by Jacob Holo
“It’s moving off. Come on. Now’s our chance.”
Nicole grabbed Amy’s hand and followed Daniel across the Old Yard. The massive reaver straddled the yard like a grotesque metal barricade, but its head was out of sight. Daniel took them across a diagonal sidewalk. He suddenly stopped at the south end of Thayer Hall.
Nicole almost ran into his back. She looked around him. Even in the moonlight, she could see the tunnel entrance as an oddly glowing circle of dark, etched crystal where Thayer Hall’s doors should have been. A slender creeper and a silvery carpet of drones crawled out of the tunnel and spread across the Old Yard.
Daniel guided Nicole and Amy around the southern edge of Thayer Hall, just out of sight of the tunnel.
“Damn damn damn damn damn,” he breathed.
“What now?”
“Ahhh…”
A reaver let out a long jet engine roar, maybe half a mile away and getting closer. Amy clapped her ears shut. Two more creepers slithered out of the Thayer Hall tunnel.
“We can’t stay here much longer!” Nicole whispered.
“I know. Let me think.”
“What about that one?” Nicole whispered, pointing across the yard to another tunnel.
“What?”
“There’s another tunnel in front of Hollis Hall. There, see?” Nicole said, pointing to a four-story brick building directly across the Old Yard.
“Yeah, I see it.” Daniel looked around. “And there are a few more. Damn, they really chewed the hell out of this place.”
“Can we use them?”
“They’re tunnels freshly dug by reavers. What do you think?”
“Then what are we going to do?”
Another reaver shrieked into the night air. Amy clutched her head. Their pursuers had reached the shops at Harvard Square.
“Wait, maybe we can use one of these tunnels after all,” Daniel said. “The new ones aren’t that big. We can fit and the smaller reavers can, but the big boys can’t follow us.”
“Do you know where it leads?”
“No, but what else can we do? You can’t outrun the reavers.”
You mean we’re slowing you down, Nicole thought. But you’re still here. Just like you were in Saint Petersburg.
“If we’re going to do it, let’s do it now,” Nicole said.
“Right.” Daniel pulled two knives out and handed them to Nicole. “Take these. We’ll make a break for it. Ready?”
“Amy, snap out of it!” Nicole whispered. She pulled Amy’s hands off her ears.
“What?”
“Get ready to move! We’re running after Daniel. Can you do that?”
“Uh, yeah. I can do it.” Amy swallowed and took a deep breath. “I’m ready.”
Daniel pulled out another knife and readied his sword. “All right. Let’s go!”
Nicole and Amy sprinted across the Old Yard, following Daniel towards the Hollis Hall tunnel. Halfway across, creepers on either side of the yard raised their heads and faced them.
Kreeiiigh!!!
“They spotted us!” Nicole shouted.
“Keep running!” Daniel shouted.
The massive sentinel dropped down from Hollis Hall’s roof, blocking the tunnel with its bulk. It opened its maw, revealing an angry white furnace of heat and fire large enough to swallow a bus.
BRAAAAAUGH!!!
Nicole shielded her eyes from the heat. Light from its maw cast the entire yard into a deep contrast of white and black.
“Crap! Head for Thayer Hall!” Daniel shouted.
“You said—!”
“I know what I said! Just run!”
Nicole turned around, slipped to her hands and feet, but sprinted upright as if launching from track starter blocks. She grabbed Amy’s wrist and ran for Thayer Hall.
Daniel flew past them, trench coat whipping behind him. He ran straight into the swarm of drones, squishing and kicking them aside. One creeper reaver stood between them and the tunnel. It reared back like a huge cobra and struck.
Daniel dodged out of the way and slashed at its side. He struck six segments back from the head and severed the reaver in two. Hot, glowing fluid and gross bile spewed out of the flailing stump.
Behind Nicole, the massive sentinel reaver smashed through trees effortlessly, closing in.
Daniel turned and threw a knife. It struck the reaver in an eye the size of a bowling ball.
BREEEIIIGH!!!
