The man—the Tangent—shrugged, then finally lowered his hands. “I just lost all contact. With myself, my partners, my army. So I can only assume that you’ve won. I don’t know how or where or when, but it’s over. I guess that’s two weeks of memories I’ll never get back. Not that I’d want to. All my people are gone or dead, as far I can tell—you have way more supporters than I thought. The only reason I knew you were here is because I intercepted a message from…myself to…myself.”

Michael just stared at him, completely lost. He did understand, actually, but his mind felt like a big ball of hardened twine, like one length might snap and the whole thing explode in a pile of dust at any second. He kept the gun pointed at his enemy, wanting so badly to pull the trigger.

“Look, I’m nothing anymore,” Kaine said. “Without the Mortality Doctrine, without my resources, without the support of the VNS infrastructure…I even created my own little Hive, tucked away in oblivion, and I don’t think I could find the thing if I had a hundred years to search for it. Everything in the virtual world is lost to me now. I can feel its absence.” And then, right there, at Michael’s feet, the most terrifying figure the world had ever known wept like a frightened child.

“Please,” Kaine whimpered. “Just let me live in this world. I’ll never access the Sleep. Never again. You have my word. You took away immortality. Let me have mortality. I’m begging you.”

Michael took a step forward, pointing the tip of the gun right at Kaine’s forehead. But he couldn’t do it. There was just no way he could pull that trigger. Sorrow engulfed him.

“You,” Michael whispered, trembling. “You and…Weber. I hate you. You took everything from me. My parents. My life. Sarah.”

“I’m sorry,” Kaine said. “I swear I did what I thought was—”

“Shut up,” Michael snapped. “Get up and walk out of here. Now. If I ever see your face again, you’re dead. You hear me? There won’t be a second chance. I swear it on every last person’s life that you took.”

Kaine nodded. He was a miserable, pathetic creature. As Michael turned away, he heard him run across the room and through the doors, out into the street.

Michael let him go, hoping that he didn’t come to regret it someday.

6

Several minutes later Michael was still standing in the same place, staring at the floor. He didn’t have the energy to move, not even to sit down. He wished his mind would turn off and give him peace.