“Why’d you call him ‘Tungsten’?” I asked.
“Wolfram is German for tungsten,” Gears replied. “C’mon, Vinnie, didn’t you ever wonder why tungsten is W on the periodic table?”
“Then why is potassium K?”
“As fascinating as this is,” Herb said, “we still have to catch Croatoan.”
“Right. Come on, let’s get into the church and out of the cold.” As we headed inside, the Ashgate memory-modification crew arrived. They began working on altering the congregation’s memories and giving local law enforcement reasonable explanations for what had “really” happened. Paramedics had arrived, as well, and were tending to the injured. Soon this whole incident would be forgotten.
Once we were back in the church, I focused some tachyon, intending to look ahead and see where the ex-bowling ball was headed. As I did, agony wracked my body, dropping me to the floor. Stars exploded in my vision, and my head was pounding so hard I might as well have had a bunch of angry men with sledgehammers trying to smash their way out of my skull. Dad had warned me not to try again for a while, and now I saw why. As I panted, Petra helped me up. “Okay, so much for the easy way,” I muttered. “We need to figure out what else Croatoan is after.”
Herb pursed his lips. “Well, he’s picked up a new receptacle for a phylactery, and he’s acquired the ability to portal. He wasn’t able to get to his friends here, but maybe he has others somewhere else? Or maybe he’s looking for an even better receptacle?”
“I think you’re on the right track, Herb, but Hades told me Croatoan would be going after a body, not a new phylactery. Maybe…” Pieces suddenly clicked into place in my mind. “Gears, pull up anything on the cloning technologies the Caulborn have access to. Run me a hypothetical scenario. If we were to take a piece of demon horn and a bit of deific DNA into a sufficiently advanced cloning facility, could we create a body that could hold Croatoan?”
“I don’t need to run that through a simulator, Vinnie,” Gears replied. “After that stuff with the neo gremlins, I did a lot of research on cloning. And the answer to your question is yes.”
“Then I know where Croatoan’s going,” I said. “We have to get to the Hoosac Tunnel.”
Chapter 14
The Hoosac Tunnel is one of those haunted places in Massachusetts you’ll read about on ghost websites. The official story is that back in the mid 1850s, a project was started to connect Massachusetts to New York via railway. In order to make that happen, a tunnel about five miles long had to be blasted through solid rock. It took years to create the tunnel, and by the time it was finished, nearly two hundred lives were lost in the process due to cave-ins, floods, and other hazards involved with displacing who knows how many tons of rock. While I’m sure there are ghosts in the tunnels, some people hint at a hidden chamber deep within the tunnel itself. I’d always thought it was just an urban legend until Inquisitor Xavier had told Megan and me about the cloning facility contained there.
And since Xavier said that Croatoan was involved with whatever the Caulborn agents did there all those years ago, I was betting that he was heading there next.
“But what if you’re wrong?” Herb asked. “What if he still has other ingredients he needs for his new body?”
“It won’t matter how many different kinds of DNA he gets if we shut down the cloning facility first,” I said. “He’ll go there, I’m sure of it. It’s the only thing that makes sense. Even with the power he’s stolen from me, he can’t portal more than a few miles. There aren’t any other cloning facilities in New England that could do what this one is supposed to be able to. Trust me, Herb, this is what he’s after.” At the words “trust me,” Herb’s face screwed up in a grimace. I hurried on, “We’ll get to the tunnel, locate the facility, disable it, and then when Croatoan shows up, we’ll imprison him.”
“Can you portal us there?” Petra asked.
“No,” I said. “I’ve never been there before.”
“What about Jeal?” Gears asked. He glanced around. “Where is she?”
“I sent her back to Cather’s place to grab something for me,” I replied. “I expect her back any second now.”
“I’m looking at a map on my phone,” Herb said, gesturing to his device. “And it says that it’s twenty miles from here to the Hoosac Tunnel. How in the world are we supposed to get there fast enough?”
“Been working on that,” I replied. “Gears, can you give me satellite imagery on the tunnel?”
“Sure, that’s easy enough.”
“And route the image to Herb’s phone?”
