and smashing. Memories. Hallucinations. Terrors. Ecstacies. The archetypal ragbag of the deep unconscious: mental cacophony, nightmare broadcast fortississimo, wide-open emotional stops shrillingblaringhissing above bourdon thunder-bellow. The whole wrapped in a web of incandescent pain.
Marc stop! they all screamed, crushed by the hurricane.
There was silence.
The head above the cerametal collar lifted slightly. Deepset grey eyes opened, showing enormous pupils. The silver-streaked curls dripped greenish fluid onto the forehead, where it mingled with blood from tiny wounds stitched by the withdrawn cerebral - electrodes.
"They're all dead," he said in a normal voice.
[Images: Snow Christmas lights sleigh Dobbin Cantique de Noel brass plaque Mount Washington dim in blizzard mad old man holding longhaired cat.] Patricia came closer. "Who is dead? Felice and Aiken Drum?"
"Cyndia and Jack and Diamond." The familiar smile lifted one side of his generous mouth. The bruised-looking eyelids closed.
[Images: Blue-white scintillating point of disaster. Mindwhisper: It's finished BigBrother now you must magnify too like it or not adieu dear Marc scent white pine fading gemlight crash of Unity triumphant.] "No significant trauma above the neck seal," Steinbrenner was saying. "The carotid circulatory shunts are intact and the helmet apparatus seems undamaged. Negative the cephenvelope, ready the body bag. You getting any joy on the deepredact, Diarmid?"
"He seems to be sustaining his autonomic system consciously." Keogh shook his head. "Very bad, Jeff. Dierdre says there's metabolic evidence of severe external trauma to the trunk and limbs. You know he's self-rejuvenating-able to handle any ordinary injury. But this time the angiogenetic programming is faltering from overload."
"We've got to get this body armour off," Steinbrenner said, "and see just what-"
"Wait," said Marc distinctly. His eyes opened again.
[Overwhelming scent of pine.] Steinbrenner and the two Keoghs froze.
"I'm sustaining refrigeration ... lavage ... in lower-body casing. When I exit the rig ... I must go switch-off to sustain my vitals. No communication. But first I must tell you-"
"Let us help!" they all exclaimed.
"No. Listen. Our experiment was a ... qualified success.
Felice is gone. Unfortunately, Aiken Drum is not. He's badly damaged. No doubt his healers will put him together again in due course, as mine will me."
"But what happened to you?" Patricia cried.
[Images: Blazing female shape materializing in midair.
Armoured form high on its carriage wrapped in astral fire from the neck down. Refrigeration and life-support labouring inside the ultradense cerametal as the demonic power seeps through the impermeable, attacks the inhumanly strengthened body within.
Femoral circulatory shunts and neuroceptors burned away, the entire sustenance load shifted to the carotids. Ice-blood and chemical amniotic fluid preserving internal organs, major skeletal units, and musculature. Psychocreative torch of the frustrated monstermind playing over vulnerable body surface, burning away all dermal elements to a depth of four millimetres, destroying hands and feet and external genitalia utterly. Then, unable to complete the Jackforming, forced to withdraw.] The genes!
"Safe. Don't worry. Three months in the tank and I'll be as good as I ever was."
The brain!
"I diverted my entire creative flux to my head the instant that she struck. My brain was saved ... most of it. Managed to force her out of the armour. Episode ... took less than half a second. Fortunately, shock is delayed in such cases. I was able to retain control of the metaconcert until we funnelled the final blast. Then ... diverted all energies to self-sustenance."
The eyes in their cavernous orbits glazed and the watchers flinched from a new transmission of agony. Marc's mind steadied. The old magnetism and reassurance flowed out to touch each one of them with confident warmth.
"Don't worry! Even
Marc stop! they all screamed, crushed by the hurricane.
There was silence.
The head above the cerametal collar lifted slightly. Deepset grey eyes opened, showing enormous pupils. The silver-streaked curls dripped greenish fluid onto the forehead, where it mingled with blood from tiny wounds stitched by the withdrawn cerebral - electrodes.
"They're all dead," he said in a normal voice.
[Images: Snow Christmas lights sleigh Dobbin Cantique de Noel brass plaque Mount Washington dim in blizzard mad old man holding longhaired cat.] Patricia came closer. "Who is dead? Felice and Aiken Drum?"
"Cyndia and Jack and Diamond." The familiar smile lifted one side of his generous mouth. The bruised-looking eyelids closed.
[Images: Blue-white scintillating point of disaster. Mindwhisper: It's finished BigBrother now you must magnify too like it or not adieu dear Marc scent white pine fading gemlight crash of Unity triumphant.] "No significant trauma above the neck seal," Steinbrenner was saying. "The carotid circulatory shunts are intact and the helmet apparatus seems undamaged. Negative the cephenvelope, ready the body bag. You getting any joy on the deepredact, Diarmid?"
"He seems to be sustaining his autonomic system consciously." Keogh shook his head. "Very bad, Jeff. Dierdre says there's metabolic evidence of severe external trauma to the trunk and limbs. You know he's self-rejuvenating-able to handle any ordinary injury. But this time the angiogenetic programming is faltering from overload."
"We've got to get this body armour off," Steinbrenner said, "and see just what-"
"Wait," said Marc distinctly. His eyes opened again.
[Overwhelming scent of pine.] Steinbrenner and the two Keoghs froze.
"I'm sustaining refrigeration ... lavage ... in lower-body casing. When I exit the rig ... I must go switch-off to sustain my vitals. No communication. But first I must tell you-"
"Let us help!" they all exclaimed.
"No. Listen. Our experiment was a ... qualified success.
Felice is gone. Unfortunately, Aiken Drum is not. He's badly damaged. No doubt his healers will put him together again in due course, as mine will me."
"But what happened to you?" Patricia cried.
[Images: Blazing female shape materializing in midair.
Armoured form high on its carriage wrapped in astral fire from the neck down. Refrigeration and life-support labouring inside the ultradense cerametal as the demonic power seeps through the impermeable, attacks the inhumanly strengthened body within.
Femoral circulatory shunts and neuroceptors burned away, the entire sustenance load shifted to the carotids. Ice-blood and chemical amniotic fluid preserving internal organs, major skeletal units, and musculature. Psychocreative torch of the frustrated monstermind playing over vulnerable body surface, burning away all dermal elements to a depth of four millimetres, destroying hands and feet and external genitalia utterly. Then, unable to complete the Jackforming, forced to withdraw.] The genes!
"Safe. Don't worry. Three months in the tank and I'll be as good as I ever was."
The brain!
"I diverted my entire creative flux to my head the instant that she struck. My brain was saved ... most of it. Managed to force her out of the armour. Episode ... took less than half a second. Fortunately, shock is delayed in such cases. I was able to retain control of the metaconcert until we funnelled the final blast. Then ... diverted all energies to self-sustenance."
The eyes in their cavernous orbits glazed and the watchers flinched from a new transmission of agony. Marc's mind steadied. The old magnetism and reassurance flowed out to touch each one of them with confident warmth.
"Don't worry! Even
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