Hi, everyone, I'm back for the next chapter of the Xiaolin Dragon King. I'm so excited for the three part finale that will be coming soon. It only feels like yesterday when I started this story. Time flew back, didn't it? Well, enough about that, let's get started on the chapter, shall we? Disclaimer: I own nothing except my OOC.
The Xiaolin Dragon King: First Arc
Chapter Sixteen: Dangerous Minds
(Miles between the Earth's surface)
Dojo was leading the Xiaolin Warriors through a stone trail that would lead them to the new Shen Gong Wu that was revealed, passing by lava waterfalls.
"Whew! I feel hotter than a cooked pig at a Texas barbecue." Clay said, sweating along with the others.
"Why did you have to stash the Wu so far underground Dojo?" Raimundo asked.
"So no one would find it." the dragon replied, a flashlight helmet on his head. "Even me."
"I say we all go swimming after this." Juno spoke up.
Suddenly, the ground started to shake and something shot out of the wall. Four long blurs appeared in the Warriors' vision and numerous holes appeared in the walls. Then the mysterious beings showed themselves by shooting out of the ground, revealing to be four, large worm-like creatures. However, upon closer look, they were actually robots with drills for mouths that opened and showed sharp blades for teeth. The robots had the Warriors surrounded. Then they saw someone come out of the shadows.
"Jack Spicer, why are you always on my face?!" Omi pointed at the taller boy.
"That's in my face, gnome-boy." Jack corrected, standing on one of the worm robots. "Now, say hello to my new and improved Worm-Bots!"
Two more Worm-Bots shot out of the ceiling.
"Why in tarnation would anybody build robotic worms?" Clay questioned.
"Hey, hat-for-brains, for digging!" the young villain answered. "Worm-Bots, attack!"
The Warriors jumped out of the way of one of the Worm-Bots, which drilled into the ground when it missed them. The team did their best to dodge and attack the robots as the area was shaking from all the fighting and digging going on. The Warriors got backed up against a wall and the Worm-Bots inched towards them. They lunged forward to attack, but came to an abrupt halt. Everyone looked and saw that the bodies of the robotic worms had gotten tangled in a large knot during the scuffle.
"Worm-Bots, get your worm butts back in line!" Jack ordered.
Then the ground started to shake again and the ceiling fell apart, a large piece of it landing on and destroying the tangled Worm-Bots. Another piece hit the Worm-Bot the redheaded boy was on he fell to the ground along with it.
"That's what too much digging gets you." Juno remarked.
A part of the wall crumpled and revealed an opening into another room. In the room was a pillar, which had the Shen Gong Wu that they were looking for resting on it.
"The Hoduku Mouse Shen Gong Wu!" Jack immediately started up his Heli-Bot and flew towards it.
However, just as he was about to grab it, something crawled on the wall. A very large brown spider.
The self-proclaimed evil genius screamed and quickly turned around, going straight for the Warriors. "Protect me!" he jumped into Omi's arm. "Or at least hold me tight."
"That is the biggest spider I have ever seen!" the short monk exclaimed.
Then a bigger spider crawled next to the first.
"No, second."
An even bigger one came out next.
"Third biggest!"
"Juno, what should we do?" Raimundo asked the leader, but didn't get a response. "Juno?" he looked at her and saw her standing completely still with her wide eyes on the giant arachnids. "Hello." he waved his hand in front of her face but she didn't even blink. "I think Juno's broken. Now what?"
"We've got to get the Wu!" Kimiko was about to run forward, but the ground started to shake again.
The rock floor underneath the Hoduku Mouse's pillar collapsed and it fell into a deep, dark hole.
"Maybe next time!" Dojo yelled from under Clay's hat as more spiders came and were heading for them.
"Come on, Juno, snap out of it!" Raimundo shook the redhead by her shoulders. "We really could use you right now!"
She blinked her golden eyes, coming out of her trance. She looked at the spiders and gulped. "Uh, you know what, you kids have got this. Just, uh... don't let them come near me, okay?" she said with a nervous smile.
"Are you serious?" the Brazilian deadpanned.
The spiders got closer to them and they would have to save this for later. The monks charged forward and attacked the spiders, while the two redheads stayed to the side to avoid them. However, there were too many of them to take on.
"Thorn of Thunderbolt!" Omi pulled out the Shen Gong Wu and shot bolts of electricity at the wall, making an exit for them.
The humans ran for the exit and made it through, just as pieces of rock fell and covered the hole before the spiders could get through.
"Spiders. Why did it have to spiders?" Juno said to herself.
(Later, back at the Xiaolin Temple)
"I have heard of these mythical creatures." Master Fung said after the Warriors had explained what had happened underground. "Up until now, no one has actually seen one. I had hoped they were only folklore." he went a shelf and pulled out a book.
"Well, they're not. And I've got two kinds of proof." Raimundo said, showing the injuries he had gotten from their fight with the arachnids. "Black and blue."
"According to legend, the spiders are neither good nor evil." the older monk opened the book. "They are simply consumers. They consume vegetation, animals, buildings, even the earth itself. They eat until there is nothing left to eat."
"And I though I had a big appetite." Clay said, in disbelief along with the others.
"If the spiders aren't stopped-"
Master Fung was cut off by a sudden, brief earthquake.
"Let me guess, it's ten thousand years of darkness." Raimundo said.
Everyone looked at him.
"Hey, I go with the odds."
"Well, I'm sure you kids have got it handled." Juno told them. "Let me know when the spiders are gone, okay?" she turned and started walking away.
