Chapter 2: Arrival and Survival

"GO!"

The Shane Gang reversed their mechas and shot forward, leaping gracefully over the Dark Water. Just as it looks like they succeeded, Doc moaned again in his slug tube.

"Doc?" Eli asked with a slight tremble in his voice, like he always had whenever he was worried or frightened. Little did he know that he had not reached the other side of the Dark Water pool and his hand had already left the controls. It was then did Burpy squeal, making him alert of what's going on.

"AAHHH!" Eli screamed at the top of his lungs when he realized that he was plunging into the Dark Water. The others, who had already reached the other side of the pool, looked back and their eyes widened in shock. Kord suddenly remembered the flight mode and shouted back, "BRO! USE THE FLIGHT MODE!"

The natural reflex of a human when he is in danger comes into use now. Eli immediately pulled the little pink hook at the side of Lucky, his mecha beast. Lucky's hind legs instantly transformed into boosters that spit out blue flames and propelled Eli over the other side the pool. He heaved a sigh of relief when he landed safely at the opposite side.

"Come on guys. We gotta get outta here before-WHOA!" Eli swerved Lucky to the right just in time as a black shadow swooped past him on his left. He looked up, and gasped. "Wait…"

"CAVERN FLIES!" Pronto screamed. "RUN FOR YOUR LIIIVVES!"

The Shane Gang immediately jumped and started running as swarms of Cavern Flies appear out of nowhere and started chasing them. Eli was especially terrified of them ever since he was bitten by one when going to the Lightwell. They raced on, trying not to look at them as it would just intimidate them.

When the swarm seems to have increased threefold, Trixie shouted to Eli, "ELI, WE HAVE TO FIGHT BACK!"

"I KNOW TRIX!" he hollered back. He grabbed his blaster and loaded it with Burpy. "Save us, Burpy! We have to get Doc to Bonnie Springs as soon as possible!" Burpy nodded with determination, and Eli turned around to shoot.

To his horror, a Cavern Fly had caught up with him and was threatening to sting him. Without delay, he pulled the trigger, and before the Cavern Flies knew it, they were reduced to cinders within seconds.

"WHOHOO!" "Nice one Eli!" "YEAH!" came the compliments from his friends. Eli blushed and said, "Come on, Trixie reminded me to do so."

With danger out of range (or so they thought), the Shane Gang reduced their mechas' speed to a brisk trot, hoping that the creatures and whatever creepy crawlies near Bonnie Springs would leave them alone as the light element symbol on top of Doc was becoming as dim as a torchlight with an almost-dead battery.

Well, at least it stopped flickering. Eli thought.

They were about one mile away from Bonnie Springs when disaster strikes again. This time, it's an avalanche of lava.

"OH COME ON, DON'T THOSE PEOPLE HAVE ENOUGH?!"Kord shouted with exasperation. This was the third attack on the Shane Gang, and it looked liked it was revenge for Eli shooting Burpy in order to defeat the Cavern Flies. They had no choice but to race on.

Like always, Pronto squealed like a girl when a gush of hot, steaming lava spewed out from a lava geyser nearby. They dodged the gushes of burning stuff until they heard a bloodcurdling scream.

"TRIXIE!" Eli shouted, turning Lucky around to see her holding her arm while clumsily trying to manoeuvre Boomer, her mecha beast, with only one hand. "Are you okay?!"

"It's just the lava!" she replied, immediately dodging a stream of leaking lava that spewed out at her. It barely missed her by inches. "Is Doc okay?"

Eli translated that into "The lava burnt me and I hope Doc is better now so as to heal me" and looked down at Doc. "Yeeaahh…" he said hesitantly. Just then, Kord shouted, "ELI LOOK OUT!"

Eli heard the sizzling of metal and gasped when he saw Lucky's hind paws half burnt, and lava trickling around on the ground at an alarming rate from a geyser nearby. To his surprise, the opening is just two metres in front! "We're almost there! HANG ON, TRIX!" and all of them lunged for the opening, landing in a heap with a loud clang of mecha beasts.

"Whew!" Kord sighed, and got off the mess of the Shane Gang's mecha beasts and themselves. Subsequently, the rest got up as well.

"Trixie, are you sure you're okay?" Eli asked gently, gesturing towards the spot on Trixie's arm that she was covering.

"…Nope, I guess." Trixie replied, uncovering the spot. Eli almost fainted at the sight of it. Charred skin, black and white surface, and when he asked her if he can touch it to see if it is still hot, she said okay, as she does not feel any pain anyway.

Third degree burn.

"Aha! Pronto, always has the things you need!" came Pronto's voice. Eli jumped, and then smiled when he saw the bandages that Pronto was holding. He tore off a piece and bandaged up Trixie's arm, and then looked at Lucky's hind paws. Maybe he can stand it? He thought. "Come on now, let's go." He said. The Shane Gang pulled their mecha beasts out from the mess of metals (and like always, Pronto had a bit of problem with his mecha) and sure enough, Lucky can still walk, but with a little bit of difficulty.

"Just half a mile to Bonnie Springs," Trixie said, checking her blaster monitor. "let's hope we make it there quick enough." She said, giving Doc a worried look.

Within ten minutes, they were standing at the entrance of Bonnie Springs. As they got off their mechas, Kord marveled at the intricate patterns carved on the entrance gate, saying "Wish I can also do that!" Eli took a deep breath, steadied his rapidly palpitating heart, and took a step forward.

Suddenly, a gush of sparkly green stuff reached out from nowhere and grabbed him, pulling him away from the entrance. He gasped and struggled to break free, but even though the stuff looks gaseous, it acts as a solid. The rest screamed and turned their heads away, not wanting to know what happened to Eli.

Cliffhangers! That's what I love. Well, no worries, Eli is not going to get killed or anything (no clichés), so RELAX. ELI IS STILL ALIVE. YEAH.