Vickers felt his way along the flat, armored side of a personnel carrier. He halted, looked round and then moved up the length of another. He was starting to sweat. It was hot in the bunker and the air smelled lousy. It stank of oil and metal, industrial cleansers and decaying junk food. It was only since he'd been outside that he noticed how awful it was. He slid past another vehicle and another. So far so good. There was no alarm, no running feet; above all, no shots. He was beside a line of light Pacer tanks. He stopped again. His hands had started to shake and it was only with effort that he pulled his nerves under control. It was like waiting for some huge, cosmic other shoe to drop. Then he sneezed. That was something else that he'd grown too used to. The air was thick with all kinds of behavior modifiers, an accumulation of eighteen months' worth. God only knew how they'd combined and mutated in that time. This alone was sufficient reason for everyone down here to be crazy.
He started along another line of tanks, still going more by touch than by sight. He was continuing this blind man's progress when the light hit him. It was like a physical pain. Now he really was blind. Over his shrieking nerves, the voice of reason told him it was a sungun, probably similar to the one on the helicopter. It hardly seemed to matter. Everything else told him that he had been caught. The booming, amplified voice removed any doubts.
"Stand right where you are, Vickers. We've been waiting for you."
NINE
VICKERS WAS BLINDED. Sick to his stomach, he knew that he'd walked right into a trap. A feral instinct told him to run and keep on running. Reason, though, kept its grip. Run and they'll shoot you in the back for sure. Avoiding looking straight into the sungun, he slowly raised his arms.
"Been waiting for me?"
"For days. We have orders to shoot you on sight."
Although the voice was distorted by the booming amplification, Vickers was pretty sure that he recognized it. Carmen Rainer. She'd have been more than happy to shoot him on sight but presumably she just couldn't resist cat-and-mousing him before she put him out. He knew that he had only one card to play. It was a simple statement.
"I've been outside." Just to make sure there was no doubt: "I've been on the surface."
He held his arms straight out at his side. When your life's on the line, it's no disgrace to look like a crucifixion. There was no answer for almost a minute, then more lights came on and the sungun went out. Vickers tried to blink away the lingering afterimage. The sungun had been mounted on the turret of a light tank. Carmen Rainer was sitting in the turret, leaning on the fire control of the multicannon. She was smoking a cigar. Grouped around the base of the tank were four soldiers, Yabu and Parkwood.
"Lloyd-Ransom told us to ignore your bullshit and just blow you away."
"Perhaps he didn't want you to hear what I had to say." Carmen Rainer flicked away her cigar butt.
"Orders are orders, Vickers."
Vickers knew why the hair-trigger Rainer had been put in charge. She glanced down at Yubu.
"Shoot him."
Yabu had a frag gun pointed at Vickers' stomach. For long seconds he did nothing then, finally, he shook his head.
"No, I want to hear what he has to say."
Parkwood nodded in agreement.
"I definitely want to hear what he has to say."
The soldiers looked confused but also made no move against Vickers. Carmen Rainer began to climb out of the tank turret. As always, she was sleek in black leather. Angrily, she jumped down to the ground.
"We've got our orders."
Yabu shifted position so his frag gun was pointed at Rainer.
"I want to know what he's seen on the outside."
"How do you know he's been outside? He's probably lying."
"Everyone's heard what was supposed to have happened when they tortured Fenton."
"That's only a rumor."
Vickers wanted to know about this.
"What do you mean 'when they tortured Fenton'?"
It was Parkwood who answered.
"When you came up missing Lloyd-Ransom became exceedingly agitated. He ordered a runback through the surveillance tapes and the story goes that you and Fenton were spotted doing something weird on the first level. Fenton was arrested. Carmen here was one of the ones who picked him up. The story goes that he finally confessed that you'd found a way out. He must have been a good friend; he stood up to the worst they could do for close to five hours."
"Did he survive?"
"No."
"Did Cattermole's name come up?"
"Cattermole was executed."
"Damn."
"You caused quite a ripple."
Yabu had had enough of the conversation.
"I want to know what is outside."
Even Carmen Rainer's attention was focused on Vickers. He took a deep breath. This was the difficult part. He remembered how stubbornly he'd resisted the truth. He knew their reaction might be violent but he pressed ahead.
"There never was a third world war."
Rainer closed her eyes and shook her head.
"No, no, he's lying for sure now. Shoot him like we were told to."
Oddly, she made no move to shoot him herself. Even Parkwood looked as though he didn't believe a word that Vickers was saying.
"What are you talking about?"
"I swear to God. Almost immediately after I got outside I was picked up by an army patrol. There's a whole base out there. They've been watching the place since the bunker was sealed."
Yabu's frown was like something out of an ancient Japanese print.
"There was no nuclear war?"
"It came close, but at the last moment the Russians were able to put the brakes on and ask for help. As far as anyone could figure it, Lloyd-Ranson jumped the gun and sealed the bunker early."
"Are you saying that he's been keeping up some kind of charade for eighteen months?"
"He'd made himself king of the hill. He'd decided that he was the saviour of mankind. He couldn't face the fact that mankind had managed to get by without him."
Parkwood's expression was both bleak and grave.
"That would be extremely psychotic behavior."
Vickers lowered his arms.
"Well?"
Carmen Rainer jerked.
"I don't have to listen to this garbage."
There was a chrome automag in her hand. She swung it straight-armed at Vickers. At the same time, Parkwood's weapon went off. He was also armed with a frag gun. Close up, it made a hideous mess. Blood, tissue and fragments of black leather were spattered all over the side of the nearest tank. There was little left of Carmen Rainer from the chest up. Vickers twisted his body and swung the Yasha round into his hand. At the same time, everyone else dropped into a crouch, weapons thrust forward and eyes darting to determine who was on whose side and who was going to shoot at who. By a complete miracle, nobody opened fire and continued the slaughter to a disastrous conclusion. Vickers slightly lowered his machine pistol and straightened up. Parkwood let the still smoking frag gun hang by his side.
"I didn't think she was acting quite rationally either."