“Pfff. Give me something hard, Vinnie. Done.”
Herb’s phone dinged, and a live video feed of a tunnel mouth appeared on its screen. The tunnel’s mouth was a yawning maw of darkness, and the snow around its base was dirty. A set of worn train tracks disappeared into the darkness.
“That’s it?” Herb said with a frown. “Looks like a fun place.”
To my right, Jeal appeared through a shimmering blue portal. “I have done as you asked, Lord Corinthos,” she said as the portal snapped shut behind her. I ignored the flare of pain at the title and accepted the small leather pouch she handed me.
“Perfect timing, Jeal. All right, let me make a portal to the tunnel.” I would’ve liked to let us all rest, to go back to the apartment, grab a shower, just take a breather, but there wasn’t time. It wasn’t just the deadline I had from Hades; if Croatoan fabricated himself a new body, there was no telling what sort of mayhem he’d cause. I concentrated on creating a portal to the tunnel, but the extradimensional energy slipped through my fingers. I tried again, and I couldn’t make the portal form. “Dammit,” I hissed. “I made a ton of portals during the fighting just now.”
“Maybe it’s different because it’s farther away,” Petra said. “And because you’re not really seeing the place as you do if you look, say, over at that rock.”
“I’ve made portals from pictures before, though,” I said, trying again and failing. “But I think you’re right.” My lips pressed into a thin line. Time to come up with Plan B.
“Allow me to try, Lord Corinthos,” Jeal said. Her lizard-like features screwed up in concentration, and a portal formed just in front of me. Through it, I saw the same scene projected on Herb’s phone. My smile vanished as I saw the strain on Jeal’s face. “Everyone through,” I called. “Hurry.” We shot through the portal and Jeal stumbled through, the gate closing behind us. I scooped Jeal up and asked. “Are you all right?”
“Tired,” she said, her eyes drooping. Jeal had only recently acquired the ability to portal, and she’d been using it extensively for the last few hours. It never occurred to me that it would take any kind of a toll on her. I’d assumed it would work like it did for me, a nearly limitless ability, but it seemed I was wrong on that. Jeal gave my arm a pat. “I will rest for a time, go ahead.”
“I’m not leaving you out here defenseless, Jeal.”
A smile barely crossed her lips as she vanished, and I felt her body shift, then a rush of air told me she’d taken wing.
“Okay, fine,” I called out. “But you hole up somewhere safe.”
“I already have,” she called. Her voice was coming from above us, in one of the trees. Likely, she’d nestle down in the branches until she felt strong enough to follow us.
“Gears, how about some light?” I asked.
Ultra bright LEDs popped up from Billy’s shoulders, and the mech led the way into the darkness. “What do you know about this place?” Petra asked.
“Not much,” I admitted. “I know the tunnel goes straight through the mountains, but there’s got to be a passage that leads to the chamber. Gears, does your sonar show anything?”
“Does it ever,” Gears replied. “Vinnie, there is all kinds of messed up stuff under the floor here. Tons and tons of human bones. I
don’t know how many people died down here, but their remains are just under our feet.”
“Herb?” I said, turning to the necromancer.
Herb’s eyes were glowing orange. “There have been many deaths here, but most of the spirits have moved on. There are a handful of ghosts, like you said.”
“Anyone we might be able to employ as a guide?”
“Let me check.” Herb’s orange eyes brightened, and he panned around the tunnel. “Not here,” he said. “But I do sense something… that way.” He pointed down the tunnel.
Gears aimed Billy in that direction. “Yeah,” he said after a moment. “I think there’s a hidden door ahead, Vinnie. Sonar’s showing a narrow passage just behind those rocks.” I moved to the spot they were indicating, and while I couldn’t see anything resembling a seam or crack in the wall, I trusted my friends. Placing my hands on the stone, I Opened whatever was there. A doorway swung inward, perfectly camouflaged by the rock, and Billy’s LEDs showed a narrow passage beyond.
“I expected lights to come on,” I grumbled.
