The Master of Chaos: The Solar War, #1

By Carlos Jiménez Duarte

The Solar War is a dystopian and post-apocalyptical story that takes place after a nuclear holocaust. Now the world is in a complete disaster. Nuboff, a terrorist clown self‹styled as The Master of Chaos, has the world under his control, thanks to his great intelligence and his great experience as an advanced hacker. However, in this nuclear war survival story, a group of young people who make up the Purple Brigade set out on an adventure to overthrow this terrorist, while love, friendship and sexy romance refuse to die.

The Master of Chaos represents the first part of The Solar War trilogy. From its first episodes, the work reveals the danger in which the human race finds itself in the face of technological progress and the arms industry. It is a profound novel that exposes the macabre destiny to which humanity is heading if there is no control in terms of scientific and digital innovation.

This book won the 2019 Wattys Award within the works written in Spanish in the Science Fiction category. In this same category, in March of the following year, the Wattpad platform awarded it the distinction of Outstanding of the month. One more recognition that was added to the one granted by the Profile WattpadSuperheroesES by choosing it as Outstanding Story.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Carlos Jiménez Duarte
• Release date: Jun 7, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223601593

Book preview

Chapter 1

The Mysterious Project Z50.1

Ana Aguirre had been working on the code for three weeks. On her computer screen, line after line, she was solving the problem. As a final year student of systems engineering at the University of Barcelona, she had decided to take on the challenge of that international contest.

The software company White Shadows had published on its official website the guidelines for a contest in which programmers from all over the world were invited to solve a complex and lengthy computer code. The person who created the best algorithm would win $30,000 dollars and a trip to the company's facilities in Silicon Valley.

It was 2 a.m. when Ana submitted her algorithm. The next day, in the evening, she received an email, the content of which was simply the number of an IP address. After typing it into her browser, she entered the interface of a chat room with a black background.

The only other person in the chat room introduced himself as Project Z50.1. Both were online until four in the morning, but not before agreeing on a new appointment for the next day at midnight.

Night after night, Ana continued to chat with this someone, filling him with her questions and motivated by curiosity. It was evident that this was someone with vast knowledge. He could answer any kind of question in a matter of milliseconds: from the exact names of the stars, to the capitals of countries, to explaining complex ideas about philosophy teachers.

At times, Project Z50.1 would rattle off astonishing thoughts about her perception of Life and the Universe. At some point Ana came to suspect that Project Z50.1 was a truly advanced Artificial Intelligence. She then dared to tempt it, asking it to talk about her and her own life.

Project Z50.1 answered nothing about her personal details, but did reveal a number of memories, such as the events of her first date with her ex-boyfriend, the heart operation her father had received fifteen years ago, and the trip to Egypt where she got lost in a bazaar.

One night, Project Z50.1 told her something that shocked her. He announced to her that in the future, the world would be ruled by computers and digital systems, while a single programmer on the planet would maintain control over them.

That programmer would be able to destroy an entire city at will after sending a nuclear warhead or empty the bank accounts of even the wealthiest man on the planet. All this, with a single keystroke on his computer, while remaining completely anonymous. Then showed her a series of photos of what such an era of the future would look like.

Why did you reveal this to me? asked Ana, truly terrified.

Because you were the one who wrote the code, he replied. Now look behind you.

It was then that she turned her head back. In the doorway of her room she saw a tall man, dressed in a black trench coat and a military style cap of the same color. For an instant she saw him smile and then she noticed that in his right hand he was holding an automatic weapon, equipped with a silencer.

The man fired. Ana Aguirre experienced a strong impact on her head, only that as she collapsed to the ground she was certain that it was not the bullet that managed to fulminate her, but that the blow came from another angle, which also had the forcefulness of having been executed with a solid object, such as a baseball bat.

Ana lay on the ground for several minutes watching the line of blood emanating from her head. Then everything went completely dark. When she opened her eyes again, a doctor loomed in her field of vision.

It's about time you woke up, he said. You've been in a coma for almost forty years. Even though White Shadows went bankrupt seven years ago, the manager of the company remained determined not to pull the plug on you. We're glad to hear that the best programmer on the planet is back. Without you, this world would be a mess and General O'Donnell would still be operating from the shadows.

Chapter 2

An Unexpected Ally

Rasec had arrived at the tensest moment of that war. He appeared at the Portal of Heaven in the early morning of a December day. His body materialized in the midst of a flash of lightning that completely illuminated the portal, while an electrifying sound awakened all those present, who saw how his white silhouette was acquiring its colors.

