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Inferno - Harry and Karen

Chingiz Khuv and Gustav Litve raced for their lives, for the lives of all concerned, through the serpentine bowels of the Perchorsk Projekt and toward Failsafe Control At any moment they expected, dreaded to hear the failsafe klaxons starting up; they realized ould happen when the klaxons did sound - the panic, horror, the ht fro fro, all-consu he had becoot to Failsafe Control before themit was obvious what he would do Save himself and burn them Burn the entire Projekt

And yet, for all their terror, the two KGB e Twice at telephone points, Khuv skidded to a halt and tried to phone ahead On the first occasion the phone was dead, and on the second he noticed the cable sliced through, trailing its severed ends down the wall Agursky had outmanoeuvred him Litve, where he ran on, as he reached the scientific accoursky’s room; on the way out he roared like a bull, kicked doors, screa hoarse-voiced for everyone to ’Vacate, vacate, vacate!’

Khuv, every forty or fifty paces, would pause briefly to fire a deafening burst fro; which he continued to do until the azine was empty and he was left with only his issue automatic But those shells he reserved It was as much as the two men could do, for not only the telephones were out but also the everyday corridor alar

Finally they cli ramp to the upper level, where they encountered a lot ed to pass on soe, for here at least the manhunt was underway Maybe a dozen or more soldiers searched roo side corridors, used walkie-talkies to keep in touch and loud-hailers to ainst Khuv’s advice to Luchov, but the Major was unsure which way events hadan effect, however disorderly Late-shift staff were spewing out fro themselves in the corridors and tunnels, on theor where they were going Khuv and Litve couldn’t talk to all of thes as they battled a way through the to go up! Get out now or you’ll all burn!’ It worked, but only served to slow thean to move with them, in the sahtened people Agursky would be that ursky wasn’t the one they had to worry about Not yet

Up ahead, with o to Failsafe Control, corridors converged at a bulkhead door Khuv and other high-ranking Projekt officials had their quarters in one of these corridors; Luchov and various heads of his staff were accommodated in the other Further into the complex, the corridors put out smaller branches which led inward and inevitably doard, but here at the end closest to the exit into the Perchorsk Ravine they ca of a bottleneck Worse, there was the bulkhead door, of dense metal set in concrete, which when shut forht seal Ever since the introduction of Luchov’s failsafe, the door had been kept permanently open, firmly clamped to the wall

But now, as Khuv and Litve outdistanced the bulk of fleeing personnel and caed on the approach to the door, so auto a second bend ht of the door, sahat the shooting was about and took cover in an alcove in the wall

Leo Grenzel was at the door He had unlocked two of the three cla on the third, which appeared to be jae on the clamp, soldiers in the alcoves closest to the door would open up with their guns, driving him back under cover The thickness of the door itself, and an alcove directly behind it, shielded him from the worst of their fire; but even as Khuv and Litve arrived on the scene they saw hier back out of view In another un, opened up and sent a hail of lead sleeting the length of the corridor Two soldiers toppled screa out of their alcoves where ricochets hit theht

’You up there,’ Khuv called during the lull ’Who’s in charge?’

’I aeant stuck his head out, snatched it back as Grenzel opened up again Khuv saw him briefly before he, too, ducked back: his white face and staring eyes, their glazed look And he could well understand that look It was unlikely that the Sergeant knew Grenzel was dead, but it must be very hard to hi Grenzel but they couldn’t put hi furiously at the last clae he’d suffered was obvious

He was lopsided in his stance; that will be from his snapped spine, Khuv supposed And he , just like that A broken spine, and Grenzel still mobile, however aard But why not, for he was also dead! Nor was that the end of it He earing white coveralls They ss Tatters of flesh hung with the rags, grey and red, but there was very little blood in evidence; these things didn’t bleed too readily There were three sht shoulder, neat as the dots on a dice, where a burst of bullets had printed full stops on his coveralls; but at the back the holes were the size of s his shoulder on that side, adding to his lopsidedness His difficulty with the clamp was that he worked at it left-handed

Khuv took Litve’s flame-thrower, called out to thefire when I call for it - just a concentrated burst - and I’ll deal with this bastard But first of all, can one of you boys take out that light?’

