Gears of a Mad God Omnibus

by Brent Nichols

  But this was Smith's responsibility, not hers. He scooped up his pistol, took careful aim, murmured, "I'm sorry, Phil," and pulled the trigger.

  Then he closed his eyes. He was sitting on the ground, and he scooted backward until his back was against the wall. He drew his knees up to his chest, the barrel of the pistol warm against his cheek. So long as he kept his eyes shut he could pretend it hadn't happened.

  He knew he should get up. Colleen was still in danger. He should help her get back to the portal. But every man had his limit, his breaking point, and Smith had reached his.

  "You've made quite a mess, I see," said Carter's voice.

  Smith opened his eyes. His old friend stood before him, unshaven and gaunt, his hair standing up in tufts. He was in his shirtsleeves, and armed with a sharpened stick. He was grinning from ear to ear.

  That's it, Smith thought. My brain reached its limit. Now it's showing me whatever I want to see. I've broken from reality completely.

  "Thanks for shooting that crazy bastard, Dirk. There were six of us made it up here. I thought we'd all throw our lot in together, but they were going to sacrifice me as a bribe to Katharis." He looked at the row of severed heads. "Looks like I got out just in time. I've been hanging around the hilltop, watching to see if any more portals open up."

  Smith took a deep breath. Colleen was listening to every word Carter said. Either he was real, or Colleen was a hallucination as well. Smith shrugged inwardly and took a leap of faith. "I guess you're real, then. Good. Let's get out of here."

  Carter helped him to his feet and they moved to the breach in the wall. A couple of the creatures lay dead near the metal man. He wasn't sure if Woody had driven the others off, or if they'd lost interest when he stopped moving, but the rest of the dread pack was not in sight.

  They climbed through the breach and Smith circled the tower, getting his bearings. The portal was invisible at this distance. Either that or someone had moved one of the portal stones, and they were trapped here for good. He decided not to think about that.

  Something moved on the hillside below. Some of the beasts were milling around between them and the portal. Slowly, reluctantly, Smith said, "I suppose one of us could lead them away. The other two could go for the portal."

  "To Hell with that," Carter growled. "I'm not leaving either of you behind. And I'm not staying, either."

  Colleen didn't bother speaking, just grinned wolfishly, and Smith smiled. "All right, then," he said. "We'll fight our way through together."

  "We might not have to," said Colleen, and patted Woody's gleaming side. "We've got my little friend here."

  Smith lifted his gaze. The darkness he'd noticed earlier was much closer now. He rubbed his arms, trying to decide if he was feeling a drop in temperature or just a primal dread.

  "I don't like the looks of that," said Carter at his elbow.

  "What is it?" said Colleen.

  "I can't be certain," said Smith, "but I think it's Katharis." What to do now, he wondered. Wait, and hope the dark presence moved on past? Unless it was hunting the three of them. Was that why it was here? Had the three of them attracted it?

  "I don't think it's coming toward us," said Carter, and Smith allowed himself a brief surge of hope.

  "Oh, crap," said Colleen. "I think it's going for the portal."

  They ran down the hill. Colleen had Woody programmed to keep loping for several minutes, and he left them behind, galloping down the hillside with a strange, jerky grace. The creatures sprang at him, and he trampled them without noticing. One clung to his back for a time without slowing him down. Eventually it bounced loose and then chased him.

  When Woody stopped there were three of the creatures still hunting him. They mobbed his inert form, tearing at him without effect, and Smith started edging to one side, planning to circle around the strange battle and keep running for the portal.

  But Colleen ran straight at Woody. She had shifted her knapsack to one shoulder, and she drew a bottle out as she ran. She stopped a dozen feet from Woody and knelt, fumbled for a moment, then stood. There was a rag stuffed in the bottle, and it blazed fiercely. One of the creatures swung its gaping neck toward her, and she threw the bottle straight at it.

  The bottle hit the ground at the creature's feet and exploded. There was a vast eruption of flame, and the beast scrambled back, burning. Another bottle came sailing in, breaking against Woody's metal chest and splashing the other two creatures with flame. Everywhere that the burning liquid struck, it stuck, and it blazed with an intense white flame that filled Smith's nostrils with a sickening-sweet stench. He shielded his eyes with his hand, muttering, "And they say I'm the dangerous lunatic."

  The beasts whirled and thrashed, slapping at the flames with fat tentacles. The fire spread to the tentacles, and they shrieked and cavorted. Colleen ran between them, found the control mechanism on Woody's back, and tapped away until she had him pointed once again at the distant portal. Then she got him running, and she and Carter and Smith resumed their stumbling run in metal man's wake.

  He could see the portal now. The dark mass in the sky, the awful, unnatural storm cloud, was approaching from the other side, and it was terrifyingly close. Smith could feel the thing, an alien weight pressing against his mind, like the distilled essence of chaos and hate. He glanced at Carter and Colleen and saw by their pinched, white faces that they felt it too.

