Tunnels 04, Closer

Chester cursed, then fired twice in quick succession. On the third attempt the glass shattered.
    The Second Officer was immediately there, knocking out the remaining shards with one of the legs from the stool. "That Styx has gone," he observed, then he stuck his hand through he now unglazed port. "The handle... can't get to it... too far down," he grunted.
    "Let me have a go. I'm thinner," Chester said, pulling him out of the way.
    But it was still no good -- even with his whole arm through the door, Chester's hand was a good twenty centimeters off, and beside that it was going to take a firm grip on the bar to swing it open. While the Second Officer ransacked the cabinets around the walls to see if there was something to help them reach the handle, Chester tried to rouse Drake, shouting and screaming at him, although he could only see his feet through the port. He was still shouting when Mrs. Burrows appeared at his side.
    "I don't know what Eddie's done to him... he might even have killed him," Chester said, his voice hoarse with desperation.
    Mrs. Burrows breathed in deeply. "No, I can't smell blood," she said.
    Chester realized what was wrong with her. "Oh, no! You're blind! Those creeps blinded you!" he burst out.
    "Just tell me what you can see out there," she pressed him.
    He was doing this as the Second Officer returned with a length of rubber surgical tubing and proffered it to Chester. Chester took it from him and stretched it, then shook his head. "That's no good, is it?" he shouted.
    "Calm down, Chester," Mrs. Burrows told the boy. "First things first. We need to get Drake back into action. How do we do that?"
    The Second Officer bumbled over with what appeared to be a pair of extended metal forceps. "Not nearly long enough -- won't reach," Chester said to him, turning back to Mrs. Burrows again. "Well," he began, thinking hard, "My dad was Darklit, and Drake sort of shocked him out of it... Drake was hitting him and--"
    "Yes, that's it... use pain to bring him around," Mrs. Burrows cut the boy short. "That could work."
    "But how? Should I shoot him? Or tag him with a tranquilizer dart?" Chester said in a single breath. "But what good would that do?"
    Mrs. Burrows swiveled to the Second Officer, who was still going through the cabinets, turfing their contents out onto the floor. "Colly!" she said. The Second Officer stopped. "Your Hunter's close, isn't she?" she asked.
    "Left her outside with my friend," he answered. "How did you kn--?"
    He was interrupted by Mrs. Burrows as she put two fingers in her mouth, and gave a piercing whistle through the observation port.
    "That won't do anything. Colly's a disobedient little cuss," the Second Officer grumbled.
    But within seconds, there was a meow from outside the door.
    "Colly -- good girl!" Mrs. Burrows said. "Now, listen to me -- see that man outside -- I want you to bite him."
    With Mrs. Burrows at the observation port, Chester had no idea what was happening out in the corridor. But there was another meow, and the intonation was such that it sounded as though it should have had a question mark after it.
    "Yes, I'm telling you to bite him. Just do it," Mrs. Burrows urged the Hunter.
    In the corridor, Colly circled around Drake several times. It wasn't in her nature to harm a human, and she was decidedly uncomfortable about what she was being asked to do. But she also knew from Mrs. Burrows' tone that it was vitally important. The Hunter approached Drake, then gave him a quick nip on his thigh just above the knee.
    Mrs. Burrows sniffed. "No, it's got to be harder -- bite harder!" she shouted.
    "Jesus -- I don't think we've got long now," Chester said, as it hit him how much time had elapsed. "We're not going to do this." He and the Second Officer met each other's eyes, and it dawned on Chester just how ironic it was that he was working alongside someone who only minutes ago he'd wanted to kill. But now they were going to perish, if Mrs. Burrows' idea didn't work out.
    "Go on --BITE HIM!" she yelled.
    Colly ventured back to Drake, her tail flicking uneasily behind her as she lowered her muzzle. Then she closed her jaws on his lower leg and bit hard.
    "HARDER!" Mrs. Burrows screamed.
    Still clamped onto Drake's leg, Colly shook her head, just as she would if she was dispatching a large rat.
    There was a roar as Drake's head came up. Colly was so startled by his reaction, her paws were slipping and sliding on the waxed floor as she tried to bolt away.
    Drake