Normally, Alana probably would have sprung out of bed, blaster in hand, ready to fight the intruder. But the lull of the Slyren's song still echoed in her head as she blinked blurriness from her eyes.

"What?" she asked groggily as she sat up with a yawn. "What happened?"

Trixie sighed and repeated herself. "Someone broke into the hideout."

The second time around, the sentence actually processed. Alana's brain began to turn on, and she hurriedly climbed out of bed.

"What?!"

"Relax, she's already gone," Trixie said. "She tore up the place looking for something. We had a slugfight and she got away. I can't believe you slept through it."

"Sonic was helping me sleep," Alana yawned as she hurriedly dug through her closet to get her slinging gear. "I'll be down in a sec."

Trixie nodded and hurried back down to the living room. Alana quickly put on her shirt and pants. As she fastened her bandoleer, Ash and Mage jumped on her shoulders. The rest of her slugs began to stir as well. At the sight of their slinger prepping up, they began to file into her backpack.

"Can't believe somebody got in here," she noted as she slipped on her boots. She felt like she had experienced a break-in before, but she couldn't place her finger on the exact time. But the daunting feeling of knowing about an intruder felt familiar.

Alana pushed the thought away as she hurried downstairs, skipping the stairs and jumping from the handrail of the second floor. The rest of the gang was sitting in the living room, looking around dejectedly. Alana glanced up at the ceiling- globs of Jellyish goo littered the hideout, and one of the windows was shattered.

"Looks like you guys had a party without me," she noted. Eli laughed and rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, you missed out on so much fun," he said sarcastically. "Some girl broke in, looked around for something, then left."

"What did she look like?" Alana asked as she sat down in her usual bean bag chair.

"Brown skin, teal clothes, bright pink hair. Used a lot of Arachnets," Eli added. "Any idea who she was?"

"Doesn't ring a bell," Alana said, shaking her head. "She doesn't work for Blakk?"

"That's what I thought at first," Eli admitted. "But I asked her and she told me she didn't. No reason to lie about that in her situation. And she wasn't using ghouls. I'm more worried about the treasure she was talking about."

"She tore up our living room looking for treasure?" Alana asked, crossing her arms. "Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I'm pretty sure there isn't treasure anywhere here."

"Obviously she's after the legendary Shane treasure," Trixie said, sitting down on the couch and propping her feet up on the coffee table. Alana sighed and nodded. She'd heard a bit about that on the streets, and it always annoyed her.

"If it's so legendary, how come I've never heard of it?" Eli asked.

At that moment, the other members of the Shane Gang were thinking the exact same thing. None of them, however, thought it needed to be said out loud- except, apparently, Kord.

"This wouldn't be the first time your dad kept something secret from you," Kord said quietly. Alana frowned and her fingers tightened around the metal plating on her arm, but she said nothing. Eli glanced down at the ground.

"Just think," Trixie said quickly. "You could have a vast fortune hidden somewhere. You could be rich!"

Pronto squealed excitedly from where he stood behind the couch, but Alana just sunk down in her bean bag chair.

I'd know if Will left some fortune here.

"Rich? I dunno," Eli said. "My dad talked about stashes of stuff hidden around Slugterra, things I'll need someday. But I think he would've said something about a fortune."

Exactly. Will wouldn't hide something like that, would he?

"Just think!" Trixie exclaimed, ignoring Eli. "Some of it could be hidden here, right under our noses!"

She hurriedly lifted one of the couch cushions, while Kord zipped off to inspect the tool cabinets along one of the walls. Pronto disappeared for one moment, and reappeared just as quickly, now holding a shovel. He banged at the ground, and Alana quickly got up.

"Don't dent up the floor," she scolded, yanking the shovel from his hands. Pronto didn't respond. He simply dove to another potential hiding spot and kept digging around. Alana sighed and watched as Trixie kept searching through cushions and Kord dug through cupboards.

She paused and turned when she saw Eli walking hesitantly around to the back of the room. He stopped and stood in front of something hanging on the wall, and Alana took a few steps forward to see that it was the portrait if him and Will.

Alana smiled sadly as she looked at it, observing Will's smile and remembering how much she missed seeing it. She expected Eli to take a glance and move on, but instead, he stayed.

"More secrets, huh?" he asked quietly. Then he stepped forward and lifted the portrait off the wall. Alana's eyes widened as he set it down on the ground and revealed a safe imbedded in the wall of the hideout.

