>Check party’s hunger levels; they tell you they feel fine
>Carry Applebloom and Scootaloo across on your back, Applebloom holding the Lamp above the water
>Make it to the other side safely
>xXx Sweetie Belle is grabbed by the current xXx
>Immediately rush out to get her
>** Use Applebloom to guarantee Sweetie Belle is secure **
>Proceed along the path to the fork in the road
>Proceed across the sturdy bridge and into the left tunnel
>Throw soaked Sneezing Powder towards the light
>Investigate a light in the distance, find a massive gemstone filled watery cavern
>—Discover a Diamond Dog repelling down the waterfall cliffside; asks for a Waterproof Boom-Boom Stick—
>**Impersonate a Diamond Dog**
>—Tell him you don’t have any explosives—
>Give him a Drill from the Tool Barrel
>Tell the Diamond Dog you’ll go look for some
>Peek down to see that he’s alone. Sweetie Belle says he looks creepy.
>’Borrow’ a Jagged Pickaxe from the Tool Barrel
>Double back and go down the other tunnel
>Avoid going into a dark, descending hole where all the water seems to be pouring down
>Continue ahead, encounter a barricade covered in razor sharp Blue Crystals
>Notice that the door is unlocked with the lock and key unlatched; walk straight through
>Sneak passed a sleeping Diamond Dog hiding behind some boxes near the entrance
Huddling around their dancing Lamp flame, the CMC peer ahead into a dark hallway. A ghostly light seems to hover in from the right along with the muddled whispers of a couple of voices. Scared though determined, Raisin reassures her friends that this path will take them to the Boulder Snakes… somehow. The team swallows hard as they peak over a box, watching the dim glow in the distance grow brighter.
“What is that? More dogs? How many of those things are down here?” Scootaloo whispers, her head lowered next to yours.
Inventory check:
>9:00PM
As the voices seem to draw nearer, you keep your eyes focused on the approaching light ahead. "I don't know, Scootaloo, but I don't plan on finding out anytime soon. Applebloom, pass the Lamp over here."
Applebloom walks over to you and sets the Lamp by your side. You try to cover the panes of glass up as best as you can, keeping your eyes centered on the distant glow. You're not completely able to cover the light, however, as some escapes around your hooves.
"Oh! We can't let them see us! Hold on…" Sweetie Belle squeaks. She pulls off her slightly damp cloak and pushes it over the Lamp between your hooves. The light is all but completely drowned out.
"Thanks, Sweetie Belle."
Suddenly, two lanky figures emerge from the right side of the distant tunnel. The CMC all instinctively duck down and stay low to the ground. You keep your head up, watching as the dogs turn your way. One holds up the his lamp and looks towards the entrance for a brief moment, then continues along.
"I hate guard duty! Nothing here! Barricades stop snakes, so what's the point?"
The other replies. "Its stupid! Pointless!"
"Rover is stupid! Nothing down here!" Their conversation fades as they round the other wall, heading down the left passageway.
"Raisin! Didja see 'em? Didja see where they went off to?" Applebloom looks around blindly in the dark.
"Now's our chance, girls. Follow me!"
As you start moving forward, you notice that Applebloom and Sweetie Belle aren't following. Their glowing eyes hover in the air, looking around.
"Where ya'll at? Ah can't see anything!" Applebloom whispers.
Sweetie Belle bumps heads with her. "Ooof!"
"C'mon, over here."
Applebloom stumbles closer to you as you wait for them to catch up. Sweetie Belle catches up in a few moments.
"Stay close and stay quiet."
You begin to lead the group deeper into the cavernous entrance. Staying on the tips of your hooves and near to the ground, you move as stealthily as you and your friends possibly can. Your Boots are helping out tremendously; with them on, your hooves sound like heavy shoes instead of thunderous crashes on the rocky cavern floor.
With the Lamp in your mouth, you approach the tunnel at the far end of the cavern. Looking left, you see the two Diamond Dogs heading towards a barricade. Through the barricade, you see a bright orange glow. To your right, you see some glimmering lights. You can clearly hear some clinking sounds and movement.
"Huh… Sweetie Belle, Applebloom… you guys here?"
The two fillies bump into each other as Applebloom bumps into your tail. "Owww… yeah, we're here…"
Scootaloo looks back and forth. "Uh… what do we do if neither direction looks good?"
Keeping your eyes on the Dogs to the left, you formulate a plan at the fork in the path.
"Hey, Sweetie Belle.."
"U-uhm… y-yeah?" Her voice cracks.
