The Tunnels | Teen Ink

The Tunnels

April 17, 2017
By Beef2510 BRONZE, Billings, Montana
Beef2510 BRONZE, Billings, Montana
1 article 0 photos 0 comments

The Interview


On October 10, 1968 a U.S. Marine was found by a patrol in southern Vietnam. The soldier was said to have been muttering things about a lost mission and descriptions of horrific creatures underground. The soldier was taken back to the U.S. for debriefing and hospitalization. An agent was sent to the hospital to debrief him. The following is classified and is for level three and above eyes only.
"How are you doing today soldier?" The interviewer asked upon entering the hospital room.
"I'm better," the weary soldier said without looking at the man.
"That's good, I'm Special Agent Johnson and I'm here to listen to what happened."
"What do you want to know?" The soldier asked.
"Everything," the Agent Johnson said.
"Well it started with finding these maps," the soldier said calmly.

 

Back to the beginning


"Sergeant, this tunnel's clear," said Corporal Marks.
"Keep going, we don't know when we'll find anybody," the Sergeant declared.
"Sir, I think I got something," Private O'Harris yelled.
"What is it?" the Sergeant asked.
"Maps, sir, lots and lots of maps," the Private then continued.
"Well, don't leave me in suspense, read 'em," Private Michaels yelled from the back.
"I think there for primary F.O.B's sir. The underground kind," Private O'Harris sad with a little excitement.
"Looks like we just got a brand new objective boys," Sergeant Kelly shouted.
The soldiers were all getting itchy trigger fingers and hadn't seen  a living  Vietcong in days. They had searched about twenty holes and found minor intel. These maps looked promising to these guys though. They were all ready for any sort of fighting. These five men didn't know what they were about come across by following these maps.

 

The Discovery


The five troops marched on through the thick Vietnamese jungle following Private O'Harris' instructions from the map. Their eyes were on the trees and on the path in front of them. Their nerves were steadily getting stronger with each passing moment in war. These men were ready. A sudden movement caused them to drop down and keep quiet.
"Shut it," Sergeant Kelly barked.
"Listen," he continued.
"What is it?" O'Harris asked.
"Nothing, that's what worries me," Kelly continued again.
"Ok spread out, search the area," Kelly added.
The five troops do just that and fanned out around the area.  Each soldier steadily scanning the area in front of them. Their weapons going along with their eyes through the tree tops and along the jungle floor. Sergeant Kelly stops quickly, turns a full one eighty, and puts an entire clip from his M-16 rifle down range. The bullets ripping through the foliage and connecting with something metal. The other men rush to his side and do the same with one clip of ammo.
"Hold your fire!" Kelly screamed.
"Private O'harris, Corporal Marks go check it out, see what we killed," Kelly added.
The two men moved through the bullet torn jungle that lay in front of them. ripping off branches and kicking up leaves to see if they could find whatever they just shot at. The men didn't find any bodies but they did find the source of the commotion. A large, metallic door for what seems to be a bunker had been flung open startling the sergeant. Private O'Harris and Corporal Marks approached the door with caution and extreme vigilance. Their eyes were scanning up and down the door and into the blackness of the cellar.
"Sarge, we have something weird here," Marks yelled.
"What is it?" Kelly responded.
"Not sure," Marks added
"Everyone form up, flashlights out, we're going in," Kelly ordered.
"But sir, shouldn't we call this in or something?" O'Harris asked.
"We should but we ain't until we know what we're dealing with," Kelly said with a smile.
"Get moving, we don't have all day," Kelly then added.

