Titans of Chaos

The trapdoor overhead exploded with blue light as the first of the hundred shells landed. The roofof the tunnel above us was turned instantly to plasma. The vacuum created by the firestormsucked the river water up in a white spray, where the heat was breaking the water molecules intotheir constituent oxygen and hydrogen."

The concussion would have instantly destroyed us (or anything made of that fragile substance wecall "matter") had we still been in the normal laws of Earth. As it was, the blue light showeredover all of us. There was no visible change.

The Argent Nautilus dashed through the waters of the underground river like a flung spear...

The stone walls to either side of us were blurs. The piston of holocaust-fire that the pressure of theexplosion was driving down the tunnel in both directions was traveling faster than the speed ofsound, so there was no noise coming from it. We were receding from it faster than its advance, sothat the ball of flame behind dwindled immediately to a flare, a spark, a twinkle.

Quentin was frowning at the white wand he held. It was nothing but a stick now. He tossed itoverboard. Then he said, "I'm neutralized. Who has anything?" The cell phone speaker was verydim: "I have sustained major damage. High-priority nervous system functions are continuing athalf-power. All auxiliary systems are nonfunctional."

Colin: "I've been hexed. I'm out."

I said, 'There were sirens. They may still be around us. My powers are gone."

Quentin smiled and threw himself on the one bench at the stern of the Argent Nautilus. "You arethe only one who can help us now, Vanity."

Vanity's look of fear stiffened into a look of resolve. The confidence I had seen on the island, orwhen she saved me from Archer, was back. Nausicaa confidence. She said, "I won't let you down,Leader!"

She laid her hand on the silver rail. Immediately in the water before us, a door made of water,with hinges and staples made of translucent fluid, opened up, revealing a long slope, an unwalledtunnel made of air, which dropped down through the water.

Quentin said, "Er... Vanity? You are doing that, right? That's one of yours?"

The Argent Nautilus tilted on the brink of the doorway made of water, her stern high, her prowdipping low...

We all screamed as the ship fell headlong, except Victor (of course), and Vanity, who laughed likea madwoman.

Vanity yodeled and hiccuped and said over the roar, "I think I am getting the hang of this."

Down we plunged, a barrel tipping over a waterfall.