Hole in the Ground

Liam sat silently within his office, resting upon the wall. The cold stone absorbed his body heat, even through his jacket. His head tapped the stone surface behind him gently, muted thuds vibrating in his skull. His eyes moved behind his eyelids slowly, exploring ideas visually through his mind. Despite the quiet atmosphere, save for the faint hum of the air through the vents, his thoughts did not share that volume. The only sounds were those within his own mind, each thought clamoring to be heard over the next. His headache had returned, a faint pulse in the temples, the damp smell of the cavern seemed stronger than before. His hands hung limply in the air, forearms resting upon his knees.

His frown, a fixture he had worn throughout the night, did not dissipate as he filtered and worked through his thoughts. Too many things were happening all at once. Too many issues were on the table, and Daring Do was still unaccounted for. The changeling infiltrator was sent back to relay his message and return with her own, and he hoped, Miss Do as well. Despite the burning of his eyes and the weight of his head, he knew sleep was still a distant prospect. He took a deep breath in through his nose and caught a note of his own odor. His frown deepened at the smell.

He contemplated a departure to the facility showers, a relatively new addition to the amenities, but decided against the idea. He didn't enjoy the prospect of fumbling through the showers so close to the staff quarters, even less so the possibility he would run into a staff member. That, and he had another issue to work through.

Luna.

Though he had accepted the proposition, he felt uneasy at the reality that Luna would be down here with him. He sluggishly brought his hand to the side of his neck and scratched at it. It wasn't physical discomfort, though he could feel the growing tension in his muscles and joints. No, he was more worried about how she'd react to the operations and decisions that had yet to be made. The hard calls to come. They gave him stress on their own, but the notion that Luna would be party to the same decisions that plagued him was a torture of its own. Then, confronting his own feelings on her presence.

'No,' he thought, 'irrelevant. What's wrong with me? We're not even the same species!'

His eyes opened slowly, hazel creeping out from behind his eyelids. It wouldn't be long before she followed him through the mirror, staying behind only for a symbolic gesture of raising the moon one last time as a Princess of Equestria. Not long after that, Celestia would give her remarks and make an announcement at day-court, notifying the citizenry that the newly-returned Princess of the Moon was leaving, albeit temporarily.

Too many things happening all at once. She would be here at six o'clock. He looked down to his watch, reading three-thirty.

His eyes swam over to the notepad affixed to the wall, suspended in the air by string and a nail. A list of events and meetings for the day, though none accommodating the arrival of Luna, nor the complete and total catastrophe his lack of sleep was becoming. Not to mention the logistical nightmare that would be her quarters. That would be a new project in of itself, given he could only guess as to her reaction if she were told she'd be sleeping with the rest of the staff. He bit the corner of his lip in quiet contempt, then uttered a single word.

"Fuck," he declared to no one but himself. Perhaps that shower was waiting for him after all.

Luna slowly strode through the hallways of the castle. She thought it odd how little attachment she had to the structure. It was warranted, however, given that it was not her home. Her home had long since been consumed by the Everfree, her own castle overtaken by nature. Despite herself, she felt that she would miss Canterlot Castle, though she knew she had to escape the ever-present memory of her failings.

Would this castle stand were it not for her mistakes?

Such thoughts plagued the lunar princess as she gave final looks to the halls and rooms. Though the damage was extensive, much of the repairs were completed quickly. The same could not be said for Canterlot itself. Her hooves echoed across the cold floors and she returned to her room, covered in tapestries of gold and navy, books piled to peaks, penned after her banishment.

She gave a resigned smile as she flipped the cover closed on a history textbook on her desk, the warm oak piece splattered with dried ink and the grooves of furious quill marks. The thought of leaving it behind gave her some measure of relief. Doubt regarding her capabilities hadn't appeared during the Canterlot Incident, but from the moment she returned. With a deep sigh, she would close this chapter of her life, and wade into something far more dangerous.

"'Tis is for the best," she heard from within.

Luna's lips pursed and she turned her head over her shoulder.

"We know," she answered the mirror.

She turned to face Nightmare Moon, standing below her in her reflection. Her teal eyes and black coat shone in the candlelight, her cat-like eyes soft. Between them, much was said, but no words were spoken. She remained there a moment.

"Luna?"

She did her best to not leap from her skin as she turned around to face the intruder. In the doorway was her sister, her multi-colored mane drooping low, slowly billowing like curtains in a breeze. Luna recomposed herself.

"What is it, Tia?"

