Masters of the Arches

"I will help you to destroy Brumelle, but the two women must accompany me on this mission."

"Very well, but first you will you show me the exact location of the arch from where you entered this world before I allow you to leave with the women."

"Yes, I will tell you its exact position. Then as soon as my mission of destroying Brumelle is finished I will bring your men to the arch's location. It is well hidden and this will save you much time."

"Yes, you will lead my men there when Brumelle is destroyed; but first you will show me its location on a map before leaving."

Vincent was prepared for this. Without warning, a large map suddenly appeared in the middle of the room, it seemed to hang in front of him in mid-air. He studied it for half a minute then his finger indicated a spot on the map that was really hundreds of miles away from the actual location.

He knew that Valdo had no way to check quickly whether or not he was telling the truth. Still, he didn't want to show Valdo a spot on the map that was too far from where the arch really was, just in case some of Valdo's spies had noticed his presence in that general area of the planet and had already reported this to him.

Valdo seemed satisfied with this information and he then went on to explain to Vincent what he was expected to do to destroy Brumelle.

Vincent, his women, and Valdo's men were to be transported by means of an arch - situated inside the complex - that would take them to a position about five days march from the mountain where Brumelle was located. Once there, Vincent was to try to enter the mountain the same way he had left it - on the pretext that he wanted to report to Brumelle.

Then, as soon as he was inside the complex, he was to place the neutron device as near as possible to the matrix that held Brumelle's personality and leave before the detonation. Since the device was small he wouldn't have to move too far away from it. As long as he was not inside the complex, he was told, it would be safe for him.

An idea suddenly occurred to Vincent. Would it be possible for him to convince Valdo to give him two of these devices, one of them being much more powerful? His reasoning would be that if he couldn't get close enough to the matrix then the stronger bomb could be placed somewhere outside the complex and still be effective. In the back of his mind he had another plan for that second bomb.

Much to Vincent's surprise, Valdo agreed. Furthermore Valdo said that this second device should be a small fission bomb that could be placed near the mountain where Brumelle was and still do the job of eliminating her if Vincent found it impossible to enter the core of the mountain. This of course would only work if this second bomb were placed very close to the mountain entrance itself.

In this mission, Vincent was to be accompanied by four of Valdo's men to carry the two bombs as well as to make sure, after the bombs had gone off, that Brumelle was destroyed. Valdo then suggested that Vincent and the women rest for a few days since it was going to take that long to prepare the electromagnetic pulse bomb as well as the small fission one. While he was alone with his women, Vincent explained his plan to them. Before leaving he would hide the fission bomb somewhere in Valdo's underground complex and set the timer so that it would go off once they were gone.

"Are you sure that this thing will be strong enough to destroy Valdo?" asked Nika.

"I am sure it will do the job. Furthermore, since this place is far under the Cold Sea, what the bomb does not destroy will be drowned under tons of rushing salt water from above this complex. I have no doubt about this."

"But how will you go about hiding the bomb without anyone seeing you? Worse still, will the men that are supposed to carry the two bombs not notice that it is no longer in the bundle that they are carrying?"

"Well I will have to find a good place to hide it before we leave. That is something I will have to think about. As for the men carrying it noticing, I will simply place something of equivalent weight into the bundle that is supposed to contain the fission bomb. They won't notice the difference as long as they don't check inside."

But Verla was still not satisfied with this explanation. "Suppose everything goes as planned and Valdo's complex as well as Valdo himself is destroyed - we will still have to deal with Brumelle."

"We will worry about that part when we get near Brumelle. One thing is certain; we must get inside her shelter and destroy her. When he's gone, Valdo will no longer be able to prevent her from expanding and taking control of the whole planet and probably more."

After a length of time which Vincent figured was about two days, they were fetched by two of Valdo's men. They were taken many levels deeper into the complex. Then, after walking along a long corridor with a multitude of doors on each side, they entered a huge laboratory. Half a dozen workers could be seen here and there doing odd jobs. Once they had walked half way into the large room they were shown two baskets made of strong knitted twigs resting on the floor between two rows of tables.

One basket was much larger than the other. The larger basket was about two feet high, two and a half feet long and of the same width. The other one was barely a foot cube. Both looked just like ordinary baskets that the women of many of the tribes on this world made to carry fruits and roots. The tables and floor around them were littered with all kinds of tools and equipment. Barely two feet from the two baskets sat a pile of thin lead plates and other materials that must have been used in the construction of the bombs.

All of a sudden Valdo appeared behind them. Even though he looked flesh-solid, Vincent could detect a fuzz-like aura around him. As soon as Valdo materialized out of thin air, the guards bent their heads either in fear or out of respect for their master. Which of these it was, Vincent couldn't tell. One thing was certain; Valdo had complete control over these men.

Then Valdo ordered one of the men to open the lids of both baskets.

The insides of the baskets looked nothing like the outsides. They were reinforced with a solid frame of some sort. Resting in a nest-like pad in the larger one was an egg-shape object while the smaller basket held a much smaller sphere resting in a similar nest. Vincent knew at once that the large one contained the fission device while the other held the neutron EMP bomb that was to generate the electromagnetic pulse. Both devices had switches and knobs attached to them and these, Vincent realized, were the timers to set the two bombs to detonate.

