Note: The last time I tried to post this series, this was as far as I got before the site went offline. Hopefully this time I'll make it to the finale. If you want to read in stages, the 'score settling' and 'door defence' scenes might be good points to pause, though I'll let you be the judge.

Part 10: Best of Enemies

All was calm. For now. Deep in the palace, Lena leaned nonchalantly against the stark grey passage, its surface soothingly cool against her almost-bare back, and watched with wry amusement while Liz preened and fussed, trying to get the parting of her blonde hair exactly right. Having already freshened up, the two of them were standing guard while Annabelle and Lucy showered, though why Lucy was bothering made little sense; there'd barely been any gunk on her to begin with, but apparently she'd wanted to wash some stray splats out of her hair.

This part of the palace reminded Lena more of a disused refinery, all bare walls and running pipes, but over to her left it looked as though someone had detonated a pot of yellow paint. This, along with a ragged hole in the wall, marked the entry of an uninvited guest. Annabelle had dispatched the ghoul easily enough, but where there was one, there would doubtless soon be others. Lena wasn't fazed. Idly running a finger along the string of her black bikini top, she allowed her mind to wander.

Shame about Nikki. The elimination announcement had gone out a few minutes ago, though the how and why was a mystery. Lena had been enjoying the run of tit-for-tat slimings they'd gotten each other into, and had been looking forward to the next round. Nikki had turned out to be a traitor, true, but she couldn't really hold that against her. Given that they'd already raised an impressive amount for charity simply by setting foot in the Splatter Dome, and that no team had ever beaten the arena, Lena reasoned that getting gunged in the most entertaining manner possible was basically their only real objective. It was plain, however, that not everyone thought the same, few more so than the tall blonde opposite.

Liz was examining her appearance in one of the mirrored panels that screened the cameras, a look of intense concentration on her face. "I never would have thought," she said while fastidiously arranging her neck-length hair, "Nikki of all people?"

"I know. She fooled us all."

"I was so sure it was Annabelle."

"I could've sworn it was you."

Liz's mouth dropped open. "Is there no trust left in the world?" With a wistful sigh she turned away from the mirror and stretched, causing Lena to marvel once again at her companion's figure. Tall and long-legged, slim yet blessed with sensuous curves, every inch of Liz radiated regal elegance. Piercing blue eyes shone from an oval face framed by hair the colour of ripened wheat.

Just then Annabelle and Lucy emerged from the showers, the latter still towel-drying her long brown hair. Judging by their smiles they'd caught the tail end of the conversation. "Yeah, Liz, we thought it was you too," said Lucy.

"Charming."

Once she'd finished with the towel, which she folded neatly and set beside the entrance to the showers, Lucy skipped over to Liz and patted her on the shoulder. "If it's any consolation, Sarah looked positive it was Jen."

Annabelle's face lit at the memory. "Yeah, did you see her at the end? I thought she was going to get gunged at last."

"So did she, I think," added Lena. "She wore her bikini and everything."

A crackle of hidden speakers heralded Sarah's voice. "Yeah, can we please try to forget about that?"

Annabelle lifted her head toward the sound. "Wondered where you'd got to. What's up with Jen?"

"Don't ask me how, but she got away. She's with me now."

Lucy looked amazed. "And she hasn't gunged you?"

There was a note of pride in Sarah's chirpy response. "Nope! I made her promise not to."

"How'd you manage that?"

"I can be pretty persuasive when I need to be."

A squeak, much like a shower door opening, carried over the speakers. It was followed by another voice, faint but unmistakeably Jen's. "You talking to the others? Say hi from me."

There was an audible sigh. Lena could practically hear Sarah's eyes roll. "Jen says hi," Sarah announced flatly.

Jen cut in again, sounding nearer the microphone this time. "Hey, what's this button do?"

"Could you please not touch that?" Sarah cleared her throat before continuing in a more measured tone, "Okay girls, here's what you need to do. Take a right and follow the passage. You'll come to this windy corridor with a big grey pipe running along the ceiling. Take a left and just follow the pipe. We'll meet you at the exit. Got that?"

Annabelle nodded. "Got it."

A few minutes passed as they moved through dingy passageways. At first they darted from cover to cover as though on a covert operation, but as time went on with no hint of any pursuit, they slowed to a leisurely amble, chatting as they went. Lena was becoming confused. Where had the ghouls gone? It wasn't that she was especially concerned. Truth be told, she quite liked it when things got messy. It was the not knowing that was making her jittery.

It occurred to Lena that at some point today she'd gunged or pied each of her three companions, whereas none of them had laid a finger on her. She was tempted to mention this little fact, but thought better of it. The likely consequences weren't an issue, but it made sense to get a bit nearer the exit before settling any scores.

They were an unusual group. Behind her was Lucy, the cheerful country-girl who had always wanted to play a gunge game yet for so long had been too timid to apply. Further back, Liz sashayed imperiously along, chin held high, while Annabelle ambled alongside. Small but enviably proportioned, with a pale complexion and chocolate-coloured hair down to her shoulders, Annabelle's features were never far from a roguish smile. She struck Lena as an intelligent girl who was revelling in the ridiculousness of her situation, like an athlete treating themselves to a fry-up.

A faint clank echoed a long way behind them. She glanced at her companions, but none seemed to have heard it. Liz was busy trying to educate Lucy about the multitude of expensive clothing stores she simply must try. Should I say something? Lena paused to seal the next door they passed, which closed with a circular handle like something from a submarine, and spent a few seconds peering through the small porthole at the way they'd come. The corridor disappeared into hazy darkness. Still nothing.

Lena's hands swept up into her long black hair. She had a feeling this was the calm before the storm. Something was brewing. Realising she was in danger of being left behind, she scurried after the others. The exit might not be far, but Lena was under no illusions. They wouldn't all make it.

*****

In the mini-control room adjoining the purification chamber, Jen sat awkwardly in an oversized office chair beside the main console. Sarah made a show of examining the bank of monitors and tinkering with a few controls that Jen suspected did absolutely nothing except make official-sounding thunk sounds. She could see the devilish glee in her friend's eyes. It was obvious she was being toyed with. Even so, Sarah's mood seemed to be getting progressively more jovial. Jen took the bait willingly.

"So I guess I should thank you. For saving me, I mean."

Sarah remained facing the controls. "Who said I was saving you?"

"I... I mean, I was trapped out there."

Sarah straightened. Slowly she turned her head, fixed Jen with a worryingly serene smile, paced toward her, and then casually sat sideways on her lap. Perplexed, Jen gripped the chair's armrests as Sarah rested an elbow on her left shoulder.

"Jennifer, Jennifer, you've got it all wrong. I didn't save you."

"But..."

Those beautiful green eyes seemed to bore into her. "Now Jen, don't you remember your promise?"

"Not to slime you, you mean? Sure, if that's what you want, but I really think you're missing out..."

Sarah tapped a finger to Jen's lips to hush her. The blonde's expression was all sweetness, but those green eyes didn't blink. "No, I mean the other part. You promised to do whatever I say. You do keep your promises, don't you?"

"I, uh, sure I do. But what does...?"

The smile changed. It was hard to say how it happened - the way Sarah's top lip rose, the way her brows lowered, but somehow that sunny grin became something wicked. Sarah leaned closer and gently brushed a lock of hair from Jen's cheek. "What I mean, Jenny, is that you're mine now." She gestured to the monitors. "See, I've found us a route out, but parts of it are a little... dicey. That's where you come in."

Jen was beginning to understand. "Traps, you mean?"

Sarah was enjoying this. Idly she began playing with Jen's hair. "Yep. And you, Jen, you're the canary in the coal mine. Every mystery button, you're gonna press it. Every weird lever, you're gonna pull it. Every gooey little surprise they've got lined up, it's all gonna go pouring over you." She paused, relishing Jen's expression. "And then, once you've cleared the path, when there's no more use for you, I'm going to find the messiest trap I can find - and I'm talking slime tanks, big pools of goo, hell, even that blob thing - and I'm gonna order you to feed yourself into it. And when it happens, when they eliminate you, I'll be right there covering you in slime until the last possible moment. Whatcha think about that, Jenny?"

Oh my God, she's serious. "Wow. So you're really going for the whole 'bad guy' thing then?"

"What?" For a second Sarah giggled, the facade cracking, and then pretended to look offended. "Me? You're the one who's been trying to get me slimed."

It occurred to Jen that she was entirely at Sarah's mercy. Duress or not, she'd given her word, and she took such things seriously. Plus in truth she felt a little guilty for even trying to vote Sarah into the purifier. Her future was looking decidedly gooey. Mind whirling, she fumbled for a distraction, but before she could say anything she noticed Sarah's gaze shift to the monitors. Something had drawn her attention.

*****

The four of them strolled along dismal passages. Pipes lined the ceiling, just as Sarah had said, and here and there vapour billowed from a loose seam or grated vent. There was a grimy atmosphere here, the random machines and steel facings all fouled with grease and corrosion, while here and there streaks of dried slime marred the walls.

