Lucas plunged his staff into a Shade. Jessica, Bullrock and he rid all the larger Shades, leaving the few humanoids standing.

Jessica hunched down on her knees.

"Air lord, are you hurt?" Bullock said. He stood tall and eager to continue the fight, but he too couldn't resist fatigue.

"I'm fine." Jessica said. "We've got this. Just a few more Shades and we can regroup with…." Jessica was cut off by a large roar. The platform below them shook.

"What now?!" Lucas yelled.

Obscurio bursts from the lava. His arrival was followed by more foot soldiers all clambering to the bridges. "Get them! Don't let them escape." Obscurio said.

Lucas took Jessica's arm to his shoulder, supporting her weight. "We gotta get outta here."

Lucas, Jessica and Bullrock fled onto the only free bridge, the one Toby took.

"Hey slow down!"

Despite Lavour's pleas, Nick refused to slow down. Toby and Kagami, they're together. Toby's orb was worryingly faint, his scent fading away.

Nick heard his brother scream at a distance. Nick ran as fast as his bulky legs could take him.

Nick arrived at the scene. Kagami had Toby pinned down. She was burning him.

"Kagami!"

She looked at Nick.

Toby pushed Kagami off him. He scrambled to his feet and pointed his canon at her chest.

"Toby don't-"

"Super deep freeze!"

The force threw Kagami to the wall. Her chest crystallized in ice.

"Stop," Nick grabbed Toby's canon.

"What gives?! She almost barbequed my arms off!" Toby tried to wrestle his canon out of his brother's grip.

"It's Kagami! We don't hurt our friends!" Nick yelled back.

"Fire Barrage!" Kagami fired at them with reckless abandon. The ice melted from her chest.

Toby defended himself and Nick behind his Shell Shield.

Lavor caught up, out of breath exhausted. A fireball knocked him out.

"Dude, she won't let up no matter what you tell her." Toby said, "We gotta fight."

"No, we don't." Nick retorted.

"Yes, we do!" Toby fired back a round of ice blocks. He stood on the defensive, shooting long-range ice projectiles. But Kagami was agile. Ducking, dodging and slicing Toby's projectiles with pinpoint precision, she closed the distance.

Toby's running low on energy. It was now or never. The two gear up for an all-out attack. Toby ignored his brother's pleas to stop. He mustered all his remaining energy. "Hydroblast Tempest!" A rush of water gushed from his orb.

"Dragonic Roar!" Kagami's consumed in flames dyed in blue, blasted a dragon-like rainbow super flame.

There was a loud boom then a brief flash of white. Smoke spilt out of the punctured pockets from what remained of the cavern walls. It was as though a mini-nuclear bomb dropped inside. Nick hacked and coughed out the debris and dust he inhaled. His armour glowed brightly underneath the passing smoke.

Steady, he strode to where Toby and Kagami's attacks collided. Enough smoke simmered out. A buckling, sturdy square stood in place, dented on both sides.

Toby and Kagami were both down. Kagami was the first to move. She struggled to lift herself to stand. On her feet, she swayed back and forth, ambling her way over to Toby. Her head bobbed. She was in and out of consciousness.

Toby soon recessed to life. Digging his claws to the ground, he got to his knees.

"Stop." Nick said

"STAY OUT OF MY WAY!" Kagami wailed. Her voice came out sharp, the sound she made, Nick expected her to cough up blood. Kagami somehow with what little strength she had summoned her sword. The sleekness of the steel weapon was clearer without the flames.

"Both of you stop this now!" Nick shouted.

"Bro...let it go." Toby tried to stand but he was exhausted.

"No, I won't let you two fight each other!"

"Ouch!" Lavor groaned. In the heat of the fight, Nick had completely forgotten about him.

All three lords turned to Lavor. He had gotten up only to be knocked down again from behind. He fell to his knees and his head planted to the dirt face-forward.

Anchor stood where Lavor fell. He wore an unamused pout on his face. Kagami tensed.

"You!" Nick yelled and brandished a hammer. He lunged at Anchor. Anchor, in turn, lunged at Nick. Nick hauled the hammer overhead and swung.

Anchor lept to the mount of Nick's hammer, springboarded himself above and landed swiftly beside Kagami.

"A-Anchor…L-Let us fight together! I can- I can still fight!" Kagami straightened her posture, head held high. Her conviction glinted in the sparkle of her eyes - [juxtaposition] However, her body betrayed her and Kagami sagged into Anchor's arms.

"Idiot, you are in no condition to fight," Anchor said.

"B-but!"

Nick shot rock splinters. Anchor moved with nonchalance, as though Nick threw a paper aeroplane.

"Step away from her!" Nick yelled, back on his feet.

Jessica, Lucas and Bullrock enter from behind Kagami and Anchor. They all stop dead in their tracks.

Anchor's next move decided how things would proceed. He surveyed the surroundings, taking time to stare down each adversary. His gaze found Kagami at last. She wrangled herself off Anchor. She didn't have the strength to pretend she could fight, nonetheless win a match two-to-five. He took in a heavy breath and sighed.

"I'm sorry." he said.

"Anchor - Umph!? " Kagami stopped mid-sentence to Anchor's hand covering her mouth from behind.

The others gasped.

Kagami clawed, scratched and kicked at Anchor with muffled screams.

