//------------------------------// // 1. [Sunset Shimmer] The First Mission // Story: Deep Rock Equestria: Into The Abyss // by The Atlantean //------------------------------// “Congratulations on signing on for Deep Rock Galactic, miners, and welcome on board. You have been tasked with gathering some Morkite in the Shallow Grotto as your first mission. Good luck!” Sunset Shimmer shook herself awake and looked around frantically, only to realize that Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Applejack were rousing themselves awake next to her. They too panicked, but everyone visibly calmed themselves when they saw their friends. She relaxed herself, too, and took a more careful look at the room they were in. Computers lined the left and right walls, displaying various information about their mission, and a large door took up the entire far wall. When she craned her neck, she could see a bunch of gear stowed behind her. The room started shaking, and after a time, the door opened--in three layers!--to reveal rock flying past them as the room went deeper and deeper into the earth. The open doors also let in a continuous loud clanging sound that ground at Sunset’s ears. Given the rock in front of her, it had to be a drill making that noise. Eventually, as the screen indicating their depth read somewhere in the hundreds of meters, the drill’s clanging suddenly stopped and the entire room fell, landing with a jolt. A ramp extended out from under the door, leading to a dark cavern lit only by the room’s lights. Sunset unbuckled herself from her seat and stood, wobbling for a moment as she shook off the final remnants of whatever put her to sleep. All she remembered was that she and her friends had been talking to some guys at the bar who claimed to be dwarves, and they recommended joining their company for some sweet, sweet pay. Rainbow Dash stood up, too, and put out her arm, using the side wall for support. Applejack found her balance pretty quickly, but Rarity was having trouble. Sunset pulled her friend to her feet and helped her steady herself. “Alright, miners, here’s the deal,” a speaker on the computer said. “Welcome to the planet Hoxxes IV. This will be your first dive into the underground so you can get a grip on the basics of our operation here. Normally, we would’ve dropped you in one by one with an All-Purpose Drone called ‘Bosco’ to fill you in individually, but we’re short on miners, and Management says we don’t have the time. So here you all are. Familiarize yourself with your gear, and try not to mix your sets. The gear you choose will be what you carry for the duration of the mission.” Sunset blinked in surprise. “Uh, who are you?” “You will know me as Mission Control, miner. Now get your gear. We’ve cordoned off this area from Glyphids, but there’s no telling if they’ll find their way around our perimeter.” “Aww, yeah!” Rainbow exclaimed as she hoisted a minigun off its rack behind one of the seats. “This is gonna be awesome!” “We still need ta be careful, y’all,” Applejack said as she donned an amor rig labeled “MOLE” from behind a different seat. She adjusted the straps and smiled. “Although Ah do feel real nahce havin’ something ta protect me.” “Very nice, dear, but this does not look protective in the slightest,” Rarity replied. She grimaced at her own armor rig, which looked dingy and hard-used with the word “OWL” printed on the front. Eventually, though, she lifted it up and over her head and fastened the straps. Sunset looked over her own rig and weapons. The rig was labeled “FOX” and looked more like a piece she’d use in a paintball match, but if it’s what she was given… She sighed and donned the rig, noting that it came with a headset that fit her perfectly. A few minutes of guided blundering later, all four were completely kitted out and standing outside what was clearly a drill pod. After a couple seconds, the ramp retracted, the door closed, and the pod lifted off, headed for the impossibly far surface. Mission Control’s voice sounded through the headset. “Alright team, this is your orientation, so listen up. I’m only going to say this once. “You, blue-skin. You’re the Gunner. Your position is at the forefront of any battle, using your high-caliber ‘Lead Storm’ Powered Minigun and ‘Bulldog’ Heavy Revolver to cut down enemy aliens. Your team is counting on you to provide most of the firepower so they can finish the mission. “White-skin. You’re Enginner. Your job is to provide your team with access to hard-to-reach minerals with your Platform Gun and utilize your automated Sentry Turrets to lay down blithering storms of bullets on hostiles--if you set them up before you’re killed. You may not be the sturdiest, but your Combat Shotgun and Grenade Launcher make you a formidable opponent. “Farmer girl. You’re Driller. You’ve been equipped with a set of Titanium Powerdrills to dig clean through dirt and rock to provide your team access to blocked-off areas of the local cave network. In combat, your drills will make short work of almost anything close enough to slice you open, and your Flamethrower will aid you in longer-range engagements. “Finally, bacon-hair. You’re the Scout. You’re the only one on your team to carry the Flare Gun, and the entire team depends on you for light. You also have a Grappling Hook to help you scout ahead. But while you have an Assault Rifle and Sawed-Off Shotgun, don’t stray too far from the team--the caves of Hoxxes don’t take too kindly to