It was at that very moment when it was possible to see that he was dressed in his blue strapless jumpsuit, with a nice pocket in the chest area. Under the jumpsuit he was wearing a long-sleeved white T-shirt. His feet were shod in black sneakers with white laces.

Were you waiting for me? he asked.

He had not finished asking his question, when reality jumped untimely from the darkness of the early morning, to the tranquility of a cool and pleasant morning. Now the brightness of the day implied that it must be seven o'clock in the morning.

Who brought you here? said Trinity, breaking the silence.

There will be time for answers, replied the young man.

Then he went to one of the military trunks and extracted an RN - 15. From that moment on that would be the assault rifle that would accompany him, often carrying it crossed on his back. He took a few seconds to appreciate the weapon, checking that it was loaded and verifying at the same time that it had the safety on.

Okay, ladies and gentlemen, he said, let's get going!.

He descended the steps of the pavilion, as he placed the rifle on his back. Then he approached the jeep until he stood at the driver's door, where he stopped when he realized that the members of the brigade stood motionless, watching him and full of astonishment.

What are they waiting for? he asked. Nuboff will attack in two hours. Are they planning to stand idly by?

With that attitude and the determination that emanated from his presence, Rasec had just become the leader of the Purple Brigade. A minute later, the three vehicles were leaving the Portal of Heaven. That work of art, nestled in the middle of the green grass and with its marble columns forming a circle, was behind them.

As the sun rose over the horizon, a pleasant warmth permeated the three jeeps. Rasec was driving the first of these vehicles, while in the co-pilot seat was Trinity. They talked about the ravages of war and the apocalyptic times in which the world found itself.

An hour later, the vehicles crossed a barren, ochre plain dotted with huge nuclear holes. The smaller micro atomic bombs had left holes some twenty meters wide. Holes that looked as if they had been created by the enormous tip of a spinning top.

Even with the fever that had been tormenting him for three days, Nathan saw in the distance that there was no trace of life: no trees, no animals, no grass that reminded him of the glorious days of that place. A fertile region where cows were grazing, in the middle of the fences that delimited the farms. Now it was a devastated and sad area.

How many suns have fallen on this planet since I left? the driver asked humorously.

Enough to devastate almost all of humanity, Nathan replied.

The three members of the Purple Brigade accompanying Rasec had already come out of their awe of that young driver, informed of almost all the ins and outs of The Solar War. Now was not the time to worry about where he came from. What mattered to them now was that he evidently represented an ally.

After another forty minutes of driving, the three jeeps stopped in front of a pair of railroad tracks. The heat of the morning had increased, but the mild climate of the region gave those present a delightful feeling. Nathan was the first to get off.

The five members of the Purple Brigade, those aboard the two vehicles that followed the route marked by the first jeep, approached with some caution, still not vouching for the intentions of the new ally.

My name is Rasec, as the others already know, he said. Forgive me for not introducing myself sooner.

Well, it seems our friends already have full confidence in you Monique commented. What a smile Trinity has on her face right now.

True, interjected Sophia. But you could have taken the time to greet us when you first appeared in the doorway.

I'm sorry, but just as I told you, Nuboff won't be long in attacking. Time is against us on this one.

And why are you so sure? questioned Monique.

Suddenly, the railroad rails began to generate a soft sound; a sound that was growing like a soft squeak, similar to that of a needle scraping over a metal surface.

Because our enemy's target is related to that train he answered.

Monique and Sophia, as well as the other three comrades-in-arms, had to turn around to appreciate how, in the distance, on the horizon line, appeared a train composed of at least about twenty freight cars. The wagons had an interesting terracotta color.

But that means of transport was far from being of the present time. Its model and age seemed to have come out of the 1950s. For that reason, it did not move at a fast pace. It moved calmly, while the sound of its carriages generated a constant bluck-bluck, bluck-bluck. At that instant it was at a maximum distance of one kilometer.

I think it's time to go get our guns, Nathan announced anxiously.

It only took them ten seconds to go for their assault rifles.

Suddenly, everyone's mind detached from their bodies and traveled swiftly towards the approaching train. They could see the military turrets located on the roof of the cars, which were commanded by different men and women dressed in orange uniforms and gas masks. Due to the position of the weapons, they could only fire horizontally or into the sky.