"Walk alongside me. Applebloom, you grab onto her tail. We're gonna ninja sneak into this mine."
"Raisin, you've gotta be completely nuts. C-can't you hear the dogs up ahead?" Scootaloo protests.
"What's the matter? You're not scared NOW, are you?"
Scootaloo takes immediate offense. "Me? Scared? You know you're talking to the one and only Scootaloo, right Raisin?" She points a hoof forward. "Full steam ahead!"
The dogs by the barricade turn their heads back your way and hold up their Lamp. Before they get a chance to make an approach, you begin moving into the right tunnel.
It's rather dark ahead, but a faint blue glow hangs in the darkness. You can see some orange flames flickering against the cave walls ahead. There are definitely some sort of tools at work down here…
"W-what is that?" Sweetie Belle whispers.
"I don't know…"
You reach another cavern. Roundabout you, there are Diamond Dogs chinking away at the walls, pulling gemstones out of them. Each one seems to have a lantern hung up next to their location, giving them just enough light to see where they're digging. Many stone pillars litter the area, making the cavern feel like a catacombs.
Directly ahead is a large supply box. You can faintly make it out against a strange blue glow that hangs around in the shadows.
You decide it best to get behind some cover. Carefully, you proceed along the back wall until you're next to the giant supply crate. Closeby, an exhausted Diamond Dog buries his Jagged Pickaxe into the wall, chipping out more dirt and rock.
The CMC stay as far away from him as they can. "R-raisin.. uh…" Applebloom points towards the Diamond Dog.
"Shhh… hold on a second…"
You take a moment to survey the room as best as you can. Looking straight out, you see a little puddle of water near a distant miner. He pulls something from the wall and holds it up to the torch. It's some sort of blue rock, but certainly not a gemstone of any sort. With a displeased grunt, he tosses it into the puddle. The stone appears to glow as it sinks deeper and deeper into the little collection of water you thought was a puddle until the light disappears completely.
To the right, you see what looks like a minecart on a set of rails. One Diamond Dog walks around to each of the miners, collecting small piles of gems from them and taking them over to the cart. You cannot quite see across the room, but it looks like there may be another passage ahead.
Inventory check:
Before leaving the side of the Supplies Crate, you reach in and grab the large tin can full of 'grease'. It smells absolutely foul… you're actually not completely sure what this stuff even is.
You watch as the collecting dog makes his way around one of the far pillars.
"Raisin? Raisin?!" Sweetie Belle taps you gently. "Uh… Raisin!?" She's staring back the way you came. You can see a distant glow begin to approach.
"Oh boy… alright Crusaders, we've gotta hustle through here…"
Scootaloo gulps. "I'm listening… what's the plan?"
"Well, you just hold on tight. Applebloom, Sweetie Belle…" The little white unicorn is still staring back toward the glowing light. "Sweetie Belle?"
"Y-y-yeah?" She shivers slightly.
"You and Applebloom just follow me close. We're going to stop behind this first pillar and get around the back of the next. We're gonna move kinda quick, so keep up."
"Okay.." Unsure of themselves, they give you a nod. As the dog passes his patrol spot again behind a few pillars, you signal the CMC to follow.
Keeping your eyes on the moving dog, you make your way to the first pillar. You stop for a moment, keeping an eye and an ear out for the dog. You're not quite sure why, but the entire room seems to very dimly glow with blue light… It's incredibly strange considering how dark the rooms previous were…
As the dog rounds the pillar, you can hear him speaking with the miner. "Rex, go to bunks! Tired dogs don't dig fast!"
Woozy, the dog replies. "Yes." He seems completely out of it. You have no idea how long he must have been working.
Quickly, you sprint to the next pillar with the CMC close behind. You can hear Applebloom and Sweetie breathing pretty nervously. Scootaloo has an extremely firm grip around your neck. You find yourself actually slightly thankful that you don't have to breathe.
You sit behind the pillar for just a moment as the CMC collects themselves. The tired dog, Rex, is approaching your position.
"Uh…"
Noticing the approach of the impending dog, you tap Applebloom on the shoulder and shimmy around the pillar, making sure your entire group is out of his line of sight. His massive hands drag on the floor, scraping his Jagged Pickaxe along the way. It produces a fairly loud grating noise.
Breathing a little harder, the CMC wait as the dog goes ahead of you. Carrying a Torch, you see him disappear into the area you plan to go through. Along the way, you can see 3 distinct passages in the distance.
"Hmmm…"
You stay put as the patrolling dog comes around the pillar in front of you. Quickly, you shimmy back around the pillar to avoid being seen.
