Deep Black Road: The Head of the Snake

Chapter 60

Landing as usual, well scattered, to keep their arrival as inconspicuous as possible, the four robotic people, with their two babies, started walking to the farm.

"Hold up," Leila radioed a short while later, scrambling her message.

"What?" Philip responded over their connection.

"Those secret police guys dressed in black are here; and I'm not seeing any Followers."

"No doubt they've taken Bill and Lisa and everyone else prisoner."

"What's going on?" Ricky radioed.

"The emperor's secret police have taken the village," Philip replied.

"Oh no!" Rantan responded. "What'll we do? Go and rescue them?"

"No," Philip radioed. "Way too risky. They're doubtless hoping we'll do just that, and ambush us with plasma. It'll have to wait till after Ricky's dealt with the emperor and his Family. Thinking of which: Ricky, the Congress is a go, a week from today in Alexandria, Egypt."

"Okay," responded Ricky. "But what if the emperor forgets to bring the plasma gun? I might be able to kill him; but I know I don't have the heart to go around individually murdering three thousand other people, even if they are members of his Family."

"You're worrying again. It shouldn't be too hard to help him remember."

"Right. Of course."

#

Ricky, spying through the imperial palace Sentinel, found the emperor in his office; so he projected his image of the Black Scourge right in front of the man's desk and said, "Hey, your hokeyness."

Mella glanced up, startled, and growled, "That's 'Holiness' to you, insolent pest!"

"Whatever. I'm the Black Scourge, and I've had enough of your dark and disgusting ways. I'm personally going to kill you, and very soon. Watch for me. Bye."

The Black Scourge's image vanished; and the emperor hastily called up a virtual screen as Ricky watched.

"General," Mella said when the appropriate face appeared. "How is the research going into the plasma weapons?"

"Inconclusive so far, Holiness. We've been implementing numerous tests, and have been unable to replicate anything resembling the Pittsburgh blast. In fact, our physicists have gone over the equations, and claim a plasma weapon such as Bennett Harrington had in his possession could not possibly release anything resembling that amount of energy, even theoretically."

"Thank you. That is good news, although it begs the question of where all of that energy did come from."

"That, Holiness, remains a complete mystery."

They thought the gun might have done it? Ricky thought. Of course. How could they possibly know about the glow?

"I think," Mella said, "that we should be able to safely return our plasma weapons to active service, since the rogue robots pose a greater threat to us than the possibility of a weapon failure."

"I'll see to it immediately, Holiness," said the general, and signed off.

Yes, Holiness, thought Ricky. We are a threat.

#

Ricky connected with Rantan as they sat with Leila in a clearing on the side of a hill a safe distance from the farm, watching the two babies forage for rocks, and said, "I've given you all the keys for when to program Little One, and what functions to load; so you should do fine."