Leaving Crisis far behind, Frost, Panda, and Scott went even deeper as the secret tunnel led them further down, now reaching the natural nooks of the mine, where the man-made structures became few and far between. While they distanced themselves from the mineshafts, Indie and Kiwy finished off the last antipunks nearby and regrouped with the rest of the group at the bottom of the slope. They looked around for their missing teammates, but with Nitro and Tricky planting the last explosives, they didn’t pay much attention to the open passage in the wall now that they were ready to leave the cave.
–All set?– Indie asked Nitro, who seemed to have run out of explosives at this point but made sure to save some grenades just in case. The group gathered around him as he pulled out a detonator, and after he nodded at Indie’s question, he pressed the trigger to activate the bombs.
–Yea, let’s go now. This place is going to collapse at any minute– Nitro replied with a lively and eager smile, slightly anxious by his own explosives as they began blinking and beeping throughout the long mineshaft. After his response, Indie began walking up the slope, but Candy stayed back to check the secret passage at the dead end. Crisis began following Indie until they noticed that Candy wasn’t with them, drawing their attention to the same spot she was looking at with curiosity.
–We should wait for them to come back, though. Where are they?– Candy asked worriedly as she stared down the tunnel, unable to see any trace of Frost and Panda except some bullets from his machine gun, dirt, and blood. Indie glanced at the tunnel and was tempted to step into it, as it was the only direction their teammates could have gone. But as Nitro was beginning to panic with all the live explosives surrounding them, she brushed off Panda and Frost’s absence before turning back.
–It’s alright, Frost said they were going to set some explosives as well. They probably found another tunnel, so they will take a bit longer to escape– Indie replied in a carefree manner but also took a moment to reassure Candy with her best attempt at a smile. However, she seemingly forgot about her worries once she started running up the slope. Tricky and Kiwy followed right behind, but Nitro waited for Candy to come with them as she kept staring into the dark tunnel.
–I still think we should make sure they are safe before escaping. They could get stuck, and we wouldn’t know it…– Candy muttered to herself with a troubled frown, leaning closer to the tunnel before Nitro turned her around. He had grown impatient with her, and while sharing her worries, he forced her to leave the scene as she dragged her by the shoulder.
–I know for a fact that it won’t be safe if you stay here with them. They might take more time to escape, but I sure want to leave this place right now before it goes boom– Nitro responded in a hurry, sounding nervous but remaining somewhat playful. However, Candy couldn’t stop looking back at the end of the slope with increasing doubt, although she couldn’t do anything as Nitro forced her to run up to the bottom level of the ravine.
Candy reluctantly followed the team as they tried to find a way up to the elevator, but while they searched for the optimal way to the first floor, her mind was somewhere else, still looking back in hopes of seeing Frost, Panda, and Scott return. But with them already too deep, there was no chance for Crisis to wait for their arrival; they just had to make a run for it and trust that they would catch up to them somehow. In reality, they weren’t even going back yet. While Crisis made their way up the three floors of the ravine, Scott, Panda, and Frost just kept going deeper, with the former now having to pull out a lighter and hand it to Scott to shine their way through the tunnels.
They came across another natural slope, though it was much steeper and uneven, creating some difficulty when making their way down. They were cautious to check how deep the drops they took were to not get stuck, and while the slope was a struggle to climb down, they were just in reach to climb it back up. However, they found themselves in another opening with unstable rock walls that looked about to collapse when they passed through them. As they kept going deeper, now squeezing their way through tiny corridors with low ceilings, Panda had to withdraw his shield to be able to traverse the maze of tunnels. Despite keeping a good sense of direction, taking so many turns didn’t sit well with him, as his suspicion kept growing to the point where he constantly looked back to check if escaping was even still a viable option.
–I don’t like this… We should go now– Panda whispered with genuine concern, which made Scott anxious as it was the first time seeing him so fearful. However, he stuck close to Frost, who didn’t pay much attention to him as he became more eager the deeper they went. Panda kept insisting that they turn back since it seemed impossible for them to get back up, with not even enough room to fight in case the enemy came for them. But before he could forcefully pull Frost back, he caught a glimpse of what they were chasing after.
–Wait, there they are…– Frost exclaimed quietly, almost ruining his cover as he peeked out of the corner of the tunnel that led to an open area, a wide but short cavern. He found Ruin and Savage running towards a large stalagmite in the middle, but as the area looked completely untouched, there was barely any light to get a good view of Trash ahead.