The sight of the approaching train generated a certain euphoria. In truth, it was an euphoria motivated by the unforeseen way in which this reality could be contemplated. But suddenly the illusion came to an end and the minds of each of the members of the Purple Brigade returned to their bodies.

Immediately they all turned their attention to Rasec, aware that it had been he who had generated the opportunity to witness such a vision. In fact, that ally could not prevent a smile from appearing on his face, perceiving the sensation he had generated for them.

The train was now within two hundred yards of the jeeps.

All right gentlemen, Rasec shouted. Our mission is to board said train.

Board? asked Monique, who was already shielding behind one of the jeeps.

And then, that ally jumped onto the railroad tracks and started running straight for the train. In a second, the members of the Purple Brigade exchanged looks of astonishment among themselves, before feeling the magnetic inspiration to obey the man's act.

That means, said Troy heading for one of the jeeps, that I have to put on this heavy survival backpack right now.

I don't know who the hell he is, thought Trinity, who was the first to hit the tracks, but with such security we have no choice but to follow him. The nine characters, who were running in the direction of the train, were then spotted by the masked man in the first turret of the train.

That man began to laugh at the logical truth that they would be crushed by the train. But then he saw them vanish. The Purple Brigade, who felt with horror how the metallic face of that means of transport advanced and advanced, experienced an electrifying energy.

Then they felt a powerful force pushing them from behind, making the matter of each one as light as the wind itself. A wind that defied the power of the train and conquered the interior of the first car. Scenario in which, after a refreshing swirl of breezes, they all materialized again.

Wow! exclaimed Reik, let's do that again.

But the excitement of what had happened immediately gave way to the seriousness of the mission they all had to face. It didn't take long for them to recognize that that wagon was full of bags of money. In fact, there were bundles of bills here and there, as well as coins, as if someone had taken the time to celebrate the million-dollar robbery.

There's enough money here, Nathan said, to live about ten lifetimes without worrying about working.

The young Reik took one of the wads of bills and discovered the printed face of Benjamin Franklin on the first one. The ambition to keep that wad of bills, which must represent at least about ten thousand dollars, invaded his heart. Only at once he remembered that, in the midst of The Solar War, that money was worthless.

Let's see who's in command of the train, said Trinity, as he took the safety off his rifle.

He went to the door of the carriage and opened it with conviction.

The cockpit room was deserted. No one was in command of that conveyance. Although they immediately recognized that the space was occupied by three barrels of gasoline that remained connected to different groups of dynamite sticks. A clock with a countdown timer was on one of the sticks, located in the center of the dashboard.

This is another one of your ridiculous jokes, said Monique. 

Everyone then gave way to the youngest woman in the Purple Brigade. Her name: Luna. Explosives expert and sniper. She was always dressed in a black military uniform and wore a cap of the same style that she only took off when she decided to stroke her hair, which reached almost halfway down her back.

At that moment, she was not at all concerned that the dynamite countdown clock was only ten seconds away. In fact, she waited for the countdown to reach zero, to watch the countdown restart again from the same ten seconds.

With utmost calmness, the woman reached her right hand into one of the pockets of her military jacket and extracted a red-colored metal pliers.

No need to hold your breath, she announced wryly.

With the same patience and serenity, Luna brought the said tool close to one of the blue wires of the pump. And waited for the number 3 to appear on the dynamite's clock. A small click was heard as the blue wire was cut. The woman raised her eyes, which stopped as she recognized the pair of megaphones, which hung in each upper corner of the front window of that cockpit.

The sound of an electric guitar began to vibrate in the room. It was gently increasing in volume, until the singer's voice burst out, "Welcome to the jungle, we've got fun and games; we got everything you want honey, we know the names; we are the people that can find whatever you may need; if you got the money, honey, we got your disease."

Do they still listen to Guns N' Roses music on this planet? asked Rasec, surprised.

Yes, and that's the escape order exclaimed Reik.

Heavy, violent footsteps of movement could be heard on the roof of the train. Reik, immediately peered out of one of the side windows. All the men and women in orange uniforms and gas masks in the turrets were rushing toward the second railroad tracks.

One of them fell head first against a steel rail, before recovering from the blow and running off, disappearing into the middle of the trees.

Gentlemen, it's time to search this train ordered Reik.

The train continued its relentless march. It had indeed been completely abandoned. The first four cars were crammed with bags of money. In the fifth they came upon a nice living room. It was a space illuminated by a ceiling lamp. The yellow color of the bulb bathed a set of elegant furniture, which lay on a rug.