Celestia moved forward gracefully, her hooves almost hesitant to find footing on the wooden floor. She approached her sister and nuzzled her, a short burst of air escaping through her nostrils and against Luna's coat. Luna returned the gesture.

"Is this what you truly want?"

Luna's neck returned her head upward. Celestia broke her embrace.

"Aye. Were it not, it would still be necessary," she said in a soft, resolute voice.

Celestia's magenta eyes met her own and she rubbed one white foreleg with another. An amount of tension found itself in her shoulders with an intake of breath.

"I am glad you have made your choice," she said neutrally, but Luna knew her sister better than that. The way Celestia's mouth turned down slightly in the corner.

Luna nodded, the motion causing her mane to gently flutter.

"As am I," she replied. "I trust Philomena will continue to erupt into flames every-so-often?"

Celestia smiled, "certainly."

"Are you ready?"

"Is it time already?" Luna already knew the hour was upon them.

"Yes," Celestia answered.

Luna stood silent for a moment longer, then nodded. Her horn took a cyan glow and she approached the balcony, the doors swinging open slowly to reveal the night sky; her night sky.

She fixated on the moon and closed her eyes, feeling her tendrils of magic pouring out from within, flowing from her horn. Her hooves planted against the ground, in these moments she felt unmovable, unbreakable. The connection to her moon solidified, and like a mother to a foal, she gently guided the moon down from the sky. It fell slowly from Zenith and descended towards the horizon. She felt the presence of the sun within the sky, inching its way up from the other side of the planet, a neighbor to her moon.

Like a wave of warm water, the sun passed the moon in the sky, and Luna had lowered the moon as a Princess of Equestria for possibly the last time. When all was said and done, she looked to her sister, who quickly moved forward and embraced her in a hug. She knew what that hug meant, what her sister was saying.

She didn't need much else to wrap her own hooves around her.

"You will still visit?"

"Of course, Tia."

She hoped those words would remain true.

One, two, three, four.

Liam's thumb and ring finger tapped the surface of his desk, his lips drawn tight and his eyes leveled to the transmission mirror. He brought his fidgety hand up to his mouth and unfurled his lips before letting out a short breath. He sniffed at the air, but no unpleasant smell befell him. He sighed and and returned his fingers to the desktop. One, two, three, four.

His eyes jumped to the clock in the corner.

A quarter after six. He looked back to the transmission mirror.

Maybe she changed her mind? The thought brought equal parts relief and disappointment.

One, two, three, four.

Maybe he could get in some sleep after all. A faint warble emanated from the mirror, the reflective surface becoming almost like water. Tension built a knot in his gut and he abruptly stood from his chair, a hand darting outwards to keep it from falling. His efforts were in vain, the back of the chair just slipping shy of his fingers. His hand darted further in panic, knocking it further forward, and before long, the chair was against the floor. Liam grimaced and bent down to pick it up, noticing a chip on the top of the backrest.

"Good morning, Liam," Luna said above him.

He pivoted around to see her towering above him, looking down at him inspecting the furniture. His eyes traveled from her unadorned hooves and up her forelegs to her powerful barrel, finally settling upon her eyes. He felt an immense wave of heat explode within his earlobes.

"G'mornin', Luna," he said quietly, eyes still focused on hers.

He carefully moved on his crouched legs to stand, avoiding her inquisitive head. Upon rising, he realized that many of her jewelry pieces were missing, including her crown. Standing before him was another citizen of Equestria. He felt that realization in his throat.

Even now, at full height, she towered above him. He felt the change in posture did little to nothing to change the small feeling within him. She had become even taller than Celestia.

Logistical nightmare.

"Sorry about that," he said quickly, "I knocked it over by accident."

"I would certainly hope so."

Liam smiled. Luna returned it.

"We art quite excited to see your facility."

The statement caused some amount of grief within him, but he calmed the sensation as best he could.

"That's good. Be glad to show it to you," he said, reaching down to pick up the chair.

"We don't have a room for you just yet. For now, you'll be staying in my quarters until we get a place set up for you."

Luna did her best not to blush, nor to jump to conclusions, despite her heart beating just a tad faster. He probably means to stay somewhere else for that duration.

"Ah, very well. Thank you," she said politely.

"No problem."

Luna decided to clarify her theory.

"Where will you stay?"

Liam looked about the office and down to the chair. The damnable chair. He already knew how terrible sleeping in the thing was, opting to go for the ground when he stayed here. When his eyes climbed back to hers, he read a clear sternness within them.

"Absolutely not," she said definitively.

"I sleep here most of the time anyway," Liam defended.

