Leviathan(130)

With face upraised and fists at his sides, Frank's flight reached the speed of light as he burst through the scarlet surface into a bright, blazing, amazing world of white.

***

Connor laid Thor upon the ground and paused, exhausted.

It had been brutally difficult to drag the giant's body into an adjoining room of the Matrix. But, logically or not, Connor had been unwilling to leave his friend in the room with the beast. Not even in death, he decided, would it have any victory.

Thor lay silently on the cold stone floor and Connor gazed down, struck by the sight. He shook his head, still lost in shock, and rose to walk back to where the creature lay.

Leviathan lay limply, sprawled in a smoking pool of blood, poisonous fumes rising through the faint light. Connor frowned over it, stepping carefully over a foreleg to retrieve what he sought. Then he bent, lifting the gigantic battle-ax from the ground.

He gripped the weapon in a tight fist, shocked by the enormous weight. With both hands he lifted the battle-axe before his face, studying the sweeping crescent blades. The edges were black with blood, still smoking and even ... glowing ... so strangely.

Connor squinted, uncertain of what he could truly see or even understand in the gloom. He had been awake for a long time now. Too long, he knew. His eyes were failing him. He didn't trust his judgment anymore. So he cast the sensation aside and lowered the heavy ax to his side, standing solidly over the wide black pool.

Reflected flames danced in the depths.

Strangely, Connor felt himself recovering from shock as he gazed over Leviathan. Even dead, the Dragon was titanic and horrific beyond all belief. Almost six tons of claw and fang and armor and sinew. And even now, just a few minutes after the horrific battle, Connor could not envision what he had witnessed with his own eyes. But he knew it had happened. Butchered black scales and chunks of armored flesh scattered across a demolished cavern were testimony to the terrible truth.

Too numb to feel anything at all, Connor stood over the Dragon, muttering a hate-filled and merciless curse. Without expression he walked away to again enter the adjoining room where he had laid Thor.

Battle-ax in hand, Connor poised in solemn silence.

Somehow, he felt, he should say something. But words had never meant anything to him, and they didn't now. All that mattered was what had happened between the two of them in life. And yet for some reason, not even understanding it himself, Connor knelt to lay the battle-ax across Thor's breast. Then he lifted the great, wounded hands to fold them over the ax.

Unexpectedly moved by the closeness, Connor paused to find himself gripping one of the massive hands he had crossed over the wide, muscular chest and battle-ax.

Clutching tightly for a moment, Connor bowed his head. Then he closed his eyes and clenched his teeth against the pain before he stood, strong and angry, to his feet.

A tear fell as he stared down.

It struck the ground as he turned away.

* * *





Chapter 35



Beth shouted as Frank's body suddenly convulsed. Instantly she had leaped from the control panel to run forward, gaining the steps of the Cyberspace Module in seconds.

With frantic strength she jerked the helmet from Frank's head to free his mind from Cyberspace control. She tore the connecting wires from the suit, not knowing which were most important and not taking time to figure it out. She tore them all.

Frank fell forward, groaning. Blindly his hand rose, trying to unfasten the Cyber suit, and Beth reached around, unzipping the suit, trying to awaken the scientist.

“Frank!” she shouted, grabbing his neck. “Frank! Wake up!”

The scientist blinked, grimacing, as his face went black. He shook his head, gasping, and seemed to recover a dim measure of consciousness, opening his eyes to stare across the cavern. With a dazed look he turned to her.

“The fail-safe ...” he whispered.

“You did it, Frank! You did it!”

Frank blinked and his head dropped heavily forward. Beth caught him as he fell from the Cyberspace Module, lowering him in her strong arms to the floor where he collapsed onto his back, breathing raggedly.

“Are you all right?” she asked, staring down.

The scientist coughed and dragged a breath. Then after a long pause he turned his face to gaze upward into her eyes and Beth saw the image of a man remembering a terrible, scarring pain.

“Are you all right, Frank?”

She waited for an answer, but he said nothing.

Closed his eyes again.

* * *



Gasping, Barley staggered into the Computer Cavern, holding Jordan tight in his arms. The lieutenant's fatigues were soaked with sweat, his face a glistening mask.

“Barley!” Beth screamed, running forward to lift Jordan from his arms. And as she did, the big man collapsed to the floor, wasted from the long journey through the cavern.