"Whoa," she breathed, walking up and watching as Eli tapped the metal cautiously. Kord cleared his throat, and Alana hurriedly backed away as the cave troll reared back and punched the front of the safe in. The hinges broke, and the metal went clattering to the floor.

"That's one way to do it," Trixie laughed as Eli reached into the hole in the wall. He pulled out a block of silvery metal, in the shape of a rectangle but with rounded edges. Alana's heart sank a bit- it looked like she didn't know what all Will would and wouldn't do.

"EEEE!" Pronto exclaimed, sprinting over to Eli and jumping up and down excitedly. "Open it, open it!"

"Okay, okay," Eli laughed, looking at the block. "But I'm not sure how. Or even where."

Pronto cleared his throat and stepped forward, grabbing the block from Eli.

"Allow me," he said, raising he block above his head. As Pronto threw his hands down (apparently having forgotten Alana's earlier request not to dent the floor), Kord quickly grabbed it from the molenoid.

"I haven't seen one of these in ages," he marveled as he held up the block. "The thing's been coated in smolten. Only way we're getting this baby open is with a Forgesmelter slug."

"Awww," Pronto groaned. "We don't have one of those!"

"Well, where can we find one?" Eli asked eagerly.

"Oh, we would have to travel to the deepest regions of the Magma Caverns!" Pronto said dramatically.

"Yes!" Alana exclaimed. She'd passed through the Magma Caverns, but hadn't actually traversed through them.

"No way. It's way too dangerous," Trixie protested. "It's basically all molten lava."

"And don't forget about the magma monsters," Kord added.

"And the ferocious lava bats that will swoop down and gorge themselves on... my sweltering brains!" Pronto exclaimed. Eli smirked and glanced at Alana, who nodded.

"Sounds like my kind of place. Let's load up, gang!" Eli said, turning away and heading for the launch bay. Kord, Trixie, and Pronto all turned to Alana, incredulous. She laughed and shrugged as she got up from the bean bag chair.

