Chapter 70: Chapter 70

INSIDE THE ROCK

Inside the Rock

The Tundra, Arctica

In the bottom of the rock, there was a small opening that was lower than the rest of it. Tarja, Aleksander, and Aku stared down it as steps appeared in front of it.

Aku slipped down into the weeded steps. A rat ran out into front of it, hissing and squeaking at the sight of them. Other than that, there was no sign of any other life.

They entered the basement. The chamber was small with the outline of stairs above it. In the corner, there was a set of steps overrun by brush, but other than that there was nothing. Where had those steps come from. Aleksander moved the centre of the dusty rocks. "We should set the bulk of here, then throw your really big one in once we are out," he said. He pulled out small cans of what looked like dynamite. Aku wonder where he had gotten those.

Tarja nodded as they started to place the dynamite in a pile, careful not to jolt it around too much. It was extremely easy to set on fire. Aku was actually surprised that none of it had exploded during the battle and killed them. Neither one of them said a word as the stacked.

"Did you hear something?" Tarja asked suddenly, her dark head whipping around.

Aku just kept staking the dynamite . "Just relax. It's probably just a rat."

Tarja staked a few more pieces before stopping again. "No, there's something here."

Aleksander paused, looking around. "I don't see anything."

Tarja shook her head. "No, there's something there."

Then, Aku smelled it. The rot...the decay...He shook his head. No, this couldn't be happening again, not now, not here. Then, he saw the shadow and the rows of teeth...This wasn't happening again...He wasn't going to let this thing win again for the second time. Beside him, Tarja had picked up her gun, gripping it so tightly that her knuckles had turned white.

The shadow came closer and closer to them, separating them from the door. The only chance they had of getting out of here was up the steps and if that knocked over the pile of dynamite , it would bring the tower down with them still inside it.

The foul scent of death was the only thing Aku would think of right now. It was as if he had been buried in a pit of rotting bodies and was just waking up to it. He had to get out of here...Had to get away from this rot...It was going to kill him...It was going to kill them.

Tarja's eyes widened at the sight. She shifted her gun's weight around, like she couldn't decide it she wanted to attack or not.

The beast just kept staring at them, drool dripping off its fangs. Its hot, foul breath reached them, sending chills down his spine. He knew they had no choice; they were going to have to try to kill this thing, this enigma of death.

Aku looked at Tarja, who had taken a fighting stance. Her eyes reached his. If they were doing to die, they were going to die swinging. They had to get this tower down and they had to try to stay alive in the process.

Aku swung his sword. The beast fell back, howling as his sword disappeared into its shadowy figure. He could feel his sword piercing something fleshy and not a hard flesh either. His sword went right through it as if it were butter. He pulled his sword back out; it was covered in a blackish, steamy blood.

He quickly looked back up at the shadow. He couldn't' even see where he had stabbed it. Tarja also was also firing at the beast, while Aleksander swung on the other side.

The beast shifted, attacking at them. A pair of shadow arms erupted out of its sides, the fingernails were the same the makeup as the teeth. It swept it hands at them, nearly catching Aku in the stomach. It figured those nails would do far more damage than Nightstone's had.

Side by side, he, Aleksander, and Tarja fought, only to find themselves pushed up against the wall farthest away from any of the exits. Each time it swung its deadly wall of nails at them, they gave it more and more of the basement. Aku 's eyes kept flickering to the dynamite ; the shadow was all so very close to it. Just a few steps to the right, it would hit the explosive stones and blow them all off the face of the earth.

He swung at the shadow, hitting it once again, sending a wave of decay toward them. Tarja grabbed him, swinging, she had gotten a sword at some point, him into the wall just as the rot hit where he had been standing moments earlier.

She swung her sword as the monster roared so loudly that it sent debris raining down on them. The floor beneath their feet, threatening to pull them down to their depths. He looked down as cracks were actually starting to widen beneath their feet, racing right toward the dynamite .

Aku swore as the creature slammed into him, driving him into the wall. Blood sprayed from his mouth as his vision became cloudy. He blinked as a round of gore sprayed his body. Tarja must still be fighting. He took a small step forward, only to fall to the ground. He had to get his breath...He shook his head..He could faintly make out the shapes of the monster, then Ryanon. Both were working for the kill. He tried to get to his feet again, but a wave of nausea sent him right back to the ground. He couldn't let a little bit of pain stop him from fighting.

He hear Tarja's roar of pain. He tried to see where she was, but couldn't see anything. The shadow was taking up so much room and the dynamite ...The crack was still going right toward it, though it seemed to had slowed down a little bit.

There! There was Tarja! She down on her side, the monster getting ready to go in for the kill. She was trying to reach for her sword, which laid just out of her reach. Her eyes...They were wide with terror...He had never seen her look so terrified.

He tried to get to his feet again, fighting the blackness that was threatening to overtake his vision. He had to get to Tarja...He couldn't let her die, not here, not now, not ever...

He screamed as he rushed toward the shadow. It turned from Ryanon, giving him the opening that he needed. It turned from Tarja, giving her the right amount of movement to grab a weapon. When she looked at him, her smile was that of the devil.

The moved, as if they were one, as if they had morphed into one...

The shadow whipped around just as they both charged, their swords managing to find the right places.

He could see Tarja reaching for her dagger, while holding on the sword. He winced as she threw her dagger right into the centre of the monster.

Its scream echoed throughout the tower, threatening to bring it down on time of it.

The tunnel shook...No, it felt as it the entire world was shaking...There was a light, heading toward them.

There was heat, a burning smell...Something wasn't right.

"We have to go!" Tarja yelled. "It's coming down!"

He looked at the light...It was almost blinding to look right at it.

"We can't stay here, you damned fool!" Tarja screamed, digging her nails into his ribs.

He was only half aware of her dragging him out of the tower...A new light warmed his face...Daylight...Ah, yes, they must be outside now.

Behind him, he could hear the faint roaring of something and, then, an explosion.

He watched as Elisa and the newcomer jumped down. The smoke covered up their landing. Aku looked around. He hoped that Elisa was dead, but didn't want the newcomer to die. He still wasn't sure of her role in this mess.

The smoke was starting to clear and he couldn't see either one of them. This wasn't good...Either they were dead or had taken off and were running somewhere. He didn't like the idea of not knowing where Elisa was. She could sneak up behind them and kill them before they even knew she was they.

Tarja pulled him forward. "Why do you insist on pausing in the worst of times?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I just it's just what I do."

"Well, one of these days, it's going to get you killed," she snapped.

Aku allowed her to drag him away from the smoke. What else could he do?

The battle was still going on. He kept looking around for Elisa and the newcomer, but they remained out of sight. Maybe they were actually gone.