The tragic thing about the place was that the lifeless body of a bank guard was lying on one of the armchairs, holding a cup of coffee. Just in front of this corpse, seated on a chair, a dead secretary dressed in red was holding a teapot in front of her legs. Both people had their faces made up in yellow makeup.

How many more scenes like this will we continue to see in this war? asked Luna.

At that point, Reik gave the order to Monique, Sophia, Marshall and Troy, to climb onto the roof of the train and travel to the tail end of the train itself. Their task was to check the missing cars, heading forward, until they reached the tenth car where they all rejoined.

Six cars full of money, another macabre little scene, and the rest empty, Marshall reported.

Now they had reconvened in car number ten, which represented just half of the entire train. Wrapped in military green tarpaulins was a cube about two meters high. Several lashing ropes prevented the heavy load from being undressed. In red spray letters the four walls of the bucket were marked WS-284. 

He's coming for this, Rasec said. And it won't be long now.

And he wasn't lying. In the distance a faaam-faaaaaaaaaaaaaam was heard, representing the sound of the horn of another approaching train. Very soon it was felt that the force of that heavy conveyance, moving on the parallel railroad track, had overtaken the position of the carriage in which the brigade remained. And then, everyone had the feeling that that train, slowed down so as not to leave them behind. 

GET DOWN! shouted Reik.

Everyone obeyed the order. They had not finished settling on the floor, when the sound of an automatic weapon was heard firing right and left against the wall of the carriage. The light from outside managed to filter through the newly made holes, projecting different white dots all over the wagon.

A few seconds later, the wagon was illuminated in its entirety, when the large door of the wagon was torn off: it looked as if it had been blown away by the wind. But to achieve this, the enemy side had made use of special equipment with a strong grip. Then a metallic object was heard to fall inside the train. It was a smoke grenade that quickly spread a white cloud in the wagon.

The confusion was total for the members of the Purple Brigade, who felt asphyxiated by the smoke. In the middle of the floor, Luna saw a group of four men, wearing orange uniforms and gas masks, quickly enter to grab with metal hooks the wood of the pallet that carried the two-meter cube.

At that instant, the speed at which the train was moving allowed the breeze from outside to flood the car, clearing the smoke completely. Thanks to this clarity, Reik discovered that a bridge had been installed between the two cars. Wasting no time, the men returned to the offending train and activated a motor that took over pulling the metal ropes.

They're taking her away, said Trinity in a panic. They're taking her away!

The aggressive shifting of the load pushed Trinity's and Luna's respective rifle onto the railroad tracks: both rifles had escaped from their hands amidst the confusion initiated from the approaching train. Within three seconds, the mysterious load, with its red spray inscription of WS-284, was on the enemy train, while the bridge fell to the tracks. Reik fired with his assault rifle and managed to hit two of the six men on the enemy train.

On receiving the attack, one of them slipped and went to hit the tracks of the moving trains. At that moment, the door of the carriage was closed by the orange-uniformed men, pushing it to the right. But almost immediately it opened again, sliding easily to the left. There he stood.

He was dressed in a white shirt with long sleeves. The red suspenders that hung from his shoulders ended where a pair of yellow pants began. The pants did not reach his feet, but ended a little below his knees, just where his white stockings began. The stockings were topped by a pair of red tennis shoes.

Meanwhile, his face was made up in white and had three thick diagonal stripes, as if he had just been scratched by a prehistoric beast. Finally, the villain had red dyed hair that reached his shoulders. A hair that was presented in a messy way, as if he had not washed it for days and had just gotten out of bed, after a deep sleep.

It was Nuboff, the world's most famous terrorist.

YOU INFELICATE CLOWN Marshall shouted at him. AS OF TODAY YOU WILL NEVER WATCH YOUR BATMAN MOVIES AGAIN.

Immediately, he pointed his rifle at him and fired, making use of all the bullets in his supplier. It had been a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for him. However, when he finished, he found that the enemy was looking at him with total serenity. The projectiles had generated several impact marks on what looked like armored glass.

Sophia, Troy and Monique, still understanding the situation, rushed to fire their respective weapons, achieving an equally ineffective result. Both trains continued to travel at the same speed. Through the shocked glass it was observed how the four masked men pushed the WS-284 cargo, placing it in the right-hand car. 

Damn it! exclaimed Marshall. What's in that box? We've got to stop that train any way we can.

Nuboff gave his men time to finish the job. Only then did he use his right hand to pull a red-colored rope suspended from the ceiling: an action that forced the armored glass to detach from the frame of the car and fall onto the railroad tracks.

