Section B is three chambers deep. The rain makes everything slick. Water dripping through cracks in the ceiling. Pooling in the low spots.
First chamber is mostly rubble. Del checks the walls for cracks while Tovin and the others spread out. Looks for structural instability. The kind of thing that kills people when they're not paying attention.
Hairline fractures near the ceiling. He watches them for a minute. Sees if they're growing. They're not. Old damage. Stable enough.
"Clear," he says.
They move to the second chamber.
Four artifacts here. Three are blue glow. Steady pulse. The wrongness is there but manageable. Del approaches each one carefully. Crouches next to them. Feels the pressure build in his skull. The copper taste. The nausea.
But it's low-level. Tolerable.
"These three are safe," he says. "Quick retrieval."
Mara moves in. She's efficient. Wraps them. Bags them. Under thirty seconds each.
The fourth artifact is different.
Red glow. The pulse skips. Catches. Skips again. Like a heartbeat with arrhythmia.
Del approaches it slowly. Crouches. Doesn't touch.
The wrongness hits faster than the others. His vision tunnels. The edges go gray. Pressure builds behind his eyes like something's trying to push through from the inside.
He backs away. Fast.
"Don't touch that one," he says. His voice sounds distant to his own ears. "Mark it and leave it."
No one argues. They've all seen what happens when someone touches an unstable artifact.
Tovin makes a mark on his crude map. A circle with an X through it. Universal symbol for "don't fucking touch."
Third chamber has two artifacts. One's embedded in the wall. Can't retrieve it without major excavation. They mark its location for later. Maybe a specialized crew will come back for it. Probably not.
The second one is green glow. Fast pulse but regular. Like a heartbeat running too fast but steady.
Del approaches. The wrongness hits harder than he expected. His hands start shaking immediately. The copper taste floods his mouth. His vision swims.
He backs away. Sits down hard. Waits for it to pass.
Takes a full minute before the shaking stops.
"Volatile," he says when he can speak again. "Can retrieve it but it needs to be fast. Under ten seconds or it'll—" He doesn't finish. They know what it'll do.
Mara nods. She's done fast retrievals before. Knows the drill.
She moves in. Grabs it. Bags it. Out in eight seconds flat.
When she steps back her hands are shaking. She sits down next to Del. Neither of them says anything. Just sit there breathing until the wrongness fades.
"You good?" Tovin asks.
"Yeah," Mara says. "Just need a minute."
They rest. Drink water. Del's portion is nearly frozen. He has to let the ice melt in his mouth before he can swallow.
When they emerge from Section B, the child is there.
Sitting outside the entrance. Cross-legged. Hands in lap. Rain pouring down on them.
They haven't moved. Haven't tried to find shelter. Just sitting there. Getting soaked.
Del stops. Stares at them.
"Kid's gonna freeze to death out here," Tovin mutters.
Probably.
Del walks past. The child doesn't move. Doesn't watch him go. Just sits there staring at nothing.
One. Two. Three.
Behind Del: the sound of the child standing. Water dripping off them.
Then: footsteps.
---
Section C is easier. Two chambers. Three artifacts total. All blue glow. All safe. Low exposure.
They retrieve them in under twenty minutes. Clean work. No complications.
"Good haul today," Tovin says as they head back. "Eight artifacts. No casualties. That's a win."
No casualties. That's what counts.
The rain is coming down harder now. Cold and steady. Del's feet are numb. Can't feel the cut anymore. Doesn't know if that's good or bad.
The child is behind them. Maybe twenty feet back. Still walking. Del can hear their footsteps.
Light. Quick. Splashing through puddles.
Drag-step. Drag-step.
Del's foot doesn't hurt. The cut doesn't affect his gait. But the child is limping. Copying something Del doesn't know he's doing.
He doesn't turn around. Just keeps walking.
---
At the warehouse they turn in the artifacts. Hadric marks them in his ledger. Water drips onto the page. He wipes it away with the side of his hand. Smears the ink but the marks are still readable.
"Good work," he says. "Rations doubled today."
Doubled rations. Del takes his portion. Bread and dried meat. More than usual.
He finds a spot under an overhang. Sits against the wall. The stone is cold but at least it's dry here.
The child is across from him. Maybe fifteen feet away. Sitting against the opposite wall. Soaked through. Shivering now. Finally shivering.