"I do not doubt that, hence your trouble sleeping. We shall share your quarters," she said with finality, only realizing the potential connotations of that statement once the words left her mouth. This blush she could not restrain. She hoped Liam did not notice.

"If that is alright, that is," she added. Her cheeks burned darker.

Liam remained silent, his eyes drifting to the left. Luna feared she had overstepped her bounds.

"Um... yeah. That's fine. I'll get you your own room soon, so we can have that cleared up quickly," he said, then nodded. His eyes found hers again.

"Okay," Luna said, internally celebrating her silent victory.

They both stared at each other a moment, then Liam tore his eyes downwards to the rest of the office. He surveyed the logo, the door, the clock and the desk. He made an open motion with his hands.

"I suppose I should probably give you a tour, huh?"

Luna nodded, allowing him to move around his desk. She stepped aside and he approached her, moving beside her and gesturing to the room. He looked at her and found an expectant look.

"Well, this is my office to start. Not much at the moment," he said.

Luna took the time to take in the details herself, noting that only two of the walls had been erected. The wall beside her, and the wall opposite, both were merely wiped-down rockfaces, odd angles of the stone jutting outwards. On the far wall, a calendar with various notes written upon it in his alien language, suspended by string.

"It is... quaint," she said carefully. She glanced back at him to find an embarrassed look on his face.

"It's okay, no need to be polite. Thing's two walls away from being a cave," he admitted.

"There is room for improvement, certainly, but it is not terrible," she said.

Liam nodded and moved into a rigid position, both arms gently swaying into a locked position, guiding her to the door. It took her a moment before she recognized the act as a mimicry of a butler. She giggled behind her hoof, then held her head higher as he opened the door for her.

Once outside, they walked silently down the hallway, stopping at the desk near the wall.

"This desk right there is typically occupied by my secretary, Mister Treble. I think he's grabbing coffee right now," Liam said.

"Coffee would be delightful," Luna moaned. The excitement of this new adventure was quickly sapped away by her fatigue, and given the look on Liam's face, perhaps he felt similarly.

"Mhm. I'm smart sometimes," Liam smirked. Luna looked at his red eye for a moment, before he caught her staring at him.

"Don't worry about that," he pointed to his eye lazily, "it'll heal on it's own."

Luna nodded, tossing her mane gently to the side.

"How did you sleep?" Luna asked of him.

He gave her a look that told her he didn't. She tutted.

"Hey, I had a very special guest coming, was a little stressed about it."

Luna smiled and looked down to her hooves. When she looked up again, a small metallic bell rung down the hall, and the aforementioned Mister Treble came waltzing out with a tray of coffee and coffee cups worn upon his back. His eyes were not affixed to the two beings before him, only the save haven of his desk, where he would soon be unburdened by this arduous task.

In his approach, he gracefully bowed forward and craned his neck down to allow the tray to slide frictionless atop the desk. He rose in a self-aggrandizing flourish, then realized who he was standing before. The bow returned in a panicked haste.

"Good morning, Princess Luna," he said humbly, in his own monotonous way.

"You needn't bow, Mister Treble," she said sweetly, waiting for him to rise before claiming a mug for herself.

"Thank you for the coffee," she said behind the mug, then sipping the bitter liquid with a contented sigh.

"Of course," he said then looked towards Liam. Liam took his mug and indulged a sip.

"Thanks," he mumbled.

"I believe Miss Heartstrings is waiting for you on Level Two," Treble said before rounding his desk and pulling out his chair to sit. His mustache wormed around a moment as he brought his own mug upwards for a sip.

"Ah, shit. That's right," Liam screwed his eyes shut.

"Do we need to postpone?" Luna asked.

"No, no, it's alright," Liam said as he massaged his forehead, "you'll tag along with me, but if you're tired, we can get you settled in my room."

Luna took another sip of her coffee and closed her eyes in satisfaction. The sip became one fluid gulp, and all of the dark liquid within the mug was now gone. She fixed her gaze back on Liam, who looked at her in no small amount of surprise.

"I was fatigued, but the coffee has soothed me. Let us continue," she said with a contented smile.

Liam took a moment to recompose himself and had one final sip of his own. He wasn't even halfway through the mug, but decided more pressing matters needed his attention. He did a half-jog back to his office and set the coffee down on his table, returning promptly. He gave her a polite smile.

"Alright. Well, onwards then," he said, leading the way towards the elevator. Luna followed suit.

When they approached the elevator, Liam noted that Luna had an apprehensive and curious look about the brass gate. Liam quickly jabbed at the button on the right side, the gate doors parting on their own. Luna took a surprised step back, then thoroughly scanned the interior of the elevator, barebones as it was.