lone explorers. “All of you know how to fire a gun, correct?” “Yes, sir,” Sunset replied before any of the others could complain about Mission Control’s names for them. “Good. As stated during your trip down, your task is to gather 100 units of Morkite in the local cave system. Morkite is a dark teal mineral with a shine that reflects even the tiniest amount of light, so you can see it from the opposite side of a large cave. Since this is your first expedition, we’ve set up some defensive barriers to keep the worst of the Glyphids out.” “Just Morkite?” Rarity asked. “I want to be sure.” “If you find any Gold, Nitra, and other minerals, do mine them. Gold will translate into credits, and collecting enough Nitra will allow us to send you a Resupply Pod to refill your ammunition and heal some of your wounds. Other minerals can be given to R&D to build you upgraded equipment. Any minerals mined will give you a select amount of Company Experience upon your return to orbit, which you will amass to unlock the authorization codes for R&D to craft your upgrades.” “Very nice. Thank you, sir.” Sunset gestured to the dark cave ahead. “Let’s go.” She picked a flare from her belt and threw it, watching as it automatically activated and lit up the cave. A low brrr brought her attention to her side, where a new flare was being crafted by a small device built into her armor rig. The first few minutes were peaceful, only marked by Mission Control talking about their mineral carrier, called “Molly” by their fellow miners, and Rainbow’s heavy breathing as she lugged her minigun around. It looked really heavy, but she was too proud to ask for help. These caves didn’t seem to have very much in the way of minerals around their entry point. Sunset threw another flare and scanned the passage ahead. There, on the wall near a place where the cave narrowed: a dark teal glint! Morkite! She jogged over towards it and pulled out her pickaxe. Her first few swings were nothing to write home about, but she quickly got the hang of it. With Rarity’s help, she finished the vein and checked her rig’s mineral calculator. Only 15 units?! She felt like punching something. But it wasn’t like it was too hard to find the stuff, so she resisted the urge. Only a few more veins, and they could leave this creepy planet. As Sunset and Rarity dumped their minerals into Molly’s cargo container, Mission Control called. “Alert! Defensive barriers have been breached, and we have a horde of enemies bearing down right on top of you. It was a pleasure meeting you! Hope you will get an honorable death.” “He said WHAT?” Rarity screamed. “Don’t worry!” Sunset yelled. “Rainbow, this is what your minigun’s for!” She switched to her flare gun and fired into the ceiling, bathing the immediate vicinity in light. “Get ready!” Applejack lifted her arm-mounted titanium drills, aiming where the cave narrowed into a thin passageway a little wider than one person. Rainbow hefted her minigun, just barely finding the strength to hold it off the ground. Rarity shrunk away from the apparent danger and gripped her shotgun hard enough to whiten her knuckles further. Sunset switched back to her rifle and scanned the area behind them in case whatever was coming swung around to attack there. Sunset felt her stomach tighten as the seconds ticked by. Then Rainbow’s minigun came to life with a satisfying whir as it lived up to its name, raining down a lead storm on the bugs pouring through the narrow gap. Her hair blew around her in a frenzy, mimicking her terrified expression as more and more bugs came forward. Eventually, the minigun beeped a warning and shut off. “Crap! It’s overheating! AJ, I need help!” Applejack stepped forward and clicked her drills on, grinding everyone’s ears with a clanging noise similar to the drill pod. She didn’t look like she was going to last much longer, either, and Sunset hosed the bugs beyond Applejack’s reach with her rifle for a few quick seconds, buying Rainbow enough time to cool her minigun and pick up the pace. Rarity shrieked and fired her shotgun behind them several times, echoing her blasts off the cavern walls. Still reloading, Sunset whirled around and backed into Applejack, her hands fumbling with the magazine. She managed to finish quickly, though, and fired at the three bugs that had gotten around them. After what seemed like an eternity of shooting bugs and ear damage, the things stopped coming. Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief looked to each other for reassurance. “You survived?” Mission Control said through their headsets. “I just knew you had it in you! Incidents like this sadly occur fairly frequently on Hoxxes. My recommendation is that you just get accustomed to your weapons and gear. Let’s continue your training and gather the rest of your quota of Morkite.” “He knew we had it in us?” Rainbow exclaimed. “He said he hoped were would get an honorable death when the bugs came!” “Simmer down, Rainbow,” Applejack said, waving her drills. “Ah think he’s just used to people gettin’ killed by bugs down heah. Y’alright, Rarity?” “I’m okay, thank you,” Rarity replied. She visibly shook with terror, and her shotgun trembled in her grasp. “What were those things? Mission Control, sir?” “Glyphids,” came the answer. “They’re indigenous to Hoxxes, and they come in all shapes and sizes. We’ll add more notes to your Miner’s Manual as you encounter more of Hoxxes’ wildlife. For now, know that they are hostile, they are