"Don't just stand there!" Ben yelled. "RUN!"

Scrambling to revive the feeling in their legs, Santiago and Kaitlyn bolted from their standing point. The others and I screamed at them to hurry up and go faster as the giant Dark Wolf slowly began to stalk forwards, beginning to crouch.

At this point, Kilamanjaro had already gotten the truck started, and was beginning to pull out and away from the tree house, which encouraged the two Illusionists even more to increase their speed.

When they were close enough, Sebastian and I reached out to them from the back row of the truck, Ben and Jam holding onto us for safety and support.

"Grab on!" I yelled.

The two of them jumped, grabbing our wrists just as the Dark Wolf tried to take a bite out of the pair, just missing them as his nuzzle slammed a hole into the ground. It growled, it's nose stuck into the ground as it struggled to break free. With a heavy heave, the four of us pulled Santiago and Kaitlyn into the back row of the truck.

"Punch it, Kili!" Sebastian yelped.

"Don't need to tell me twice," Kilamanjaro agreed, shifting the gears. "Hutegemea!"

The driver slammed his foot on the accelerator, the vehicle jolting forward as a puff of smoke blew out of the exhaust port and the truck gained speed. I watched as the crumbled village slowly shrank in the distance, right as the sun started to come up, the sky turning into a bright shade of red mixed with orange.

"We lost that thing back there, right?" Vincent questioned nervously.

"It's distracted," Kaitlyn huffed, catching her breath. "But not for long."

"You alright, Kaitlyn?" Sebastian asked with concern, placing a steady hand on her back.

The girl nodded in reply. "Yeah. Thanks for pulling us up."

"Did you really think we were just going to leave you guys there?" I asked with a slight scoff.

Santiago suddenly wrapped an arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer towards him as he pecked my forehead. "Knowing you, not even for a second."

"Aw, that's adorable!" Jam teased as he whipped out his phone once more, snapping a photo of the two of us. "Smile!"

"Will you stop taking pictures already?!" Ben face palmed, raising his voice at the eldest cousin.

"Sorry man, I'm a YouTuber now, it's what I do," Jam chuckled. "Besides you can't tell me what to do, I'm like 2 years older than you!"

"Actually, I kind of like that picture," Santiago spoke up, glancing over at the phone screen. "Can you send me that?"

Jam gasped mockingly, looking over at the other cousins. "Did you guys hear that? Chile wants my number, I just one upped you all!"

"One of these days Ava, you really need to tell us how that nickname came to be," Sebastian chuckled.

"Another time," I nodded in agreement.

"Mr. Toledo, where are we headed?" The driver spoke up.

"Take us to Pride Rock, Kili," Santiago replied. "It's an emergency."

"I already figured that out when we left." Kili spoke bluntly as he slightly changed his course, heading deeper into the savannah.

As the drive continued, I quickly took the time to check out my surroundings. This place looked so calm, peaceful, and quiet. Perhaps, a little too quite. That's when I noticed something. Where the heck were the animals? I scanned the skies, and I didn't see any birds flying around either. Did something happen to them? Did they evacuate from the Pride Lands in time?

Suddenly, a loud howl caught our attention. Our bodies flinched before we froze in our seats, Ben bringing his finger up to his lips as he signalled us to be quiet.

"Did you guys hear that?"

"I wish I didn't," Vincent gulped.

"That thing is going to come back," Kaitlyn stated. "We need to be ready."

"Kaitlyn, you and Santiago are hardly in a condition to fight. Your magic needs some time to recharge after combining like that," Ben explained.

"Don't tell me what I can or can't do," The girl hissed, crossing her arms with disapproval.

"How long exactly is some time?" Santiago questioned.

There was another howl, as the ground below them began to shake. The shakes were more violently then the rocking of the speeding truck, that was for sure. We all looked behind us to see a faint object coming towards us. It's grey, smoke like fur blew through the wind as its red glowing eyes pierced through our souls like lasers.

"Not long enough," Ben stuttered.

"What else can we do to fight that thing?" I asked. "If what Ben's saying is true, then our only means of fighting that thing is your Defensive magic and Sebastian's Attack magic!"

"And if we get hit, you can heal us, so we can get back into the fight." Sebastian added.

"I don't know the limits of my magic," I quivered. "I mean sure, I healed you two when you were on the brink of death, but what if that was a one time thing?"

"Your magic can do wonders," Santiago stated. "You just need to pull yourself together and focus."

