‘The blueprint on the Axe Historique is clear: Two pyramidal stones are required on each end of the axis.’ Undaunted, Cædmon put his left hand on her shoulder and said, ‘Kate, would you do the honours and sketch the correct design for Doctor Uhlemann?’ His face drained of colour, Cædmon drew her attention to the small puddle of blood on the floor next to his chair, his right jacket sleeve stained a deep burgundy. ‘Afraid that I’m not up to the task.’
Biting back a commiserating whimper, Kate got up from her chair and walked over to the chalkboard.
As she limned the geometric configuration, she had to stop several times and take a stabilizing breath. It was a desperate gamble, trying to persuade a mad scientist to adopt the sane course of action. But what else could they do? They had no guns. No reinforcements. And no contingency plan should they fail. They had to prove that the generator was imperfectly configured. There was no other way to stop Ivo Uhlemann from changing the course of history.
In truth, she didn’t know if the generator design was actually flawed. They just had to convince Dr Uhlemann of that fact. Worried she might not be persuasive enough, she would leave it to Cædmon to explain the drawing.
Craning her neck, Kate peered at the clock. Seven minutes. And counting.
Finished, she placed the piece of white chalk on the metal ledge beneath the board. Please, please, please! she silently begged of any god who would listen, Make this work.
‘Two pyramidal stones placed in this configuration form an octahedron, a Platonic solid comprised of eight equilateral triangles, four of which meet at each vertex,’ Cædmon iterated, getting right to the gist. ‘An octahedron would allow for each quartz crystal terminator point to transmit directly into the apex of a pyramidal stone. Point to point. It’s counter-intuitive. Your design is clearly defective. What you have here –’ raising his left arm, Cædmon pointed to the Grail on the other side of the glass partition – ‘is half of an octahedron.’
‘Which makes it half-ass in my book,’ Finn sneered, having been noticeably quiet.
‘The Vril Generator must be reconfigured,’ Cædmon insisted doggedly. ‘This is a flawed design that could have catastrophic consequences. My guess is a massive explosion due to the energy build-up.’
Clearly unmoved by Cædmon’s argument, Dr Uhlemann tersely shook his head. ‘The only way to determine if the Vril Generator works is to proceed with the experiment.’
‘In addition to white marble, the Grande Arche building was constructed with vast quantities of granite rock. Granite, as you undoubtedly know, is a transmission stone. It’s also slightly radioactive. Moreover, the Axe Historique is built over limestone bedrock which creates a natural water aquifer.’
Realizing where Cædmon was headed, Kate said, ‘And when water moves through limestone, it produces an electric charge.’
‘The Earth’s electromagnetic field is most powerful just before dawn,’ Cædmon stated, elaborating on her point. ‘Since the Axe Historique has never been used to fuse astral and telluric energies to create the Vril force, you could well be playing with a fire that you won’t be able to control. This is a technology that has not been used since the days of the pharaohs. Have you considered the possibility that there might be a deadly reason why?’
‘Your question lacks merit and has no bearing on das Groß Versuch,’ Dr Uhlemann bristled.
Kate clasped her hands to her chest. ‘I implore you, Doctor Uhlemann. Any other scientist would cancel the experiment rather than court disaster.’
‘I will not postpone das Groß Versuch.’
‘Even if you destroy half of Paris in the process?’
Dr Uhlemann shot Cædmon a withering glance. ‘The only thing that we intend to destroy are the dark forces of German history.’
‘And here all along I thought you guys were the dark force of German history,’ Finn deadpanned. ‘I get all of you goose-stepping rat bastards mixed up.’
The older German blanched at the crude insult.
Snarling, Angelika shoved her gun muzzle against Finn’s temple. ‘I would be happy to show you the difference.’
‘Do you mind if I take a rain check? The show’s about to begin and I’m really looking forward to seeing what all the hoopla’s about. There’s only a few things in this world that make me go ga-ga.’ Point made, Finn purposefully looked over at Kate. And smiled wistfully.
Oh, Finn … You brash, beautiful man.
Feeling the sting of tears, Kate glanced anxiously at the clock. Six minutes until the heliacal rising of Sirius. If the Vril Generator didn’t work, something disastrous could happen. But, on the other hand, if it did work, they could all end up living in a fascist regime ruled by an ego-maniacal mad man. Both prospects incited a dread fear.
‘You’re dealing with cosmic forces that no one fully comprehends,’ Cædmon asserted. ‘There’s a very real possibility that a catastrophic event will occur.’
Expressionless, Ivo Uhlemann shrugged. ‘According to my oncologist, I’m not long for this world. Death, like the speed of light, is one of the few unchanging constants in the Universe. That said, we constructed the Vril Generator according to the instructions in the Ghayat al-Hakim. It will work.’
‘While I haven’t read the Arabic original, I have read Picatrix, the Latin translation,’ Cædmon counterpunched, refusing to surrender the field. ‘It’s a magical grimoire composed in metaphoric and symbolic language that can easily be misinterpreted. In my experience, when one dives into the occult, the waters turn very murky very quickly.’
‘I am a scientist, not an occultist!’
‘Anyone familiar with the history of the Nazi movement knows that the occult strain ran deep in its ranks. I find it hard to believe that you would stray far from those beliefs.’
‘How dare you!’ Dr Uhlemann physically recoiled, as though he’d just been splashed with acid. ‘The occultists are no different to those addicted to the crutch of organized religion. They should all be led to the nearest funeral pyre.’
‘As I recall, your Führer once claimed that “A new age of magic interpretation of the world is coming”.’
‘Pure poppycock!’ Dr Uhlemann exclaimed angrily. ‘They ruined our perfect society. The one that we worked so hard to achieve. For them, everything had a mystical implication. Even the initials SS had a magical meaning.’
‘The word “Schutzstaffel” means special staff.’ Cædmon’s brows drew together in a questioning pucker. ‘What in God’s name is magical about that?’
‘Absolutely nothing. However, those two initials also stand for “schwarz sonne ”.’
‘Ah! Of course. The Black Sun,’ Cædmon translated. ‘Also known as Sirius. Which, coincidentally, is due to rise at any moment.’
The irony of the addendum was lost on Dr Uhlemann.
‘They worshipped their Black Sun like a coven of superstitious pagans. There were officers in the SS who thought they could win the war with Ouija boards and Runic magic. Outright quackery is what it was. How educated men could fall victim to such outlandish delusions is truly astonishing.’
‘Not so astonishing given that many in the Nazi high command dabbled in the dark arts.’ With only four minutes left, Cædmon was still grounded, still steady at the helm.
‘They did more than dabble. They were brainwashed devotees, Hitler their prophet and Himmler their high priest,’ Dr Uhlemann said accusingly. ‘In the end, their minds had become unhinged, corrupted by occult lunacies. Is there any wonder that we lost the war?’