Omi got in front of her. "Master Juno, you will not assist us?"
"Nope." she replied simply, crossing her arms. "I'm not going anywhere near those things."
"Juno, the way you froze up back there underground, are you... afraid of spiders?" Raimundo asked.
The redheaded didn't reply right away. Then she let out a small groan. "It's not just spiders, it's bugs in general. And I'm not exactly afraid of them, I just can't stand them and rather not have them near me."
"But we've seen you with bugs, you don't look bothered by them." Kimiko pointed out. "And you weren't phase by Jack's Worm-Bots."
"That's because normal bugs are tiny and I can easily squash them with my boot. Also, Spicer's Worm-Bots were robots, they weren't real bug. Those huge-ass spiders were as real as Dojo's rash."
"Hey." the dragon interjected.
"Why do you hate bugs so much?" Clay asked.
Juno sighed. "When I was a kid, my shitty younger brothers would force me to eat whatever insects they could find. And, to make it worse, they were alive, too. It was so gross, the feeling of a live spider going down my throat." she shuddered at the memory. "Ever since than, I've always hated bugs and I always want to stay away from them. And that's not gonna change now."
"Master Juno, I am sorry you had to go through such an ordeal." Omi told her. "But, please, we all need to work together. If we don't, then the spiders will devour the entire world."
"I... I don't know, Omi. I might have to think about it."
Another brief earthquake started up again.
"I don't think that's going to be much of an opinion." Raimundo remarked.
(Meanwhile, at Chase Young's liar)
The earthquake caused a piece of the dining room ceiling to fall into the Heylin warrior's soup.
"Hi, Chase." Jack greeted as a tiger carried him in by the bath towel around his waist, bubbles in his hair. "I heard you wanted to see me."
"Yes, as repulsive as I find it."
"You know, I was in the middle of my Saturday bubble bath." the young villain said as he tried to get the big cat to release him, but to no avail.
"I am not interested in your bathing habits! I understand it was your idiocy that released the spiders."
"Yeah, I, uh, I guess we got lucky on that one, huh?"
"You fool!" Wuya yelled in his face. "How can we rule a planet if the planet no longer exist?!"
"Somehow, we must stop these creatures before it's too late." Chase said as he stood up.
"You know, I think a lot better when I'm standing." Jack told him.
The Heylin warrior sighed in annoyance and made a gesture with his hand. The tiger shook the redheaded boy like a ragdoll.
"On second though, this is fine." he changed his mind.
"Use your Shen Gong Wu to fight these spiders to fight these spiders like a true evil villain!" Wuya told him.
"I'm not usually modest, but I'm a little uncomfortable talking to a girl like this." Jack said sheepishly about his current attire.
"I'm not a girl! I'm a fifteen hundred year old evil spirit!"
The tiger threw the self-proclaimed evil genius into the wall, knocking the bubbles out of his hair.
"The Hoduku Mouse is the key." the ghost's eyes glowed and a projection of the Shen Gong Wu appeared on the opposite wall.
"You know, those spiders are awfully big." Jack said. "Maybe if we left them alone-"
"Whoever possesses this Wu, can use it to undo mistakes like..." Wuya floated over to her ex-partner. "Releasing spiders that will destroy the world!"
"Together, we will locate the Hoduku Mouse that you lost and undo the disaster that you created." Chase stated, poking the shorter male hard in the forehead.
"But I'm not even sure if I can find the spot. It was dark and spooky." Jack said.
The Heylin warrior lifted up his hand and the young villain flew back, being caught by the tiger again.
"I'm giving you a chance to make up for your ill deed and to show everyone what you're mind of."
"If the spiders rip me apart, everyone will see what I'm made of!" Jack exclaimed as the tiger carried him out of the room.
"Idiot." Wuya remarked.
"Yes, I know, but we have on choice but to use him. Let's just hope we'll have this all resolved soon." Chase said. "Especially for Juno's sake." he said more to himself.
"Why for her?" the ghost asked, hearing him.
"No reason, just get ready to leave soon."
(Back at the Xiaolin Temple)
The earthquakes were getting worse and even one of the buildings crumpled apart.
"It's the end of the world!" Dojo screamed, inside the Shen Gong Wu vault along with the Warriors as the building shook and cracked with pieces of the ceiling falling down on them. "It's the end of the world! I've seen it all too often! It's the end of the world!"
"Dojo, you must push yourself together!" Omi told him as they tried to steady themselves from the shaking.
"Warriors, you must leave at once!" Master Fung appeared in the doorway. "And do not return until you find the Hoduku Mouse!"
"What about you?" Kimiko asked.
"I will be alright. Remember, the fate of the world rest with you!"
"Is it me, or does the fate of the world rest with us a lot?" Raimundo questioned.
"You kids have got this, I'll hold down the fort with Master Fung." Juno told them.
"Master Juno, I know you are scared of the spiders, and you have a good reason to be." Omi said. "But we need you! I promise, we will not let the spiders come anywhere near you, so please stay with us!"
"I..." the redhead started to say. "Oh, fine. But if those eight-legged freaks so much as breath on me, you're all getting extra chores for a month."
Then the building caved in around them and went underground.
"Where are we?" Kimiko's voice asked in pitch black darkness.
"Somewhere dark?" Raimundo's voice answered.
"Well, howdy-duh." Clay's voice said sarcastically.
"I can not see a thing." Omi's voice remarked.
