Hi Guys! It's been a busy week for me, and the tight schedule will only get worse from here, so don't expect too many updates over the next couple of weeks. There are some people who generally review my story faithfully who haven't, so that's a bit surprising and slightly disappointing. But anyway, thank you to the following people who DID review Chapter 10: ArestheUnderlander, Myname, concerned person(I'll put the disclaimer for this chapter. But after that I don't really see a point in doing so.), HumanicHedgeHog, Lightning Ares, SamsungPony(fantastic ending to the climax of your story, by the way), a guest reader, 1996, Alpha Death, MarbleSky, allyouhadtodowasstay, me and Apollo. I really appreciate all those who reviewed my story, and I urge everybody who has reviewed my story to continue reviewing it. The number of reviews I've had for this story so far has already long surpassed the number of reviews I got for the whole of my previous story, and I have you guys to thank for that.

I hope you like this chapter. I haven't got back in the groove for writing fight scenes, so this is a warm-up. Nevertheless, I put in extra effort for this, so I hope you enjoy it!

This chapter is written from Calvin's perspective.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Underland Chronicles.


Chapter 11: Open Fire

Calvin found himself rooted to the spot, watching on in horror as Fenix neared Hazard, his four front legs extended and his black, beady eyes fixed on Hazard's neck. His curved fangs looked like they were dripping with venom, although Calvin could have been imagining things. What he knew for sure was that Fenix was seconds away from sinking those fangs into Hazard's neck, and that Calvin couldn't reach there in time. His reaction time was far too slow. He was vaguely aware that he was screaming Hazard's name as he reached into his belt for his gun. But it was far too late. Fenix was a second away from finishing Hazard…

… Until Perdita slammed into Fenix, sending him skidding across the cavern. Hazard had turned paler than Calvin had ever seen, and he stood there dumbfounded, almost as if he was shell-shocked by what had just happened in front of him. He stared blankly at the gathering mass of spiders and gawked at the scene.

"BATTLE FORMATIONS!" Perdita roared.

Her order shocked Calvin into action. As the bats hovered and flew through the air to get into battle formation, Calvin grabbed Hazard and yanked him away, sending the both of them crashing to the ground, due to the weight of Hazard's armour. Calvin looked up to see Lapblood, Flyfur, Sixclaw and Gnasher land in front of him, before shifting into position to form a defensive arc. "Keep Hazard out of this. We'll protect the two of you," Lapblood growled to Calvin.

Calvin looked at the situation before his eyes. The spiders and cockroaches easily outnumbered the humans and bats by at least ten to one. They were trapped in an unnatural environment, an environment which didn't give the bats enough manoeuvrability, hence rendering their flying abilities pretty much useless. The spiders could easily weave a web that the bats would fly into, and the battle would be over. It would be a complete annihilation.

"You know we don't stand a chance," he said bleakly to Lapblood.

Lapblood stared ahead, her steely gaze unwavering. "We stand a chance as long as we fight as hard as we can. Now get Hazard to a safe corner. We'll cover you," she told him.

Calvin nodded firmly. Hazard, however, looked stupefied and unable to move. Calvin shook his arm violently and yelled at him, "Hazard. HAZARD! You need to move now! We're surrounded!"

Calvin's shouting seemed to bring Hazard back to reality. Hazard struggled to his feet, as Calvin surveyed the cavern quickly. He caught sight of a dark shelter in the opposite corner of the cavern and set his eyes on it. "Hecate!" he called out, "A little help?"

"Hold on Calvin!" Hecate shouted back, spinning through the air to avoid a spider that leapt straight for her. "I'm a bit busy at the moment!" she shouted to him over the noise of the battle.

Calvin looked at Lapblood, who gave him a grim nod. "Don't worry about me. Keep Hazard away from the fighting. We promised as much to Luxa," Lapblood told Calvin.

Calvin pulled out Raven and Ebony. "No. You move faster than me. Take Hazard to that dark shelter over there now. I'll cover you," he ordered her.

Lapblood was about to protest, but Calvin cut her off, saying, "Don't argue with me now! Just do as I say! Get Gnasher to clear the path for you, and get the twins to watch your flanks. I've got your rear." Lapblood seemed adamant to argue with him, so Calvin added for good measure, "I'll be fine, Lapblood. If anything, I should be fighting. I have a pair of assets in my hands that I can use. Just trust me this once."