  Woody had attracted another group of creatures. There were four this time, and they hurled themselves on his metal body when he lurched to a stop a dozen feet from the portal. Carter, his head down, running for all he was worth, charged into the whirling sphere of the portal and disappeared. Colleen was slower, keeping pace with Smith. She jogged ahead of him, looking back over her shoulder, and he followed her into the cloud.

  Cold fingers tugged at him, and then he found himself on the lawn behind the McDougall building with the Big Dipper gleaming in the sky above him like an old friend. He sagged to his knees, panting for breath, and felt Katharis's dark presence still pounding against his mind. He reached out for the nearest portal stone.

  And Colleen raced past him and vanished through the portal.

  "What the hell?" said Carter.

  Smith was too winded to reply, but he felt a surge of frustration. All the world might hang in the balance, and she was going back for her damned mechanical toy. He lurched to his feet and turned to face the portal. He sensed that this would be his last trip through. He would grab Colleen, hurl her bodily into the cloud, and turn to face his fate. He gathered himself, took a deep breath, and launched himself at the portal at a run.

  And crashed into Woody. A metal arm slammed into his ribs, he cracked his forehead on Woody's steel chest, and the metal man's vast limbs nearly trampled him as he sprawled backward on the grass. Woody came to a halt over him, and he turned his head to the side. He could see Colleen's feet, and beyond them, Tom's stretching hands as he lifted a portal stone from the circle and tossed it aside.

  The dark pressure on Smith's mind vanished instantly. The roiling cloud of the portal was now rapidly dispersing mist. Smith let himself sink onto his back.

  "Holy cow," said Colleen. "That was close. But we did it. And Katharis is locked out."

  "For now," said Carter, and Smith gave a bleak nod. The cult was thwarted, and the world was safe once again.

  For now.

  Chapter 14 - Aftermath

  The sun rose slowly over the asylum. The three of them sat on a park bench, shivering a bit in the cold. At least it's an honest cold, Colleen thought. It goes away when the sun comes up.

  Birds had been singing for half an hour now, and she heard the first lazy drone of an insect. She drank in the sights around her. She had never really noticed how much life there was, all around, even in the middle of the city. Trees stretched their branches toward the sky, ready to absorb every bit of autumn sunlight. The grass waved softly beneath the trees, and flowers started unfurling their petals as the sun's first rays
gilded them.

  The air was getting warmer, but Colleen shivered again, remembering the portal and the wasteland on the other side. She was horrified when she thought of all that she had gambled.

  She looked at the men on either side of her. It looked like Carter was going to be okay. He was haggard and bruised, but not seriously hurt. He'd just finished telling them the story of his time on the other side, making light of the horrors he'd seen. It had been rough, but his sanity seemed to be intact.

  Her gaze switched to Smith. His salvation was less straightforward. He'd made it clear that he wanted to check himself back into Sunny Acres at the first opportunity. There was a hunger in his eyes as he looked at the building, mixed with a pinched, hunted look. They had escaped from the realm of Katharis, but Smith had demons that weren't so easily left behind.

  He caught her eye and gave her a strained grin. "Don't worry about me," he murmured. "I'll be fine."

  "I know." She took his hand and held it, eliciting another grin, this one less strained. Below them the front gate of Sunny Acres swung open, and she felt her heart sink. The asylum was open for business. Her friend was going to disappear again into a haze of medication.

  Carter's stomach rumbled. "I hate to rush you," he said, "but I've fallen pretty behind on my meals. Let's get you checked in so I can go for breakfast. I know a place near here that has the thickest bacon you'll ever see in your life."

  Smith gave him a speculative look. "Sunny Acres has a lot going for it," he said. "It's very peaceful in there." He looked toward the asylum, and there was naked longing on his face. Then he grinned. "The food, though, does not number among its attractions. I guess I could wait until after breakfast."

  "Great!" Carter's stomach rumbled again, and he hopped to his feet. "That's settled. Let's go."

  Smith stood, and Colleen looked up at him. She wasn't sure if they could talk him into postponing his return to the institution, and she wasn't sure if it would be a good idea if they could. But they could have breakfast together. That much she was sure of.

  It would have to be enough, Colleen realized. There were no happy endings in the war against the cult, only temporary reprieves. For the moment, the three of them were together. For the moment, it was enough.

  She stood and the three of them set off together through the park.

  Author's Notes

  Thanks for reading. I'd love to hear your comments. Go to SteamPunch.com to leave me a note or to learn about other stories. I can be reached by email at brentn@netscape.net.

  Gears of a Mad God continues in The Airship War, now available. Buy it here. Or save a few bucks by picking up The Airship War Omnibus, containing The Airship War, Assault on Villamar, and Airship Down.