"You guys wanted to get treasure," she said in a singsong voice as she followed after Eli.

~~~~~~~~

The ride to the Magma Caverns was spent with Eli and Alana riding silently up front with the others trailing behind discussing what the treasure could be. The most popular vote was, of course, gold, but the discussion also included blaster mods and maps to rare slugs.

Alana and Eli didn't say anything to each other, but they were both thinking the same thing. Why hadn't they known about the treasure?

Alana figured that Eli not knowing almost made sense. He hadn't lived in Slugterra until recently, and even before that, he had only been ten when Will had left. It could have just been something Will figured he would be able to share with Eli when he brought his son down to Slugterra.

But how could Alana not have known that there was a safe behind the portrait she had walked by nearly every day for the last ten years?

As the gang traveled across the realm, the air slowly getting warmer and warmer around them, she tried and failed to come up with an answer.

Finally, after what seemed like days, the cavern around them turned into a land of molten lava. Warm red and brown rock bridges stretched over bubbling orange and yellow liquid. The air smelled faintly of smoke, and the heat was prickly on Alana's skin. Ash chirped happily as he looked around excitedly, in his natural element.

"So, Eli," Trixie called up to the front of the group, having paused her conversation with Pronto over whether or not the treasure would be gold or objects. "You don't find it ridiculous at all that your dad not only expected you to find that chest without instructions, but he didn't even leave you a way to open it if you found it?"

Alana glanced at Eli- she'd been wondering the same thing, but she didn't want to ask him and risk making him upset.

Eli thought for a moment, then shrugged.

"My dad always liked for me to figure things out by myself," he said, glancing down at Burpy, who sat on Lucky's head. Alana nodded absently.

Will had definitely always let her learn through trial and error. But at the same time, she had always seen him much more than Eli. She'd had more time to be curious and learn things with him and sling with him. Eli only ever had Will's short visits to the surface.

"And you're cool with this?" Trixie asked incredulously.

"It doesn't matter whether or not I'm cool with it," Eli said flatly. "It's just the way it is."

Alana's heart sank a bit- was Eli just upset with the situation, or was he harboring resentment for Will? She drove Midnight toward him to ask, but before she could, creatures erupted from the lava below them.

Lava bats, with cries that bounced off the rock bridges and cavern walls. They were dark purple and orange, with glowing yellow eyes. For a moment, they swarmed the gang, and Alana put her arms over her head to avoid their razor-sharp claws. Then they flew up again, regathering their group before turning to dive back toward the slingers.

"Pronto, your Flatulorhinkus!" Eli called, loading his Bubbaleone. Pronto nodded and fired Stinky, and Eli fired Suds after him.

Suds' velocimorph swallowed up Stinky's, filling up the hollow pink slug with purple and green gas. The Bubbaleone flew after the lava bats, swallowing them up and trapping them inside with the nasty fumes. After swallowing up the last of the creatures, Suds flew back down toward the rock bridge with the gang, spitting out the unconscious creatures.

"Nice shot," Alana commented, looking at the dazed lava bats. Then she turned to Pronto. "See, your brains are fine."

"As if I was ever worried!" Pronto exclaimed as Stinky hopped back over to him. The Flatulorhinkus looked at Alana, shrugging and rolling his eyes before hopping back into one of Pronto's slug canisters.

"Right," Trixie laughed as the gang continued on, now staying away from the edges of the rock bridges to avoid any more unwanted attention. Eli led the way, with Alana and Trixie following soon after him. Trixie drove Boomer so she was right next to Alana and leaned over.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" she asked quietly. Alana nodded. "Why didn't you know about this treasure, if you lived with Will for so long?"

"Same reason as Eli," Alana whispered. "We were only ten when he-"

She couldn't bring herself to say died. Alana had never said Will actually died- she was getting by on the hope that one day she would see him again.

"When we lost him," she finished. "Ten year olds didn't have a reason to be informed on all the secrets he had."

"I guess so," Trixie said. Her curiosity didn't seem like it was completely stifled, but Alana thought her response would hopefully be enough for her to drop the subject for the time being.

The gang continued down the winding bridge of stone, the heat of the Magma Cavern increasing with every step of their Mecha beasts.

"This is starting to get a little uncomfortable," Trixie noted, fanning her face.

"Looks like we might have a bigger problem than the heat," Kord noted, pointing to the path ahead, where Eli had already halted. Alana stood up a little in her Mecha to look at the obstacle and her eyes widened.

A hundred yards of lava stood between them and an opening that led further into the cavern. The orange and yellow liquid swirled and bubbled, and even though it was between them and the key to opening the metal box, it was still almost breathtaking.

"Wow. That's a heck of a view," she said as she sat back down in Midnight's seat.

"Views are great and all, but how are we supposed to cross a sea of pure lava?" Trixie asked. Pronto hurried forward to the front of the group, unclipping a pocket watch from his belt.

"Never fear! Pronto the Magnificent will drain the sea of fire... now!" he called, holding his arms out.

Nothing happened.

"Impressive!" Kord said sarcastically. Pronto laughed nervously and glanced back down at his pocket watch.

"Oh, uh, I mean... now!"

This time, the lava ocean began to swirl even more. Alana gasped as the liquid began to sink down, exposing a stone bridge that led to the entrance of the next part of the cavern.

