The Final Countdown

Who: Jamie, Eve, Brett, Ransom, Penny
Where: Outside the MACO lab

Ahead of them, one of Cassandra’s hulking, three metre high war machines, thumped into view at the next intersection and raised one of its arms to target its plasma cannon down the corridor.

“Whoa crap” Jamie slid to a panicked halt, the others doing likewise and quickly looking up and down the walkway, between the robot and another one of the time anchors wielding mechanoids, at either end.

“What the hell is that thing!?” Ransom demanded, a note of panic in his voice

“One of Cassandra’s toys” Jamie yelled, hauling open a service hatch “Everybody in here!”

With a fusillade of temporal anchors bursting around them, the Dwarfers each dived through the service hatch into the darkness beyond, just as the corridor behind them lit up with light and searing plasma.

Crouched together in the darkness Ransom broke the breathless silence that followed “What are we standing in?”

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After hearing Ransom's comment Evelina looked down at the dimly lit slimy liquid they were standing in. As she pondered what they were standing in by the smell she made a series of yuk faces which ironically still looked attractive on her. Seeing how her long dreads would eventually get in the nasty fluid she rolled them up into two cinnamon bun roles on the sides of her head. As she struggled to keep her balance in the nasty slimy water like substance she found herself leaning on some kind of wall with weird metal parts sticking out. Realizing something got into her shoe she tried to balance her hand on the wall better so she could work out the slimy object from her shoe.

Ransom asked, "Is there any other way out?"

Jamie replied, "Not sure."

Penny said, "This is some rescue. When you came in here, didn't you have a plan for getting out?"

Jamie sighed as he said, "Look it was either this place or out there with them. Besides I....."

Jamie was cut off by Evelina who struggled to keep her balance but the slime made her loose her balance as she reached all over the wall for support and accidentally hit the flush valve. As the flush valve opened it sucked everyone along with the sludge.

As they fell through the chute they tried to scream only to find when they opened their mouths the sludge got into their mouths. So they quickly covered their mouths as they coughed up the nasty sludge. Evelina made all sorts of yuk faces which still came off as sexy and cute. Since she is a Modeling GELF she always looked attractive even when she was covered in nasty slimy ooze. As they tumbled into the large room filled with garbage and muck. Everyone did their best to stand up in the muck and garbage as they looked around the dimly lit metal room they were in. Jamie stumbled around looking for an exit and foundsa small hatchway and struggled to get it open.

Jamie looks at the others as he says, "It won't budge."

Ransom looks at Evelina and said, "Oh! What an incredible smell you've discovered! Let's get out of here! Get away from there..."

Ransom drew his ten pound MACO hand cannon pistol and fired at the hatch. The bullet ricochets wildly around the small metal room. Everyone had to dive into the muck for cover in the garbage as the bullet explodes almost on top of them. Penny climbs out of the garbage with a rather grim look on her face.

Jamie looked upset and said, "Will you forget it? It's magnetically sealed!"

Evelina yelled, "Put that thing away! You're going to get us all killed."

Ransom yelled, "Absolutely princess. You know, it's not going to take them long to figure out what happened to us.

Brett said, "Come on guys it could be worse."

A loud, horrible creeking sound echoed in the room followed by an inhuman moan that worked its way up from the murky depths. Penny lets out a terrified scream and begins to back away. Jamie and Ransom stand fast with their heavy pistols drawn. Penny is cowering near one of the walls as Brett tries to calm her down.

Ransom sighed as he said, "It's worse."

Brett said, "There's something alive in here!"

Ransom said, "That's your imagination."

Brett shouted, "Something just moves past my leg! Look! Did you see that?"

Ransom looked puzzled and annoyed as he said, "What?"

Brett yelled, "Help!"

A long tentacle reached up and wrapped around Brett and yanked him under the garbage and muck.

Penny yelled, "Brett! Brett! Brett!

Jamie tried to get to Brett as he surfaces with a gasp of air and thrashing of limbs. A membrane tentacle is wrapped around his throat tightens as it tries to pull him down again.

Evelina extends a nearby long pipe toward him and yells, "Brett! Grab a hold of this."

Brett mutters, "Blast it, will you! My gun's jammed."

Jamie asks, "Where should I shoot?

Brett mutters, "Anywhere! Oh!!"

Jamie and Ransom fire a few rounds into the murky fluids and garbage before Brett is pulled back into the muck by the slimy tentacle.

Penny yells, "Brett! Brett!"

