“Kaldov?!” Both Naxio and Moushira called out to their friend in shock.

Kaldov also appeared shocked to see them but didn’t have much time to really speak as he quickly blocked a large creature which quickly also appeared from the tunnel. Upon seeing the beast, they learned it wasn’t a snake but instead what appears to be a worm. Which wasn’t something that they were expecting in the least. Most insect type Daemons don’t grow to this size outside of spiders. The worm thrash it's head, rows upon rows of razor sharp teeth appearing from a mouth on its head. The beast was a pale white with skin that appeared extremely tough as even Kaldov’s blade couldn't even pierce it.

“Kaldov, where the hell did this thing come from?!” Moushira said as she manipulated her wires to try and wrap around the beast to hinder its movement.

The wire connects however the beast quickly jerks around pulling Moushira clean off the ground. She is quick to reset herself and try and not get flung to walls. Naxio, seeing her situation, quickly sends out a blast of sound which appears to have stunned the beast but only for a few seconds. Fortunately for Moushira it was enough to get her wires to wrap around some of the surrounding stones to complete her trap. The beast movements were sealed, a fact the creature understood quickly. Suddenly it started to make some strange guttural noises.

“Move!” Kaldov called out to them.

Without missing a beat, Moushira and Naxio both dodged out of the way as the beast opened its mouth letting out a foul smelling liquid. As the liquid splashed against the rough interior of the cave, one could hear an audible hissing as the liquid ate away at the stones.

“It’s throwing acid?! It throws acid?!” Moushira practically screams as her eyes dart over to Kaldov.

It was at the moment she took in her friends. Nothing too worse for wear but there were obvious burn marks at the end of his clothing.

“Yes, I had been following a path of half decomposed beast bodies and stumbled into its nest. It's been chasing me since then.” Kaldov said as he signaled for his sword to return to his hand.

“Ugh, great..”

Moushira then suddenly felt a lax in her wire and looked back at the beast. It would appear that some of the stones that were burn away were where her wires had been used to create her spider-like trap.

“Damn it, get ready!”

As if by command the beast springs from the trap and charges at them. Its body moved quickly which was a surprise given it's size. It didn’t seem however to really care too much for Moushira or Naxio and all of it ire directed at Kaldov. His blade gleaned as he repelled the beast again and again. Moushira tried hard to try and retrapp the creature but it was proving to be too difficult as it was moving so rapidly.

“Naxio can you stun it again?!”

A clear and loud note rang out again. This time it was a bit more confident than that last attack. The beast suddenly stopped as the sounds seemed to reach it. A tense shiver ran down its body. Kaldov, at that very moment, closed his eyes for a second and mumbled some words. His blade suddenly started to shine with a pale blue light before he sprang forward. At the same time, Moushira used her wires to pull the mouth of the beast open. Once open wide enough, Kaldov striked. With a flick, his sword cut through the air and that pale blue light formed a wave that hissed through the air like an arrow. The impact made a loud boom sound as black blood poured from the wound of the beast. It let out a loud roar as it suddenly grew extremely wild. Moushira could only quickly detach her wires as she dodged out of the way of it's striking tail. 

“Damn it! It's going crazy! Be careful guys!” Moushira said as she made dodge after dodge.

The beast was indeed going wild, spraying that same foul smelling acid like bile everywhere. It even sprayed a bit onto itself in it's wild trashing but it didn’t appear to phase or even bother as the bile burned at it's flesh. Naxio barely dodges out of the way of another spray of acid, however suddenly freezes as he takes in the surroundings around him. While it appeared that the beast was just shooting wildly, not that he stopped, Naxio noticed that almost everywhere immediately around him was filled with acid, not one safe spot to move unless he ran directly at the creature. And almost as if it also realized this at the same time. The beast turns itself toward Naxio and strikes out at him!

“Damn it Naxio watch out!” Moushira yells as she makes a dash for him.

Kaldov also dashed forward towards Naxio but they were too far away. There was no way that they would make it in time! Naxio summons Falan-shi once again and quickly strums a few notes and a light purple barrier forms around him. The beast multirow maul of a mouth clenches down on this barrier. A loud screeching sound rangs out as it stood to swallow Naxio whole. Kaldov strikes again the beast back but is suddenly swatted by it's tail that attacked from his blindside as he was focused on rescuing Naxio. Moushira sends out her wires again this time to try and pull the beast back and off of Naxio but it's proving to be just too strong! Suddenly a gurgling noise made an icy sweat break out over Naxio.