"Um, can we maybe speed this up a little?" Ty spoke up, pointing a finger at the giant wolf. "That thing is gaining on us!"

"What can we do to help?" Poppy asked.

"Forgive me if I sound rude at all, but without a magic element to possess, there's nothing much else you guys can do," Ben reluctantly shrugged.

"Hey, Killamon--- whatever," Jam stuttered. "Do you have any weapons in this thing?"

"There should be a big box tucked in the back of the truck!" Kili yelled over the roar of the engine.

Sebastian, Kaitlyn, Santiago, and I looked over the back of the truck to see a metal box. We all reached over and with a heavy heave, pulled the box into the back row of the truck. The boys unbuckled the locks before flipping the lid open.

There was only one weapon inside the box.

"Is that--"

"A sniper rifle?!" Jam exclaimed, cutting Kaitlyn off.

He reached over, grasping it in his hands as he pulled it out of the box. The weapon had a black metallic coat of paint with bright neon red lines along the scope and side of the weapon.

"Oh, I can definitely use this," he grinned with a laugh.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," I waved my hands in protest. "Jam, just because you're in the COD community and joined a clan, and can make the occasional 360 no scope, does not mean you can use an actual sniper rifle in the real world!"

"Do you even know who you're talking to?" Ty asked, slightly taken back.

"Besides, this isn't the real world, it's the World of Disney, remember?" He recalled, that grin of his still plastered on his face as he examined the weapon before looking up at me.

I rose a finger to protest, but stopped. He did have a point here. "True, b-but still! That's a video game, and this is real life!"

"Just keep it distracted long enough for me to set up," Jam instructed. "I'll do the rest."

"Anyone else have another plan?" I asked, looking around at the blank faces of the group. When no one else answered, my shoulders slouched. "Fine, we'll do it!"

"Up on the roof, come on," Sebastian ordered as he and Ben sat up, climbing the sides of the truck as they pulled themselves up onto the roof.

"Up you get," Santiago helped boost me up as I pulled my upper body up onto the roof before Ben and Sebastian helped me up to my feet.

From up on the roof we could get a clear view of the giant Dark Wolve, charging straight for us as it howled once more.

"So we're just distracting that thing until Jam can get a clear shot at it?" I recalled.

"That's the plan," Ben nodded as he summoned a pair of orbital shields in his hands.

"Wonderful," I sighed, crouching down to my knees as the wind blowing in our direction intensified. "I'll be ready if you need healing."

"Roger that," Sebastian acknowledged as he summoned a fire ball in his hand before chucking it forward. It just missed the wolf's front right paw but it was enough to make it falter to the side. "I'll give it everything I've got."

"Right behind you on that one," Ben agreed.

The wolf snarled as he bent it's head back before firing a ball of ball out of its mouth. Ben raised his shields up to protect himself and the others, blocking the attack as it bounced back, smacking the wolf in its nuzzle.

The boys continued to attack as I crouched down and waited until I was needed. Below me, I could hear Jam getting the weapon ready. He loaded it with ammo before setting it up in place at the back of the truck.

"I'm almost ready," he shouted. "I just got to wait for a clear shot to appear!"

"You better back it fast, Mr. Macht," Kili spoke up. "We're nearing a dead end!"

"What?!" The rest of the Macht cousins yelped.

Catching my attention, I turned my head around to look forwards in the direction the truck was going. I gasped at what I saw. Kili was right! We were heading straight for giant ridge. Even with the speed the truck is travelling at who knows how many miles, the ridge was too tall and steep for it to climb up.

"He's right!" I yelled, banging my fist on the roof to catch his attention. "Just shoot it already!"

"You can't rush greatness, Ava," Jam replied.

"Does it even matter?! Let me do it--"

"I almost got it!" Jam yelled, interrupting Kaitlyn.

"Can't you just no scope it, or quick scope it?" Santiago suggested.

"On a moving truck?!" Jam yelped.

I turned my head back to face Ben and Sebastian fighting the wolf. It was starting to gain some speed as I watched it get closer and closer to us. It fired another fireball at the truck. Everyone inside in the back rows ducked down to take cover as Ben brought up another shield to protect us all. Only this time the fireball was bigger this time, so when it bounced off the shield, it broke the magical barrier, smacking the back of his hands right into his face as the boy fell backwards to the floor of the roof.

"Bloody hell--!" Sebastian cursed with a growl as he fired red beams of energy at the creature.