"Stay together, kids." Juno's voice told them.
Then they heard Dojo's voice screaming. "Help! Help, a spider has my tail! Help!"
A bright light illuminated around them, showing the monks in stances and the Xiaolin Dragon King holding her Xiaolin Dragon Blade, pointing it right at the dragon holding his own tail.
"Dojo..." Juno said in a ticked off tone of voice.
"Hehehe, whoops." he grinned nervously at the blade pointed at his face. "My bad."
"Do not scare me like that again." she pulled her weapon back. She looked around their surroundings. "Looks like we landed in some kind of underground cave. Well, at least no one's hurt."
"It would appear that lady luck is finally spiting on us." Omi remarked, the light coming from the dots on his head.
"I think you mean shining on us." Raimundo said.
Suddenly, something blasted through the wall near them and sent them flying in the air.
"I think the little guy had it right in the first place." Clay remarked as they fell back down.
They landed on their feet and saw what had come through the wall. It was a drill they knew belonged to a certain self-proclaimed evil genius.
"Of course." Juno said.
"Hey, guys, look!" Raimundo pointed to the side and they saw a familiar pillar with a familiar Shen Gong Wu. "It's the Hoduku Mouse!"
"Wow, talk about lucky." the redhead remarked. "Quick, let's grab it before-"
A bright light shone in their faces, making them use their arms to protect their eyes from it.
"Too late, Xiaolin Has-beens!" Jack pointed at them. "The Hokudu Mouse is mine!"
"Jack Spicer, you have picked a most unwise time for me to wash your time piece!" Omi took a stance.
"Chase?" Juno saw her husband in the drill with Wuya. "What are you doing with Spicer?"
"We face a common enemy." he answered. "It would be wise to set aside good and evil for now."
"Chase is right." Wuya agreed. "As always." she floated closer to the Heylin warrior, making the Xiaolin Dragon King's eyebrow twitch in annoyance.
"No way!" Jack shouted. "I've come too far to go home Wu-less!"
He ran for the Hoduku Mouse, Omi jumping into the air after him. Just as the young villain touched the Shen Gong Wu, the short monk landed on the pillar and touched it when he did.
"Jack Spicer, I challenge you to a Xiaolin Showdown! The game is Mud Wrestling, first to find the Wu wins!"
"But I just took a bath!" Jack complained.
Omi blinked at him blankly.
"Okay, okay. My Tongue of Saiping against your Orb of Tornami."
"Let's go, Xiaolin Showdown!" they both shouted at the same time.
In a flash, the pillar with the Hoduku Mouse moved farther away from them. Then holes opened up in the wall and mud started pouring out.
"Gong Yi Tanpai!" the challengers yelled, the mud already covering their feet.
Then a steam of mud shot out from above and covered the Hoduku Mouse, sweeping it away under the liquid dirt. A wave was created and it knocked Omi down because of his short stature.
"Oh, what a bad time to be short." Juno remarked as she and the others were watching the showdown. "Come on, Omi, just a small set back! No pun intended!"
"By the way, Juno, I've been meaning to ask." Chase said, standing next to her. "How are you dealing with this spider situation? I know it must be rough for you with your bug phobia."
"I'm handling it just fine, thank you. I'll be handling it even better when they're gone."
"Well, if you ever wish to cling to me because you're scared, you're more than welcome to anytime." he smirked at her.
"Shut up." she ordered.
Omi resurfaced from the mud and saw Jack running ahead, only to sink into a deeper part. Taking a deep breath, the short monk dived under the mud again. The self-proclaimed evil genius was feeling around in the liquid dirt for the Hoduku Mouse when it his hands touched something. Grabbing it, he laughed as he pulled it out of the mud. He stopped when he saw that he was holding Omi.
"Now it is my turn." the Xiaolin monk grabbed the redheaded boy's arm.
However, Jack easily slipped him off and he fell back into the mud. Omi jumped into the air.
"Orb of Tornami Water!" he used the Shen Gong Wu to shoot a powerful stream of water at his opponent.
"Not the hair!" Jack cried just as the water collided with him and sent him back.
The other Warriors cheered from the sidelines.
"What I miss?" Dojo poked his head up just as they were sprayed with mud. He sneezed on Jack, who had landed near them.
The self-proclaimed evil genius started up his Heli-Bot and flew into the air, getting more mud on the Warriors. Juno lifted up her hand and a spray of water came out and rained down on them, washing the mud away.
Omi used the Orb of Tornami to search through the mud. Then the Hoduku Mouse shot into the air on a stream of water before falling back into the mud. The short monk quickly swam over to where it landed. Jack shut off his Heli-Bot and cannonballed in the liquid dirt, sending a wave to wash his opponent away. Omi jumped into the air.
"Tornado Strike Water!" he landed back in the mud and shot water from his hands at the young villain before he could grab the Shen Gong Wu.
Jack and the Hoduku Mouse went flying, him landing in the mud while the Wu landed on a rock. Omi jumped into the air to get it.
"Tongue of Saiping!" the redheaded boy pulled out his Shen Gong Wu. "Creatures of the underworld, attack!"
Omi landed on the rock and was about to grab the Hoduku Mouse. However, dozens and dozens of bugs came out of the walls and ground, covering the short monk. The Warriors cringed, the redhead cringing the most and moving closer to her husband. As the insects were carrying the Hoduku Mouse, Omi shot out from underneath them. While he was in the air, some bugs flew into his open mouth and he swallowed them, much to the disgust of him and the others.