Finally, Lapblood seemed to relent. Calvin helped Hazard onto her pack, and she broke into a sprint almost immediately, dashing for the dark shelter. Gnasher, Flyfur and Sixclaw all exploded after her, trying in vain to match her pace. Calvin watched on, and took a deep breath. It was the time for the Gunner to enter battle again.

Calvin observed the battle from his corner for a few seconds, to gauge how the rest were faring. The spiders were crawling all over the place, attempting to break the formation that the humans and the bats had set. Meanwhile, the cockroaches were gathering in numbers, appearing to set themselves up for an almighty charge to overwhelm the Regalians. Calvin felt a little uneasy when he thought about Temp. Temp wouldn't have wanted this to happen. Temp wouldn't have led his followers to the death, but Calvin had to push that thought to the back of his head. If he had to kill cockroaches, then that was what he would do.

Fenix was back onto his feet, scuttling about while whispering away, sending orders to the spiders. Calvin was guessing that the order was to continue to try and disrupt Perdita's formation, and the pressure the spiders were placing on the humans was causing the formation to strain slightly. Calvin noticed that some of the soldiers on the left flank of the defensive formation were having a hard time trying to fend off the assault by the spiders. The spiders just never seemed to stop coming.

Calvin shifted his focus back on the ground. Lapblood was now in heavy traffic, fighting her way through hordes of spiders, with Gnasher doing his very best to clear a path for her. But he could see both of them were tiring quickly. Even Flyfur and Sixclaw couldn't sustain the momentum for long. There were just too many spiders coming for them, and they just didn't have the strength to hold them off.

Calvin heard a gust of wind behind him, and without second thoughts, he leapt in the air as high as he could and he stretched out his legs. Within seconds, he found himself riding on Hecate, as she spiralled into the air. Calvin closed the visor, shielding his face and making his eyes the only exposed part of his body. "Let's help Lapblood out," he suggested to Hecate.

Hecate instantly dived towards Lapblood, and Calvin steeled his nerves. Now wasn't the time to lose focus or let his nervousness get the better of him. He trained his pistols on the spiders and fired shot after shot at them. If possible, he shot at the spider's abdomen or the eyes, but generally all he needed to do was to get his shot on target. His main job was to incapacitate the spiders to allow Lapblood to get to the shelter and protect Hazard. Occasionally, he would hit the legs of a spider, but that was good enough to slow them down.

"Take them out with your wings!" Calvin told Hecate. Hecate nodded and swooped towards the spiders, extending her wings. With her belly now close to the ground, she then used her wings to knock spiders off their feet as she flew through the swarms of spiders. Calvin began to open fire again, and this time he was firing at will. He allowed his instincts to overwhelm his senses, and just let his eyes and hands do the work. After hours of practising at the shooting range back home, he had naturally become deadly proficient at hitting targets.

Suddenly, a spider leapt at Hecate and bit down on her shoulder. Howling in pain, Hecate spun in the air, almost shaking Calvin off. The spider latched onto her, biting even harder now that she had lost control. Calvin cursed and aimed carefully at the spider. One wrong shot could kill Hecate at the rate she was spinning. Hecate continued to fly up and down causing him to shift up and down as well. "I can't get a clear shot!" he yelled at her, but she didn't seem to hear him. Any time now, she would lose all control and crash into a wall, or worse still, fall to her death. Hecate's life was now in his hands.

The spider glanced at him, but never let go off its bite. Calvin had an awful feeling that the spider was injecting venom into Hecate's system. He realised that as every second passed, Hecate neared her death even more. Calvin felt panic and desperation begin to grip him. He wasn't going to let her die, especially not like this. Not after all they had been through. Mustering all the strength and focus he had, he watched the spider closely, locked his gun in position, and pulled the trigger.

Calvin saw the bullet ripple through the air, before thudding against the forehead of the spider. A look of surprise crossed the spider's face, before it let go of Hecate and fell off her. Calvin heaved a huge sigh of relief, as he saw the spider's body hit the ground hard. But Hecate still didn't seem like she had gotten over the pain yet. She continue to wobble through the air uncertainly. "Hecate! Hecate, fight against the venom! Hold on! It'll be over soon! Just find a place to land!" Calvin shouted at her, but all he got in response was a feeble murmur.

