Gun inhand I cracked it open to receive a blast of warmer air andmechanical sounds. This must be where the heating system was for atleast one museum. I peered inside and fear froze mymarrow.
Seeingmy hesitation Sir Percival whispered, “What do you see, MissLovelady?”
“Penguins,” I replied, horror-struck. “Thousands ofthem.”
Well itprobably wasn’t thousands but it certainly felt that way. Openingthe door further I saw they were luckily not hopping around orspewing misty death from their beaks but packed into wooden crateswith only the lids yet to be secured on top. If they were in cratesthen Tok was looking to send them somewhere? But where? And forwhat purpose?
Weslipped inside and hunkered down behind a waist-high crate filledwith strangely unmoving blank-eyed penguins. Peering round and overthe top I saw the room was vast and probably took up most of thebasement. Large brick pillars supported the floors above. Furthercrates led to the right and left. Sounds of movement and voicescame to us, but I couldn’t make out from where.
Theliaison indicated he’d spied something to his left. Still croucheddown he moved to a further crate and I followed Sir Percival in hiswake.
Peeringover the top of our new position I saw movement and brighter lightsin the distance. I hoped this was Tok and that we had the elementof surprise.
“Someone’s coming!” whispered Sir Percival.
I lookedto where he was pointing and saw a figure jerkily heading towardsour hiding place. Had our entrance not been as surreptitious as I’dhoped?
Quicklywe scurried past further crates of penguins away from the doorway,deeper into Tok’s territory. But with each move the figurefollowed, slowly gaining on us. I saw it was shaped as if wearing abustled dress. Did Tok had a female assistant?
Thecloser the figure came the more I had the strangest feeling I knewwho it was, and then, when she stood under a gaslamp realisationstruck – it was Hazel-eyes. She was Tok’s assistant? But there wassomething different about her. Ice formed in my stomach as I sawher eyes were purple.
Nine
Purple-eyes raised her right arm. I knew what was going tohappen and cried “Split up!” Ignoring what my compatriots didbehind me I dove to my right and rolled behind the crate we’d justleft. Quickly I peered over the top and saw purple tracers firefrom her fingertips at my previous position.
I had tostop Tok before he caused any more deaths so took aim with my gun.Her purple-eyes followed me. It wasn’t her. It was an evilsimulation of her. By now the Tesla coils would be fully chargedfrom when I’d turned them on at the zoo. Before she could fireanother volley at my new position I pulled the trigger. My arms andshoulders were forced backwards by the recoil and, with a loudthunderclap that echoed around the basement, bright white lightningflew from the muzzle engulfing her body, making it vibrateuncontrollably. In humans this would cause fainting and probablyvomiting, thereby rendering them incapable of further mischief; formechanical devices it broke their internal mechanisms with amishmash of welding; whereas for aetheric-powered inventions… Well,if he didn’t already know by now, Tok would certainly discernsomething was amiss.
Theaetheric components of her body exploded at roughly the same timecausing torn cloth and metal parts to rain down upon my coat whichI’d quickly pulled over my head. The explosion momentarily deafenedme and the force of it pushed the crate I was behind along thefloor, sliding me along with it.
When themechanical squall and thunderous echoes died down I lowered my coatand looked around for my compatriots. I spied Sir Percival’s cloudof white hair looking slightly singed with faint wisps of smokerising from it behind a crate, and the liaison’s legs flat on theground further still. Luckily I saw that the rest of him was stillconnected as he popped up and looked over at myself and SirPercival. He nodded at us both and, guns leading, we proceeded downthree avenues of crates in the direction Purple-eyes took to reachus.
Ahead ofus was a bright white glow. As we proceeded towards it I saw ittake on a slight purple tinge and knew that Tok may well bepreparing to fight.
I cameout of the shadow of a large brick pillar and saw ahead of me hisworkspace. Larger sealed crates were stacked in towers around it.He certainly had something for flightless birds.
Purple-tinged light emanated from what appeared to be fourvery large two-foot wide upside-down test-tubes roughly twenty-feethigh stacked together at one end of his workspace. As I’d suspectedhe was pulling aether into this world. Lower down was theunmistakeable electric arcing of a Van de Graaff generator. Thiswas why Tok was down here – so he could make use of the Museum’spower supply. It was also why Sir Percival was so interested inPeter Frost’s device at the exhibition – if aether could be drawninto this world using less energy then it’s use would be morewidespread. Unfortunately it was still an experimental art. Andmistakes were deadly.
Movement to one side caught my eye and I saw the black suitedfigure of Tok sans his breathing apparatus but wearing brass goggles apparentlyspeak to someone. Whoever it was appeared to be attached to afurther brick pillar. And with a shock I realised they wore a darkgreen dress and had auburn hair - it was Hazel-eyes from lastnight. Why was she here and why had Tok made an aetheric killer outof her mimicked body?
Tokcaught sight of us moving determinedly towards him and jerkilyscurried to a large lever. I heard the liaison’s gun fire and Tokwas instantly spun to his left. But he moved back into position –the liaison must have hit part of his metal ‘additions’ and failedto injure him. He grasped the lever’s handle and pulled it down. Istopped and waited looking around to see what would happen. Icouldn’t discern any change, but Tok smiled over at us beforeheading into the maze of crates.
“Help!” cried the real Hazel-eyes, spying ourmovement.
I ran inher direction wanting to make sure I rescued her this time. Butwhat