"I am going to be sick." Juno turned away and held a hand to her mouth, looking nauseous.
"There, there, darling." Chase rubbed her back in a comforting manner.
As the bugs started to scatter, Jack saw that they had brought the Hoduku Mouse right to him.
"Looks like I found my element." he smirked as he grabbed it.
The showdown won, the area went back to the way that it was before.
"Now I know how Master Juno feels." Omi gagged as he tired to get the feeling of swallowing the bugs out of his mouth.
Jack was standing on the pillar victoriously, holding the Shen Gong Wu he won.
"Okay, Jack Spicer, you have won." the short monk said. "Now use the Shen Gong Wu to stop the spiders!"
"Not just yet." he replied. "I want to savor the moment."
Unknown to him, but seen by the others, they saw three of the giant spiders crawl down the wall. They shouted, making Jack turn around and see the arachnids. He screamed as he jumped from the pillar, dropping the Shen Gong Wu he was holding.
"You fool!" Wuya yelled.
Juno's whole body froze as one of the spiders jumped onto the pillar, the others soon joining it. She wanted to summon her Xiaolin Dragon Blade, but she couldn't stop her hand from shaking long enough to do it as she remembered the times her brothers had made her eat insects. And all for their own amusement.
Then she felt a hand grab hers and pull her behind her husband.
"Stay behind me, Juno." Chase told her, taking a protective stance in front of her.
Juno blinked at him and silently nodded her head, gripping her hands together to get them to stop shaking.
"It's the end of the world!" Wuya wailed.
"This is so unfair!" Jack complained from behind Clay. "The one time I win, the world has to end!"
Suddenly, cracks appeared beneath the spiders. Then the floor collapsed, sending them falling down into a hole. The hole got even bigger and forced Juno and Chase to one side of the cave while the others were on the other side, separated. At the bottom of the hole was a pit of lava.
"No!" Kimiko yelled when the Hoduku Mouse fell into the pit, disappearing beneath the lava.
The cave started to shake and pieces of the ceiling fell.
"Juno!" the Japanese girl called. "Catch!" she pulled out the Golden Tiger Claws and threw it at hard as she could across the giant pit to the other girl.
Juno held up her hand and the Shen Gong Wu slipped right onto her hand.
"Golden Tiger Claws!" she made a portal in the air and she and the Heylin warrior immediately jumped into it.
The spot where they were standing was soon covered with rocks that fell from the ceiling.
"Did they make it out?" Raimundo asked.
"I'm not sure." Kimiko replied as rocks kept falling.
"The Molar-2000!" Clay pointed at Jack's drill. "Come on!" he grabbed the whimpering self-proclaimed evil genius and ran for the contraption with the other monks.
"Don't worry, Juno! We're right behind you!" Dojo called. Then he heard something behind him and turned around, seeing a giant spider. He quickly followed after the others.
Juno and Chase jumped out of the portal, rocks falling out with them. They took stances in case any spiders might have followed them, but the portal disappeared without anything else coming out. The redhead let out a breath before she turned her head.
"Woah." she said at the sight she saw.
The couple had come out of the portal and into a field. But the most surprising thing was the holes that were everywhere and could be seen for miles.
"As if being married to you didn't make fighting for good complicated enough." Juno told her husband. "Man, I really do hate bugs. Especially giant ones."
"If the world is to be saved, we must be the ones to save it." Chase said. "There still maybe an answer."
"Well, we obviously can't use the Hoduku Mouse anymore. But, I think I get what you're saying. We need to go to your place."
(Later, at Chase Young's liar)
"By using the Fountain of Hui and the Eagle Scope together, we can learn everything. Including how to stop the spiders." Juno said, both she and her husband holding their respective Shen Gong Wu.
"That's correct. But, first, you must give your word as a Xiaolin Warrior to only look for a way to destroy the spiders." Chase told her. "And not evil."
"Fair enough. You have by Xiaolin word." she bowed her head slightly before setting her Wu on the ground.
"Fountain of Hui!"
The Shen Gong Wu glowed and floated into the air, hanging over their heads. The three outer prongs extended outwards and spark of lightening shot out, surrounding the two in a blue energy field. Chase held onto the Eagle Scope with one hand on one part of the handle while Juno grabbed the other part, holding it between them.
"Eagle Scope!"
The energy field spun fast for a moment before it was replaced with images that held all sorts of information.
"Wow, I didn't know that." Juno pointed at the images. "Didn't know that one either. I didn't know that I didn't know that one. Is that what color it is?"
"Juno, focus on the knowledge we sneak." her husband told her, but let out a small, endearing smile at her behavior.
"Right, fate of the world and everything." she said. Then she closed her eyes and focused on a way to defeat the spiders. After a moment, she opened her eyes and a single image appeared in front of her.
It showed the spiders and some sort of chamber with eggs hatching hundreds of other spiders. And then it showed the way to destroy them.
"It's the lava." she said. "Of course, the lava can destroy the spiders. "Yes!" she hugged Chase with her free arm. "Now those eight-legged monsters will be done for good!" she smiled happily.
"Yes, I know you're very happy about that, darling." he rubbed her head with his own free hand. "But we still need to find where they are."
"Oh, yeah, you're right." she pulled back. "Let's find out and head there as soon as possible. I just hope the kids are okay, and that they made it out of there."