Suddenly, she lurched forward, nearly throwing Calvin off in the process. Calvin held on to her fur tightly, as she began to spin faster and harder. Another spider landed on her back, but Calvin was ready this time. He fired two shots right at its face, and it fell off Hecate. But Calvin lost his grip while shooting at the spider. Hecate suddenly shot up, causing him to slide down her back. "HECATE!" he screamed as he tried to grab tufts of her fur to hold on.

Calvin soon had nothing to grab onto, and he fell off Hecate, hurtling towards the ground. He found himself yelling at the top of his lungs, but he knew that was no good. Screaming wasn't going to save him this time. He felt the wind rush past his helmet, and he closed his eyes. This was his moment. It was time to remain peaceful before his death. Calvin surprisingly found his nerves calmed down. He was willing to accept whatever came his way.

He felt himself land hard, knocking all the breath out of him. At first, he thought he had fallen on the cavern floor, but then he realised that the texture of the ground couldn't have been soft and furry. He looked up to see Hecate, with sweat running down her face, carrying him despite the strain from the venom.

Hecate. Of course it had to be her. Who else would have so willingly endured the pain of venom running through their veins to save Calvin? Calvin felt a pang of guilt run through him as he realised the sacrifice Hecate had gone through. She struggled in the air for a while more, before breaking into yet another spin. Calvin knew she couldn't hold up in the air for long. She was already crumbling under the sheer pain weighing down on her.

Suddenly, Hecate lost her balance, and she began to plunge towards the ground. "HECATE!" Calvin hollered, "DON'T GIVE UP, HECATE! NOT NOW!"

But there was no point in shouting. Calvin closed his eyes and braced himself for the impact. Hecate crashed into the ground so hard the entire cavern floor shook, and the force of the crash flung Calvin off Hecate. He saw dust and dirt spew out all over the place, and Calvin could even see some spiders crushed or injured from the impact of the crash. As the dust cleared, Calvin found himself staring at Hecate's motionless body. He looked desperately for any signs of life, but he couldn't even see any sign of shallow breathing. He watched on hopefully, waiting for even the smallest part of her body to twitch. But nothing happened.

Calvin's emotions were in turmoil. The first feeling was one of disbelief. He couldn't believe that Hecate was… gone. It just wasn't possible. It wasn't supposed to happen. She couldn't die just like her brother died. It wasn't fair. Her brother had willingly flown into battle. She had just tagged along for a diplomatic mission while following Calvin. The circumstances were infinitely different.

Then came the feeling of guilt. There was no denying the fact that she fell because of Calvin. He was the one who had led her into this cavern, he was the one who had lost focus of the spiders sealing off the exits, he was the one who had asked her to fly lower to take out the spiders with her wings, he was the one who couldn't shoot the spider when it bit down on her shoulder, he was the one who had fallen off her back and forced her to swoop down to save him… There really was no on else to blame but himself. And overwhelming feelings of guilt crashed into him, as he tried to contemplate his next course of action, as he tried to make himself feel better. But there was no running away from the fact that she was gone because of him.

Then came the sadness. The pain bit into his heart, and he felt a single tear slip out from his eye and trickle down his cheek. After all they had done together, after all the adversaries and enemies they had faced side by side, after all the battles they had flown into together… she was really gone. She wasn't going to be with him anymore. Not tomorrow, not for the next battle, not for the next year. They were never going to fight together ever again. Calvin could feel the anguish building up in him. They never got bonded, but Calvin knew they had a relationship as close, if not closer than bonds.

Finally came the rage. He looked up at the spiders scuttling towards him, and felt red-hot anger in his gut. With an ear-splitting howl of fury, he pulled out his guns and began ruthlessly shooting at the spiders. Blue liquid spurted out all over the place, but Calvin had no intention of stopping there. He quickly ran out of ammunition, but had reloaded his guns in seconds. Driven by anger and with the additional practise of reloading his weapons, he had no trouble with running out of ammunition.

A spider tried to attack him from behind, but he saw it coming. He spun around and lashed out with a savage kick at the spider sending it flying towards the wall and breaking its back. Half a dozen spiders leapt down from the walls towards him, but Calvin casually looked up and fired six bullets into the air. That was all he needed. Six bullets to end the miserable bastards' lives.

He continued to fire away, taking a life with every bullet. It was no longer about protecting his friends anymore. It was about avenging Hecate.