“C’mon, Vinnie,” Gears said as Billy again took the lead, illuminating the passage with his shoulder lights. “Light bulbs weren’t developed until the 1870s. This place would’ve been lanterns and torches, and those have finite fuel sources.” While the tunnel outside was chiseled with tools and TNT, this passage was nearly a cylinder, flattened at the base. The walls were perfectly smooth, as if this tunnel had been melted from the rock rather than carved.
“That’s too easy,” Herb said. “No traps? No wards?”
“Yeah, there were some wards,” I said. “I displace those when I Open things. They’ll go back into effect in a minute when the door shuts.” I pushed on the door and it slid back into place with a chuff.
“So Croatoan will have to deal with the wards?” Herb asked.
“That’s the plan,” I smiled. “As for traps, Gears?”
“Oh, believe me, Vinnie, I’m analyzing this tunnel with every spectrum of light Billy can view. So far, no traps. I’ll take point.” We walked for nearly thirty minutes, our feet scraping against the stone, Gears’s light sending wild shadows all around us. Finally, Billy put up a hand. “Hang on a minute.”
“Trap?” I asked.
“Not a trap, but there’s something metal in the wall around the next bend.”
We rounded the corner, and Billy’s lights shone on a plaque mounted in the wall. A Caulborn insignia was etched into it, along with a few lines of text, which I read aloud. “‘Ahead, the being known as Anatiel is imprisoned. Do not open her cage. Do not seek entrance into her realm. She wishes to conquer all life on this planet and has the tools to do so. Leave here now.’ Anatiel,” I said, tracing my finger over the name. “Gears, anything from the Caulborn db on that?”
“No hits, Vinnie,” Gears said. “Even with Galahad’s password.”
I froze. “Say that again?”
“I hacked Galahad’s password ages ago. Yours, too. I was bored. But I never used it until just now.” Gears’s voice was soft, almost apologetic. “But I thought, Galahad would want us to know what we’re getting into, so I don’t think he’d mind.”
A smile crept onto my face in spite of myself. “I think you’re right on that one, pal,” I said. “Okay, let’s see about getting inside this chamber. We avoid Anatiel, destroy the cloning equipment, and then wait to ambush Croatoan.” I turned to Herb. “Anything new on what you were sensing a minute ago?”
“Yes,” he said, his eyes glowing orange again. “It’s a very, very faint spirit. It will be hard to communicate with it, but I’ll try.” Herb began chanting, and glowing blue characters formed along his arm. After a moment, he had a chain about three feet long, which spiraled out into the air, then formed into the hazy outline of a woman a few inches shorter than me.
“Turn back,” she whispered. “You must not disturb Anatiel.”
“Not on my list of things to do,” I said. “But we need to destroy the equipment she had.”
The ghost shook her head violently. “You cannot. No human technology can destroy what she brought to our world. I was once an operative of a secret force called the Caulborn. Our most talented mages and scientists were unable to do what you wish. Even atomic energy would be ineffective.”
Herb grunted from strain. “Hurry, Vincent. I can’t hold this much longer.”
“I’m Caulborn, too,” I said. “And a demon is about to try and use this equipment to create himself a new body. If that happens, well, Hell on Earth will take on a whole new meaning. What can you tell us about Anatiel? Do you know anything that might help us sabotage her equipment?”
The spirit was fading. “Anatiel seeks to assume control of all life on this planet, to make it part of her. Any life she touches is corrupted. Any life she creates is tainted. You must not allow her to escape this prison. You must not…” And the spirit winked out. Herb collapsed against the side of the tunnel, panting. Behind us, I heard something moving in the tunnels.
“Shit,” I muttered. “I thought we’d have more time before Croatoan showed up.” I put an arm around Herb’s shoulders and helped him down the passageway. The passage ended in a bowed metal wall with a door set at a slight angle to the rest of the passage. Glowing purple runes flared to life as we approached.
“Gears,” I said. “Check for traps.”
“Already on it, Vinnie,” he replied. The pause lasted too long. “Hang on a minute.” The mech’s chest plate popped open, and the gremlin scrambled toward the door and rested his palm against the metal. “Wow,” he said. “This isn’t terrestrial.”
“What?”
