Rocky's comments: Hey guys, this is like one of my first fictions I've written, so it might be a little...ehhh. I'm basically gonna be posting little parts from a whole fan-story I have about gears, since I have such a hard time starting from beginning to end when I write. I find it's much more interesting to just JUMP into things anyway.

There's an OC but the character's just there to help the reader. Mostly. Maybe.

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Although I'm trying hard not to show it, I'm terribly afraid right now- being in the dark and stumbling through rough granite that I could barely see. I'm afraid for a few reasons. One, I don't know where the fuck I'm going...and I don't think Marcus does either, as much as he tries to avoid saying so. Two. It's pitch black down here, and if you add that with being underground, not knowing where you are, exposed to getting stuck or falling to a possible spiky death or endless fall...this kind of thinking just doesn't help right now. The only thing I can see is the moving body in front of me. Marcus.

Speaking of, he is my next concern. I'm afraid that something, anything, might kill him. He seems too out in the open, keeping ahead of me and all. In all my years as a soldier I never really cared for life much- if I died, then I died. Just like everyone else. But now I don't want either of us to perish. If Marcus dies, I'll be alone in the dark, underground. Where the locusts dig. Don't know what will happen if I die, but I sure as hell don't want it to happen here.

The more my worry lingers, the more I want to grab onto Marcus just to ensure that he's safe. He was also going somewhat faster as we climbed and stepped over the tunnel, making my anxiety grow more from watching his back and shoulders move stressfully. Side to side, front and back, right left right left...

It was kind of like watching an obnoxiously emotional woman. Only not.

The urges in my right arm overwhelmed me however, and I made a light grip on his gun now secured to the back of his suit. I thought he wouldn't notice but instead he whipped around and almost smacked me in the face doing so. He let out a frustrated growl, "What the hell are you doing?"

I already regret doing that. What was I going to say, in the dark my face couldn't do the talking.

"I don't think it's a good idea for you to be rushing on ahead." I wasn't trying to nag but somehow I just sounded that way. I couldn't tell what Marcus was doing as far as his facial expression went, since it was dark and all, but I assumed he was just staring at me, quietly.

I felt him turn around, and his voice rumbled, "Yeah."

Hm. Marcus had an odd habit of doing this. Or no, not habit, he doesn't do habits. There's no way to tell why he's so dismissive when handed over negativity. I'm assuming he just says anything he wants to and leaves it at that. No concern over what I will think, or if I'll even think about it in the first place. Mind tricks? Well, Marcus, I hope your happy because mission accomplished: Here I am over-analyzing these few little movements like some compulsive dolt.

Anyway, we keep walking down OR up this tunnel, and Marcus's pace relaxed a bit. But it felt like hours inside the earth here and there hadn't been any distinctive sign to tell us that we were getting any closer above ground or near any sort of help. Hell, if the locust dug up and attacked it would probably make me feel less uneasy. Had we traveled so far down that there was just no life at all? Or maybe it was already nightfall so there was no digging for now? If it isn't the latter, are we both seriously going to rot here?

God I really, don't want to die here. Something just jump out and kill me now, it would be better than decaying in the dark.

After about 20 more minutes of struggling to keep up with Marcus (caution tends to slow you down), I wanted to break the silence between us for the sake of my sanity. "Is the radio working yet?"

He checked. "Unh-uh."

God damn you, Marcus, please just speak! I'm losing it here!

He stopped abruptly, and when he did so did I. I felt him looking back at me.

It was then I realized that I actually said that out loud. Fuck.

"I didn't know you were the social type." My face turned hot and my throat knotted up. I was embarrassed. If he didn't know I was afraid, he definitely knew now.

"Sorry. I just don't think we're solving our problem here."

"What problem?"

...I wanted to strangle him.

"How do we know if we're not walking into even more danger?"

"We don't."

"We're not going to do anything about that?"

I saw something shake from side to side, and then realized I was staring in the wrong direction. "What else should we do?" I don't think this was another mind trick of his. But what could I say? Somehow I don't think Marcus would want to just stay and wait here, until the locust made themselves known. That was the only thing I could come up with, and it was a stupid idea. But so was clumsily wandering through a cramped tunnel!

I shook my head, realized he wouldn't see it, then told him no.

"Then we keep moving." He continued to climb ahead. I held in a sigh and took my time to consider what to say next, because I wasn't going to walk. Even though I did.

Then the ground around us started to make an intense quake. I snapped my head around as rocks started to tumble down, feet vibrating crazily. I made small steps, trying to keep my balance though it seemed as if I was only helping to knock it down. Was this it? We're done. There wasn't enough time to realize what was really happening as Marcus suddenly shouted out in pain.

"Marcus!!" I saw, faintly, the darker figure that was him sitting up on the ground, making stressed movements of shock and struggle. I ran up to him, or atleast tried to with a lot of stumbling and falling on my knees. The ground was so horribly patterned and interfering. My only guess was that this wasn't traveled through yet.

As soon as I got to him, I didn't have trouble knowing where to help. He was moving so much that I could see everything. His leg was in between a small crevice, but it was big enough to jam your leg in. Bigger boulders were falling around this area, making the tunnel shake even more violently. Marcus was trying to pull his leg out without much luck, and I gripped his armored boot as tight as I could, nails feeling like spikes on my skin and knuckles about to rip out. Frantically, I pulled and pulled, but it took so much strength just to get it to budge even a little bit.

Then monstrous clicking and thudding could be heard above, and each time the click sounded, the ground exploded in a shake. It sounded like the creaking of bones, and at the same time there was charging and screeching.

There they were, no doubt about it. And they were burying us alive. As more of the 'ceiling' fell down on us, I kept tugging and pulling at Marcus's leg, grunting in effort and pain from my fingers. The noise increased, growing louder and louder until my ears were about to split-- my teeth grit in pain and my face stung from all the desperation. The earth kept shaking and creaking, as if it were about to snap and I swayed from side to side, still tugging.

"Behind you!!" But I didn't hear it.

I let out a scream that made no noise, and felt liquid rush down my skin. I didn't know what hit me. I couldn't wonder.

Are you afraid of the dark...?