"I take it you've never seen an elevator before?" Liam asked.

Luna considered the word and understood the implications, then approached. When her hooves made contact with the elevator floor, she felt it shift ever-so-slightly. A probe with her magic determined that there was much energy flowing through the device. She retreated her exploratory hoof.

"No... this contraption is unfamiliar."

Liam stepped beside her, then into the elevator. He fixed her a smile.

"Hop on in, we're going up."

Luna tentatively walked inside the metal cage. Liam pressed one of many buttons in a panel fixed to the front beside the gate, a small metallic chime ringing faintly above them. Luna looked up to find the source, but had no luck in seeing its origin. Luna flinched when the gate doors jolted, then slowly closed. She watched the metal bars come together and seal before her with great interest.

Her eyes met Liam's, and upon his face was a knowing smile.

"Do we operate the machine manually?" she asked.

Liam pressed another button.

"No, it works on its own. Just relax."

Luna's shoulders began to slack.

"Very well, I- oh!"

The elevator suddenly lurched upwards just a smidge, then began to rise slowly. Luna's hooves splayed out to keep balance, but more than that, to be ready for further surprises. Liam laughed quietly, then set a hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah, it does that sometimes. Don't worry, it's safe."

Luna fixed him a glare, then inspected the passing rock faces, descending below them as the contraption climbed higher.

"I shall trust your word," she said finally.

The elevator continued to rise until finally, before them was a set of large metal slabs. The elevator jumped a bit when it stopped, but Luna's hooves gave her a solid base for the motion. She inspected these polished metal slabs with great interest, then the chime resounded again. Both the gate doors and the metal slabs parted, revealing a massive hallway of laminated white walls and a painted stripe of green traveling along the floor. She stood breathless at the sight, far more impressive than the office below, and the cavernous hallway that connected it to the elevator. Beset in the walls further on to the right were windows with Penetian shades drawn over them, obscuring her view within.

"This is Level One, the floor we were on before was Level One B. This floor houses most of the amenities and living quarters of the staff here, mess hall's just up ahead, offices down that hall there," Liam said as he strode forward. A set of doors at the end of the hall opened as a stallion in a labcoat briskly walked through them, revealing further rooms beyond. Whatever notions and preconceptions Luna had of the facility were all undone. Level One? Was Level Two above, or beneath?

"This is... all underground?" she asked.

"Yep. About fifty meters deep, give or take."

Meters. She was not familiar with the new system of measurement, but quickly followed Liam as he departed forwards. As they passed the office windows, she could see shapes of ponies moving within, some remained still at their desks, nursing fresh cups of coffee or tea. Others were in the midst of meetings or assignments, furiously scribbling notes down on their desks.

They passed through the double doors, revealing yet another set at the end of the hallway. To the left were two spaced out doors with glass panels set in the upper portions, revealing narrow hallways stretching further on beyond. Doors were set at equal spaces along the wall.

"Here's the facility bunks, this one's for research staff. My room's at the end there," he said, pointing to the further door, planted all the way at the end of the hall. Luna noted all of this information down quickly in her mind.

"Security bunks are down that hall there. Bathrooms and showers over there," Liam continued, moving forward and pointing out landmarks as he went. While Luna did her best to store this information, a nagging question was burrowed in her mind regarding a previous statement of his.

"What are meters in hooves?" she asked him, feeling like a foal in class.

He paused and shifted his gait, scratching his chin with a hand. Luna's ears picked up the sound of his stubble rubbing against his nails. His lips hopped to the corner of his mouth.

"I think... if hooves are the same measurement as feet, one meter is about three point three hooves. We did everything in metric," he said finally.

Luna stopped to do the math in her head. Three point three, fifty times over...

"We are... we are one hundred and sixty odd hooves underground?!" she exclaimed.

Liam fixed her a cheeky grin in response.

Author's Note

Sorry for the late release! Had a hard time piecing together how I wanted this to play out, but I think it's going well so far! I didn't want to split this up over two chapters but I felt like it was going to become a MONSTER of a chapter. Somewhere upwards of 10,000 words. I want save those for the world-ending stuff.

Over 2000 words of dialogue or somewhere up there, spread over this chapter and the next. I decided to block everything out with dialogue first and it all kinda became soup. Hope it tastes good, though.

Anywho, see you in the near future! I'm hoping to release the next chapter either a day or two later, but it may be a little longer than that. Again, already have the dialogue written, just need to write the action around it. We'll see!

Also, I've done little to no editing, so let me know if I've made any mistakes and what you all think.