As Marina, X, Bell, Lonely and the two German Shepherds made their way safely underground they heard a rumbling sound.

X looked up then placed his hands on the low ceiling. "Feel that? Earthquake?"

Marina slowly shook her head. "Something far more sinister."

Bell said, "Do you smell that? It smells like low tide mixed with rotten eggs." She gagged and pulled her face inside her pink hoodie.

Grace nudged his head under Bell's arm. Speed stood on the other side of her with his ears erect.

Myriads of black oozing slugs made their way to Woodsburg. Thousands upon thousands began to cover what once was, The Wood's Shoppe:  Building your mind through books. The slimy, shiny, black as death, creatures began clinging together then piling upon one another. They were creating a mountain of slugs.

X asked, "Is the ceiling getting lower or is X getting taller?"

Lonely curled up into a brown ball of hay. He pretended to be brave much of the time but sometimes he felt like a little boy who needed his mommy.

Marina spoke very calmly, "Listen friends. Evil surrounds us. It's above us and soon it will spread out to cover this entire town. We don't have much time."

Bell remained calm. "What should we do Nana? The smell is getting stronger."She gagged once more.

X agreed, "And the ceiling is quivering."

Bell thought, "Quivering! Good word X!"  She opted to pay attention to more pressing matters.

The slimy grimy black slugs came from the North, South, East and West. Some of them possessed the ability to fly like tattered moths. While others swam and slithered out of the sea like black eels. They maneuvered their way across the sand like newborn sea turtles on a mission. Only their mission wasn't to live before being eaten by seagulls but to destroy. Although some slugs were slightly different in their design they were all clear on their deadly assignment. Kill the Author's followers.

When the ceiling above their head began to crack Marina shouted, "Follow me!" They made their way out of the bedroom area and meandered further underground into what once was Leon's hiding place. Marina had X move the water heater so they could safely make it out one of her secret tunnels she'd dug many years before.

She stopped just before the tunnel. She spoke gravely, "This is gonna be a tight squeeze for some of you."  She looked at Lonely who quivered like the ceiling. Grace sat by Lonely and licked his snout. Marina continued, "When I dug these exit tunnels I did so with myself and my growing grandson at the time. I knew he'd be tall so it's big enough for a 6 foot man of medium build."

X knew he happened to be much larger and wider then that. He and Lonely might be in serious trouble.

"Listen friends," Marina sighed, "We're gonna crawl through in this order, Me, Grace, Bell, Speed then X and finally Loney. Got it?"

X raised his head.

Marina nodded, "Go ahead X. You don't need permission to speak, remember?"

X lowered his hand. "Um... what if we get stuck? I'm not afraid of too many things anymore but I think I have closet-phobia."  X had used the word correctly because cruel Fat Camp workers would often lock him in a small ark closet all night just to hear him blubber like a baby. It the morning they'd let him out and make fun of him for peeing himself.

Bell smiled, "He means claustrophobia. X you'll be ok. I promise! The Author is with us. We're not alone." Bell reached out  her hands for X and he came to her and gave her a big hug."

Lonely spoke next. "Um guys... in case you haven't noticed I'm like twice as round as X and I'm not fond of tight spaces either."

Grace tried to calm his buddy. "Hey there big fella, whatcha got on the end of those big paws of yours?"

Lonely looked at his front paws. Then pushed out long black, Wolverine-type appendages. "I've got these fancy claws."

Grace tried his best to encourage Lonely. "Yes you do buddy! They're enormous. And what are claws good for?"

Lonely answered, "Catching fish, climbing..."

Grace finished the list, "And DIGGING." Look at my massive claws? They seem small compared to yours and yet I've dug under more fences then I can count."

Lonely sniffed while holding back his tears and said, "Thanks pal."

Speed joined in, "And we never leave a good dog or bear behind!"

The ceiling began to crack. Marina yelled, "Hurry!" They followed closely behind her until they came to a tunnel which required crawling. She yelled back, "Get down everyone! This part of the maze is a tight squeeze."

Bell felt Grace's brown, gray and black fluffy tail swish against her face. It reminded her she was going in the right direction.

Marina switched on her SUN lamp. "Uh... folks we have a small problem..." In front of her was a wall of dirt and rock.

Bell asked, "What is it Nana?"

Marina answered, "We need to pray."

Bell retorted, "While I agree, as the Word says, we should pray without ceasing... Would you mind telling us what specifically we are seeking the Author about?"

Grace whispered to Bell. "The tunnel ahead of us has collapsed."

Suddenly there was a loud roar and then a rumble as the tunnel behind Lonely gave way trapping him beneath musky dirt and rock. Lonely managed to get his snout out to say, "It's caved in back here as well. Could use a bit of help guys."

Speed stated the obvious, "That's not good. Not good at all."

Marina spoke up. "Now is not the time to panic."

X raised his hand and added, "When is the time to panic?"

Marina asked, "Speed can you dig Lonely out?"

Speed answered, "I can try." With his two front paws he dug furiously get to his friend. Although he was making some headway he haphazardly tossed the dirt of the rest of the team. "I got him!"

Lonely shook off the dirt and asked, "Where'd everybody go?" The only thing visible was Marina's sun lamp.

In a muffled voice Marina directed, "Everyone carefully remove the dirt from yourselves and then huddle up as close as possible.

X thought, " Is Nana joking? We couldn't be any closer."

Everyone was covered in loose dirt.  Other than size and shape it was hard to make out who everyone was. Bell began coughing.

Bell spoke through gasps of air. "It's getting really hard to breathe." Other than her blindness she was completely healed from The Wasting but her lungs had shrunk in size during the illness.

Marina handed Bell a clean red bandana from her utility pouch. "Bell breathe through this. Take slow even breaths. Everyone else no talking, no moving.

Marina had been in many tight spots before but none as tight as this one. In the past she had to be brave for her grandson. Now she needed to hold it together for a blind girl, a large simple man, two dogs and a big brown bear. In her heart she cried out to the Author.

This is too much! Too much do you hear me?

-End of Chapter 37-

Author's note: Have you ever been in a situation which seemed impossible to get out of? Remember the following verse:

But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. ~ Matthew 19:26

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