Despite all this, Lucy hummed happily to herself. As early as the pre-game briefing she'd feared she might be too shy to get fully involved in the game, that she'd clam-up and stay on the edge of the action, or else lose her nerve at the last moment, afraid to embarrass herself in front of strangers. Instead, somehow, things had been different. Today she'd come out of her shell in a way she hadn't thought possible. The air was warm, she was with a bunch of new friends, and her cares were forgotten. What was more, she'd come to the attention of the commander of the gunge ghouls, who apparently was gunning for her personally. Lucy took this as a compliment.

Annabelle was in the process of explaining how her love of cheesy horror and sci-fi movies gave her an insight into how the organisers' minds worked, and was going into enthusiastic detail about how they were all completely and utterly doomed. Lucy noticed the way Liz clenched her teeth on hearing that - that was probably half the reason Annabelle was doing it - though she noted too how, despite apparently knowing all the textbook mistakes they'd made, Annabelle seemingly had no issue with going along with them if she thought the outcome might be funny.

Suddenly Sarah's voice emerged from speakers high on the walls. "Guys, wait! New plan. Quick, take that door to the right."

Confused, Lena looked toward the sound. "Huh? I thought we had to follow the passage?"

"No time to explain. Just do it. Hurry!"

This can't be good. A blast of vapour filled the passage as a bulkhead door juddered open. With her mind conjuring all manner of thoughts on what Sarah might've spotted, Lucy rushed through into a small chamber. She was the last one in. Straightaway she bumped against Lena, who for some reason had stopped. On peering past her teammates, her brow furrowed. They were in an empty hexagonal chamber, about ten feet across and lit by imitation lanterns set in sconces on the walls. There were no other doors. It was a dead end.

"Oops, sorry," said Sarah, who as if by magic was calm again. "Guess I made a mistake."

Annabelle moved back toward the door, only to murmur in surprise as it closed in front of her. She tapped the release button. Nothing happened. She pressed again, harder this time. Still nothing.

Eyes narrowing, Annabelle looked up at the speakers. "Uh, Sarah... would you mind opening the door?"

"Sure thing," came the slightly-too-chirpy response. The door began to open, but moved barely three inches before switching direction and shutting again. "Darn. Would you look at that? Don't worry, I'm sure I'll work it out in a second... In the meantime though, seeing as it's all nice and quiet and nobody's chasing you, maybe we could talk about a few things? Things like, I don't know, the ethics of voting to slime the person who's saved you multiple times when you're meant to be trying to find a traitor. Any thoughts on that, Annabelle?"

All eyes turned to Annabelle, who chuckled guiltily. "Erm, now Sarah, you know that was just-"

Sarah didn't wait for her to finish. Her voice held an edge of playful menace. "Do the rest of you see those hatches on the walls? They look familiar? Maybe you should open 'em up, see what's inside."

Sure enough a series of closed rectangular serving hatches punctuated the chamber's edge. They looked exactly like the ones Lucy had seen in the gatehouse and purification chamber, and she had vivid memories of what those had contained. While the others moved to the hatches, Lucy remained watching Annabelle. The curvy little brunette still faced the door, head angled towards the speakers.

Annabelle giggled nervously and raised a finger before speaking. Her voice had gone up an octave. "Okay, umm... Sarah, now remember Jen voted for you too, yeah? It's all just a bit of fun."

"Ooh don't worry, I'll be dealing with Jen soon."

A half-serious whimper carried through the speakers. The voice belonged to Jen, and Lucy could just imagine the look Sarah was currently giving her.

Annabelle's head bobbed left and right on hearing hatches being opened, followed by amused titters from the others. It was as Lucy thought; heaped custard pies and gunge-filled bowls waited within.

"Uh... okay... now Sarah, about voting for you... you remember how I ended up getting purified, yeah? Surely that makes us even?"

"Hmm. See, I'm not so sure it does." Sarah raised her voice to address the whole group. "Guess what, ladies, I know what'll remind me how to open this door. Lena, Lucy, Liz, I want all of you to grab yourself a pie... and I want you to splat Annabelle."

Annabelle's pale shoulders tightened on hearing the giggles behind her. Slowly she turned, eyes darting about and a wary smile flickering at the corners of her mouth. The strings of her powder-blue bikini top strained as she took a deep breath. "Um... now you know Sarah's bluffing, right? She wouldn't just leave us here."

Liz had already grabbed hold of a pie and was in the process of layering the contents of a second on top of it. "Well quite," she said, trying to sound innocent, "but can we really take the risk? I'm so sorry, Annabelle, but really, what choice do we have?"

Annabelle gave her a sideways glance. "Yeah, Liz, you really look broken up about this."

Having finished 'enhancing' the pie, Liz tossed the empty plate aside, brandished the heaped mound of cream and custard in both hands, and with head held high advanced on Annabelle, beaming all the while. Annabelle shuffled on the spot, hands bunching, then gave a resigned groan on noticing Lena approaching from her left, a pie held in each hand.

Lena moved one of the pies up to her face, as though about to sniff it. "Ooh, these ones are cold. I can feel it from here. Hey Lucy, this one's for you."

Without thinking Lucy accepted the offered pie, but then hesitated, unsure what to do. Much as she liked the idea of splattering Annabelle, it seemed a little mean for them all to gang up on her like this.

As though sensing her thoughts, Lena's dark eyes wandered to her. "C'mon, Lucy, you know she'd do the same to you."

Hah, she has a point.

There was a plaintive sigh from Annabelle, who gave a slight nod in Lucy's direction before straightening and shaking her shoulders loose. "Ugh. Go on then, let's get this over with."

Liz and Lena were already in position on either side of Annabelle, who nibbled her lip but forced herself to stay in place. Slowly Lucy moved up in front of her, gave an apologetic smile that they both knew wasn't entirely sincere, and lifted the pie level with Annabelle's chin.

"On three then?" said Lena. "You ready, Annabelle? Hah, course you are. One, two, three!"

A brief shriek rent the air, only to be muffled almost immediately as Annabelle's head disappeared in a surge of white and yellow muck. Liz's pie made contact first. The resulting blast engulfed the right side of Annabelle's face, blobs spurting across her chin and forehead, while a creamy glacier crawled down her neck, where it collected briefly at her shoulder before most slid down her back. A few glistening globs rolled down her arm or slipped down her flank, where the curve of her breast directed it along the edge of her bikini top before it swept on down the inbound arc to her waist, then slowed to a crawl once it reached the blue knot at her hip.

Lucy had time to see Annabelle's expression start to change. The shock of cold cream made her visible eye widen, then squeeze shut as her chin ducked down and her mouth widened into a laughing scream. Her face disappeared altogether once Lena's pie arrived. Laughing, both Liz and Lena kept up the pressure, rotating the disintegrating pies to ensure maximum messiness. Engrossed by it all, it took a moment for Lucy to remember what she was meant to be doing. With a spirited yell she splatted her own pie directly into Annabelle's face. Her hit was lighter than the others, so rather than spraying everywhere, the mess instead puffed outward. Lucy giggled and pressed it in. She couldn't see Annabelle's reaction beneath the crumbling pie bases, but witnessed an avalanche of slick dollops tumble down into the brunette's cleavage. There was a muffled gasp from Annabelle, who began lifting her arms to protect herself only to stop and force them back to her sides.

At last the pies were spent. The three attackers stepped back and gave each other satisfied looks, while Annabelle wiped her mouth, gasped, shook some mess out of her hair, and then delicately wiped clean patches around her eyes before peering down at herself. "Eww. God that was cold. Hope you saw that, Sarah. Happy now?"

The sound of Sarah chuckling carried over the speakers. "Thrilled. Thanks, Annabelle."

"So we're good?"

"Hah. Yeah, we're good. And since I'm a woman of my word...."

The door opened with a hiss. Still wiping at her face, Annabelle turned toward the door - only to slip on a patch of custard. She wobbled drunkenly, arms flailing for balance, and with a yelp went tottering backwards. Lucy leapt forward to catch her, but Lena was a fraction quicker, grabbing Annabelle's upper arm just as Lucy supported her back. Together they lowered her into a sitting position.

"Phew, thanks."

"Don't mention it."

Lucy made for the exit, but then felt Lena's hand on her shoulder. A moment later she noticed the pie in Lena's other hand. Uh-oh.

"Now Lucy, since we're, you know, clearing the air and everything, I seem to remember you voting for me back at the purifier. Liz, is that how you remember it?"

A hand planted on her other shoulder. It was Liz, and she had a pie. "Why yes," Liz purred. "As a matter of fact, I seem to recall her voting for us both."

Again Sarah spoke. "You realise the door's open, right?"

Pretending to disapprove, Lucy tutted. "Is this what we're doing? Splatting whoever voted for us? Are you sure that's a road you two want to go down?"

