It looks like Eden. Feels like heaven. Miracles.
“Don’t you see? We made it.”
Tiberius, the brother of Augustus, the scientist-turned-shade by Blacktop Bill, reveals to Val and Bailey the miracle of his compound. There is light, and with light, hope.
This hope saves Em from being completely turned. This treatment by a supersonic light known as Lux, he appears to be cured of the darkness within him.
However, Snyder doesn’t leave it all roses and smiles, but gives an air of caution and suspicion. This sounds great an all, but Val, while content with finding a modicum of peace, her brother Emory feels something more sinister is going on. He speaks of a war between light and darkness, a true “Holy War” which has the potential to end the world forever.
Em takes Val to task, talking about how he worked hard to try to make things better on his own, even revealing he became infected intentionally, in order to study and build materials and combat the dark as best he could. He knew he would be infected the longer outside, and let it happen. The once tactful Em, reveals to be a bottled up vessel of anger and hate. Hearing voices, seeing visions through his unique communication, possibly a force linking all things infected together. Em doesn’t want this haven. Val does.
The final pages, Val overhears a conversation between Tiberius and Blacktop Bill. It appears Bill was hired by Tiberius to obtain Bailey and his brother’s book. But they are here now.
Bill wants to kill them all.