The giant reaver lost its balance and stumbled. Its immense weight crashed to the ground, legs flat at its sides. The earth trembled. Nicole almost fell into the grass, but Amy acted as a counterweight and kept her from falling.
Nicole’s free hand dangled near the grass. She was just about to push off the ground to regain her balance.
“Don’t touch it!” Daniel shouted.
Nicole jerked her hand away.
Amy pulled her upright.
They ran through the drone swarm spilling out of the tunnel, crushing some and kicking others aside. With a burst of adrenaline, Nicole vaulted up the stairs in front of the tunnel and ran through the opening. Dark crystalline gravel crunched under her running shoes. Amy followed a few steps behind.
The sentinel reaver lifted itself off the ground and charged after them. The tunnel was just wide enough to admit its massive bulk.
Nicole threw one of her knives. It arced lazily through the air and ricocheted off the reaver’s metal skin. She reeled back and threw the second one with all her strength. This time, a strange electrical tingle ran down her arm and somehow connected with the airborne knife. The hairs on her forearm stood on end.
The knife tumbled towards the reaver and accelerated, cracking the air like a gunshot. It pierced the reaver just above and behind its head, burying itself deep within the segment. The reaver staggered but kept coming, the swarm of drones parting before it.
“Get away from the entrance!” Daniel shouted.
Nicole backpedaled deeper into the tunnel and joined Amy.
Daniel sheathed his sword and punched the tunnel wall, penetrating it to the elbow. Cracks spread radially across the walls. Daniel pulled his arm free and punched the wall again. The cracks thickened and spread over the floor and ceiling.
The reaver climbed up the stairs, pulled its legs in tight, and entered the tunnel.
“Daniel!” Nicole shouted.
The reaver filled the tunnel mouth from end to end. It crawled forward and reached for him with its front legs.
Daniel kicked off the wall at the last instant, back flipped through the air over the reaver’s horizontal swing, and landed on his feet. He turned and sprinted away, cracks in the tunnel’s crystal walls chasing after him.
The reaver pulled itself deeper into the tunnel, but it was too late. The tunnel collapsed, or rather constricted, closing around the reaver from all directions. Dark stones crushed the reaver just behind the head. It screamed shrilly for a moment, then went silent. The massive head fell to the ground, jaws clapping shut. The reaver’s eyes flickered and then died.
“Whew!” Daniel said, standing up straight. “Well, that was close.”
Nicole felt her legs give out. She dropped to her knees and tried to catch her breath.
“The good part is this should take us to the Boston safe house,” Daniel said. “Though I’m not sure how safe it’ll be when we get there. Well, come on.”
Daniel started walking down the tunnel. It took him a moment to realize Nicole and Amy weren’t following.
He turned around. “Are you okay?”
How could she answer that? Nicole felt angry, scared, and about ready to cry. She opened her mouth, but Amy spoke first.
“No!” Amy shouted. “No, I am not okay!”
Nicole looked up. Tears streamed down Amy’s face.
“Maybe getting attacked by giant robot insects is normal for you!” Amy cried. “But I’m not used to this stuff!”
Nicole stood up. She felt exactly the same way, but kept quiet.
“This is just too much!” Amy said.
Nicole walked over. She wanted to scream out just like Amy was doing now. But something told her she couldn’t do that, couldn’t let her fear show. More than anything, she wanted to survive, and if she had to suck it up and face this crazy reality, then that was exactly what she would do.
“I can’t take this anymore,” Amy said.
But in order to survive, Nicole needed all the help she could get. And if that meant burying her fear, burying her feelings, then so be it. Maybe later there would be a time to let it all out, but right now she had to be strong.
“We’re all going to die…”
“Amy!” Nicole snapped.
Her sister jerked her eyes up.
“We’ll help you get through this,” Nicole said. “I promise. But right now, you need to suck it up.”
“But, how can we possibly—?”
“I said suck it up!” Nicole smacked Amy across the cheek, leaving the red imprint of her hand.
Daniel cringed.
Amy rubbed her cheek. But she looked straight into Nicole’s eyes. That was a start.
