in the rolling clouds
of ash that drifted from the ruins of Sherikov's underground fortress.

Cole reached the top of the hill. For a brief moment he halted to get
his breath and figure where he was. It was almost evening. The sun was
beginning to set. In the darkening sky a few dots still twisted and
rolled, black specks that abruptly burst into flame and fused out
again.

Cole stood up cautiously, peering around him. Ruins stretched out
below, on all sides, the furnace from which he had escaped. A chaos of
incandescent metal and debris, gutted and wrecked beyond repair. Miles
of tangled rubbish and half-vaporized equipment.

He considered. Everyone was busy putting out the fires and pulling the
wounded to safety. It would be awhile before he was missed. But as
soon as they realized he was gone they'd be after him. Most of the
laboratory had been destroyed. Nothing lay back that way.

Beyond the ruins lay the great Ural peaks, the endless mountains,
stretching out as far as the eye could see.

Mountains and green forests. A wilderness. They'd never find him
there.

Cole started along the side of the hill, walking slowly and carefully,
his screen generator under his arm. Probably in the confusion he could
find enough food and equipment to last him indefinitely. He could wait
until early morning, then circle back toward the ruins and load up.
With a few tools and his own innate skill he would get along fine. A
screwdriver, hammer, nails, odds and ends--

A great hum sounded in his ears. It swelled to a deafening roar.
Startled, Cole whirled around. A vast shape filled the sky behind him,
growing each moment. Cole stood frozen, utterly transfixed. The shape
thundered over him, above his head, as he stood stupidly, rooted to
the spot.

Then, awkwardly, uncertainly, he began to run. He stumbled and fell
and rolled a short distance down the side of the hill. Desperately, he
struggled to hold onto the ground. His hands dug wildly, futilely,
into the soft soil, trying to keep the generator under his arm at the
same time.

A flash, and a blinding spark of light around him.

The spark picked him up and tossed him like a dry leaf. He grunted in
agony as searing fire crackled about him, a blazing inferno that
gnawed and ate hungrily through his screen. He spun dizzily and fell
through the cloud of fire, down into a pit of darkness, a vast gulf
between two hills. His wiring ripped off. The generator tore out of
his g