"Pronto, how did you...?" Eli asked, his voice trailing off as he watched the retreating lava in wonder.

"Magnificence!" Pronto exclaimed proudly. When none of the other slingers looked too satisfied with the answer, he sighed and began to drive his Mecha forward. "Also, the lava tide goes in and out every hour on the hour, like clockwork. So, if we are to do this crazy, crazy thing and get some sweet, sweet treasure, we'd best embark immediately. The 'drowning in fire' clock is already ticking. Fifty-nine minutes!"

"Then let's get going!" Trixie urged. The gang revved their Mechas' engines and sped forward, rushing down the stone bridge and being careful to avoid remaining puddles of lava.

Eli suddenly faltered for a moment, turning around quickly and scanning the rock pillars and cavern ceiling behind the gang. Alana frowned and followed his gaze, looking past the heat ripples of the lava.

"What did you see?" she asked.

"I thought I saw... nothing," Eli said dismissively, turning back to the rest of the gang. "I just can't stop thinking about who that thief was, and how she could've known about this chest."

"Whoever she was, she can't possibly be dumb enough to come here," Kord assured. "We own that level of dumbness."

"I wouldn't call it dumbness," Alana protested with a smile as the gang began riding downhill. "Maybe just a... reckless sense of adventure?"

"Yeah, there you go," Eli said from up front. Then he yelled out in alarm as he got too close to one of the edges of the bridge, and Lucky's claws loosened some of the rock. It toppled down and plopped into the lowered lava sea.

"It's getting narrow, we should take it single file now," Alana said, falling back behind Eli. The slingers slowed up their Mecha beasts, careful to stay in the center of the bridge.

"Ah, yes. The key to surviving in the Magma Cavern is slow and steady," Pronto noted from the back of the group.

"Didn't you just say we need to hurry, though?" Eli asked. Pronto shrugged.

"Find a balance," he replied. Kord hushed him.

"We should really keep it down, too," he said nervously, looking over the sides of the bridge. "We don't wanna wake any magma monsters."

"Bah! Only a fool would be afraid of a... silly... little..."

Alana frowned and turned to see why Pronto had fallen silent, and gasped as she looked up at an enormous fish-looking monster that had erupted from the lava sea. It had shiny purple scales with yellow flecks, and angry orange eyes. It was easily over fifty feet long, and let out a roar as it crashed down onto the bridge just behind Pronto.

"AHHH!" Pronto screamed as he sped forward, leaping past Kord, Trixie, and Alana's Mechas as they began to speed up. Eli turned to see what the commotion was about and gasped when he saw the magma monster jump out of the lava again, letting out another roar that shook the cavern.

"Forget slow and steady!" Trixie cried out. Alana nodded and floored Midnight, tearing down the bridge as the monster continued to crash into the stone in attempt to swallow up the slingers. The bridge was crumbling apart and splashing into the lava sea below.

"We're almost there!" Eli called, pressing Lucky forward. He reached the small opening that led to an area with solid ground instead of the lava sea, quickly followed by Alana, Trixie, and Pronto.

But Kord's Mecha, not built entirely for speed, was still lagging behind, and the magma monster was getting dangerously close to catching him- and it was destroying the bridge as it went.

"Eli!" Alana called out, loading her Frostcrawler, Kelvin. Eli nodded and loaded Chiller, and the two fired their Frostcrawlers simultaneously.

The two white and navy slugs sped toward the magma monster, blowing out a flurry of cold air and ice as they swirled around the giant fish. Ice formed at the scales and swallowed the monster up, making it a frozen statue in the middle of where the bridge once stood. Kord sighed with relief and drove the rest of the way over to the entrance.

"Nice shot," he gasped.

"But how are we going to get back?" Trixie asked, looking at the decimated bridge. Eli began to snicker.

"Don't say it," Alana warned.

"I guess we'll have to... cross that bridge when we come to it," Eli laughed. Alana rolled her eyes, but laughed with him as the gang began to head down the dark red stone tunnel, deeper into the Magma Cavern.

The heat wasn't as prickly as it was in the room with the lava sea, but it still hung in the air like a thick blanket. While Ash seemed to have no problem with the climate, Kelvin was chirping unhappily and kept spitting out ice to freeze his slug canister on Alana's bandoleer solid. It never stayed, though- within minutes it was completely melted, and it was getting her shirt wet, but she didn't want to say anything.

And speaking of not wanting to say anything, this did not seem to be a worry in Trixie's mind. Because after a few minutes, the redhead was driving next to Eli again.

"Seriously, it's almost like he expected you to go on this crazy mission," she noted. Eli sighed and began to respond, but was cut off when a stone pillar next to him suddenly hissed and spat out a splash of lava. Trixie gasped and dodged out of the way just in time.

"Fire geyser!" Pronto yelled from the back.

"Gee, you think?" Kord responded, shaking his head.

"Fire geysers give off a warning hiss before they explode, so we should be fine," Pronto said. "As long as we go-"

"Slow and steady, we got it," Kord said as the gang continued on. The path ahead was lined on both sides with fire geysers jutting out of the ground, dark red stone with violet bioluminescent mushrooms growing on the sides. Alana crept forward on Midnight, watching warily as geysers hissed around her, leaping out of the way to avoid behind splashed by lava.

"Uh oh," Kord suddenly said. Alana looked up and groaned- the line of geysers ahead of them all began to hiss, shooting out a warning line of steam. If they waited until they all exploded, the path ahead would be coated in lava, and they'd be stuck.

