The tunnel breathed. It wasn't the ventilation system. The fans were silent, frozen in place decades ago. It was the walls. The metal panels expanded and contracted with a rhythmic groan that matched the pulse in Ezra's temples. Groan. Silence. Groan. The green emergency lights flickered in time with the sound. They were walking inside a lung.
Ezra walked point. His rifle was raised, but his finger was off the trigger. The air was stale, tasting of ozone and rusted iron, but it was breathable. Warm. Too warm for the surface. The thermal layers of his suit were causing him to sweat. He unzipped the collar. The humidity clung to his skin.
Behind him, Mara walked with her eyes closed. She wasn't holding the box anymore. The ice had vanished into the sphere in the node chamber. Now she held