Apart from the few lanterns hanging from the pointy ceiling as well as holes mined at the back of the cavern, this section of the cave looked mostly unexplored. Frost carefully peeked out more to see past the wall of stalagmites in front of a small underground pond in the middle of the cavern. Making out a few unnatural figures, he saw the corner of what looked like a storage building or vault at the very end, and despite there being more to the cavern, Frost focused solely on the antipunks he was able to spot.
The remaining enemies were hiding behind those stalagmites; he could barely see their heads and junk helmets, but he also sensed the rapid footsteps of more individuals heading for other hiding spots around the pond. While the enemy was retreating and uninterested in a fight, Frost couldn’t contain his urge to slay them much further. He almost stepped into the cavern to chase after them, but as both Scott and Panda weren’t certain of his idea, the latter held him back by his arm, preventing him from giving away their position.
–Just leave them. We need to save ourselves before this place blows up– Panda argued with growing frustration, raising his voice a bit too much, although the antipunks on the other side didn’t seem to notice. They were all more focused on the ceiling as the cavern looked unstable, prompting more of them to search frantically for a place to safe place to hide. And while Scott and Panda got to see that there were not many antipunks left, they still didn’t want to risk it. However, Panda’s attempt to stop Frost only provoked him further, and before they could go back, he yanked his hand off his arm to free himself.
–No! I need to see what they are hiding over there– Frost yelled violently, running after Savage as soon as he escaped Panda’s grip. His target was about to take cover in another position, but after noticing his arrival, he had to return to the stalagmites to stay close to his teammates. The antipunks were startled by the sight of Frost charging at them with a deranged, almost rabid look in his bloodthirsty eyes. But as he came right after their captain, they pulled out their rifles as soon as they could to provide support.
–Aghh. Let’s go then!– Panda groaned in frustration before adopting the offensive once again with a roar. He followed Frost into combat with his shield deployed, catching up to him as Savage turned around to pull out a makeshift shotgun.
Panda jumped in front of Frost to block the incoming bullets, but the knockback of the shotgun pellets caused him to drop his weapon. The other antipunks carried altered versions of their rifles, now shooting nails at a faster rate, although they weren’t as precise. Regardless, with the enemy firing back from all directions in front, Scott had to catch up with Frost and Panda as soon as he could to stay behind the safety of the shield. They pushed forward together, but Frost got a bit ahead of himself as he targeted Savage before he could hide with the rest of Trash.
Drawing the enemy’s attention by coming after Savage through the side of the pond, all of the antipunks began shooting at Frost right as he leaped at his target, swinging both blades ferociously but missing by an inch, nearly slashing his back. Savage got to escape and hide behind the stalagmites, but the rest of the antipunks did the same as Frost closed the distance before they could react and killed a few in an instant. But even though he got to push back the antipunks, letting Panda and Scott advance, Frost was infuriated by his failed attempt to assassinate Savage, and his rage blinded him to the antipunks surrounding him.
As he got a peek at what was behind the wall of stalagmites, Frost noticed there was a large pillar supporting the ceiling, as well as connecting to what was definitely a vault at the back, hidden slightly by the large rocks around it. Next to this pillar, all of Trash’s members were cowering as he got dangerously close to their location. But with their teammates coming out of the rocks from behind to defend them, Trash got to mock Frost as he was forced to retreat.
Simultaneously, Panda picked up his machine gun while Scott ran to the nearest cover spot, right at the edge of the pond between them and the stalagmites. Panda joined him, and when Frost tried to run back to them, they stayed low as nails flew in their direction. Frost barely got to jump over the rock and hide behind it with his teammates, and while still keeping an eye out for Trash, Panda and Scott turned their attention back to the tunnel they took to the cavern. Instead of shooting at them, the antipunks had aimed at the entrance to chip off as much as they could from the ceiling until it eventually gave in, now blocking their way to return.
–Damn it! They blocked us off… We are doomed…– Panda exclaimed desperately, shooting at the wall of rocks at the blocked tunnel to clear a way, but not even his bullets were able to open a hole big enough for them to escape. So, with no other way out of the cavern, Panda turned to block the nails coming from the front, giving Frost the chance to peek out of the rock to locate Trash. But as he seemingly ignored everything else, Panda pulled him back to save him from some nails coming rapidly at them. Frost didn’t even realize he was about to get shot, but what he did catch was the twins and Scrap disappearing behind more rocks.
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Panda began shooting back with his shield placed against the rock to hold it steady. And while his high caliber bullets were instant death compared to their weak, pesky nails, he couldn’t focus on a direction to shoot at as they were surrounded. The antipunks behind the stalagmites had the perfect cover to shoot from, and as they drew the most attention, their teammates from the other side began pushing. They would have cornered the squad if it wasn’t for Panda reacting fast and shifting aim, taking out the antipunks charging at them fairly easily since they were out in the open.
