The rancid smell of stale preservative fluid and old copper hung heavy in the damp air. Elian waded forward, his boots sloshing through the thick, dark water that came up to his knees. On either side of the narrow tunnel, the rough rock had been carved away to make room for rows of metal shelving. Behind protective glass panes, hundreds of cylindrical jars stood in neat, endless rows, each one filled with pale, glowing liquid and a suspended human brain. Thin, translucent fiber cables ran from the base of each jar, gathering into thick trunks that disappeared into the ceiling.
"Do not look at them, Sarah," Elian whispered, his voice barely louder than the hum of the cooling pumps. "Keep moving."
"I can hear them, Elian," she replied, her voice shaking as she held the flashlight. "They ar
