Deathstalker 02 - Deathstalker Rebellion

Now!"
    "Sorry, Cardinal," said Toby Shreck, somehow keeping an ecstatic grin off his face. "I'm afraid this has all been going out live, as your superiors insisted.
    Do you have any comment you'd care to make at this time?"
    Kassar raised his disrupter and blew the hovering camera out of midair. Flynn glared at him.
    "You'll be hearing from my Union about that."
    Random, Ruby, and Storm laughed breathlessly together as they ran with the
    Rejects, plunging down narrow tunnels and away from the pursuing Wolfe forces.
    The assault had gone exactly as planned, with minimum casualties on their side and maximum death and embarrassment to the Wolfes and the Church. A clone working in the factory complex had provided them with the exact timing necessary to be sure of camera coverage. Now the Rejects ran back through the new tunnels and on into older, established parts, keeping up a good pace for all their tiredness. The explosive-sealed openings wouldn't hold the Wolfe troops back for long. They weren't supposed to. The battle wasn't over yet. Down below, in the darkness and familiar confines of the rebel underworld, the Rejects would teach a final, deadly lesson to their enemies.
    The tunnels sloped steeply downward for some time, and then opened up suddenly into a vast cavern. Random lurched to a halt, as the path before him split apart to form a number of even narrower trails leading down and along the sides of the cavern. The vast open space was dizzyingly huge, as though someone had hollowed out the inside of a mountain. The ceiling was hundreds of feet above, and the cavern floor seemed as far below. Random stood very still, staring about him, as rebels jostled to get past him, running confidently down along the narrow trails. The walls were mostly smooth, polished by who knew how many centuries of running water and other abrasives. There were bright streaks of metallic blues and greens and golds, harsh traceries of long forgotten industries. Light from the rebels' lanterns glistened brightly on metal stalactites and stalagmites, hanging ponderously from the ceiling or jutting up from the curling yellow mists that hid the cavern floor. Ruby and Storm were at Random's side, quietly urging him forward, but he couldn't move. It was as though he'd stumbled into a giant cathedral, the vast hidden soul of Technos III. He couldn't seem to get his
    breath. He felt like a fly crawling over a stained-glass window in some old, abandoned monastery.
    He finally allowed himself to be persuaded on, following Specter Alice down a long series of steps into the misty depths below. All around him the Rejects were scattering into prearranged hiding places and ambush positions. Random slowly realized that to them, this awesome place was nothing special. They didn't see the glory and the spectacle of such a natural wonder. They had no time for that. They saw it only as a good place to launch an ambush, as just another killing ground in their never-ending war. Specter Alice led Random, Ruby, and Storm into a concealed depression in the cavern wall, giving a good view of the single entrance above. She made sure Storm was settled comfortably beside her, drew her disrupter, and then settled himself down to wait. The energy gun seemed very large in her small bony hand. Thin wisps of yellow smoke drifted up from the floor below, smelling of brimstone. The Rejects had melted into their hiding places like so many silent shadows, and now they waited patiently with gun in hand for their enemy to come to them. The great cavern was still and quiet.
    Random edged over so he could put his mouth next to Specter Alice's ear. "How long has this place been here?"
    "Who knows? It's been here longer than us, that's for sure."
    "It's wonderful."
    "Damn right. Perfect place for an ambush. We can control everything that happens down here. The Wolfes' troops don't even know what they're walking into. Poor bastards. There will be blood and suffering, and the slaughter of our enemy.
    Now, shut up. They'll be here soon. You can play tourist later when we've killed them all."

    The sound of approaching running feet came from above, and Random crouched down, gun in hand. It wouldn't be the first time he'd turned a place of beauty and wonder into a battleground. He'd seen many wonders and marvels in his day, on many planets, and left them littered with the dead and the dying. For all his noble cause, he sometimes thought that the only real legacy he'd leave behind him