"Why are you telling me this?" Sullivan asked.
"Because you impress me. Because there are very few people that I can discuss such things with who would understand, and these things I tell you will give you no advantage in your struggle against me." The Chairman stopped beside him. Today he was dressed in an elaborate military uniform, resplendent with braids and medals and gold. The only thing that was not flashy was the well-used sword at his side. It was remarkably utilitarian. The Chairman saw Sullivan taking in the flash. "I was at a parade," he explained. "As I was saying, it fled its old world, as it fled the one before that. You are correct, Mr. Sullivan. It feeds on us. It needs us, and we need it. We increase it, but as we grow dependent upon it, we must also defend it from the thing that preys upon it and has pursued it across the stars."
"What's it running from?"
The Chairman's expression seemed sincere. "When the Enemy comes, you will know. The Power wants me to cleanse this world of weakness. Only the strong will be able to defeat the Enemy. If the world is not ready to stand before the Enemy, the Power will flee, and the Enemy will consume us all in its hunger, then the cycle will begin anew."
He was in no mood for the Chairman's bogus religion. "Sounds like a load of bunk… Why didn't the healing spell work?"
"This, I will not tell you. You have chosen to stand in my way. It would be folly for me to help you become stronger." Sullivan turned back to the Power. The mystery of his failure taunted him. The Chairman cleared his throat. "I will tell you this. When one is so very close to death, they have to want to come back. Perhaps your lady believed she would be happier in the next place."
He nodded slightly. Every moment of Delilah's life had been an uphill fight. From her drunken, abusive father; to her miserable poor upbringing; to a life on the streets; to petty crime, abandoned by everyone she'd ever loved… She'd had to fight for ever scrap that had fallen from life's table. Maybe he was right. Maybe she'd gotten to the end and saw something on the other side that was better… She'd sure earned it. "Thank you, Chairman."
The leader of the Imperium gave a slight bow. "You are welcome, Mr. Sullivan."
He spat on the ground. "But I'm still gonna kill you. I swear to God Almighty, I will. I'll kill you and every fool that follows you, including my own brother, for Delilah and every other decent person you've ever hurt."
"I would expect no less. I look forward to our meeting."
Sullivan awoke in the tiny sea cave. There was an excited commotion from the other side as a brilliant light scalded his eyes. Faye had returned somehow. His body ached from the damp, but his injuries were mostly healed. His head was clear for the first time. If he could not live for the future, he could live for revenge. He knew exactly what he had to do. If he lived long, there would be time for grief in the future, but now he had duty. He found Delilah's face in the dark and kissed her gently on the cheek. "Goodbye, girl. I'm sorry I let you down."
Francis almost had a heart attack as yellow light filled the cave. At first he thought that it was the Peace Ray firing again, but as he lowered his shaking hands, the light resolved into the single circle of an electric torch.
"I did it!" Faye shouted. "I made it, Mr. Rawls! Good job… Yes, I know I don't need to shout!" she said, still yelling
"What the hell?" Lance asked. "How'd you get down here?"
Faye put the torch down and went to John Browning's still form. "No time to explain." She grabbed Browning's hand and they both disappeared.
"So… I guess that means she made it?" Francis rasped. He was dying of thirst, and wished that Faye had dropped off some fresh water with that lamp. "I thought this was out of her range?"
"She just keeps getting better faster," Lance said proudly. "That girl's got scary lots of Power. Best Traveler I've ever seen, and getting stronger everyd-"
The Traveler reappeared and Francis flinched, having never realized that her grey eyes actually reflected light in the dark like a cat. "I'll explain in a minute. I met the nicest old Grimnoir! He's a Reader, and he's putting the picture of up there right in my head!" She latched onto Garrett's leg and took him next.
"What happens if she runs out of Power while jumping back and forth?" Francis asked nervously. "She doesn't seem to be slowing down any…"
"I don't know. You probably don't want to go last though." Then Faye appeared, put her hand on Lance's head, and they were both gone.
Francis felt the cold tug of fear in his gut. He didn't like the idea of magically zipping through a whole bunch of rock, especially in the hands of somebody who was so carefree, no… reckless and-He actually screamed as Faye landed beside him and the next thing he knew, he flopped harmlessly into a pile of ash.
Faye grinned at him. She was covered in soot from head to toe. Her wild hair was a mess of tangles and blackened sticks. She was completely in her element. This was no longer the scared little girl that they'd found such a short time ago. This was one shockingly gifted Active. "You can thank me later!" she said as she vanished.
Francis stood shakily. He still felt nauseous from swallowing and vomiting all that seawater. Everything around him was blasted and black. It took him a moment to realize that the ashen lump nearby was all that was left of the mansion he had grown up in. The sky was dark with smoke, and the afternoon sun was angry and red overhead. If he hadn't been already so emotionally drained, he might have started crying.
In the light, he could finally see how bad his companions looked. Browning was pale as death, nearly blue even. He had been placed onto a stretcher by a few men in long yellow slickers and they were putting him into the back of a truck. Garrett didn't look much better. Madi's bullet had passed through his left arm, leaving a hole that you could put a finger through. He'd become feverish and incoherent over the last few hours. Lance was covered in black and yellow bruises and his beard was matted with blood.
Faye reappeared, this time with Delilah's body. Francis had to avert his eyes. "Sorry, Mr. Sullivan said that she came up before he did. I'll be right back." Lance limped forward and draped a wool blanket over the corpse as Faye left.
There were several dirigibles in the air. A flight of biplanes tore past. Dozens of cars and even a few tractors were on the nearby hills. Cameras were snapping and film reels rolling as newsmen recorded the destruction. His home had been isolated, but there had been a lot of other nice houses in the area, and a small town on the other side of the forest now looked like a box of spilled matchsticks. The village was flattened except for a handful of broken buildings. The only things moving were the searchers.
A man in a cowboy hat approached and offered him a canteen of water. Francis sucked it down greedily. Cold water spilled down his neck. "How long were we down there?" He gasped when he was done.
"A day and a half," the man said. "We've been combing this place the whole time. We've got a couple thousand volunteers and the Army tearing it apart, but y'all are the first survivors we've found here in the black circle." His eyes were bloodshot. "Everybody else for miles is dead. Then at the line, it just quit killing. We've got hundreds of people with burns and injuries outside the circle, but not a single one killed."
Francis had no idea how many people had lived in the area. The very thought sickened him. Sullivan and Faye appeared. The volunteers didn't so much as flinch from the display of magic. They'd seen too much already. Sullivan had his Browning Automatic Rifle over one shoulder and was still wearing the canvas vest filled with magazines. The haunted look in his eyes frightened Francis.
An older black man took Francis by the arm and led him to the back of the truck. His voice was low so the volunteers wouldn't overhear. "Come on. We need to get you knights out of here."