However, in order to advance, they would have to get out in the open as well, and while Frost appeared to be about to jump at his targets in front regardless of how he would defend himself, Panda and Scott stayed back because there was no opening for them to move. With more antipunks coming from the other side, the only way forward was through the pond in front. It wasn’t too deep to swim, meaning running through it would only slow him down, but since it was his only option, Frost kept waiting for an opportunity to charge at Trash before they got the chance to escape.
At that moment, Scott was overwhelmed by the number of shots fired in his direction. He was frightened to move a muscle as nails flew right next to him, but as he stayed right behind Panda, the loud shots of his machine gun began deafening him. He was stunned in fear and desperation, glancing for a moment at Frost, who kept peeking out their rock barrier, but that only increased his anxiety after he noticed that their cover spot was slowly shrinking the more the antipunks shot at them. There was barely any room for them anymore, but after seeing the rage in Frost’s eyes as he stared at the stalagmites in front, Scott gathered some courage to make the move for him.
All of a sudden, Scott began hyperventilating and panicking so much that even Frost had to turn back and check if he was okay. Panda ceased fire, but not just for Scott; he was running low on his last ammo belt. They both looked down in confusion as Scott began shaking in a fetal position. In dismay, they tried to bring him back to his senses, but that’s when he let out a growl and reached for the nearest nail guns on the ground. Before Panda could react, Scott got out of cover with a swift jump, and as he headed for the blood-stained pond in front, he showed no hesitation when picking up two nail guns to shoot back at all the antipunks surrounding them.
–DIE YOU SCUM!– Scott yelled in a sudden outburst of violence and fury capable of matching Frost’s, although it was more fueled by fear than spite and rancor. Still, with Panda providing some cover fire to divert the antipunks, Scott began spraying nails in Trash’s direction as he ran through the low water, forcing them to take cover and keep retreating, except for Savage. As soon as he heard Scott’s battle cry and heard someone charging through the pond, he popped out with his shotgun, but as his attacker wasn’t Frost, he hesitated to shoot for a moment, letting Scott get close enough to land a shot on his arm.
–That’s it, Go get ‘em!!– Frost cheered briefly with genuine excitement, although Scott didn’t even notice he managed to shoot Savage as he just closed his eyes and prayed. He didn’t get to do much damage since he wasn’t even aiming, but with the antipunks retreating and Panda picking off the ones closer to Scott, he managed to clear the way, as well as disarm Savage out of pure luck. But as he now had the chance to make his move, Frost began charging as well, being much faster than Scott since he crossed the entire pond in a second, breezing past him before jumping over the stalagmites and into Trash’s position.
Finally getting past their defenses, Frost was pleased to see a bunch of scared antipunks waiting behind cover. They began to run away; however, he only focused on the ones between him and Trash as they began running to the back of the cavern, leaving Panda to deal with the other ones, quickly taking them out with his last bullets. The pure shock and panic he caused enticed Frost to attack, getting a kick out of seeing their mortified faces before ending their lives without a second thought. He didn’t look back as he got to corner Trash at the end of the cavern, where the twins and Ruin began throwing junk, pebbles, and anything they could find around at him.
They only managed to stall him for a second while their teammates backed away, and to protect Savage, Scrap stepped in front of Frost’s blades, protecting himself with his dirt bags as he pulled them around to his chest right when Frost struck him. The hit once again caused the bags to burst, creating a diversion for Trash to escape as Frost began coughing up dirt. However, to not repeat the same mistake, he kept charging at them while his eyes were still clouded, not wasting a single moment to chase Trash. Getting to kick Savage and shove one of the twins, Trash scattered before he ran straight at Ruin.
But suddenly, he couldn’t feel any of his opponents nearby. He had hit a wall, prompting him to clear his face, and after opening his eyes, Frost saw the five antipunks crawling through a small hole in the rock wall. He began chasing them, but as Scrap was the last one to hide in the hole, his bags got stuck in the opening and blocked Frost’s view. He unleashed his fury with several slashes to force his way into the tunnel, spreading more dirt around until there was nothing in his way. But by the time the dirt settled, he only found a deep, empty tunnel where Trash was nowhere to be seen anymore.
–AHHH, you cowards!! Stop hiding like the rats you are!!– Frost yelled with intense frustration, letting out an uncontrollable howl that echoed through the cavern. After watching the antipunks escape through the tiny tunnel in the wall, he began taking his anger out on the belongings they had left behind, though it only served to mock him further. He looked down to find Savage’s junk crown, with his shotgun lying a few meters away.