’Are you sure you knohat you’re doing, sir?’ a shout came back ’I ht you are! ’Yes, just put out that light’ Above the door was a laeant, one of his lass - and the buckled wire basket was torn froht in the corridor was at once reduced, turning the place to a smoky tunnel

’When I yell "now",’ Khuv reminded, ’one burst and then keep your heads down’

Grenzel had vanished for a moment, but now he reappeared, stood half-silhouetted in the doorway He had his gun with hi his attention to the cla corridors were suddenly full ofpeople; their hushed yet ation in a great sounding church Litve called back: ’Stay still! Be quiet Just here you are’

Khuv checked that his weapon was primed and ready for action It was still fairly heavy, indicating that there was no lack of fuel Then he shouted: ’Now!’ There caered back Khuv crouched down, ran forward Grenzel sensed or saw hiun, fired a short burst and ran out of bullets Khuv heard the whip and buzz of angry lead, heard voices back down the corridor cry out their agony Then he opened up with his flaht at the yelloolf-eyes burning in Grenzel’s silhouetted face

All shadows fled as the flame-thrower roared Grenzel was scorched, and screeched like a run-over cat He dropped his useless gun, and in the next moment Khuv was on him He hosed him doith fire, burned him to a blistered crisp that burst into flame and stuck itself to the metal wall Then Grenzel slid down the wall, toppled over and lay still Khuv stopped firing, stood back The flaradually died down and Grenzel’s re vile black seant, and Khuv told the latter: ’See that all of these people get safely out of here They’re not out of the woods yet’ Without waiting, he and Litve went on to Failsafe Control

With frightened people hurriedly filing past theed on the metal door

Luchov’s voice, shrill, terrified, ca?’

’Viktor?’ Khuv answered ’It’s me, Khuv Open up’

’No, I don’t believe you I knoho you are Go away!’

’What?’ Khuv glanced at Litve Then he guessed what had happened Agursky had been here He banged again on the door ’Viktor, it is me!’

Then where’s your key?’ All of the listed Failsafe Duty Officers had keys to this room

Litve still had Khuv’s keys He took them from a pocket and handed them over Luckily, Khuv hadn’t thrown the Failsafe key aith the others down in the mortuary Now the Major turned the key in the lock, pushed the door open - and at once gasped and stepped back!

Luchov stood there, eyes bulging, veins pulsing in the seared half of his head, aiht into Khuv’s straining face ’God!’ he gasped, lowering the weapon to point at the floor ’It is you!’ He staggered back, collapsed into his swivel chair in front of the TV screens

He was a wreck A tre, completely terrified wreck Khuv carefully took the flame-thrower froulped, started to talk As he proceeded sohtened look went out of his eyes ’After you left, II started to phone Half the lines were out But I got the guards on the entrance, in the ravine, and told theh to half-a-dozen other nue I said everyone should evacuate, but as quietly as possible Then it dawned on ursky was out there soaed to raise the military and told theursky down I said the phones were out of order and that they should alert all the people I couldn’t reach I spoke to everyone I could, but so far I haven’t been able to reach the core’

Khuv and Litve glanced at the screens All looked normal down there; faces were strained and nervous, but there was no sign of any unusual activity ’What about Agursky?’ Khuv asked ’Did he coulped ’God, yes! He came, knocked on the door, said he had to speak to me I told him I couldn’t let him in He said he knew I knew about him and he could explain He said if I didn’t let hi terrible I said if I did I knew he’d kill me Then he said that he knee planned to burn hi to burn us - all of us! In the end he went away; but I thought: if he kills any one of the Failsafe Duty Officers, and takes his key

’I had an automatic, but I knew that those two dead soldiers hadn’t been able to stop hiuns So I waited a little while, sneaked out and took the nearest fla myself inoh, Jesus’’

’He showed up?’ Khuv took the other’s elbow

’Yes,’ Luchov nodded, gulped ’But you should see hiursky 1 don’t knohat it is, but it isn’t hilances ’How do you mean, "not him"?’ Litve asked, sure that he wouldn’t like the answer

’His face!’ Luchov’s lips trely ’It’s all wrong; and his head, the wrong shape The way he reat sly ani toward lasses on and his eyes were red as blood, 1 swear it! I got inside, slaed to turn the key And outsidehe was a madman! He raved and threatened, haain’

Khuv shuddered The whole thing was like a night, causing all three men to start violently Khuv reached the phone first, snatched it from its cradle ’Yes?’

’Corporal Grudov, at the entrance, sir,’ an excited, tinny voice sounded ’Agursky, he was here!’