“We’re in this mess together,” Nicole said. “We live or die together.”
Amy wiped underneath her eyes and sniffled.
“Right, Daniel?” Nicole asked.
“What? Oh, right. Yeah, got to stick together. I’ve got your back. No problem.”
Amy sucked in a shuddering breath. She pushed off the ground and stood up straight.
“You’re going to be okay,” Nicole said.
Amy rubbed at her eyes. “I… I can walk. I can do this.”
“All right. Let’s keep moving. Daniel?”
Daniel bobbed his head to the side. “Right this way.”
The walls didn’t provide much light, but her eyes adjusted to the gloom. A few areas had small blue crystals embedded in the ceiling and walls. The crystals let off a stronger glow whenever someone passed by. They walked for maybe half an hour down the tunnel before finding anything.
“Is that a reaver?” Nicole whispered.
“It’s dead,” Daniel said. He walked up to the creeper and prodded it with his boot. “A pyro killed it. You can tell by the scorch marks.”
“So that’s a good sign?”
“Maybe not. The reavers were using this tunnel to move around. Whatever fight took place, they likely won.”
“Is a pyro a good thing?” Amy asked.
“A pyrokinetic,” Daniel said. “Everyone who can enter a tau freeze has some sort of talent, though the talent and its strength can vary greatly. That includes you.”
“See, Amy? It’s not all bad. It turns out you have superpowers.”
“Oh, fantastic,” Amy said dryly. “I liked it better when I was a muggle.”
Nicole chuckled.
“We can figure out what your talent is when we’re safe,” Daniel said, marching on.
Daniel led the way deeper into the tunnel. A few minutes later, Nicole found herself in an open circular space, maybe two stories tall and twice as wide with a rough-looking tunnel leading off to the right. Dismembered corpses littered the ground, both human and reaver. Rank yellow pus and dried blood splattered the walls and floor and even dripped down from the ceiling in a few spots.
“It’s hard to tell, given how many pieces they’re in,” Daniel said. “But I think we’re looking at six tau guards. Well, shoot. That’s everyone from the safe house.”
Nicole pulled her turtleneck over her mouth to help with the smell. She tried not to let her eyes linger on the broken human bodies. Bile threatened to rise up her throat. She swallowed hard.
“At least these things are dead too,” Amy said, wading into the bloody muck.
“The guards must have been attacked and retreated into the tunnels like we did,” Daniel said.
“Where the reavers were waiting for them,” Nicole said, breathing in and out through her mouth.
“Looks that way. You see that section of the wall? The part that looks indented. That used to be a tunnel leading to the safe house. No way to know which party collapsed it.”
“So now what?” Amy asked. She absently bumped someone’s head with her boot, causing it to roll over. Half the face was chewed off.
Nicole snapped her eyes away. She stared at the walls. Those only had blood splats. She could deal with that.
“Only one way to go,” Daniel said. “Down the new tunnel the reavers made.”
“With no idea where it leads?” Nicole asked.
“Not like we have a choice.”
“Let’s go then,” Nicole said. She started for the tunnel, but Daniel didn’t follow.
“Hold on a minute,” Daniel said. He picked up one of the bodies and tossed it aside. “Aha! I knew there had to be one!”
“Find something?” Amy asked.
“Oh yeah! Check it out!”
Daniel picked up a crossbow and held it up. Blood dripped off the weapon.
“Who wants it?” Daniel asked.
“I’m good,” Nicole said. “Can we go now?”
“I’ll take it,” Amy said.
“You will?” Nicole asked.
Amy shrugged. “And why not?”
“Do you even know how to use one?” Nicole asked.
Amy glared at her. “No, but if Medieval peasants could use these things, then so can I. I want something to shoot with the next time we run into those things.”
Daniel smiled. “Congratulations, we have a winner.” He handed over the crossbow and a quiver off the nearby corpse.
“Wow,” Amy said hefting the weapon. “It’s a lot lighter than it looks.”
“Yeah, it looks like a nice one,” Daniel said.
Amy grabbed a trench coat off one of the corpses. She did her best to clean the blood off her new toy.