"Go, go, go!" Eli called, ditching the slow-and-steady route and speeding down the path with Lucky. Alana followed after him, weaving Midnight around as the geysers began to spurt out lava.

"This isn't how I thought the day would go when Trix woke me up this morning!" she called out as she and Eli leapt out of the way of the final geyser, skidding to a halt inside a narrow tunnel. The rest of the gang followed shortly behind them, all panting.

"That went well," Trixie noted.

"At least none of us got coated in molten lava," Alana noted as Eli led the way down the tunnel.

The stone tunnel around them quickly opened up into a large chamber. Wine red stone stretched out high to the cavern ceiling. Small lines of lava curved around the floor like snakes, and a well at the center of the cave held a bubbling pool of searing lava. Orange and yellow sparks danced around the air, and violet and magenta mushrooms and Lumino crystals dotted the walls, next to fountains of lava that poured out of cracks in the stone.

"Wow," Alana breathed, looking around with wide blue eyes.

"Behold, the fabled Forgesmelter chamber!" Pronto exclaimed.

"Well let's find one quick and get out of here," Kord said as the gang dismounted from their Mechas. Alana frowned as she looked around.

Where are all the Forgesmelters? she wondered. She hardly felt any slug energy, except from the gang's ammo, and a little bit-

"Or, how about you just give me that chest?" a cool voice suddenly rang out. Alana turned around and saw a girl perched between two stalactites on the ceiling, holding a Forgesmelter slug by an Arachnet web.

She had warm brown skin and wore dark teal clothes, and her hair was bubblegum pink.

The thief?

"And you'll do that because I have the only key," she said, holding up the Forgesmelter.

"You think that's the only slug in this cavern?" Eli asked, his eyes narrowing as he looked up at the thief.

"The only one you're going to find," she said confidently. "I just released a Frostcrawler and scared off all the others."

Eli scowled and glanced over at Alana for confirmation. She frowned and nodded- she didn't feel any more Forgesmelters in the area.

"Oh, it will be hours before they return!" Pronto exclaimed.

"But the lava tide will be in a lot sooner," the thief said, hanging upside-down and lowering down to the gang on an Arachnet web. "So, are you gonna give me my share of that treasure, or are we all gonna boil?"

Her share? Alana wondered. How many other people knew about this chest?

"She's got nerve, I'll give her that," Trixie said bitterly as she walked up next to Alana, glaring at the thief.

"Look, I don't know who you are, or why you think you have dibs on anything in that chest," Eli said. The thief sighed and swung down from her web, getting to her feet and looking Eli up and down.

"My name is Dana Por," she said. Alana's heart skipped a beat and her eyes widened. "And if that doesn't ring a bell, perhaps this will."

She pulled a folded up piece of paper from her pocket, unfolding it and holding it up. It was an old picture, of Will Shane and a man with brown skin similar to Dana's, and dark brown hair.

"You recognize that man next to your dad?" Dana asked coldly. Alana frowned as the memory clicked into place. Will's old friend-

"Yeah, that's Tom... Por," Eli breathed, looking up at Dana. "He's your father, isn't he? My dad talked about him all the time. They were like best friends. Until he betrayed my dad," Eli added icily, narrowing his eyes.

"Betrayed Will Shane? Your dad obviously didn't tell you the whole story," Dana said, folding up the photo and slipping it back in her pocket.

"Ooh, there's a shocker," Kord muttered. Eli and Alana quickly turned and frowned at him. "Uh, sorry."

"My dad's been known to leave out a detail or two," Eli admitted, turning back to Dana.

"Well my dad didn't," Dana said, turning away from the gang. Alana folded her arms, glancing down at the ground.

She knew how this story went.

"He was Will Shane's recon man, and he was the best there was at getting information," Dana said. "And all of that valuable info went to Will Shane. It helped him stay one step ahead of the bad guys. They were a great team. But my dad knew something wasn't right about Will Shane. He would disappear for days at a time, and never had an explanation for where he went."

His trips to the surface.

Alana glanced up at Eli, who was staring at the ground.

"And then, out of thin air, he shows up at the hideout one day with a little girl in tow, a burn on her arm and blue streaks in her hair," Dana sneered, looking past Eli at Alana. "I didn't see you this morning. I was wondering if you were still around. I guess you are. Will shows up with you, claiming he's watching after you for a family friend, and doesn't give any more explanation."

Alana's face turned pink, and she couldn't help but feel a little guilty. She had been part of what made Tom so angry with Will?

"My dad knew Will was keeping secrets," Dana continued, turning her gaze back to Eli. "So he decided to start watching your father. He was hiding treasure, treasure he promised to share with my dad. But that wasn't even the worst of it. Will Shane was working with the enemy."

Alana narrowed her eyes and curled her fingers into fists, anger running through her like fire. Eli scowled and shook his head.

"My dad would never work for Blakk!" he protested.

"Not Blakk. Even worse. The Shadow Clan," Dana said. Alana's eyes widened, and she couldn't help but feel like she was supposed to have already known that. But how-?

"When my dad confronted Will about it, he denied everything- except the treasure part," Dana continued. "My dad became angry, and challenged your father to a duel. And we all know what happens when you challenge Will Shane to a duel. Which is why you're gonna give me his cut," Dana finished.

Eli glanced back over at the chest covered in smolten, tied to the back of Kord's Mecha. Then he faced Dana.

"Dana, I can't believe my father would do that," he said sadly. "But I also can't always explain or understand his actions."

