Andy had the Cartella moving in a continuous loop at five thousand metres above the area where Ed and Linda had disappeared. He’d spent the last hour detecting about a hundred hidden openings that the Timoria were known to use. As he had expected, air was being drawn down the tunnels by machinery to provide the underground population with a fresh oxygenated atmosphere.
Cleo, who’d gotten to know Andy on the fly, was busy scanning the results of Andy’s experiment.
As he had piloted the Cartella down to the planet, he had asked Cleo to design a nano cloud that could penetrate the underground world of the Timoria – not only to detect where Ed and Linda were, but to remain as a microscopic invisible map, providing real time sound and vision, aiding him on his search and rescue journey.
So far, Cleo had mapped over four thousand kilometres of tunnels and chambers, going over fifteen kilometres below ground.
‘I have a pair of transport tunnels going west and another pair going north,’ said Cleo. ‘The nanos are travelling at five hundred kilometres per hour by hitching a ride on the trains.’
‘Wow, that’s amazing,’ said Andy. ‘They must have electro-magnetic or anti-gravity trains to achieve those speeds underground.’
It took another two hours and Andy was struggling to stay awake at the wheel, when Cleo made him jump.
‘Got ’em,’ she said. ‘They’re about two hundred kilometres down that north tunnel at what looks like a maintenance depot. I have Ed and Linda in a back room or cell, with three other cells; two are occupied. One with what looks like a Timoria male and, in the other, a female dressed in GDA military fatigues.’
‘How many guards in the area?’ asked Andy.
‘Fourteen,’ Cleo replied. ‘All armed. Half on duty, spread around the area, and the other half sleeping in a side office.’
‘Back way in?’ Andy asked. ‘I don’t expect any regular trains stop there.’
‘Still working their way up,’ said Cleo. ‘It’s going to be a long trek below ground, though – about twelve kilometres – and then back up the same way. Although there are some vehicles parked in a cavern behind and above the station.’
‘Don’t worry, I’ll find the keys,’ said Andy, smiling. ‘After walking for twelve kilometres, I’ll hotwire them if I have to.’
Ten minutes later the nanos had reached the surface and Andy landed the Cartella nearby.
Cleo produced a copy of the uniforms worn by the guards down below and a small electric scooter with knobbly tyres, which Andy eyed with disdain.
‘I know it’s not as sexy as your Ducati back on Earth, Andrew,’ said Cleo, ‘but it’s going to save you a lot of shoe leather and time. No one will see you on such an uncool bike anyway.’
‘I suppose,’ he said, stuffing his face with a cheeseburger from the new food dispenser.
‘I’ve also modified your stun weapon so it’s almost silent. It should knock out even the toughest soldier for a couple of hours, so you should be back here and away before the alarm is raised.’
‘Thanks, Cleo. You’re quickly becoming a real asset to the team and I know Ed and Linda will agree.’
‘Thank you, Andrew. Please don’t take any unnecessary risks down there. I’m rapidly running out of friends – and I’m only two days old.’
Andy smiled, opened the airlock and carried his backpack, weapon and little scooter down the steps. Shouldering the backpack and weapon, he trundled off, following vehicle tracks towards a low opening in the hillside.
Cleo had taken the Cartella up to five hundred metres and was able to direct Andy via the POK she had incorporated into his Timoria helmet.
As he entered the tunnel entrance, he noticed the passage had been made using a circular boring machine and spiralled down into the ground. There were no junctions on the way down so it was impossible to take a wrong turn. The deeper he went, the gloomier it became. The little headlight on the scooter wasn’t very powerful and only lit a small, round patch of ground, three metres ahead.
Cleo was able to command the nanos to produce a dull glow as he passed, although once his eyes adjusted to the gloom, he could sort of see where he was going.
‘I’m bloody glad I’m not claustrophobic,’ he said, after half an hour of burrowing deeper and deeper into the unwelcoming darkness.
‘You’ve only got one kilometre to go and the nanos are showing one guard in the vehicle cavern, although he appears to be asleep.’
‘Okay, I’ll ride another few hundred metres and dump the scooter.’
Minutes later, Andy dismounted the scooter and hid it in a small side cave. He’d passed these every few hundred metres and believed they must be for maintenance crews to shelter in when vehicles passed by.
Once stopped, he noticed how warm it was and how quiet. The other thing that he hadn’t noticed while on the scooter was the draught of air being sucked down the tunnel. This he didn’t like much, as the slightest sound would be carried down the tunnel and give away his approach. For this very reason, the next few hundred metres took him another twenty minutes.
As he slowly made his way forward, placing each foot carefully, he noticed the dull glow was gradually becoming brighter.
Must be nearing the vehicle garage, he thought.
‘In fifty metres you will be visible from the vehicle cavern,’ said Cleo, making him jump.
‘Where’s the guard?’ whispered Andy and moved closer to the wall.
‘There are three vehicles; he’s asleep in the cab of the one furthest away from you, near the exit doorway. He has the cab door open, with one leg dangling out.’
‘Okay, I’ll—’
Andy froze as a second guard stepped out of what must have been the last small cave before the cavern.
He had his back to Andy and stood, yawning and stretching, about five metres away.
Andy realised his rifle was still slung across his back and quickly moved it around.
The guard sensed the movement and turned, his eyes widening as he realised what was facing him. He had time to shout a couple of words before Andy lined up the stun weapon and pulled the trigger. The crackle of the discharging rifle – although quieter than a normal stun weapon – sounded loud in the total silence of the cavern.
While the guard slumped to the ground, the other guard in the far vehicle called out something that Andy didn’t understand. He knew what he had to do, though, and sprinted across the cavern, just as the half-awake guard stumbled around the front of the vehicle. Seeing Andy careering towards him, he went for his weapon, but it was too late. The energy bolt from Andy’s rifle, fired on the run, caught a glancing blow on his left shoulder, which caused him to spin round and drop his weapon. By the time the guard had recovered his senses, Andy had kicked his rifle away and given him the good news square in the chest.
Silence returned to the cavern and Andy waited, hidden behind the last vehicle.
When he was sure the alarm hadn’t been sounded, he emerged and dragged the unconscious guards out of sight.
‘I take it that means there were fifteen guards in all?’ said Andy. ‘Can you have a recheck, Cleo? I’d rather not have another surprise like that.’
‘Sorry, he must have been hidden in there all along and the nanos didn’t detect him. I’ve scanned in infrared this time and can confirm thirteen heat signatures: eight now lying down, supposedly asleep in the back office, two in the corridor next to the prisoners and three out on the station platform.’
‘Can I get to the prisoners without going onto the platform?’
‘Yes. But, before you go, best you disable two of the three vehicles to avoid the obligatory car chase.’
‘Well done,’ said Andy. ‘You’re really getting a sense of humour, Cleo. I like it.’
‘Thanks, Cactus.’
‘Don’t you start that. Anyway, how do I disable these things?’
‘Under the steering tiller is a small black power distribution node. Unclip it and stick it in your rucksack.’
He did as he was instructed for both the nearest trucks and left the far one operational for his escape.
‘I don’t know how to drive these things, Cleo, and I know Ed and Linda won’t either.’
‘Don’t worry, I do. And I can transmit that information to you via your POK when the time comes.’
‘Okay, cool. Now direct me to the cells.’