Sten sighed. "Then we need more. And quickly. We must leave by tomorrow night at the latest."
After the women had been escorted to their cubicles, Franz led the men through the corridors toward the center of the city. In each great square they passed squads of soldiers dressed like themselves, staring straight ahead in the same unconscious way.
When they paused in the middle of a hall to plan their strategy, Karl turned to Franz. "Something's bothering me, Franz. Just where do they put their dead? We haven't passed anything like a graveyard."
Franz laughed. "Death is rare in Panamia, my friend. When a person grows old or very ill, he is summoned by The Leader. He never comes back. I never knew anyone to come back. As far as any one knows they're still at the headquarters of The Leader."
A huge cavern-like room loomed ahead where all the main passage-ways intersected. In the middle of the square sat a great round building, forbidding, yet beautiful. Doors opened on all sides leading into the great domed structure.
"And this is where The Leader dwells. Nice, eh?" Franz said.
The men stood looking at the huge dome until it seemed to them that they were being noticed, then they passed on through the square. At the far edge, Franz suddenly stiffened. "Walk fast. Hurry," he muttered. Sten quickened his pace to keep up with the others, then felt a chill run over him as he saw the officer with the thick glasses watching them from a window in the dome.
"I wonder what would happen," Karl muttered, "if a guy could get into that dome for a few minutes to play with the machinery?"
"Perhaps it could be done," Franz replied. "But it would be your last act on earth. Nevertheless, it would be interesting to see what would happen to the people if the machinery stopped."
Sten noted the thoughtful expression on Franz's face. The man's eyes searched the corridor, where, by listening carefully, he could hear the high whine of The Leader.