Straightaway Liz's smirk faded. She'd grasped the implication; all four of them had voted for at least one of the others. She muttered a sheepish excuse and backed away. By contrast, Lena's smile broadened. Looking Lucy in the eye, she chirped, "I'm game. You?" Before she could answer, Lena handed Lucy the pie and then collected another for herself. "To hell with it, how about we all just splat each other? Everyone versus everyone."

Instantly Liz shrank back. "No-no-no, I've only just cleaned up. Count me out."

"I'm in."

It took a moment before Lucy realised what she'd said. What the hell. If the ghouls won't gunge me, my teammates will. Beaming, she and Lena faced each other, pies at the ready. Liz tried to edge around them to the exit, but there was no way past that didn't involve getting unacceptably close to a custard pie. Meanwhile, Annabelle remained sat between them, facing the door.

Lena nodded. "Wicked. That's two of us. What do you say, Annabelle? Want to get some payback?"

There was exasperation in Sarah's voice now. "Seriously, guys. The door is literally wide open."

Still an absolute state, Annabelle peered up at them. "Hah! Your funeral, Lena. Me and Lucy were in the bakery. We know a thing or two about pies."

"Oh yeah? Show me."

"With pleasure."

This time it was Jen's voice that emerged from the speakers. "Wait, what's that? See, there on the screens. Is that-?"

Crackling static drowned out Sarah's response.

"Say again?" called Lena. "We didn't catch that."

Sarah spoke rapidly, her tone growing steadily more alarmed. "It's them. The ghouls. They're on the move. My God, so many... You have got to get moving." Again the static cut in. "-Coming straight for you! Get out of there! I can..." The interference grew worse still, fracturing Sarah's words. "Hea... orth. Just keep ... nor... get there. Wait... -thing's changed... Walls... those aren't..." Just before the transmission died, one final fragment rang out. Sarah's voice had increased noticeably in pitch. "And what the hell is that?"

Silence lingered. At first the four girls simply stared at each other. Seeing the conflict on Lena's face, Lucy winked. "Suppose we'll have to leave the pies for now. Hold that thought though, yeah?"

Lena nodded ruefully. Biting her lip, she glanced down at the pies in their hands, then at a certain someone, before giving Lucy an impish look. "Shame to waste though. Shall we?"

She didn't wait for an answer. Annabelle was clambering back up when suddenly Lena crouched beside her, pulled Annabelle back with one arm, and with the other pressed the pie between her collarbones. A creamy starburst erupted over Annabelle's torso. With the ground slippery, she went sliding backwards, squealing as she went.

Unable to resist, Lucy pounced, slathering her pie over Annabelle's stomach as she slid along the ground, her squeals now laced with ticklish laughter. She came to rest with Lena and Lucy crouched on either side of her.

Seeing her chance, Liz skipped past them and out the doorway. "Argh! They're coming, I can hear them. What are you idiots doing? Run!"

"Yeah, Annabelle, stop messing around," Lena deadpanned. Before Annabelle had chance to respond, she and Lucy lifted her to her feet. "Come on, let's go."

A slow siren had begun, low but ominous and accompanied by flashing hazard lights beside each bulkhead. Now from the south came the hammering of running footfalls and the rattle of doors and hatches flying open. The horde was coming. Lucy felt butterflies flutter in her stomach.

Hurrying down the dimly-lit passages, Lena spoke without slowing. "Did anyone get much of what Sarah said?"

"I think she said to go north," Lucy replied, "and something about the walls?"

Liz's head flicked from side to side, nervously scanning the passage ahead. "Walls? You think there might be more hiding places?"

Sensing Liz's anxiety, Lucy shook her head. Getting cleaned up seemed to activate a reset button in Liz's brain. She'd start each cycle overly protective of her appearance, loosen up once the inevitable happened, but then get all apprehensive again once the gunge washed off.

"Maybe," Lena replied, "but how'd Sarah see them?"

She had a point. The cubbyholes the ghouls sprang from were always seamlessly camouflaged. It had to be something else. To the south a bulkhead opened with an echoing clang. The four of them broke into a scampering run. Lucy felt her heart beat faster. The sounds of pursuit were growing louder. The ghouls were gaining.

*****

Back in the makeshift control room, Jen stood fidgeting while Sarah wrestled with the malfunctioning console. Most of the wall-mounted monitors had blinked offline, but those that remained were alive with movement. To have any chance of linking up with the others they would need to leave via the northern doorway. The way had looked free of ghouls when the screens switched off, but now....

"We should get out of here."

Sarah wasn't listening. "One of these must fix it," she muttered, hammering buttons seemingly at random. Jen could sense her friend's desperation. The Splatter Dome was essentially just mayhem dusted with a feeble excuse for a plot, but here, for a short time, Sarah had been in control. And now it was slipping away.

A tennis ball dropped from a hole at the corner of the ceiling. With her teammate oblivious, Jen watched it land in a transparent pipe that slanted across the wall, one she hadn't even noticed until now. On reaching the end of the slanted pipe, the ball dropped down a vertical one, activating a switch on the way down. This sent a tiny toy car trundling along a track. This too was set into the wall, and was covered by a plastic panel to prevent interference. Jen took a step back, tracing its route, and only now noticed some kind of Rube Goldberg machine secreted about the room. Here a row of dominoes the same colour as the wall behind them, there a yardstick rigged to act as a seesaw. All of it was barely noticeable. The more Jen looked, the more she saw.

"Sarah, I really think we should get out of here now."

"Just a few more seconds. I think I'm getting somewhere."

Searching for the machine's endpoint, Jen jumped on finding the window facing the purifier lined with ghouls. What was strange was the way the women just stood there, smirking... but making no effort to get in. Something was up. The machine continued, but now there were other sounds - grinding gears and squeaking hydraulics, muffled but growing louder. The ghouls weren't even trying to distract them, content simply to watch. But watch what?

"Sarah, seriously, we need to go."

"Almost there!"

The noise rose up behind the western wall, but then stopped suddenly. That can't be good. The intricate mechanism was converging on that same spot, a final flurry of falling dominoes activating a single golf ball-sized LED set within the wall... then a second, then a third, until a line of them snaked almost to the ceiling, then turned to run seven or eight feet along the wall before dipping straight down again. Torn between excitement and apprehension, Jen felt her stomach tighten. The lights had formed an outline of a wide doorway. Then she saw it - a hairline crack running floor to ceiling at its centre. It was opening. Wisps of dry ice began spilling into the room. Jen knew exactly what that meant. Without a word, she took Sarah's arm and pulled her away from the desk.

"Hey! I almost had..." Sarah's words dissolved into the ether, to be replaced by a single word. "Run."

Jen didn't need telling. Pausing to open the northern door, she felt Sarah press against her back, frantically urging her on. She risked the briefest of looks back. Vapour billowed from a menacing void where the wall had been, and now a hulking, amorphous outline was emerging from the gloom. Jen squeaked and sped away.

*****

The quartet were making good progress. Lena led the way through networks of oil-stained passages surrounding workshops full of papier-maché machinery. Clusters of pipes ran the length of the ceiling, studded at precise intervals by ominous-looking sprinkler heads. The ghouls were still on their tail, but for some reason their pace had dropped off. Even the siren had stopped. Things were going suspiciously well. Though part of Lena wanted to dash wildly on, she made herself slow to a more measured pace. One wrong turn might doom them all. With adrenaline still washing through her system, she took a moment to calm herself and check they hadn't left anyone behind. She needn't have feared - her teammates were right behind her.

Majestic Liz still fidgeted with worry, her face having gone almost as pale as her snow-white bikini. The blonde's hands were forever flicking up to her hair as though trying to protect it from imaginary mess. Further back, Lucy skipped excitedly along, pausing every few yards to peek back over her shoulder. It was as though she wanted the ghouls to chase her. Meanwhile, Annabelle sauntered on, casually smoothing back her pie-smeared hair as she went. The blue knots of her bikini bottoms swished with each sway of her hips. She had the look of someone who knew they were being set up yet had decided to play along regardless. Lena chuckled. Elite operatives they weren't. It was a wonder they'd made it this far.

"I've been thinking," said Annabelle. "Kate, that ghoul we caught, said how they always come back no matter how many times we beat them, but then she dropped this massive hint about there being a way to change that."

Lucy's brow furrowed. "You think it was staged?"

"Maybe not all of it, but it's weird she just happened to mention it."

"That's nice, but I don't see what good it does us," Liz interjected. "How would we know where to look? What would we even be looking for?"

Annabelle lifted her hands, fingers splayed in a 'hear me out' gesture. "I've got a theory. You know how there's meant to be some twisted logic behind everything that goes on here? What if the blob's kind of, I don't know, the ghouls' Cthulhu?"

Liz looked blank. "Their what?"

