[There's gonna be a lot of dealing with things later. Or saying they'll deal with things later, and then not dealing with them, which is probably more likely.

But for now, they have a lot they have to actually deal with, and Lance is not so sure that the sound is rats; worse than that, he's now very fixated on the thought that there might indeed be people alive who need help sooner rather than later, and that they're wasting time. If he were alone he'd already be heading toward the possible voice again, but Ian being here forces him to consider more carefully.]

Got it. Hopefully it'll be enough to hold them off.

[He's not sure exactly how large these creatures are, after all, or how strong they are. Or whatever else they're capable of.

He starts to lead the way through the tunnel again, slowly, remarking quietly--]

Rats are pretty smart; maybe they'll figure out we're too much trouble.

[Maybe. Hopefully. Wouldn't that be nice?]