“No halon system down here then,” Jake remarked.

“I think it might be a good idea if we all put our gas masks back on,” Vardy said gravely. “Best not to take chances. Come on, let’s try this way.” He headed off to the left, pulling his mask over his face and tightening the straps. The others followed suit.

The dark passage swallowed up the beams of their torches almost mockingly. It was impossible to see more than a few metres ahead.

The first opening they came to wasn’t a door; it was a gap in the wall. Eric went in, scanning the area with his light. It was immediately clear they were in a vast space; they couldn’t see any walls.

“What is this place, Russell?” Jake asked.

He didn’t reply. Instead he walked further into the opening, until his own torch finally picked out an object. He traced its outline, or as much of it as the puny beam was able to. It was a gigantic cylinder.

“That looks like a diesel tank,” Jake said. “We have the same on the Spirit of Arcadia. I don’t think ours are that big though.”

“I don’t think this tank was made to hold diesel,” Vardy said. He was walking alongside it, trying to see just how massive it was. His light picked out an image, a skull and cross bones. Underneath, in stencilled lettering, was written one word: “Biohazard.”

“Jesus,” Eric exclaimed. “Russell, you never said this place was a fully fledged chemical weapons factory!”

“I had no idea,” the doctor whispered. “I honestly had no idea. I thought it was just a research lab.”

“I hate to cut short the sight-seeing trip,” Ewan called from the passage, “but perhaps we can get on with looking for that lab? Time is of the essence here.”

“Vardy!” Jake tugged at his arm. “Come on, let’s go.”

He was clearly reluctant to leave without exploring, but dutifully followed the others back out to the dingy passage.

They followed the tunnel around a corner, and came to a door. It was a thick, high-security metal door, and the sign on the front read: “Top Secret, Authorised Personnel Only.” It was the kind of door that was not meant to be breached. It was also ajar.

“Everyone’s mask on?” Vardy looked around, checking each of them in turn. “Right then, after me.”

He pushed the door and stepped through.

Jake was no scientist or doctor, but even to him it was obvious they were in the right place. After passing through a small lobby and a second door, presumably designed to hide the outside from those inside, they found themselves in a fully equipped laboratory. The four men swept the room with their torches, picking out six long benches. They were filled with test tubes, beakers, flasks, electronic equipment, computers, and stacks of books. Beyond, doors led to a dormitory, the office space, and a kitchen. All exactly as Vardy had described. And as Jake had guessed, the combined space was visibly much larger than any of the blocks on the level above.

“Bloody hell,” Jake said, stunned by all the machines. “What is all this stuff?”

“Mostly standard equipment in here,” Vardy replied. “You’ve got an inverse gas chromatograph next to you there, and an infrared spectrometer. This is an x-ray refractometer, and next to it a non-contacting laser profilometer…hmm, that’s new.” He walked between the benches, scanning the machines. “This looks like a fluorescence polarisation system, and here’s a free radical analyser; that could come in handy. Over there is another spectrometer—a mass spectrometer—very expensive. And over on that bench are the spray dryers, fluid extractors, blenders, evaporators—”

“Russell, we’re not here on a shopping trip. Where’s your special machine?”

“Here, I’ve found it.” The doctor’s light beam rested on a large square box, about the size and shape of an upturned washing machine. It was made of sky blue metal and was loaded with an array of knobs and switches, as well as some useful carrying handles. Embossed on the front was the name and model number: “Heimat Brinkdolph Gemini 5001”.

“One of you help me, will you?”

“Er, okay,” Eric said. He grabbed a pair of handles. Russell took hold of the other pair, and they heaved the machine up off the floor with a grunt. Eric was surprised just how heavy it was.

“These will be useful too,” Russell said, using his face to point out boxes of test tubes, syringes, and latex gloves, all of which Ewan collected up and placed on top of the machine. “Okay, let’s get out of here.” The others were happy to oblige and all made straight for the exit.

“Which way was it?” Eric asked once they were back outside in the grey tunnel.

“Left,” Vardy said, and started walking.

“Jake? What is it? Come on, we need to stay close together,” Ewan urged. But Jake remained rooted to the spot. “Hey, what is it? What’s up?”

“It’s my legs,” Jake said, his voice cracking slightly. “I can’t feel my legs.”

Twenty

VARDY AND ERIC put down the machine. Jake didn’t move but remained rooted to the spot, speechless.

“Here, let us help you,” Ewan said quietly. “Eric and I can help you walk.” They stood either side of him and, placing his arms over their shoulders, tried to half-carry him along.

“It’s no good,” Jake said eventually. “My legs aren’t going to move. This isn’t going to work.”

Vardy had joined them. He squatted down and placed his hands around Jake’s ankles, squeezing and prodding, working his way up.

“Can you feel this?”

“No.”

“What about this?”

“No.”

“How about here?”

“Russell, you’re wasting time. We all know what this is.”

“No, we don’t!” Ewan shook his head violently. “It might be temporary; your gas mask might be blocked. Maybe you’re not getting enough oxygen.”

“Ewan, it’s the virus. It’s obviously the virus. This isn’t temporary. It’s not going to go away.”

“Then we’ll carry you back to the ship. We’ll take you to the raft then come back for the machine.”

Eric and Vardy remained silent.

“Ewan, it’s going to take too long to do all of that. Besides, you’ll have a hell of a job getting me up that lift shaft. You’re going to have enough trouble getting the machine up there. Take the machine and go. I can wait here.”

“No! We can’t leave you, that’s out of the question.”

“You have to. Everyone’s lives depend on getting that machine back to the Spirit of Arcadia, on making a cure. We’re all infected, you as well. I’m just further along. Time is running out.”

“He’s right.” Vardy spoke up at last, but he couldn’t look Jake in the eye.

“What? You’re a doctor, you can’t agree to leave a man down here to die!” Ewan shouted, not willing to accept the truth. “You took an oath!”

“Ewan, we’re not leaving him to die. We’ll come back for him. He’s right, more lives will be lost the longer we delay. We’re wasting time even arguing about this. We have to go now.”

“Come on, mate,” Eric said, putting a hand on his colleague’s shoulder to pull him away.

“No, you can’t force me to come with you. If he’s staying, then I’m staying here with him.”

“Ewan, I appreciate your concern, but they need you more than I do. I’ll be fine,” Jake said solemnly. “You need to help them get that machine back. It will be quicker with three of you.”

“I can’t just abandon you, Jake. We need you. The ship needs you!”

“The ship needs a cure, and you’re stopping them from getting one. I’m not your captain, I can’t give you a direct order. But I am on the committee, and on behalf of that governing body of survivors, I am asking you, please, go with the other two and get that machine safely to the Arcadia.”

Ewan looked at Jake, then he looked at the other two men who were collecting up the Heimat Brinkdolph Gemini 5001, and he looked back at Jake.