We don't go to Sub-Level Five

by RadBunny


Chapter Thirty Three: Updated Objective

With their saddlebags loaded, guns strapped on, and armor buckled to their frames, the two Thestrals trotted out of the sealed apartment, Sassi taking a last look around. Even her pictures had been carefully packed into the storage crystal, along with a few of the board games.

“You good?” Astral asked, the mare turned to look at him with a nod. Her smile didn’t quite reach Sassi’s eyes, an odd mix of regret and relief in her gaze.

“I’m good. Let’s get out of here. Check the cameras again and then all we can do is go.”

Astral looked over his gear again, the two of them now armed with drum-fed shotguns, the explosive slugs being about as close to miniature grenades as you could get. Strapped onto their saddlebags (and anywhere possible) were spare drums, each container holding over two dozen shots.

The guns themselves were an interesting thing. Parts of them were protected by an anti-magic field, micro-crystals set within the metal. Apparently, the company didn’t trust that rogue unicorns (or other magic users) would try and jam the guns if threatened.

Sassi seemed to be more and more comfortable with each step she took away from the apartment. A quick check over the cameras indicated an all-clear, and then it was time.

“So, Silo Two transit station?” Astral asked, Sassi nodding.

“The lights are on, but I don’t see any trams. So, we check that and start walking. Then we have to get down about twenty-five levels of the Silo.”

“Busy day or two…”

“To say the least,” she paused, genuine concern flickering in her violet gaze. “You going to be ok?”

Astral found himself nodding, Sassi looking at him in surprise.
“I’ve come this far. Not about to quit now,” he said firmly. “Nervous? Yeah. A bit scared? Sure. But at least I’m alive. I’ve already gone through stuff I couldn’t imagine. May as well add some more to that list.”

He didn’t miss a bit of pink on Sassi’s cheeks before her visor flipped down.
“You continue to surprise me, Astral,” she said softly. “You’ve come a long way since I met a panicked security guard inside this door.”

Astral kept his visor up a little bit longer, the warm fluttering in his chest making it far too natural to smirk.

“I’d say so. Instead of pointing a gun at me, you’re hugging me. I definitely prefer the latter,” he teased. Astral would be lying to himself if this side of him wasn’t a tad surprising. More playful, carefree…

No, perhaps that isn’t so much of a surprise. Sassi isn’t the only one who has played things close to the chest. I’ll let her know those things soon enough. I think she’ll like that.

He heard a soft squeak over the inter-helmet radio in reply, the stallion trotting up to stand next to her.

“Well, what do you say we get out of this place?”

Sassi flipped her visor back up, and Astral’s heart skipped a beat. Her violet eyes were shimmering, but there was an ocean of tumultuous emotions that nearly made the stallion cheer.

For the first time since Astral had met her, Sassi looked hopeful. There was fear, anxiety, but a spark of something that hadn’t been there before.

I promise you’ll see the forests, Sassi.

Taking a shaky breath, Sassi nodded once as Astral did the same, their visors locking into place.
“Let’s get to that tram station,” she said firmly, the military-minded mare now prioritizing things that were much easier to think about.

“Should be a straight shot. I’m right behind you.”

The two trotted out into the barren transit station, the helmet filters thankfully handling the stench of death and decay. It was a short but cautious trot to the Silo Two station, the pair covering each other. Sassi had instructed Astral previously how to move together, making sure their guns weren’t aimed at the other’s backs.

They had even practiced in the apartment, but it had been a simple lesson Astral was familiar with. They had covered such things in the Guard training, after all. But that had been with much more rudimentary firearms.

Walking down the stairs, the two looked around the platform. Sassi made her way to a console next to the central pillar, tapping some of the holographic symbols before it flashed red. She tapped a few more keys before shutting off the console.

“I’ve got good news and bad news,” she muttered. “Good news is that no motion sensors are tripping in the tunnels. There’s one that’s a bit wonky, but the power surge probably fried it. The bad news is…”

She pointed to the opposite end of the station, a now-visible wreck of a tram car now in Astral’s view.

“Oh,” he muttered, “we walk?”

“We walk.”

Astral felt a shiver run down his spine, Sassi either not sharing or broadcasting her trepidation as the Thestral neatly hopped down to a small maintenance causeway next to the tracks.

“The power was already disabled, but I enabled the emergency shut off just in case. The tracks don’t have any juice in them,” she said. “Probably shouldn’t touch them just in case there’s residual charge though.”

“Didn’t have to tell me twice…” Astral muttered, following Sassi into the dark tunnel. Their helmet’s infrared vision lit up the tunnel in a sickly glow that made his eyes ache. But at least they could see. Otherwise, the entire area was pitch black as they rounded a corner.

