“Alright, yes that’s bad. That’s very bad. Can’t you unplug them or something?”

“From what? They are batteries. They are getting hot. They need to be cooled.”

“Could you pump water over them?”

“Miss, I don’t wish to sound rude, but it really would be best if you let us deal with this. Getting water on the batteries could electrocute us all. Please, my men and I will do everything we can.”

“Right, yes, of course. Of course.” She continued pacing, held her tongue, and let the men work in peace.

• • •

The base reminded Jake of a hospital, with its endless corridors, whitewashed walls, and polished concrete floors. The only light was from the torches the men carried, but he could imagine that when circumstances were different it would have been brightly lit, filled with people, a truly buzzing environment.

It was laid out on a grid system, like a modern American city. At every intersection of corridors there was clear signage that made their task of finding a stairway much easier.

Although they were already well underground, they had entered the base on the top level. The stairs took them down much further. There was no point in stopping at level two; they continued to the very last step. Jake’s torch picked out a huge sign that announced they had reached level three.

“Okay,” Ewan said, flashing his light up and down the central corridor they had arrived in. “Up there is the dry dock. We know that area well enough, so I suggest we start working towards the opposite end of the base.”

“If we take a corridor each, we’ll get this done more quickly,” Vardy said. “We need to check every room.”

“What exactly are we looking for?” Jake asked. “I mean, this is all new to me. How will I know a secret lab when I see one?”

“You won’t see the lab, we’re looking for the entrance. There will be a security door, a card entry system, something like that. And it won’t be obvious. I mean, it won’t be directly off the corridor. Remember, most of the people who worked here had no idea the lab existed. It’s not on the plans, so the entrance will be hidden or disguised. It could look like a cupboard or a store room, I don’t know. But I do know it won’t have a big sign on the door saying ‘secret bio-warfare lab.’ Use your common sense, guys. If you see something that looks odd, or find a door you can’t open, shout.”

The men nodded.

“Jake, you take this corridor. This is like the backbone of the base, the main highway. It runs north-south along the length of the installation. There’s less chance of it being along here. No offence, but you’re not as likely to spot it as us. We know what looks out of place. We’ll take the next three north-south corridors.”

Vardy, Eric, and Ewan all set off to find their own corridors to search, leaving Jake alone in the darkness. With only one small beam of light, the place suddenly felt oppressive. Gone was the clinical-but-friendly air. Instead it seemed as though anyone or anything could be hiding in the shadows, watching him.

He headed off in the direction Ewan had indicated, away from the dry dock. Plain doors punctuated the bare walls at regular intervals. Taking a deep breath, he opened the first of them. It was engraved with the number 3-103.

The room inside was about the size of a classroom. Indeed, Jake thought, it looked like it was a classroom, or a briefing room of some kind. Ten single desks faced a whiteboard and a large steel desk at the head of the room. The board was blank, the desks empty. The space was spotless, as though it had never been used.

The next two rooms, 3-104 and 3-105, were exactly like the first, and appeared every bit as redundant. After crossing an east-west corridor, his search continued. The next block of rooms were offices. Each was dominated by a huge oak desk, and bookshelves were stacked with heavy tomes on subjects from the history of warfare, battle strategy, and ship building, to group psychology and human physiology. Jake could have spent a happy hour or two browsing through the books, but that was time he didn’t have. Instead he moved on, working his way along the passage, opening door after door. He found storage rooms, planning rooms, recreation rooms, even a small gymnasium. But nothing that looked remotely like it might harbour a secret lab.

When he reached the end, Eric and Ewan were already waiting for him. Vardy arrived a minute later.

“Anything?” the doctor asked. The three men shook their heads.

“This place is immense,” Jake said wearily. “Why so big? I mean, there was a whole base outside as well, wasn’t there?”

“This level is for submarine crews when we’re in dry dock. The other two levels were designed to accommodate some of the essential staff from the Admiralty. If ever world war three broke out, they would have relocated here. This base would be a legitimate military target, and like I said, it’s not hardened against attack, but it wouldn’t get hit as hard as London.”

“So what do we do now?”

“We work the next four corridors. Same drill as before. Come on, let’s get on with it.” Vardy disappeared down an east-west corridor, the others hurried after him. “Jake, you can take this one. Ewan, you take number eight, Eric, number seven, and I’ll take six.”

The three submariners continued on, and Jake set off working back the way he had come, opening yet more doors.

• • •

“I think you four should all fall back to the Ambush,” Gunson said gravely.

“I’m staying. We can beat this; there has to be a way,” one of his engineers implored. The others made similar pleas.

“I could pull rank, order you to abandon ship.”

“What? What do you mean fall back, abandon ship?” Lucya demanded. “You think you can’t fix this?” She had been hovering out of the way of the men, trying to determine just how much progress they were making.

“We have to be realistic. Our chances are not looking good. Two of the battery banks have gone critical, and the other two will go any minute now. When all four are in the red, well, let us just say there is no point in my engineers going down with your ship.”

As Gunson finished speaking, a pipe burst behind him, sending scalding steam hissing out in a high-pressure jet. Somebody screamed and dropped to the ground.

“Johnson! Are you alright, man?” Gunson ran to his fallen colleague. “You three, get out of here now, that’s an order!”

Three mechanics who had been working at the base of the battery system stood slowly. They looked at Gunson, but without diverting his attention from the injured man on the ground he shouted simply: “Go! Now!”

They backed away, then turned and headed towards the door. Lucya stepped in front of them, blocking their path.

“Please! You can’t leave us here, we need you!” She grabbed one of the engineers by the sleeves, shaking his arms as she begged him to stay. “Three thousand people need you!”

“I’m sorry,” he said, avoiding her eye. He pulled his arms free of her grip and the men walked around her out of the engine room. She heard their footsteps disappear into the distance.

“Gunson, please, you have to do something!” Lucya begged, unable to hide the panic in her voice. “There has to be a way!”

“The cooling system cannot be repaired in time. I’m sorry, it’s too late. There is nothing to be done. I will remain here with Johnson. If you wish, you can take my place on the Ambush. Save yourself.”

Another pipe burst, sending more clouds of steam into the room.

“I’m not leaving this ship,” she shouted over the noise. “I’m not leaving!”

But her cries went unheard, lost beneath the sound of a siren that began wailing, filling every corner of the engine room as it announced the imminent demise of the electrical system, and very probably the ship.