Alana frowned and took a few steps back, staying toward the back of the group. Then she closed her eyes for a moment and focused on her energy, letting it radiate out for a moment. Would it entice the Forgesmelters to come back? Then they could at least get out of the Magma Cavern, and figure out who got shares of the treasure when the risk of boiling lava wasn't approaching. She opened her eyes and sighed, hoping a slug would come.

Pronto seemed to be having the same worry. He cleared his throat and hurried forward, putting himself between Eli and Dana.

"Pronto finds all of this very moving," he said, looking at the entrance to the chamber nervously. "But he would also like to remind you that the lava tide will be returning soon, so...?"

"I don't care about gold," Eli said, walking over to Kord's Mecha and untying it. "If that's what you're after, I'll give you a share. If you give us that slug so we can get out of here."

"No!" Dana protested. "We open it now. And there's little time to argue, so let's get to it."

"Fine," Eli said with a shrug, picking up the box and setting it on the ground in front of Dana. She nodded and tossed Eli the Forgesmelter. The dark red and teal slug chirped happily at Eli has he hopped in a slug canister. Eli loaded the slug and, with a deep breath, fired it at the chest.

The slug transformed and spat out a glob of lava that coated the box, melting away the metal and exposing a black and white chest with golden detailing. On the edge of the lid was the Shane star. Alana's eyes widened as the lid clicked open with a small hiss. The Forgesmelter returned to protoform, hopping back over to Eli.

Dana gasped excitedly and picked up the chest, opening the lid the rest of the way and peering inside. Alana hurried over to one side of Dana, and Eli to the other, and the three looked inside the chest to see-

Well, definitely not gold.

A few books, a comb, a jar of shells. A red screwdriver and an old silver locket, and a red-haired action figure with blue dual blades. A black metal circlet, and a black and green sphere.

"It's nothing but junk!" Dana cried out angrily, shuffling through the box. "Worthless junk! What is this, are you trying to scam me?"

"Told you there was no fortune," Eli said, leaning back and looking at Kord. "Though I was hoping there would be, too."

Dana pulled out the black metal circlet, shoving the chest into Eli's arms. Alana frowned as she looked at it- it had pale green detailing that was glowing faintly, and she could feel a weird energy emanating from it.

"Hm. Maybe I can melt this down for something," Dana noted, lifting the circlet to rest it on her head.

"Wait!" Alana suddenly cried out, reaching forward to stop her, but it was too late. Dana set the circlet on her head and gasped, staggering forward.

Then she began to scream and yell, the sounds echoing off the cave walls. Dana fell to her knees, clawing at the air in front of her and gasping in terror as she collapsed to the ground. Her arms shook and her eyes looked around wildly as she gasped and screamed.

"Get it off her!" Eli yelled. Alana ran forward, sliding to the ground and pulling the circlet off Dana's head, tossing it to the ground in front of Eli.

"What just happened?" she asked as Dana stopped screaming and sat up, still gasping for air.

"The Shadow Clan," Dana stuttered, her voice trembling as she looked up at Eli through her green glasses. "They're coming."

And with her warning delivered, Dana's eyes rolled up in her head, and she went limp.

"Oh man," Alana breathed as she held Dana's torso in her arms, keeping her down in case she began to freak out again. All around the gang, Shadow Clan began to appear in the Forgesmelter Chamber in bursts of black and green. She felt the bursts of shadow energy and winced as her own energy began to fuse with that of the Shadow Clan. She made a few words out of their hisses and growls as they surrounded the slingers-

Stolen, talker, girl, thief, boy, light, stolen-

"How did they get here so fast?!" Kord asked.

"Who cares?" Eli responded, loading a Rammstone, Kord doing the same. "Let's make them leave!"

The two fired their Rammstones, but they had no effect. One of the Shadow Clan just teleported out of the line of fire, and another swatted the slug with its tail, reflecting it back at the gang.

"Watch it!" Trixie yelled as she ducked out of the way of the slug. She rushed over to Alana and Dana, who was still laying unconscious. "Kord!"

"Get her out of here!" Eli commanded as he swung the chest shut and set it on Kord's Mecha. Kord ran over and scooped Dana up in his arms, rushing back to the Mechas with Trixie and Alana following behind him.

"The lava tide is coming in!" Pronto cried out. Eli began to run toward Lucky, but stopped and turned back, sprinting back over to where Dana was to pick up the circlet she'd taken from the chest.

"Eli, we need to get out of here!" Alana yelled, putting her arms up to shield her face as a Shadow Clan fired a Hop Rock at Kord.

"I'm right behind you, you guys get going!" Eli called, clipping the circlet to his belt and firing Burpy.

The Infurnus swooped up in the air, fire trailing behind him as he dove into the lava pool at the center of the Forgesmelter Chamber. Alana watched in wonder as orange and yellow liquid burst into the air, showering the chamber in heat and light. The Shadow Clan hissed as they teleported around the chamber to avoid the lava.

"Let's go!" Eli called, jumping on Lucky and leading the way out of the chamber. Burpy followed behind the gang, returning to protoform and landing on Eli's shoulder.

"Nice move!" Alana called as she sped Midnight up to ride even with Eli.

"Thanks. I just hope it bought us some time," he said.

The gang rode through a short tunnel that soon opened up into yet another cave- this one with the fire geysers.

"Floppers!" Trixie yelled as one of the geysers erupted next to her, almost showering her in lava.

