Free Code Lightfall and the Robot King by Daniel H. Wilson Page A

tree crashed down and exploded into a flood of inky sludge. The circling pool of nanobots was forgotten as Code spotted the nose of the plate-shaped desert craft. It had found them and was pushing its way into the woods, breaking huge trees in half. Hovering above the silver throne, Immortalis gave commands to its stone-faced robot guards. All the prisoners were gone, presumably thrown into the desert. As the craft shoved its way into the clearing, the blue eye of Immortalis glared at them hatefully. It was then that Code noticed his grandfather hanging limply from Immortalis’s black tentacles.
    â€œStop, human!” shouted his grandfather. Only it wasn’t his grandfather, Code had to remind himself. He swallowed a pang of sadness at the sight of that familiar face twisted into an angry snarl. Code wished he could hear his grandfather’s true voice just for a moment, but John Lightfall was under the control of that horrible monster.
    Peep chirped, fluttered her wings, and shot a beam of light back at the landing pad. Code backed up to the edge of the nanobot sludge. Gary stood beside the small boy defensively.
    â€œLet my grandfather go, Immortalis!” demanded Code.
    But the king only laughed. “You can’t stop the Disassembly,” he boomed. “This is my world, boy. You cannot run, you cannot hide, and you will not escape me!”
    Code’s hair was suddenly blown back from his face by a familiar-feeling rush of air. Another transped was going to land at any second.
    â€œOh, no?” Code taunted. He tapped Gary on the leg and pointed to the concrete pad. “Let’s hitch a ride!”
    Gary snatched up Code and leaped over the river of nanobots, landing on the slab. Just then, a heavily armored transped careened through the air and touched down, sending stress fractures zigzagging through the concrete pad. The six-legged vehicle, plated with thick armor, didn’t even notice the extra weight added by Code and Gary, much less Peep. It settled down on its haunches and prepared to leap again.
    â€œNo!” roared the king. He motioned forward and the rotating desert craft plunged ahead, crashing through the last of the trees, heading straight for them. Immortalis sent out a flurry of long, cruel tentacles.
    At the last second, Code looked directly into his powerless grandfather’s eyes. “I’ll save you, Grandpa. I promise.” Then Code glared at the blazing blue eye of Immortalis. “As soon as I’ve got the Robonomicon!” he vowed.
    Gary pulled Code closer.
    â€œThis,” said Gary, grabbing hold of one of the transped’s hulking legs with one arm and cradling Code with the other, “may hurt just a little …”

10
Clockwork City
    The Great Disassembly:
T–Minus Forty-eight Hours
    Code hung on tight as the transped soared through the air, wind rushing past. Then the ground suddenly loomed up. The transped leg that Gary and Code were clinging to extended for a smash landing onto another concrete slab. Gritting his teeth, Code tried to fight back a headache; he had lost count of how many brain-jarring leaps they had made. Each jump through the Nanoscopic Traverse brought them closer to a curious gray city perched on a cliff by the edge of the sea.
    Gary called this place Clockwork City, gateway to the Beamstalk.
    Code and Gary finally hopped off the transped just outside the city, balancing themselves on rubbery legs. Peep flitted around, dutifully shooting beams of green light at anything that moved. From a distance, the city was silent and still. Thousands of identical windowless buildings sprouted in perfect rows and columns. Wind blew down featureless avenues and whistled between buildings. It was the only sound or movement in the whole desolate, repetitive scene.
    Landing on Code’s arm, Peep shivered.
    â€œCode, I don’t think we should go in there,” said Gary. “There could be hostile robots. If