One good thing about bringing Chuck along was his 4x4. It was more like a monster truck and easily navigated over terrain that would have had us walking if we'd taken my car. The bad thing was his whinging girlfriend. Too hot, too cold, numb bum, too bright, humidity making her hair frizz ... I was grateful to see the end of the trail - for all of two seconds; she started complaining about not having the right footwear for a trek into the quarry. I threw my spare sneakers at her a bit harder than necessary. Bad move, she started whinging about the bruise it would leave.
Chuck emptied the trunk of our bags and removed a section of the floor to reveal an assortment of weapons. He chose the biggest, shiniest one in there.
"Are you expecting an army?" I asked as a joke.
"You're paying me to protect you. If I fail I don't get paid."
Little Miss-Brunette-Barbie also reached into the trunk and removed a couple of hand guns, which she tucked at her waistband, a dagger went into a sheath at her ankle, a wicked-looking long blade she strapped to her back along with a crossbow and several bolts. I quickly reassessed my opinion of her: a cross between GI Jane and Xena Warrior Princess.
I stood at the edge of the chasm and had a good look around. It didn't look much like a quarry, it was too symmetrical. Several nearby boulders showed signs of extreme heat exposure and aged scorch damage. And on closer inspection of the ground beneath my feet, I found veins of smoky glass; almost as if it had been superheated enough to melt the sand. A niggling memory of a meteor strike rang a familiar chord with one of Dean's tall tales.
Chuck and Xena were already halfway down the steep embankment when Jasper called for me to keep up. I could see they were headed for a fissure near the bottom of the crater.
"Wait up, guys!" I called, sliding down the slope in pursuit.
My warning to be careful died on my lips when I reached the gap the others disappeared into. There was enough light emanating from the entrance to see the mound of glittering rock stacked in the corner of the cavern.
"I knew it!" Jasper squealed with excitement. "There must thousands of dollars’ worth here."
Xena swung her torch around, pointing it at us. It blinded me for a second. "Over here," she called and disappeared into a tunnel.
I could hear her muttering expletives about how cold it was and how my sneakers were useless in the mud. I bit back my retort on her skimpy clothing and followed them into the darkness.
We walked for what seemed like ages, coming across a natural cave that Dean had set up as sleeping quarters. His clothing sat neatly piled on top of a table that sat beside his cot. At the far side Jasper noticed heavy cables running from a switch, down the rock and out into another tunnel. Surprisingly - at least to me - lights blinked on when Chuck threw the switch. I couldn't hear a generator running and I wondered at the power source.
Xena rummaged through the clothes pile, discarding a jacket in favour of a thin red blanket she took from the cot. After tying it around her shoulders like a cape, she motioned us on. I had reservations about her sanity before that and her choice only served to confirm those doubts.
A short time later, we emerged in a huge cavern, bigger than the shopping mall downtown. Right in the centre, taking up the space from floor to ceiling, was some sort of machine that's entire centre was lit in neon blue. I walked around it in awe. It was no more than a metre deep, but stood fifty metres high and ten metres wide.
I followed the power cable up the steps, stopping a metre or so from the sheet of light. The cable continued on into it. It didn't come out the other side.
Jasper joined me. "What the hell is it?" he asked, reaching his hand out to touch the light.
"Don't!" I warned, just before he touched it. "I think it's where the electricity is coming from. It must be some sort of generator."
Jasper disappeared. One second he was standing beside me with his arm stretched out and the next he was gone, dragged through the light by something on the other side.
Frozen in stupefied horror, I watched a hazy, blue-tinged vision of Jasper struggling against another man's grip. The stranger backhanded him, sending him sprawling towards the light barrier. A second later he was on top of Jasper, pinning his shoulders down. Only it wasn't human, it had a spike on its head the length of my arm. Jasper stopped struggling the second the spike pierced his throat. Slurping sounded as Jasper's blood was sucked up through the hollow spike and into a sack at the things back. With a clear view just a meter away, I could see the creature was a cross between a giant mosquito, a tick and a man.
A bullet whizzed by my ear, jarring me into movement. It hit the creature, I know it did, but it didn't do anything more than irritate it. I backed up slowly, not taking my eyes from it. More bullets hit and my breathing stopped as it raised its spike from Jasper's throat and turned its head to look right at me. Heart hammering against my ribs, I spun and ran. It was on me before I managed two footsteps. We tumbled down the stone steps, me enclosed its arms.
At some point during the tumble, the creature let go. Xena pulled me to my feet and dragged me behind a rock. She peered around one side and I the other. We watched Chuck blast the creature with everything his weapon had, pulse after pulse of energy, each one making the creature stagger back a step, but none having the desired effect.
"Power's almost out," Chuck yelled with a mixture of fear and disbelief evident in his tone. "It's not going down."
I glanced at Xena as she rose from her hiding spot. She rolled her shoulders and drew the crossbow, resting it on the rock in front of us. The first bolt bounced of the creature's skull, the second embedded in its chest. It roared in pain.
"Hit it again!" Chuck called frantically as it pulled the bolt from its chest and strode toward him with determination.