Don's mind raced, he panicked and tried to move. His body did not respond, he was paralyzed by fear. Any second now that thing is going to start eating me, I'll watch it eat me while I'm still alive. He pushed that thought back into his head and tried to calm down. His battle training kicked in and soon he was in a state of less anxiety.
He tried to move his hand again; it moved. What is with this thing, why hasn't it eaten me yet? Don stared down at the large body pinning him. It was covered with plates or organic armor, and it had sickly sharp appendages. It was laying sideways across him. Don looked at its head. It was gone. What the hell? Then he remembered the explosion. It must have gotten hit and thrown on top of me as it fell down the hill. Don kicked his leg and the body shifted a little.
After many minutes, don was able to get it off of him. Finally, that thing sure gave me a shock. Now lets get up and…Don's leg collapsed under his weight. Pain shot through his body like a million razor sharp flechettes. He groaned and clenched his teeth to deal with the pain. After writhing on the ground for a time, he was able to get control of his senses. He reached into his bag for his last syringe. After this I need to be more careful. One last wound and blam…its all over. The battle field chemicals soon numbed his pain to near tolerable levels.
He looked around for something to use as a splint. He saw the Tyranid and took out his combat knife. He slashed off one of the Tyranid's scythe-like arms. He saw immediately that it was too sharp, he could not use it. In fact he almost cut himself on it as he picked it up. Damn this thing's sharp, why don't they issue these instead of lasgun bayonets? Oh well,no sense letting this go to waste. he strapped the scythe to his bag. Instead, he used the creature's leg done as a splint and wrapped it up with a torn piece of his shirt. The end result wasn't pretty, but it would hold till he was able to get off the planet. If I'm able to get off the planet.
Now mobile, Don was able to get a view of his surroundings. He sensed that about a day had gone by judging by the growth of the Tyranid-Plants. He glanced back up the hill which he had come down. It was charred black by the explosion; bodies of both imperial guard and Tyranids littered the hill. With them were pieces of twisted metal and glass from the reactor. He scavenged through the bodies and found some rations and some more med kits. He was also able to recharge his battery on his lasgun. He tried to find a better weapon, but there was non in the smoldering wreckage.
He looked out over the plains; short yellow grass and some small trees were all that he saw. His destination seemed to be the mountains in the distance. If I can survive a Tyranid invasion anyplace on this planet, its in the mountains. Why are the Tyranids here anyways? This is…was a small outpost with little organic life. From what I've heard they wouldn't find this planet very attractive.
He reminisced awhile, but soon decided that it was time to leave. Well crap, I cant walk all this way. He gazed out at the innumerable miles between him and the mountains. I've got to find some other means of transportation.
This was easier said then done however, as almost nothing was left in the camp from the melt down and resulting conflagration. Almost nothing… He spied a reinforced metal cover of some kind. It was on the ground and seemed to be intact. I bet it's a bomb shelter of some sort, little good it did them. Now the problem was getting inside. If it was able to survive a pointblank plasma explosion, there's no way my pathetic lasgun will be able to do anything.
Fortunately a sort of lock seemed to have also survived. Damn, what's this thing made out of anyway?Any why is it here? He tried to guess the code. It had room for only letters, so it had to be some word or combination of words. What would a guardsman use as a combination? He fiddled with the contraption, but was unable to get the answer.
Finally, after many guesses he noticed the imperial insignia on the hatch. The emperor protects. Could that really be the combination? He tried it, and the hatch swung open.
He stepped down the metal stairs and switched on his light. The beam illuminated a scene of hideously gruesome and morbid proportions. Blood and… Some other kind of liquid coated the walls like some ones idea of a painting. Don found a few bodies from both sides. The hatch was open before the guardsmen had time to close it. Something moved, he could hear movement. "You could leave right now"one half of him said. "something happened here , and there might be survivors, you should stay" Don was curious so he listened to the half of him that wanted to stay.
He instantly tensed, ready for a deadly encounter with the Tyranid scum. He nervously flitted his light over and quickly changed directions, trying to see his adversary.
The room was bare except for an exit into another hallway. It was also very large, about house sized, and it forced Don to be constantly vigilant in his search, less a beast should attack him from behind. Pillars of metal supported the room, but the ceiling was not very high, creating a feeling of claustrophobia.
The thing attacked. Another beast, like the one that he had encountered before, launched its way through the air towards Don with its razor sharp blades thirsting for his blood. He kicked at its head in mid-jump. It sprawled backwards and hit a support column. It tried to get to its feet/claws but don was ready. He poured lasgun fire into its face before it had time to react. It twitched and then died. Blue ichor spouted from its wound.
He walked into the hallway cautiously panning his light around, to make sure that there were no more unpleasant surprises in store for him. He reached the end of the hallway.
At some point a large metal door had protected this part of the complex from unwelcome eyes. He noticed a broken pass-pad, not unlike the one he had used to get in here. Someone had destroyed the door with that looks like plasma gun shots. There must have been some intense fighting going on here. After the door, the body count increased on both sides, until he had to jump over large piles of them. The smell of death was imbued in the wall way. Don coughed and ran to the end, trying not to look at the hapless men who had died fighting "for the emperor".
There was a lift at the end of the hallway and he noticed that the power for the elevator was next to him. He plugged it back in. Slowly, the lift rose to the point in which he was. He heard a click as it connected to his station. Where the hell does this thing lead? Why would the army want to build such a complex bunker on a planet like this? He dispelled his useless questions as he stepped into the elevator. Some unknown sensor must have read that there was a passenger, for the lift started to descend into the ground; what awaited him at the bottom? He sure didn't know.