Annabelle seemed surprised. "What, you've never heard of Cthulhu? None of you? That's shocking. What I mean is - what if the blob's their idol, their queen bee? It was waiting behind an altar in a temple when Nikki and the others found it, and in the intro it hatched out of that big cocoon thing, yeah?" She waited for the others to nod. "So what if there's somewhere like that for the ghouls? A kind of, I don't know, a hatching room? A place that, if we trash it, stops them coming back. C'mon, don't look at me like that, I'm just trying to think like the people who made this place."

Grinning at the silliness of it all, Lena nodded. "I was thinking something similar myself. It's worth keeping an eye out..." Suddenly she halted. There was something different ahead - a change in the scenery. "Wicked."

Annabelle had spotted it, too. "Oh you have to be joking."

The group stood gawping. The room before them could have been anything from a narrow defile to a great hall. It was impossible to tell by looking, for only a narrow catwalk remained visible. Drooling tapestries of purple gunk hid everything else. Bordering the catwalk, the torrents ran the room's entire length - about twenty yards - before widening out just before ending at a pointed archway.

Lucy spoke in an excited whisper. "This must be what Sarah was talking about."

"What do we do?" demanded Liz, her eyes wide.

Lena stepped up to the entrance. "We go across, of course."

Liz was aghast. "Are you mad? It's a trap! It's an obvious trap. They wouldn't set all this up for nothing."

"I suppose we could try finding another way," ventured Lucy, though she didn't sound overly keen on the idea.

Annabelle looked at her askance. "Go back, you mean?"

The sound of a door being thrown open echoed from the south. The horde was closing in. Even worse, that door had come just after the last junction they'd passed. They all knew what that meant. There was no going back.

A shiver of excitement ran down Lena's back. She had a nagging suspicion that they'd been herded to this very spot. "Guess we don't have a choice."

She edged forward. Rhythmic slurping filled the air, presumably from pumps straining to recycle the purple ooze. It was hard to be sure, but the fact that the gunge hadn't flooded the walkway suggested there were slime-filled trenches behind each waterfall.

Ugh, this is going to be messy. Wetting her lips, Lena stepped between the sheets of slime. Annabelle followed, then Liz - who plainly didn't like the idea, but liked the thought of being at the back of the herd even less. Lucy brought up the rear, casting cautious looks back as she went.

They walked slowly, everyone trying to spot the trick that surely lay in wait. Wan light filtered down from a series of lights that ran along the walkway. Lena barely breathed. Walk too fast and we'll slip, walk too slow and the ghouls will catch us. It would take only the tiniest fluctuation in the glutinous flows falling mere inches past their elbows and they'd all be covered. Taut with anticipation, goose bumps prickling her arms, Lena reached the halfway point. Each moment she expected the kiss of slime against her skin. By now they would all be on the walkway. Here it comes. Any second now...

On she crept. The archway wasn't far ahead, yet still nothing happened. It made no sense. Liz had been right, it was a blatant trap, so why wasn't it being sprung? It's bound to happen. The waterfalls will start splashing us, or maybe the walkway's going to tip us all sideways. Any moment now.

Lena felt almost cheated on reaching the far side without incident. One by one the others stepped off the walkway, all equally befuddled at still being clean. Liz abandoned her usual elegance to half-scamper the last few steps, but nevertheless made it through spotless. What a waste.

One look at the next room soon distracted their attention. A monolithic doorway of polished black iron towered over them. It resembled a door to a bank vault. Edged with glinting steel, inlaid with silver rivets, it dominated the room's entire north side.

Lucy peered up in wonder. "Think that's the gate?" Seeing the glances Annabelle and Liz directed at her, she began studying her feet. "Alright, silly question."

Making it past the waterfalls had restored Liz's confidence. With no more ado she swept up to the immense doors, only to pause when she got there. "Um... How does it open?"

Once again Lena admonished herself for forgetting her glasses. Moving closer, she soon saw what Liz meant; there was no keypad, no handles, and the doors were far too heavy to push. Save for the doorway, the metallic, cube-shaped vault in which they stood was practically bare. A narrow corridor snaked out to the west, while to the east a ragged hole had pierced the wall, revealing a slanted tunnel that descended into darkness. The only other feature was a mysterious rope, the plastic handle at its tip dangling seven or so feet above the chamber's centre.

Annabelle approached it warily. "This must do something. Hmm, don't think I can reach it. Liz, you're tallest, give it a pull."

Liz took an automatic step forward before halting. "Not a chance. Someone else can risk it."

Lucy smirked. "Any volunteers?"

"And why are you smiling?" demanded Liz.

"Because we all know who's going to do it."

It took a second for Lena to notice everyone's looks. "What? I don't volunteer all the time. Do I?"

Lucy's head tilted. "But you'll do it?"

There was a brief pause. Lena peered at the ceiling. "Sure, why not. Unless anyone else is feeling brave?"

Liz moved well away. "Be our guest."

Sweeping her long black hair behind her shoulders, Lena approached the rope. Why do I let myself in for these things? She stood on tiptoes, feeling her midriff flex as she reached up and grasped the handle. Stretching like this, with her chest stuck out and so much skin on display, made her feel suddenly self-conscious. Blushing, she plucked up her courage and tugged the rope. Something clicked overhead. Here it comes. Quickly she ducked down.

There was a long pause. Lena opened one eye. Shockingly, she was still dry, a fact that seemed to have left the others slightly disappointed.

"Look!"

Annabelle was pointing to the gate. A saucer-sized light had flared at ground level on each side of it. Soon another pair flashed on, directly above the first. Slowly more lit, rising one atop the other like a pair of loading bars.

As she swivelled for a better look, Lena released the rope. The moment she did so, the lights flickered and died. "Oops, did I do that?"

Annabelle stood thoughtfully, a solitary finger tapping against her chin. "Maybe the rope has to be held down until all the lights are on? That must be what opens it."

"Makes sense." Just then Lena's ears pricked. The rumble of the waterfalls had masked the horde's approach, but now they all heard it - terrifyingly close.

Straightaway she rushed to the archway. Lucy was already there, and together they stood shoulder to shoulder, each with one hand beside the arch as they peered back the way they'd come. The noise had stopped as suddenly as it had begun. The pair looked at each other, wondering if they'd imagined it. Wait, are those voices? Mist had swept down from concealed vents, leaving the walkway's far end shrouded behind a grey veil. Then a shadow flickered in the fog - at first a charcoal smudge, but then the unmistakable outline of a woman appeared. The ghouls had come out to play.

"They're here!" Lena stood transfixed, her mind fumbling for some kind of plan, but then Lucy moved past and onto the walkway. "Wait, come back! What are you doing?"

The beautiful brunette looked back over her shoulder and smiled. "Don't worry about me. I'll slow them down. Just hurry up and get that door open."

Her mind clearing, Lena nodded. "Got it. Quick, Liz, you take the handle."

"Me? Why me?"

"It's up to you, do you want to take on the ghouls, or stand here while we protect you?"

"Oh. Erm... good point." Liz skipped to the vault's centre and grabbed the rope. She didn't even need to stand on tiptoes to reach it. Again the bulbs began to light.

Over in the hall, Lena nodded proudly on finding Lucy standing defiant midway along the catwalk. "Okay. I'll deal with any that get past Lucy. Annabelle, you guard Liz. Watch those other tunnels."

Liz's mouth dropped open. "Her? You expect her, of all people, to protect me?"

Annabelle fluttered her eyelashes. "Don't worry, I'm sure I can restrain myself. For a while."

Lena surveyed her companions and sighed. Yep, we're doomed.

*****

Lucy felt light as a feather. It had taken mere moments to reach her decision. They're bound to outnumber us. If they get us in the open we'll be swamped, but here... She looked again at the liquid walls. It was as she'd thought. Here it would be one on one. If the ghouls still had orders to leave her alone, she'd have them stumped. If not, she intended to slow them down for as long as she could. The contest would be messy, but it would be fair.

Before her the silhouette vanished back into the mist. Had they given up already? Lucy hoped not. To calm her jitters she busied herself sweeping back her long, coppery-brown hair, then adjusted her outfit, what little of it there was. To think, not so long ago the thought of wearing a bikini had terrified her. It had been Kelly who'd eventually coaxed her into wearing one. Wonder whether she's watching from backstage? I hope she is. Lucy had become rather fond of the little gold number she now wore, to the point where she hoped to be allowed to keep it as a memento.

She completed her rituals just in time to see another silhouette appear. This one seemed taller than the last, and there were others following. The ghoul came gliding oh-so slowly through the parting mist. Slowly her features came into focus. Though slight of build, there was a commanding presence about this one. A few more paces revealed amber war paint daubed across a sharp-featured but pretty face bordered by sleek flaxen hair.

"Why Lucy, we meet again."

Lucy beamed in recognition. "Joanna?"

"The one and only." Settling her weight onto one hip, Joanna produced a smile of pantomime villainy. It was all Lucy could do not to burst out laughing. She and Joanna had history. After bantering during the briefing, they'd since engaged in messy duels in the bakery, then again in the gatehouse. "You're looking lovely, by the way," the ghoul went on. "So clean and perfect. It'd be a shame if you were to somehow get utterly covered in gunge." She stalked a pace closer. "Oh, and I got your little message. Awfully brave of you... in an insane sort of way. I'd say you've earned my personal attention."