"Raisin, are you sure about this?" Applebloom shivers as the collecting dog goes to another one of the miners…
You quickly take this opportunity to scoot over to the last pillar. As you move, you look behind to make sure your team follows. Sweetie Belle stays put for a moment.
"Sweetie!" You whisper shout.
She immediately takes notice that she's the only one left behind her pillar and darts over to yours. When the group is gathered, the four of you lean against the stony column for a moment.
"Whew…" Applebloom sighs.
Looking ahead, you see three distinct passages with Rex down the center. It looks like he's turning off to the right as his light fades into the blue, dimly lit darkness.
"Where to, then?" Scootaloo asks. You can nearly hear her heart pounding.
Seeing as your friends are practically starving but remaining tight lipped, you figure it to be in their best interests to find them some food.
"Let's go straight. I bet we can find a ton of supplies down that way."
"But isn't that where the other D-diamond D-d-dog just went?" Sweetie Belle stutters.
"He's going back to the bunks or whatever. There's probably a ton of food and stuff that way."
"Food?" Scootaloo perks up. "I'm with Raisin… as long as we don't end up becoming food."
Walking through the eerie glow of the dim, blue light, you notice that the Lamp you're carrying is no longer producing light… from under the cape, you see that the flame has died. "Drats…" The CMC seem to have acclimated slightly to the darkness, but the weird blue glow seems to help guide them through.
The next room opens up into a slightly larger cavern. You see a set of messy tables with stone plates and bowls strewn about. A torch hangs from one of the columns in the distance, though the blue glow of this room is significantly brighter than in the room previous.
You hear a door shut on the right. Across the room, you can hear some speaking.
"Spears! I win!"
A few groans echo throughout the cavern as the clinking of gems begins to calm down.
Looking about the room, you try to remain quiet and calm as the rambunctious group of Diamond Dogs on the other side play some sort of weird game with their hands.
"Hey, can you guys smell anything edible?"
Scootaloo shakes her head. "Be glad you can't smell at all, Raisin.. it's nasty in here."
Applebloom nods. "You remember how wet dog smells? It's like that and garbage." She whispers as the dogs erupt into laughter. You hear one get hit and whimper.
You hear the door on the right open again. A glow bursts into the cavern.
"Keep it down you mutts! We're sleeping!"
You keep still in the entrance, waiting for the new light source to die out. The loud dogs bark at him a few times as the door slams shut. With another burst of laughter, you hear one dog shout "Club beats shield! I win!" Another round of groans erupt before a temporary calm sets in.
"I'm really scared right now." Sweetie Belle barely speaks audibly.
As soon as the noise starts back up again, you move the group behind the nearby pillar. The odd blue glow in the room lets the four of you see one another clearly in the dark.
"Okay… you guys need to eat something."
"What's up with you an eatin' anyhow? Ya'll know we're hungry before even we do…" Applebloom shakes her head. "We don't need to eat all the time, ya know." Her stomach makes a slight gurgle as she covers it up.
"You see? That right there. You guys need to eat something so that doesn't happen. If it does while we're sneaking, the dogs will find us for sure."
The three hungry crusaders look to one another. "She's right, guys. There has to be something we can eat down here." Scootaloo cranes her head over to the table.
"Hold on; Scootaloo, Applebloom, you two wait here and watch that tunnel…" You point to the nearby tunnel opening. "We'll check to see if there's any food we can take."
"Wait, why you? You can't even smell. What if you grab something rotten?" Scootaloo's stomach grumbles quietly.
"Just stay here. We'll be back in just a minute here… Sweetie, follow me close."
The little filly tags along behind you, following your cold granite tail in the soft blue glow of the cavern. As you approach the lit table, the Diamond Dogs start shouting again. "Shield beats Spear! I win!"
Searching the table, you see that most of the plates have been licked clean. There's a basket of apple cores left on the table.
"Ehh…. maybe?"
Sweetie Belle's face scrunches up. "Eugh…"
Seeing the apple cores on the table, you figure it's the only food that's even potentially edible.
"It's gonna have to do. Hold your nose if you have to."
Sweetie Belle looks disgusted. She picks the little basket up off of the table and sets it on her back, knocking a plate off of the table. As it hits the floor, you freeze up.
The Diamond Dogs don't seem to have taken notice. One speaks up, though he's behind the column. "What was that?!"
"Miners, idiot! Don't try to cheat!" You hear a quick slap followed by a whimper.
Sweetie finally breathes again, steadily trotting the little basket back to her friends. You follow close behind as the two of you get back behind the column.
