Mark Gatiss - The Vesuvius Club

Of a sudden, there came an ear-splitting crack and the floor of the cavern began to shift and undulate. With a horrible, belching roar, molten lava began, inexorably, to force its way through the gap.

We needed no more encouragement to tumble through the door and bolt it behind us, falling gasping into the corridor beyond.

«The lifts!» I yelled. «Quickly!»

Charlie let out an exhausted sigh, then all seven of us staggered off up the corridor, the way we had been brought what seemed like half a lifetime ago. We reached the lift doors, closed now, and Charlie and Bowler lowered Quibble to the floor. I stabbed at the controls but the blasted things refused to open. Mrs Knight appeared to have fallen into a faint.

«Professor Sash!» I barked. «Are you fit enough to help open these doors? Verdigris — you too? Charlie, Bowler, give them both a hand. I’ll see to our invalids.»

It is not in my nature to slap a woman, especially when she looks like a boiled hog’s head, but now was not the time for subtlety. I batted as kindly as I could at the poor soul’s ruined cheeks until she became once more sensible of her surroundings.

«We have to climb, Mrs Knight,» I hissed. «All of us. You too, Professor Quibble. It’s our only hope.»

«What?» he gasped from his resting place on the shuddering floor. «What is all this?»

«We’re inside Vesuvius, Professor. I know it’s hard to credit but Maxwell Morraine’s deranged son has developed his theories into practical form and a great big bloody bomb has set off an eruption. You understand?»

He peered at me myopically and opened his mouth to protest.

«You want me to leave you here?»

Quibble’s rat-trap mouth closed firmly.

From deep below us came a fearful rumble. I glanced feverishly about.

«They’re moving!» gasped Charlie, his fingernails jammed into the crack between the lift doors. «Come on! Put your backs into it!»

Slowly, the doors began to screech apart. Around us the electric lights studding the walls had begun to spark and sizzle. All at once, the doors gave and Charlie, Bowler, Verdigris and Sash hauled them apart. Inside there was only empty space.

I gazed up at the shaft, the chains from which the lift had been suspended swung uselessly, stirred by the hot winds from below.

«We have to get on to those rungs,» I cried. «Charlie, you go first. We’ll get Quibble up after you and I’ll push the bugger. Got that?»

Charlie nodded and swung himself up on to the first rung as another tremor hit and the shaft visibly rocked.

«Keep going!» I urged. Charlie, hanging by one arm, helped me to launch the shaking Quibble on to the rungs. Behind me came Verdigris and Sash, doing the same for the still-enfeebled Mrs Knight; the penitent Bowler brought up the rear. We climbed and climbed but Quibble’s ruined body became heavier and heavier. I pushed as best I could but his withered hands were struggling to support him on the hot iron rungs. My own arms ached fearsomely.

Chest heaving, I struggled on, Quibble’s useless legs dangling before me like empty stockings. «Must… get out, Professor,» I gasped. «Can’t rest… Move! »

The old man was certainly game. Somehow, incredibly, we made progress. I craned my neck to see above.

«Charlie!» I called. «How far?»

«We’re getting there!» he cried.

Suddenly the lift-shaft shook again and there came a bizarre sucking, grumbling sound.

«Don’t stop!» I shouted. «All of you! Keep climbing.»

But I sneaked a peek down the deep shaft and saw that instead of the darkness we had left, there was now a dreadful fiery red.

«My God!» I cried hoarsely. «The lava! It’s rising!»

Far below (thank the Lord Harry), crowned by flame and smoke, a vast plug of molten rock was surging up towards us.

I swung my head up to yell at Charlie to help drag Quibble up but the words died in my mouth. The top of the lift shaft was only ten feet or so above us and looking down, holding my revolver, was Cretaceous Unmann.

«You have a choice, Mr Box,» he called down. «Jump down into the lava or be picked off by me.»

«What the hell do you mean?» I cried.

He loosed off a shot that sang off the ladder with a screeching clang. I heard Mrs Knight squeal in terror.

«What I say. I offer you a choice of demises.»

«Listen, you mad fool,» I shouted diplomatically. «If we don’t all get to the surface in the next few minutes we’re going to fry! Is that what you want?»

«You think I wouldn’t do it?» he yelled. «You think I don’t have it in me to shoot you down?»

«I have no doubt you have it in you.» I cast a quick look downwards at the rising tide of lava. The figures of Sash, Verdigris, Mrs Knight and Bowler were silhouetted starkly against a curtain of blood-orange.

«I’m only saying you will die as surely as the rest of us if you don’t move right now!»

«But that’s what Venus wants! Death! Destruction! Annihilation! Ha, ha, ha!»

Another shot rang out and I heard Bowler scream. I looked down and saw him swaying on the rungs below, blood pouring from his throat. Then the poor fool was gone, spiralling down, down, down into the blistering lava flow.

«Choose, Mr Box!» screeched Unmann, his ripped robes flopping forward over the lip of the shaft.

The whole edifice shuddered again and I felt Professor Quibble begin to topple backwards on to me. I thrust out a hand and pushed him back but the walls were shaking so violently now that it was almost impossible to get any purchase on him.

I looked up and saw Unmann levelling the pistol at me. I was a sitting duck.

Quibble’s withered head turned to look down at me and a strange look flitted over his pallid features. I suddenly knew what he was going to do. I pulled myself tight to the rungs in order to present as small a target as possible and flinched as I heard Unmann’s shot blast out. At the same instant, Quibble let go of the rungs and fell back into the void, taking the bullet that was meant for me. As he spiralled noiselessly down the shaft, all was confusion. I tried to clamber the last few feet towards the top of the shaft before Unmann had a chance to recover but was suddenly aware that Charlie, with a great bellow of rage had taken hold of the ripped fabric of Unmann’s robe that hung streamer-like over the lip of the shaft and pulled on it for all he was worth.

With a great disbelieving gasp, the lethal diplomat toppled forwards.

I caught a glimpse of his startled face as he sailed past me and then he was just a ball of swirling scarlet, plummeting down the shaft after the noble Quibble into the pulsating stream of molten rock.

Just before he hit, though, there was a bright flash and pain seared through my shoulder. I gasped and looked down at where Unmann’s parting shot had penetrated my flesh. I swayed on the iron rungs.

In a second, Charlie’s strong arms were under mine.

«Hang on, sir. I’ve got you!»

Waves of nausea began to pulse through me and I felt my senses swim. Charlie grasped at my shirt and heaved me out of the lift shaft. I staggered to my feet as the invaluable valet helped the others out and then we staggered as one unit through the volcanic tunnels towards the Pompeiian bath house.

As we emerged into that strange room, the pellucid lights were flickering and the ancient walls shuddering under the impact of the eruption. I was only dimly aware of all this as Charlie plunged on, dragging me with him, my whole body shot with pain. The others were merely a dim blur behind me.

Somehow he got me to the ladder and, weak as a kitten, I managed to pull myself up and up, every step an agony. Surely there must be an end to this climbing? All at once we were at the hatch and tumbling into the bleary dawn.