"Ben!" I called out to the boy as he slowly pushed himself up in a sitting position.

I pushed though the wind, waddling towards him as I got a good look at his face. He had a black eye on his left eye, and long his cheeks were bright read markings.

"Hang on, I'll patch you up," I rose my hand to his face, the palm glowing a bright pink as I watched the injuries disappear. "You okay?"

"Yeah, that really stung me for a few moments there," he nodded. "Thanks,"

I helped him back up to his feet as I heard a voice cry out. The two of us looked over to the front left of the truck, Kilo waving his hand at us. "Get back into the truck and brace for impact!"

"Move!" Ben yelled, grabbing Sebastian's shoulder as he signalled him to stop.

The three of us climbed our way down the side of the truck and plopped back into the seats. I looked over to see Jam sitting in the centre seat of the back row, the sniper rifle perched up on top of the back rest of his seat as he peered through the scope.

"Any time now Jam," I spoke up. "We're about to crash!"

"I'm not Jam anymore," he replied, his tone serious. He pulled a lever on the weapon, arming it. Once it clicked, a stream of red light appeared on his hand, and it began to roam along his arm and the entire weapon. "I'm BangJam!"

He pulled the trigger and the red energy zapped into the muzzle of the gun and shot out of the weapon, travelling at the speed of sound. One second the wolf's left leg was there, the next second it was completely severed from its body as it exploded in a puff of black smoke and the wolf tripped and fell, sliding against the ground before coming to a complete stop. It's bright ruby eyes glued shut.

"You did it!" Vincent cheered.

We all celebrated our victory, patting the eldest cousin on the back as he moved the weapon from its spot, holding it up against his shoulder.

"I told you I needed a clear shot," he grinned. "Although I wasn't expecting that light show happening. Is this some magical sniper rifle or something?"

"No, it's not," Kili yelled. "It's just a regular old sniper rifle!"

"Then what was that with my hand just now?!" He asked, raising his voice with surprise.

"Dude, calm down and realize what you just did!" Sebastian exclaimed. "You just used Attack Magic!"

"I can?!" Jam's eyes widened with surprise.

"You're a wizard, Jam!" Ty celebrated.

Before anyone could say anything else, I suddenly felt myself leaning forward, like gravity was pushing itself against me. When I turned to my side, I noticed the truck moving upwards. That's when I realized it; The truck was scaling the ridge! Everyone else started feeling the sensation as well as they let out a serious of gasps and yelps, trying to keep their balance.

"Brace yourselves!" Kili screamed.

The truck was completely upright, and because of the insane speed it was travelling at, it flew right off the ridge like it was a skateboard coming off a ramp. We hovered in the air for a brief moment before the truck began to make its descent back to the ground. Ben stretched his arms out, forming a protective bubble around the truck as the rest of us clutched onto our seats, hanging on for dear life. The back of the truck made impact with a loud "WHAM!". The metal interior cracked and creaked, the belongings in the back of the truck getting smashed up and/or fell apart from the vehicle.

Then the truck began to tip backwards, the vehicle and ourselves hovering upside down inside the bubble. Our hair dangled from what was now the ceiling of the truck as Ben shut his eyes, concentrating on the energy bubble. "Everyone alright?"

"I think I'm going to be sick..." Vincent mumbled, covering his mouth with his hand.

"Okay, everyone flip over and get down before I evaporate the bubble," Ben ordered. "Don't blame me if anyone gets hurt because I warned you."

One by one we each flipped our bodies and jumped down to the once ceiling of the truck. Poppy went over to assist Kilamanjaro out of his seat while I caught Vincent as he came down after a slight hesitation.

"Aw man, the sniper rifle broke," Jam whined with disappointment.

"I can't imagine why," Ty grumbled.

"I got'cha," Sebastian spoke as he stretched his arms out, assisting Kaitlyn down safely.

"Thanks," she acknowledge with a breath of relief before looking up at Ben, who was still hovering in the air. "You need any help there, Benjamin?"

"Um, no, no, I think I got it under control," He strained. Lowering his hands, he descended the hovering truck to the bottom surface of the bubble. Flexing his fingers out, the bubble popped and disappeared, while at the same time, he fell and face plated to the floor. "Okay, no I didn't..."

"Ouch," Kaitlyn winced.

"I've got you, Ben," Santiago stepped over, assisting the Defensive Wizard to his feet slowly as the blonde rubbed his forehead with a hiss.

