A/N: Wanted to address a common question that's come up among readers. There are 2 main reasons why Devic (o) probably doesn't recognize USA or California...1) It was more than 12 years ago, and he is human, and 2) If you haven't noticed already, I might as well tell you: he isn't completely there, if you catch my drift.

*Our world*

Phi and Alex reappeared in the doorway about fifteen minutes after they had left. Tom handed Phi a small knapsack and looked pointedly at it while she gazed at it curiously, "There's food and a small first-aid kit inside..."

Phi grinned and Tom looked her and Alex over. She was wearing a warm turtleneck sweater over a short-sleeved white shirt and cargo jeans with her hiking boots, along with having her hair tied back in a loose ponytail. Alex was also wearing a sweater over a short-sleeved shirt, but had thrown his leather jacket over that. Other than that, they matched, his jeans and boots coordinating with Phi's very well. Tom smiled softly, "You two look like you are at a photo shoot for an outdoor wear magazine."

Alex grinned anxiously and ran his fingers through his hair, "Ya well, we thought we might as well look prepared..."

Tom nodded, turning back to the wall that the two boys had disappeared through, "All right, this isn't going to be easy...You both have your necklaces right?" Phi and Alex both pointed to a small chain around their neck. "Good...When you land, it might not be as smooth as Numair had it for us...You may blank out for a few moments, but other than that, I don't think there should be too many other problems..." Tom sighed and turned back around to face them, "Whenever you're both ready to go, I can make it happen..."

Phi nodded and Tom grabbed her up in a tight bear-hug, "Go get your kids sis, but be careful!"

She gave him a quick squeeze back, smiling, "I'll try..."

She pulled away and Tom turned to Alex, giving him a quick guy hug, grabbing Alex's arm with his hand. Tom grinned, looking Alex right in the eyes, "I would tell you to take care of Phi, but I guess you would now anyway..."

Alex nodded, smiling back at his old friend, "You better believe it."

Tom clapped Alex on the shoulder, nodding, "Good, now go get my nephews back!"

With that, Alex pulled away and Tom turned to the wall, trying to focus his Gift. It was harder to wield in this world, so it took much more concentration for him to make a small dimensional rift appear. Sweat dripped down his forehead as he outstretched his arms, willing the small portal to stay open long enough for Phi and Alex to slip through. Tom watched them disappear into the swirling vortex, then collapsed as it came crashing shut onto itself, his lungs heaving, gasping for breath, exhausted form his grueling task.

*Tortall*

Alex reached for Phi's hand as they spun wildly through space, just barely managing to wrap his fingers around her wrist and the world seemed to slam to a halt, throwing him into darkness.

***

Devic (o) could push his men only so far. It was well past nightfall when he finally gave the order to dismount and start camp, and he wasn't at all pleased with his decision either. Scowling, he turned to Will, who was helping him unpack his horse, "I bet you it is only but a few miles more to the City too..."

"You did the right thing, setting up camp Devic. Your idea of a few miles to most people is more like half a day's journey...Beside all that, we were slowed down by that pile of boulders in the road, so it was bound to take us longer to return home. The men are exhausted..."

"None the less, we should have kept going...You know how I despise keeping prisoners Will, and especially overnight!"

"Aye, Devic, I do, as does every other man in this camp. I will see to it that a guard be posted to guard the Scans if it would make you feel better."

"Make sure you rotate the guard so they do not fall asleep while at their post...The last thing I need right now is to wake up and find that those five have disappeared..."

"Understood." Will hurried off to go do as he was told, almost tripping over Devic (y) and Luke as he entered their campsite. The two boys had been giving a small sheet and a blanket, and had tossed the blanket over a horizontal tree branch to make a makeshift tent. At the moment however, they had been sitting outside, staring at the bustle around them as the soldiers got themselves settled. Will apologized quickly, "I am terribly sorry, but you really should not be sitting in the middle of the path like that."

Devic turned to him after rubbing his shoulder where Will had accidentally bumped into him, "Where ya goin'?"

Will answered quickly, feeling as if he owed the boy an answer, "I am trying to find some volunteers to guard the captives for the night..."

"Oh...We could watch them!"

Will grinned and began to hurry off again, "Thank you for the offer little one, but I am afraid I need to find someone who is taller than the sword that they would wield..."

Devic frowned, and his attention returned back to Luke who was tugging at his brother's tattered pajama sleeve impatiently, "What'd he say?"

"He just wanted to find someone ta be a guard."

"Oh..." After a moment, Luke's eyelids began to droop and he let out a gigantic yawn.

Devic looked at him, "You should go to bed."

Luke nodded wearily, but didn't stand up, so Devic lugged his little brother under their tent onto the blanket that they had laid out on the ground. Devic crawled beneath the piece of fabric afterwards, lying on his stomach so that he would still be able to watch the men work. Luke yawned again, wiped his eyes and rolled onto his side, his back nestled into Devic's side. He closed his eyes and asked drowsily, "Do you think Mommy an' Daddy'll find us?"