(Meanwhile)
The Molar-2000 shot out of the cave wall, driving around and stopping behind a corner. The monks, Dojo, and Jack all stilled as the spiders that were chasing after them skittered by. They all breathed a sigh of relief until Kimiko gasped.
"Where are we?" she was looking out the window of the drill.
Outside, there was a long bridge that lead to a giant structure that looked like a city of sorts. The city was in hole that had a continuous flow of water falling into it.
"My guess is Atlantis." Dojo said.
"Why Atlantis?" Clay questioned.
The dragon pointed to the bottom part of a stone pillar outside. On it was, "Welcome to Atlantis".
"Perhaps we should take shelter here until the spiders are gone." Omi suggested.
Jack drove the drill across the long bridge and came to a stop right at the front entrance of one of buildings of the long lost city. They all got out and looked around the city that had seen better days.
"Uh, guys, maybe we should hold hands so we don't get separated." the self-proclaimed evil genius said as they were walking towards the entrance.
"Bad idea." Clay immediately denied, Dojo on his shoulder.
"Why's that?"
"Nobody wants to hold your clammy little hand." Kimiko told him.
The redheaded boy mocked as they started to climb the steps. But, suddenly, they came to a stop when they saw spiders appear right in front of them.
"Wow, nellie!" Clay exclaimed as even more spiders came and surrounded them from all sides.
Jack screamed as the spiders leaped at them.
"Does anyone else feel like they're gonna heave?"
"Don't even go there." Raimundo said to the self-proclaimed evil genius. "That kind of talking can get awfully contagious."
After failing to hold off spiders, the monks and Jack were taken into a cave with lage egg sacks everywhere. Their bodies were covered in strong spider silk and they were hung upside down on the cave ceiling. To the side, the Molar-2000 was also being held in the the air with webs.
"I say we change the subject." Kimiko said.
"I feel all the blood rushing to my head. It is most unpleasant." Omi remarked, feeling dizzy.
"What do you think the spiders are gonna do to us?" Jack asked, very nervous.
"Dude, we're in a web, take a guess." Raimundo told him.
"I don't want a spider to eat me!" the redheaded boy wailed.
Outside the building the group had been captured at, a portal appeared in the air.
"This place is huge." Juno said when she jumped out of the portal and looked around the city, Chase following her out a second later. "It'll take us forever to find what we're looking for."
"I have a horse! His name is Boo! Shh! We all live in his shoe!"
Following the sing-song voice, the couple saw a certain dragon curled around the bronze spear of one of the statues nearby.
"Dojo!" Juno went over to him. She grabbed him and shook him out of whatever trance he was in.
"Ah, Juno!" he immediately hugged her face. "Where am I? What year is it? How long have I been living like a rat in a hole?!"
"Thirty-five minutes, give or take." she replied, deadpanning.
"Huh, funny, times moves a lot slower down here."
"Where are the others?" Chase asked.
"The spiders got them! They were everywhere, it was awful!"
"I so did not need to here that." Juno pinched the bridge of her nose, starting to regret coming here.
"Hey, you're one of the bad guys." Dojo pointed at the Heylin warrior.
"Well, when we find the kids, we'll probably find the..." the redhead shuddered. "Queen and egg chamber."
"Queen? Egg chamber?" the dragon repeated with wide eyes.
"I know, I hate it, too."
They started heading for the entrance of the building, but Juno came to a stop.
"Juno?" Chase looked back at her.
"Sorry, I just..." she looked down at the ground, gripping her arm. "There are no doubt giant spiders inside, waiting to jump us. I can't help but... be scared. Heh, isn't that pathetic? The great Xiaolin Dragon King is afraid of bugs." she let out a small, bitter smile. "Sorry you got a coward for a wife."
"Hey, Juno..." Dojo started but the Heylin warrior stepped over to her.
"Listen to me, Juno." Chase said, placing his hand on the side of her face, making her look at him. "You are no where near cowardly. Your fear is understandable due to the continuous trauma you experienced when you were a child. Also, you've learned how to tolerate being around bugs of normal size, it makes much more sense for you to be scared of giant ones. And there are not many people who can admit they are afraid." he gave her small smile. "You are the bravest woman there is, and I know you can overcome this obstacle."
Juno said nothing as she stared at him.
"Of course, if you wish to stay out here, I understand." he added. "But, if you do decide to come, I'll be sure to protect you from the spiders no matter what."
"I... Will you let me hold your hand while we're in there?" she asked softly, blushing a little bit from having to ask a rather embarrassing question.
"You don't even have to ask." Chase held out his hand to her.
Juno immediately grabbed it and held it tightly, sticking close to him. They stared each other for a moment before they went inside with Dojo following.
"Chill, evil partner." Clay told Jack as he was desperately trying to struggle free from the spider silk. "Spiders don't eat people."
"You sure?" the redheaded boy asked as he stopped.
"Positive. They desiccate, suck out the fluids until there's nothing left." he snorted as that made the self-proclaimed evil genius even more scared. He saw the others looking at him. "What, cowboy can't have a hobby?"
"I don't wanna be he said!" Jack cried as he started to struggle again.
"And they usually start with the squirmiest." Clay told him.
The young villain froze as his eyes darted left and right for any spiders that could be about, really freaking out.
"I heard this place really used to rock on Saturday nights." Dojo remarked as he and the two warriors were traveling down a hallway.
Juno was practical glued to Chase as she stayed close to him, still gripping his hand. She kept her eyes out for anything that could be a giant spider, flinching at the tiniest of sounds and moving even closer to her husband, her chest pressing against his arm.
