Half-Hoof: Black Forest

by Alfoals Trottenbauer


VI - Tunnel Vision

Ace was suddenly submerged in water, the floor tiles floated above him. Slowly, the water started filling his lungs. He felt his mane rising inside the helmet. His body started pumping his lungs full of water, he started swimming up for air, involuntarily gasping for oxygen, only getting more water. Once he finally surfaced, he smashed the button on the chest plate, retracting the helmet. Ace placed his hooves on a floor tile, working hard to keep himself and the suit surfaced. He rejected water out from his lungs through his mouth and nostrils. What seemed to be caverns were nearly silent. The tiles were drifting in a defined direction, probably a current. Eventually, the last of the water escaped him.

He kept his front legs on the tile at the knees in order to keep himself afloat. The water started rippling in lines, the roar of running water echoed through the caves. The tile Ace was on started moving a bit faster, the others had fallen out of view. Ace realized he was coming to a waterfall. He quickly bucked off the tile, it falling just after. He struggled to escape the current, his muscles getting overworked, he stopped, latching his hooves onto a stalagmite sticking out on a thin bank. He pulled himself up onto the bank. The blood had washed off the suit, though now dripping wet. Ace pushed the button for the helmet, placing it back on his head. He shakily got back onto his hooves, trotting around a turn in the caverns. An alien jumped at him, landing on the ground in front of him. Ace crushed it with his hoof, it splattered sickly green blood on the power armor's hoofplates. He continued down the bank to a system of more man-made looking tunnels. A railway was in the middle of the tunnel, stopping at a buffer in front of the cave's river. A florescent light flickered above the rails. The rails came to a T-section at the end of the segment. Ace trotted east of the T-section.

A green arc of electricity flashed and a bipedal creature appeared. It pushed it's hands in front of it towards Ace and a wave of electricity surged through Ace's body, his muscles started to spasm briefly. Ace levitated his shotgun off his back and fired into the creature's body. It flew back into the wall it was next to.

Ace galloped down the railway, around a corner. A rocket flew toward Ace. He dashed back around the corner, the rocket exploded into the wall on the other side of the rails. Another followed, then four more. Then there were hoofsteps. Ace looked around the corner. A soldier galloped toward him. Ace waited until he rounded the corner, then bucked him in the head. The power armor assisted the buck, practically caving the Equestrian marine's skull. The soldier fell on the ground. Ace galloped around the corner, past the rocket launcher. After galloping for what felt like hours, an encampment of marines suddenly opened fire at him, including a mounted gun. Ace galloped back behind the clearing when the ring of multiple silenced pistol shots echoed through the tunnels.

There was silence for a bit, though, short lived. Ace levitated his shotgun and looked around the corner. The shotgun was ripped from his grasp by a silhouette. More figures emerged soon after. Ace swung his hoof at one, the power armor's hydraulic forearm plates activated with the hit, blood spattered from the punch to the throat latch. The figure fell. The muzzle flash of pistols lit up the walls, though the suit protected Ace's body, their caliber was too low to penetrate the armour. Ace levitated his assault rifle and fired into one's head.

"Ammunition depleted." His suit announced.

Ace swung the rifle into the head of a silhouette. The figure fell over. The last one had picked up another's pistol, and was firing both rapidly. Ace dropped his rifle and levitated the shotgun. He fired into the figure's body, it flew backward.

Ace galloped further through the tunnels.