it to anyone else, he personally believed that the sight of thousands of dragonflies fleeing the towns was a bad omen. That happened with earthquakes and the worst storms. The dragonflies knew.
They always knew.
And they had not yet returned from their leafy sanctuary.
Lo glowered. “What assurances can you give me, Scientist Zhao, that turning the complete device on won’t set the countryside on fire?”
“No, no, General Lo,” insisted the scientist, “we have solved those problems. We have reinforced and triple insulated every coupling. We have coated the seals with nonporous clay, and the temperature in the chamber has been lowered to well below the safety level. We’ve added nonconductive baffles to soak up any resulting static discharge. We have learned so much from each of those tests and we are confident that the Dragon Engine will work perfectly this time.”
Lo stepped close to Zhao. He was a very tall man, so the closeness forced the scientist to crane his neck in order to look up at the general. That created a position of weakness and subservience that Lo found very useful.
“You will be held personally responsible for any further delays or accidents,” he said quietly.
The fat scientist’s body trembled as if he wanted to shift from foot to foot, but discipline required that he stand and endure. Sweat beaded Zhao’s face.
“Are we in agreement on this?” asked Lo.
“Y-yes, General Lo. I will not fail you.”
“Then, for the prosperity of the Party and the enrichment of the people, you may continue.”
With that General Lo turned and walked back to his spot in front of the glass. He ignored the bustle of technicians moving to their places and the low chatter as orders were given and information shared. If the Dragon Engine worked, then so much would change. The world itself would change. That thought made Lo feel like a giant. It made him feel like all the potential energy promised by that machine coursed through him. Lo imagined that America and its many allies were already trembling, aware on some deep spiritual level that their political, military and economic domination of the earth was a button push away from ending.
“We are ready, General Lo,” said Zhao. “All indicators are green. Dampeners and buffers are functioning at one hundred and fifteen percent. We have a wide safety margin.”
“Very well,” said General Lo. “Turn it on.”
Zhao exchanged a quick, excited smile with his colleagues.
He touched the button that would lower the final component into place. That was all it took. No bolts or screws. The machine’s parts adhered to each other using a unique form of magnetic assembly.
The master circuit descended on its slender chains, pulled into its proper place.
Sparks danced along its bottom edge. Tiny arcs of electricity leaped between the circuit and the rim of the slot. General Lo bent forward, suddenly fascinated by the process. Until today the entire Dragon Engine had never been fully assembled. The disruptions of the last few weeks had all occurred at this point, with the board not quite in place.
“All readings are still in the green,” said Zhao. “We are already past the disruption point.”
The board slid down, vanishing millimeter by millimeter into the slot. Snakes of electricity writhed along the whole machine now. Then the master circuit clicked into place within the heart of the engine. There was a moment—a millionth of a second—where the machine seemed to freeze in place, the arcs of electricity vanishing.
“Scientist Zhao…?” murmured Lo.
“The readings are still in the green. Dampeners and buffers are functioning at ninety-two percent. That is more than enough to—”
General Lo did not hear the rest of Zhao’s sentence.
The Dragon Engine exploded.
General Lo saw a shimmering bubble of energy balloon outward from the device, and on the other side of that millisecond, he was vaporized.
The lab—all thirty-two rooms that
They always knew.
And they had not yet returned from their leafy sanctuary.
Lo glowered. “What assurances can you give me, Scientist Zhao, that turning the complete device on won’t set the countryside on fire?”
“No, no, General Lo,” insisted the scientist, “we have solved those problems. We have reinforced and triple insulated every coupling. We have coated the seals with nonporous clay, and the temperature in the chamber has been lowered to well below the safety level. We’ve added nonconductive baffles to soak up any resulting static discharge. We have learned so much from each of those tests and we are confident that the Dragon Engine will work perfectly this time.”
Lo stepped close to Zhao. He was a very tall man, so the closeness forced the scientist to crane his neck in order to look up at the general. That created a position of weakness and subservience that Lo found very useful.
“You will be held personally responsible for any further delays or accidents,” he said quietly.
The fat scientist’s body trembled as if he wanted to shift from foot to foot, but discipline required that he stand and endure. Sweat beaded Zhao’s face.
“Are we in agreement on this?” asked Lo.
“Y-yes, General Lo. I will not fail you.”
“Then, for the prosperity of the Party and the enrichment of the people, you may continue.”
With that General Lo turned and walked back to his spot in front of the glass. He ignored the bustle of technicians moving to their places and the low chatter as orders were given and information shared. If the Dragon Engine worked, then so much would change. The world itself would change. That thought made Lo feel like a giant. It made him feel like all the potential energy promised by that machine coursed through him. Lo imagined that America and its many allies were already trembling, aware on some deep spiritual level that their political, military and economic domination of the earth was a button push away from ending.
“We are ready, General Lo,” said Zhao. “All indicators are green. Dampeners and buffers are functioning at one hundred and fifteen percent. We have a wide safety margin.”
“Very well,” said General Lo. “Turn it on.”
Zhao exchanged a quick, excited smile with his colleagues.
He touched the button that would lower the final component into place. That was all it took. No bolts or screws. The machine’s parts adhered to each other using a unique form of magnetic assembly.
The master circuit descended on its slender chains, pulled into its proper place.
Sparks danced along its bottom edge. Tiny arcs of electricity leaped between the circuit and the rim of the slot. General Lo bent forward, suddenly fascinated by the process. Until today the entire Dragon Engine had never been fully assembled. The disruptions of the last few weeks had all occurred at this point, with the board not quite in place.
“All readings are still in the green,” said Zhao. “We are already past the disruption point.”
The board slid down, vanishing millimeter by millimeter into the slot. Snakes of electricity writhed along the whole machine now. Then the master circuit clicked into place within the heart of the engine. There was a moment—a millionth of a second—where the machine seemed to freeze in place, the arcs of electricity vanishing.
“Scientist Zhao…?” murmured Lo.
“The readings are still in the green. Dampeners and buffers are functioning at ninety-two percent. That is more than enough to—”
General Lo did not hear the rest of Zhao’s sentence.
The Dragon Engine exploded.
General Lo saw a shimmering bubble of energy balloon outward from the device, and on the other side of that millisecond, he was vaporized.
The lab—all thirty-two rooms that
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