With Sombquist not far behind them, and Maeve's mansion not far ahead, Feldana grew restless.  She didn't like what everyone was saying.  Having heard the two men from her hiding place under the sleeping bag, she was desperate to see that her aunt was safe and sound.<br/><br/>She tugged Sherra's arm lightly.  "I'm scared," she said quietly.  "Is my Auntie safe?"<br/><br/>-----<br/><br/>The stomach muscles of the Sludge Freak contracted tightly around Faust's body, secreting gushes of the burning ooze onto him.  As Faust screamed, his mouth filled with the wretched-tasting glop.  His skin had turned red and was developing open sores.  Soon he was bleeding from several large wounds, his skin having simply been dissolved away.  The chamber was half-filled with the thick ooze.  Faust was rapidly becoming...  less.<br/><br/>-----<br/><br/>As Arget replied back, Halvorson grinned a bit, glad that he and Chiro had at least had an uneventful time so far.  He clicked his radio and said quickly, "We'll call you when we're in position.  Stand by.  Over."<br/><br/>O'Toole reached into her pocket, pulling out the nearly empty vial of liquid body armor that she had been issued.  She tapped Feign on the shoulder.  "Here, see what you can scrounge out o' this.  It's armor.  Rub it on any place you won't be movin' very much."  She indicated her forehead, where a sheen of clear, almost plastic material could be seen.  The medic silently offered the remainder of his vial's contents, and Halvorson passed his back.<br/><br/>Soon the team drew up to the floodgate that blocked their way.  Halvorson regarded it, trying to find a way through.  "Well, shit.  I reckon the Commander didn't even know this was here," he finally said, scratching his cheek.<br/><br/>"Can we go around?" asked O'Toole.<br/><br/>"No way," said Halvorson.  "The last detour led off toward the sounds of some big machines - probably the waste-processing plant.  Not a good place to end up.  Besides, there's only one outlet, and this door being here proves we're in the right tube."<br/><br/>"Well, how do we open it?"<br/><br/>"I reckon it's automatic.  Opens when they push a button somewhere."  He noticed the hinges on the left-hand side.  "Looks like it swings away from us, though.  Maybe if we push hard enough.  Care to lend me a hand, Can-o-Whoopass?"  He looked down at Baz with a smirk.  "Rat McBastard?"<br/><br/>O'Toole shuffled to the head of the group and began heaving against the door with her shoulder.  Halvorson joined her.  Within a few moments, the rusty hinges began to squeak and give.<br/><br/>"That's doing it!" Halvorson said.  "Push!"<br/><br/>The door swung open slowly, pushing back against them as if it were spring-loaded.  When it was all the way open, O'Toole had to keep leaning on it to keep it from springing shut.<br/><br/>"Come on through, all of ya," Halvorson ordered.  "We'll need to find something to prop this open with for the trip back."<br/><br/>Ahead, about a block down the shaft, the light of day streamed into the tunnel from an opening at the end, showing the shimmering waters of the lake.  They were almost there.<br/><br/>-----<br/><br/>The First Sergeant took the flask gently from Emiko, not bothering to notice the vial that had dropped onto the gravel.  He moved back over to Jenten, crouching beside the unconscious bat-fur and pouring some gentle drops of water onto the swollen bruise.  He reached into his pocket for a napkin he'd acquired a while back and swabbed the blood away, pouring more water onto it and cleaning off the wound.  He spoke, quietly enough to avoid damaging Jenten's hearing at this distance, but loud enough to try and rouse him.  "Hey, buddy.  Wake up."<br/><br/><br/>The Resistance was pushing back against the mass of cultists.  So many of the enemy had fallen that Merelli had to climb over small piles of them as his men rushed on ahead, bending their line into a shallow U-shape.  As he looked ahead, he could see that the Cult was unconcerned - their sheer weight of numbers still gave them confidence.<br/><br/>Having retrieved his gun, he was firing relentlessly into the enemy for effect.  The young half-reptilian made a reply to his question from earlier, and now Merelli understood.  This was a boy Iln had seen fit to save from the brink of death.  She had imbued him with some of her characteristics in return for his undying devotion, like that of a son to a mother.  It was not a common practice where Merelli came from, but it was known to happen.<br/><br/>In the corner of his eye, he saw Janus, a bloodthirsty rage in his eyes, ravaging the enemy from behind their lines, his dagger sending up splashes of blood.  For a moment, Merelli was worried.<br/><br/>The next moment, the young rebirth was shuddering, stumbling, blood staining his clothing in two distinct points.  A decapitated anthro-copperhead lay nearby.  Iln was there, a blade in her hand having apparently done the cutting.<br/><br/>The rebirth had been bitten.  Merelli winced.  He did not know how much venom would be in such a bite, but it was quite enough.  Raice did not have long.  He moved-<br/><br/>-and was caught from behind by a sharp blade.  He felt a gash in his back open up and he screamed in pain, turning, the gash stinging as he twisted.  A cultist's sword was finishing its downward swing.  He pumped lead in its direction and a few cultists fell, including the sword's owner.  Staggering back, Merelli let his left hand take stock of the new wound.  It was long and deep, nearly the length of his fingernail.  He howled in pain as his finger traced the edge from the nape of his neck to his lumbar.  Blood was spilling out.<br/><br/>He saw a medic rushing to him and nodded, letting himself stagger away from the battlefront, to safety.  Iln would have to heal her son.  He was unable to help at the moment.