Two G's in a Pod

Two G’s in a Pod

Chapter 6: Deep, Dark, and Fucking Dangerous

By: Stillmatic and Lucius Seneca

Don flashed his headlamp forward and squinted, "Don't see anything..."

"Me neither," Will called out.

The two had been walking for quite some time and found themselves rejuvenated from their short rest. The medallions they recovered proved interesting, mysterious, and downright odd. Will was enveloped in a cool feeling that breathed fresh air into him, while Don kept a gentle warmth and very dull brightness around him. They both noticed it, but neither said anything as of yet regarding it. There was a weird, weighty feel to both necklaces that made them feel somewhat important, but they disregarded them nonetheless.

Their short walk eventually led them to a new passage, one that opened up greatly. Don whistled loudly in amazement while Will simply looked around at the sheer size of the chamber. It wasn't a moment later that there was some sort of earthquake, forcing the area they came from to collapse, destroying what was left of the purified area they came from. The ceiling above seemed to follow suit and both men quickly ran for their lives desperately. Will, feeling something wrong was about to happen, shoved Don to the right. The older human barely avoided a jagged rock that would have liquefied his body.

"FUCK!"

"KEEP RUNNING!" Will shouted.

And so they did, moving faster now. Pieces of rock and debris came down faster now, but they were soon in the clear, diving to the floor and into a tunnel before the entire area behind them collapsed, sending dust everywhere. They yanked their shirts up to prevent inhalation and continued forward. Things, they assumed, were only going to get progressively worse.

Mica nearly fell over as a massive earthquake took place far beneath her. Seeing as though it was the day off for miners, nopony was using any dynamite to clear rocks away. It ended within a minute and a half, but her legs continued to wobble uncontrollably before she settled for just sitting down for the time being. Blinking, she realized that this was a sign, one that could only mean one thing. A wide, immaculate smile was on her face now as she began jumping joyously.

"YES! THEY'RE STILL ALIVE!"

Her parading eventually got the attention of the other citizens around town, and word soon spread that the newest residents hadn't quite died just yet.

"So, you think there's something defending this artifact or something? I mean, something's going through all of this trouble to try and kill us..."

Will scratched at his head, trying to push out soot, "Maybe. Like a giant centipede?"

Don stopped and stared at him incredulously, "What? Seriously? That's your best guess?"

"Yeah."

"I don't even know how to res—" Don stopped speaking and looked forward, "Are those... shadows?"

Will narrowed his eyes, "Wait, there's more than two..."

Several more appeared and Don squinted against the inky collection of silhouettes only to fall backwards, eyes rolling up in his head as a shadowy figure reached a hoof out and brushed it against his chest. Will jumped into action and pulled his friend back as he focused his headlamp onto the silhouettes. They didn't seem to like the beam of light, but they didn't back away either, staying their ground several feet away, and continuing to block off the rest of the tunnel. Will ripped the light source from his head and set it down so it was pointed towards the ghostly figures, holding them at bay.

Don's skin was cold and clammy to the touch and Will grabbed his own head, pulling at his hair, "Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck." He pulled the backpack off his person and rifled through it, "Fuck, c'mon Cole, where the hell is it?"

He ripped the defibrillator out of the tangled mess of items and charged it, fumbling in the dark, hearing the telltale sound of magic. There was a loud snap and a meaty thunk as Will slammed the piece of magic-powered medical technology onto Don's chest, eliciting a jerk from him as it connected with the skin. Don jumped upwards, a hollow yell from his mouth as he sat upwards, hands waving blindly. Will gripped him by the shoulders and brought his hand back, slapping his older friend across the face.

"Snap the fuck out of it! Shit is getting very real in here, man, VERY FUCKING REAL!"

Don looked about in sweaty stupor, "Huh, what? I know nothing of it!"

"Zombie ghosts, bro! ZOMBIE. GHOSTS."

As if on cue, the equestrian silhouettes lunged forward menacingly, playing with the men. Will recoiled in disgust and was quickly followed by Don who snatched the things up which had spilled out of his bag. It wasn't a smart choice. As he turned to gather the items, he brushed against yet another ghost-like entity. His body jerked as if being electrified and he fell forward, sprawling over his backpack. Will felt his heart drop again and he pulled his friend and his backpack away from the silhouettes.