Applebloom and Scootaloo look equally disappointed. "Ughh… I think I lost my appetite…"
"C'mon, guys. It's all I could find on short notice. You have to eat something…"
Applebloom looks at Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, then picks up one of the apple cores. She chomps into it with a look of utter disgust. "Ugghh… ohhh… that was gross. No more, please…" She rubs her hoof against her tongue.
Sweetie Belle looks into the basket with perfect disgust. "Do I have to?"
"Just one. You need to eat something."
She picks up an apple core that looks relatively less brown than the others. She chomps into it, but immediately spits it back out. "Gross gross gross! Blech! There was a big wad of spit on it! Ewwwwewww!"
You cover her mouth quickly. Scootaloo and Applebloom follow suit, placing their hooves over her face. The game across the room has suddenly grown dead quiet.
Sweetie Belle whimpers softly.
You stay perfectly still, your hoof covering Sweetie's mouth still. Her hooves come up around Applebloom and you, pulling the group in tight. She whimpers nervously. You hear one of the dogs stand up.
Your group remains perfectly still behind the column in a tight group hug.
"If they catch us.. I just want you guys to know you're the best friends I've ever had…" Scootaloo whispers almost inaudibly. You can hear the distant plinks of the miners pickaxes hit the cavern walls.
After what seems an eternity, you see a dog pass by your column and continue into the mining area. He walks slowly, sniffing at the air. From the other side of the room, you hear the other dogs huff and growl. "Who cares! Nothing down here!"
The table slowly starts working its way back into its game. Your group only relaxes slightly.
"We've got to move… over there to the west tunnel. Now."
As you get up to move, you carefully peek over around the column. One set of green eyes flickers up, holding its gaze on the tunnel leading into the mining area.
"Uh… hold on… one's looking our way…"
In the other room, you can just barely hear some dog shouting. "You dumb mutts! There's rats crawling around the tables! Find them!"
You draw in a deep breath, then exhale slowly. The CMC copy you on your second breath; they know that you don't breathe if you don't have to. Taking another look up around the column, you see that the vigilant Diamond Dog is now intensely interested in the game again.
"Now's our chance. Quickly, run…"
You gulp and take off into the main room. While your friends have relatively quiet strides, your hooves still hit the rocky floor pretty hard. Your boots are clearly taking the strain from your sprint as they crack a little. They give off a thunderous report as they stress from your running.
The Diamond Dogs stop playing again as you hide inside the entrance of the west tunnel. "They're getting in! They're breaking in!" Suddenly, you hear all of the dogs at the table stand up in unison.
The CMC just clear the glowing entrance as the dogs fan out into the room. Two of them head down the tunnel that was off to the right of the column. You hear some shouts.
"Baby snake! Baby snake! Wake up! Baby snake in the fort!"
"Check the supply room! Get the Pickaxes! Get the Spears!"
"You two! Find Ralph! Protect the main gate! Seal the track tunnel!"
You slow to a trot as your friends speed off up ahead in the glowing orange tunnel. The walls don't glow, but instead a great orange glow pours in from the window of the barricade up ahead.
"W-What do we do? Raisin! Raisin, hurry!" Sweetie Belle calls out.
Ahead of you is a gate.
Hearing the Diamond Dogs scrambling around and barking down the tunnel you came from, you decide that the only way out is forward.
"Stand back!"
The CMC take your word of warning and huddle up behind you. With a solid kick, you feel the entire barricade shutter in the walls. It slides forward a few inches.
"Whoa…" Scootaloo stares onwards in amazement.
"They're attacking! Brace the tunnel!" A dog shouts from behind your group.
"Hurry up, Raisin! They're coming!" Applebloom looks between you and the barricade several times.
You rear up again, kicking your front legs forward. With a mighty stomp, the barricade stutters a foot forward and hangs in empty space, standing up on it's own. It's no longer lodged in the tunnel.
"Wh-what the…? How did ponies get down here?!" To your rear, you see 3 Diamond Dogs armed with long, crystal tipped spears. They keep their distance when they see the barricade has bee stomped out of the way.
"C'mon… hurry!" Sweetie Belle huddles up right behind you.
With one last kick, the barricade grinds and groans, tumbling off of the cliff and into the lake of magma down below. The dogs behind you don't so much as move. With their spears raised, they simply fill the tunnel.
You and the CMC head out onto the stony platform, getting a view of the massive expanse of molten, fiery rock that floods the massive cavern below. It churns and bubbles. To the right of the platform, you see a walking path leading around the edge of the cavern.
The dogs remain silent, standing guard in the tunnel.