"I-I'm honoured," replied Lucy, eyes agleam.

"So you should be. I spent ages trying to decide what to gunge you with." Joanna's arms lifted to show-off her figure-hugging costume, the black material offset by vivid yellow panels at the sides and inner thigh. "How do you like the colour? Bearing in mind you'll be wearing it soon."

Lucy made a show of examining the shade. "Hmm, I think I can work yellow."

One part of her wanted to retreat back to the others, another to rush Joanna there and then. Just then something occurred to her. Why'd she stop? Surely time's on our side? Her hazel eyes scanned the ghoul for any telltale hints, but Joanna's expression was impenetrable. So much for intuition.

"Are you trying to stall me?" she said.

"Ever seen Jurassic Park?"

"Huh?" Is this some trick to throw me off guard? It's working.

Joanna was trying not to smirk. "It's just... we learned a few hunting tips from that movie."

Had the world gone entirely mad? It occurred to Lucy that she was currently in an imitation palace inside an enormous dome, perched between waterfalls of goo, wearing next to nothing, listening to a woman in a slime-filled wetsuit compare herself to a dinosaur. It was a wonder the universe didn't implode through sheer absurdity. Then another thought came to her. She had, as it happened, caught that film on TV the previous Christmas, and a certain scene rose up from her memory....

But they couldn't, not here... could they? A skittish smile played upon her lips as she glanced at the waterfalls, then at Joanna, who nodded ever so slightly. Biting her lip, Lucy turned her head toward the left-hand cascade, extended a finger, and swept it horizontally through the ooze. The slash in the falling slime was only momentary, but was enough to reveal the ghoul lurking on the other side. She looked at Joanna.

"Clever girl."

Green slime erupted from left and right, becoming laced with violet where it crashed through the oozing veils. Lucy squealed as it hit her. Most landed on her arms and legs, but some whizzed past to streak her midriff and spatter the sides of her breasts. The two concealed ghouls lunged through the falling slop, trying to hug her, but somehow Lucy had the wherewithal to dodge forward.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion. She saw her gunge-covered attackers clamber onto the walkway behind her. Their sprayers were about to fire. Lucy whimpered and turned her face away. She was about to be doused from point blank range, and there was nothing she could do about it. Yet somehow the gunge failed to materialise. Next she knew, laughter rose above the waterfalls' dull rumble, followed by splashing and yelps of delight. Lena had come to her aid. Sweet of her, thought Lucy. Silly, but sweet.

The reprieve jolted Lucy back to her senses. Leaving Lena to her fun, she turned back to Joanna. This was not going well. Not only had her plan of fighting one-on-one failed rather spectacularly, now she was cut off. Lucy forced herself to focus. She still had a job to do. The passage behind Joanna was full of ghouls, and now she knew the waterfall chamber was wide enough for them to spread out and bypass her. She had to stop them at the entrance.

Lucy charged. Long hair billowed dramatically as she laughed a carefree battle-cry - while at the same time blushing and folding her arms on feeling her curves bounce a little more than anticipated. Taken aback, Joanna's smirk faded, the blonde taking an involuntary step back as the contestant rushed at her. She'd stopped just before the entrance. Perfect. Almost immediately Joanna recovered. Lips curling in satisfaction, she fired her sprayers.

A little gunge wasn't enough to scare Lucy. Unfolding her arms, she charged straight into Joanna's volley. Jets of custard crisscrossed her torso, but she didn't falter. The pair collided in an explosion of yellow slop. Dollops flew upward, speckling her face and sending strands of hair fluttering, but Lucy only pressed closer. Ignoring the slime sluicing from the ghoul's costume, she reached around, seeking the ripcord that hung at every ghoul's back.

Slithering sensations assailed Lucy. Banana scented gunk slid through her cleavage and drizzled onto her feet, yet her mind remained clear. "Out of interest, have you ever had your ripcord pulled twice in one game?" she asked amiably. Looking rather shell-shocked, Joanna shook her head. "Well you're about to."

That brought the ghoul to her senses. "We'll just see about that." With that Joanna guided a spout of custard up Lucy's left side, beginning at her hip but then focussing suddenly on her exposed armpit.

"Hey, that tickles!" Without thinking, Lucy stepped back from the embrace and excitedly peeked down at herself. Strands of wet hair had clumped into sinuous cords that swayed like pendulums beside her face, while gooey yellow splashes lay strewn across her front, the opaque slop becoming slowly translucent where it thinned into oozing rivulets that slid serenely downward.

Jo leaned in, as though surveying her work. "Hmm. Now don't get me wrong, Lucy, yellow suits you, but I think we need a little contrast." She sidestepped to give her waiting colleagues a clear shot. "Carla, Amelie, you know what to do."

No sooner had Lucy looked up than brief bursts of pastel pink and blue splashed across her body. She squealed with embarrassed laughter, locks of hair fluttering.

There was an almost snakelike quality to Joanna's movements as she slid back into the fray. Lucy noticed an open hatch near where the ghoul had been stood, and barely had time to register what that implied when a pie splatted atop her head. Thick cream surged through her hair, and then there was slick coolness at her forehead and temples, the stuff sliding in ponderous icebergs down her face.

Realising she couldn't afford to give ground, Lucy gave a resigned giggle and pressed back in. Still she reached for her foe's ripcord, but Joanna was wise to it now and was keeping her distance. All became a blur of splattering ooze. She knew it was hopeless - even if she somehow beat Jo, there was a small army right behind her - but every second she held out bought the team more time. Still the slime came, splurging and sliding, arriving in startling spurts and slow, sensuous slithers. It was interspersed now with gloopy pies that Jo took great pleasure in applying, plus scattered blue and pink blasts from Carla and Amelie. The ghouls could easily have just pushed her out the way and swarmed onward, but seemed reluctant to manhandle her quite so blatantly - or perhaps Joanna was too fixated on gunging her to think of it.

A concentrated volley of yellow, blue and pink sent Lucy reeling backwards. She was at the chamber's threshold now - another step back and the ghouls would be through.

Jo's face was a picture of innocence. "So Lucy, how would you say this is going?"

"Phew. This is... this is getting a little messy."

"We aim to please."

Gunged but cheerful, Lucy swept her hair behind her shoulders and prepared for the next attack. She knew she couldn't hold out for long.

*****

Lena had leapt into action the moment the ambush was sprung. Although technically she was abandoning her post, she couldn't just leave Lucy to face this by herself. Seeing that the ghouls who'd emerged from the waterfalls had their backs to her, she grabbed the shoulder of one while reaching for the woman's ripcord. She missed, and before she knew it both ghouls had rounded on her.

Oops, and that was the extent of my plan. This is going to be messy.

Emerald gunge shot forth. Chains of drooling dots daubed the right half of Lena's face and left great glistening streaks through her hair. Luckily the other spout shot just past her left hip, with only a few spatters jangling the black knot of her bikini bottoms. Lena blew a few blobs away from her lips. Okay Lena, think. What would Lara Croft do? Jump about a bit, probably.

The ghouls lunged, trying to hug her. Lena twisted athletically and managed to avoid being sandwiched, but couldn't evade the second ghoul's sprayers. Ticklish sprays crisscrossed her back and painted ragged ribbons through her hair. She came to a halt at the walkway's edge, her back mere inches from the purple waterfall. Ooh, that wasn't a bad move! Now they can't both get me at once. Maybe I'm a natural at this?

The nearest ghoul pounced, arms outstretched, but Lena didn't panic. Planting one hand on her assailant's shoulder to stave off the intended hug, she used the other to reach for that all-important cord. This is going well, if I can just - ah! She yelped as green sludge swept up her midriff and rebounded in countless glistening globules off her top. She'd forgotten about the sprayers. Instinctively she flinched back, but the feel of stray drops dampening her hair told her another step would take her into the waterfall. There was no escaping the slime.

Still she searched for the cord, grinning through the gunge until at last her perseverance paid off. On feeling a tug at her collar, the ghoul's expression froze. Slime-filled chambers began bursting inside the woman's outfit, and the shock of it sent her staggering through the waterfall, her shrieks becoming suddenly muffled as liquid curtains closed behind her, then bulged briefly inward as though something had exploded on the other side. A lurid mix of green and purplish-pink slop spattered Lena's leg.

Lena punched the air in celebration. "Yay! I finally got my first ghoul!"

The second was undeterred. Yelling, she charged, gunk spraying from her wrists. Though caught in the spray, Lena giggled and dodged, allowing the ghoul to sweep on past. A simple nudge on the shoulder was all it took, and then her foe's yell became a shrill squeal as she too tumbled through the waterfall. Suddenly Lena was alone on the mess-strewn walkway.