Valdo explained carefully to Vincent how to arm and set the timer of each bomb. After telling him that they would be leaving the very next day, Valdo suddenly popped out of the air and was gone. The guards then took the trio back to their quarters.

It was quite evident to Vincent that the guards understood nothing about the two devices and he was wondering who had assembled them in the first place. Probably many workers had laboured on them under the close supervision of their master. Even though Valdo looked alive and could think and act on his thoughts, he certainly couldn't manipulate material objects without help. Thus, someone had to act as his hands all the time. Furthermore, both Valdo and Brumelle could not go outside their hiding places even though they each could project their forms within their respective complexes. Even though Valdo hadn't said it, Brumelle had explained that fact to Vincent during his talk with her.

"What will we do now?" asked Verla in English.

"I don't know, but somehow I must go back where the bombs are." Both women asked almost simultaneously, "Why?"

"I have to remove the fission device from the basket and, after setting the timer and arming it, I must hide it somewhere so that no one will notice it. I will set it so that it will go off after we are gone from here."

"But someone might see you and warn Valdo," insisted Nika.

"Well I will have to take a chance on that. As long as no one is near enough to see us take the bomb out of the basket I think I can find a place to hide it in that room. Once that is done I will warn the guards that no one is to open the baskets except me since I am the only one that Valdo trained and trusted to use them. They are terribly afraid of him and they will obey me on this, I know."

Less than an hour later one of the guards brought them food. Vincent told him that they had to be taken back to the laboratory to complete some work on the two devices. At first the guard seemed reluctant but when Vincent told him that Valdo had said that they could return there anytime they wanted to further study the devices he was to use, the guard finally agreed.

Once they were standing next to the two baskets, Vincent told the guard to get two large pelts and leather straps to cover the baskets once he would done with his work. As soon as the guard left, Vincent opened the lid of the basket containing the fission bomb and, with the aid of both women, managed to remove the egg-shaped device from the basket.

Looking around to find a good location to conceal the bomb, he finally settled on a spot below one of the tables. After arming it and setting the timer to go off in two cycles (two of their days) he piled a few of the lead plates around to hide it. Next he placed a dozen or so of the extra plates into the basket to simulate the weight of the missing bomb. As soon as he closed the lid he pretended to be examining the other bomb until the guard arrived with the pelts and straps. After securing the pelts tightly with the leather straps over each basket, he instructed the guard to make sure that no one else was allowed near the baskets.

Vincent and the women slept very little once they were in their quarters. For one thing, Vincent wasn't sure if the guard would make a report to his master about their visit to the laboratory. Also, the fact that an armed nuclear bomb was ticking a few hundred feet under them made him very nervous.

At last, the time for their departure arrived. A guard entered their room holding the little clothing they had when they were taken prisoner on the island. He told the trio that they were to get ready, since Valdo was waiting for them in the laboratory. They didn't know what to expect exactly. They all looked at each other without saying a word as they prepared themselves. Did Valdo know that Vincent had removed one of the bombs from its basket? Were they going to die? They had no way to know, but they did follow the guard to the laboratory.

Four men dressed in loincloths and with pelts on their backs were waiting near the two baskets. Valdo was nowhere to be seen yet, but the fact that the four men were there and dressed for the trip did reassure Vincent.

When Valdo materialized near them, the four men became very respectful once again as they bowed very low to their master.

The two baskets had been fitted with hooks on their sides and on a signal from Valdo the men inserted six-foot length, apparently wooden poles, into the hooks - one pole on each side of each basket. Vincent knew that they were not made of wood because wood of that thickness would break under the weight. These poles were to be the means by which two men were to carry each basket.

At last Valdo turned to Vincent and asked him if he had any further questions about his mission. Of course Vincent had none; he was in too much of a hurry to get away as fast as possible. Glancing at the table next to him, where he hoped the fission bomb was still hidden, Vincent simply shook his head in the negative instead of saying anything.

Vincent and both women were given bags made of pelts containing dried meat and fresh water for the whole group. This supply of food was supposedly enough to last them for the five day trip. The four men carrying the baskets were given spears as well as bows and arrows, but Vincent and the women were not given any weapons at all.

Valdo explained that it wouldn't be wise to let them take modern weapons, as their presence would attract attention and word of this could easily get to Brumelle when they were close to her. The only high tech gadgets that they were permitted to carry with them were two radios - one for the men carrying the bombs and the other for Vincent. Both radios would ensure that Valdo could follow their progress. Vincent was to contact Valdo each evening while one of Valdo's men was to communicate with his master in the morning. The signals, to and from the two radios, were to be relayed by means of the ring of satellites orbiting the planet. Even though the satellites had been placed in orbit a very long time ago, they were still useful to this day.

The conversation ended with Valdo signalling his men to proceed; then he was gone. The two guards led the way while the four men dressed as natives were following behind them - two men per basket. Vincent and the two women brought up the rear of the procession.

