Alita lunged toward the enormous beast with determination. As she touched down in front of it, she began moving her hands rapidly, causing the ground beneath the creature's legs to sink like quicksand. The beast tried to free itself but was trapped, like a fly stuck on gummed paper.
To protect herself from the creature's free pincer, Alita conjured a barrier of water that shimmered like a liquid crystal. It appeared incredibly resilient, stopping every attack without yielding an inch. However, seeing that it couldn't harm her, the beast fixed its massive eyes on her and lashed out with its sharp tail directly toward the young girl. With lightning speed, Alita summoned a block of rock to intercept the stinger. The impact shattered the block into pieces, sending up a cloud of dust that enveloped the area. When the dust cleared, the creature, waving its tail to disperse the haze, realized Alita was no longer where she had been moments before.
"Take this!" Alita shouted from the other side of the beast. From the sides of her body emerged hundreds of ice daggers, sharp and lethal, which flew straight toward the creature's eyes. The freezing blades pierced its enormous eyeballs, causing it unbearable pain. The beast roared and writhed, finally releasing its grip.
Ron seized the moment to escape the pincers, clutching Chiki in his arms. "Well done, Alita! Thank you!" he exclaimed as he ran toward safety.
"That girl is amazing… And we thought she'd been brought along for nothing," Dall commented, impressed. The other soldiers nodded in unison, murmuring words of approval.
"Wow, that Alita is something else. She knows exactly where to strike. She's a smart one," Ludra remarked admiringly.
"Just like you," 'X' teased with a mischievous smile, causing Ludra to blush slightly.
"That girl is fascinating," Ariafilis commented to Jock, who simply nodded silently, awestruck by what he had just witnessed.
The beast, now blinded thanks to Alita, began moving erratically, destroying everything in its path. It fired orange beams from its mouth in all directions, unsure of where to aim. The cave walls trembled as the beams opened massive holes in them.
"Watch out!" Alita shouted, creating a wall of water to shield the others from the creature's uncontrollable attacks.
"That thing is completely out of control," Nakia observed, flying above the battlefield. "We need to finish it off before it destroys the entire cave and kills us all in the process."
"Yes, you're right, Nakia," Alita responded, refocusing. "I'll use fire magic."
The young woman extended her hands, generating balls of fire that burned with scorching intensity. She hurled them at the creature, enveloping it in flames. The beast roared in agony, thrashing violently as the fire consumed its body.
"Good, it's my turn," Ron announced. In his second armor form, he charged at the creature and, with a precise motion, used his arm like a sharp blade to sever the stinger from the beast's tail. The stinger hit the ground with a dull thud.
But the creature, though gravely wounded, was still full of hatred. It continued firing beams wildly, further demolishing the cave.
"That thing is going berserk!" Nakia shouted as she flew above the chaos, narrowly dodging the beams the creature launched in every direction.
"Come on, move!" Ariafilis ordered the others as she watched rocks begin to fall from the ceiling of the cave. The entire place shook, threatening to collapse at any moment.
"I'll handle it!" Ludra exclaimed, delivering a karate-style kick that shattered several falling rocks above them. "I'll protect my lord 'X'!"
Meanwhile, 'X' pulled out what looked like an ordinary pen, but it quickly transformed into a gleaming sword. With precise movements, he sliced through the smaller rocks, threatening to crush them. However, the larger ones were difficult to stop. That's when Ron stepped in, using his incredible strength to destroy them before they could fall on the group.
"Bah! Show-off," Ludra muttered, though she couldn't help but smile at how effective Ron was.
"Guys, to the right—no, to the left!" Ariafilis shouted urgently, guiding everyone to avoid being crushed by the continuing rockfall.
"All right, Alita, it's time to finish off that monster," Nakia said as she flew close to her.
"Yes, but we might as well get something useful out of that thing," Alita replied with a sly smile.
"Something like what?" Nakia asked, intrigued.
"Leave that to me," Alita said determinedly. The young woman floated into the air using her wind magic, positioning herself in front of the creature, which was still firing beams wildly. From her hands emerged rays that transformed into glowing whips. She used them to control the beast, maneuvering it as if it were a wild horse.
"Well, the downside is I'm not as strong as that fool Ron," Alita muttered, frowning. "But he can't help me now—he's busy stopping the rocks."
Suddenly, a familiar voice echoed through the area. "I know what you're trying to do, girl." From a nearby wall emerged Rodelos, covered in dust but very much alive.
