Temple

And then he dropped down onto the conveyor belt and rolled quickly backwards, underneath the chopper's blur ring blades, using his newfound leverage to yank Anistaze forward, neck-first, right into the buzzsaw-like blades of the helicopter!

The rotor blades of the chopper sliced through Anistaze's neck like a chainsaw through butter, removing his head from his body in a smooth, frictionless cut.

An explosion of blood splattered all over Race's face as he lay on the conveyor belt, still holding onto Anistaze's lapels.

Race quickly discarded the body—yecch!—and rolled himself off the conveyor belt.

He shook his head. He couldn't quite believe what he had just done. He had just decapitated a man.

Whoa.

He looked up and saw Renee standing over by the control panel, standing astride the unconscious body of the Nazi technician. The tech had been knocked out cold by the blow she'd given him against the control panel.

Renee smiled at Race, gave him the thumbs up.

For his part, Race just fell limp against the floor, exhausted.

No sooner had his head hit the ground, however, than Renee was at his side.

'Not yet, Professor,' she said, pulling him to his feet. 'No resting yet. Come on, we have to stop Ehrhardt from detonating the Supernova.'

In the control booth high above the mine, the timer on the Supernova's laptop screen continued to tick downwards.

00:15:01 00:15:00 00:14:59

Ehrhardt keyed his radio. 'Oberstgruppenführer?'

No response.

'Anistaze, where are you?'

Still nothing.

Ehrhardt turned to Fritz Weber. 'Something's wrong.

Anistaze's not answering. Initiate protective counter measures around the device. Seal the control booth.'

'Yes, sir.'

Renee and Race dragged Uli into the glass-walled office overlooking the mine and laid him down on the floor.

A large digital timer on the wall ticked downwards: 00:14:55 00:14:54 00:14:53

'Damn it,' Race said, 'they started the countdown!'

Renee immediately went to work on the gunshot wound to Uli's stomach. As she did so, however, a fax machine on the far side of the office began to clatter loudly.

Race, now carrying a G-11 assault rifle, went over to it as a fax began to scroll out. It read:

FROM THE OFFICE OF

THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

SECURE FACSIM.V.F. TRANSMISSION

ORIGINATING FAX NO: 12025556122 DESTINATION FAX NO: 5134549775 DATE: 5 JAN, 1999

TIME: 18:55:45 (LOCAL)

SENDER CODE: 004 (NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR)

MESSAGE IS AS FOLLOWS:

Having consulted with his advisors, and in keeping with his well-known views on terrorism, the President has instructed me to inform you that he WILL NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES pay to you any sum of money to restrain you from detonating any device you may have in your possession.

W. PHH,VP LIPANSKI

National Security Advisor

to the President of the United States

'Jesus,' Race breathed. 'They're not going to pay…'

Renee came over, looked at the fax. 'God, look how forceful the wording is. They're trying to call his bluff. They don't think he'll blow the Supernova.'

'Will he blow the Supernova?'

'Absolutely,' Uli said from the floor, causing Race and Renee to spin around.

Uli spoke through clenched teeth. 'He talks constantly of it. He's insane. He only wants one thing—his new world.

And if he can't have that, then he will simply destroy the existing one.'

'But why?” Race said.

'Because that is the currency he trades in. It is the currency he has always traded in—life and death. Ehrhardt is an old man, old and evil. He has no further use for the world. If he doesn't get his money—and hence his new world order—he will just destroy the old one without even thinking twice.'

'Wonderful,' Race said. 'And we're the only ones who can stop him?'

'Yes.'

'Then how do we do it?' Renee said, turning to Uli. 'How do we stop the countdown?'

“You have to enter the disarm code into the device's arming computer,' Uli said. 'But as I said before, only Weber knows the code.'

'Then somehow,' Race said, 'we're going to have to get that code out of him.'

Moments later, Race was running around the rim of the immense crater, heading for the southern cable bridge.

The plan was simple.

Renee would wait at the start of the northern bridge while Race ran around the crater to the southern bridge. Then, when he arrived there, they would both make a run for the control booth at the same time, from opposite ends.

The logic of their plan was based on the fact that the two cable bridges that stretched out to the control booth were quite advanced and very sturdy each bridge was constructed of high-tensile steel threads and to drop either of them would require someone to uncouple four separate pressure couplings.

If Race and Renee bolted down the two bridges at the same time, one of them might make it to the booth before Ehrhardt and/or Weber managed to uncouple both bridges.

After six-and-a-half minutes of running, Race arrived at the southern cable bridge.