"Poor girl's really scared." the dragon remarked. "So why do you look so happy?" he looked at the Heylin warrior, who had a satisfied expression on his face.
"Well, it's just so rare that Juno has to depend on me for anything." Chase answered. "One of the cons of having such an independent wife. And it's very cute when she gets scared and clings to me. However, Juno... you're starting to crush the bones in my hand, could you ease up on the pressure just a bit?"
"Suck it up." she replied and tightened her grip on his hand.
Suddenly, they heard what sounded like hissing and came to a stop. They looked up, seeing spiders on the rafters above them.
"We must be getting close to the nest." Chase said, pushing Juno behind him.
"Uh-oh, more incoming." Dojo pointed in the direction they came from and saw more spiders coming.
Juno gulped. She looked up and shouted when one of the spiders was falling towards her. Before it could touch her, Chase punched it and sent it falling away from her. He attacked a few more that came at them, trying to keep them away from Juno, but too many where showing up and surrounding them. The couple stood back-to-back.
"Juno, you might have to lend a hand right now." Chase told her.
"But..."
"I know you're scared, but close your eyes and allow yourself to see. Allow your tiger instincts to take hold. Remember everything your master taught you."
Juno looked at him a moment and nodded. She took a breath and closed her eyes, taking a stance. Dojo was hiding under a pile of rubble and watching when the spiders started to close in on them. Then the redhead's eyes snapped over. She lifted up her fist and slammed it into the floor. The ground shook and then sharp pieces of rock shot out in all direction. The rocks sent some of the spiders flying back while most of them where impaled. Many of the spiders scattered and ran before the same could happen to them.
Juno breathed a sigh of relief when they left. "That was nerve-wracking."
"You did well despite your fear." Chase told her, looking at her proudly. "You truly are amazing, darling."
"Well, I have you and what you said to thank." she said, smiling at him.
"You and hubby sure work well together." Dojo remarked as he came out of his hiding spot, the Heylin warrior walking ahead.
"Yeah, we did use to fight well together before he went all evil." Juno told him.
Chase went to one of the fallen spiders that wasn't impaled and was still conscious, pinning it down to the floor by it's neck.
"Looks like we've captured our first prisoner." he said as his wife came over.
"I'm so glad you're the one holding it." she said, pulling out a Shen Gong Wu she had picked up earlier. "Tongue of Saiping!" she held it to her mouth. "Alright, eight-legged freak, tell us right now, where is your egg chamber?"
"You can kiss my eight feet." the spider replied. "When the egg sac hatches, there will be too many of us for you to stop." it laughed.
Chase removed his hand and Juno stomped her foot, a rock spike shooting out of the ground and impaling the spider's head.
"Ugh, gory." Dojo cringed.
"Let's keep going, I get the feeling we're closer than we think." the redhead said.
The Heylin warrior nodded and they continued down the hallway.
Eventually, the trio had made it into the cave-like area where there were webs and eggs sacs everywhere.
"We must be inside the queen's chamber." Chase said.
"Really, I didn't notice." Juno tried her best to avoid touching either the sacs and webs. "But I still don't see any sign of the egg sac we're looking."
Dojo suddenly shouted, grabbing the redhead's leg. "I think we're gonna need help." he pointed up.
The couple looked and saw the very thing they were looking for, a giant egg sac housing thousands and thousands of spiders waiting to hatch.
"Well, I'm going to have nightmares for life." Juno remarked, looking at the egg sac with wide eyes.
"I'll protect you from those, too." Chase told her.
Then they heard shouting coming from up ahead, the voices sounding familiar. They quickly followed the yelling and came to a stop when they saw a cowboy hat on the ground. They looked up and saw the captured monks and Jack.
"Kids!" Juno said in relief when she saw them. "Are you all okay?"
"Oh, not bad." Raimundo replied. "Except for that itch I can't reach."
The redhead used the Golden Tiger Claws to make a small portal and put her hand through it. It came out of a portal behind the Brazilian and scratched the spot he couldn't reach, making him smile in appreciation. When she was done, Juno pulled her hand back, smiled, and gave a thumbs-up.
"What's Chase Young doing here?" Clay asked when they saw the Heylin warrior. "I know you two are married, but still."
"Take it is easy." the Xiaolin Dragon King told him. "I wouldn't have come this far without him. Also, we formed a good and evil alliance to save the world."
"That's right, rub it in." Jack spoke up. "Now how about getting us down from here?!"
Juno held up the Golden Tiger Claws to get them down, but Chase held up his hand, stopping her. He ran up the wall and moved past the others swiftly. He was standing beside his wife again before Jack hit the ground, the monks soon falling on top of him.
"We need to drill to the earth's core and flood the chamber with molten lava." Juno informed as she made quick work of burning the spider silk off their bodies. "Once it hardens, the spiders will be encased forever." she picked up Clay's hat and put it back on his head.
"Peachy plan." Jack said as he got free. "Except whoever you send will wind up as toast!"
The female warrior simply pointed up at the Molar-2000, still suspended by the spider webs.
"No, no, you can't! I may be evil, but I have rights!" the young villain got on his knees. "And I burn easily!"
"As tempting as that sounds, I was thinking of putting the Molar-2000 on autopilot." Juno told him. "But, if you want to volunteer yourself..."
"No, no, I'll go with your plan!"
"Excellent." she smiled.
After cutting the drill down, they set the proper functions on it and put it on autopilot. Jack waved sadly as the Molar-2000 started up and moved, drilling into the ground.
