Page 92 of Dark Shaman: The Lost Treasure
"Surface water from the monsoons found a new path. It'll dry up when the rains stop." He replaced his glasses. "But the tremor complicates the picture."
They stood in silence, both calculating risks they were tasked with anticipating and diagnosing but not fully empowered to address. The machinery hummed around them, an illusion ofnormalcy, while the water tried to undermine the building's foundation.
"Let's just keep monitoring the situation," Nabin said. "We will check every two hours, document the changes. If it gets worse, we report to Lord Navuh. If it stays stable, we say nothing and avoid causing unnecessary panic."
Hassan nodded. "Every two hours means no sleep. Oh, well. I'll set up some humidity sensors and strain gauges in key locations."
As they made their way back to the stairs, Nabin took a final glance at the damp wall. The mineral deposits seemed to shimmer malevolently in the fluorescent lighting.
They parted ways at Level Four, Hassan heading to gather monitoring equipment while Nabin made for the security office. He filed a report—minor tremor, minimal damage, all systems operational. The kind of report that would go into the file cabinet and never see the light again.
But he also wrote a private log, documenting in careful detail what they'd found. His military training had taught him the value of accurate records. In his desk drawer, locked away, were eleven years' worth of similar observations. Small anomalies, patterns that might mean nothing or everything.
His desk phone rang. The night watch commander reporting all quiet on the upper levels. Nabin thanked him and hung up, then pulled up the security feeds from Level Eight. The cameras showed the machinery running smoothly, the vault doors undisturbed.
But cameras couldn't capture the moisture in the walls or the weight of water gathering in the darkness below. They couldn'tshow the hairline cracks spreading through concrete or the way that pressure was conspiring against the human inhabitants of this monstrosity.
31
ELUHEED
The hum started as a vibration in Eluheed's bones, pulling him from sleep. For a moment, he lay still, trying to identify the source. It wasn't mechanical. It sounded too organic—more like the earth itself was humming a low, thrumming note that resonated through the concrete and steel of their underground world.
Beside him, Tamira slept on, her breath deep and even against his shoulder. He envied her that peace. His long struggle for survival had made him a light sleeper, attuned to any disturbance that might signal danger. And this was wrong.
The sound was felt more than heard, a frequency so low it bypassed the ears and went straight to the gut. He'd experienced something similar once, decades ago, when standing near a glacier that was about to calve. The ice had sung its death song in the same register—too deep for human hearing but impossible for him to ignore.
As he carefully extracted himself from Tamira's embrace, she murmured something in her sleep and turned, pulling his pillowagainst her chest. The sight filled his heart with an emotion that felt dangerously like love.
He pulled on his pants and shirt, not bothering with shoes. The tile floor was cool against his bare feet as he eased open the door and stepped into the corridor.
He wasn't alone.
Tony stood in his doorway in his boxers and a t-shirt that proclaimed, 'I Put the Pro in Procrastinate.' His usual grin was absent, replaced by a frown.
"Tell me you hear that too," Tony said.
"The hum?" Eluheed moved closer, noting that other doors were cracking open along the corridor. "How long has it been going on?"
"It woke me about five minutes ago. I thought that I was having indigestion or something." Tony stepped fully into the hallway, head tilted as if trying to locate the source. "It's coming from below, right?"
Eluheed nodded.
Tula's door opened and she peered out. "What is that sound?"
"We're trying to figure that out," Tony said, moving to her side. "You okay?"
"No," she said flatly, her hand resting on her midsection. "Something is wrong. I can feel it."
More doors opened. Liliat emerged in a silk robe, followed by Raviki, then Sarah. Within moments, all the ladies were in the corridor, looking troubled.
"It's like the whole building is humming," Rolenna said, pressing a hand to the wall. "I can feel it vibrating."
"Has this happened before?" Eluheed asked, though he suspected he knew the answer.
"No," Beulah said. "Not in all the years we've been here."
The service elevator at the end of the corridor chimed, and they all turned toward it. The doors opened to reveal not the expected security guard or servant, but a group of maintenance workers who barely glanced at the gathered residents before rushing toward the emergency stairs.