“Can we go now?” Nicole asked. Her eyes were starting to water, and breathing through only her mouth was making her nauseous.
“Good idea,” Daniel said. “Let’s keep moving. There’s no reason to stay here.”
Nicole took one last look at the grotesque scene. She’d never seen so much blood before. The sight made her want to puke, but it also didn’t feel entirely real, as if something this horrible couldn’t possibly happen. Unsure and queasy, she turned and followed Daniel and Amy down the new tunnel.
The walls looked rougher here, giving her the impression that reavers cut it in a hurry. The jagged floor would provide no challenge to a reaver’s thin legs, but her ankles quickly grew sore from the uneven footing.
About half hour later, Nicole asked, “How long can these tunnels get?”
“There’s no theoretical limit,” Daniel said.
“Great.”
“Just keep going.”
The tunnel weaved about irregularly, sometimes rising steeply, sometimes dropping off so that they had to climb down. After what had to be hours of near-silent walking, they spotted a pale light at the end of the tunnel.
“Is that what I think it is?” Nicole asked.
“Well, it’s not an oncoming train,” Daniel said. “Let’s find out where it leads.”
“Finally!” Amy said. “My feet are killing me.”
They climbed a gentle slope to the tunnel mouth. Nicole could see a forest in the distance, its treetops splashed with moonlight. Despite all she knew or thought she knew about tau freezes, the lack of sunlight still surprised her. She’d expected it to be morning, but after giving it some thought, she knew time was still frozen before one o’clock.
Nicole stepped out of the tunnel next to a freeway. For a second, it felt like she was pushing through a resisting curtain of air. Some sort of threshold existed over the tunnel mouth. The sensation vanished as quickly as it came.
A car rumbled by on the freeway, blinding her with its high beams. She looked back at the tunnel, but it was gone.
“We’re back in normal time?” Nicole said.
“Thankfully, yes,” Daniel said.
“D
oes that mean those things aren’t nearby?” Amy asked.
“Probably,” Daniel said.
“Hey, wait a second,” Nicole said. “Why didn’t I reset to my original position?”
“Tunnels let you do that. They sever the temporal mnemonics.”
“They what?”
“Pandemonium year one, second semester. Don’t worry. We’ve got bigger problems.” Daniel pulled out his cell phone. “We need to find out what’s going on. Oh, good. I have a signal.”
“Who are you calling?” Amy asked.
“The safe house in New York,” Daniel said. He dialed the number and put the phone to his ear. “It’s a good group. I work with them a lot when I’m in the States. Maybe they can tell us what the hell is going on. We also have to report in what happened to the Boston team.”
Nicole watched the cars drive by and waited.
“That’s odd,” Daniel said. “Normally they pick up right away.” He dialed another number and waited, dialed a third number, then a fourth and a fifth.
Nicole felt a dreadful chill creep up her spine.
“Come on,” Daniel said. “This is ridiculous. Somebody has to pick up.”
“You think they were all attacked like us?” Nicole asked.
“No way.” He dialed another number.
Nicole walked over to a guard rail and sat down. Amy joined her with the crossbow over her lap. Daniel dialed number after number, pausing occasionally to curse.
“I don’t believe this!” he shouted. “They can’t have hit all of them at once! That’s impossible!”
Nicole zipped up her hoodie and folded her arms. “Maybe they did.”
“Hold on. I still have some personal numbers I can try.” He dialed one and waited. “Aha! It’s going through! Melanie! God, it’s good to hear your voice. It’s Daniel. I… yeah, we got attacked too. I can’t raise anyone… hold on, let me put you on speaker. Ladies?”
Nicole and Amy stood up and walked over.
“Okay, Melanie. I’ve got you on speaker.”
“Vait a moment,” Melanie said. “I have to get Rüdiger.”
“Rüdi is with you? No, you really don’t have to. Melanie, just leave Rüdi where he is and—”
The phone rattled from someone setting it down.
Daniel grimaced. “Well, I suppose I should be happy he’s alive too.”
