Outlanders 33 Children of the Serpent by James Axler

Author:James Axler
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

Kane didn't know what Balam meant, but he resisted to the urge to ask for clarification. He repeated to Brigid and Grant what he had been told about the smart metal and the weaponry.

"What the hell are accelerated stream of proton emitters?" Grant demanded, his whisper so harsh that Kane felt his mastoid bone shiver in response. "Like the quartz cremators we found on the Moon base?"

"I sure as hell hope not," Kane replied, picturing the deadly pulse-plasma rifles and their sectionalized barrels that terminated in a long cylinders made of a crystalline substance. He also envisioned the manner in which bodies exploded from within when struck by the accelerated ion stream.

"I doubt they are," Brigid commented. "But that doesn't mean I want to face them without having some idea of what they can do."

They fell silent, watching as Enlil applied the pods to the Nephilim as they stepped forward, sheathing them in identical but differently colored armor and half helmets. After each one was equally attired and outfitted, Enlil returned his attention to the open altar stone. He gave the distinct impression of rummaging through a trunk.

Kane eased around the pillar in order to get a better look, Sin Eater held in both hands. Enlil's claw-tipped fingers removed flat square panels from narrow slots in the instrument board. They looked to be made of a dark, reflective, glassy substance, but he didn't handle them as if they were fragile. They were the same general shape and dimensions as oversize playing cards, and dots of colored lights played across their surfaces in nine ordered rows, like the beads on the strings of a Chinese abacus.

"Are those the Tablets of Destiny?" Kane asked.

When neither Balam, Brigid nor Grant offered a response, Kane decided not to repeat the question. He watched as Enlil touched a glowing dot on one of the panels with the tip of a finger, moving it across the surface. Somewhere a soft musical note sounded, and Enlil's eyes lost their focus, seemed to look inward.

Then he spoke, "Zu."

Armored in green, Lord Zu stepped forward and received the card from Enlil, holding it reverently in both hands. He bowed his crested head in acknowledgment or gratitude.

In a very unsteady voice, Brigid said, "I'd judge those are the tablets...just like I'd judge they're attuned to the individual overlord, either their genetic code or brain-wave frequency. Or both."

Kane's hand tightened around the butt of his Sin Eater. He guessed Enlil could somehow identify which tablet was attuned to what overlord and distribute them accordingly. Retrieving them from one hand would be easier than from eight.

The same thought had apparently occurred to Grant, who demanded, "What the hell are we waiting for? Let's make a grab for the tablets."

"Negative," Kane replied. "Balam said to follow his lead."

"What lead?"

"I guess we'll know it when we see it."

The Commtact accurately transmitted Brigid's sudden sharp intake of breath. "I think we may be seeing it now."

From around the left end of the altar stone shuffled a robed, masked figure, fingers steepled together at his forehead.

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