"Now we must leave before the queen returns." Chase said.
"No argument here." Juno agreed and they made their way to the end of the chamber to leave.
However, as they reach it, Omi collided with a wall. Except, it wasn't a wall. Eight black eyes opened and stared right at the group. The short monk yelled and jumped back.
"I believe the queen is in the building." Kimiko said.
"Run. Now." was all Juno said.
They all turned and ran as the spider queen stuck her giant head further into the chamber, her front legs sticking in to attack them but missed. She crawled into the hole and chased after them, an army of spiders following close behind.
"Everyone take my hand!" Juno held up the Golden Tiger Claws.
"I have a better idea." Jack said. "I'll take the Golden Tiger Claws!" he snatched the Shen Gong Wu off of her hand.
"Jack, you jerk!" Kimiko yelled.
"Too late, Xiaolin Has-beens!" the redheaded boy made a portal and jumped into it, leaving them behind with the spiders.
"What do we do now?" the Japanese girl asked.
"There is one thing we can do." Clay said. "Run again!"
No one argued as they ran away from the spider army after them.
Jack jumped out of the portal, seeing he was outside the city of Atlantis.
"Whew, out of danger." he said, taking the Golden Tiger Claws off.
Suddenly, he was lifted up into the air. He looked down and saw he was standing on something black with glowing spots on either side. It was also very big. Jack screamed as a long, black tail of a giant crocodile wrapped around him and lifted him up higher into the air.
Back inside the spider queen's chamber, the others were still running from the giant arachnids.
"Get a move on, they're gaining on us!" Clay yelled, grabbing his hand when it fly off his head for a moment.
Above them, egg sacs on the ceiling stared to hatch.
"It looks as if we can kiss our backsides goodbye!" Omi exclaimed.
"You mean kiss our butts!" Raimundo corrected.
"That is most disgusting."
Suddenly, Juno felt something hit her from above and she fell to the ground. Groaning, she pushed herself up to her knees. Then she felt something crawl on her back and move to her chest. She looked down and found herself staring into the eight eyes of one of the newly hatched spiders.
"Juno!" Chase and the others came to a stop when they realized what happened.
The redhead just stared at the arachnid and it stared back. Then it hissed at her and bared it's fangs. She quickly smacked it off of her and into a wall.
"Juno, are you alright?" the Heylin warrior when he ran back over to her, pulling her to her feet.
"It... touched me." Juno was just looked down at the spot the spider was on. "The spider touched me."
"Juno?"
"It... was so gross." she clenched her fists tightly, her body trembling.
"Oh no." Chase stepped back. "Take cover now!" he yelled at the monks.
"What?" they blinked.
"Do it now!"
"It's happening again!" Dojo exclaimed, looking very scared.
"What is?" Omi asked.
"The last time Juno got touched by a giant bug, everything in the area was completely annihilated." Chase told them. "And so will we if we don't take cover."
"I really..." Juno said to herself, not even seeming to notice the newly hatched spiders falling to the ground around her or the spider army closing in. "Really hate..."
"Now!"
Clay slammed his foot on the ground and the rocks around them covered them in a dome.
The spiders got closer to the female warrior. She looked at them with glaring eyes.
"I really hate bugs!" she yelled as fire covered her entire body, flames shooting out in all directions.
Inside the rock dome, the others listened to the yelling and inhuman screaming they weren't sure believed to the spiders or Juno. There were crashes and the sound of things breaking, something even crashed against their dome. This kept up for a while until it suddenly went quiet.
"Is it safe now?" Raimundo asked.
"Wait a moment." Chase held up his hand.
Then there was another yell and loud crash.
"Now it's safe."
The rock dome went down and the monks' eyes widened at what they saw. Icicles were stuck in the wall with with big and little spiders pinned under them, rock spikes had impaled spiders on them, and there were some arachnids that were cut into pieces. In the center of it all, Juno was panting heavily as the last pieces of flames extinguished from her body. They carefully approached her.
"Juno... you okay?" Raimundo placed his hand on her shoulder, pulling it back a second later when her body was still hot enough to burn. He blew on his hand.
The redhead took a few more deep breaths, calming down.
"Juno?"
"Chase..." she hugged the Heylin warrior. "The spider touched me! And it was so gross!"
"Yes, I'm sure it was." Chase hugged her back, not even minding the burning sensation on her skin. "I'm sorry I let that happen to you, I swear it won't happen again."
"I just wanna get out of this chamber of horrors." Juno told him.
"I know, darling, we will."
Before the monks could say anything about their leader's mood swings, they heard something and looked down the direction they came from. They saw the queen and her spider army. Apparently, the female warrior was only able to push them back instead of destroying them all.
"Time to go!" Dojo yelled.
Chase picked up Juno in his arms and they ran, the spiders chasing them once again. They managed to make it outside the chamber and outside Atlantis. They heard an explosion behind them and they stopped running. They saw lava gushing out where the egg chamber was. Then the whole city exploded and waves of lava flowed out in all direction, the spiders chasing after them getting caught in one of the waves.
"So this is it." Dojo said. "Well, I did have a good fifteen hundred years." he gave a content smile, but tears soon came into his eyes. "I want to live!"
"The Black Beetle Shen Gong Wu will protect us from the intense heat." Omi pulled out said Shen Gong Wu. "Black Beetle!" he tossed it into the air.
"You sure do come prepared." Clay remarked.