"LET HER GO!" Nick yelled. He aimed his fist like a launcher though he hesitated to shoot for fear of harming Kagami.

Anchor shrugged his shoulders and let Kagami go. She sprawled to all fours, coughing and hacking.

"BASTARD WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?" Nick swore.

" I do not wish to fight you, Lords of Nature," Anchor said, "The girl on the other hand, allowed hubris to cloud her judgement. I do not see a reason to continue this futile battle."

Toby got up, patting a clenched fist, "I say we beat him up. Six against one, it'll be quick."

"Six?!" Lavor exclaimed.

Anchor snorted, "Last I checked, you're in Fire Nation territory. It'll be only a matter of time before Obscurio and his army find you." Anchor hauled Kagami's limp body to his shoulders, "Whether Obscurio captures you or not, the outcome doesn't concern me. But, I'd prefer to avoid a fruitless confrontation."

Nick wanted to call bullshit but held back, knowing Anchor had a point.

"Yeah about that…" Lucas started.

"Obscurio is on our tail. We must leave immediately!" Bullrock added.

"Who says we can trust him?" Nick said, his fist still aimed at Anchor.

There was a short pause. Nick expected his friends to back him up, but instead, they stood with awkward gazes. He couldn't believe it. Were they considering Anchor's offer?

"We can beat him before Obscurio arrives. It's still six against once." Nick said. Still nothing but awkward gazes.

Toby took to stand next to his brother, "Well?" he directed to Jessica and Lucas.

The Lords and Bullrock reluctantly take their battle stances.

Anchor sighed once more. It was six against one and yet Anchor didn't seem the least bit startled.

Anchor threw Kagami to the side. Nick went after her. The others conjured their elemental powers. Anchor, despite his large build, moved swiftly. He took out Toby first, then Lucas and stopped at Jessica.

He grabbed her wrist and pulled her close. "If you are going to fight, pay attention."

Jessica gasped.

Nick roared and ran at Anchor with reckless abandon. Anchor spun, propelling Jessica and kicked her towards Nick. She fell on top of him.

Floor rumbles, footsteps incoming, a loud roar

Anchor rolled his shoulders, "Obscurio should be here soon. What will you do?"

Nick scowled.

Bullrock approached Anchor, his hammer in hand. Anchor stared at the earth gormiti, an inquisitive look.

Bullrock lowered his hammer to the said. "Take the fire lord." he said.

"What! No?!" Nick protested.

"Lord of the Earth, pardon my words, but pull yourself together." said Bullrock. "You will be no use to your friend nor the Gorm if Obscurio gets you." He turned to Anchor, "You are a noble fighter and I trust you are true on your word. Take the lord and leave us be."

Anchor bowed to Bullrock, then ambled over to where Kagami laid. Nick didn't hide his immense exasperation.

"This isn't the time for us to battle Lords." Anchor said as he lifted Kagami to his shoulder. "But that time will come for sure." Anchor burst through the outer walls, out into the open, sliding down the slope of Volcano Mountain.

Lavor appeared from wherever he was hiding,

Nick's shoulders shake. Nick doesn't stop, trembling. He was so close. So close.

"Not to sour the moment but we really need to go." Lucas said.

Nick unballed his fist. "Okay. Let's go."

Toby patted his brother on the back, brining him close.

"Follow me. I know a path out of here." Lavor said.

"Um, are we really going to trust a lava guy?" Lucas asked.

"He's trustworthy," Bullrock said, surprising the group.

"He's the one that got me out of that lava ceil. He can be trusted." Nick added.

Lavor led the way.

Twisting and turning between caverns in the maze-like Volcano, the voices and stomps of Obscurio and his lava army beckoned behind them.

They stopped at a dead-end.

"Is anyone else having second-hand thoughts on trusting a lava gormiti?" Lucas said.

"Just watch and see." Lavor placed his stump for a hand against the wall. Ancient gormiti inscriptions appearred, revealing a narrow path. "The heat is going to pick up from here but I'm sure you guys can handle it."

Lucas frowned and shrugged his shoulder.

Lavor wasn't lying when he said it'd get hot. Crouching onto their knees with the lowering ceiling, and the wooziness - It's a miracle they could all couldn't pause for a breather, instead continuing on the narrow, hot path.

It wasn't long for them to make it to the clear outside. Not that the lava nation had anything mesmerising or breathtaking about the landscape.

But they weren't alone. Outside the little hidden escapeway, someone had been waiting for them. Another lava gormiti donning spiked armour.

"It took you long enough." The androgenous voice of the lava gormiti said.

Lavor crouched, his slow steps exemplifying his exhaustion, not that he did much. "Don't blame me, it was harder than it sounds."

"Uh, should we introduce ourselves?" Toby posed to the other lords.

"Let me do the honours." That came from Bullrock. "This is the Leader of the Fire Nation Resistance, Boss."

A/N: Part 2 of the last chapter is released at last!

Been a while since I did an author's notes so don't really know what to write here.

Insert awkward segue here - BIG ANNOUCEMENT

1# - Schedule for the next chapter releases for the month of June is up on my deviantart. Updates on the fic and life stuff will be posted there (mainly). Any inquires or stuff about the fic direct to my deviantart.

2# - Something soonish - have to wait till later.

bye bye.

Deviantart typereg