"That's going to hurt in the morning."

The 10 of us slowly climbed our way out of the truck. Thanks to Ben's bubble, it didn't sustain too much damage, but the back bumper and the roof were a complete mess. Pots, pans, and all the other belongings that were strapped to the back of the vehicle were scattered everywhere on the ground.

"Now how are we supposed to get to the Pride Lands?" Poppy sighed with distraught.

"There is a way," Kili assured. "Just over this ridge, there is a path that leads straight to it. Just a mile or 2 from here."

"That doesn't sound so bad," Ty spoke with uncertainty. "Right?"

"Right," Sebastian nodded in agreement. "Plus, with the Dark Wolf taken care of, we'll have no trouble of getting there now."

"If that thing was the one causing all the fuss here in the first place, who knows," Santiago shrugged. "Maybe the Pride Lands isn't in any danger anymore."   

"But there's still one thing I don't understand about this place," I spoke up, scanning the area.

"What's wrong?" Vincent asked me.

"I thought it was obvious, but," I pointed outwards to the scenery of the savannah before them. "Where the heck are all the animals?"

The rest of the group followed my gaze as they all scanned the area around them. I was right. There were no sign of any animals in the area. There were no birds flying the skies, no zebras galloping by, nothing!

"That is pretty weird," Sebastian tensed, his eyes narrowing.   

Suddenly there was an echo of howls coming from the distance. They were very familiar howls. Ones that we have heard before. We all froze, slowly turning our bodies to face in the direction the sounds were coming from. We watched as the giant Dark Wolf body sank into the ground, forming a huge cloud of smoke as one by one, smaller wolves pounced out and began to charge in our direction, glaring and snaring at us.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me!" Vincent hissed.

"Anyone without magic, stay back," Ben ordered as he, Sebastian, Santiago, and Kaitlyn stepped forward, getting into a stance.

Hesitating for a moment, Jam closed his eyes, thinking about the weapon he had previously used. His hands glowed a bright red, as red lines outlined the sniper rifle and materialized one in his hands. Only this one was full on neon red. He stepped forward, joining the others as he raised his weapon and aimed it at the incoming wolves, peering through the scope.

One by one, the rest of the battle ready wizards activated their own magic. Sebastian summoned his Shoge Hook, while Ben summoned two shields in his palms, Santiago summoned a purple whirlwind around his right arm, and Kaitlyn summoned a few of her miniature Crater Vipers.

With nothing much else I could really do at this point, I hung back, standing protectively in front of Poppy, Vincent, Ty, and Kili. If some of the wolves were to get by the others, I was basically their last line of defense. I'd be willing to try anything if it meant protecting them. I may have lost the laser gun Buzz gave me, but that doesn't mean I still can't fight. I know how to throw a punch or two.

"Get ready team," Sebastian commanded.

Just as the wolves were getting closer to us, and right before they could make their attack. There was a loud roar that startled them, and us all the same. It echoed across the plains, and it was down right majestic and terrifying all at the same time.  The roar created a huge gust of wind as it began to push the wolves back with ease. I looked over to see a silhouette standing at the top of the ridge, but the blinding light from the hot sun preventing me from getting a good look at exactly who our rescuer was.

Then the clouds above the figure took form, forming in the shape of a trio of lion heads as they roared along with the silhouette, louder and more powerful this time. I turned my head back to look past the others, watching as one by one, the Dark wolves burst into black dust, evaporating in the blink of an eye. The remaining few that hung out in the back of the charge began to turn around and make their retreat, but it was already too late. With one more roar, the gush of wind, whacked at the wolves, sending the remaining few flying back with a yelp and exploding into dust.

When all of the wolves were taking care off, my friends and cousin disabled their magic as they all slowly turned to face myself and the rest of the group, before looking up top to the ridge as the rest of us followed suit.

The blinding light from the sun dyed down as the clouds dispersed, allowing us to get a good view of our rescuer.  

"Looks like I arrived just in time," the lion spoke. "I've been expecting you,"

"S-S-Simba?" Vincent stuttered.

"No way," I smiled while shaking my head with amazement.

"It's not safe out here," Simba stated, motioning his head to the side. "Follow me, Pride Rock is just up a head."

The group looked around at each other with disbelief before we all nodded in agreement. Together, we climbed our way up the ridge, pulling ourselves up to the higher surface before following the King of the Pride Lands to his home.