deadly, and they are detrimental to your mission’s success. Now get mining!” Sunset placed her hand on Rarity’s shoulder. “You’re gonna be okay, Rarity. Just stay calm.” “Stay calm? Sunset, dear, we’re in a dark, creepy, dirty cave surrounded by bugs that want to eat us! How am I supposed to stay calm?” “Loosen your grip, Rarity,” Applejack said over her shoulder as she cleaned bits of Glyphid from her drill with her pickaxe. “You’re gonna hurt someone.” “Oh.” Rarity relaxed her hands. “Oh, dear, my poor fingers weren’t getting any blood flow. I do hope they’re alright.” “They’ll be fine, Rarity,” Rainbow said. “Now come on, let’s get this Morkite stuff and go home!” Rarity glanced down at her armor rig, now splattered with a viscous green fluid, gulped, and followed Rainbow and Applejack down the path while Sunset brought up the rear, checking for any stray bugs. “Hey, Sunset, can you get us some light up here?” Rainbow called. “Coming.” Now through the narrow bit, Sunset jogged past Rarity and swapped to her flare gun. “You know you have flares too, right?” “I do?” Rainbow dropped her minigun and patted her armor, looking for her flares. She found them after a second and smiled sheepishly. “Oh. Yeah. But how do I throw one when I’m holding the gun?” “Maybe there’s a way to do it without using your hands,” Sunset mused. “FLARE!” Sunset’s armor rig immediately fired a flare in the direction she was facing, arcing over Rainbow and clattering on the rocky ground. “Flare,” she whispered intensely, and another one fired. “Looks like that’s how you do it.” She fired one into the ceiling just to be safe. “There you go.” “Thanks.” Applejack jogged back from the dark, huffing and puffing despite being the one person most used to carrying so much stuff. “Ah found some Morkaht, but Ah can’t get ta it. It’s up hah.” “Take us there.” The girl nodded and jogged back the way she came, leading the group to a small but relatively tall room. Sunset fired a flare and revealed several veins of Morkite dotted around. Most of it was close enough to the ground to dig to without much trouble, but the last was near the ceiling. “Alright, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, you two get the Morkite down here--and that gold, too, while you’re at it. Rarity, I need you to shoot a platform with your gun up there so I can get to it,” Sunset ordered. She pointed to the Morkite and swapped to her grapple gun. “I’ll see what I can do, Sunset,” Rarity said as she carefully switched to her platform gun and aimed at the Morkite. Her arms shook with the effort, but eventually, she seemed to find a place she liked and pulled the trigger. A yellow goop flew out of her gun and formed into a solid up by the Morkite. “Thanks.” Sunset aimed above the platform and grappled, landing on top of it when she let go. She pulled out her pickaxe and got started. “Hey, Molly, get over here!” Rainbow called. The four-legged cargo robot followed diligently and came to a stop nearby, settling down next to the girl. She dumped her minerals and went back to mining. The room was cleared in no time. Sunset grappled back down, and everyone made one last mineral dump. “Passable work, miners!” Mission Control said once they’d reached a hundred units of Morkite. “You all will be a good fit for our operations, and Management will be pleased they were correct in putting their faith in you. Return to base and let’s get you into the fray properly. Press the button on the M.U.L.E. to call in the Drop Pod.” “Ready?” Sunset asked. The three girls nodded grimly, ready to go home. “Here goes nothing.” Sunset pressed the button and held it for several seconds. “Acknowledged. Sending in the Drop Pod.” They hung around for a bit while they waited for the pod to come down. Once it landed, Molly perked up and started walking away, leaving a trail of green markers behind her. “Drop Pod has arrived. Retrieving the M.U.L.E!” They all stood there, surprised, for a second. Then Sunset realized what was going on. “Follow Molly!” she yelled, and took off after the robot. Rarity was close behind, followed by Applejack, then Rainbow Dash as they ran back through the cave they’d just explored to reach the drop pod. Once they got there, though, they saw that although the ramp was extended, the doors were closed. “Are they leaving us behind?” Rarity cried. “Wait, maybe Molly has to dock first,” Sunset said. She turned around and fired at a Glyphid poking its head through the ceiling. “Watch out, more bugs!” While Molly crawled into a docking station on the side of the pod, Rainbow and Applejack caught up. The former wheezed from the effort, and the latter took a few deep breaths. “Why ain’t the door open yet?” Applejack yelled, switching her drills for a flamethrower. “Those bugs are gonna keep comin’!” “I know!” Rainbow agreed. She hefted her minigun with considerable strain and hosed the bugs gathering at the base of the ramp. “I’m gonna run out of ammo soon!” Sunset eyed Molly and heard a hiss as the doors slid open. “Alright, everyone, into the pod!” she called, backing into it. Rarity was next, scrambling as far away from the cave as she could get while staying inside the pod. Applejack came soon after her, and Rainbow Dash ran in last, dragging her again-overheated minigun behind her. The door sealed once she’d pulled it all the way in the pod. “Good job, team. That’s one for the books,” Mission Control said as the pod started lifting back to the surface of Hoxxes.