"Lord Rodelos, you're alive!" Alita exclaimed, surprised.
"Of course, a silly beam isn't going to kill me, little girl," he replied with a confident smile.
"What I want is to move this creature toward that wall," Alita explained quickly. "According to the maps Ariafilis had, there's a hidden path behind it. We could use the beast to break through."
"Good idea, girl," Rodelos affirmed. Without wasting a moment, he approached the creature and grabbed the exposed electrical cables on its head. With supernatural strength, he pulled the beast and directed it toward the designated spot. The creature moaned in pain from its blindness and burns, but Rodelos didn't loosen his grip.
Finally, he aimed it toward the wall, and the creature unleashed its final beam—one so massive that it pierced through the entire barrier, opening a large passage to the other side.
"Wow, that creature is done for," Ron commented as he joined Alita and Rodelos.
"That's right, boy. I think it's taken its last breath," Rodelos noted solemnly, watching as the creature weakly crawled through the tunnel it had just created. Flames consumed its body, slowly reducing it to ashes until it finally collapsed, motionless, enveloped in fire.
"Look, what's on the other side?" Alita asked, peering into the newly opened path.
"I don't know, but I hear voices," Ron replied, alert.
"We need to move this thing," Ron said, demonstrating the extraordinary strength shared by all members of the Strong family. He pushed the creature's body aside to clear the area.
"It can't be! Is it really true? Is that you guys?" a familiar voice called out from the other side of the tunnel.
"It's…," Ron murmured, instantly recognizing the voice.
"Yes, it's him. That voice is unmistakable," Alita added, a mix of astonishment and joy in her tone.
Both teens ran toward the newly opened tunnel. As they emerged, they went face-to-face with Paltio and the others.
"Guys! But how is this possible? I can't believe it," Paltio exclaimed, visibly thrilled.
"Paltio! It really is you! No way… Am I dreaming? Someone pinch me!" Ron said, a mix of astonishment and joy in his voice.
"With pleasure," Chiki replied, who had regained movement after the paralysis caused by the creature. Without hesitation, he leaped toward Ron and gave him a firm pinch on the arm.
"Ouch! You mangy mutt!" Ron shouted, rubbing his arm as he looked at Chiki with mock indignation. But he couldn't help but smile at seeing the little dog so lively.
By the way, "Thank you, boy, for rescuing me," Chiki said seriously, looking directly into Ron's eyes. His tone was sincere, almost solemn, as if he were making a special effort to express gratitude.
But instead of taking it seriously, Ron let out a mocking chuckle. "Wow, you thank me… I'd like to hear that again," he responded sarcastically, clearly enjoying the moment.
Chiki frowned, his ears flattening back as his patience reached its limit. Before Ron could react, the dog leaped at him and delivered a direct kick to the face.
"Ouch, that hurt!" Ron exclaimed, rubbing his cheek as he glared indignantly at the small but determined Chiki.
"I go out of my way to show gratitude, pouring out my feelings, and you respond with this nonsense, brat!" Chiki muttered, visibly annoyed. He crossed his front paws with an indignant gesture and, without looking back, walked off in the opposite direction, his tiny steps reflecting his anger.
"Well, you really messed that up, Ron," Alita commented, trying to stifle a laugh as she shook her head.
"Chiki doesn't handle emotions well; he rarely shows them," Nakia explained, flying close to the group. "Sometimes you're such an idiot, Ron," Alita added with a mischievous smile, though her tone made it clear she was more amused than upset.
Everyone reunited, sharing hugs and words of relief. However, the greatest joy came from Paltio upon seeing his grandfather, Rodelos.
"Grandpa!" Paltio shouted, running toward him with shining eyes.
"Hello, my boy," Rodelos replied with a broad smile. They embraced warmly, filled with affection and relief, showing just how much they meant to each other.
"Lord Rodelos," Mok said respectfully, approaching the group.
"Mok! How many times do I have to tell you to stop being so formal?" Rodelos replied in a friendly tone, though with a hint of exasperation.
"Never, my lord," Mok answered with a mischievous smile, knowing it would get a reaction out of Rodelos. The latter, resigned but amused, ruffled Mok's hair with one hand while shaking his head.
"Well, what can you do with this kid?" Rodelos remarked, prompting laughter among everyone.
The atmosphere was filled with happiness and relief. Alongside old friends, there were also new faces joining the group, bringing with them a renewed sense of hope.