Devic started. His mind had been drifting, but now that Luke mentioned their parents, he felt a small stab of homesickness run through his heart, "Sure they will...I bet there lookin' for us right now..."

"...I miss them..."

Devic rested his chin in his arms, and said nothing, not wanting to upset Luke. A thought had just come to him...What if they were stuck in this place forever? What if they never saw their parents again? He would have panicked then, but exhaustion overtook him instead and he fell asleep.

Devic (y) was jolted awake suddenly from a sound that came from outside, amongst the pitch black of the camp. The campfires had been extinguished and he was unable to see more than a foot in front of his face. Gently, he eased Luke's head off his back and crouched at the entrance of his tent, peering out into the shadows. The night was chilly, a slight breeze making it seem even colder, and Devic shivered slightly through his pajamas. By now, the knees, elbows, and seat of his pants had begun to wear away, and the edges of the sleeves were all tattered. They were obviously not meant for outdoor wear.

After a few moments, Devic was about to go back to the blanket and try to get some rest when he heard another noise, the sound of a branch snapping a distance away from where he was squatting. Peering as far as he could, Devic was just able to make out the faint glow of a torch. That must be the guard watching the bad guys. Curious, Devic slipped outside, slipping on a small pair of boots that Will had managed to find in their supplies, and tip-toed as silently as he could towards the soft glow, not wanting anyone to know that he was awake.

Hiding behind a large tree, Devic stared around its huge trunk to the small clearing connected to the larger one that they used as the camp by a small path. In the center, there was a small fire burning while the five prisoners, looking especially eerie in the flickering firelight, gazed intently at the poor man who was stuck guarding them. Thankful that Will hadn't taken him up on his guard offer, Devic continued to watch as the Scans, as he thought they were called, stared unblinkingly at the soldier, as if trying to make him nervous.

Just then, Devic started as he felt a small drop fall onto his nose. He rubbed it off and looked up at the sky. The moon and stars were being blocked out by something...maybe rain clouds. He felt another drop fall on the top of his head and stood closer to the tree, wishing that he had just stayed with Luke in their tent as the rain began to come down as a drizzle. The guard raised his hand, frowned worriedly, and turned his attention back to the Scans who had started whispering amongst each other. He yelled at them to stop talking, shifting his standing position uncomfortably, and watched warily as the drizzle grew heavier and rain began to come down. Muttering, the Tortallan walked over to check on the Scans to make sure they were tied securely to the tree, then hurried away, probably to get further directions.

Devic frowned and gazed out at the clearing as the men backed up against the trees and stood shoulder to shoulder. At first, it looked as if they were just trying to stay out of the rain, but then he noticed that the rope that tied the Scan closest to him to the tree was becoming loose. They were untying the knots and escaping! Devic glanced around, looking for someone to tell, but seeing nothing other than darkness away from the campfire in the small clearing, he quickly realized that he no longer remembered even which way the main camp was!

He whipped around and watched as the Scans, chuckling to each other, freed themselves completely and began to sneak off into the forest after grabbing a branch and lighting it on fire, like some kind of torch. As they began to disappear into the forest behind their clearing, Devic took one last glance around him, then bounded after them, following their torch as the light bounced up and down through the dark shadows and pouring rain.

***

Phi's eyes flickered open and she rolled onto her stomach, grabbing her head as a dull pounding began to beat in her skull. Her vision blurry, she peered around hazily, momentarily forgetting what she was doing and where she was before she caught sight of Alex sprawled out on the forest floor close to her. Phi groaned and dragged herself over to him, her thoughts flooding back to her, and she gently rolled him over onto his back. His eyes were closed, but as he felt her fingers brush against his cheek, he frowned, moaning softly and raised himself into a sitting position, rubbing his forehead, "...Did we make it?"

Phi managed to sit down next to him and he wrapped his arms around her as she gazed around, "I, I think so..."

It was night, the sky black without any sign of stars. They were also right in the middle of a dark forest with ancient trees leering down at them through the shadows. Phi frowned as she felt a small drop of water hit the top of her head, "I think it's starting to rain..."

Alex nodded and rose shakily to his feet, then turned to help Phi up, "We had better find a place to stay until morning..."

They were silent for a few minutes, sliding in between the huge trees looking for some shelter before Phi whispered, "How are we going to find Devic and Luke?"

Alex stopped for a moment, realization hitting him. They had only been gone for about two days, but they could have gone in any direction and traveled a great distance by now. He glanced at Phi who was staring at him thoughtfully, but with a frightened look in her eyes. Alex shook his head and sighed, "I don't know..." Phi nodded, but looked down at the ground as if sadly pondering over the problem and was startled out of her contemplation when Alex grabbed her hand, "Look! Over there, there's a small cave opening...We could spend the night there until the sun rises."

"It'll work..." Crawling over a large pile of rocks, they both slipped several times as they tried to clamor up to the slightly elevated cave. It wasn't easy getting there in the dark rain, but at last they managed it, although they were both soaked. When they got inside, they could see no further than a few feet. Phi peered into the inky shadows and murmured, "I wonder how far back it goes?"

