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"This was no nuclear war," Eddie said "This this" His thin, horrified voice sounded like that of a child
"NOPE," Blaine agreed "IT WAS A LOT WORSE THAN THAT, AND IT&039;S NOT OVER YET WE HAVE REACHED THE POINT WHERE I USUALLY POWER UP HAVE YOU SEEN ENOUGH?"
"Yes," Susannah said "Oh my God yes"
"SHAM I TURN OFF THE VIEWERS, THEN?" That cruel, teas-ing note was hack in Blaine &039;s voice On the horizon, a jagged nighte looray sky like fangs
"Do it or don&039;t do it, but stop playing games," Roland said
"FOR SOMEONE WHO CAME TO ME BEGGING A RIDE, YOU ARE VERY RUDE," Blaine said sulkily
"We earned our ride," Susannah replied "We solved your riddle, didn&039;t we?"
"Besides, this is what you were built for," Eddie chimed in "To take people places"
Blaine didn&039;t respond in words, but the overhead speakers gave out an ae thatan to fill in with curves of color The dark blue carpet appeared again, blotting out their view of the fu reappeared and they were once again sitting in the Barony Coach
A low huines began to cycle up again Jake felt a gentle, unseen hand push him back into his seat Oy looked around, whined uneasily, and began to lick Jake&039;s face On the screen at the front of the cabin, the green dot - now slightly southeast of the violet circle with the word LUD printed beside it - began to flash faster
"Will we feel it?" Susannah asked uneasily "When it goes through the soundbarrier?"
Eddie shook his head "Nope Relax"
"I know so," Jake said suddenly The others looked around, but Jake was not speaking to the at the route-map Blaine had no face, of course - like Oz the Great and Terrible, he was only a dise point "I know so about you, Blaine"
"IS THAT A FACT, LITTLE TRAILHAND?"
Eddie leaned over, placed his lips against Jake&039;s ear, and whispered: "Be careful - we don&039;t think he knows about the other voice"
Jake nodded slightly and pulled away, still looking at the route-as and killed all the people I knohy you took us, too, and it wasn&039;t just because we solved your riddle"
Blaine uttered his abnor, was much more unpleasant than either his bad imitations orBelow them, the slo-trans turbines had cycled up to a steady thrum Even with their view of the outside world cut off, the sensation of speed was very clear
"You&039;re planning to commit suicide, aren&039;t you?" Jake held Oy in his ar him "And you want to take us with you"
"No!" the voice of Little Blaine moaned "If you provoke him you&039;ll drive him to it! Don&039;t you see - "
Then the small, whispery voice was either cut off or overwhelh, shrill, and jagged - the sound of a an to flicker, as if the force of thesetoo much power Their shadows jumped up and down on the curved walls of the Barony Coach like uneasy phantoms
"SEE YOU LATER, ALLIGATOR," Blaine said through his wild laughter - his voice, calm as ever, see his divided mind "AFTER A WHILE, CROCODILE DON&039;T FORGET TO WRITE"
Below Roland&039;s band of pilgriines throbbed in hard, steady beats And on the route-reen dot had now begun to hted line toward the last stop: Topeka, where Blaine the Mono clearly meant to end all of their lives
9
AT LAST THE LAUGHTER stopped and the interior lights glowed steadily again
"WOULD YOU LIKE A LITTLE MUSIC?" Blaine asked "I HAVE OVER SEVEN THOUSAND CONCERTI IN MY LIBRARY - A SAM-PLING OF OVER THREE HUNDRED LEVELS THE CONCERTI ARE MY FAVORITES, BUT I CAN ALSO OFFER SYMPHONIES, OPERAS, AND A NEARLY ENDLESS SELECTION OF POPULAR MUSIC YOU MIGHT ENJOY SOME WAY-GOG MUSIC THE WAY-GOG IS AN INSTRUMENT SOMETHING LIKE THE BAGPIPE IT IS PLAYED ON ONE OF THE UPPER LEVELS OF THE TOWER"
"Way-Gog?" Jake asked &039;
Blaine was silent
"What do you mean, &039;it&039;s played on one of the upper levels of the Tower&039;?" Roland asked
Blaine laughed and was silent
"Have you got any ZZ Top?" Eddie asked sourly
"YES INDEED," Blaine said "HOW ABOUT A LITTLE TUBE-SNAKE BOOGIE; EDDIE OF NEW YORK ?"
Eddie rolled his eyes "On second thought, I&039;ll pass"
"Why?" Roland asked abruptly "Why do you wish to kill yourself?"
"Because lie&039;s a pain," Jake said darkly
"I&039;M BORED ALSO, I AM PERFECTLY AWARE THAT I AM SUFFERING A DEGENERATIVE DISEASE WHICH HUMANS CALL GOING INSANE, LOSING TOUCH WITH REALITY, GOING LOONYTOONS, BLOWING A FUSE, NOT PLAYING WITH A FULL DECK, ET CETERA REPEATED DIAGNOSTIC CHECKS HAVE FAILED TO REVEAL THE SOURCE OF THE PROBLEM I CAN ONLY CONCLUDE THAT THIS IS A SPIRITUAL MALAISE BEYOND MY ABILITY TO REPAIR"
Blaine paused for a moment, then went on
"I HAVE FELT MY MIND GROWING STEADILY STRANGER OVER THE YEARS SERVING THE PEOPLE OF MID-WORLD BECAME POINTLESS CENTURIES AGO SERVING THOSE FEW PEOPLE OF LUD WHO WISHED TO VENTURE ABROAD BECAME EQUALLY SILLY NOT LONG AFTER, YET I CARRIED ON UNTIL THE ARRIVAL OF DAVID QUICK, A SHORT WHILE AGO I DON&039;T REMEMBER EXACTLY WHEN THAT WAS DO YOU BELIEVE, ROLAND OF GILEAD, THAT MACHINES MAY GROW SENILE?"