“The Silos are kept separate in case of a breach. Obviously, that can only help so much,” Sassi relayed as they walked, “without the trams, it’s a ten, maybe twenty-minute walk. Shouldn’t be too bad.”

“It’s dark even for our eyes. And that’s saying something,” Astral said softly. “Forget normal dark nights. This is like, advanced darkness.”

Sassi laughed over the radio, the sound not fitting in with how nervous Astral felt, but it certainly helped.

“Well, we should be out of here soon.”

At what Astral could best guess was the halfway point Sassi abruptly paused.

“Left side. Be ready,” she whispered. “Movement.” As she spoke, a threat marker popped up on the stallion’s helmet display.

The usual nerves Astral would have expected were subdued. They were very much there, but it was a simple formula of what would soon follow.

If it was a Skitter or Spider? Shoot it.

If it wasn’t? See what Sassi did.

They crept closer, and now the pair could hear some heavy breathing. That’s when they were able to see it.

The Skitter was laying against the leftmost wall, limbs twitching slightly, at least, what limbs were left. That probably explained the weird motion detector readings from earlier.

The creature at first glance would have made Astral assume it was dead. A large chunk was missing from its side, two of its limbs torn from the torso, and a large gash present on its face. He wasn’t even sure if it could see, at least two of its visible eyes gouged out. One barcoded arm still twitched.

Sassi’s guns were trained on it, Astral following suit. Perhaps it was too wounded to fight and they could slip by.

If it so much as twitched, they’d both-

“Poniesssss.”

The two of them froze, staring at the Skitter.

“Ssssmell you. No fight. Cannot see,” the creature hissed.

Sassi stared for a moment, Astral not about to be the first to respond.

“Ssspeak. Know you are there,” the Skitter said again.

“I’ve never met a talking Skitter- I thought you all were just feral. Give me a reason not to kill you,” Sassi said bluntly, scanning around to make sure they were still in the clear.

“Sssshe needsss your help.”

“She?” Astral muttered, Sassi still staring at the creature.

“Who? What is this about?” she asked, the Skitter letting out a gurgling sigh.

“The Queen. Ssshe sent me. Hivemind failing. The other wantsss out. To ssssee the sssun and consssume all.”

“The Skitter Queen? Joro? What other?” Sassi barked, the creature’s head lolling about.

The Skitter then slumped against the wall, and the two Thestrals noticed the ever-increasing pool of dark blood now underneath it on the floor.

“Two Queensss. I ssserve the true Joro. I am one of the lassst in her sssservice, one of few who can ssspeak. Level Thirty-Ssssix. Ssshe needsss your help. Can give information to help you. Guide you passssst the otherssss…”

The Skitter then fell permanently silent, the threat marker blinking off. The two Thestrals didn’t say anything for a long minute, Astral then letting out a long breath.

“Two Queens? One asking for help? What is this, Sassi?”

She shook her head, the mare methodically resuming their previous course with Astral in tow.

“I don’t know, Astral,” Sassi admitted. “It could be a trap, but we have to pass by that level regardless.”

“So, we’re going to help?”

“We’ll see. That Skitter had been attacked by other creatures, not gunfire. As much as I hate to admit it, we do need information. We’re walking into a Silo I have no idea the current status of,” Sassi explained. “Levels one to forty I know like the back of my hoof. Below that is spotty, restricted areas even for me for another few dozen levels at least. I was only down there on rare missions which were in-and-out tasks. Below that, I only know the floor names.”

“Ok, well, I guess we get to the new Silo, then see where it goes?”

“Pretty much.”

Astral gestured back towards the now-dead skitter.
“That one had a weird-looking barcode on its arm. You said those are only the old ones?” he asked. “You explained barcodes briefly before, but I never really brought it up again.”

The mare paused, nodding once.
“That’s fair. Well, barcodes are for any experiments created by the company, one of the first things they do once the specimen is viable. It’s a way for them to keep track of products,” she explained. “If you see an experiment without a barcode, it’s likely been born after things went crazy. Security staff don’t count; that’s why you didn’t see any codes on their bodies.”
Something was slightly off in Sassi’s tone as she explained the barcode, but Astral couldn’t quite place it. He simply nodded as she continued.

The mare then turned back to Astral gesturing to the dead Skitter.
“That one was old, really old. The barcode was stretched and an older format, from what I could tell. That’s why it looked different, which lines up with what it said.”

She turned back, waving him onwards.
“Head on a swivel now. We’ll relax once we get to the Silo Two security station. It should be decently secure. I doubt the station should be anything exciting.”

The two traveled in silence for the remainder of the tunnel, a weak light finally shining at the end. Their night vision deactivating, Astral felt his stomach flip as they trotted up to the station.

The platform, pillars, and ceiling were coated in blood, the decapitated head of a pony staring soullessly at them from its position on the equally-slicked stairs.