Alex shrugged and pulled off his dripping leather jacket, happy that he had taken his old one, and laid it out on the ground to dry as Phi peeled off her sweater and shook out her hair. Her white t-shirt was just barely visible to Alex although she was only crouching a foot away, and he shivered, wishing that they had a fire. If he could only find some dry sticks, he could probably manage to make one. "Hey Phi...feel around for some sticks or wood...I'm going to try and make a fire if I can find some."

She nodded, even though he couldn't see her and stretched her hands out blindly along the wall of the cave, her fingers bumping into a few small sticks and twigs. She grabbed them and walked over to where she could hear Alex moving around, dropping them at his side, "Will these work?"

He felt them, and grinned dryly, "Well, it's a start." Pulling out what he thought were the two largest sticks, he piled the rest up into a small mound and began to rub the two sticks together, trying to get a spark.

Phi crouched down next to him, "Does that really work?"

"Oh ya...I've done it before at least...You just need to get enough friction going an then.... Aha!"

A small spark leapt from the two pieces of wood and fell onto the pile of tinder, making a small flame. Phi could see Alex smiling triumphantly as he grabbed some more small sticks from nearby and piled them near the small flame, blowing lightly on it as it grew bigger. Pretty soon, he had a nice fire going, having found some small tree branches near the mouth of the cave, and Phi huddled near it, gazing around their temporary shelter. The mouth of the cave, where they were sitting, had a low roof and close walls, reminding her of some sort of corridor as she stared down the long passage that led further into the rock, seemingly stretching on forever. Alex sat down behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. She smiled softly and nestled into him, resting her head on his shoulder and resting her hands on his. He sighed, kissing her softly on the cheek, "I'm sure they're fine...After all, Devic is old enough now to take care of Luke, right?"

"I hope so...But they're very resourceful, and I'm sure they've found someplace to go in this rain, don't you think?"

"I'm sure they have..." Alex sighed and glanced down into the dark tunnel, "I wonder what's down there?"

Phi narrowed her eyes as a soft sound began to drift up from the depths of the cave, like a slow wind blowing through. Alex turned his head and listened to, and the breeze narrowed into a long hissing sound, causing Phi to shiver. Alex pulled her closer and said nervously, "I'm sure that was just the wind..."

"Right, the wind..." Despite his explanation, they both strained their ears for another sound and started when the low hiss began again, this time a little louder. Phi swallowed, her tired mind causing her imagination to invent creatures laying just beyond their sight in the darkness, waiting for them to fall asleep. She shook her head to clear the thoughts, but the feeling wouldn't leave as this time the hiss ended in a long, high-pitched screech. "I've never heard wind sound like that before Alex..."

"It must just be blowing through some rock formations or something..." Say something scientific, like Tom would, to make the monsters go away. "Maybe there's a hole on the other side of the tunnel, and the wind is just blowing through the cave. Don't worry Phi..."

It had been about half an hour, and they were both beginning to nod off when the third bout of hissing blew through, causing them both to spring awake. Alex laughed nervously, his voice sounding trembling in his ears, "The wind again?"

Suddenly, the wind blew wildly from down the corridor, blowing their fire out. Alex grabbed their wet clothes as they were almost swept out the mouth of the cave, and reached for Phi as the gust died out as quickly as it had started and they were thrown into darkness again. Phi's breath was shaking as she found Alex's hand in the darkness and clung to it. A soft whispering had began to drift up from the shadows, followed my muttering and more hissings. Something glinted from the inside the dark, and Phi turned quickly to Alex, "Alex, I don't think that we are the only ones in this cave!"

Alex grimaced, his heart beating about three times too fast, and he called out in Tortallan, "Who's there? Show yourself!"

A soft gurgle sounded from the depths of the cave that slowly turned into a chuckle, and a wispy, mocking voice whispered, "Oh, do not worry...We will..."

The echoing voice died away again and suddenly, some sort of string shot out from the inky blackness and grabbed onto Alex's leg. He shouted as something began to pull him into the shadows, and he tried to free himself but found that the stringy stuff was sticky. Phi cried out in surprise and grabbed his hand in vain, for the string just pulled them both in. Alex struggled some more, but the more he struggled, the more tied up he seemed to become. The ground became rocky and they began to slide down a steep incline, the sticky stuff now letting gravity do most of the work. Phi and Alex tumbled down the hill, landing in a pile of bones.

Alex tried not to crush Phi as he landed practically on top of her, but whipped around as the voice, which now seemed to be standing right beside him jeered, "Silly mortal...You can not escape from our web..." Web? Like spider webs? As his eyes adjusted, a large figure appeared out of the darkness.

He paled, his pulse stopping in his veins, "Phi, close your eyes..."

"Why, Alex, what is it?"

"Just do it!" Leering at them from the roof of the small cavern that they had fallen into was the largest spider he had ever seen, with a woman's decaying head stuck on top, grinning down at them with sharp, razor like teeth.

A/N: Yay! More spidrens! I know they don't often talk (can they talk?) But I figured that at least one of them should have learned how to by now, so there ya go...