Just as he ran out of bullets in both guns, a spider leapt at him. But Calvin was unfazed by the attack. He swung his arm, using Ebony to strike the spider in the face. The spider fell back, but Calvin wasn't content with just hitting it in the face. He walked up to it, and stepped on its leg, breaking it. The spider squealed in pin, but it didn't make Calvin empathise with it. Instead, he stepped on another leg, causing it to squeal even louder. Another spider tried to intervene by jumping at him, but by then he had reloaded his gun and he blasted a bullet into its face.

The spider continued to squeal in pain, but Calvin's insides had gone cold. He no longer felt any sympathy or pity anymore. He stepped on the third leg, fourth leg, fifth leg, sixth leg, and then a seventh leg. By then, the spider's incessant squealing was no more than a weak groan. Calvin looked down on it, deciding whether to punish it with more pain. In the end, he ended its life by blasting a bullet into its abdomen.

He could hear Lapblood shouting his name, but he ignored her. Now wasn't the time to be stopped or restrained. The spiders were now scared of him. They gathered around him uncertainly, whispering to each other softly, almost as if they had no idea what to do with him. Calvin didn't give them any time to discuss. He fired bullet after bullet at them, hitting each and everyone of them in the head. The spiders scurried away in retreat, giving Calvin some time to catch his breath.

"CALVIN!" Lapblood screamed at him. Calvin turned to look at her. Her fur was matted with blue blood, and so was Gnasher's, Flyfur's and Sixclaw's. They stood in an arc around the dark shelter, guarding Hazard, who was huddled in the corner.

"What is it?" Calvin asked Lapblood in irritation, a little surprised at how hoarse his voice sounded.

Lapblood was about to say something, but then her eyes widened and she stopped herself. "BEHIND YOU!" she shouted at him.

Calvin turned to find a cockroach leaping at him. The cockroach slammed into him, sending the both of them crashing into the wall. He slumped to the ground, completely winded by the impact. The cockroach, although not very big, had hurt him. The cockroach staggered to its feet, before running headfirst at Calvin and ramming its head into his side, knocking all the breath out of his lungs again. Calvin stumbled to his feet, and sent the cockroach skidding aside by kicking it in the face. Calvin then pulled out Raven and trained it on the cockroach's face. But then he hesitated. The cockroach reminded him of Temp, and Calvin didn't want to have to deal with the guilt of killing Temp's brethren. It just didn't feel right, especially after what Temp had done.

But then the cockroach headbutted Calvin's knee, shocking him back to reality. He then didn't bother thinking twice. he pulled the trigger, blowing a hole in its head. The cockroach wasn't completely dead yet, but it was out of the picture. Its body squirmed on the ground for a while, before coming to a standstill.

Just as the humans looked like they had the ability to hold out, the ground shook, and massive pink, slimy tentacles exploded out of it, followed by razor sharp claws. The sudden appearance stunned the humans, causing them to retreat quickly. Enormous moles erupted from the ground, and they numbered at least ten. Calvin knew the fight was over. They didn't stand a chance. The human formation was already disorderly. A single concentrated attack would be enough to break down the Regalians' originally impenetrable defence.

Calvin turned to find the army of cockroaches mounting an assault on the distracted humans, charging right at them and scattering their formation. The humans couldn't hold ranks like this. Not when they were overwhelmed and separated from each other. As much as he hated to admit it, that cockroach charge had been very effective. The battle was all but lost. The spiders attacked the humans with renewed vigour, and Calvin's stomach churned when he saw a dozen spiders tear a human to pieces. The moles began lumbering forward, before swinging their massive claws, with one claw in particular decapitating a human.

This was the answer to diplomacy. This was what happened when the humans tried to be nice to the spiders and the cockroaches and the moles. This was how peace was dealt with. Ruthless violence and brutality. Calvin found himself detesting the cockroaches, spiders and moles. Did they know how many lives they had taken? Did they know how many fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, sons and daughters they were taking?

Another cockroach came sprinting at Calvin. Calvin calmly whipped out his dagger and sliced off its antennae, causing it to screech in pain while scuttling about in confusion. Calvin watched on sadistically, deriving pleasure from seeing it suffer. After a while, he drove the dagger into its head, killing it.

"Calvin!" Lapblood called out to him.

Calvin jogged wearily to where Lapblood was, and she said to him, "We need to find a way out. We'll die within minutes at this rate."

Calvin was at a loss for words. He had no clue how to get them out of this situation. They were outnumbered, losing men quickly, and had no conviction, determination or motivation to drive them to carry on the fight. But then he remembered his utility belt. He had the thermite grenade! It could possibly bust the web which had covered up one of the exits. But he still needed a distraction of sorts.