“Vinnie, I don’t know what sort of metal this is. Billy’s scanners can’t make sense of it, and I’ve never felt anything like this before.”
I could feel the sand running through Hades’s hourglass. “Is it trapped?”
“I don’t think so,” he said.
“All right then,” I replied. “Back into the mech. I’ll get us inside.” Gears hopped back into Billy, and I Opened the door and slammed it shut behind us. Lights snapped on, blinding me. When my vision finally cleared, it looked like we’d stepped onto the set of a big-budget sci-fi movie. The room was a circle, lined with stainless-steel workstations like what you’d see on the bridge of the Enterprise. The only thing that threw me was the scale of the place; the chairs, the keyboards (if that’s what they were), all looked to have been designed for someone eight or nine feet tall.
“Wow,” Gears breathed. “Vinnie, I think I’ve died and gone to Heaven.”
“This isn’t how I imagined a cloning facility would look,” Petra said.
“Not at all,” Herb agreed.
Screens flickered over what appeared to be computer consoles, showing charts, constellations, and one with a very detailed image of Earth, along with a bunch of tooltips in a language I couldn’t read. “It’s a ship,” Gears said in awe. “We’re on an honest-to-goodness alien spaceship, Vinnie! It must’ve crashed here and the Caulborn covered it up!” His squee was enough to register feedback in Billy’s speakers. “I can’t wait to take this apart and start tinkering with it!”
Petra and I looked around the… command deck? Is that what this was? It sure looked like a spaceship. Herb was rubbing his face, as if trying to take this in. Despite the fact that time was ticking by, I couldn’t help but feel a bit of awe, and a geeky smile formed on my face. A spaceship! Not a set, not props, honest to God alien technology. Sure, the Caulborn dealt with aliens regularly; I’m pretty sure Megan was on a first-name basis with some of them, but other than Sakave, I’d never met one. And I’d never been on a spaceship before. I wanted to work out what all the buttons did, see if this ship was still spaceworthy, but the more rational part of my mind took over. “We can check this out more later, Gears,” I said. “I�
��m assuming there’s more to it than just this room. What do your scans show?”
“That door” — Gears pointed to the one on the left — “looks like it goes to some sort of galley. That one” — he pointed to the one on the right — “looks like storage. There are crates in there, but my scanners can’t penetrate them. Door number three” — he pointed to the center — “has a ladder that goes down a level, and there’s a big chamber there. Biological agents, too, if I’m reading this right.”
“Anatiel?” I asked.
“There’s something there,” Gears said, “but it’s not moving. Its life signs, if that’s what they are, don’t jive with anything I’ve programmed Billy to recognize.”
“Does it seem dangerous?”
Billy shook his head. “I can’t tell, Vinnie. I’m sorry.”
“Well, it’s not like things are going to get any safer if we just stand around here,” I said. “Gears, can you break this stuff?”
“Probably,” he said, a hint of regret in his voice as he looked around. Breaking any of this tech before he had a chance to play with it would be torturous to Gears. “Let’s just make sure what I break is really what we want broken.”
“Let’s head downstairs first, then,” I said, and moved toward the ladder. The doors snapped open of their own accord, revealing a ladder leading down. Now, when Gears had said there was a ladder here, I was expecting the kind of thing Kirk or Scotty used to move between decks. This ladder’s rungs were spaced at least two feet apart, and the side rails were three feet wide.
“Okay,” I said, looking down. “This Anatiel is much taller than I expected.” I grabbed onto one side of the ladder and rode it down like a fireman’s pole. The others followed suit, and we slid down about twenty feet and came out in another large chamber.
“Now this is more like it,” Petra said. There were tanks of glowing blue liquid against the walls, each one bubbling but with nothing else immediately visible inside. Tubes and hoses ran around the room, coiling down from the ceiling, faint mist drifting from some of them. The smell of ammonia was so strong that I nearly retched. In the center of the room, amidst a tangle of wires and hoses, was a being whose yellow skin was adorned with a series of silvery metal patches. The metal gleamed brilliantly under Billy’s lights and reflected them back so perfectly it might as well have been a mirror.
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