Tunnels 04, Closer

important he get Elliott Topsoil as soon as he could.
    As Bartleby floated past him on his way over to Elliott, a trail of sparkling beads of saliva spilling from his open mouth, Will caught the smell of meat cooking.
    "God, I am starved. Don't let that cat get mine," he said, putting the tracker away again.

    * * * * *

    A day later, Will began to notice tiny flickers of light. At first he thought his headset was malfunctioning, but as he flipped the lens up and slowed, he saw that small blue sparks were creeping along the top of his Sten.
    Elliott had pulled up beside him. As her rifle came close to his Sten, a thin blue spark leapt between the barrels.
    "What's that?" she exclaimed.
    "Turn your lantern off," he told her.
    She took her Styx lantern from where it was clipped to the shoulder strap of her Bergen and extinguished the light.
    Any object on them made of metal, including the Styx lantern itself, had eerie blue waves of light creeping over it.
    "I think it's some kind of electrical charge. Might be static?" Will said. "And can you hear that?"
    In the darkness, they listened. There was definitely a low rumble, a vibration filling the passage.
    "Yes, I hear it," Elliott said, as she switched the lantern back to its lowest setting.
    "I wonder..."
    "What?" she asked as Will stared into the distance, frowning.
    "No, I was just thinking -- I wonder if, right now, we're level with the crystal belt. This build up of electricity might have something to do with the triboluminescence -- those huge flashing crystals we went past before on our way to the inner world," he suggested. "So where we are now, we could be right next to the void." He glanced at the rock of the passage wall. "Maybe it's through there somewhere."
    "So you're saying we could be halfway across?" she asked.
    "Could be," he replied.

Part Four
    On The Offensive

26

    There were two sets of equipment spread out on the floor, and Drake was carefully checking off each item from a list as Eddie watched him.
    "We'll both be carrying fifteen of these," Drake said, pointing with his pen at some silver canisters, each the size of a small thermos flask. "They contain pesticide at incredibly high pressure, and at incredibly high concentration," he explained. "We'll plant them at regular intervals in the margins around the EternalCity, with radio-detonated charges strapped to them. As they go off, the pesticide will be released in aerosol form, and the convection currents will ensure that full dispersal takes place. By my calculations, the whole area should receive blanket coverage in sufficient strength to do the job."
    "Pesticide bombs," Eddie reflected.
    "Precisely," Drake said. "No more snails... so no more nasty little viruses for the Scientists to cherry-pick."
    Chester slouched into the room, his shirt hanging out on one side of his jeans as if he'd got dressed in a hurry. Drake glanced up at him, but went on without a pause, nudging a bulky coil of rope with his foot. "Eddie, you said we should bring this -- there's probably more here than we'll need, but I've erred on the side of caution." Then Drake indicated a pair of small black boxes, leaning forward to lift up the wires trailing from the closest one with his pen. "Throat mikes. We'll keep in constant touch throughout the op with these -- they're current issue Specfors kit."
    "Specfors?" Eddie inquired.
    "Special Forces," Chester chimed in.
    Both Drake and Eddie looked at him, somewhat surprised that he knew this. He inclined his head toward his bedroom. "From the PlayStation game I was on this morning," he grunted.
    "Right," Drake said, as he resumed. "Anyway, these units are far less cumbersome and more reliable than conventional headsets."
    "And those?" Eddie asked, indicating the two piles of folded green uniforms. On top of each Drake had laid a gas mask. "I already have my Limiter respirator and fatigues."
    "These are better -- they're the latest issue NBC kit," Drake answered.
    "Ah, that's one I don't know," Chester piped up.
    "It stands for Nuclear, Biological and Chemical , but the military refer to them as Noddy suits," Drake said with a brief smile. "And they're essential down there in the EternalCity -- you know what happened to Will when he passed through the city the first time without a respirator?"
    "He and Cal only just managed to avoid being chewed to death by a stalker?" Chester said sourly. "Or do you mean he was nearly grabbed by those killers from the Division?"
    Drake fixed