Chapter 78 - The Genesis Chamber Collapse
David’s left hand shot out blindly as they fell, his fingers latching onto an exposed high-pressure steam pipe running beneath the catwalk.
Julian did not catch anything.
With a muffled cry of shock, the duplicate plummeted thirty feet into the humming turbine pit below. There was a terrible, metallic crunch as Julian’s body struck the spinning blades of an auxiliary intake fan. Sparks exploded into the gloom like fireworks, followed by the screech of grinding gears and an immense plume of white, superheated steam billowing up from the machinery.
David hung suspended by one arm, the heat of the steam pipe blistering the skin of his palm.
"David!"
Leah was there. She lay flat on the ruined catwalk, her arm reaching down through the gap, her fingers locking around David’s wrist with unbreakable maternal strength. "Hold on! I have you!"
With an agonizing grunt, David found a toehold on a structural I-beam, hauling himself up through the severed railing until he collapsed onto the platform beside her.
Maya threw her small arms around his neck, weeping uncontrollably. "Daddy! Daddy!"
"I’m here, baby," David gasped, kissing her forehead, his body trembling with exhaustion and shock. "I’m here."
Below them, the destruction of the intake turbine initiated a catastrophic chain reaction. Red warning strobes flooded the cavern, and a computerized voice began a flat, mechanical countdown:
`PRIMARY COOLANT SYSTEM OFFLINE. THERMAL RUNAWAY IMMINENT IN SECTOR ZERO. FACILITY PURGE IN THREE MINUTES.`
The subterranean complex was dying. Explosions rumbled deep within the rock walls, sending showers of concrete dust and sparks raining down from the vaulted ceiling.
"The hoist!" David yelled, pulling Leah to her feet. "Move!"
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They sprinted down the remaining length of the catwalk as steam lines ruptured behind them, blasting blinding jets of boiling vapor into the air. At the far end of the hall stood the green emergency exit sign, illuminating a heavy cage-style industrial elevator designed for transporting heavy mining equipment to the mountain’s peak.
David slammed his hand onto the activation lever. The iron gates rattled shut, and with a shudder that rattled their teeth, the hoist began its vertical ascent through the mountain's central exhaust shaft.