A larger, float version of the Black Beetle landed in front of them and they immediately jumped on it, getting carried away by the lava and into the water. The group saw the city get completely covered in lava.
"Is it over?" Juno asked, now sitting next to her husband.
"Yes, Juno, it's all over." Chase told her, arm around her shoulders. "The spiders are finally gone."
She sighed in relief and lean against him. "Thank goodness."
Suddenly, the float was lifted into the air by a large, steam of water. They shouted as they were heading straight for the cave ceiling. As they were nearing the cave, the crocodile that had gotten Jack was in the air. The self-proclaimed evil genius made a portal with the Golden Tiger Claws and jumped through, escaping the giant reptile's snapping jaws.
The group in the float went through the cave's ceiling, only for their bodies to get stuck when they came through. In front of them were a group people who looked liked tourist. And they were tourist, who were there to see Old Faithful. One person took a picture of the team in the ground. Then they were shot higher into the air by the actual geyser.
"Killer ride, dude!" Raimundo high-fived Omi as their float was on top of the stream of water.
They were all dirty and banged up from the recent events, but they were alive.
"Way to go, Omi!" Kimiko hugged the bald boy.
"Hey, look, I caught me a fish!" Clay pulled off his hat and showed said fish.
"Gotta say, we make a good team, all of us together." Juno said to her husband. "Fighting as one kinda makes it a little hard to battle each other again."
"I'm sure we'll find a way." Chase told her. He stood up. "This moment won't last forever, except in this moment of time."
"Juno, your husband talks as weird as you do sometimes." Raimundo remarked.
"Yeah, I know." she said as she stood up next to the Heylin warrior. "Thank you again for helping me, Chase. If you weren't there for me, I don't think I could have handled this situation well at all."
"You know I would do anything for you, Juno." he placed his hand on her cheek. "And I do mean anything."
"And I would do anything for you. Within reason, of course." she smiled, winking at him and making him smirk.
They stared at each other for a while before leaning in and kissing, much to the chagrin of the monks.
"Get a room, you two." Raimundo said as he and the others turned away from the scene.
The couple pulled away a moment later.
"I'll see you next time, darling." Chase said before he jumped over the edge of the float.
The Warriors looked down, but didn't see the Heylin warrior. Then the geyser lowered and the team was brought back to the ground, the Black Beetle sinking back down to it's normal size. The tourists started to cheer and take pictures of the team.
"Hey, kids, sorry I let you get captured." Juno told them as they waved at the cameras. "And that you felt like you had to keep me safe from the spiders, either though I'm suppose to do that as your leader."
"Nah, don't sweat it." Raimundo said. "You faced your fears and came to save us, that's what really matters. And, you know, it's cool that you worked with Chase."
"You did what you had to do to save the world. And Texas." Clay added.
"You did most splendidly, Master Juno." Omi told her.
"Thanks, kids. I used the Fountain of Hui and Eagle Scope to find the answers we needed. However, I gave Chase my Xiaolin word that I wouldn't look to see how to destroy evil." Juno informed.
"That's okay, Juno." Kimiko reassured her. "You had to."
"Well... I might have had a little peek." the redhead gave a mischievous smile.
Outside the crowd of tourist, a certain self-proclaimed evil genius came out of a portal and landed in a waste basket.
(The next day, at the Xiaolin Temple)
Construction on repairing the damage done to the temple was underway.
"I tell ya, you should have seen me in action." Dojo said. "Those spiders will think twice before messing with this dragon again." he puffed out his chest.
Then he came to a stop when he came face-to-face with a giant spider. The dragon screamed and literally jumped out of his skin. Raimundo laughed as he was holding the fake giant spider he used to scare him.
"Dojo, you should have seen yourself." the Brazilian picked up the skin and tossed it to Kimiko, who a shaking Dojo was curled around.
"Rai, that wasn't very nice." the Japanese girl scolded as she handed the skin to the dragon.
Raimundo scoffed. "How can anyone be so afraid of a spider?" he retorted. Then his eyes widened when he felt something land on his hand. He looked and saw a small black spider. He screamed and quickly ran to hide behind some baskets, jumping out of his clothes while doing so.
"What a pansy!" Dojo laughed along with Kimiko, putting his skin back on.
In a tree, Juno and Omi were also laughing as they sat on a branch.
"Tongue of Saiping!" the short monk held the Shen Gong Wu up to his mouth and looked at the spider that had landed on the Brazilian when it crawled next to him. "Thank you for your assistance, my small friend." he high-fived the small arachnid. "Master Juno, have you gotten over your fears of bugs now?"
"I wouldn't say that." she replied. "I'm still gonna freak out if I come face-to-face with one more on the larger side, and I can be tolerable of the normal sized ones. But..." she looked at the spider. "I guess little guys like that one aren't so bad."
Juno and Omi smiled at each other.
"Now, who do you wanna scare next?" she asked, smirking mischiveously.
"Ooh, let's do Clay next." he said.
"Yeah, we'll put it in his hat."
The two laughed to themselves as the schemed.
To be continued...
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I would like to mention that Juno being scared of giant bugs is thanks to a suggestion given to me by Hina714. Please let me know what you thought about it in your reviews. Now, as I mentioned in the last chapter, I will be doing one more chapter before the three part conclusion. I don't wanna give away too much, but it will be Juno telling the monks the events that happened after Chase turned evil. I think it would be a good chapter to start off from for the final chapters. I hope you all enjoy it when it comes. Until then, everyone, take care.