Chapter 2
We activated our mecha-beasts quickly and drove into Auroris Cavern, a mining cavern where the Pyritor was threatening the miners. We stopped our vehicles, shocked to see the rock creature. The Pyritor let out a loud roar and the miners, old and young, scrambled in horror.
"Do not worry! Pronto is here!" Pronto announced bravely to the miners, but they ignored him and ran away while screaming. The growl of the Pyritor turned Pronto into a coward.
"Whoa, am I wrong, Trix, uh, does that thing look just like the one in your story?" Kord asked after he took his blaster.
"Giant monster carved out of a rock, yes. It matches the description," Trixie explained as she used her camera to record the beast.
"Haha, the bigger they are," Pronto started his sentence and fired his Mega Morphed Rammstone towards the Pyritor. Unfortunately, the Pyritor punched the Rammstone and it hits Pronto instead. The Molenoid and his slug groaned in pain and fainted, dazzled by the stars.
"Super speed and immense strength – just like the legend says!" Trixie remarked as she continued to record. The Pyritor roared furiously at her.
"Taking down an overgrown statue would be pretty masterful, hint hint," Eli said to Junjie.
"Yes it would," Junjie replied and loaded his left wrist blaster. "Allow me to demonstrate." He walked forward, feeling confident.
"Eli so got this," Kord blurted out.
Pronto came up to him. "Man, then perhaps we should make this interesting," Pronto said after digging his nose and threw the booger behind him, which further disgusted Ilys. "Say, our usual wager?" He wiggled his fingers.
"Yeah, you're on," Kord wiggled his fingers too. They wiggled their fingers at the same time and then did a fist bump.
Junjie slung his Frostcrawler and using his Slug Fu, he commanded it to freeze the Pyritor's legs, turned back into protoform and returned to him. The attack did not work as the Pyritor was able to free himself by smashing the ice with his fists.
"Time to step our game," Eli stated and inserted his Arachnet, Spinner into his wrist blaster. He fired Spinner and he transformed into a giant purple spider. Eli used Slug Fu, making Spinner to create a long web string that coiled the Pyritor's legs repeatedly. After that, Spinner pulled the web string, making the legs to hit each other, which toppled the Pyritor.
"Kord to Pronto!" Kord teased Pronto as he raised two fingers, meaning that he had won the bet twice. "Nice slinging, Eli!" he cheered for the person he put his bet on.
The Pyritor pulled the web string off his feet and looked enraged. "Uh... guys?" Roy was feeling worried as the creature was not yet defeated. Jie and Jia, on the other hand, were wondering why the Pyritor was attacking the miners.
The Pyritor let out a threatening roar at Eli and Junjie. All of the sudden, a Grimmstone hit him square on his face!
"Where did that come from?" Eli questioned. He and Junjie heard a snicker. They turned to their backs and saw Sleade on his chicken mecha beast.
"Oh yeah," Sleade blurted out.
"I remember that weird dude from the tournament," Kord stated.
Sleade casually shot another Grimmstone and hit the Pyritor square in the face. He roared and left, much to our disbelief and shock.
"Weird or not, he did it," Haru muttered.
"You talking about me?" Sleade, who suddenly appeared behind Haru, asked. Haru was startled by it and he turned to face him.
"No? Well, yeah... but..." Haru replied as Sleade scratched his own body.
"Talk later!" Sleade shouted, again, behind Haru, which scared him again. "I got it on the run," he finished his sentence after he dug his ear and showed it to Haru. He moved back and a fly flew past Haru. Fortunately, Haru had his nose pinched, feeling disgusted by Sleade's lack of hygiene.
Sleade rode his mecha to the direction where the Pyritor ran off. The miners returned to the mine as it was now safe. "Well, that was... creepy," Haru commented in a high-pitch voice.
"Oh, don't mind him," an elderly miner told us. "Sleade's a bit... unusual but then you guys sounds exactly what I'd call normal either."
"Why, thank you very much!" Pronto thanked him.
"Seriously, he thinks Molenoids are normal?" Ilys wondered since there were no Molenoids in The Eastern Caverns until she and Pronto came here.
"What were you saying about Sleade?" Falcon asked the elder.
"He's been protecting us. We haven't been able to mine without that monster showing up! The cavern depends on these Auroris Energy Crystals for power," the man explained and showed us the cavern's surroundings, which was filled with Auroris Crystals that were glowing yellow.
"But this Sleade, did he not previously work for the Emperor?" Junjie questioned.
"Look, nobody's perfect and now the Emperor's stuff is water under the bridge. He keeps to himself, comes when we need him, nor wants a crystal or two for service," the elderly man said. "Besides, didn't you used to work for the Emperor?"
That question hurt Junjie's feelings a little, which annoyed Brick and I. "That is also in the past. I am no longer under the Emperor's control. We only wish to help," Junjie explained.
"Thanks, but Sleade's got this cavern covered," the man replied.
"You don't know me," Sleade suddenly appeared out of nowhere, right beside John, Tad, Regina, Wen Wing, and Pronto. They got startled, and Pronto jumped onto Ilys' arms. She got annoyed by it and dropped Pronto, making him land hard on his butt.
"Only good things," the elder miner answered as he walked towards him. "Any luck out there?" He tossed Sleade two Auroris Crystals from his palm. Sleade caught the crystals.
"Nearly had the Pyritor. Fled south to his den at Flowstone Cavern. It's too risky to follow him inside," Sleade informed.
"If you need me again, I'll be close by..." he told Trixie, which frightened her.
"And that... was also creepy," Trixie commented after he rode off with his chicken mecha-beast.
The elder saw Elke and quickly recognized her. "I know you, Cave Troll. You are Elke. You were the one returned the stolen crystals to us," he said.
That caused the other miners' attention. They remembered her ever since she helped many people in The Eastern Caverns. Elke was shocked that they knew her, just like how Hamengku told us that she saved him from the Underlords.
"It seems that they still remember your good deeds, Elke," Roza said and smiled.
"Sleade said the monster lives in Flowstone Cavern. Where is that?" Eli asked the elder.
"No far to the south," the elder answered. "If you all could stop the Pyritor there before it attacks again."
"Say no more, Pronto gives his word that he will employ his many talents to bring this monster down!" Pronto announced proudly. "To the south then!" He started his mecha.
"Pronto! South is the other way?" Nate called out.
"Charge!" Pronto yelled as he accelerated his mecha and went off to the wrong direction.
"I'll get him," Kord sighed.
We began to ride our way to Flowstone Cavern while Trixie was reading some information from her tablet.
"Uh... Junjie, the Pyritor lives in Pyrite Cavern," Jie said.
"And that is north of the mine," Jia added.
"Are you sure?" Xia wondered.
"According to the legend, the Pyritor first made its home in Pyrite Cavern, a thousand years ago," Trixie explained as she read her tablet. "Wait, Pyrite Cavern is north of the mine." She checked the map of the Auroris Mines.
"Yes, that is where he lives," Jie agreed.
"He never moves away from his home. Sleade must be lying. It is a trap!" Jia said.
"That legend is very old and likely only partly true. It could have moved away," Junjie replied.
"Question is: which parts are true?" Trixie asked.
Kord coughed deliberately. "I believe you still owe me for that last bet," he said to Pronto and tossed his stinky boots at him. Elke pulled out a disgusted expression at the sight of Kord's smelly boots.
Pronto sighed. "Molenoids always pay their debts," he said and smelt the boot. He cringed. "Unfortunately," he added. Ilys was laughing at Pronto's reaction.
