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// Chapter 7: From underneath 
// Story: The northern incident 
// by Trigger_Finger 
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  They all rounded the corner but by the time they got to Golden it was too late. His body was gone and all that was left was a room filled with gore.

“Jesus…” Shining muttered and Star Dust began to sob even louder. Shining and Johner stepped into the gore filled room and examined it thoroughly.

Johner noticed a hole in the floor. “Hey captain! Come check this out” Johner mentioned and Shining trotted over to him. Johner pointed to the hole and pointed a beam of light down the dark depths with his flashlight.

Shining gulped. “Well… I guess we know how it got in” Shining said fearfully. Johner nodded.

“Yeah but it doesn’t look like just a hole that was dug. Look closer, it looks like a hallway or something is down there… like something has been digging an underground passageway or something” Johner mentioned.

Shining took a closer look to see that he was indeed correct. Something had been building an underground passageway, but to what he wasn’t sure. Shining let out a sigh of discomfort. “This is bad… really bad” Shining commented and Johner nodded.

“So captain… any ideas?” Johner asked with a sigh but Shining shook his head. “Well then, guess we’ll just have to blow this place up” Johner commented and Shining gasped.

“We can’t do that. This is a half-million bit base right here. We’d be in so much trouble if we” Shining began but Johner cut him off.

“And if we don’t then we all die. I don’t know about you captain but I plan on living to see the sun rise… though I’m not exactly sure why I care that I live. It’s not like I have anything to go back to” Johner told Shining who nodded.

Pippy gulped. “So… what do we do? I mean, how do we do it?” he asked and Johner thought for a moment.

“Alright, this thing, this… whatever it is, likes to get us while we’re alone or split up. So we all stick together, get the blasting mats and dynamite from the armoury then rappel down there and blow this place to kingdom come. Agreed?” Johner asked and every-pony nodded.

They all rushed to the armoury without any sort of problem but as they stocked up, Bear brought up a good point. “What do we do after we blow up base. We are over three days trot from any sort of civilization” he commented and Johner shrugged.

“We’ll deal with that when it comes. If this thing gets loose then all of Equestria will be in danger” Johner told him and he nodded. Star Dust gulped as she handled the TNT.

“I don’t know about this. We could all die” she commented and Shining nodded then gave her a nudge.

“Then we all go down in history as merits. Either that or no-pony finds our bodies. In that case then we’d be listed as MIA” Shining said with a slight chuckle.

Johner raised an eyebrow. “Getting a sense of humour eh?” Johner asked and Shining shrugged.

“Must be hanging around you too much” Shining laughed as they loaded the last of the dynamite. “Alright, if we blow up underneath this place then the generator will rupture and take the rest of the base with it” he told them and they nodded. 

Johner handed the detonator cords and plunger to Star Dust who placed them in her pack. They all nodded then rushed towards the hole leading to the cavern below.

Johner pulled out some rappelling gear he took from the armoury and fastened the rope around a beam post to keep them secure while they descended.

“Ladies first?” Johner asked and Star Dust gave a slight giggle.

“Age before beauty” she replied.

“I’ll take that as a compliment. I’ll have you know that I’m only twenty-four” Johner chuckled as he fastened the rope to his chest harness and began to rappel downwards. It was a long descent and Johner guessed it was probably a good fifty or sixty feet drop.

He set down and ignited a red flare then tossed it down the cavern. “Alright, coast is clear” Johner yelled up to the others who proceeded to descend one by one. First Shining, then Bear and finally Star Dust.

Johner looked up to Pippy who was looking fearfully down the hole. “Come on Pippy” Johner called up and Pippy gulped. He was somewhat afraid of heights to say the least.

“Uhm… Johner… maybe I should stay up here. You know, to keep watch” Pippy stammered and Johner rolled his eyes.

“Kid if you stay up there alone then that thing is gonna get you. And besides we’re not coming out the way we came in” Johner called back up.

“Gah… I’m afraid of heights” Pippy said, disgraced with himself for being afraid.

“Hey kiddo, don’t worry about it. Think of it this way: it’s not high up, you’re simply going below ground level” Johner told him but it did nothing to ease his friend.

Pippy began to breathe heavily as he began to ready himself for the descent. He began to slowly creep into the hole and descend downwards. Suddenly the tentacle beast appeared at the top of the hole and hissed at Pippy.

Pippy screamed in fear and quickly began to zip down the hole. “PIPPY! SLOW DOWN!” Johner yelled but Pippy paid no mind, he was scared so much that he couldn’t think straight.

When he was at about twenty feet, the creature cut the rope line and Pippy fell the final twenty feet without any support.

He slammed into the ground and cried out in pain. Johner immediately rushed to his side and examined his hindleg which was twisted then swore to himself. Bear rushed up to their sides and looked upwards but couldn’t see the creature anymore.

“Is he okay?” Bear asked and Johner nodded somewhat.

“Yeah… kind of. His hindleg is broken and he won’t be able to walk” Johner informed him. Bear dropped all his gear except his machete and bowie knife then lifted Pippy onto his back.

“I owe Reese this much. He saved my flank once, long story” Bear said and Johner nodded. They all began to gallop into the tunnels to place the explosives but moved much slower due to Bear having to carry Pippy.

Star Dust grunted to herself. “Hey no offence, but I say we ditch the cripple” she told the others and Johner shook his head. 

