the metal links scraped his already cut skin , digging deeper , deeper . he had found the answer to the problem that vexed him . the environmental controls were getting further and further away from their safe levels . dressed in shabby clothes which are thirty or forty years out of date . she wanted to immortalize our journey together underground . '' there was a kind of awe in his voice . i breathed a deep sigh and prepared to walk down . `` i- '' he stops me before i can reply . 