"No slow and steady this time around!" Eli said grimly. The gang pushed their Mechas to the max, speeding through the cave and barely avoiding the erupting lava as they went.

"Wait," Alana called as the gang cleared the geysers, the Shadow Clan beginning to reappear just behind them. "After this, don't we have-?"

"Uh oh. You're right," Eli said, knowing what she meant before she finished her sentence. "Hey guys, remember what I said about crossing that bridge when we come to it?"

The fire geyser chamber led them out back into the main entrance to the Magma Cavern, with the stone bridge and the lava sea. Except the bridge had been destroyed by magma monster.

"I got this!" Kord yelled, firing his Frostcrawler. The slug flew in front of the rest of the gang, blowing out a burst of ice as it went, forming a bridge as it flew.

"Whoo!" Alana laughed as Midnight's claws hit the ice. The Mechas began to half run, half slide across the bridge. "This is better than the stone one!"

Then she looked up and changed her mind.

Kord's Frostcrawler lost velocity and returned to protoform after reaching a lone stone column that stuck out of the rising lava sea.

Before anyone else could do anything, Dana sat up behind Kord, now awake after her episode. She raised her arm blasters, firing two Arachnets that spat out a huge web stretching from the lone column all the way to the far edge of the lava sea.

"Nice!" Trixie laughed as the Mechas began to bounce across the lava sea. Alana laughed as Ash and Mage chirped excitedly as Midnight leapt across the webs to the other side of the lava sea. She glanced behind her. The Shadow Clan were advancing across the ice bridge, nearing the stone column-

Where Pronto was still standing, looking nervously at the Arachnet web bridge.

"What are you doing, Pronto? Come on!" Alana yelled, pointing to the lava sea, which was creeping farther and farther up.

"You expect Pronto to bounce on that?" Pronto shrieked, pointing to the web bridge. Eli pointed behind Pronto.

"Unless you'd prefer option B!" he responded. Pronto turned around and saw the Shadow Clan rushing toward him, letting out growls and roars, and quickly overcame his fear of the web bridge. He pressed his Mecha forward, bouncing across the webs and landing in an ungraceful heap at the other side of the lava sea just as the lava swallowed up the web bridge.

"That, my friends, is why we never return to the Magma Cavern again!" Pronto groaned as his Mecha regained its footing. The gang continued their escape, driving through the winding tunnel that acted as the cavern's exit.

Eli glanced back to see the Shadow Clan teleporting across the lava sea, and slowed Lucky down, falling back behind the rest of the group.

"Eli, stay with us!" Alana protested.

"Get Dana out of here! I'll lead the Shadow Clan away!" he responded, taking off down a small path back into the Magma Cavern.

Alana sighed and rolled her eyes, speeding up so she was even with Trixie.

"How do we put up with this?" she asked. Trixie laughed and shrugged.

"Excellent question. I ask myself that every day," she said. "We put up with a lot."

"I-" Alana was cut off by a small chirp. She looked down and saw a dark red and teal slug hopping up from the inner workings of Midnight. "What are you doing, little guy?" she laughed, holding out her hand.

The Forgesmelter chirped and waved to her.

Putting out my energy worked, Alana realized, and she smiled.

"Would've been nice to have you a few minutes ago, but better late than never," she said. "You wanna join up with me? It'll be lots of fun."

The Forgesmelter nodded excitedly.

"Alright, then," Alana said, holding up her hand. The Forgesmelter hopped up on her shoulder, greeting Ash. "How about we name you-"

Kord, who had been leading the way, suddenly came to a halt. Alana, Trixie, and Pronto, did the same, watching confusedly as he got off his Mecha and began inspecting it.

"Wait a sec, something's wrong... has anyone seen Dana?" he asked.

"Bah! We could have just let the Shadow Clan take her, but we didn't, and this is how she repays us?!" Pronto grumbled. Alana frowned, looking around for any sign of Dana, and finding none.

"You think she might've gone back to Eli?" she asked. "He took that circlet she had. Yeah, it made her freak out, but she might still want it."

Kord sighed and jumped back up on his Mecha, leading the way back into the Magma Cavern.

"I'm gonna need a long nap after this," he mumbled as the gang wove through the tunnel they had just left, turning where Eli had gone to distract the Shadow Clan.

Alana let her senses spread out, but she didn't feel any more shadow energy.

They must've really just cared about Dana.

"Whoa," Trixie said suddenly, stopping her Mecha and jumping down. Alana followed her gaze- at the end of the path sat Eli, on the ground in front of Lucky, pale and taking deep breaths.

Alana and the others got down from their Mechas, running after Trixie, who knelt down in front of the Shane.

"Eli?" she said worriedly. Eli blinked a few times, looking around and processing that the gang was standing around him. He gasped and quickly got to his feet.

"How did you escape the Shadow Clan?" Kord asked.

"I'm still trying to figure that out myself," Eli responded, glancing at Alana nervously. "They just... left."

Alana frowned and crossed her arms. She recognized that tone of voice. Will had used it plenty of times. She stepped forward and opened her mouth, ready to call Eli out on his lie, but Trixie beat her to it.

"You know, it might be a lot easier if we figure it out together," she said. Eli's eyes widened, and he hesitated for a moment before holding out one of his hands. In it sat the black and green circlet.

"Well, to start with, this thing allowed me to talk to them," he said. "I put it on, just like Dana, and- wait- where is Dana?"

"No clue. I turned around to check on her and she was just gone," Kord said.

"For now," Eli said grimly. "I have a feeling we'll see her again. My dad kept all these things hidden for a reason. That was his treasure. And I don't think Dana Por is done hunting for what she thinks is hers."

