[DISCLAIMER: Still not real people.

EDIT: Made changes that were necessary toward end of this chapter. You can re-read the last bit if you like. Thanks.

Okay, now comes the scary corporation and some action. I was thinking a little Resident Evil kind of stuff – not sure. I hope you all like. Thanks.]

Chapter Two

"Hey guys," Korone always an upbeat doggo announced, as she jumped out of the van, "it looks quiet out here."

The network van had parked outside the large building tucked deep into the forests of Northern Holios. For three hours they drove to reach the entrance of MoonaTech Labs a subsidiary of Usada Corp. and Labs. They did much of the research for the parent company.

Korone's crew was a team of four – two cameramen, Doug and Harry, her manager, Laura and the liaison for MoonaTech. Korone had already forgotten his name, Tawa or Yoko – she forgot.

"Weather looks bad," Laura commented while looking overhead at the thick gray clouds, fat with condensation. A torrential downpour was about to occur and they needed to head into the plant quickly.

"Where is everyone?" Doug asked, since he expected security or something outside the building.

"Yeah, looks deserted," Harry added, standing by Doug and unloading gear.

"There's just a skeleton crew on the weekend," the liaison remarked.

While speaking, he was already at the door opening with his badge, and the four followed. Korone stood at the back wondering what this feeling was – it was overwhelmingly foreboding. Being a doggo had perks in that she had heightened senses.

Earlier she had been sent a text about a new investigation her boss had wanted on some strange goings on and deaths in the area of Northern Holios. They suspected some type of corporate poisoning in the water system that ran down to a village that had an unexpected rise in hospital visits for odd symptoms. She wanted to investigate the small village afterward.

Finally entering the building, it truly was dead inside. There wasn't even a secretary at the front entry desk. Korone didn't like how it felt and had a strange urge to run.

Laura walked over and tapped on the desk, "Yoo hoo, anyone here?"

"Come this way," the liaison waved. "They must be back here. It is a Saturday after all."

The two cameramen followed; Doug had turned on his camera filming the empty entry.

"This is creepy, not gonna lie," Harry added. He turned to Korone, "Hey can you hold this a second?"

Korone took his smaller camera.

It was then the doggo began thinking over the fact the liaison met them last minute, stating he worked for MoonaTech and was there to guide them around the company grounds and make sure all their needs were met. Despite it being a weekend, she thought surely someone would be there to greet them.

"What was your name again?" she asked the liaison, "Yoko Tawaru, was that it?"

Without answering he opened a door and walked through. Laura shrugged her shoulders, "Maybe he has a hearing problem?"

"Yeah, or just a dodgy problem." Korone didn't like the aura he seemed to emanate.

"I guess we follow."

Harry laughed as he grabbed his camera back from the reporter. "Let's go."

Once they walked through the door, she saw a large elevator at the end. He was already holding it open for them to enter.

"We need to go further down," the liaison stated.

"Cool, underground facility," Doug stated, still filming.

Korone had a problem with dark and closed spaces and really didn't want to get in the elevator to go to lower levels, but she had a job to do.

Once they all entered the sound of clanking and metal like a train headed downward. Korone looked over the floors lighting up as they passed, all going downward, counting with each floor they passed, a common OCD trait; of which, she thought she had control. She realized this was further underground than she had read on her documentation before the investigation.

"How many miles down is this?" she asked.

"Oh, MoonaTech has been excavating this area for years and loved the chance to branch out with Usada's company. She jumped at the chance to make use of Pekora Usada's genius inventions. This goes down further than any other excavation in the history of Holios."

"That's not an answer." Korone didn't want to play around. She pulled out her phone, realizing there was no connection this far down. Her heart was beating so fast, and the others seemed to just be going along.

The elevator doors finally opened into a large dark tunnel.

"Now we ride through this tunnel," Tawaru continued leading.

The place was lit with lowered yellow bulbs, and there was a small railway that he guided them to off to the right.

"Hop in." He entered the small train, wanting them all to follow.

Tawaru held out his hand and Laura climbed into a car, joined by Doug and Harry. Korone hesitated, again feeling that rush of escape that runs through a hidden fight or flight mechanism all creatures had, but hers were heightened and she stood there for a moment.

"What's wrong?" Laura asked.

"I don't know." She tilted her head to the side listening.

Korone heard sounds, strange sounds coming from deeper in the tunnel. It was strange growls like she'd never heard before.

She was ready to head back to the elevator. "We need to head back up Tawaru. I think this is a bad time and we can come back later."

Yoko Tawaru shook his head. "You know, I was worried this might happen with a doggo like you."

In an instant, her three co-workers fell to the ground. He shot them all.

Oh fuck.

She barely had time to register she just saw her three co-workers fall to the ground dead.

Korone took off running to the elevator, banging on the button to close.

She felt bullets whiz past her, she tucked into the side of the elevator hitting the buttons hard.

"Come on doggo – we don't want you dead."

"Those shots say otherwise, no thanks!"

The doors started to close, and she could see Tawaru reach in, a gun in one hand, trying to pull apart the doors. So, she leapt up, holding to the hatch above and then kicked him hard, so he flung back, as a bullet hit her lower leg.

One thing about Inugami Korone, she was a really strong doggo who had spent her life working out. She pulled herself up the hatch, and jumped on top of the elevator.

It had stopped moving, and so she found the ladder to the side, and started climbing.

Her leg was in pain, but adrenaline fed her and she climbed up with only her arm strength and one good leg.

It was then she looked down and could see there was something dark climbing through the hatch below her. There were several dark things climbing up, and those strange growls and sounds she had heard earlier were coming from them.

They were climbing up after her.

Korone's heart rate sped up, and she climbed with everything she had.

She spied a small vent at the side of the elevator. She punched the metal enclosure, smashing it open unconcerned with the damage to her fist. She was a boxer and was used to this type of pain.

Those things were big and she leapt over to the small vent, squeezing inside.

As she crawled inside, one of the things grabbed at her leg that had been shot, biting down at her shoe, and she screamed.

She kept kicking frantically with the other leg, over and over, until she fought it off her, and then dragging herself further into the vent and away from that thing.

Just as she had hoped, they didn't fit. She dragged herself along the small four by four vent shaft hoping there would be some way out of this underground horror.

She pulled her phone out again, wanting to send a text to Okayu – get help. She was still too deep underground.

Her mind was swirling, as her heart pounded.

Survival 101 – keep alive. She needed to find a way to get her strength back. She must have been a few miles underground from what she counted earlier.

What was going on? Why'd he say, he wanted her alive? She finally had time to think over losing her three co-workers. Why didn't she follow her gut instincts and tell them to turn around and not enter the elevator?

She was shaking bad. It was pitch dark in the vent and she needed to gather her thoughts and think up a plan. Her phone had a light, but she didn't want to waste the battery in case she made it somewhere she could make a phone call.

Her heart was racing with adrenaline, and she kept dragging herself along, the pain growing in her leg. It was getting number and number, and she was basically dragging it along.

"Okayu," she muttered to herself, feeling herself slowly lose strength, but not wanting to stop moving forward.

She could hear the creatures further behind her, and was thankful they didn't fit in such a small space. But now, she had miles to head upward, and she was moving parallel to the elevators. Eventually, she'd have to find a way up.

She whispered, wishing she could send a telepathic message, "Okayu…Okayu…Okayu…."

[END NOTE: Next time, Sheriff Botan and PI Okayu meet up at Marine's seaside bar, I think. Please let me know what you think in the reviews. Thank for reading.]