With a flutter, Tania opened her eyes. Her chest felt like it was on fire, and for a moment she thought perhaps that she was dead. Then she realized her body was tingling all over, and somehow she hadn't expected to be able to feel quite as many different sensations from within the grave.
She struggled to calm her breathing. It was impossible to fill her lungs, so she concentrated on taking short, quick gasps. After a moment or two the burning sensation seemed to fade somewhat, and she looked around. It was dark, but she could see clearly, though there were no colors at all. She was inside some kind of extremely rough cloth, with thick gray strips of the heavy material dangling all about. Several chunks of black rock lay about her feet and legs, and amidst these, a thin, dark stalk extended out and away from her.
She became aware after a moment that she was moving, but the sensation was so gradual that it was like a gentle wave on a relatively calm ocean surface. A strange rushing sound came and went all around her, like deep breathing. Suddenly, she realized that's exactly what it was, and then she remembered everything. The shrinking--it had felt amazing, like nothing she'd ever experienced, but it had also drained her of energy. Obviously that's why she'd gone unconscious. But where was she now? Someone's pocket? Yes, it had to be. From the thick scent of it, she figured it was leather, and the long, thin wire in front of her was a human hair.
She suddenly felt something she hadn't sensed in a long time--not since those first horrible days after she'd first been shrunk, back when she'd thought she was going to be an actress in a movie. She was frightened and afraid. Three inches had been bad enough, though now she was used to it, but to be as small as she was now, so tiny she couldn't even be seen by normal sized people? It was like a horrible nightmare!
Well, Tania thought angrily, she hadn't let fear control her in the past, and she wasn't about to start now! First, though, she had to find out where she was. She stood up and started to climb, but almost immediately fell back down to the rough and rippled leather, gasping for breath. Damn, she thought, she couldn't even move without struggling for air! She was so small, though--how was she ever going to get out of here? Dammit! She hated being helpless like this!
There was nothing else she could do, though. Leaning her head back and looking up at the top of the pocket, she began to shout weakly for help.
Randi climbed over another slab of wood and started to make her way back towards the room with the prisoners. After a moment, though, she had to pause to catch her breath. She'd been running quite a lot up in the dusty rafters, and it was getting to her at last. Though by now she'd adapted to the breathing implants, she didn't have nearly the stamina as Caitlin or Ta--as the others, anyway. She just needed a moment to recover, she told herself, leaning back against the bar, hyperventilating.
She had been there only a moment when she realized she was hearing something, a kind of squeaking sound not unlike the one made by the rat they'd fought earlier. It wasn't loud enough for that, though, she realized with some relief. For a moment, she thought the noise was coming from the headset she still had strapped to her head. With a flick of her wrist, she deactivated it, listening carefully. It definitely sounded like someone yelling for help, but the voice was extremely high-pitched.
High-pitched? Could it be? She felt her heart leap in her chest as she quickly yanked open the cover of her belt pouch. "Tania?" she asked hopefully.
"Yeah, it's me," squeaked the incredibly tiny brunette from within the container. "Who the hell did you think it was?"
"Oh, my God, we thought you were dead!" Randi cried, plucking her friend out and holding her up to see. Tania was all right, though she was holding her chest and gasping. "Dr. Saul said you'd never survive being shrunk so small!"
"Well, I did," Tania said, coughing. "It's like trying to breathe liquid fire or something, though!"
"I can imagine," Randi replied, her mind awhirl. "The implants are having to shrink air down a lot farther! It must take a lot longer for every breath you take to actually get into your bloodstream. I wouldn't try running or anything like that!"
"I don't plan to," Tania replied with a couple of weak coughs. "Damn, I can't believe he shrunk me this much. What am I, a millimeter tall? How'd you ever find me?"
"You aren't that small to me," Randi said. "It's just like when one of us is miniaturized and the others aren't. At least, from my perspective."
"Well, just the same, don't drop me," Tania called up to her. "I'll probably get stuck in a cobweb or something, or a flea will eat me. Damn! Kevin would have a fit if he saw me like this!"
"The good news is, this won't last long," Randi mentioned encouragingly. "I heard Dr. Saul say it wouldn't be more than half an hour and you'd revert to your usual three inches."
"Good," said Tania, looking relieved. "Just keep the top open on your pouch, would you? I don't want to have to rip my way out when I start growing."
"Okay," Randi replied. "Hey--do you hear something? Yeah, there's someone down below us! Get back in there while I see who it is." She stuffed Tania back in her belt and moved over to take a look through the nearest ceiling panel.
"Who is it?" squeaked Tania, wishing she were back to normal now, so she could do something useful.
"It's Carl!" Randi said excitedly. "He's got the other girls! He's right below me, trying to get through the security door. I'd better go see if I can help. Hang on, Tania."
She clipped her cable to the ceiling frame and started down. Below her, the giant was struggling to plug some kind of device into the card reader. It looked like a PDA, but with a ribbon cable running out of it attached to some kind of insert. Instantly Randi thought he might be an agent of some kind, maybe a cop, but that wouldn't make any sense. He was too young for that.
She dropped down next to his head. "Need any help, big guy?" she yelled in his ear.
Carl almost dropped the PDA in surprise. As soon as he saw it was Randi, he relaxed. "Jesus Christ, Randi!" he exclaimed. "I told you last time to please stop doing that! You know it freaks me out when you sneak up on me like that!"
"Sorry," she replied, giggling. "I just couldn't resist. I know something about computers, you know. If you need any help, just holler."
"Sure, not a problem," he replied, continuing to work on the PDA. He shook his head as the tiny agent continued to lower herself towards the ground, stopping on the edge of the box with the freed prisoners.