Then as the terrorist raised his rifle to answer the volley of shells that had hit his bulletproof glass, Rasec made his way to stand right in the middle of the Purple Brigade. Everyone watched in horror as the muzzle of Nuboff's rifle spat fire, generating a shuddering noise.

But contrary to everyone's expectations, no member of the brigade was hit. Monique watched in fascination as the projectiles fell to the floor of the carriage, as if they were small stones. The same feeling of astonishment soon took hold of Nuboff's heart, who suspended the blast from his gun to study it for a second.

This allowed him to verify that the rifle really did not have the safety that prevented the bullets from being fired. Then he started firing again. But the effect of the projectiles ricocheting and falling into the carriage he was attacking was repeated. Seeing how futile the attack was proving, Nuboff's four men began firing as well.

WHAT IS HAPPENING? shouted Trinity to make herself heard. IT'S LIKE AN INVISIBLE SHIELD IS PROTECTING US.

There was a moment of suspense, despite the relentless pace with which both trains were traveling. Rasec and Nuboff looked into each other's eyes for five seconds. After which the terrorist fired directly into said face, which smiled subversively at him. The result of the attack was the same: the invisible shield rendered full service to the Purple Brigade's new ally.

Then a horrible feeling of fear was felt in the air, which actually came from Nuboff. Luna and Trinity, Reik and Nathan, like everyone else, gazed at the face of the terrorist, who had a chilling expression of cowardice and utter panic. Never before had Nuboff's arrogant security fallen so low, being breached by the realization of who was responsible for the shield.

The same intuition ended up enlightening everyone present, including the four masked men accompanying the terrorist. To reinforce the sense of awe, without having to gather momentum, Rasec took a leap that allowed him to land on the wagon where the enemy was.

Stay where you are he warned, as if to scold. I'm taking charge of this situation.

The Purple Brigade remained in the train car, immobilized by the fascination this man inspired, watching as he began to fight Nuboff. Blocks, kicks and fists were exchanged by both characters, as if they were true masters of martial arts. Even so, it was evident that the clown was having a hard time resisting the attacks.

The two trains were traveling relentlessly at the same speed. Nuboff's men did not dare to shoot him for fear of hitting their own boss. However, they did decide to attack the assailant hand-to-hand. It was just at that moment when Rasec showed his true defensive level, evading the attacks with great agility and technique.

Making use of an elbow, thrown backwards, he hit one of the masked men, forcing him to fall to the ground, where he writhed in pain. Then he used a kick also directed backwards to get rid of another of the men. Those blows had been executed simultaneously with the punishing fists Nuboff was receiving.

WHAT A SHOW! shouted Nathan. I THOUGHT THIS ONLY HAPPENED IN THE MOVIES.

When the four masked men accompanying Nuboff were already on the ground, seized by the forcefulness of the blows, Rasec performed a kick that managed to knock down the clown, who began to crawl backwards using his elbows, moving to a corner of the carriage, while watching in horror the tall man in suspender overalls and a white long-sleeved T-shirt.

FEEL THE TERROR, YOU DAMN CLOWN! shouted Nathan. HE'S THE BEST SOLDIER IN OUR BRIGADE! HIT HIM RASEC, I AUTHORIZE YOU TO KILL HIM AND END THIS WAR!

But then Monique caught a glimpse of how, from the ground, one of those masked men loaded the gun with the firm intention of shooting Rasec. In fact, the man took a few seconds to calculate his aim. So she jumped into the carriage. When the man tried to react, his face was already being hit by Monique's boots.

Love, what are you doing? exclaimed Reik. This is not the time for heroics.

Then Reik, sensing how the other masked men were beginning to recover from the pain, couldn't help the urge to act and jumped into the wagon. At that moment, Rasec finished approaching Nuboff, who from the ground extended his right hand, in a gesture where it was evident that he was pleading for mercy. But his assailant was relentless and continued to unload his fists both in the face and abdomen of the clown.

Meanwhile, in a violent manner, Monique snatched the assault rifle from the man and fired at another of the masked men who, still recovering from the pain, was two meters away from her. Then with full determination she fired at the one next to her.

At the same moment Reik had just shot another one. When he noticed the masked man, who was still alive in the wagon, it was too late to shoot him. That enemy, while still on the ground, was aiming directly at the woman, just as she was beginning to turn around.

MONIQUE! shouted Reik.

