"Only when I know who I am facing it with."
For half a second, Bai Li said nothing.
Then she smiled softly.
"Come on."
They started climbing.
The golden glow swallowed them one step at a time.
And somewhere above, several enormous creatures shifted in their sleep.
They had finally sensed the two humans coming.
They had finally realized that the scent climbing toward the fruit was not the scent of prey.
It was the scent of something that could fight back.
Bai Li and Yan Cijin disappeared into the darkness above.
The door below them swung slowly shut.
The human floors were behind them now.
Ahead waited the stronger levels.
And beyond those levels, at the very top of the mall, the golden fruit continued to ripen.
Unaware, or perhaps entirely aware, of how many creatures were waiting for it.
The darkness above was different from the darkness below.
It was not empty.
It felt occupied.
Bai Li climbed another ten steps and stopped.
Yan Cijin stopped too.
