‘The Veteres came from a hot climate; they’d never encountered snow until they fled to Antarctica,’ Nina replied. ‘“Cold sand” was their very literal way of describing it. And it looks like they share a lot of their language with the Nephilim.’ She turned back to Gadreel. ‘Your fortress was trapped in the ice.’ Zan adapted his translation to include the new term, though the computer was still puzzled. ‘We found you and your people inside. But something went wrong,’ she decided not to complicate matters by giving him the whole violent story, ‘and the fortress fell into the sea.’

‘They are all . . . gone?’

‘I’m afraid so. I’m sorry.’

Gadreel’s expression of loss was entirely clear. He stared down at the floor, whispering something.

‘What did he say?’ asked Hui.

Zan shook his head apologetically. ‘I couldn’t hear it well,’ he said, checking the laptop’s screen. ‘I think . . . “We failed”? Or “We lost”? And . . . I don’t know. “Escape”, perhaps. It was too quiet for the computer to hear.’

Colonel Wu was devoid of sympathy. ‘Where is fortress buried? He must tell us, now!’

‘Colonel!’ Hui rounded sternly upon the officer. ‘This man is not our enemy, or our prisoner. He has just learned he has lost everything – his people, perhaps his family. Have some decency. Give him time.’

The commander regarded her, tight-faced, but eventually nodded. ‘I give him time. But not a lot. Now, I deal with people who are our enemies, and our prisoners. We question him when I come back.’ He spoke to his daughter, then marched from the room.

Nina looked back at Gadreel. He had not moved, eyes downcast. His face was not grieving or disconsolate, though; more contemplative, lost in thought. ‘I think we should leave him alone for a while.’

Hui nodded in agreement. ‘Come, in here.’

She led the way to a side door. The others filed after her. Nina glanced back at Gadreel. He had registered the exodus, but did not react to it, still thinking.

She and her family followed the Chinese into a conference room. Hui picked up a remote and activated a wall screen, bringing up a video feed from inside the isolation chamber. ‘We will see if he needs us,’ she told Nina. ‘Now, what are we to do?’

Major Wu remained standing as everyone else sat. ‘Finding the buried fortress is our top priority.’

‘We will find it,’ Hui replied dismissively, ‘but we have much to discuss first.’ She opened a laptop and started a search of the project’s records. ‘The name, Gadreel,’ she said to Nina, indicating the results, ‘in biblical apocrypha is indeed one of the angels who fathered the Nephilim. He was known for two things – the first is that he was the tempter of Eve, an aspect of the serpent responsible for the expulsion from Paradise.’

‘Great,’ said Eddie. ‘So we’ve woken up a literal devil.’