Page 93 of Dark Shaman: The Lost Treasure
"Excuse us," one called over his shoulder, his voice tight with urgency. Tool belts clanked against their legs as they disappeared through the stairwell door. "We were told not to use the elevators."
"Should we be worried?" Rolenna asked, though the answer seemed obvious.
The hum deepened, if that was possible, and Eluheed felt his teeth ache with the vibration. Whatever was causing it was getting stronger, not weaker. He thought of the tremors from earlier, the unusual humidity, and now this. The pieces of the puzzle were starting to form a disturbing picture.
"We should get dressed," Tamira said from behind him. He turned to find her in the doorway of her room, wrapped in a sheet and looking like a goddess. "We should get up to the surface before this entire structure collapses on us."
"It's not going to collapse," Liliat said. "But it's still a good idea to get dressed and be ready to evacuate. Just out of abundance of caution."
The ladies dispersed to their rooms, but Tony lingered, his eyes looking frantic. "How bad is it?" he asked Eluheed. "And don't bullshit me."
Eluheed met his gaze. "Get dressed. Help Tula gather anything she can't bear to lose."
Tony's eyes widened. "That bad?"
"I hope not. But hope is a poor strategy."
"Shit." Tony ran a hand through his already wild hair. "She's going to freak."
"Then help her," Eluheed said.
He returned to Tamira's room to find her already pulling clothes from her wardrobe. She'd wisely chosen practical items—pants instead of her usual flowing dresses, flat shoes instead of delicate sandals.
"You're frightened," she said. It wasn't a question.
"Concerned," he corrected, though it was a weak distinction.
"Water," she said, demonstrating that quick intelligence he admired. "Water has found its way in. The tremor weakened the structure, and rainwater is seeping in from above."
That was one option. "We should pack a bag. Just in case."
She gathered the essentials, and he helped. A change of clothes, her journal, a small wooden box she handled with particular care. He added a flashlight from her drawer and some fruit from the bowl on her table.
"My books," she said, looking at the shelves with distress in her eyes.
"Will be here when we return," he said, hating the lie even as he spoke it.
A knock interrupted them. "It's Liliat. We're gathering in the common room."
"We'll be right there," Tamira said.
They emerged to find some of the others dressed and waiting. Even in crisis they looked elegant, dressed in silk blouses and tailored pants, as if they were heading to a casual luncheon rather than responding to an emergency. Only the tension in their faces betrayed their fear.
"Has anyone alerted Lady Areana?" Sarah asked.
"I'm sure she's aware," Beulah said. "At this point, Lord Navuh will have been informed, and she's with him."
They moved as a group toward the common room at the center of their level. The hum followed them, vibrating through the walls and floor with increasing intensity. The overhead lights flickered once, twice, then steadied.
"That's not encouraging," Tony muttered.
The common room was their usual gathering space—comfortable chairs, low tables, shelves lined with games and books for communal use. Someone had thought to start the coffee maker, and the mundane smell of brewing coffee in the midst of a crisis was oddly comforting.
"Should we try to contact someone?" Raviki asked. "The security office? The kitchen staff below?"
"The phones aren't working," Liliat reported, hanging up a handset. "Internal communications seem to be down."
Another flicker of the lights, longer this time. In the moment of darkness, the hum seemed to intensify, feeling like depth pressure against Eluheed's eardrums.