They're not eating. Del doesn't see any food near them.
They just sit there. Watching him eat.
Del tears off a piece of bread. Chews it slowly. The child's eyes track the movement.
He could give them some. Split his portion. He has double today. Could spare a quarter and still have more than usual.
His hand tightens on the bread.
He keeps eating. All of it. Doesn't look at the child while he does.
When he's done he stands. Walks away.
The child doesn't follow this time. Just sits there. Wet and shivering. Watching him go.
---
That evening Del lies down in his sleeping corner. The rain has slowed to a drizzle but everything is wet. The stone is cold and damp against his back.
Nearby—maybe thirty feet away—the child is there.
Curled up. Normal. Like a child should sleep.
Del watches them for a moment. Water still dripping off them. Making small puddles.
Closes his eyes. Tries to sleep.
Eventually it comes.
---
Day thirty.
Morning. Gray light. The rain has stopped but everything is wet.
Del wakes. Eats his small portion. The bread is damp. Tastes like mold.
He glances toward where the child sleeps.
They're sitting up. Cross-legged. Hands in lap.
Staring at nothing.
Del doesn't know if they just woke up or if they've been sitting like that all night.
He stands. Heads toward the meeting point.
Behind him—several minutes later—footsteps.
Splashing through puddles. Drag-step. Drag-step.
Always three seconds behind.
---
The woman with brown eyes is at the warehouse. Getting her ration. The man is with her but talking to someone else. She's alone for the moment.
She sees Del. Then the child behind him.
Moves toward him. The man doesn't notice. Still talking.
She stops close. Closer than before. Her voice is quiet. "That one. Something's wrong with them."
Del looks at her. "They're just hungry."
"No." She shakes her head. "It's more than that. I've been watching. They don't... they don't move right. Don't act right."
"They're a kid. Scared."
"Maybe." She doesn't sound convinced. "But watch them. Really watch. There's something—" She stops. The man has noticed her absence. Is looking around. Sees her. His face hardens.
She steps back immediately. "Just... be careful."
The man arrives. Hand on her arm. Grip tight. "What are you doing?"
"Nothing. Just—"
"Come on." He pulls her away. She doesn't resist. Just goes.
Del watches them leave. Then looks at the child.
They're standing in the same spot they always stand. Same distance back. Staring.
In the gray morning light their eyes catch something. A reflection maybe. Light on water where there shouldn't be water.
Del looks away.
---
Hadric's crew gathers. Same eight people. Everyone looks tired.
"B, C, E, and F today," Hadric says. "Split into pairs. Del, you're with Tovin on B and C."
Same sections as yesterday. Happens sometimes. They cleared most of it but there's always more to check.
The child is there. Standing off to the side. Still wet from yesterday. Their clothes haven't dried. Probably never will in this weather.
Their eyes track Hadric's hand as he points to different passages on his crude map.
Section B. Section C. Section D. Section E.
The child's lips move slightly. No sound. Just: movement. Like they're repeating the names. Counting.
Tovin and Del start walking toward Section B.
"You want to grab food after?" Tovin asks. "I know a spot that sometimes has extra water."
"Maybe."
The child doesn't follow this time.
Del glances back.
They're standing there. Looking at the section entrances. All of them. Head tilted slightly.
Then they start walking.
Not toward Section B where Del is going.
Toward Section D.
No hesitation. Just: walking.
Del's throat is tight.
"Del?" Tovin is waiting.
Del opens his mouth. Two words. "Not there."
They don't come out.
"Yeah," Del says. "Coming."
He turns away. Enters Section B.
Behind him, somewhere in the junction: small footsteps walking toward a different passage.Getting quieter.
The Robber's child disappears.
---
Section B again. Same three chambers. Different artifacts.
Del works mechanically. Checks two in the first chamber. Both safe. Marks a third as unstable.
Second chamber has three more. All safe. Low exposure.
They're in the third chamber when it happens.
Rumbling.
Deep. Wrong.
Del feels it in his feet. Water in the puddles ripples.
Everyone freezes.
"Which section?" Tovin asks.
Another rumble. Louder. Then: crashing. Stone giving way. Massive.
Dust puffs from the passage entrance.
Someone shouts: "D just went down!"
Del's stomach drops. Cold spreading through his chest.
The artifact he was holding slips from his fingers. Hits the floor. Doesn't break.
He's running.