The machine struck the opposite wall, then lay still.
Miko clubbed the man down who had pushed Star out of the way. He faced two other skulkers still left, who crouched weaponless, palms up, disarmed by Usk and Sket. Fenli’s chest heaved as he nursed his second wound.
Knowing it was hopeless to struggle, the outnumbered enemy capitulated, sighing in defeat. “Kill us if you want. Do it quickly.”
“Can they have gotten this far already?” grumbled Sket. “Shit!”
“I thought you said we took a shortcut?” gasped Fenli.
Sket mumbled and shook his head furiously. “Some of the brothers aren’t as stupid as I thought.”
Miko menaced the yellow-haired killer with his short sword. The man lay sprawled at his feet, with his neck underneath Miko’s boot. Star trembled beside him, white-faced with humiliation, wringing her hands.
Miko spat angrily, “Either you join us and help us find the way out of this maze, or die like your comrades! If not for risking your neck to save Star, I would kill you now!” His hand quivered, gripping the hilt, his knuckles white. “I’ll let you live but don’t test me. I’ll slit your throat in a second.”
“You’re a fool!” croaked Star. “Kill them all.” She grabbed for Miko’s knife. “How can you trust any of these treacherous dogs? They’d bite the hand that feeds them.”
“You’re right.” Miko twisted away from her probing fingers, slapping her hand away. “But we need allies.”
Star furiously refused to listen. Fenli interrupted, “Enough, you wench, shut up. He just saved your butt.”
Sket frowned, nodding in agreement with Miko’s assessment.
Fenli sucked the breath back into his lungs, shrugging as if he could care less either way.
“These scum must have followed us and doubled around and found another way,” mused Sket. “The tunnels are vast. So how did you get here?” he demanded of the yellow-haired man.
“The Vanguard tunnel,” another of them replied sullenly. This one had a rat-face and wafted an offensive reek. “Another secret mine shaft that Victus discovered and led us down.”
“Where’s Victus then?”
“Dead. He stumbled and fell into a shaft and died along with others.”
“A pity,” sneered Fenli. “How did you sneak up on us like that?”
“We were coming down the tunnel, heard voices and the tramp of feet. We ducked back behind that loader and waylaid you. The rest you know.”
“Before then, how did you get this far?” demanded Miko.
“The floor caved in. Jingin and the rest of them are on the other side, trapped. They’ll have to double back, or figure some way out of there. We were lucky to have already crossed the cave in; the others fell into a bottomless pit.”
“So, we still have some lead time,” pondered Sket, rubbing his jaw.
The rat-faced man sneered. “You’ll still have to deal with Jingin and his crew when they come. I don’t doubt B & D’ll airlift the others across the gap before long with his service vehicle. Always was one to rig and spoil a fair fight.”
Sket cursed. “Just like the lowlife. What a nightmare! Come on, you cretins! Let’s move it out. There’s not a second to lose.”
Star shook her head, “This is madness. Doesn’t anyone see reason here? He laid hands on me.”
“Oh, boo hoo. Well, aren’t you the little princess?” cooed Fenli.
“Yeah, can it. He just saved your pretty ass, and you want to off him?”
“Wouldn’t you?” cried Star.
“Just watch your little locust friend over there,” sneered the one with the rat-face.
“Yeah, we don’t trust their kind,” growled the other, a dirty, mangy man with pale stringy hair, a mouthful of broken teeth and a face too long in proportion to his short stature.
“Shut up,” ordered yellow hair. “You think these guys trust us? We’d be dead if it wasn’t for the mercy of this one here. My name’s Berlast,” he said to Miko. He jerked a thumb at the other two scowling rogues. “This here’s Grema, and that’s Tosud.”
The two others clamped mouths shut in a glower of defiance, but were silenced by Berlast’s glare.
“Where’d you get the grenade?” growled Sket.
Tosud lifted a careless hand. “Zakiz, the crazy idiot—the one dead in fifty pieces. He found a box of explosives. He was eager to try them out, thought he’d unpin one and lob it in the melee. Fool.”
“Any left?” grunted Sket with disgust.
“Go look for yourself,” murmured Berlast. “The box was back there behind the drogger.”
Miko looked at Sket. Sket grumbled and ducked back behind the pile of rubble and earth to investigate. They heard him rummaging about, grunting from time to time in surprise. He returned carrying two large egg-like objects, and a short blunt black object, akin to a blowtorch. “This baby’ll come in handy,” he said proudly. “Seems to still work.” He pressed a button and a tiny blue flame whispered from its tapered end. “Much newer tech than this old dumpster mine junk. There’s a skeleton back there too. Skullrox expedition, I imagine, looking for minerals. Something went awry. These silver grenades are probably not weapons at all, but for blasting and tunnelling out rock. A death wish, surely, to use them. Only a last resort, should things turn ugly.” He tossed a silver egg to Fenli. “Don’t—pull the pin.”
“They’re not grenades,” said Fenli, examining it. “Excavation explosives.”
Miko grudgingly introduced himself and recited the names of the others in the party. Fenli and Star did not acknowledge the newcomers. Star, in fact, merely snorted in disgust.
Their party now numbered eight, including the three
