Once upon a time, the Tesla factory had been an immaculate sign of what some commentators called the “Texan Renaissance.” After the fall of the old United States, the Republic of Texas had been one of the first functional states to arise in the Southwest. Dallas had been wrecked by the Lakewood Blast but the rest of the state still had tens of millions of people and abundant natural resources. For a while, the hardcore libertarian policies of the Republic had created a minor economic miracle. Tesla had gotten this factory going about three years before that boom went bust.

The first room he was taken to had clearly been some sort of reception area, and probably a showroom, at one point. There were three large oval-shaped plinths that had once held cars and a handful of metal desks bolted hard into the ground. There were also several benches, stripped of whatever they’d once been upholstered with, and a few dozen folding chairs that were clearly recent additions. Manny could see signs that the walls had been attacked at several places in an attempt to strip them of wires. The damage was obvious, but not as extensive as he’d expected. By ciudad de muerta’s standards, this building was in good shape.

A dozen Martyrs occupied the room. They wore quality non-­powered body armor and toted rifles that must’ve been looted new from the Republic’s armories. One of the desks was manned by a ­harried-looking young man in an off-white suit. He wore no sign of rank, but did have a white cross armband around his left bicep and a golden cross pin on his lapel. He was balding, baby-faced, and the deep bags under his eyes spoke of severe exhaustion. His face lit up when he saw Manny.

“Another! My prayers have been answered.”

“As the Lord wills it,” one of Manny’s escorts replied.

They brought him to the desk and the besuited man looked up at him. He had a hungry look in his eyes. He’d started to sweat a little too.

“You may call me Isaac. What’s your name, young man?”

“M– ah, Emmanuel. Emmanuel Sanchez.”

The little man jotted that down on a piece of paper and then continued asking questions.

“What’s your date of birth?”

“Do you have any family history of allergies or illnesses?”

“Have you ever undergone surgery before?”

“What biomodifications, if any, are currently active in your system? Do you have any inactive modifications?”