XVI

Rachquids Attack!

"Go loud!" Mario shouted. The muzzle flash from the guns strobe lit the horrific creatures, casting angry shadows along the tunnel walls. Thermal clips ejected from chambers and fell like embers into the cold water below, which sent tiny plumes of smoke sizzling at their feet. Daisy readied the sniper rifle but it was heavy and cumbersome. She loaded incendiary rounds and took potshots from the rear. Her shots went wide, bounced off the walls, and spun like little firecrackers before falling uselessly in the water.

"Dammit," she cried, firing off another frustrated frenzy. "I can't hit shit with this thing."

A rachquid sprang up from the water behind them, readied its pursed beak to fire a stream of toxic ink but Toad already had a bead on it. He readied his aim and it seemed as if time had turned to syrup, the rachquid hovering in air waiting for the angry shot. Toad's lips pulled back into something between a grimace and a smirk. He fired a direct hit and the rachquid exploded like cold jelly, its viscera splattered along the blue stone walls. "Sneaky bastards," he growled.

"Don't lose your mushroom cap," said Mario, downing a couple out in front. He looked over at Fox, who was completely immobilized as he held his shield up for protection. In the tight space, the flickering blue shield was just big enough to protect them against the inky webbing but it came at the dreadful cost of one of their trigger-men. They inched along the darkening tunnel in pursuit of the door to Laboratory Delta but as one rachquid fell, another jumped from the water to take its place. The flickering of the shield became sporadic, losing its rhythmic frequency, and the light of it began to dull.

"Shield's not gonna hold much longer," said Fox as a stray shot of ink bounced off and hit the side wall.

"We gotta get outta here," said Falco, stating the obvious but the panic in his voice sent a shiver down Mario's spine.

"Luigi, how much farther to the lab?"

"Almost there. The door should be on the right. At the end of the tunnel."

Mario took a final shot against the rachquid in front of him and then there were no more. He sighed in relief and hoped that was the end of their assault. He made for a forward charge but stopped short when he felt something slimy and rubbery brush against his ankle.

Daisy took her eye from the scope and her face brightened. "I don't see any rachquids ahead of us."

"That's because they're coming from behind," shouted Toad. The clever beasts had moved to a flanking position. The water behind them churned like river rapids. Their exit was now pinched off.

With fast thinking, Mario said, "Fox, Falco, move to the rear." They obliged the command and Falco dropped to one knee, hoisted his assault rifle to his shoulder, and sprayed a blistering barrage into the water. Dead rachquids floated to the surface, perforated and puffed. The tunnel runoff absorbed through their wounds like water balloons. Falco didn't see the rachquid to his left flank that had been crawling along the wall. It sprayed a lethal shot right at his temple. But Fox activated his shield just in time. It reflected the webbing right back to the assailant and it burst, its tiny beak clipping Fox on the ear like shrapnel.

"Shield's at 18% and dropping," he said, rubbing his ear. They continued firing at the mass of white, the tunnel filling with the sour and rotten scent of their blood.

"Gah! There's no end to these things," said Toad and he wiped his watering eyes from the stench.

"Almost there," said Luigi, checking his nav-cuff.

"Shield at 12%."

"There's the door." It was clean chrome and nestled in a small alcove in the stone. By its pristine nature, he could tell that it was the lab that received the most use within the otherwise derelict facility.

"Good job, Luigi," said Mario. "Now, get it open."

"There's a key lock!"

"Goddammit!" shouted Toad.

"Toad, can you hack it?"

"Of course, I can hack it. I can hack anything." Toad approached the key lock and Luigi stepped aside. The lock was a Watt-4 model, a cutting edge security system. Toad tapped on his omni-tool, which jacked into the locking mechanism via a wireless connection. The holo appeared above his wrist in an orange glow. The lock required a matching series of four numbers on rotating wheels like a slot machine but the trick was that there were duplicates on each wheel. The wheels had a pattern of engravings laced through the face of them. He didn't just have to match the numbers but he had to fit the pattern together, as well. It was like hitting the slots and solving a jigsaw puzzle at the same time.

"Shield's at 7%," growled Fox as another jet of ink splashed and ricocheted back. "If it falls below five, we're all gonna get a free skin peel."

"Hurry, Toad," said Mario as he felled a stray rachquid just above Daisy's shoulder.

She squealed as it fell into the water beside her, sending her aim into further disarray. She marveled and despaired as the others killed 'quid after 'quid, while her shots went wide. But, dammit if the gun just wasn't so heavy. If only it wasn't so awkward. Why did Mario put her on the glass? The longshot was not her type of weapon. His decision-making skills need some work, she thought.

"4%. Mario, this just got critical." As soon as the words left his lips, a splash of ink penetrated through the shield and hit him right in the face! He screamed as his skin sizzled. Fur fell in clumps. The reddening skin bubbled and bled. He dove for the brackish water and held his nose. He splashed it upon his face to cool the burn. It helped but left him stinking and itching. "Ah! Bastards," he growled.

"Come on, Toad!" screamed Mario.

"I got it!" he exclaimed as the final cylinder aligned with the numbers matching and the pattern fully formed. The holo flashed and faded and the hydraulic hiss indicated that the lock was disengaged and the door to Laboratory Delta was open. Toad pushed his way in and they all tumbled in after him and fell over each other in a big pile.