4:20 a.m.
Her mind continued to race. Many things had happened tonight. And none of them made sense. The blackout, the generator, the abduction, the monster. What was going on?
Each step was heavier than the last as she plodded into obscurity.
What if there wasn't just one of them?
The thought of it made her sweat. Starlight stopped in her tracks.
She saw light.
Not the kind that radiated from the sun, but a dim soft glow that were emitted from lamps.
Starlight approached cautiously.
The cave was lit with lamps. Electric lamps. She scanned for signs of movement, but there wasn't any.
She trotted under the rotting archway, astounded at what beheld her. Before her was an old mining facility, the platforms and levers still around, untouched by the snowy storms of the mountain.
There was no mistake. Someone had to be living in these mines. The electric lamps were a clear indication that electricity still ran through this part of the mountain. It was impossible for these lamps to be running alone for so long, so someone had to be fuelling them constantly, right?
A bead of sweat trickled down her neck. Is this where the killer lives? His hideout? What kind of crazy person lives in the mines anyways?
She had a feeling she was about to find out.
Looking up, she saw an elevator shaft. Having nowhere else to go, she approached the ancient structure.
Carefully, she reached out and pulled the lever, causing a loud rumble to sound through the shafts. Before her was an old rusty elevator. Starlight coughed at the dust. She looked around, hoping she had not attracted anything.
Having some doubts, yet still determined to find some answers, she stepped into the elevator and pushed the button, causing a huge jolt to shake through the system. The floor raised suddenly, and she struggled to get a grip. She was able to balance herself as the elevator moved much smoother, standing still, awaiting to reach her destination.
The elevator halted, causing her to lose balance again. She planted her hooves on the shaky floor, as the elevator swung from side to side. Starlight stood as still as possible, hoping that the rope wouldn't snap.
Everything was quiet again.
Starlight looked out. She was very much still in the caves, but she was relieved that she was now closer to the surface.
She stepped out of the elevator.
And immediately stepped back in again.
She saw someone, she was sure of it, turning from around the corner.
Starlight peeked through the cracks in the wooden shaft.
It was him.
She couldn't see the face, or much of its body for that matter. It was wearing a gas mask and most of its body was covered by heavy clothing. But that's not all. It was also holding a weapon. A flamethrower.
The stranger stopped. And it turned to the elevator shaft.
Starlight felt her heart sink. Has it spotted her?
The stranger continued to stare icily in her direction, never once turning its gaze away.
Starlight stood as still as a statue, staring at the stranger who was now staring back at her, or at least, the elevator shaft (she hoped).
After a few more moments of pain gripping silence, the stranger turned and walked away, disappearing from her sight.
Starlight proceeded with caution. She was certain he had turned around another corner. She carefully plotted each hoof before her, hoping to uncover the identity of the mysterious being.
She peeked around the corner, but he was no longer there.
"Huh." Guess he's gone then.
Suddenly, a talon grabbed her.
“Shhhh!!”
Starlight tried to scream, but the stranger held her down and covered her mouth. She struggled in his grip, before teleporting herself a safe distance away.
Starlight powered up her horn, ready to fire, but the stranger took his mask off.
“What in Celestia's mane do ya think yer doin' here?!” the stranger shouted. He was a male griffin around the age of 50 or so. He sounded scruffy and had a scar over his left eye.
“What?" Starlight stood confused for a second, "What have YOU done to my friends??” She shouted in response at the strange fellow.
The stranger grumbled and muttered something under his breath, “We don’t have time for this! Get out of here!”
Starlight was confused, but she stood her ground.
Until she heard a hissing from behind her.
“Duck!” The stranger yelled. Starlight turned around, and was met face to face with the monstrocity she had encountered in the asylum. Starlight tried to defend herself, but the creature was quickly engulfed in flames by the stranger. It fell to the ground, burning until it became ash. And out from the ashes, a spooky soul evaporated.
Starlight blinked and turned back to the stranger, surprised that he had saved her life, but was immediately taken aback when a knapsack was shoved into her hooves.
“GO!” He shouted angrily.
She was stunned, unable to comprehend what was going on.
The stranger shouted again, “What are yer waiting for? Get outta here!” He turned before he was confronted by another creature. He used his flamethrower and set it to flames.
Starlight blinked, and ran. She had no idea what was going on, but being far away seemed good right now.
She heard hissing again, and she turned around. Another creature was chasing after her, hot on her heels. She galloped as fast as she could, trying to make as much distance as she can between it.
Starlight turned a corner, just as the creature attacked. It missed her by a hair's width, and continued to chase her down the tunnels. Starlight cursed her luck and continued to press on, her hooves ready to give in at any moment.
Starlight turned around to take a shot at it, but missed. The creature eventually caught onto her, pinning her down.
She was now at hooves length with the creature, its saliva dripping all over her. She mustered all her magic to keep the creature's claws and teeth away from her, but it was very strong. It tried biting her, and clawing her, but she fended it off with all her strength. She charged up her horn as the creature's fangs continued to get closer and closer to her. Finally, with a loud cry, she shot, blasting it away from her.
The creature lay motionless, but knowing from experience that it wouldn't stay that way for long, she made a run for it.
Eventually she reached a dead end, with only a coal delivery chute as her way out. She heard the hissing getting closer again, and without a second thought, she jumped, sliding down the coal chute. She picked up speed as she heard the angry hiss grow further from her.
She tumbled through the other end, picking herself up quickly and running.
Suddenly she halted. Ahead of her was another one. It clutched to the ceiling, blocking her path. Starlight hid next to a wooden wall. Although it hadn’t noticed her yet, she knew she had to make a run for it very soon.
Suddenly, pale white claws burst through the wooden wall beside her and grabbed her. She shrieked, drawing the attention of the other creature. Starlight tried to get the claws off her, but the other creature was already getting close. She shrieked again before teleporting herself out of harm’s way. The creature crashed through the wooden wall into one another, and now, she had two of them on her tail. She bolted down the tunnel.
She soon reached a flight of wooden stairs, where a stack of wooden boxes sat on top to the side. She grabbed some using her magic and built a wall behind her as she ran up the stairs. Turning around, she saw that the creatures easily broke through her barrier, making her attempts futile. She pushed herself harder and picked up her pace.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, she saw light, shining through the gaps she could only make out as wooden planks. She prayed hard.
She crashed through the wooden planks, finding herself now standing outside the cave. However, she was also only inches from the edge of a cliff.
She looked down. She saw a familiar path beneath her and smiled. All she had to do now was get safely down.
She heard hissing coming from the tunnels, and she saw that the creatures were soon approaching the exit. She charged up her beam, and being sure that she wouldn't miss this time, fired. The blast was huge, reaching from the top of the cave to the bottom. The blast hit both creatures and sent her flying off the edge of the cliff. Starlight flailed as she tried to regain control over her fall. She was quickly plunging towards the ground, and she knew she had to work a quick levitation spell before she plummeted to her death.
She closed her eyes.
Starlight opened her eyes, she was levitating only mere inches from the ground. She set herself down and patted herself, glad to still be alive, before glancing back at the cave entrance.
The creatures were still alive as well, and were hissing at her.
She ran.