A Hidden Surprise   

 {pictures} 

[Zzzzz… To all those who can listen… zzzz…. I'M SORRY! ZZZZ… it wasn't supposed to be like this… cough…. emperor mercy! I'm sorry! The strange specimen we unearth… we didn't know! I swear we didn't know! It… it… killed…] 

[what are you doing professor? Turn that shit off now! We need to leave! They're coming!] said a random military grunt 

[gunfire rings in the background] 

[Wait, I must tell them!] replied the professor 

[tell who, what?] replied the grunt 

[the people of the future!] replied the professor 

[who cares about them? It is the people of the now that matter! Now either turn that shit off or I'm going to! We're almost out of time! Don't you understand they're going to bury us all alive if we don't make it!] replied the grunt 

[No! There must be some records left behind! In case…] replied the professor as he quickly turned around and shot the grunt in the chest! Unfortunately for the professor, the grunt didn't lose in the draw! 

With one hand on his chest, the mad professor reached for the camera skull just above his workstation! While his blood oozed between his fingers, the man tipped the camera forward to show that just behind him were dozens of dead soldiers and machines of old. But as those lights flickered on and off to the stunning statues of the emperor in his early years. The professor continued his speech through the unpleasant sounds of something crawling around! 

[cough… the door won't hold…] 

[BANG!] 

[listen… please listen…] 

[BANG!] 

[ cough…. plasteel and ceramite are but simple sack paper to them…] 

[Bang!] 

[By his grace! I don't have time to explain! Look just don't try to fight them… only run! Run as far as you can!] 

[Bang!] 

[their hunger knows no limit! They want our world! Quickly tell the emperor we need his help before it is too late! Only he can save this planet now! The burial plan will only buy you time… but time is short… they are coming… they are coming… no amount of earth can stop them forever!] 

[BOOM!] 

To the sound of the sudden boom the professor covers the camera with his back, and as he screams for his life, the chamber ceiling explodes! Bring with it several tons of rock and stone to bury everything! 

→→→→→→→→→→ Video log, found in an abandoned train, year unknown, left behind by a man called the professor 

As Layal and the gang tied their boots and hosted their gear onto their backs, they headed out into a jungle they knew not! For the once peaceful jungle that gave off the sounds of happy insects and critters, now lay silent and dark… foreboding in its heat! As the girls pushed forward not one dared to say a word. For the forest around them, it was just too unsettling even in the day! 

As Molly led the way, stepping over dead logs, and bugs with two heads and snake tails, they heard the breaking of twigs! The snapping of branches… with the strange tall creatures hiding half of their bodies in trees! As they peered behind their trees with one big eye covered in dying fur, with hands pitched black and malformed! The girls did their best to ignore their sounds, to ignore their stares. As they chopped down vegetation across their path. 

But no matter what they did or how far they walked, the creepy things in the jungle would follow! Never overtaking, but always close… as if waiting and watching for something. The girls knew this couldn't go on or they would never get any sleep once nightfall came! In fact, nightfall is what they were afraid of! If the creatures were this active during the day but not daring to show their fangs, then by night, when the safety of the sun is gone… what will happen? 

For as Layla stared at the waning sun, she made a stop! An abrupt stop that caused the other two to listen. 

{Molly… Mary… there's three behind us and four in the front and a spying goat freak we spotted early around us} 

[And how do you know all that?] replied Molly 

{I can see them! But that's beside the point! The point is where are being followed! Now I recommend we pretend to go after the ones in the font but kill the ones in the back.} replied Layla 

[wait Layla… aren't you jumping too far? Shouldn't we wait and see if they leave us alone?] replied Mary 

{Mary… Mary… As much as I love you, do you really think that is a good idea? I mean just look at the time! The sun will be gone in the next few hours! Think you can sleep soundly with those things watching you?} replied Layla 

[No… but maybe they will try to help us with other things…] replied Mary 

{Mary, as much as I like your optimism… I don't think that would be a safe bet!} replied Layla as she saw from the corner of her eye the goat twitching its head back and forth as if thinking. While sharp tentacles burst out from within the goat! 

Looking at the goat's non-bothered expression, even when tentacles just popped out of it, caused Layla to squint her eyes and say: 

{I swear that goat gives me the willies! We need to kill it no matter what!} 

[not that I don't disagree with you but how?] asked Molly 

{easy… we run!} yelled Layla as she started running as fast as she could in her new suit her order gave her. And while she fired a few rounds with her small bolter! 

[Layla! Where are we running to?] yelled Mary 

{well according to the map there should be some building up ahead, that was abandoned centuries ago!} replied Layla 

Silently watching his prey, the goat creature kept up its speed and calculation in its mind, running through thoughts in the hundreds! As it slowly but surely began losing all the fur along the way. while the others he had followed, are now nothing more than pale freaks of what once used to be monkeys of some kind. 

But as it watched and thought, it noticed where its prey was heading… and it didn't like the idea! Quickly sending out an order, he made one of its pawns stay to fight! To watch and to learn…. Whether it died or lived was of little consequence to the goat! After all, the jungle was ripe with new servants! Noticing one of the creatures in the front abruptly stopped and ponded his chest like a gorilla. Like it was administrating a test of some kind, Molly accepted its challenge, and pulled out her shield! And with a battle roar, she charged right into that pale freak! However, so focused she was on the foe in front, she didn't see the cliff edge that awaited her! Seeing one of his prey fall for his trick so easily, lit up the colors in its many eyes! Causing the brain in the goat to glow in a fancy blue, while its bones a purplish hue. 

As she and the monster tumbled to the bottom, she used the shield and the monster as a cushion! For as they landed on that abandoned train, that sat there alone in a rusty forest, their bodies slammed so hard that Molly completely crushed the pale creature under the shield! Causing it to explode into a wonder of blood and gore! 

[shit! Gross!] said Molly as she attempted to get some of the bits off her shield. She then looked back up that cliff and noticed it wasn't actually that high… slightly relieved, she was about to call out to Layla when: 

{Molly! Hurry up and get inside!} yelled Layla through the hatch in the roof of the train cart. 

[aw! How did you get down here so fast?] asked Molly 

{oh! We took the stairs!} replied Layla as she pointed to the staircase leading up the cliff. 

 Inside the locomotive, Molly asked: 

[now what? Are we going to spend the night in this little train or stand and fight?] 

[umm? We're not just going to spend the night in here?] interjected Mary 

{Umm… we might have to…} replied Layla 

[have to what?] asked Molly 

{spend the night, the sun is too far gone now… it was already setting as we got down the cliff… going out now might be too dangerous… I think our time would be better spent trying to figure out if this train can still move or hold anything useful in it. Or just to lug up any hole with something…} replied Layla 

[you think this old bucket of bolts can hold those monsters off?] asked Molly 

{To be honest… I have no idea... I'm not a mechanicus nut… but I can pray to it I guess and burn what incense we have…} 

[you actually believe that stuff Layla?] Ask Molly 

{hey, look at me… never doubt the machine spirits! Though the mechanicus are crazy… there is some truth to the madness!] replied Layla to Molly shrugging her shoulders 

But while those two were having a banter blast, Mary was busy looking at the old military-style train and wondered that maybe… Layla might have a point! But as she worked on the train that would take another day! The night sleeps for no one! For she was quickly approaching! And with it all kinds of terrifying roars and howling! And when the night reached its highest Layla found an old, very old audio log…