From: coram@ed.ecn.purdue.edu (Chaosmage)
Subject: Angels in Paradise Chapter Eleven
Organization: Shadow Walker's Anonymous
Reply|to: coram@ecn.purdue.edu (Chaosmage)
Date: Sat, 3 Oct 1992 17:41:15 GMT

                           Angels in Paradise
                    Chapter Eleven: Look out below!

     Let us do or die.
          -- Burns, "Bruce to His Men at Bannockburn"

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     Yuri's computer equipment did its job quickly and efficiently. 
Knowing she was short on time, she initiated a core dump onto one
of her WORM disks.  She'd sort the data out later.  As the dump
completed, Yuri heard voices in the hallway.  The traps had been
spotted and she didn't have much time before they were disarmed. 
She looked around for another way out; the hallway would be a death
trap now.  She spotted an air vent in the far wall.  It would be a
tight squeeze, but she could make it if she dumped the
nonessentials.
     After quickly shedding her IR suit, Yuri threw all her
computer equipment except the WORM disk and her mini-comp into a
pile with the suit.  She dug an incendiary grenade out of her
weapon belt, set it for a two minute delay, and tossed it onto the
pile.  There was no way she'd let the terrorists get their hands on
WWWA technology.  The vent's grating came away easily.  Yuri
removed her belt and threw it into the vent.  She quickly slithered
after it.  As she got completely inside, she heard the incendiary
grenade detonate.  For the moment, she was safe.
     Pushing her weapon belt before her, Yuri squirmed through the
narrow air vent.  _:It's a good thing I'm skinny,:_ she thought. 
_:Kei would never fit though here.:_  Her map didn't do her any good
here; it didn't show the air vents.  With relief, Yuri discovered
that there were no anti-infiltration devices installed in the vent. 
Obviously, no one had thought anyone could get inside to use them. 
She soon came to a split in the pathway.  Hearing what she thought
was gunfire coming from the path to the right, she decided to go
that way.  If she was lucky, it would lead her to Kei.
     Yuri's luck held.  She arrived at another grating in time to
see Kei leap behind a pile of crates.  Then she saw what Kei didn't
-- a terrorist was about to throw a grenade at Kei from the
catwalk.  "Kei!" she shouted as she knocked the grate loose.  With
the obstruction gone, Yuri shot the man on the catwalk.  Her shot
knocked him off and he fell into the pit.  Seconds later there was
a massive explosion from the pit.  Yuri belatedly realized that he
had been wearing an entire bandolier of grenades.  The one in his
hand had gone off, and the rest followed.  Whatever was in that
pit, it was junk now.
     Yuri's shout, coupled with the falling grate, distracted Kei's
pursuers enough that she could again stand and fire down the length
of the hallway.  The explosion in the pit was echoed by several
smaller ones, as the remainder of Kei's pursuit was cut down by her
fire.
     "Yuri!  What are you doing in there?" she yelled.
     "What does it look like?  I'm working on my snake charmer act. 
 Give me a hand; I think I'm stuck."
     Laughing evilly, Kei stood on the crates to help pull Yuri
out.  "How many times have I told you not to drink hot chocolate?"
     "Shut up and pull."  Yuri came out suddenly, causing both
girls to tumble in a heap to the floor.  Cursing under her breath,
Yuri stood and dusted herself off.  "Agh!  I'll never be able to
get the dust out of my hair."
     Kei stood also, ignoring her partner's complaints.  She was
too busy looking over the edge of the pit.  "Yuri, what do you make
of this?"
     Yuri walked over and peered down.  "Hard to tell now.  Looks
like a monster-size door mechanism."
     "You think it was to open the mountain?"
     "Could be.  It looks like missile tubes over there."
     "Well, they won't be going anywhere now, that's for sure. 
What a mess."  Kei looked at Yuri, finally noticing her lack of
equipment.  "What happened to you?"
     "Huh?  Oh . . . I had to dump 'most everything to fit in that
vent.  All my other escape routes were cut off."
     "What about the data?"
     "I've got *that* here."  Yuri flashed the WORM disk.  "I think
it's time to leave."
     "You got that right, but which way?  The bombs in the hanger
will go off before we can get back there.  I don't fancy cutting
through hell to get out."
     "The way I came is out too, even if you *did* fit.  The computer
room is up in flames by now."  Yuri pulled out her mini-comp.  "It
looks like our best bet is this small hanger here.  If we're lucky,
we can swipe whatever is there and get out."
     "Sounds good to me.  You lead, and I'll watch your back."


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| Kevin C. Coram | INTERNET: coram@ecn.purdue.edu | CompuServe: 72567,2201 |
| "Don't tell me I'm nuts.  I know.  It keeps me sane."                    |
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