one,” Heinrich said.
The dome of death had expanded another few feet while they were standing there gawking at it. It was time to go Sullivan said. “Me and that boy are gonna have a talk.”
They ran for it. Carr walked with a bad limp, so Sullivan used his Power to make the Coordinator lighter and dragged him along. He didn’t want to help the man. He wanted to toss him into the black hole, but he needed the fool’s testimony.
Faye popped into existence ahead of them. “Mr. Sullivan! Over here!”
They reached the gap in the wall. “Is everybody else out?” he shouted to be heard over the wind.
“Yes. We’ve already filled up one boat and sent it toward Mr. Browning,” Faye responded. “Oh, Heinrich! I’m so glad to see you! Where’s Francis?”
“We don’t know, but he does.” Sullivan pushed Carr to the ground. “You know about me, Coordinator, so I’m assuming you know about Traveling Faye here, and no, the rumors haven’t been exaggerated.”
Carr’s eyes grew large. Apparently he had heard about her exploits. It was sad when a teenage girl had more intimidation power than an ex-con Heavy or an Iron Guard.
“What do you mean, he knows where Francis is?” Faye stepped toward Carr, grey eyes gleaming. She reached behind her and pulled out a Bowie knife. “What did you do with my boyfriend?”
He couldn’t have planned it better if they’d rehearsed it, only Faye certainly wasn’t acting. She was about the single nicest human being he’d ever met, but she’d kill anybody she considered a bad man faster than a farmwife would wring the neck of a chicken. With Faye, once you crossed a certain line, your life was worth nothing.
“Talk, Coordinator, or I leave you with her.” It was a bluff, but Carr had no way of knowing Sullivan’s deal with Hoover.
Faye reached down and grabbed Carr’s tie. “Let’s toss him in the big sucking thing. I want to see what happens when you put a person in it.”
“It is rather unnerving,” Heinrich stated.
“Fine! I’ll talk. Just give me your word you won’t hurt me.”
Sullivan looked back toward the dome. They’d better hurry. “We won’t kill you.” But I sure hope you enjoy prison.
“Stuyvesant was taken across the river in a boat. There is a truck bomb there. It is to be detonated in the marchers’ camp.”
“The antimagic march?” Sullivan asked, shocked at the barbarity. “Those are your allies.”
“Useful idiots.” Carr ground his teeth together. “Their deaths will be the final catalyst for ensuring that magic is properly controlled in this nation forever.”
Faye shrieked. “That’s it! He goes in the sucking thing!” Sullivan reached and blocked her with one hand.
She was the only one that could get there in time. “Get Francis,” Sullivan ordered. “Stop the bomb.”
The Traveler pointed at Carr. “I ain’t done with you!” Then she disappeared.
“Stop staring at me. If those marchers knew what their deaths will cause they’d be glad to make the sacrifice. I’m doing you people a favor. Your way, magical freedom ”-Carr practically sneered the word-“leads only to chaos and anarchy. My way leads to order and prosperity for all. Every man has a place in the order of things. Actives subvert that natural order.” Sullivan was too disgusted to respond. He dragged Carr to his feet and set out for the boat. “You have gifts and it is selfish for you to do only what you want with them. You people must be utilized properly. Actives must be given order, they must be controlled. You must be used where you are most valuable to the collective.”
“Specialization is for insects.”
“Exactly! The anthill can only have one queen. The drones and the warriors must know their place! To allow people with such uncontrollable Power absolute freedom is to invite disaster for us all.”
Sullivan swore to himself that if Hoover couldn’t get this man convicted, then he’d personally see to it that Carr didn’t live a day past the trial, and if he got a short sentence, he’d be there waiting the day the warden let Carr out the gate. “Shut up or I’ll break your fucking face.”
But Carr was too antagonistic and proud of his philosophical bullshit to close his stupid yap. “Your man in Oklahoma, Bolander, through his actions, he’s set the stage to become a folk hero to the common people. As news of those events spread, they threatened to counter the effects of the assassination attempt in Florida. The spectacular nature of his death is what forced me to raise the stakes. If Actives could be capable of such heroics, then I also had to display the depths of their depravity. Do not blame me for this bombing. You brought this on yourselves.”
They started down the trail. “Save your bullshit for the judge.”
“Judge?” Carr shouted. “You still don’t grasp the enormity of the situation. This is bigger than any judge, bigger than any simple laws. Are you such a fool that you think this stops with me? This is about more than just one man’s vision, Mr. Sullivan. I answer to a higher authority. This is far bigger! Do you really think something as capable as the OCI can operate without sufficient clearance and oversight? I am not alone! Your kind will be controlled!”
Sullivan slugged the old man in the mouth. He pulled his punch to keep from breaking anything, but it was still intensely satisfying. Carr collapsed into the mud. Sullivan yanked him right back up. “Warned you.” Carr was dazed, but Sullivan dragged his bulk along like he weighed nothing.
Since they were running away from the vortex, they were running into the wind, and it was getting worse. The blackness was gaining on them. The bigger it got, the faster it seemed to grow. Sullivan glanced back and noticed that the anomaly had doubled in height since he’d first seen it. It had to be visible on both sides of the river now. How big was this damn thing going to get?