-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+- Aiko couldn't help but tremble as she stared into the pitch-black darkness in front of her, tears springing up into her eyes, burning them. "Hello?" she whispered, clearing her throat to remove the horrid rasp in her voice. "Hello?" she called out, louder this time. "Anybody there?" Briefly, she wondered if this was all stupid, but she was concerned about what was happening. She had heard how nobody hadn't seen Spider for quite a while, but thankfully one kind soul told her he had been heading towards a cave. Aiko had been more than concerned when she saw the collapsed rock covering the entrance. But she pushed forward anyways, her concern for her friend fueling her as she made her way through the rock, finding small paths and gaps that she squeezed herself through. And finally, she found herself in a void of black. "Hello!" she called, perking up her ears and trying to find any other noise beside her own breathing and the sound of her fur ruffled by a breeze that probably had gotten through the gaps she herself had just gone through. "Darn it, Spider...where are you?" Aiko mumbled, steeling herself before she headed forward. And yet...she couldn't see a thing. It was like the darkness was grabbing at her, stealing pieces of her away. Small, daring tendrils that stole her vision slowly, stole her braveness and confidence, leaving in its place only a feeling of coldness and downright dread. "No, no, no, no, no, no," she gasped, trembling and stepping back. She bumped into something and yelped, spinning around and trembling. But then she froze, stunned at the figure in front of her. The wolf-dog was outlined in a dazzling blue, and stood, watching her stoically. Aiko squinted at her, unable to help but think that she looked familiar. She wondered why at first...but then it hit her. She gasped. "Beetle!" she cried. "Oh my gosh--it's you. But you...died. You died! OH my wolfiness, you died! But how are you--" Beetle cut her off with a shake of her head. Then she jerked it upwards, eyeing the dark to the right of Aiko. "O-oh," Aiko whispered. "Spider's there, isn't he? You came to help me find him." Beetle nodded. Aiko hesitated, then whispered in a tentative voice, "What happened to you, Beetle?" They had said that Beetle had been found dead, crushed by rocks, but Aiko had a feeling that it wasn't anything natural. She...she just knew it. And she had always been told to trust her intuition. Beetle just shrugged, shaking her head and narrowing her eyes. Then she bounded away into the darkness. And left with no choice, Aiko followed after her. -+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
Art is by me, story is by me :)
