ballet. With the next leg of the descent underway, the three friends followed their supply vehicle over the edge, abseiling down over the craggy drop.
Five more times they had to redeploy in this fashion and their supply of abseil anchors had shrunk to half. Sarah had taken to climbing down in order to retrieve her friend’s cams and self-piling bolts for re-use. More time they could ill afford wasted.
On the final section, everyone was halfway down when a horrendous noise shook the ground.
‘Earthquake!’ Jason shouted.
Trish screamed and Sarah clung on for dear life as the cliff face shifted.
Rocks rained down upon them, bouncing from helmets and bodies alike. Looking up, Sarah saw a large boulder heading straight for her. She swung to one side. Pain tore through her as it clipped her shoulder. Letting out a shout she fell ten feet before her safety line jerked her to a stop. Spinning in circles, she heard Jason shout, but she only had eyes for the wall which appeared, reappeared, disappeared, reappeared – BANG! A fist-sized stone bounced from her helmet as the deafening shaking continued. Her rotation slowed and she made a grab for the wall. Slipping a hand inside a deep crack, she pulled herself back in just as another massive boulder whooshed past behind. Pulling herself flat against the relative safety of a tiny overhang, Sarah saw Jason had also managed to secure himself. Trish, however, swung out in dangerous arcs while behind her, appearing out of the gloom, the Centipede tore through the air towards her.
Sarah’s eyes widened. ‘WATCH OUT!’
Trish turned.
Too late! The supply vehicle swatted her into the rock wall like a rag doll. Knocked out, or worse, Trish rotated, limp, while the Centipede careered into the cliff, the force of its momentum broken by its canisters, which exploded with precious water.
After what seemed an eternity the tremors subsided and Sarah was able to reach Trish’s lifeless form.
‘Is she hurt?’ Jason said, his voice desperate.
Sarah felt for a pulse and her friend’s eyes opened at the touch.
Sarah let out a grateful gasp. ‘You okay?’
‘I think so,’ she said, her voice shaky.
Awash with relief, Sarah helped Trish down to the floor of the crevasse.
Sarah looked at her friend in concern. ‘Are you sure you’re okay?’
Trish gave a small smile and nodded, but before Sarah could say or do anything else, Jason was there and hugging Trish to him.
As her two companions embraced, Sarah regretted the missed opportunity to repair the frayed bonds of her friendship with Trish. And then she remembered the Centipede that still swung from its tether above. She lowered it to the ground and inspected the damage.
‘What’s the story?’ Jason said, coming up behind.
Sarah shook her head and stepped aside. ‘The story is, we’re in big trouble.’
Chapter Eight
Before them the two water canisters that had saved the Centipede from becoming a lump of scrap metal stood torn and empty, the remnants of their life saving liquid barely enough for one drink.
Trish looked in despair at Sarah. ‘What do we do now?’
Sarah raised her visor and rubbed a palm against one eye, searching for inspiration.
‘We’ll have to go back,’ Trish said.
Jason gave a near hysterical laugh. ‘We can’t go back, remember, only forward.’
Trish frowned. ‘How long can we go on without water?’
‘We’ve already been on rations.’ Jason wetted his parched lips. ‘No more than three days, max. With this kind of exertion, probably less.’
‘How far to the temple?’
‘At the rate we’ve been going? Seven days, who knows?’
‘Then we’re screwed.’
‘Pretty much.’
Trish and Jason’s voices, getting increasingly fraught, faded into the background as Sarah walked away to think. Pressing a button on her helmet and sending her visor back down, she controlled the screen with her eyes, selecting the Deep Reach map to the Anakim temple. Searching along the
Five more times they had to redeploy in this fashion and their supply of abseil anchors had shrunk to half. Sarah had taken to climbing down in order to retrieve her friend’s cams and self-piling bolts for re-use. More time they could ill afford wasted.
On the final section, everyone was halfway down when a horrendous noise shook the ground.
‘Earthquake!’ Jason shouted.
Trish screamed and Sarah clung on for dear life as the cliff face shifted.
Rocks rained down upon them, bouncing from helmets and bodies alike. Looking up, Sarah saw a large boulder heading straight for her. She swung to one side. Pain tore through her as it clipped her shoulder. Letting out a shout she fell ten feet before her safety line jerked her to a stop. Spinning in circles, she heard Jason shout, but she only had eyes for the wall which appeared, reappeared, disappeared, reappeared – BANG! A fist-sized stone bounced from her helmet as the deafening shaking continued. Her rotation slowed and she made a grab for the wall. Slipping a hand inside a deep crack, she pulled herself back in just as another massive boulder whooshed past behind. Pulling herself flat against the relative safety of a tiny overhang, Sarah saw Jason had also managed to secure himself. Trish, however, swung out in dangerous arcs while behind her, appearing out of the gloom, the Centipede tore through the air towards her.
Sarah’s eyes widened. ‘WATCH OUT!’
Trish turned.
Too late! The supply vehicle swatted her into the rock wall like a rag doll. Knocked out, or worse, Trish rotated, limp, while the Centipede careered into the cliff, the force of its momentum broken by its canisters, which exploded with precious water.
After what seemed an eternity the tremors subsided and Sarah was able to reach Trish’s lifeless form.
‘Is she hurt?’ Jason said, his voice desperate.
Sarah felt for a pulse and her friend’s eyes opened at the touch.
Sarah let out a grateful gasp. ‘You okay?’
‘I think so,’ she said, her voice shaky.
Awash with relief, Sarah helped Trish down to the floor of the crevasse.
Sarah looked at her friend in concern. ‘Are you sure you’re okay?’
Trish gave a small smile and nodded, but before Sarah could say or do anything else, Jason was there and hugging Trish to him.
As her two companions embraced, Sarah regretted the missed opportunity to repair the frayed bonds of her friendship with Trish. And then she remembered the Centipede that still swung from its tether above. She lowered it to the ground and inspected the damage.
‘What’s the story?’ Jason said, coming up behind.
Sarah shook her head and stepped aside. ‘The story is, we’re in big trouble.’
Chapter Eight
Before them the two water canisters that had saved the Centipede from becoming a lump of scrap metal stood torn and empty, the remnants of their life saving liquid barely enough for one drink.
Trish looked in despair at Sarah. ‘What do we do now?’
Sarah raised her visor and rubbed a palm against one eye, searching for inspiration.
‘We’ll have to go back,’ Trish said.
Jason gave a near hysterical laugh. ‘We can’t go back, remember, only forward.’
Trish frowned. ‘How long can we go on without water?’
‘We’ve already been on rations.’ Jason wetted his parched lips. ‘No more than three days, max. With this kind of exertion, probably less.’
‘How far to the temple?’
‘At the rate we’ve been going? Seven days, who knows?’
‘Then we’re screwed.’
‘Pretty much.’
Trish and Jason’s voices, getting increasingly fraught, faded into the background as Sarah walked away to think. Pressing a button on her helmet and sending her visor back down, she controlled the screen with her eyes, selecting the Deep Reach map to the Anakim temple. Searching along the
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