From his view of it's mouth, he could see the rise of the bile the beast has been spraying about. He was already straining to keep the beast from swallowing, if the acid touches then he is as good as dead!

“Naxio!!” Moushira screams as she desperately continues to pull at the beast.

Kaldov unfortunately is in a battle with the beast tail which is wildly but with an unexpected accuracy attacking him left and right. With every step forward he tries to take, the tail pushes him back three with it's strong strikes.

Naxio continued to try and keep the beast for eating him but his barrier was fading under the pressure. The utter stench of the bile was burning his eyes and nose. Then there was the heat from it all. He wasn’t going to last at this rate.

‘I can’t keep this up and Moushira and Kaldov are too focused trying to save me! Damn it!’ Naxio’s thought cursed in his head.

‘I need to think of something!’

He then noticed the black blood that was still heavily bleeding from the beast mouth.

‘Inside! The outside is too tough but inside is soft and easily damaged! Maybe I can do something!’

Naxio then suddenly drops the barrier.

“What? Naxio, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!” Moushira screams.

He has no time to explain as the beast’s mouth is now closing in on him. With all of this strength and steady sturm of his wrist. A loud, ear piercing note rings out! A sound wave rips out from the beast and all the bile which had been building up was forced right back down! The beast itself was lifted off the ground and sent sailing through the air towards the back of this open area that they had been fighting in for what felt like hours. A loud boom shook that cave as rubbled from above rained down. And after a few moments the beast was still, not even a twitch. Both Moushira and Kaldov looked at the beast and then back at Naxio in equal amounts of shock.

“Aha, guys I-I did it!” Naxio said with a smile, completely exhausted.

“Naxio-...!!” Moushira had started to congratulate but then her eyes fell a bit lower and widened.

Naxio, who was looking happy and proud, also followed her eyes. There in his shoulder was a hissing acid, now eating at his skin. Then the searing, and gut wrenching pain set in.

“AAAHRRHH” Naxio yells as he falls to his knees as he tries to summon his Yang to ward off the acid biting at his flesh.

“Shit! Hold on Naxio” Moushira said as she quickly runs over and immediately begins to heal him.

Kaldov also moves over a bit out of breath after that harrowing battle and keeps an eye on the beast.

“My god, what were you thinking!? You could have been killed!” Moushira scolds as she heals Naxio, her worry bleeding out into her voice.

Naxio gives her a weak smile as the pain has not subsided yet.

“S-sorry but it worked! There wasn’t enough time to explain…” Naxio said with an apologetic look.

“And what if it didn’t work?! What if you got eaten instead?!” 

“I-...I don’t know…” Naxos mumbles as his eyes drop to the ground.

Truly he didn’t really plan so much for an alternative. He just knew that he had to do something. Both Kaldov and Moushira would have been too preoccupied trying to save him to actually stop the creature. So if he was able to do something and live then that was great!

….And if he didn’t…then…?

“Listen to me Naxio!”

Naxio’s head snapped back up at her. Her face was still very angry even as his wounds were closing.

“I don’t care what you were thinking before but if you ever dare do something so risky again I-! Ugh, just don’t ever do that again! You made me worried sick!!”

Naxio almost felt odd, this was the first time someone beside his old caretaker had ever been worried about him. Or at least said it directly to him.

It was nice.

‘So this is what it's like to have friends…?’ He thought to himself as Moushira went on and on.

Kaldov, though silent through this whole conversation, gave a small chuckle as he stood up. 

But then suddenly a loud rumble sounded on the opposite side of them. They all turned their attention back to the beast that was thought to be dead. It was heavily wounded but it was still charging at them.

“Are you kidding me?!” Moushira said as she turned to get up.

Suddenly however all three felt a wave of heat from behind them and then a figure dashing towards the beast wielding a familiar flaming ax.

“..Wait, no way!”

The figure cut down the already heavily damaged beast with a single swipe. The flames from their weapon licked and ate at the beast almost instantly and it quickly went up in an inferno. The beast let out one last dying cry before finally dying in a blackened heap. The figure who dealt the last strike stood defiant before the flaming creature before turning to the trio.

“I-it's you??”