 

Some Things Aren't Meant to be Found


The unit crept down the dark stairs that lead into the bunker. Some of their weapons shaking from nerves, some from excitement. Each man hoping they found something big. The stairs seemed to go on forever in the flashlight lit area. The men kept moving down and down until the light coming from entrance was almost nonexistent. The stairs finally bottomed out and another set of doors were standing in their way. Except these doors were already opened, and not just opened but ripped off of the hinges. The men seemed to be in a sort of amazement but also had a glaze of fear on their faces.
"Sarge any idea what did this?" Michaels asked.
"No Corporal, none what so ever," Kelly answered.
"Hey maybe it's a gorilla or something," Marks said.
"No you retard, gorillas aren't in Nam," O'Harris snapped.
"Well maybe this is the only one or something," Marks added.
"Stop talking," Kelly growled.
"Sorry sarge, I was just...," Marks said.
"No, be quiet," Kelly said again.
"Do you hear that?" Kelly added.
A screeching noise was coming from just around a bend at the end of the hallway in front of them. The soldiers stepped quickly and quietly around the torn off doors and crept to the wall just before the bend. Their hands gripping their weapons tightly, ready for whatever was their. Sergeant Kelly motioned three, two, one with his fingers and all of the men hustled around the corner with guns out. What stood before them was like nothing they had ever seen.
"OPEN FIRE!!!" The sergeant immediately ordered.
The men sent everything they had down range at the thing standing before them. The beast screamed as the men opened fire and started to rush towards them. The men just kept firing until the gangly creature dropped at their feet. The men didn't stop though until they truly thought it was dead. After the men each emptied a clip into the pale gangly creature. Corporal Marks bent down to examine the monster.
"Guys it looks like a person," he stated.
"No way, that ain't no man," Michaels said.
"You got a better explanation," O'Harris chimed in.
The creature had sharp teeth, a thin and stringy body, white skin, and long limbs. But before Marks could get back up, the thing used its last breathe to use those deadly sharp teeth sink into poor Corporal Marks' neck and pull back before finally dying. The men rushed to him to check but he was dead along with the creature.


The Beginning of the End


"Marks!" O'Harris yelled.
"What the heck just happened?" Michaels asked.
"Check him," Kelly said calmly.
(Private Michaels turns and shakes his head)
"Son of a....," Kelly mumbled under his breath.
The troops stood with a blank look while wondering what to do next. Sergeant Kelly reloaded his rifle, checked his sidearm, and stepped over the bodies and went further down the hall hoping to find something worth while to make sure Corporal Marks didn't die in vain. The other three remaining soldiers quickly hurried to follow their Sergeant further into the bunker.

 

The Secrets of this Place


The men went through the bunker searching every corner waiting for another monster to come crawling out of the darkness like the demons they are. This bunker seemed to go on forever with no end or even change. They were walking down the same hallway that they had seen and killed the first creature in. The other men, outside of Sergeant Kelly, were beginning to wonder if they should have just left when they saw the first creature or if they shouldn't of even come in here in the first place. Sergeant Kelly was bent on finding something worthwhile to get his mind off of Marks' death. Just when the men were ready to tell Kelly to turn around, another scream rang out through the halls. They couldn't tell where it came from, especially since they had just entered a four way intersection in the hallway. They were at the only intersection they had seen in hours. The scream became stronger to the right of O'Harris and he gripped his rifle ready for the monster to come around the corner. The scream suddenly faded which gave way to a dead silence. Private Michaels was no longer watching his hallway but instead watching O'Harris' instead. This was his final mistake.
"Guys, where'd it..." Michaels said before he was grabbed.
Michaels was grabbed by the ankles and his head smacked the concrete floor. He made no noise as he was dragged away. Sergeant Kelly realizing that Michaels didn't finish his question, turned to see Michaels body turning the far corner.
"MICHAELS!!!" Sergeant Kelly yelled as he chased after his soldier.
The creature had the upper hand in this maze like section of halls. There was no blood trail to follow and Sergeant Kelly was now only randomly turning corners and choosing ways to go in splits of the path. When he finally stopped he realized that he was all alone in this God forsaken pit. Back at the intersection, Private O'Harris and Corporal Wallace were standing in total shock of the last two minutes. The men didn't know what to do now.
"Well what now?" Wallace asked.
"I don't know, Sergeant Kelly could be anywhere right now." O'Harris said.
"I say we go that way looking for a way out while looking for Kelly." Wallace said.
"Well why don't we just go back the way we..., which way did we come from?" O'Harris said.
The two men had been turned around in the intersection during the happening. They too were so close yet so far from safety. They decided to go after Kelly and look for another way out. The men were beginning to become slightly scared. Their nerves were weakening and they themselves were weakening. 

