The battle between Elizabeth's group and the insects had severely damaged the cave structure, so it was only a matter of time before it came crashing down. Boom! A massive shockwave ripped through the mountainside, causing every tunnel and cave to shake violently. Nassandra, Tolin, and Evylin struggled to stay upright. Large snake-like fissures formed on the walls, as everything started breaking apart. A huge boulder dislodged itself from the ceiling right on top of Nassandra! She did not even realize it until it was too late! Evylin pushed her out of the way and stepped back when the boulder slammed down where they were. There was no room to breath. More and more boulders fell from the ceiling. Nassandra panickily pointed her wand and tried to cast an ice wall to protect them. However, magic was a precise art. It could not be performed carelessly. She shrieked. Her Magic Circle shattered. A sharp jab of pain ran up her arm, as her muscles contorted. It felt like someone twisted her arm! It was a backlash! Coupled with the earlier fatigue, she almost collapsed from the pain.
At the same time, Evylin fell down and hurt her leg in the process. A large rock landed dangerously close to her head. The heavy impact sent shudders down her spine. She was that close to death! Tolin dodged the falling rocks and rushed to his grandmother's side. Despite his small size, he mustered all the strength he could to help his grandmother up. They were barely standing, when a stray rock hit Tolin on the back, sending them both to the ground. Crack! A spiderweb of cracks showed overhead. Tolin and Evylin gasped. It looked like the entire ceiling was about to give way! They could not run away in time! They hugged each other and closed their eyes, thinking it would be their end. Luckily, Nassandra fought through the headache and activated a spell. Frost condensed into a large ice dome that blocked the first few boulders, but it would not hold for long.
"Hurry! Over here!" Nassandra yelled with a hoarse voice.
Her whole body was shaking from the strain. Forget her spell. She would not last much longer! They sensed her urgency and crawled over. Every second added more pressure to Nassandra's spell. She dropped to one knee and bit down on her lip. The taste of blood kept her sane. The moment Tolin and Evylin were close enough, she released her spell. Boom! All the rocks her ice held up slammed down with meteoric force, flattening the ground. This went to show how much weight she resisted, weight which corresponded to interference strength. Even if she were a Condensed Drop Arcanist, it was too much for her to handle. She bent over, panting and gasping for breath. Her chest felt like it was on fire! Every breath made it worse. It was agonizing torture!
"Are you okay?" Evylin asked.
She lacked the energy to respond, so she vaguely nodded. The cave gradually quieted down, but Tolin and Evylin did not lower their guard. They kept an eye on the dark tunnels, in case something jumped at them. Without Nassandra's protection, they were defenseless. Nassandra knew this too, so she focused on regaining her strength. After a few minutes, her chest was still hurting, but it was no longer unbearable. She could move again. Inspecting her Core, there was about two-fifths of her Magic Energy remaining. This was less than what she was comfortable with. Not to mention, her condition was still poor. She was not confident in her ability to cast spells like this. Should she stay and rest more? Before deciding, she needed to see how her brother fared. Her Magic Perception searched where she remembered Elizabeth and Freon were.
"Huh?"
Nassandra was confused. Where did they go? There was no one there! She panicked a little and searched harder; however, the exertion made her cough violently. Her head stung and a wave of nausea assaulted her. She nearly puked. This was undoubtedly one of the worst days of her life… This did not stop her though. She could be very stubborn when it mattered! Clenching her little fists, the girl carefully unleashed her Magic Perception again. Her range kept increasing, but there was no sign of her brother anywhere! Her gut twisted as she got a bad feeling. The fact that Elizabeth and Freon had to use their strongest spells meant they were in a tough battle. So, there was a chance that… No! Nassandra stopped herself from thinking. There was no way that was possible! Her brother must be here somewhere! She doubled her search with renewed focus.
Why? They were not here either! She kept searching, careful not to overlook the smallest clue, but there was nothing. No Arcanists were nearby! Did they leave after they failed to find her? Her anxiety was worsening the more she searched. Her hopes evaporated little by little. She was getting scared now. Freon, Elizabeth, and everyone else… they were her guiding beacons of light. She felt safe and happy, knowing that people were on their way to rescue her. It made her believe that everything was alright, that everything would work out. Yes, she was ashamed to rely on other people. Yes, she wanted to lighten the burden on her brother's shoulders. Except she needed time to grow to that point. She was still young and inexperienced. The dark tunnels felt more foreboding and ominous than ever. Feeling afraid was normal, especially for a sheltered girl like her. What distinguished people was how they confronted those fears.
Drawing a deep breath, she retracted her Magic Perception. Although she could not find them, she believed they were safe. No, she knew they were safe! It might have been a blind hope, a prayer almost, but that was fine. It kept her from succumbing to despair. It kept her strong! And in this situation, that was everything. Her muscles slowly relaxed, as her expression eased. Tolin and Evylin could not see her face, but they sensed the mood shift. Mysteriously, Nassandra felt more reliable. She calmed their nerves too.
"I need to recover my energy. Is that alright with you two?"
"That's fine. How long do you need?"
"I don't know. It might take several hours."
Evylin's brow knitted. "Didn't you say we were a few minutes away from help? Shouldn't we wait until we're found?"
"This… The cave is still unstable from the earthquake, so we shouldn't rush things."
"But what if those monsters come back?"
"I'll do something about it," Nassandra stated. "What's the matter, Tolin?"
"I'm hearing noises from over there…" the boy weakly whispered.
She almost jumped to her feet. "Is it that monster?"
"No… It sounds smaller. Should… we take a look?" he daringly suggested.
"It's too risky. We should find somewhere to hide first, so I can recover," Nassandra said.
She could barely stand up. Her legs wobbled out of her control. The woman was worse, since she injured her leg helping Nassandra. She needed to use Tolin as a crutch to move around. They did not fight anything, yet their situation was already terrible. How bad would it be if they had to? Nassandra wisely chose to recover, instead of pushing onward. They needed to be in their top condition in these caves. Elizabeth and Freon's battle had shown that clearly. As they prepared to leave, those noises grew louder. Everyone froze and looked over. Under the dim light, something crawled into view. It was a juvenile silk bug! And it was clearly wounded, by the way it was stumbling somewhat dazed. It must have gotten injured in the previous earthquake. Tolin grabbed his dagger, except Nassandra shook her head. Unless it was absolutely necessary, she did not want to get near those pincers.
"Let's avoid it. Maybe it hasn't noticed us yet," she murmured.