Part 9 (1/2)

The tremor increased. With it came a deep rumbling noise from somewhere far beneath them, before both died slowly away.

'Makes sense,' grunted Roba. 'They've thrown everything else at us.'

Haunt looked daggers at the ma.s.s of tiny white dots on her scanner, and cursed. 'If we could only pinpoint our location.'

Roba pointed to a set of doors in the rock. 'Me and Frog came through there. Our tunnel led straight to it.'

'Many of the pa.s.sages must intersect,' Shel remarked as they moved on. 'If you knew where you were going I imagine you could navigate the tunnels quite swiftly.'

Haunt nodded. 'The droids could have the whole place mapped out by now.'

They walked on in uneasy silence until they reached the bullring.

'You two wait here as arranged,' Haunt said, 'let the others know what's going on.'

'Marshal; Shel acknowledged curtly.

'I won't be long.' She activated her wrist-comm. 'All right, Tovel. Tell me how I get to you.'

III.

'The ground gets steeper here,' Denni warned Joiks. The rock sloped down and away into shadows. 'Darker too.'

'Want me to go first?' Joiks mocked her.

'No.'

'Good. Don't want you scoping my a.s.s. Flake.'

'Flake?' Denni said softly.

'Just thinking about what you said earlier.' He chuckled.

'Worried?'

He heard Denni scramble easily down the slope. The shadows got thicker, the darkness pressed in on him as he followed. He couldn't keep his mind focused. What good would it do him to try it on with Denni now? If he'd reported her straight away, then fair enough, but...

Who cared?

He slipped his hand round her waist. 'Don't think about it,'

he whispered.

'Shouldn't that be my line?'

Denni was holding herself very still, acting casual. She didn't pull away. She still needed his support.

He heard his voice, loud in the quiet tunnel. 'It's just bodies.' In the blackness he sounded like a different person.

'The sets don't pick up bodies. Know how they work?'

Denni took a step forward, and he took it with her. 'They're powered by visual stimulus.'

'So focus on the dark. Think of nothing.' His breathing was getting shakier. 'I done it loads of times. Sets don't pick up a thing when you've nothing visual to focus on.'

Denni took a deep breath and released it in a single, stone-cold second. 'Joiks,' her voice slithered into his ears. 'Let go of me.'

'It's a rush,' Joiks urged her. 'I'll help you, you help me me out, huh? We're safe here in the dark. Nothing can creep up on us here.' out, huh? We're safe here in the dark. Nothing can creep up on us here.'

'You reckon,' said Denni. He felt her tense up.

IV.

'Don't go so fast; Ben pleaded with the funny-looking frog-bird as she pushed them along the echoing tunnels that made up this place. 'Can't you see, the Doctor can't keep up the pace!'

'Nonsense, nonsense,' the Doctor muttered, but he clearly had too little puff left to get really indignant.

'All right,' Frog said in her weird grating voice. 'We rest for a minute, no more.'

Ben nodded. 'Thanks.'

It wasn't the nicest spot for a rest. Ben s.h.i.+vered, and only partly from the cold. This whole place was straight out of your worst nightmares. Dark, shadowy room followed dark, shadowy room, and G.o.d knew what could be lurking there.

Luckily for the moment it seemed to be just fleshy insects hopping about the walls, and swarming all over the slimy, glowing ceilings.

'Fascinating,' the Doctor observed, fingering some hanging strands of the slimy weed. 'I wonder... has this been grown here by the architects of this place so that you can light your way... or so that something else can see you approaching?'

He looked expectantly at Frog. She belched.

'Tell me,' the Doctor tried again more faintly, 'Miss, er...

Frog...?'

'Mel Narda. Sergeant.' The boggle-eyes turned on Ben. 'But yeah, call me Frog, honey,' her voice buzzed and crackled.

'Everyone else does.'

Asking why seemed as unnecessary as it was probably unwise. So Ben kept quiet while the Doctor got on with the big questions.

'We've been travelling for some time,' the Doctor said, ignoring her. 'We've become a little out of touch. What can you tell us of the, ah, rebel Schirr rebel Schirr, hmm?'