Wow. She paused to catch her breath. A peek down prompted a bashful chuckle; soupy gunge drooled over her curves, laying in streaks and splodges over her honeyed skin and black bikini. Cheerfully she set about wiping herself down, dashing goo over the floor with flicks of her wrists.

"So how are things out there?" called a wry voice from behind her. It was Annabelle.

"Wicked, thanks."

"Any gunge?"

A glance back confirmed that Annabelle could plainly see the state she was in. "Maybe a drop or two."

It occurred to Lena that she was making a habit of this - of leaping headlong into messy situations with next to no plan, then muddling through by sheer good fortune. Given that she was actually quite looking forward to being eliminated, this uncommon good luck was becoming cause for concern. One look down the hallway, however, dispelled Lena's fears.

Luck won't be enough.

*****

Bedraggled but still cheerful, Lucy grinned goofily as the ghouls closed in. She stood at the entrance to the waterfall chamber. Any more retreating and the ghouls would come flooding in, meaning she had no choice but to stand here and take whatever they threw at her - a fact Jo and her friends were taking full advantage of. Her arms were at her sides, not even trying to defend herself. She couldn't win, but holding out for as long as she had was already a kind of victory.

It was clear Joanna was relishing having Lucy at her mercy like this. With her chin high, the ghoul took a step back and lifted her hands level with her shoulders, palms flat. Perfectly on cue, her comrades placed a pair of pies in her hands. Then she nodded to the spongy panels at the front of her ghoul suit, the ones that would exude torrents of slime when pressure was applied.

"I certainly hope my teammates don't bundle in behind me, I might end up accidentally hugging you. Wouldn't want that." There was a pause. Joanna cleared her throat. "I said, I certainly hope my teammates don't bundle in behind me."

The ghouls took the hint. A chain of theatrical stumbles rippled down the passage until at last Jo received the lightest of bumps and went staggering forward. Lucy played along, shaking her head pleadingly as Jo's arms wrapped around her. Here it comes.

The hug arrived. Gallons of custard exploded over Lucy's bikini-clad frame, prompting a quavering squeal that morphed into a giggled ewww as cold pies went sliding up her back. Lucy's back arched, but that only pressed her chest deeper into the spongy panels, triggering yet more slime. She knew she was finished. At any moment she expected the green gunk that heralded elimination to start landing on her head.

Just then Jo's sprayer fired, only this time at Lucy's feet. The shock of slippery ooze jolted through her. Toes wiggled, oily custard sliding between them. It was seeping beneath her soles now. She tried shifting position a fraction, but her feet began to fishtail.

With her prey wobbling, Joanna saw her chance. "Now!"

The ghouls surged in. Caught by the tide, Lucy screamed with laughter and went careening back, limbs wrapping around Joanna as she was propelled backward into the chamber.

The next moments seemed dreamlike. Lucy was effectively being carried, custard still spurting everywhere. Now the waterfalls appeared in her peripheral vision. She was beaten. She'd done all she could. Blinking, she saw the look of triumph on Jo's face. The sight spurred her into action. She reached for the ripcord.

Then Lena was there behind her. The ghouls lost momentum, the column coming to a shambolic halt with Jo and Lucy still pressed together. Both contestants and the first few ghouls all stumbled onto their knees on the slippery walkway. Realising how close Lucy had been to her ripcord, Joanna recoiled, sliding back to let the next ghoul in line take her place. No sooner had Lucy regained her senses then she too was being drawn back, Lena sliding past to take her place in the firing line.

"Nice work," said Lena. "So what do we think? Reckon we can hold 'em off a little longer?"

The reprieve had left Lucy instantly re-energised. She wiped her face and snuggled in behind her teammate. "Ha-ha! Let's do this."

*****

From the vault, Annabelle watched and cheered while her teammates performed a magnificent, not to mention ludicrously messy rearguard action. With everyone stacked on the single-file walkway, bordered as it was by waterfalls of slime, Lena and Lucy took turns holding out as long as they could, getting pelted with gunge as they knelt face to face with the headmost ghoul, trying desperately to keep their foe at bay before eventually retreating behind their teammate to recover. The ghouls too were switching out combatants, with those further back sending occasional cream pies and spurts of coloured ooze arcing over those in front, the mess landing indiscriminately on friend and foe alike.

Chuckling, Annabelle tucked her chocolate-brown hair behind her ears and then adjusted her little blue bikini. She'd found a stack of hand towels set in a niche beside the vault's main entrance, and had quickly cleaned off the worst of the pies from earlier. Aside from oily smears through her hair and a few stray spatters, she was mostly clean again. Part of her wanted to rush out there and help her teammates, but she knew it was too risky. Liz would be defenceless until the gate opened, and any interruption would mean beginning the whole process from scratch. What was more, the vault had two other entrances she needed to watch.

Doesn't mean I can't offer a little 'support' though. "Hey girls, just to put your minds at rest, I am absolutely one hundred percent safe back here."

Lena was in the process of wringing gloop out of her glossy black hair. Pointing back at Annabelle, her features twisted into a pretend-scowl before she jokily stuck out her tongue.

Annabelle tittered to herself. She had to admit to a certain satisfaction at the sight of Lucy and Lena, who'd so gleefully helped 'purify' her not so long ago, getting thoroughly messed up. Just then a thought arrived. For all their heroics, the pair were steadily giving ground. If they run out of walkway and the gate's still shut....

She peeked over at Liz. "Can't you hurry things along?"

The gorgeous blonde stood with arms bolt upright, the handle clasped in both hands. Huffing with indignation, she turned with some difficulty toward Annabelle. "And what, exactly, do you expect me to do?"

A sudden splash jolted Annabelle's attention back to the hall. A ghoul had burst through the curtain of slime midway between herself and Lena. She'd totally forgotten that of the two women Lena had sent through the waterfall, only one had been beaten.

"What's going on out there?" called Liz.

Instantly Annabelle knew what she had to do. If the ghoul went for her teammates they'd be cut off and eliminated, but having gone through the cascade three times now, the intruder was disoriented by all the purple ooze streaming down her face. She hadn't yet spotted the others.

Annabelle jumped up and down, arms waving. "Hey! Over here. Yeah, you. Come get me!"

The ghoul looked over, saw her, and began moving toward the vault, sprayers at the ready.

Ah. Right...

Liz's expression contorted with horror. "Annabelle, what have you done?"

*****

It was almost her turn. Buzzing with excitement, Lucy pushed back her sopping wet hair and wiped herself down as best she could, which wasn't saying much, before pressing against Lena's back and resting her chin on her teammate's shoulder, where she murmured encouragement while at the same time signalling she was ready to take over. Even now she wasn't safe - the ghouls further back were firing whenever they had a clear shot, and sometimes even when they didn't.

The retreat had been a blur of colour and motion and splattering goo. Lucy giggled at the recollection of flailing around, trying not to get dragged away or caught in a gooey hug, all while jets of gunk danced over her skin. She could still feel the stuff sliding over her. The gunge became progressively less opaque as it oozed on down, but even once the colour faded, the slimy sensation lingered on every spot it touched - which by now spanned near enough Lucy's entire body.

They both knew this couldn't go on much longer. Soon their attackers would start jumping through the waterfalls to outflank them, and then that would be that. Besides, each switchover was becoming increasingly chaotic, the two slime-covered women slithering around each other and trying not to slide into the waterfalls, all while ghouls grabbed at the retreating contestant's ankles. The back of Lucy's gold bikini bottoms had been utterly soaked during the last switch; she felt sure that a few ghouls were intentionally targeting their rears each time they crawled away.

Something tells me this is as far as I go. She peeked over Lena's shoulder, trying to work out where Joanna was in the column of ghouls. If she was going to be eliminated, she wanted Jo to be the one to do it.

Right now it was Lena against Carla, an athletic woman with dark skin, chiselled cheekbones and friendly eyes. The ghoul's black and blue costume was fouled from previous rounds, while stray bits of pie peppered her mid-length afro hair. Knowing there was no point trying to avoid the mess, Lena fought with gleeful abandon, whisking her hands through the waterfalls to send flurries of purple gunk over her opponent, only to tip back her head and yelp once the ghoul activated her sprayers.

With her chest pressed against Lena's back, Lucy could feel her teammate shudder with laughter. Lena was really getting messed up this time. The previous exchanges had been gooey enough, but now the ghouls were coordinating, the ones further back in the column rising in turn to shoot their sprayers, almost like musketeers firing by rank. Hails of multi-coloured gunge bombarded Lena, yet still the dark-haired beauty was cheering and squirming, doing her best to fight back despite the hopeless odds.

White and yellow discs came arcing overhead. Realising what was coming, Lucy huddled in tight and wrapped her arms around her friend's bare midriff, hands sliding on slime-slick skin. "Incoming!"

A pie barrage descended. Lena squealed and looked away as gobbets of cream and custard splattered everywhere. Smirking, Lucy ducked as stray globs sprayed through her hair. With the contestants reeling, Carla saw her chance and lunged in - but just then one final custard pie detonated at the back of her head. For an instant it was as though a golden halo encircled her startled features. With a roll of her dark eyes, Carla turned to admonish whoever had thrown it. It was her one mistake.