“No-way. We stick together” he told her and she rolled her eyes. “HEY! We can either do this together or we all die alone” Johner yelled at her for even contemplating to leave a fellow guard behind.

After a few minutes of galloping they came to a stop in a large tunnel way. Johner and the others quickly began setting the TNT. “Okay, we set the TNT but remember to get the detonator cords ready. I have a feeling that this is gonna be real close” Johner muttered as he taped the dynamite sticks together.

Finally they finished and Star Dust hooked up the detonator cables then as they rushed off she let the spool of wire unravel. Suddenly, horrifying screeches filled the hallways. It sounded like they were coming from many creatures and not just one.

“I have a bad feeling about this” Shining said and Johner nodded.

“Yeah me too… me too. Alright this way” Johner said but Star Dust placed her hoof on his shoulder and stopped him.

“How do you know?”

Johner rolled his eyes. “Just follow me” he ordered and the group began to rush off. The screeching seemed to get closer and the group reached a dead end with a ladder going straight up a shaft then it cut off into a small room where there was another ladder going to what looked to be the top.

“Go… GO!” Johner yelled and the group immediately began to rush up the ladder. Bear turned to Johner.

“You go before me. I will only slow you down” Bear told him and Johner rolled his eyes but went anyway. Despite Bear being weighed down by Pippy he was easily able to keep up with Johner as they scrambled up the ladder.

As they all reached the first floor they looked down to see the tentacle beast screech then scurry up the shaft after them. Johner curled his lips in anger. “BUCKIN GO!” he yelled and they all began to rush up the final ladder: first Star Dust, then Shining followed by Johner and finally Bear who had Pippy on his back.

The creature lept into the room then hopped up onto the ladder and scurried after Bear and Pippy. Pippy squeezed off a burst with his P90 and several 5.7x28mm rounds ripped through the creature but failed to stop it.

“Bear! Hurry” Pippy yelled and Bear furiously tried to outpace the creature but to no avail. He quickly glanced back but as he did the creature spat at him with its acidic spit. The spit acidized on Bear’s face and made him yell out in pain. His grasp on the ladder bars slipped and they began to fall down but Pippy grabbed one of the bars as they fell.

Pippy yelled out in exertion, he would be unable to hold both their weight for much longer. “JOHNER!” Pippy screamed. Johner looked down, took a deep breath, unholstered both his Desert Eagles from their chest holsters then curled his hindlegs around the ladder bar and simply fell back, supporting himself with his hindlegs.

Johner began to trigger the mighty handguns which spat out the high-powered .50 caliber AE rounds at the tentacle beast as he yelled out in anger. The creature shifted side to side then reached up and grabbed Bear’s hindleg with a tentacle, holding him with a vicelike grip. 

Finally Johner took an aimed shot and a lone round slammed right through the creature’s skull. Its face became expressionless then it fell back but in its death state its tentacles remained curled around Bear’s hindleg, further increasing the weight strain on Pippy who cried out for help. 

Screeches could be heard from the bottom of the cavern and Johner spotted more of the beasts below. “Great… and I thought there was only one” he muttered as he holstered both handguns then reached down and grabbed Pippy’s forelegs.

As he tried to curl himself up he realized that it was just too much weight, even for him. “Hey kid… you gotta… lose some weight” he grunted jokingly as he groaned in extreme effort. “Bear… cut that thing down” Johner ordered. Bear sighed to himself and very solemnly pulled out his machete then began to cut away at the harness around his chest.

Johner noticed his cuttings. “HEY BEAR! NO BEAR DON’T!” Johner screamed but Bear knew that it would still be too much weight for Johner to carry them both. “BEEEAAAAAR!” Johner yelled.

Bear spotted a group of beasts crawling up the shaft and cut the final harness restraint and his body fell but then jolted as it was held by a lone rope, connecting his body to Pippy’s.

Pippy cried out. “NO BEAR. PLEASE DON’T, WE CAN MAKE IT!” he cried out but then Bear looked to them as a tear rolled down his face.

“Goodbye, friends” he said and cut the final rope. His body fell past the sublevel floor and down the shaft, knocking down several off the beasts with him. Not a single scream could be heard but they all knew that the creatures were devouring Bear’s probably still living body.

“BUCK!” Johner yelled then easily curled his body back up with Pippy now on his back. Pippy grabbed around Johner’s shoulders as Johner raced back up the ladder.

At the top Star Dust gulped as she realized that the creatures would soon be upon them. She tried to open the door but it wouldn’t budge. “It’s locked. Shining give me your pistol” she ordered and Shining willingly gave her his Berretta M9. She smiled then turned the gun to its former owner.

“Nothing personal” she commented then shot Shining in the shoulder, knocking him back in pain as the 9mm round slammed through him, shattering his shoulder blade .

“BITCH!” Johner yelled and she laughed maniacally then quickly exited the door, locking it behind her. Johner quickly reached the top of the ladder and helped Shining to his hooves.

They both tried to open the door but it wouldn’t budge. “Oh Celestia dammit!… STAR DUST, OPEN THIS DOOR. DAMMIT, DO YOU HEAR ME, OPEN THIS DOOR!” Shining yelled but she didn’t listen. 

Star Dust was breathing heavily. ‘That was way too close for comfort’ she thought with a sly smile. Back in the shaft way Johner banged on the door but then looked down to see the tentacle beasts swarming about below them. He looked to Shining and sighed in defeat