The Source - Michael Cordy [122]
Ross levelled the pistol at the man's head. 'Apparently not.'
'But the Superior General saw you die. He said the nymphs took you to the worms.'
'You can't trust everything he says. By the way, where is the Superior General, Gerber? And where's Marco Bazin and the other soldiers?'
Gerber spat at him. 'You're all going to die.'
Zeb kicked him hard in the genitals. He doubled up and she cocked her leg ready to kick him again. He pointed to the tunnel.
'They're up there?'
A nod.
'All of them?'
Another nod.
Ross saw the nymphs closing in. There were more than before. Many more. His friend with the red flowers was in the vanguard. 'Can you defuse the incendiaries in the garden, Nigel?'
'If you tell me how.'
Ross took a yellow parcel from Gerber's backpack and pointed at two pegs sticking out of it. 'Just remove these detonators. It takes an incredibly high temperature to activate this mixture and without the detonators the stuff 's pretty inert. But you'll need to remove them from every parcel in each stack. Only one needs to go off to generate the necessary heat to ignite the others.'
'I'll come with you,' said Zeb.
The nymphs were pressing closer and Ross felt something touch his arm. The nymph with the red flowers pulled at him and pointed away. Nymphs were shepherding the others away too. When he and Hackett grabbed Gerber the nymphs reacted angrily, exposing their razor-sharp teeth – the same powerful teeth Ross had seen chewing through crystal rock.
'I think they want us to leave him to their tender mercies,' said Zeb, as two nymphs pushed her and Sister Chantal away.
'We can't do that,' said Ross.
'I don't think we've got much choice, unless you want to start firing at them,' said Hackett. 'And considering they saved your life I wouldn't recommend it.' The nymphs reached for the terrified soldier and began to drag him away.
'Help me!' Gerber begged. 'I was only doing what the Superior General told me to.'
'Just obeying orders, eh?' said Hackett, gathering up Gerber's backpack and the flame-thrower. 'Where have I heard that before?'
Ross held on for a moment longer but the red-flower nymph and others kept pushing him until he had to release his grip. He weighed the pistol in his hand but knew he wouldn't use it against them. For a long while, he stared into the dark, listening to Gerber's screams echoing in the tunnels.
Hackett was the first to speak. His face was pale. 'Ross, what are you going to do while Zeb and I defuse the incendiaries?'
Ross pointed back to where they had come from. 'I'm going to stop the Superior General carving up the Source.'
'I'll come with you,' said Sister Chantal.
Ross was about to protest until he saw the look in her eyes. She had as great a stake in this as he did – if not greater. 'You sure?'
'I'm sure.'
As they wished each other good luck and prepared to go their separate ways, Zeb gripped Ross's hand and kissed his cheek. 'Lauren would be proud of you,' she said.
'I hope so,' he said.
As Hackett and Zeb set off for the garden, Ross and Sister Chantal retraced their steps into the dark recesses of the antechamber, grateful that Gerber's screams had finally stopped.
74
Torino was convinced he was about to touch the face of God. As he stood in the crystal chamber and reached for the Source his hands trembled. The fizzing static round the monolith was so strong that the air had acquired a palpable texture. He pushed harder and encountered more resistance until, six inches from its surface, his fingers seemed to meet an invisible barrier. The harder he pushed, the stronger the resistance. When he pulled his hand back and thrust it at the rock, it was deflected with such force that the air seemed to ripple outwards. The hydra shook and the ground trembled.
He studied the falling water. It made direct contact with the Source so why couldn't he? It was as if his body shared the same polarity