Carla had barely begun to speak when she felt the yank on her ripcord. Eyes wide, she whirled back to Lena. "Did you just...?"

Seeing Lena nod proudly, Carla groaned, then tensed and clenched her teeth as her outfit began to react. Rippling bulges showed where its payload of gunge was being squirted inward. Suddenly though, her face set in determination. She flung herself atop Lena.

"Ha-ha, no!" Lena squealed and wiggled, but it was useless. Carla's costume had reached the meltdown stage, blue slime erupting in every direction, but in an impressive display of stoicism the grinning ghoul remained nose-to-nose with Lena, ensuring every possible drop went pouring over her target. Only once the sprays abated did Carla sit back, wink, and then roll sideways through the waterfall.

Breathing deeply, Lena sat up and stared at her mess-covered hands. "Uh... wow, that was messy. That's two ghouls I've got though!"

Lucy tapped her teammate on the shoulder. "Good job! Take a break, I'll deal with the next one."

"Hah, okay. Enjoy."

Slime trailed like swaying noodles from Lena as she turned, yelped when a sudden volley deluged the back of her bikini bottoms, and then slid behind Lucy. Once she'd helped Lena crawl past, Lucy knelt up and took a deep breath. A quavering gasp issued from her lips on seeing one of the more distant ghouls, a slender woman with flame-red hair, turn and step confidently into a waterfall. Any second now and we'll be surrounded.

She looked over her shoulder. "Lena, get back to the others. I'll keep them busy." Noticing the uncertainty on Lena's face, she grinned. "Don't worry about me. I can take 'em."

Lena peered back at the vault, then at Lucy. With a reluctant nod she began crawling toward safety.

This is it. Eyes bright, Lucy swept her hair behind her shoulders and prepared to face what was coming. The ghouls had been surprised by the loss of Carla, but now the next in line was skidding forward to face her. Just then Lucy felt hands atop her shoulders. Confused, she glanced back and found Lena sliding back into position behind her.

On seeing her expression, Lena gave a cheerful shrug. "To hell with it," she said. "Let's just get eliminated! What do you say - ready to get messy?"

Genuinely grateful, Lucy leaned back, rested her cheek against Lena's and placed one of her hands atop her teammate's in the closest approximation of a hug she could manage, then sat bolt upright and whooped as the ghouls attacked. It was time to face the gunge.

Her opponent was Amelie, a vivacious young brunette with neatly coiffed hair and artfully applied war-paint. The pair shared a double hi-five before springing into action. The sliming began. Soon all was a blur. Amelie murmured to herself in French as she conducted a teasing dance - leaning in as if to hug her and then, once Lucy moved to stave her off, suddenly hosing her where she least expected it. Waves of pale pink goo dripped past Lucy's brow and flowed smooth as cream between her breasts. The onslaught left her gasping in surprise, hips wiggling in an expanding puddle that merged with the ever-flowing waterfalls. She did her best to retaliate, but in truth had little choice but to play defensively, which basically meant sitting there and taking the gunge while flicking feeble handfuls of ooze in response.

Lucy was beginning to notice distinctions in the way certain ghouls fought. Where Joanna was cunning and Carla fearless, Amelie was dextrous and playful. Instead of dousing Lucy at random, she directed her sprayers like an artist laying brushstrokes, each small, controlled burst daubing elegant swishes over Lucy's skin. The slime flowed lotion-smooth and smelled faintly of rose water.

It was becoming hard to tell what was going on. The motion of the waterfalls coupled with the sensation of gunge pouring and splattering over her skin was creating an almost hypnotic effect. Even so, she could hear activity further back in the ghoulish host. She had a good idea what that meant.

Sure enough Lena gave her shoulders a squeeze. "Dessert time!" she chirped.

A constellation of pies came flying through the air, some trailing globs like comet tails. Lucy had been looking forward to this. Eyes twinkling, she lifted her arms above her head. Down they came. Creamy wetness burst over her, pies landing with thick squelches in her hair, on her face, her chest, her stomach, all accompanied by random spatters from those that had broken apart in mid-air.

Lucy's heart sang. This was exactly the kind of contest she'd been hoping for. Fun, silly, ridiculously messy. Part of her still couldn't quite believe this was happening. She'd always loved watching messy gameshows back when she was younger. Back then it had always seemed somehow distant - separate from the real world. Not something she could ever be part of. Yet now here she was, in the thick of it all, hurling mess and getting covered in gunge. Giggling with gleeful embarrassment, she sat forward and with both hands shifted the mass of pie that had gathered in her lap, smearing it across her thighs and bikini bottoms in the process.

Opposite, Amelie muttered in annoyance and paused to shake bits of pie out of her immaculately groomed hair. Almost immediately though, a predatory gleam returned to her piercing green eyes.

Lucy was still giggling like an idiot when Amelie's hands slid behind her hips and began trying to pull her down the catwalk, into the mass of ghouls. With a yelp she grabbed hold of Amelie's arms for support, but felt herself sliding on the slippery floor. Desperate, she tried to move backwards, shifting into a sitting position in the process, but still the ghoul drew her in.

"Oh no you don't!" cried Lena. Suddenly her companion's arms were wrapping around Lucy's midriff, jerking her backward.

A farcical tug of war ensued. Sliding back and forth with each competing heave, reduced to little more than a plaything, Lucy could do little except peer up at those fighting over her. Multi-coloured gunk shot by the rearmost ghouls still splattered down randomly. Jo had joined in now, pressing behind Amelie to pull at Lucy's legs, but Lena refused to give in. Grinning broadly, she knelt up straight and gripped Lucy as tight as she could. With the back of her head now resting against Lena's stomach, Lucy grinned, nose crinkling, as the oozing icicles that trailed from Lena's black bikini top began dripping onto her face.

Sudden motion, a flash of colour, and then Lena screamed in shock. The red-haired ghoul had exploded through the waterfall to her left and wrapped her in a vampire-like embrace. Thick orange gloop sprayed everywhere. Caught off-guard and with half her face suddenly painted with magma-bright goop, Lena reeled back. In the confusion she lost her grip on Lucy, who squealed in horrified delight as the ghouls dragged her away.

*****

Back in the vault, Annabelle's mind whirled. The bedraggled ghoul was coming right at her. She needed a plan and she needed it now. Without thinking she backed away from the entrance, trying to buy more time, but straightaway realised her mistake. The gunk-covered ghoul stepped into the vault, wiping her face as she went.

Liz's shriek brought Annabelle to her senses. Right, here we go. The intruder, a cheery, freckled young woman with tawny, slime-soaked hair, aimed her sprayers. Streaks of lurid green shot across the enclosed space, but somehow Annabelle dodged in time. Grinning impishly, she dashed toward Liz. The ghoul leapt after her, firing again, but Annabelle had already found cover... of sorts.

Translucent slime splashed Liz's side, prompting an affronted squeal as it dribbled down to sully the pristine white of her bikini. Annabelle popped her head out from behind her teammate. "Ha! Missed me!"

"Did you do that on purp- argh!" Liz's sentence ended in another girlish squeak as more gunge glanced across her thighs. Seeing the glint in Annabelle's eyes, she groaned despairingly. "I should have known."

Annabelle circled, making sure to always keep Liz between herself and her opponent. "You're doing great, Liz," she teased, "just hang in there."

The tawny-haired ghoul darted sideways and took another shot, but again Annabelle was too quick. Being small had its advantages. Liz whimpered, a few more blobs having speckled her cheek. Every instinct must have screamed for Liz to abandon that stupid handle and flee, but she was nothing if not proud, and so stood her ground.

Part of Annabelle knew how reckless she was being. If Liz cracked and released the gate controls, they'd be trapped and wiped out. The way she saw it though, they were all doomed regardless, and Annabelle had long since accepted the inevitability of her own elimination, so why not take a few risks, especially ones that involved Liz getting messy?

Round and round they went. Bobbing and weaving, Annabelle's grin grew broader the messier Liz became. The blonde shimmied on the spot, squealing in protest, her expression one of outraged petulance as spouts of algae-green goo intended for Annabelle slid and skittered over her body. What made it all the better was that Annabelle herself was avoiding all of it. Not that she was all that squeamish about being gunged - she'd known what she was letting herself in for - but still it was far funnier to watch Liz get it instead. Though their banter was fast turning them into firm friends, there was something about Liz's prim and proper bearing, combined with her exquisite beauty, which made sliming her such a delight.

Scurrying sideways, Annabelle crouched in an attempt to get out of her pursuer's eye-line. The ghoul saw her chance, and with a victorious yell reversed direction. Blasts of slime lanced outward, aimed at the precise spot where Annabelle ought to have been, but hit only empty floor. The woman halted, brow furrowing, and then froze on feeling a tug at her ripcord.

