Tunnels 03, Freefall

insects." He immediately spoke again, with urgency. "Chester, get the rifle ready. And the stove guns." He began to take Elliott into the left-hand tunnel ahead of them. Bartleby was slouched low to the ground and so close to Will's feet that he nearly tripped him up.
    As he trod backwards from the intersection, Chester was fumbling with the rifle, trying to work the bolt. He finally managed to cock it, ramming a round into the chamber. Still walking backwards, he undid the flap on the pad on his hip, in which there were two stove guns.
    The next second took them all by surprise.
    The first Will know about it, there was the sound of a rope whipping through the air. The world turned upside down as he was whisked off his feet. He held onto Elliott, desperately trying not to drop her. He cried out to Chester as something closed around him from all sides. He caught a glimpse of what it was -- a net similar to those he'd seen on the edge of the fungal outcrop. He'd been trapped in a net.
    Bartleby hissed and bucked as he was bundled against Will. Still shouting, Will found the more he struggled, the tighter the net became, until he was hardly capable of any movement at all. Over the sound of his own cries and the creaking of the net, he was certain he caught a metallic noise, as if empty tin cans were being rattled against one another. With Elliott's shoulder pushed hard in his face and Bartleby writhing against his legs, he was in no position to tell if Chester had been responsible for this noise. He tried to see where his friend was and whether he'd been caught in another trap, but the net was spinning him around so quickly everything was a blur.
    The moment Chester registered that Will was in trouble his first impulse had been to go over to help him. But he could tell Will was very much alive from his shouts and he was more concerned by what was happening in the fissure in the tunnel roof. Rocks and soil were falling from it, as if they were being dislodged, as if something was coming. And the screeches were even louder and more numerous than before. He dropped his rucksacks from his shoulders, took a few more paces back towards Will, then trained the rifle on the opening in the roof.
    It was fortunate he did.
    Through the rifle scope, he saw something drop from the fissure. It fell without any noise whatsoever, like a shadow flits across a wall. He quickly sighted on where he thought it had landed.
    "What the...!" Chester spluttered as he tried to deal with what he was seeing.
    It was approximately three meters across, with more legs than Chester could take in at first glance. These leathery legs extended from the thick circular disk of its body. On the area of the body facing him were three patches which sparkled as if they were studded with cat's eyes. But the most striking aspect was a long stalk which protruded from above its 'eyes', with a glowing tip of muted yellow light.
    As he watched, the creature seemed to sink lower to the ground, the glowing appendage bobbing gently. Then it slowly began to rise on its multiple legs.
    Chester gripped the rifle in his hands. He couldn't abide anything that crawled at the best of times, but this monstrosity was like a physical manifestation of his worst childhood nightmares. He shuddered as wave upon wave of revulsion swept through him. You're dead meat," he growled. "I hate--" His words froze on his lips as the creature suddenly dropped its body to the ground -- as a prelude, Chester thought, to launching itself at him.
    Nothing on earth was going to stop him from pulling the trigger.
    "BLOODY SPIDER!" Chester screamed, firing into the circular body. The single shot tore straight through the creature, cleaving it in two.
    He watched as the halves toppled to the left and right, the legs going into a mad paroxysm of movement. With all the adrenaline coursing through his veins, Chester gave a hysterical laugh which sounded nothing like him.
    Then there were no more screeching calls, just Will's shouts from the net.
    Chester had straightened up when another of the creatures landed with a soft flopping noise, precisely where the first had been. His instincts taking over again, Chester cocked the rifle, then pulled the trigger.
    He was met with a sound that made his heart stop.
    There was a hollow click as the round failed to go off. He desperately tried to work the bolt again but he couldn't shift it -- it seemed to be jammed. The beast was slowly rising up on its segmented