"I can get us out of here," Calvin said urgently to Lapblood, "I just need a key weakness which can hold them back for a while. Something which they are vulnerable to."

"Sound," Lapblood answered without thinking twice, "A sharp, piercing, high-pitched sound will scramble their senses and hold them back. But it will affect our fliers too. And we can't create such a high-pitched sound"

"I can. Just cover your ears. This is gonna hurt," Calvin replied.

He yelled at Perdita, who had a large gash on her forehead, "PERDITA! GET EVERYBODY TO COVER THEIR EARS!"

Perdita didn't bother asking why or contesting his request. "Cover your ears!" she yelled at the surviving members of the delegation. Even the bats used their wings to shield their ears.

Calvin stuffed ear buds into his ears and pulled out his sonic devastator, before setting it off. Even with the ear buds, he felt a sharp, piercing pain hit his ears and ring hard. All around him, the moles and the spiders rear back and fall due to the sheer pain from the noise, and Calvin even noticed some bats collapsing onto the cavern floor, writhing on the floor in agony. So that was why the spiders were always whispering. They couldn't endure sharp, high-pitched noises. Calvin shut off the devastator and placed it back into his utility belt. The spiders and the moles were lying on the floor, moaning in pain. Meanwhile, the cockroaches were confused by the whole situation, staring around at their fallen comrades, distracted by their sudden collapse. Now was the time to capitalise on their distraction.

"A flier!" Calvin roared, "I need a flier! Preferably two!"

Two bats landed next to him, and he nodded at Lapblood, who then led Hazard to be mounted up on one of the bats, with Gnasher, Flyfur, Sixclaw, getting on as well. Calvin climbed up on the other bat, with Lapblood joining him. He signalled for another bat to come forward, and he gestured for the bat to take Hecate's body. The bat nodded and duly flew over to Hecate, picking her up gingerly, and then hovering in the air. "What is your plan, Overlander? They're recovering quickly!" Perdita shouted at Calvin.

Calvin didn't bother answering Perdita. It would only delay him and waste precious seconds. He pulled out the thermite grenade, and after saying a little prayer, he threw it at the web covering the entrance to the cavern. The thermite grenade exploded on impact, and although it didn't blow the web up, it burned away at the web, melting the fibres and clearing up the entrance, soon the sticky web had been burned off, freeing up an exit. "GET OUT! NOW!" Calvin yelled at the top of his lungs.

The surviving humans quickly mounted their bonds or other bats, and the bats rocketed towards the exit, soaring out of the cavern. Calvin tensed up as he saw Hecate's body being carried away, but now wasn't the time to be emotional. He had a job to do. The bat carrying Hazard flew out as well, leaving just Hadrian, Perdita, Lapblood and Calvin. Calvin suddenly heard a rustling noise behind him. He turned around, and found to his utmost horror, the army of spiders and moles back on their feet, and readying themselves for a charge towards him.

Calvin pulled out his weapons, prepared to give up his life in order to delay them from reaching the others. Lapblood bared her teeth and snarled. Perdita also drew out her blade, and stared at the army. This would be his last stand. Calvin took a deep breath, ready for them to make the charge.

But it never came. Hadrian flew straight at them, shouting, "GO! GET OUT OF HERE NOW! I CAN HOLD THEM OFF! JUST GO! DON'T LET ME DIE IN VAIN!" With that, he hurled himself off the bat he was riding and flew straight at the army, brandishing his sword. He crashed into their ranks, causing chaos and mass confusion amongst them. He began to swing his sword, hacking at legs, limbs, claws, antennae, and pretty much anything he could slash at.

Calvin was too stunned to move at first. But then Perdita screamed at him, "CALVIN! WE HAVE TO GO NOW!"

The bat Calvin was riding on quickly took off in the direction of the exit, leaving Calvin to watch on as Hadrian fought valiantly against an entire army. Just before they flew out of range, Calvin witnessed Fenix sinking his fangs into Hadrian's throat. And then the bat he was riding on burst out of the tunnels leaving him staring blankly into the open air, trying to comprehend what he had just seen over the past one hour.


That was that! This was a difficult chapter for me to write, so I hope you enjoy and appreciate it. Please review this story, and I look forward to seeing all of you at the next chapter!

Question: What do you think about Calvin's fighting during the battle?