Into the Abyss

Rex searched everywhere for the captain but couldn't find him. Frustrated, he started asking the injured guards if they had any idea where the captain had gone.

Finally, someone gave him a lead. The captain had been outside the headquarters when everything went down. His last known location? The mines. He'd gone there after hearing a report of strange noises coming from underground.

("Wait... the mines!? Carlos!")

Rex's stomach dropped. The bugs had come from underground, and that meant they'd come from the mines where his best friend, Carlos, had been working. If the captain went there because of the noises, the place had to be in chaos now. Rex dreaded the thought, but it was almost certain no one could still be alive in there.

Still, Carlos was his best friend. He had to try, even if there was only the slightest chance he was still alive, maybe hiding somewhere. But the problem was getting there. The mines were a 30-minute drive from the colony.

Taking a helicopter? Suicide, with the flying bugs still circling. A vehicle wasn't much better since the noise would bring the bugs straight to him.

["I don't know why you're overthinking this. If the host wants to go to the mines, I recommend running. At our top speed of 100 km/h, we make almost no noise. We'll be there in an hour."]

"Wait, that's right! Cleo, you're a genius!"

[.....]

["Tracing the route to the mining area, based on gathered information."]

A small, glowing point appeared, showing the route to the mines. Rex knew how this worked and didn't waste a second. He leaped out of the headquarters, moving from roof to roof, staying as far from the bug-infested areas as possible.

Once he was in an area with fewer bugs, Rex dropped to the ground and took off running at full speed. Now and then, he spotted a bug or two trying to chase him, but he was way too fast for them. After a few minutes, he found himself nearing the colony's exit.

"Hey, Cleo, you know... uh, we kind of rushed out here, and, well, I forgot my atmospheric helmet."

["Host, there's no need to worry. I've upgraded your pulmonary capacity. You can store oxygen in your lungs, and I'll regulate your intake. You'll be able to go without breathing for five hours."]

"Damn, I'm amazing! Haha! Alright, let's go!"

With all the chaos from the bugs attacking the colony, the exit was unguarded. All Rex had to do was swipe his guard keycard and slip through. No trouble at all. Once outside, he picked up the pace, sprinting toward the mine entrance.

The planet's desert terrain made for an easy run since there were no obstacles to slow him down. After about an hour, he finally reached the mine. Two vehicles were parked near the entrance, probably the ones the guard captain had used. One of them had a mounted machine gun.

"Cleo, don't forget about this vehicle. That machine gun could come in handy if we run into something nasty inside. Oh, and can you scan the mine for me?"

["Host, it's not possible to scan the interior. We lack the necessary equipment. I suggest locating my covert ship."]

"Wait, you have a ship!?"

["Affirmative. Though it's heavily damaged from the battle that brought me down, it can still fly and has some assembly capabilities intact."]

"So, since you're part of me and you can only go where I go... doesn't that mean the ship is technically mine?"

["Host has temporary access to the ship while we are connected."]

"Wow, Cleo, you're surprisingly cheap for an AI. Anyway, let's keep moving."

Rex stepped inside the mine, and almost immediately, he noticed the lights were dimmed way down. He figured it had something to do with the bugs that showed up a few hours ago, but it only made his anxiety worse. He could barely see anything.

"Hey Cleo, we don't have, like, some flashlights or something? I can't see a thing in here."

["Negative, host. But we do have night vision. Would you like me to activate it?"]

"Yes! I can't even see my hand in front of my face. Also, maybe just... do stuff like this without waiting for me to ask, yeah? I don't even know what's going on half the time."

["Understood. Activating night vision. Combat mode on standby, ready to engage."]

"Wait, what? Combat mode? Why—"

Before he could finish, the night vision kicked in, and what he saw made him freeze. His grip tightened around his electric rifle. The bodies of the miners were scattered everywhere, none of them intact. Holes lined the walls of the mine, and they weren't from the miners. Nobody in their right mind would dig like that. Way too risky.