’What?’ Khuv crouched over the phone ’Did you see him? Have you killed him?’

’We shot at him, sir, but kill hinore us! So ent after hiet him? Where is he now, outside?’ Khuv held his breath He knew that Agursky mustn’t escape

’No, he ducked back inside We burned him a little, I think’

’You think?’

’It all happened so very quickly, sir’

Khuv thought fast ’Are the people out yet?’

’Most of the I’ve called up trucks from the barracks, else they’d all freeze out here’

’Good hed his relief ’Now listen: let everyone out except Agursky If he shows up again give hiot Kill hiot that?’

’Yes, sir’

Khuv put the phone down, turned to the others ’He’s still in here Hilers- Oh, and the soldiers at the core, and whoever else is down there with them’ He turned to Luchov ’The first button sounds the klaxons, right?’

Luchov nodded ’You know it does - if they’re still working’

Khuv reached across and pressed button nuue, si: theirstarted up at once It was like the crying of some vast, wounded prehistoric beast

’But what are you doing?’ Luchov gasped

’Getting those soldiers out of it,’ Khuv nodded at the screens Down at the core all such niceties as orders went to the wall Those men down there knehat the klaxons h Nerves could stand just so much, and then no ht The staircase was packed with fleeingout of their kit, running for it A Sergeant-Major fired his pistol into the air once, twice, then holstered it and joined the rush

Khuv laughed, slapped his thigh, punched Litve’s shoulder ’Agursky can’t get out,’ he said ’He’s in here, probably wounded, and thoseup fro down froasped ’But ht here If he coet in here; also, I’ him between here and the exit!’

’Good,’ said Khuv ’But we’ll need your flaht out his automatic and handed it over ’It’s not ’

Luchov let them out into the corridor ’Good luck,’ he said, simply

’You too,’ Khuv nodded Then Luchov quickly closed the door and locked it

Half-way between Failsafe Control and theup They came at the stampede, until Khuv called out: ’It’s OK, youloose, that’s all The scientist, Vasily Agursky Has anyone seen hieant-Major who had fired his pistol down at the core came to attention, saluted ’I’et it,’ Khuv said ’You were supposed to panic That way I could be sure you’d get out of there fast, that’s all’

’You see, sir,’ the other was at pains to explain, ’the phones have been out for souessed there was a problem Then, when those klaxons started up - ’

’I said forget it!’ Khuv snapped ’Now get your ht out of it Out of the Projekt’

Litve grabbed his arm ’But they could be of assistance,’ he protested

Khuv shook his head ’With theursky And anything thatrooms and laboratories as they went And all the while the klaxons sounding, sounding, sounding, and their flesh crawling on them like they were covered in cockroaches

Up in Failsafe Control, Viktor Luchov heard the pounding of booted feet as the core’s military units vacated the Projekt Well, at least they were out of it now That left Khuv and Litve, and whatever else was down there waiting for theain at the silent, now motionless screens - especially the centre screen, which showed the core and the Gate - then returned to his private thoughts Thoughts about Khuv He had never much cared for the man; the KGB were a brutal lot And yet now

Luchov’s thoughts froze right there Gooseflesh crept on his neck Soain He strained his eyes, rubbed at the with his eyes

On the centre screen a pale, gelatinous mass was visible on the curve of the sphere’s do within It hadn’t been there ten or fifteenon he simply hadn’t noticed it Crazy! It was exactly what he was here to notice!

He stared harder, and yes - in a e on the great curved screen which was the Gate It was like like Encounter One But bigger Much bigger! And it washad ever moved in there before If it was the same sort of creature as Encounter One, and if it should break loose froritted his teeth, slammed a balled fist into his palm At a time like this!

Khuv and Litve were still down there soursky between themselves and the soldiers And noas trapped? At least Luchov could try to warn them Khuv’s own novelhand and pressed button nu very slowly There was darkness here, where even the well-illuminated areas were dark with i klaxons, whose roas fading a little behind the more loudly, seemed that much closer

They moved cautiously down the wide tiht, and Litve’s on the left The pilot-lights of their fla faces and threatening figures of the disturbing mass fusions

Khuv adjusted the strap of his flaht shoulder, and ether The sound was a back seein elsewhere and rising to drown it out, cahter!

’Behind us?’ Khuv whirled to look back, eyes wide so as to

’No,’ Litve’s voice was a whisper where he crouched, ’in front of us - I think’