Free Flux by Beth Goobie

actually see the gates unless she tuned into the molecular field, and she couldn’t get enough focus to do that while she was pounding in absolute terror down some creepy Goddess-forsaken hallway.
    Or could she? There were so many gates in this place, the air virtually throbbed with them. Even in the middle of her panic Nellie could feel them, she could feel them. Then, to her right, she saw a pocket of flux undulating in the wall. Stumbling to a halt, she turned and threw the full force of her fear directly at it. Immediately the wall divided cleanly, leaving a space the height and breadthof her body. With a cry Nellie sprang through the opening. Sudden darkness enveloped her and she paused, instinctively assessing the new level’s molecular field. Quickly her body adjusted to its vibratory rate. Then she turned, intending to send her mind into the gate and draw it closed, but was almost knocked off her feet as Deller came hurtling through the gap.
    “Out of my way!” she hissed, ducking to one side. Then she sent her mind into the faintly lit opening and drew it closed.

Chapter 6
    I N PITCH DARKNESS Nellie slumped against the wall behind her and rode out the initial buzz in her brain as her body completed its adjustment to the new level’s quicker vibratory rate. Through the wall she could hear two sets of footsteps fading rapidly down the hall and she tensed, realizing they must belong to her double and Deller’s. A heavy pounding of men’s feet followed. Would they make it? Their doubles had a better chance than she and Deller since her own double hadn’t stopped to open a gate, but even if they reached the door hidden behind the dumpster the men would probably catch them in the courtyard. If not, the patrol gang awaited them in the streets. Oh well. Nellie gave a mental shrug. They were just doubles from another level, and not worth worrying about. What she needed to do now was figure out where she was, then come up with a plan to dump Deller.
    The question was whether to ditch him here in this level, or take him back to their home level before losing him. A tiny grin played across Nellie’s mouth as she considered the first option. Why not? It wasn’t as if she’d asked Deller to follow her through the gate, and she was hardly his babysitter. If he got stuck here alone, that was his problem. So what if he ran into his double and eventuallyfigured things out? Without the ability to open the gates, he would have no way of tracking her down to seek revenge, and she certainly wasn’t planning on returning to this level anytime soon. He would be missed in their home level, of course, but everyone would assume he was another kid who’d been picked up and shipped off to the Interior for experiments. Best of all, the Skulls would be useless without him. All things considered, his absence would improve her life considerably.
    Besides , thought Nellie grimly. tit for tat . He owed her for the haircut. Straightening, she focused on her surroundings, probing for information. The immediate area smelled musty and the air was so still she could hear the slight pound of her heart in her ears. Leaning to the left, she felt her arm brush against what seemed to be a stack of crates. Slowly she tuned into the molecular field and watched the quiet play of energy in the dark. Except for the rapid pulse of Deller’s body to her right, it was all low-key. The room appeared to be a storage area, jam-packed with boxes and crates, and she sensed nothing that would leap at her, snarling, in the dark.
    Carefully she assessed the harsh rhythm of Deller’s breathing, with its tiny whistle that meant his nose was packed with snot. About a foot to her right he seemed to be just sitting, probably assessing things like she was. The question was: How clued in was he? Could she count on him being disoriented by his abrupt passage between the levels, or at least stunned temporarily stupid? Cautiously Nellie raised herself to a crouch. All she