Annabelle had been waiting for the ghoul to switch direction, and had doubled back on herself the moment she saw it coming. She skipped behind Liz just as slime began erupting from the mesmerised ghoul.

"No. No!" Liz exclaimed. "Not near me. Shoo! Go and pop over there."

The vanquished ghoul winked at Annabelle and remained where she was, swaying theatrically and pretending to be disoriented. Liz closed her eyes and groaned, jaw rigid, as gooey green streamers licked at her left side.

Once the sprays had died down and the vanquished intruder had slunk away, Annabelle stepped in front of her companion, set hands at her hips, and nodded. "I'd say that went well."

Liz glared. A blob slid slowly along the contours of her chest and dripped onto her toe. "Well? You think that went well? Look at me!"

Looking her teammate up and down, Annabelle did her best not to laugh. "Nice job, Liz. Throwing yourself in front of the gunge like that... I never knew you cared." She paused, trying to look innocent while Liz made a series of sputtering sounds. It was as though the sheer audacity of this latest outrage had rendered her temporarily mute. That was when she heard it. A melodious sound, faint yet somehow familiar, carried over the air. Ears pricking, Annabelle glanced round. "Did you hear that?"

Having taken a moment to compose herself, Liz's reply began as a murmur but ended in a shout. "Oh, so sorry, I'm afraid I didn't. I was actually rather busy being gunged by my own team again!"

"Don't look at me. I didn't lay a finger on you."

Liz snorted and looked away, but Annabelle's mind was already elsewhere. There was that noise again. Is that... singing? Recognition came in a flash - she'd heard that same tune down in the catacombs. Kirsty.It was coming from the opening on the vault's eastern side. Annabelle knew what she had to do. With Jen and Sarah missing, Liz opening the exit, and Lucy and Lena busy being gunged, it would be down to her to investigate. Warily she edged to the opening, where she discovered a gloomy tunnel slanting down into the ground.

"What are you doing?" demanded Liz.

Hmm, it's not steep, shouldn't be any problems getting back up again. Thinking back to all the films she'd seen where a scantily dressed damsel wandered off alone, she bit back a self-deprecating chuckle. "Okay, Liz, I'm going off by myself to investigate a strange noise. Be right back."

"What? You can't leave me here! What if more come through?" Liz paused, no doubt remembering what Annabelle's idea of protecting her had been, and added, "On second thought, yes, you should go. Good luck, take your time, and I hope you get absolutely covered in gunge."

Annabelle feigned a sigh. "Tsk. Honestly, Liz, where's your team spirit? Laters!"

With that she moved to the ramp, sat at the edge, took a deep breath, and then half-shuffled, half-slid her way down.

*****

Lucy was beaten. With her head bowed and her view blocked by lank hair hanging in front of her face, she felt herself being lifted gently to her feet. She was still facing south, and could hear one of the glutinous cascades to her immediate left. To the right, other ghouls were squeezing past to pursue Lena and break into the vault.

Here we go. Here comes elimination.

A hand tapped the back of her shoulder, and then a string of lyrical sentences in French were whispered into her ear.

"Sorry, Amelie," she replied, somewhat bashfully since she'd studied French for a few years at school but had never been much good at it. "I can't understand much of that. It sounds lovely though."

Amelie chuckled. Resting her chin on Lucy's shoulder, she whispered some more, and then carefully moved Lucy's hair away from her face before flicking a blob of cream from the tip of her nose. Blinking, Lucy gasped to find Joanna standing directly opposite.

Amelie glanced at her commander. "I like zis one. Can we keep her?"

By now Jo had regained her composure. "I like her too," she replied with a devilish smile, "but I'm afraid we have a job to do. Bad luck, Lucy. Still, you did well."

"Hah, thanks."

The two ghouls linked arms, penning Lucy's arms by her sides, and with teasing slowness began inching forward to sandwich her. A click from overhead made Lucy bite her lower lip. She knew what it meant. Eliminations were signified by a final shower of green gunk, and it seemed her number was finally up.

More clicks sounded, as though something in the pipework that threaded the ceiling was realigning to target her. The ghouls were almost touching her now. Jo licked her lips and made ready to speak.

Of course. Villains can never just win. They have to say something first.

"So then, Lucy, you honestly thought you could challenge us. Us. Now look at you. In the circumstances, would you care to reconsider any of your previous remarks?"

Wet, bedraggled, barely dressed and dripping with slime, Lucy blushed and studied her toes. "You know what?" she said meekly. "If I could go back and play this game all over again, I'd have done it...." She looked Jo in the eye. "-exactly the same, except I would've done this sooner."

A look of profound confusion appeared on Joanna and Amelie's faces as Lucy turned sideways, hooked her arms around their waists, and then jumped forward, sending all three of them tumbling through the waterfall.

Into the slime they went. Wet squelching drowned out all other sound. Even the air carried a hint of blackcurrant. Purple ooze, its consistency like yoghurt, rolled in great pulsing waves down her face. Suddenly they were through to the other side, and with a splash toppled into an ankle-deep lagoon that ran the length of the chamber. The hall was far larger than she'd expected.

Instantly Joanna rolled away. "Belle, phase two!" she cried frantically. "Your hear me? Phase two!"

Phase two? Lucy lifted her head, wiped her eyes, and peered around. She lay on her front, cool gloop lapping at her sides and hair trailing past her face into the shallow pool. Nearby, Amelie gasped as she pulled her face out of the mire, her beautiful features plastered in a layer of purple muck. Realising this could be her last chance, and that standing in this stuff would be almost impossible in her current state, Lucy began half crawling, half sliding through the ooze as quickly as she could. If she could open up some distance while her foes were distracted, maybe she could rejoin Lena at the vault's entrance and hold out until the gate opened.

"Amelie, quick! She's getting away!"

Machinery rumbled into life, seemingly in response to Jo's command. The sound seemed to come from all directions. A second later serving hatches opened along the wall. Though she knew slowing down was a bad idea, Lucy couldn't resist reaching up to one of them, fishing out a custard pie, and throwing it behind her. Hearing a startled 'hmph' noise, she risked a quick glance back and chuckled to find that by sheer fluke she's caught Jo right in the face. I really am a natural with pies.

It was then she realised just how close her pursuers were. Desperately she tried to speed up. It was like swimming through honey. Purple goo churned around her as she slipped and splashed her way through, but it was no good. The exertion was getting to her, and the ghouls were gaining.

She came to an abrupt halt. Jerked back a few inches, she groaned on feeling gooey backwash splurge up through her cleavage. Hands had wrapped around her ankles. The game was up.

*****

Things were falling apart. Lena struggled on, barely able to see past the wet hair hanging in front of her face, but the ghouls were simply too many. Now it was only her against the horde. Gunk slid in seeping layers over her body, flowing in rivulets from lank locks of hair and trailing gloopy threads from her chin, arms and chest. The catwalk was so slick that it was all she could do not to slide off.

Through the highly advanced tactic of squealing and wriggling like a fish, she'd managed to struggle free of the flame-haired ghoul and go sliding back along the catwalk. Undeterred, her attacker stood, struck a needlessly dramatic firing pose, and shot spouts of bright orange gunk that landed between Lena's navel and bikini bottoms. The shock sent her sliding onto her back, and for a moment she lay staring up at the ceiling, contemplating the insanity of it all while a gooey puddle collected beneath her.

Her deliberations were rudely interrupted when something moved at the corner of her eye. The redhead was trying to bypass her and get to the vault. Cheeky. "Oh no you don't," Lena chided as she sat up, grabbed the woman's arm and pulled her down to face her.

A pale face, with a narrow but full-lipped mouth and eyes lined with kohl, regarded her with mild confusion. Fearlessly Lena yanked the ghoul closer.

It's almost too easy. "Congratulations, you're number three."

Feeling the tug at her ripcord, the ghoul gulped and crossed her arms diagonally over her front, as though in a vain effort to keep her costume from going into meltdown. Lena simply winked and with the lightest prods sent her toppling backwards through the waterfall.

I'm getting good at this! Lena cheered, arms waving victoriously, then stopped herself when she began sliding on the slippery floor. I go the whole game without beating a single ghoul, then get three in as many minutes! Beat that! It occurred to her that Sarah's tally currently stood at five, but she'd stayed clean in the process, so did it really even count?

The sight of at least another dozen ghouls lined up on the catwalk brought the celebrations to a premature end. With Lucy nowhere to be seen, she judged that her only chance was to retreat and block the ghouls at the vault's entrance.

"Hey Annabelle, get ready. They'll be coming... through...."

She stopped. For a second Lena wondered if she'd lost her bearings, but no, she was facing the northern archway. Her mouth fell open. Something had gone terribly wrong. A huge slab of imitation steel had emerged from a groove in the wall and rolled across the archway. They were trapped.

With the horde closing behind her, Lena exhaled. Lips curling into a grim smile, she turned to meet her fate. The dome was about to claim two more victims.

To Be Continued....