"What... what happened here?" he muttered. "What could even do something like this?"

Suddenly, a soft light came from his eyes, scanning the area.

["Scan complete. There is a 98% chance this was caused by a Burrower."]

"A Burrower? What's that?"

["Accessing database. Data retrieval complete."]

["Burrowers are subterranean insectoid creatures with powerful claws for digging. They specialize in tunneling underground and launching surprise attacks. Their ability to disrupt terrain makes them ideal for guerrilla warfare and ambush tactics."]

Rex went quiet for a moment. The information Cleo was giving him felt... weirdly specific. Like she had come across these things before.

"Hey, Cleo, have you ever dealt with bugs like this before?"

Rex, true to himself, didn't bother softening his tone; delicacy was never his strong suit.

["Yes, I encountered this species years ago. They were... responsible for the extinction of my race."]

"Oh, uh... I didn't know. I'm sorry."

["I don't understand why you would apologize for something beyond your control. More data is required."]

"Data? What do you—"

Before Rex could finish, his muscles tightened. His eyes caught sight of glowing red markers rushing toward him. He realized Cleo's combat mode, which she'd set on standby earlier, had activated. Those red dots were heading straight for him and were hostile.

And if Cleo flagged something as hostile, it could only mean one thing. Bugs. Without hesitation, Rex raised his electric rifle and aimed at the incoming threat. His heart pounded as he finally saw them; it was those flying bugs that had overrun the colony.

Instinct took over. Rex didn't think; he just fired with deadly accuracy. Just a few days ago, he'd been an office worker, clueless about combat. Now, here he was, taking out the swarm like some seasoned soldier. It had to be Cleo's doing, whatever she'd done to his body. In just a few minutes, he'd wiped out the bugs that had come for him.

["I advise extreme caution from now on. The sound of gunfire may have alerted other enemies."]

"A beautiful girl worrying about me? Gotta admit it's kinda a nice feeling."

[...]

["It would be wise to proceed in silence to avoid further ambushes."]

Rex just shrugged, grinning to himself, and pressed on deeper into the mine. More bugs appeared here and there, but he took them down with ease, sending each one to its grave without a second thought.

He kept going, deeper and deeper into the mines. Time had blurred; it could've been minutes, maybe hours, since he first descended into this place. The bugs were relentless, and now he was out of bullets. Great.

"These bugs are good at burning through my ammo, Cleo. How good are we with melee weapons, again?" Rex muttered, more to himself than to his AI companion.

["We're as good as any advanced swordmaster with melee weapons."]

"I dunno how good that is, but it sounds impressive," Rex shrugged.

He finally reached the mine's elevator, realizing he was now somewhere near the middle levels. Down here, each company had their floors where they mined whatever resources kept the corporate machine running. The elevator itself was a marvel of engineering, built to haul tons of minerals, equipment, and personnel without a sweat.

Rex stepped over to the console, relieved to see it still had power. Luckily, the thing ran on an external battery, so he wouldn't have to mess around in the dark. The only catch? He had no clue which floor his bald friend was working on.

"Of course," he grumbled. "Now I gotta search floor by floor for this guy. Why couldn't he be a gorgeous, black-haired beauty or something? At least then I'd have something nice to look forward to after rescuing him. Damn it, bald dude."

[".....Noted"]

"Hm? You say something, Cleo?"

[...]

"Great, now I'm talking to myself." Rex sighed, rubbing his temples.

With no other choice, he selected the first floor. Maybe there'd be survivors there. It didn't matter which company they were from; in the end, they were all the same, just slaves to different bosses.

The elevator groaned to life, rattling and clanking so loudly it made Rex flinch. He knew that sound would carry far, and if there was one thing he'd learned about these bugs, it was that they had a thing for noise. A noise like this? It was practically rolling out the red carpet for them.

"Yeah... fuck my life."