Throne of Lies: Epic Steampunk Fantasy by John Corwin

Author:John Corwin [Corwin, John]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Amazon: 1942453213
Publisher: Raven House
Published: 2020-07-11T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 22

The constable glanced at us, then turned away to face the door. He sorted through the keys on a ring, then used one to unlock the door. He pulled on the handle and held it open for us. I allowed Layla to precede me, which she did with royal flair. I followed her in, and the constable closed the door behind us.

Layla stopped in the empty front office and mimicked wiping her forehead with the back of a hand. "Holy shit, I thought it was done."

"Me too." I looked in the nearby rooms, but they were empty. "Let's find the observers."

Layla tapped a concrete wall. "They didn't even use drywall on the inside. This place is like a bunker."

I ran a hand along the rough wall. "Now I'm almost positive they bring the Tetron here or maybe even keep it onsite."

"What makes you say that?"

"There's plenty of concrete to block radiation." I rapped my knuckles on the dense wall.

"Makes sense." Layla walked around the corner and opened a metal door.

The structure looked like something built in the fifties to keep utilities safe in case the Soviets nuked it. Even if the building survived, I couldn't imagine what use it would be with an irradiated water supply, which also made me wonder if the mechanists had outsmarted themselves.

I snorted. "Those idiots."

Layla raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"They put the source of radiation inside the facility that purifies their water."

"Morons." Layla pursed her lips. "Then again, this is just the office building. The actual purification is done in the ponds out back.

"Maybe so." I eased open the next set of double doors and peered inside. A plain steel table sat in the middle of the floor of a large room. Flimsy cots lined a space on the other side. Dozens of vinyl aprons hung from the walls, each one overlapping the one below. I realized they were lead aprons like those used to shield the body during x-rays.

Brass video cameras on tripods encircled the steel table, presumably to record the observers while they did their work. I doubted any mechanists wanted to be near the building when the Tetron was in use.

The only thing I didn't see was the Tetron itself.

Most of the observers sat or lay on cots, most of them staring blankly into the void. I opened the door and stepped boldly inside, Layla close at my heels.

The observers stiffened, shaking their comrades awake and then standing at attention next to their cots.

The woman I'd marked stepped forward from the others. "I'm sorry, inventor, we were told the next reading would be in an hour."

"And so it will be." Layla walked around the woman as if inspecting her. "I'm simply here for an inspection."

"Yes, inventor." The woman bowed.

Layla looked around the room. "Are they following protocol when they remove the Tetron from this room?"

The woman glanced uncertainly toward the only other door in the room. "We weren't told of specific protocol. They bring it to us and leave, then retrieve it when we're done.

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