Will, with much effort and grunting, pulled Don over his shoulder and clutched at his comrade's backpack, pulling it along as he clutched at the token over his chest. For whatever reason, it seemed to glow brighter and the silhouettes backed away, glancing nervously about as the deep, throbbing blue light spilled outwards and bounced off the walls. And then a screaming orange glow joined the blue as Don's own symbol exploded with light. The silhouettes parted and folded against the walls, allowing the two friends to pass. Will struggled by and went as far as he could before succumbing to the tiredness, dumping Don on the ground before going for the defibrillator again. It buzzed loudly and soon Don was sitting up again, hands failing as he regained consciousness.

The magic pumped through his body and he was on his feet within a second. The next thing Will knew, he was being hoisted above Don's head and rapidly carried out of the tunnel and towards the next area. The only thing Will was able to make out from behind were the shadows taking their places again, settling in once more. Don ducked, just enough for Will not to hit his head on a rusted pipe. The duo continued for a while longer before Don collapsed in a large, spacious tunnel. Will tumbled off of him and rolled several times before noticing something.

"Don? Where the hell did you go?"

Will looked around frantically for his friend, but the emptiness of the room already showed him no trace. That is until he looked towards the opposite end and saw Don already there, throwing up to the side. Will got back on his feet and made to run, but was cut off as a tarry liquid dripped down onto his arm. He looked to his right and saw more drip down. A quick glance up was all he needed to distract him long enough before his hair flew up slightly as enormous walls nearly boxed him in, creating what seemed to be a large maze. The human was knocked off of his feet a second later as something landed near him, creating a shockwave.

Will reeled back, scraping against the dirty ground and pushing himself away, "W-W-WHAT THE FUCK?!"

Before him was the most inexplicably frightening thing he had ever seen, even in his wildest nightmares. The creature was bug-like, almost like a mantis standing on two legs with its frontal pincers ready to saw him apart. It was entirely black, dripping some unknown liquid, and the surface of it bubbled constantly. The head seemed to completely be one set of mandibles, constantly snapping over and over again. The abdomen was the most nightmarish part, however. It was literally torn down the middle, with sets of teeth lining the inside among several sharpened ribs.

Will found his throat dry all of a sudden, "D-Don! DON!"

It approached slowly, thinking it was in for an easy kill. The bug brought down a pincer where Will's chest once lied, just barely scraping his arm. He inhaled sharply and kicked the creature in the face with his boot, sending it back for a precious few seconds. Before it recovered, Will was already up and running through the maze. It quickly followed, hissing loudly along with the occasional chirp.

"WILL!"

The man in question nearly stopped running to answer, but corrected himself immediately, "WHERE ARE YOU, MAN?"

"LEAD IT HERE! FOLLOW THE AMULET!"

Will, much to his thanks, recalled the medallion and flipped it around. He realized that his asthma wasn't affecting him all as well, making the act of running an enormous amount easier. The back's design seemed to fade into nothingness, converting into a sort of sonar-like map in a matter of seconds. Three blips were on it, a blue one for himself, a yellow for what he assumed was Don, and a pure black dot that was closing in on him, far more than he expected. It became evident how close it truly was when he was knocked to the floor once again.

It loomed over him, ready to deliver a finisher. Though, it wasn't actually able to due to Will slamming his pick right into its chest maw. It shrieked loudly and Will was running again. He looked back to see the creature ripping out the tool in what looked to be an agonizing fashion. His eyes widened and he ducked, nearly getting decapitated by his pick. The human took a left, grabbing his pick from where it rested on a wall. In no time, Will was already near Don's position. He knew this once he was told to duck, which he complied to.

A bullet whizzed by his head and the bug fell over, hitting the ground hard. Will's chest was moving fast, with his heart thumping even quicker. Don ran over to the creature and pointed to what seemed to be an ore pulverizer on a conveyor belt.

