The entrance to the mining tunnels was a rusted metal door set into a cliff face, almost invisible against the rock. Ron pried it open with a screech of protesting metal, revealing a yawning darkness that smelled of damp earth and ages of neglect.
"They'll track us across the open desert. This is our only shot at losing them," Netoshka stated, ushering her team inside.
The tunnel was narrow, the air cool and still. The only light came from their weapon-mounted torches, casting long, dancing shadows on the rough-hewn walls. They moved quickly, the sounds of their boots and ragged breathing echoing around them.
For the first ten minutes, there was only the silence and the dark. Then, a faint, skittering sound from behind them. Metallic. Precise.
"They're in the tunnels with us," Spectr said, his voice low. "They followed us in."
The skittering grew louder, multiplied. It was in the main tunnel behind them and now also coming from ventilation shafts above.
"They're not just following," Taran realized, his voice grim. "They're in the walls. They're herding us again."
The squad picked up the pace, breaking into a jog. The tunnel began to slope downward, branching into a larger, older section of the mine—a cavernous space with rusted rail tracks and abandoned carts.
Suddenly, a massive explosion roared from behind them. The tunnel they had just come from collapsed in a cloud of dust and rock. The way back was sealed.
"They cut us off!" Zopi yelled.
Before they could process it, a second, smaller explosion sounded ahead. A section of the ceiling gave way, crashing down and completely blocking the main path forward. The skittering in the vents stopped.
Silence. They were trapped in a large cavern, with no visible exits. The Decapitators had sealed them in perfectly.
"Those clever sons of bitches," Ron whispered, a grudging respect in his tone. "They used our own retreat against us. This was the kill box all along."
Netoshka's mind raced. They were surrounded by rock, with limited air and no clear way out. The Decapitators didn't need to fight them; they could just wait for them to suffocate or starve.
"Ron, options. Now," Netoshka commanded, her voice echoing in the cavern.
Ron scanned the walls with his engineer's eye. "The rock here is too unstable for explosives. We try to blast our way out, we bring the whole mountain down." His light settled on a section of the wall that was seeping water. "But that... that's not solid rock. It's a concrete retaining wall for an old water management system. It's damp. It might be the weakest point."
"It's flooded on the other side?" Surgien asked.
"Most likely. It's a gamble. We blow it, we flood this chamber. We swim through the breach and hopefully find another air pocket on the other side."
It was a desperate, dangerous plan. They could drown, or be lost in a flooded maze. But it was their only plan.
They placed their remaining explosives carefully on the damp concrete. The squad retreated to the highest point in the cavern.
The blast was a muffled thump. For a second, nothing. Then, a crack appeared, and a jet of icy, black water shot into the cavern. The crack widened, and the wall burst open, a torrent of water roaring in.
The chamber filled with shocking speed. The squad was thrown into the churning, freezing water. Netoshka fought against the current, her lungs burning. She saw the dark opening of the breach. Kicking hard, she grabbed onto Surgien's armor, dragging them both through the jagged hole and into the flooded tunnel beyond.
One by one, the members of Inferius Squad were flushed out of the trap, gasping and half-drowned into another unknown, flooded passage. They had escaped entrapment, but they were now lost, freezing, and lower on resources than ever. The Decapitators had forced them deeper into the earth's belly.