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some time ... I'll give you another question, Doctor. Why were they left out here, so far from the city? A
warning, perhaps? To mark some tribal boundary?'
'Maybe this area wasn't so deserted when the statues were erected,' said Hunter. 'We don't know it was
always like this. Personally, I'm not so sure these statues are meant to represent the creatures who built
the city. It's more likely they're some kind of legendary demon, or god. I mean, look at the body. Legs
and tentacles? It doesn't make sense. No, these statues look to me more like a combination of creatures,
rather than some naturally evolved being.' He looked away, and studied the sinking sun for a moment.
'We're not going to make the city before night. We'll make camp here, and carry on in the morning. The
ridge and the statues should provide some shelter from the elements.'
'Are you sure we'll be safe out here, on our own?' said Williams, looking nervously around him. 'I mean,
at least the pinnace had a force Screen ..."
'We have a portable Screen, Doctor, and a good collection of proximity mines,' said Krystel. 'You'll be
safe enough, never fear.'
They moved into the wide space between the three statues, and began emptying out their backpacks.
Krystel collected all the proximity mines, and set about planting them in a circle around the statues,
establishing a basic perimeter. Hunter set up a field lantern, and soft golden light spilled out in a wide
circle. The familiar gentle glow was a comfort after the harsh sunlight of Wolf IV. Everything looked the
right colour again. Hunter quickly assembled the portable Screen, and set it for a radius of two hundred
feet, just within the proximity mines. He waited impatiently while Krystel primed the mines, and then
turned the Screen on. A faint shimmer on the night air was the only sign the force Screen was up, but
Hunter could feel his muscles relaxing for the first time in hours. He turned away to help Williams unpack
the field rations, while Krystel took one last look around the perimeter. She'd done everything she could,
by the book, but she still felt somehow uneasy.
She finally ended up leaning against one of the statues, the cold ridged stone pressing uncomfortably into
her back. She took a long, slow look at the open plain, through the shimmer of the Screen. Everything
seemed still and quiet, but night was falling fast, and the deepening shadows gave an added sense of
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urgency to her uneasiness. She stubbed out the last inch of her cigar on the statue, and lit herself another.
She'd considered rationing herself, on the grounds it was likely to be some time before she could hope to
get a new supply of cigars, but she didn't see the point. Either way, it was going to be a hell of a long
wait, so she might as well enjoy them while she had them.
She glanced across at the other two statues, and was quietly disturbed by the way the gathering
shadows suggested movement in the stone faces. She tapped ash from the end of her cigar, and wished
fleetingly that she was somewhere else. Anywhere else. After the mess she'd made of the Grendel
mission, she'd thought herself lucky to be offered a place on a Hell Squad, but she was beginning to have
her doubts. As an Investigator, she'd always had the security of knowing the Imperial Fleet stood ready
to back her up. Now she didn't have that any more. She was on her own. If she screwed up again, they'd
all pay for it with their lives.
Krystel smiled determinedly. She would cope. She was an Investigator.
Doctor Williams warmed his hands at the pleasant glow of heat from the field lantern. The evening was
growing steadily colder, and the heating elements in his uniform could only do so much. He stretched out
his left hand, and the sensor spikes slid out from under his fingernails. He slid the spikes back and forth a
few times, enjoying the sensation, and then had them give him a run down on the air around him. He
didn't expect to find anything harmful, but it was a good test of the sensors' abilities. Tiny glowing
numerals appeared before his eyes, via the optic nerves, giving him the exact percentages of the air's
constituents. Williams ran quickly through the numbers, and then dismissed them. There were a few
interesting traces, though nothing that would cause any immediate harm, and no surprises. Pretty standard
air, when you got right down to it.
He retracted the sensor spikes, patched into the pinnace's computers, and had them run a systems check
on his adjustments. A rush of brief sensations flowed through him, like a series of tiny sparks glowing and
dying, coming and going too quickly for him to decide whether they were pleasant or not. The computers
were sparking each augmentation in turn into life, just long enough for it to be checked, and then shutting
it down again once it had tested out satisfactorily.
He cut off the computers, and checked the readings on his implanted energy crystals. He allowed himself
a small sigh of relief when they all showed a good 98 per cent charge. Providing he was careful, they
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