Reik reached up to jump to knock the woman's body down. But the man fired at just the right moment to get three projectiles to hit her back. Rasec stopped the beating Nuboff was receiving at that moment. He looked for a very brief moment at Reik protecting Monique with his body.

Then he invested two seconds to get up and smash his foot against the throat of the only ally the clown had at that moment. Then, he spent a third second to fixate again on the couple, who remained motionless. Three seconds of distraction had taken away the unexpected. But in that brief lapse of time, Nuboff managed to get up to perform an acrobatic martial kick.

A kick as perfect as a professional karate kick. The heel of the world's most famous terrorist impacted right on the right temple of Rasec, who fell to the floor of the carriage. Standing up, Nuboff reached one of his hands into the pocket of his yellow pants and pulled out a detonator control.

Onlookers on the train in front then watched as the clown fled to the car to the right. A moment later, an explosion caused the carriage containing Rasec, Reik and Monique to break away from the rest of the train. Sophia watched for a few seconds as that car was left behind, while the two trains continued to move forward.

Now Nuboff's train is taking advantage, she said.

Indeed, with the release of the final car, the train began to move faster. However, as if by some miracle to the remaining members of the Purple Brigade, in less than ten seconds the train was back in sync with the speed of that old train.

During that synchronization time, the clown picked out one of his favorite weapons in the middle of a military locker. It was an XW-6V grenade launcher, with programmable timing cartridges. After placing it on his back, he headed for the vertical ladder that allowed the wagon hatch to be opened. By the time he pushed the cover, the trains were already facing each other again.

Thanks to this coincidence, in the car in which the Purple Brigade was located, everyone was able to observe when Nuboff stuck his head out and finished climbing out to stand on the roof of his train. In fact, the hatch cover slipped off and fell onto the railroad tracks.

What's he thinking now? said Troy.

I don't know...but there's no time to waste, replied Marshall, borrowing Nathan's rifle before heading for the next car. I'll go up on the roof to find out.

By the time Marshall managed to get out through the hatch, after struggling with great difficulty for a minute to figure out how the mechanism enabled such an opening, already Nuboff was in the first car of his train. The cool wind of that December morning refreshed his body, allowing him to feel an electrifying energy that ran all over his skin.

The two trains were traveling through a countryside filled with nature. A landscape that thrilled Marshall's heart even more, who was used to seeing desolate territories marked with circular craters, caused by the fury of nuclear bombs. A succession of trees and more trees accompanied on either side the railroad tracks on which the two trains were traveling.

What's he doing? he wondered. I'd better wait for him to come back and shoot him.

That decision was largely motivated by the fact that on the roof of the train were still the military turrets that had once been at the disposal of Nuboff's men. There were at least two per car, which prevented easy running through them.

Given the distance between him and the most famous terrorist in the world, Marshall could not appreciate well what Nuboff was doing, who, after bringing his right hand back to select the grenade launcher, placed his left knee on the roof of the train. In this way he was able to obtain a stable firing position.

He then pulled the trigger of the weapon and the grenade entered through the side window of the cockpit. He calmly got up and started to run at full speed in the direction of the roof hatch box in the last car of his train. In his mind he was counting down the thirty seconds that remained before the grenade would go off.

Get closer, asshole, Marshall thought as he tightened his grip on the rifle. Get closer.

But just as they were within yards, the train Nuboff was on began to slow down. The sudden change in that speed sentenced Marshall's mind to a strange illusion, as if the laws of physics had changed. That sensation prevented him from pulling the trigger.

So, in the midst of his astonishment, Marshall could only watch the clown run, who made a gesture that shook him: he slid the index finger of his right hand over his neck, as if he were cutting it with a sharp sword.

After that, Nuboff returned to the interior of the carriage. However, he held on to the stairs while he left half of his head on the outside so that he could appreciate the spectacle of the explosion. Marshall thought for a second about Nuboff's gesture, until intuition allowed him to understand with horror what was coming.

THE GASOLINE BARRELS AND THE DRIVING BOOTH DYNAMITE! he shouted.

So he immediately ran to jump to the roof hatch of the train he had climbed through. All this happened in less than five seconds. After that time the cockpit exploded. The thunder of the explosion could be heard for three kilometers around.

The metal wheels of the cockpit came off the rails. This set off a chain reaction that forced the rest of the cars to jump off the track. That sad train, with its ancient age of the last century, veered off course, sliding abruptly into the green of the field and crashing into the nearest trees, which to some extent managed to