They walked to a different section of the complex. After what seemed to Vincent to be the longest walk he had ever had inside a building, they arrived in front of a metal door. One of the two guards waited a few seconds in front of the door; then as the door began to open, Valdo appeared at the very same time.

The slowly swinging door led to a circular room that was relatively small, about twenty feet in diameter. As the door opened wider, Vincent saw an arch at the far end of the room. All at once his heart began to beat in anticipation while his hands became very moist. More than ever he was eager to leave the complex and having the arch in his sight meant to him that their departure was only a few minutes away now.

Valdo didn't enter the room but remained in the open doorway. It seemed to Vincent that the whole scenario of their departure had been rehearsed. First, two of the men with their basket stepped onto the plate of the arch at the same time. A few seconds later, they were no longer there. The next two men with their basket then stepped onto the plate about a minute later. Then, before Vincent and the women reached the plate, Valdo told them to wait.

"Remember that I expect you to succeed in this mission. Don't fail me, my guards will find you if you try to trick me. On the other hand, if you serve me well you will all be rewarded in ways that you can only begin to imagine. Go now."

Half a minute later they found themselves inside a small stone structure. A single light source illuminated the place where they all stood. A naked man was holding a torch, which produced the only light in the room. It appeared that the naked man had been expecting them and he was evidently scared. He treated them all with exaggerated respect. As soon as they were ready to go, he guided the group through a low door out of the room.

As they followed the man with the torch, he led them down steep narrow stone stairs for what seemed to be a very long time. Then all of a sudden, after they had walked along a short, straight corridor, they emerged into the bright sunlight of a wide-open space where many naked people seemed to be waiting for them.

They were standing close to a village, and when Vincent turned to look at the structure from which they had come, he was shocked to see that it was a four-sided stone pyramid of immense size. Furthermore, as he examined the view, it became evident that they were on the flat crest of a high mountain.

The air was cool at this height and judging by the position of the sun it must have been early morning. Either the residents of the village were all sympathetic to Valdo's cause or else - which Vincent considered more probable - they believed Valdo to be a god. In either case they seemed to be on his side since the small group was treated with the greatest respect possible.

They were offered water and fruit. After a short rest, two warriors from the village led the group down the mountain along a well-used path. It took them the rest of the day to get to the foot of the mountain. By then they were in a dark forest with huge trees growing everywhere. The warriors next took them to a trail leading north. After wishing them a safe trip, the escorts started back on their way to the village, leaving the group to continue their mission to Brumelle's mountain.

That evening Vincent did contact Valdo after pointing the small antenna skyward. He reported that everything was going as planned and that they were well on their way to their destination. In the back of his mind Vincent knew that if the fission device hidden in Valdo's complex had not been discovered yet then this would be the last time ever that he would talk with Valdo.

They all slept around a fire that night while one of Valdo's men remained on guard. Early the next morning one of the men came to Vincent and reported that he couldn't reach Valdo on their radio. He asked Vincent if he would try to contact Valdo with the other radio. Vincent's heart almost stopped then. He knew exactly that this implied that Valdo and the complex had been destroyed.

Of course he did try to reach Valdo with his radio to keep up appearances for the guards. His hands were shaking and his heart was beating very fast as he pretended to make contact. At last Vincent relaxed when, after a few minutes, he didn't get any reply on his radio.

"It is probably because we are in this forest. I am sure that this evening if we are out of this place we will be able to contact him."

This seemed to satisfy the man. Even though he didn't understand anything about radio waves or satellites, he did accept Vincent's explanation. This reassured Vincent since it meant that the man and his companions were accepting Vincent's word. Soon they were back on the trail going north again.

Vincent had a decision to make now. All throughout the day, as they silently walked along the trail, he tried to figure what he should do when evening came. Should he tell the men that once again he couldn't contact Valdo, or should he pretend to talk to Valdo and relay orders to the men that supposedly came from Valdo? They would believe that their communicator was not working and they might accept that. But should their leader ask to speak with Valdo using Vincent's radio then Vincent would be in trouble.

Vincent finally decided on the latter choice - to pretend to talk to Valdo. That way he figured it would be a lot easier to control the four men. Should one of the men ask to talk to Valdo he would simply say that their master told him that they were to follow his orders now that their radio was not working.

Fortunately, it worked as Vincent planned. He told the men that Valdo said that he would keep in touch with them through Vincent and that they were to proceed as had been planned.

That second night on the trail, Vincent did something he never thought he would do. Since the four men carrying the baskets with the bombs had given them no trouble whatsoever and since they were now ready to take orders from him - because they believed that these orders were coming from Valdo - Vincent decided to get on more friendly terms with them. For that reason, after he had had a talk with Nika and Verla, he decided to let the two women spend the night with the four men.

If he had been on his world this would be an outrageous thing to do, but the moral values on this planet were not the same at all. These men had been working very hard in the last few days and he needed to reward them somehow if he was to have them follow his orders. Besides that, his two women - considering their ages - had probably had sex, willingly or not sometimes, with hundreds of different men before this day. A few more wouldn't matter much to them.