Dakota turned and saw the fire-breather enter the giant cavern behind her. He stopped for a moment, as if to catch his breath, then, grinning at her widely, began digging deep inside his satchel. Shortly he withdrew a wrinkled black lump that looked like a large seed of some kind.

Flames suddenly began to lick around his hands and forearms, whereupon the seed popped and hissed, and then began to glow.

Pulling his hand back, he pitched the burning seed directly towards her. Dakota watched mesmerized for a second, as the object arced through the air towards her. She turned, throwing herself on to the nearby walkway, its metal surface clanging noisily with her every slamming footstep.

The explosion lifted her off her feet and sent her sprawling. Dakota shrieked, and twisted around on to her back just in time to see the fire-breather stepping on to the same walkway. Moss hadn’t moved from where he stood.

Without really considering what she was doing, she hurled the broken remains of the pulse-rifle at the fire-breather.

The ensuing detonation ripped away the platform section where he had been standing. Dakota grabbed hold of the handrail while the entire walkway buckled under her, swaying wildly as some of its supporting cables snapped. By the time the flimsy bridge had stopped swinging and bouncing, she caught a last glimpse of the fire-breather’s broken corpse being sucked into the watery depths below.

She looked back to the ledge beyond, but it was too far to jump. And no way in hell was she taking her chances with the whirlpool.

‘Dakota Merrick!’ Moss screeched. ‘Do you remember our last conversation?’

‘You’ll have to remind me, Hugh,’ she yelled back, her voice almost lost amid the roar of the surging water.

‘I promised you that if you ever stood between me and Trader in Faecal Matter of Animals, I would do terrible things to you – things that would make you wish I had only killed you. I said, I believe, that I would make a symphony of your pain.’

‘Well, we need to talk about that, Hugh.’

‘What is there to talk about?’

‘I need you to back off. I need Trader because he can help me stop the war between the Shoal and the Emissaries. If you don’t, there’s a good chance we’re all going to die.’

She heard him laugh, and watched as he took a few steps closer to her. ‘Are you appealing to my sense of decency? I’m disappointed, Miss Merrick. I thought you knew me better.’

‘I’ll kill you if I have to, Hugh.’

‘You do realize that Trader is manipulating you, surely?’ Moss moved closer. ‘He’s never honoured an agreement in his life. You know, I rather thought he would find a way to send you after me eventually. In fact I almost hoped this day would come.’

Fuck it, Dakota thought to herself, then hurtled towards him with a yell.