"Turn that on when I say so!"

Will nodded his head and ran to the machine, hand over the button. Don placed several hooks in exposed areas of the monstrosity and checked them before running over to the other end of the pulverizer.

"TURN IT ON!"

The younger human did so, and the creature, who was regaining its strength, was being pulled into the pulverizer. It flailed several times before being crushed, proving it was truly solid, and mashed into a fine-grade of blackness. Don pressed down a lever, opening a hatch to the smelter. The dark powder fell in, eliciting several pops and hisses before several bricks of the material were deposited out of a chute. The smelter seemed to break down at that point, preventing further use. Don counted the bricks, finding fourteen in total.

He picked one up, finding it cool to the touch, "Think we should take these?"

Will recovered from his run but continued to sweat regardless, "No man, that thing nearly killed me!"

Don placed them in his bag towards the bottom, taking care it didn't destroy anything and finding it surprisingly lightweight, "Forget it, I'm taking them. Not passing up more loot to take back."

"Fine, your funeral. I don't want to be near that stuff."

Don sat down, relaxing against the wall, "Let's rest for a bit, ight?"

"Yeah... yeah, let's do that." Will muttered, sitting as well.

The duo began making small talk to pass the time along with eating some food. Little did they know their escapades were known far above them as well.

A black cloud of smoke erupted from a tube that ran to the deepest parts of the mine. Mica's coat seemed to glow as she grinned once more along with the other residents. Though, Silver Tongue seemed to be the happiest as he quickly calculated everything he'd need regarding their payment. While he was eager and completely willing to sacrifice others to obtain that which he wanted so much, he couldn't help but root for the two humans just to root for their survival. Things were working out splendidly.

"I've never seen this much reaction on an off-day!" Mica exclaimed loudly, receiving various sounds of approval. "They're so going to do it! They so are!"

It seemed that even more of the town began watching the mine for more signs, and they weren't about to be disappointed any time soon.

Will sprinted down the darkened tunnel, stumbling and cursing loudly as Don did the same, following his partner in crime. They could hear the sickening skittering and clicking from behind them as yet another mantis-like creature gave chase. The break had been cut short for the men, not knowing that a large hole in the rock ceiling was serving as the entrance for more horrid abominations. It hadn't taken long before they realized they weren't alone and they had been leading the monster on a merry chase for the past minute or so, medallions bouncing and jumping around their chests as they ran. Will ducked his head as a pipe whizzed by and Don followed suit, eyes widening as he watched Will vanish from sight, dropping into a decently large hole in the ground.

It was too late to stop for the other man and despite the grip on his boots, he teetered on the edge for a second before falling in, slamming hard into a sharp incline before sliding down into the darkness. Pebbles and exposed roots bit at exposed flesh and Don yelled out as he was sent flying out of the slide-like tunnel and into a small cavern, landing atop Will who groaned and shoved his friend away before crawling to his feet achingly. Neither man spoke as they observed the small cavern. Several fluorescent mushrooms glowed off to the side and Will was grateful for the light. Both he and Don had lost their headlamps, leaving them with only the faint glow of their strange medallions.

A small tunnel off to the right suggested an escape route and the men headed for it, knocking away some ancient planks of wood before crawling forward, sweat dripping down their foreheads as their heavy jackets trapped their body heat. Will pushed his way past an abandoned pickaxe only to be confronted by a decrepit skeleton. He yelled out in surprise as the skeleton rolled free from a large pile of dirt and looked at him tauntingly. Will kicked out in fright and struck Don in the face.

"Fuck! Watch where you're kicking, motherfucker!"

Will pushed the bones aside and continued forward "Sorry, man!"

The exit could clearly be seen now and the relatively small tunnel appeared to open up into a large, almost immeasurable cavern, natural rock pillars holding up the ceiling. Will stumbled outwards and promptly fell a small distance to the ground, rolling over several upturned mining carts before being deposited in a heap next to Don at the bottom. Both cursed loudly and thrashed in agony as pieces of razor sharp flint dug into them. Luckily, their clothing protected them well enough and they were standing once again although there was no more humor present upon their faces but rather a look of immediate, hazardous anger. They had had enough of mines, tunnels, injuries, and giant rock mantises for one day. They wanted out and they wanted it now.