Taking a moment to compose himself, Frost’s outrage only stopped after he stomped repeatedly on Savage’s crown and broke his weapon in half with his bare hands. Panda and Scott came over to him after they had cleared the cavern of any enemies. At least Panda got some kills, as Scott only managed to hit a couple of enemies with their own nails, though he proved useful as he checked the remaining hiding spots for more antipunks. But once they realized they had successfully eliminated everyone except Trash, Panda tried to catch his breath. He stayed alert but remained anxious, not only because there was no way to get out, but also because he had to deal with an enraged Frost first.
–Let them go, there’s no way they survive…– Panda assured Frost without much effort, just trying to pull him away from the tunnel to calm down. Surprisingly, Frost regained his composure pretty quickly as he turned to the large vault next to them, drawing Panda and Scott’s attention since it was the only other structure left in the cavern. Without his chief having to order it, Panda began opening the vault’s large metal door that was already unlocked, and once it was open, he and Scott were amazed to see it filled with shiny, bluish-purple rocks with black and white spots. They looked like rare ores to Panda, but to Scott, he was staring at the minerals like they were out of his world.
–Look, I knew it. That’s the only reason they were here, they were mining for echolite this whole time…– Frost exclaimed in a certain but annoyed manner before casually placing some of the explosives on all sides of the vault. Scott tried to stop him to get a better view of the minerals, but before he could get any of his questions answered, Frost had already filled the vault with explosives, prompting Panda to do the same on the pillar next to it.
–What now? How are we getting out?– Panda asked with a mix of concern and impatience as the cave rumbled for a brief second. Just now, Frost appeared to realize that they were trapped down here, and while he remained calm, Panda and Scott looked around frantically for a way out now that the explosives were set. For a moment, Frost kept staring at the tunnel that Trash took to escape, considering chasing after them but then noticing that Panda was too big to fit inside. They kept looking, and while Frost and Panda were already preparing to exit themselves, Scott managed to find where the other antipunks came from once he looked behind the rocks next to the vault.
–There! Another mineshaft– Scott exclaimed with relief and delight as he pointed to a narrow corridor hidden at the very end of the cavern. Without questioning it, they all ran to it and followed the tight path that led them to more tunnels, like the ones they took to get to the cavern. They didn’t know where they were going, but after seeing some light above, they climbed up a few rocks to reach another mineshaft. They only knew to go up, so after trying to find the right way back to the hidden passage Scott discovered, they began climbing through any crevice they encountered, becoming desperate as they kept failing over and over again to get anywhere.
Meanwhile, up in the ravine, about five layers of mineshafts above them, Indie’s group had found their way up to the catwalk around the main pillar. They reached the elevator without much problem, although they noticed the catwalk had been somewhat damaged by all the ropes and chains that the antipunks had shot. They jumped over a few bags of rocks on their way to the rock ledge on the elevator side, where they waited for a moment. But after seeing that the rest hadn’t shown up yet, they had to ascend and return to the control room, where they made sure to send the elevator down once again to save time.
–I don’t know if…– Candy started mumbling nervously, staring down at the elevator in a trance, needing Tricky and Nitro to pull her away as they began running out of the control room. Despite hesitating as well, they had no other choice than to leave the cave, although they seemed to be regretting the choice already as there hadn’t been any signs of their teammates in about three minutes.
–Come on, let’s go!– Indie urged her team as they began falling behind when trying to run out of the spiraling pit. She was able to keep her composure and encourage her teammates, which did get Candy to react. She began running on her own, but not without giving her teammates anguished stares, which only sparked doubt and dread in them as well.
–When is it gonna blow?– Tricky asked apprehensively after looking back at Candy and seeing her containing her tears. Nitro refused to respond for a second as his expression turned remorseful, but with Indie also looking back to get an answer, he began stuttering before giving his estimated time.
–In about a minute…– Nitro replied insecurely before running faster to catch up with Indie, startling his teammates as it looked like he was running for his life. They all began running as fast as they could, and while Indie was now falling behind, she had her mind elsewhere as she glanced back again, now showing more concern than her entire team combined.
–Where are they?– Indie asked herself anxiously, but with her teammates now reaching the ramp to the entrance of the cave, she tried to focus and catch up. However, none of them could shake their worries off as they kept taking glances back at the pit, holding their breath as they began going up the ramp mindlessly. They slowly paid less and less attention to their surroundings, and it was when they had reached the top that they completely stopped running to get one last look down the ramp, where again, Panda, Frost, and Scott were nowhere near close to escaping in time.
| AND I MAY BE FOOLISH TO FALL AS I DO
STILL, THERE’S STRENGTH IN THE BLINDNESS YOU FEEL |