 

Sergeant Kelly


Sergeant Kelly was again wandering through this maze searching for his men and a way out. The only thing on his mind was how he was going to kill the other creature. He had lost two men already to these things and wasn't going to go down without a fight. He checked each crack and crevice in the walls just waiting for another monster to come screaming out. As he kept moving, a slight humming noise was becoming even more apparent with each step. He turned one more corner and saw, with extreme disbelief, a radio room at the very end of the short hallway. He inched towards it ever so slowly watching for traps. As he got closer and closer he started to relax and let his guard down. The moment he let his guard down and stepped into the room a spear-like object was plunged into his back and out the other side. Sergeant Kelly was dead instantaneously. The monster behind him then released a deafening scream that echoed through the halls. The remaining two men, Private O'Harris and Corporal Wallace, heard this scream as they to were searching for a way out.

 

Death follows all


Once the scream was heard by the two soldiers, they kicked it into high gear. The men hustled around each corner and were getting more nervous with each passing minute. Neither of them had been in any heavy fighting yet and weren't used to the true fear of war. They were running for close to fifteen minutes and the hall seemed to never end. Once the men began to get too tired to run, they stopped and walked again feeling that they put even more distance between them and the monster that screamed. They drank their remaining bit of water and got ready to take off again. But before they started off again a creature came screeching at high speeds around the corner on front of them. The men both slipped as they tried to turn around suddenly. Wallace feeling that he should cover his fellow soldier, turned around and dropped to one knee and began to fire at the creature. Bullets both connecting with the creature and skimming by it, didn't seem to affect the creature in the slightest. He thought that he made the right choice but the creature seemed to like that he was brave. Wallace seeing this tried to turn and run once more but before he got going again, the creature was on him and clawing its way through him. His screams of agony got O'Harris' attention but he didn't want to turn back. O'Harris just kept running without looking back.

 

The way out
O'Harris had found what he believed was the way out. He had been walking that maze for a very long time. He had found a room to hold up in for a while so he could try to rest. Who can rest though when your being hunted by monstrosities. When he left that room he was quieter than a church mouse. He wanted to get out without another hitch. After another long walk he finally saw another metallic door. This door looked like the one from where his team and him first came in. Only this time it was still on the hinges. He crept up to the door slowly and peaked through the glass window at the top. He could barley see the base of looked like a ladder and a way out. He pulled open the door only to find a monster gnawing on the body of Michaels.
"Get off of him," he yelled while firing.
O'Harris blasted the creature off the face of the earth. The monster was a red mist once O'Harris was done with it. He knelt down next to Michaels body and yanked off his dog tags. Another deafening scream rang though the halls and that was all O'Harris needed to get moving up that ladder. Upon reaching the top he pushed opened the hatch and climbed into complete darkness. He had no flashlight, water, food, or rifle. He had dropped his rifle and flashlight when climbing the ladder. O'Harris gathered himself, pulled out his Colt .45, and started walking. The date was October 8, 1968. He would walk for two days with no water or food while being on nerves end the whole time. O'Harris was found by a random patrol. He was a very lucky man.


The final thoughts
"Is that all Mr. O'Harris?" Agent Johnson asked.
"Yeah, that's all," O'Harris solemnly said.
"I'm glad you lived to tell the tale," Johnson added.
"I am to but I would rather have the rest of my team here with me," O'Harris said.
"Don't you worry, we're going in to see for ourselves," Johnson said.
"How?" O'Harris asked.
"Don't worry about that," Johnson told him.
"Well, if you're going in then bring a lot of men, you're gonna need it," O'Harris said



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