Everyone is on edge as they look around hoping to find any trace of Brett in the nasty murky fluids. Eventually the fluid calms down and becomes still as the crew nervously waits for something to happen. Suddenly the walls of the garbage receptacle shudder and move in a couple of inches. Then everything is deathly quiet. Jamie and Evelina give each other a worried look as Penny cries in the corner. With a rush of bubbles and muck Brett suddenly bobs to the surface gasping for air.

Evelina yells, "Grab him before it comes back!"

After Jamie and Ransom pull Brett up Evelina asks, "What happened?"

Brett answered, "I don't know, it just let go of me and disappeared."

Jamie said, "I've got a very bad feeling about this."

Before anyone can say anything the walls begin to rumble and edge toward them.

Ransom yelled, "The walls are moving!"

Evelina yelled, "Don't just stand there. Try to brace it with something."

They place what ever pipes, conduit and junk they can find between the closing walls, but they are simply snapped and bent as the giant trash masher rumbles on. The situation gets worse by the minute as they struggle to survive.

Evelina thinks for a second before she says, "Wait a minute!"

She pulls her arm up to activate her com watch and says, "Holly! Come in Holly! Holly! Where could he be?"

Jamie, Brett and Ransom try to brace the contracting walls with a few pipes. Evelina begins to sink into the trash as she struggles to climb up.

Jamie tries to help Evelina as he says, "Get to the top!"

Evelina yells, "I can't. Holly! Come in Holly! Holly! Where could he be?"

The walls are only feet apart. Ransom and Jamie are braced against the walls. Penny is waste deep in crushed trash and frightened as she cries for help. They all look at each other with great concern. Evelina reaches out and takes Jamie's hand and she holds it tightly. She's terrified and suddenly groans as she feels the first crushing pressure against her body.

Jamie says, "One thing's for sure. We're all going to be a lot thinner in a few minutes!
Eve get on top of it!"

Evelina says, "I'm trying!"

Evelina is lying on her side, trying to keep her head above the rising ooze and trash. her watch com begins to buzz as she lifts up her arm to see Holly's mini floating head.

Holly asked, "Are you there, dude?

Evelina replied, "Holly!"

Holly said, " Sorry but we've had some problems."

Evelina replied, "Will you shut up and listen to me? Shut down all garbage mashers on the P Deck, will you? Do you copy?"

Holly asked, "Why"

Evelina replied, "Shut down all garbage mashers on the P Deck, will you? We are in one."

Holly makes an worried face as he says, "Oh dear, hold on."

Evelina replied, "Hurry up Holly!"

Holly comes back on and says, "Sorry about that Cass is a bit on a rampage right now. Now what were you going on about?"

Evelina replied, "Shut down all garbage mashers on the P Deck, will you? We are in one you twit!"

Everyone screams in pain from being crushed as Holly quickly turns off the smashers.

Holly, "Listen to them! They're dying! Curse my old mind! I wasn't fast enough. It's all my fault! My poor crew!"

Evelina said, "We're all right! We're all right. You did great. Hey... hey, open the pressure maintenance hatch on unit number... where are we Jamie?"

After Holly helps them escape they find themselves in a series of corridors still covered in muck.

As they walked Evelina pondered and muttered, "Why did that seem so familiar?"

As they are walking down a corridor they run into a few metal men aiming goo guns at them.

Jamie yells, "Scatter!"

Everyone runs in scattered directions as they do their best to avoid the flying goo from the guns of the metal men. Evelina runs off doing her best to avoid being hit. As she runs down the deck plated hallways she is terrified of the metal man who seems to be catching up to her. She managed to avoid him as she ran down two decks. Eventually she was getting tired and took cover behind some old metal barrels of broken pare parts. She re-cocked her pistol to make sure it was ready as she aimed for the entrance where the metal man would enter. She was sweating and breathing nervously as she aimed her pistol hoping she wouldn't die soon. As soon as the metal man emerged from the corner she closed her eyes and began shooting blindly. As she shot without focus she was completely unaware of what she hit. The metal man was unfazed by the flying round as it aimed at Evelina. Just by chance one of her rounds ricochet off the upper deck and hit the back of the neck of the metal man at an odd angle. Suddenly the metal man began to spaz out as it shot several goo rounds into the sky. Electricity began sparking around the metal man as it hobbled around in circles till it fell over the hand rails and several decks below. She nervously opened her eyes and stood up to see the metal man falling over the edge surrounded by an electrical charge.

She smiled as she laughed and began to do her cute victory dance as she said, "No dinner for you hey! No dinner for you hey! No dinner for you hey! Cause you on a diet! You gonna loose weight!"

Of course her victory dance and song were cut short by several gooey splats on her head and around her.

She looked at the goo and said, "Great! Why am I dripping with goo?"

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