It wasn't long before the duo spotted some type of makeshift pedestal at the back of the cavern. In fact, the entire cavern seemed odd. Large ballista’s seemed set around the room, large hooks attached to rope sitting on top, waiting to be shot forward. Will examined a nearby one and found it loaded.

"That's some Lord of the Rings shit right there. Helms Deep every day."

Don shook his head, "Never even watched it."

There was a shrug from Will and he pointed at the pedestal near the back of the cavern, "That the shit?"

"That the shit. Supposed to be a vase or something lying about. Real archeological type stuff."

Will looked please, "Shall we acquire the ducats?"

Don slapped him on the shoulder, "We shall."

The dynamic duo crossed the open area and stepped up the chiseled rock steps to a small, flat platform. There was a seemingly inconspicuous chest of plain wood on an even smaller raised platform. Will reached forward and popped the lid upwards and, using his symbol, illuminated the interior. Inside, a small, green vase of stone shone back dully from its place within. Don leaned closer and ran a finger over it, watching as the colors changed from green, to orange, to blue, and then back. Will clicked his tongue and closed the chest before shoving it under his arm.

"Time to leave this dank shithole."

Unfortunately, any plans of departure were cut short as a creature of nightmarish proportions came into view. For a moment it was difficult to see the hissing mouth, snapping mandibles, and long, hairy, gangly legs, but it slithered, or rather walked into view, climbing down from one of the many rock pillars in the cavernous room. Will felt his breath catch in his throat and if the vise-like grip of Don's hand on his shoulder was any indication, his partner was just as scared. The creature clicked its mandibles once more, coming into full view. It would have looked like a centipede if not for its sheer size. The body stretched for a length equal to that of a city bus, and its mandibles, hairy and coated with saliva, tapped each other with interest. A single eye stared at the duo, who looked back in frightened amazement.

"Will?" Don whispered.

"Y-Yeah?"

"We're fucked, aren't we?"

Will nodded, "Yeah. We are."

Just then, the centipede let out a roar, allowing for a repulsive whiff of its breath to reach them. The duo coughed several times before Don yanked the vase and pulled Will back, moving towards the exit. It already thought ahead of them and crashed its body against the tunnel from which they came, causing it to crumble and block their necessary exit. Will found Don's .38 shoved in his hand a moment later.

"Take that shit and use it if you need it! Come on! We gotta bring this mother fucker down!"

Will gripped the handgun, "But how?"

They leaped out of the way, barely dodging the monster that ran at them. Don looked around for anything that could help their situation and tried to devise a plan.

"You still got the dynamite?"

Will ducked under another attack, "Yeah!"

"We're breaking this thing open! Keep it busy!"

Don immediately ran towards the pedestal, moving to its side and hopping on a launching mechanism for the hooks. Will focused on distracting the massive centipede for as long as possible. His comrade, however, was busy commandeering a dangerous work tool.

Don pushed off an equine skeleton, muttering, "Excuse me, ma'am."

He hopped on, and aimed the harpoon-like hook at the creature, waiting for the right moment to take a shot. Will jumped out of the way as the centipede dove at him before burrowing into the ground. Don fired, launching the hook but failing in getting his shot. He reeled it back and, watching as his companion was doing the only thing he could do and continue evading attacks. The monstrosity loomed over Will, tempted to simply smash right into him and eat the pieces later. However, a well-aimed harpoon through its body completely prevented that. It was dragged to the floor, squirming in pain as green puss spilled out of its body.

Don hopped off the launcher and shouted to Will before moving to another, "GRAB THE HOOK AND PUT IT ON ITS JAWS! WE'RE TEARING THOSE FUCKERS OFF!"

Will, who was no longer jumping around and dodging, sprinted to another launcher and took a hook in his hand. The ground shook, causing him to trip on his back to the centipede. Several pieces of rock dropped down, barely missing him. Don ran to the monster and placed a hook underneath its mouth, where several, throbbing veins attached to a mandible. Will was there in the next second, already doing as he saw his friend do. The centipede rolled forward, kicking up dirt and forcing the two humans back.