"Hey, Randi!" Caitlin yelled up to her. "What's going on?"
"It's Tania!" Randi called back. "She's alive! She's really small, but she's alive!"
"That's great!" Caitlin replied, relief spreading across her face. "I can't see her, but let her know I'm happy she made it!"
Randi picked Tania out of the pouch and held her up. "She's right here!" The others girls in the box gasped at the sight of her, so tiny that Randi could hold her in her hand. "She must've been able to stand the miniaturization better because we're more used to it! Oh, and here, I have some of your stuff!"
She replaced Tania in the pouch and started taking off Caitlin's equipment, tossing it down to her a piece at a time. "Thanks!" Caitlin called up at her, strapping on the belt and pack and looking very happy to have her utility gun back. "I was feeling naked without all this!"
"I'll bet," Randi called. "What are you all gonna do now?"
"Fly out of here," Caitlin told her. "You coming, or what?"
Randi was about to reply when suddenly Carl's huge face loomed over her. "Hey," he said, "you said you could help, right? Well, I can't seem to get this door open."
"Sure," she replied. "Let me take a look at it."
Carl picked her up and held her in front of the card slot. " As far as I can tell, it looks like a normal reader," he told her. "I was able to use my scanner to bypass two other doors earlier, but for some reason, it's not registering my probe, as if it can't see it or something."
"Hold it up to me," Randi said, and Carl complied. She looked it over, impressed. A high school kid built this thing? "Hey, is that a loose wire?" she added, pointing.
"Oh, hell, you're right," Carl replied. "It must've been damaged in the fight. I'm afraid Thomas really did a number on it, though. I'm surprised it's still working. Thanks--I'm glad there's a smaller pair of eyes here to see things like that. I'm sure I wouldn't have noticed that."
"You're welcome," replied Randi, smiling demurely at him.
"Oh, please!" squeaked Tania from her pouch. "What the heck is it with you, Randi?"
"Shh!" she whispered at her pocket. "Don't worry, I'm just trying to be nice, okay?" But she was grinning nonetheless, obviously enjoying the opportunity to flirt with the much larger man in front of her. In her pocket, Tania just shook her head and sighed.
Meanwhile, Carl put the card back in the machine. "All right!" he said happily, and in a few moments the door popped obligingly open. "We're in, girls! Time to get out of here!"
Putting the PDA away, he dropped Randi into the box and hefted it up, moving it inside the miniaturization room. He looked surprised to see the minicopter, as though he hadn't really expected to find it here, but there it was. He let the girls out next to it. Caitlin and Randi hurried over and started herding them inside, but Melissa lingered, saying a few things to Carl.
As the last of the tiny women climbed inside the copter, Randi and Caitlin exchanged glances. "There's only room for one more," Caitlin said. "One more and me, to fly the thing. You said it could hold them all!"
"Well, I thought it could," Randi complained. "It should have! I guess I'll have to stay behind. Besides, Carl here might need some more help with his card reader, in order to get out of here."
"All right, fine," Caitlin replied, "but I'm coming back for you, okay? Just make sure no one other than him sees you if you get out of here."
"Yeah, yeah," Randi replied. "Just get these people out okay. Don't worry about me, I'll be all right."
Caitlin climbed into the minicopter and squeezed her way through the other girls to the front seat. Several of the women were seated in the cockpit, too, taking up virtually every open spot. "Just don't touch anything," she told them, pushing the buttons that fired up the machine. Above her, the rotors began to turn, and she soon felt the engine humming, ready to fly her out of this place.
Outside, Randi stepped over to Melissa, who was looking up at Carl with a forlorn expression. "Come on," she said with a nudge. "Time to go. You'll see each other again once you get out of here, trust me."
"All right," said Melissa, giving a wave to her giant boyfriend and then squeezing into the copter as best she could. There were no seats left, so she just forced herself into a spot on the center of the floor. Randi shut the door behind her, then banged on the door to let Caitlin know the thing was sealed and ready. Almost instantly, the vehicle lifted off into the air, climbing to just above Carl's head and hovering there for an instant. Then it moved over towards the door and waited.
Seeing what was going on, Carl stepped over and opened up the portal. As soon as the door had swung wide, the copter zipped off into the hall and disappeared around the corner.
Carl leaned down and picked up Randi. "You really think she can get them out of here like that?" he asked, shaking his head and trying not to laugh at the thought of a bunch of tiny women in a little toy helicopter flying through town.
"If anyone can, it's Caitlin," Randi replied. "You should see her fly that thing on the obstacle course. She'll just take it to the elevator, and--uh-oh!"
"Yeah, I just thought the same thing. Hang on!" said Carl, hurrying off to chase after the chopper. He didn't have any trouble finding it, for it was only a short distance away, hovering in front of the elevator doors. Carl pushed the "up" button, and the doors slid open immediately. The helicopter floated inside, and Carl needed no further prompting. He reached inside and hit the button for the roof.
"Sorry about that," he muttered, shaking his head at the sheer amazement factor of having a miniature helicopter filled with shrunken women hovering nearby. "Do you think we need to go along to hold the doors?" he asked Randi.
"Nah, she'll get out once the door opens," came the reply. "Come on, Carl, let's see if we can find a way to get you out of here."
"You don't have to ask me twice." Even as Carl started to head back towards where he thought the exit was, though, a warning light began to flash above. Then, the floor underneath him was rocked by what felt like a small earthquake.
"What's going on?" demanded Randi.
"I know!" called Tania from her pocket. "It's Dr. Saul! He's going to blow the place up!"