"Quick, we gotta pick one!" Mochi said, her voice fraught with worry. She was glancing from tunnel to tunnel, eyes staying on each for only a moment before they darted to the next.

Scootaloo blinked. "Umm, that one!" She pointed toward one to the far left and started running. "Hehe, just like a chaos dragon's politics," the filly muttered under her breath.

"What?" Mochi galloped alongside her.

"Nothing—gaahhh!" Scootalooo exclaimed, for suddenly in the tunnel in front of her that she had been running to, a tall, burly stallion in a black uniform appeared. He was running forward near the end of the tunnel, just about to enter the earthy cavern. "Quick, this way!"

Mochi followed Scootaloo as they turned rightwards and swerved off to the next tunnel before the guard could reach them; however, just as they were about to enter, a unicorn mare in an identical black uniform came into view, running up the tunnel. "Stop where you are!"

"Gahhhh!" Scootaloo exclaimed once more, but this time she skidded to a halt. Mochi, behind her, did the same. "Dang it! What do we do?"

"I'll hold 'em off again!" Mochi spun around to face the mare who was almost at the end of the tunnel. "You find a tunnel without a guard!"

"I can't leave—"

Mochi rolled her eyes. "C'mon, Scootaloo, you already know I'm capable. Just find a tunnel so we can get out of here!" And, with that, Mochi ran forward to charge at the mare. Scootaloo turned to run to another tunnel but behind her she could hear the distinctive zapping sounds of magic as well as the grunts of a pony coming into contact with another pony. She could only hope it was Mochi that was doing the contacting.

Scootaloo made it to the mouth of the next tunnel when she heard the steady thump-thump of hooves. The filly looked up and, sure enough, there was a stallion in a black uniform speeding her way; she barely had any time to skid to a stop on the dirt before running face-first into the pony. Scootaloo jumped back as the stallion stopped running; he skidded to a halt where she had been just seconds before.

"Graahhh!" Scootaloo jumped forward at the stallion and, catching him off-guard, rammed straight into his forelegs. The stallion flinched backwards upon impact. Scootaloo ran around him and up the wall of the tunnel and, taking advantage of his dazed state, launched herself directly at the stallion's side.

Her hooves made a direct hit with the stallion, slamming straight into his shoulder. He let out a yelp of pain and spit as he collapsed, falling against the other wall of the tunnel. Scootaloo bounced off but quickly scrambled to her hooves.

"C'mon, Mochi!" Scootaloo called, glancing over to where the mare was sparring with three or four of the uniformed guards. The same unicorn mare was shooting bright green burst of magic in Mochi's direction and it was all the poor mare could do to jump around, dancing on her hooves to avoid the blasts of energy. At the sound of Scootaloo's cry, one of the guards' head turned.

"Go on! I'll—nnngh"—Mochi winced, having narrowly dodged another blast of magic, though it looked as if it had brushed across her shoulder—"I'll catch up with ya later, okay? Go!"

"But—"

"Get out!"

Scootaloo could feel an acrid, burning sensation in her throat but she did as Mochi said and she turned around and ran, just as she saw the guard splitting off from the group to follow her. Heart pounding in her chest much as her hooves pounded on the earthen ground below her, Scootaloo raced past the guard she had just fought and into that tunnel.

She didn't want to leave Mochi behind—she had been doing too much leaving ponies behind—but she had no choice so Scootaloo just galloped as fast and as far as her little legs would take her, following the tunnel as it swerved from side to side. She didn't afford herself even a second to glance over her shoulder or even try to listen and discern whether there were other hooves besides her own thundering through the tunnel. No, Scootaloo kept her gaze and focus trained forward on the path ahead.

Luckily, by a few minutes later, the filly was far enough away that she wasn't able to hear Mochi's terrified yelps in the room she had just left, becoming more and more frequent as the stench of burning flesh filled the cavern.