The Lilliput Legion (TimeWars 9)

“Good point, “said Steiger, nodding. “All right, then, we’ll leave you officially dead for the time being. But we should let the old man know.”

“I agree,” Delaney said.

“All right,” said Lucas. “You can tell Forrester, but no one else. Oh, and one more thing. Don’t mention anything to him about Nikolai Drakov. At least not until we know for sure.”

“I’ll go along with that,” said Steiger. “We’ll leave directly from base to check out Gulliver’s co-ordinates. If there’s an island out there, we’ll come right back here and pick up the rest of you. Meanwhile, sit tight.” He checked his disc. “We’ll be clocking back here in about two minutes, your time.” He glanced at Gulliver. “That means don’t move around the room much till we get back, Lem. I’d hate to materialize in the same spot where you were standing.”

“Goodness. What would happen if you did?” asked Gulliver.

“Believe me, you wouldn’t want to know,” said Steiger.

The two men went over to the far side of the room, locked in the transition co-ordinates on their warp discs and clocked out. Gulliver stared at the spot where they had stood a second ago and shook his head with amazement.

“It truly is astonishing what one can become accustomed to,” he said. “I’ve just seen two people vanish into thin air and here I sit, calm as you please, eating bread and cheese and drinking wine.”

“You’ve certainly had your share of interesting experiences,” Andre said. “All things considered, you’re bearing up extremely well.”

“What else is one to do?” Gulliver replied… A man can’t go jumping out of his skin every time something—Great merciful Heavens!”

He leaped out of his chair, sending it crashing to the floor and spilling wine all over the table as Dr. Darkness suddenly appeared sitting in the chair next to him, one leg casually crossed over the other.

“The Japanese have an old saying,” Darkness said, playing with his walking stick.

“When one saves another’s life, that person becomes responsible for the life he saved.” He grunted. “The Japanese can be a very irritating people.” He glanced at Gulliver, standing back away from the table and staring at him open mouthed.

“What are you goggling at?”

“I … that is, I … I … ai-yi-yi,” said Gulliver, holding his head with both hands.

“Articulate chap, isn’t he?” said Darkness.

“Now listen, Doc,” Lucas began, but Darkness interrupted him.

“No, you listen,” he said. “Did you think that I went to all that trouble simply so that you could comeback here and continue playing soldier, perhaps get yourself killed again? Is that what comes of all my efforts on your behalf?”

“Doc, I didn’t ask you to make any efforts on my behalf! I never asked you to do anything!”

“Indeed? And where would you be right now if I hadn’t done anything?”

“Well, dead, presumably, but—”

“Presumably?” said Darkness, arching his eyebrows. “Nothing presumable about it. You would have been stiff as a carp.” He grunted. “I saved your blasted life for you and what do I get in return? You simply walk out on me, without so much as a by your leave. Would it have been too much trouble to leave a note, at least? ‘Dear Dr. Darkness, thank you for saving my life. I am off to make an asshole of myself and perhaps get killed again. Yours in perpetual confusion, Lucas Priest.’ It would have taken less than a minute to dash that off. You couldn’t be b

othered?”

“Doc, you’re starting to sound like my mother,” Lucas said.

“I am your mother, for God’s sake! I am both your mother and your father. I gave you life! Life and an opportunity such as no man has ever had before—”

“Doc, I didn’t want it!”

“Well, who asked you?”

“Nobody did, that’s just the point!”

“Wait a minute,” Andre said. She turned to Lucas. “What do you mean, you didn’t want it? You’d rather be dead?”

“You stay out of this!”