~~~~~~~~

Alana hung in the back during the ride back to the hideout. Her head was spinning with all the events of today.

Will had kept a lot more secrets than she thought.

As the others discussed the shadow talker and what else they should do with the rest of their evening, Alana couldn't help but replay one thing in her head over and over.

He'd told Tom that taking care of Alana was for a family friend.

Who was the friend? Who was she?

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't think back to a time before that day in the Jungle Cavern when Will had found her. It seemed like her life began at that morning.

"Ah, back to the hideout," Kord said up front, causing Alana to push away her thoughts and look up as the gang approached home. "I can't wait for a nice, long- uh oh."

Alana's eyes narrowed and she leaned forward on Midnight, looking around the others as they rode up to the hideout.

A purple doe Mecha sat in front of the launch bay, a young woman in the seat. She wore a purple dress shirt, dark gray pants, and black boots. She had long, dark brown, curly hair that fell far past her shoulders, and she looked up when she heard the gang approaching and got off her Mecha.

Heart thumping, Alana wove Midnight through the other Mechas, taking the lead and stopping in front of the girl. She laughed nervously, looking her friend up and down.

"Sam Gray?"

~~~~~~~~

AYYYY it's 2018! Anyone got New Year's resolutions? Do people still do those? I don't really know

Today's my last day of break, so I'm waking up, posting this, then going right back to sleep, in case anyone's wondering of I don't respond to comments!

Cyan out!✌️