Neblae had reached the end of the tunnel. It looked out on the Basin of the Talak River across from Trashtown. She had 'put on' the wrist-gun and was nervous about it. Knowing the fore-arm rest had an 'amputation iris' made her queasy, but it was her most powerful weapon now. She missed her spear, but this was far and away more powerful than a hundred spears. She noted she'd have to doff her new helmet to wrigle it between the bars at the end of the tube. Narchi and she'd have no trouble to squeeze through. Thought of that irritating 'hat-man' filled her mind suddenly as a man's faint death-scream echoed faintly from behind. She whipped around, pulling up her weapon up with her right hand and steadying herself on a bar with her left. She jacked up her hearing in the suit and listened intently. She could hear a woman sobbing and cursing and running feet. Neblae's breath caught in her throat. Her heart was pounding so loud, she had trouble hearing over it. She heard some kind of 'Brrrrt" sound followed by the sound of a body falling down the metal stairs. She had called Narchi by name when she left him behind. He insisted. She was terrified, and in a strange situation. She ran for it. He insisted! She heard Narchi scream in anguish. Her heart broke with the pain of it. The fear holding her body vanished like darkness before a hot searing light. A huge wrath filled her as she growled, "If they hurt you any further, I'll tear open the sky and pour hell upon them. She reached up and snapped the visor closed on her armored helmet. An explosion shocked her so bad she jumped. She said to the air as she started sprinting back down the tunnel toward the sound, "You better be alive! You better be alive, Narchi!" She ran into the darkness as the birds in the area, that had roosted for the night, took to the air in surprise from the explosion and breaking glass from the warehouse windows. Media is Vue 5 Easel and Poser 6