Don ran to the ballista he just came from, "TURN THEM ON!"

Will did so, grunting as he pulled down a lever. Gears within both machines began turning, slowly pulling the hooks back. The centipede immediately began flailing itself around, thrashing against the ground and trying to break free from the grasp. In only a minute's time, the mandibles were yanked off, sending more puss onto the floor. It gave a throaty wail and slammed to the floor limply. Will, remembering what Don had asked earlier, ran forward with dynamite in hand. He tore off a piece of his shirt and wrapped the bundle together before lighting it and shoving it within the mouth of the centipede.

He turned and dived past Don, hitting the floor with his hands over his head, "GET DOWN!"

Don lied down quickly, just in time. A large explosion rocked the area, forcing another earthquake to occur as the centipede died from the devastation within its body. It seemed that its death spurred the current situation and now more of the ceiling was coming down. Both humans flipped around, right as a large slab, probably a dozen or so tons, flew down and obliterated most of the centipede's head, sending the single eyeball popping out and rolling to them. It seemed to shrink drastically right before them, getting to the size of a large grapefruit. Both were left in awe at what they just witnessed, as well as survived.

Don inhaled, nearly jumping to his feet in joy, "W-WE DID IT! WE DID IT!"

Will shoved the .38 between his belt and stomach, "I'm fucking sick of this shit. I want to go home."

The younger man seemed much less enthusiastic about the win, but after a pep talk from Don and a couple pats on the back, he too was feeling jubilant. Natural light was now streaming from the collapsed ceiling and Don shielded his eyes as he picked up the slippery eyeball, nerves still trailing from it. Will looked on in disgust as Don shoved the eyeball into his backpack before joining Will next to another hook throwing ballista.

There was a loud crack and the sound of rope being spooled out as it was shot upwards and out of the now open ceiling, vanishing somewhere over the side. Don pulled in the thick rope several times before ascertaining that is was safe to climb. The two men, despite being amateurs at such things, scaled the rope fairly quickly and soon they were out and in the open having successfully recovered their so-called artifact. Grass and trees punctuated by the occasional boulder surrounded the men and they let out a sigh of relief, finding themselves near the quarry where they had first begun their journey. They weren't totally lost after all.

Will cut the rope free and tossed the grappling hook, which had become lodged in some tree branches, back into the cavern. Both men stared down at the bloody scene before turning and navigating their way back to Somewhere. It was roughly fifteen minutes before they reached the hill which led down to the valley in which Somewhere was located, seen in the distant. Will pointed at Don accusingly.

"Don't you fucking push me this time."

The older man guffawed and soon the duo was at the bottom of the hill without incident. A glimmer in the grass caught Will's eye and he knelt down, recovering his phone from the ground. He pressed the power button and was surprised to see the slightly cracked screen light up.

"Huh. Thought it was broken when I threw it out."

The phone in question beeped loudly and the small image representing a text message appeared. The two men pulled their heads back in surprise and Will tapped on it, reading a message from an unknown number.

"Achievement Unlocked - In the Moonlight: You're a night person and you have a medallion of the moon to prove it. Whether you're out for a midnight snack or with a special someone, you've gained the ability to walk as quiet as a cat, and as an extra bonus for all your hard work, you turn near invisible in direct moonlight."

Silence followed the message, but before Don could say anything, his Blackberry vibrated loudly and he whipped it out, half smile on his face as he read the text, "Achievement Unlocked - Bright and Shining: You've come far and you have a medallion of the sun to prove it. It carries a cheery mood that rubs off on you, letting you interact with others on a more personal and influential level. And even when you're getting tired or hurt on your journey, you can always take a rest in the sun and get it all back."

Will looked over and read it before speaking, "Let's not even ask. Just let it be."

"Word. Creepy as fuck though."

The younger man hummed nonchalantly and soon the two friends were headed towards Somewhere once again where they would be hailed as heroes and would truly begin a journey which would change their lives.