Chapter 10

The reunion between RockStorm and Team Axel was loud and full of fighting, hugs and introductions. Once the chaos had calmed, they began discussing the situation.

"So, where even are we?" Axel enquired.

"Some cave." Raid supplied.

"Guys." Alyannie began yanking at the Sand Mage's sleeve. "Something's coming."

Ani suddenly came barreling back from the direction Rock Storm had come from. "RUN, GUYS!" She shrieked. Mal and Maverick, who had gone investigating with her were close on her heels.

A massive beast burst out of the tunnel. It was huge and looked vaguely like a rat… If rats were six feet long, had double rows of teeth like a shark, and a carapace like a beetle. Everyone responded with spells.

"Sand Wave!"

"Earth Hammer!"

"Glass Make: Spire!"

"Sound Dragon's Roar!"

The animal kept coming. Dan re-quipped in to his Zeus' Armor, Axel's wings flared out, Shawn popped a Summoning marble out of his belt.

"It's too narrow to fight it here!" Ani screamed, taking off down the tunnel. "Run! It's our best chance!" Lenore clung to the girl's hair like it was a lifeline. Echo showed her agreement by running after her, tugging Alyannie with her so the blind girl knew where to go.

"What is that thing, Ani?!" Echo yelled, catching up to the dragon slayer. The other shrugged.

"I have no clue!"

The tunnel started trembling. "Someone's trying to bring it down!" Raid yelled in realization.

"Well, then, don't let them!" Dan yelled back, dodging a rock the size of his head.

"It's not that easy!" Raid snapped as a rock passed through his sand body.

"That thing's still coming." Axel said grimly. The group burst out into a massive cave. Shawn caught up with Echo.

"Can you get a read on that thing?" He asked. She shook her head.

"No. It's completely blank. Although, that might just be my inexperience with reading animal minds."

Shawn frowned. "I doubt it. That thing's not natural."

The cave trembled, sending down a rain of rocks. An umbrella of sand spread over all of them, intercepting the rocks. Raid had his hands out stretched, sand whirling around him like a living being. Alyannie's hands were pressed to the ground, trying to stabilize the stone. The monster had reached Dan and Axel by now, and the two were hard pressed to keep it back while dodging falling rocks. Axel had his Angel Blade, the sword flickering with flames.

"More of 'em!" Ani yelled, "Coming from the left!" Almost before the words were out of her mouth, three of the beasts came barreling out of the tunnel she'd indicated.

"Sound Dragon's Roar!" Everyone winced as the sound reverberated around the cavern. "That wasn't a good idea!" The dragon slayer yelled before anyone could protest. "I know! Sorry!" She dodged a swiping claw.

"Lenore! I'll need your help!" The exceed nodded and transformed into a human. She was small even as a human, with pale skin, purple hair the color of her fur, cat-like ears and tail, and small wings. The two girls rushed forward and launched a synchronized attack.

The fighting went on for a long time, then a voice spoke from around them. "This is taking long enough." Everyone stiffened. "Let's make this more interesting, shall we?" A massive force slammed into them, sending each mage flying in opposite directions, as five walls slammed down between them.

Ani and Axel in one section, Mal and Maverick in the next, and beyond them, Raid and Alyannie, Shawn and Echo and Dan and Lenore.

As they stood frozen in the darkness, the walls began to glow faintly, giving them enough light to see well enough to walk forward

Ani threw herself against the wall. "LENORE!"

"Is everyone okay?" Echo's voice said in their heads. Everyone sent out words of confirmation.

"Is my cat okay!?" Ani thought nervously.

"I'm okay." The exceed replied.

"The only way to go is forward, I guess." The dragon slayer said, taking a confident step, only to fall flat on her face, cheeks turning a violent shade of green as the tunnel began to spin. "Shit."

Axel sweatdropped. "You really are useless on moving things."

The dragon slayer replied with a wordless moan of pure suffering. The Nephilim sighed and picked her up like a sack of potatoes.

Dan found that for a tiny flying cat, Lenore was surprisingly fearless. She stared at the massive spider with a look of mild interest.

"That's a big spider."

"IT'S THE SIZE OF A LARGE DOG! WHY ARE YOU NOT FREAKING OUT!?"

"No point."

Mal stood frozen at the edge of the ink-black river. The only way to get across was to make your way over a rickety looking wooden bridge. Maverick turned and scowled at her from halfway across. "C'mon! It's not that bad."

The Glass Make mage shook her head adamantly. "I'm not crossing this river on a bridge like that to save my life."

The other frowned. "You may have to."

The tunnel began to rumble and shake, rocks falling once again from the ceiling.

"Shiiiiiit." Mal swore, scampering across, nearly bowling Maverick over the railing and in to the water. The young man squeaked with surprise and fear.

"Don't DO that!" He yelped, voice cracking. Mal snorted with laughter.

"I have no idea where I'm going!~" Alyannie sang loudly as she skipped along in front of Raid. The sand mage felt a drop of sweat slide down his cheek.

"Crazy." He muttered, as the Earth Mage lost her balance and fell down with a thud. "You okay?"

"I am perfectly fine."

"Aaaawww…" Shawn moaned, his feet dragging. "I'm so tired…"

Echo whirled around. "You've been saying that for the last 30 minutes!" She shot back, scowling.

Shawn's stomach rumbled. "I'm hungry too…"

Echo rolled her eyes. "Please shut up."

Ani was stuck in quicksand. She wasn't overly concerned. She glanced down at the sandy mud and grinned, before looking up at Axel. The Angel-born was perched on a rock, trying to figure out how to pull her to safety. "Axel."

"Yeah?"

Ani's grin widened. "I'm getting a sinking feeling."

The Nephilim gave her a look that show he was approximately 197,345,972 percent done. The girl cackled evilly. "Don't worry, this'll all be over quick."

"OH MY GOD."

"You didn't like that one? I thought it was pun -derful."

"STOP IT!"

"Why, am I not very punny?"

"…"

"…"

"Okay, that was just lame."

"I know, I was running out of things to say."

"We got something big coming from the-" Dan let out a yelp as the ground beneath him crumbled.

"DAN!" Lenore yelled, flaring out her wings and diving after him.

"Nice catch!" The Requip mage grinned. "Thanks." Suddenly they began plummeting again. "WHAT THE HELL?!"

"YOU'RE TOO HEAVY IN YOUR ARMOUR!"

A/N: I'm just going to end this here. I AM SO SORRY ABOUT THE LACK OF UPDATES! I have been really busy, and honestly, have just had really bad writer's block! I'm so sorry! Please review!