6. Storm

Cindy whispered in Ran's ear. Ran's face immediately turned pale. In the midst of confusion and a tense situation. Finally Ran made up his mind;

"Run! Leave all the equipment behind! We follow this lava flow. I'm sure we'll get to the sea or the bay…"

Despite the strange order, all team members followed what Ran said. They dropped everything and rushed to follow the flow of the lava river. They had never imagined running on the edge of the hot lava river. The heat was eating away their strength to run. It was like a marathon through hell!

Cindy chose to run last. Her ears that were as sharp as bats could sense what was chasing them. Something under the ground! Might be the anaconda that Tet mentioned or some other scary animals. She wouldn't be surprised if a giant insect that could suck their blood appeared. Cindy shuddered.

The lurking sound behind them grew closer. It was less than 200 yards away. Cindy could hear it. Her friends couldn't. She screamed;

"Quick! Run faster! There's a big tree on your left! Climb! Climb!" Cindy's scream felt like an alarm to Ran. The team leader who was running in front swiftly climbed the giant tree. It had many protrusions from the fallen branches, making it easier for them to climb.

Cindy was the last to climb. She climbed like a cat or a leopard! Her slender body had been on the tallest branch in no time. She was ahead of her friends who were still struggling to catch their breaths.

Cindy shouted again, "Here! Higher!"

Ran and his three male friends followed Cindy's orders. With the remaining strength left, they managed to reach the large branch where Cindy was standing while looking down.

The thing that was chasing them emerged from the ground with a rumbling sound of the ground splitting apart. Something scarier than an Anaconda! The beast had the body of a snake with eight legs like a spider! Its body was as big as two palm trees with a length of no less than 27 meters!

Although they were frightened and horrified because of the size of the strange beast, the legged snake couldn't climb trees like an ordinary snake. Those clumsy legs prevent the snake from climbing.

Cindy was a little taken a back. Was she that panicked that she told her friends to climb a nearby tree? Or was this a strong survival instinct from animals that usually became prey? Cindy shed a few tears. What creature had she become?

Cindy's thoughts were interrupted by the screams of her friends.

"Look! Storm's coming!"

"The sky over the sea is pitch black!"

"A storm's coming this way!"

She stared at the black and white sea. It was dark. The wind also started to pick up. Her long hair fluttered in the wind. Cindy turned to Ran. She didn't know what to do anymore. For a moment she forgot that the giant strange snake was still down there.

She saw Ran observing the enormous tree trunk. Cindy was also interested. She shifted her body closer to Ran. Ran turned his head and pointed at the back of the tree trunk. A hole? Cindy sighed. Another hole. Cindy nimbly moved to the branch opposite of where they were. She tried to listen.

Nothing. She tried again. Her hearing might not be accurate because of the howling wind. There really wasn't any sound in there. But what hole was this? Why was it in this big tree?

Ran gestured for Tet to come closer. The biologist. He might know what hole this was. With Cindy's help, Tet was struggling to move to the branch where Cindy was standing. Tet observed and then shouted because the sound of the wind drowned out all voices even more.

"It's a bird's nest! I don't know what bird, but I don't think it's the vulture we met earlier. This nest is too small for them!"

Ran nodded. Then asked Cindy to check the depth of the nest. With her unusual sight and hearing. But she realized that her hearing and sight were useless at this point. The storm had come. She couldn't count on her hearing.

Without hesitation, Cindy stepped into the hole. And immediately lapsed and lost from sight! Ran became hysterical. He approached the pit and intended to do the same. His friends followed him without knowing what had happened.

Ran jumped into the hole. For a moment his body floated and... landed on a soft place. Followed by a thudding sound of three other people. Ran took a small flash light that was always tucked away in his belt pocket. As soon as the light flashed, Ran's eyes immediately met with Cindy's black eyes, who grinned widely at him.

"This is the most luxurious bed since we were stranded in this godforsaken place," said Cindy, who leisurely laid down. Ran shone around the bottom of the hole. Cindy was right. The bottom of this hole was piled with various kinds of twigs and very thick dry leaves. Felt like a natural and comfortable foam mattress to sleep on.

They forgot about the giant strange snake that was still waiting for them down there. They ignored that a storm was raging out there. They found their own spot to lie down. Although it was a bit cramped, at least this was what they got right now.

----

They didn't know that the strange snake was digging the ground using its sharp claws. It didn't take long for the snake to tore the tree roots one by one from the ground that supported them.

But the snake dug in the direction of the storm. The tree still stood tall because it was being held back by the incoming wind. The tree should have fallen because half of its roots were uprooted.

In the nest. The expedition team could only pray that the storm would stop soon. They discussed what to do when the storm subsided and the strange snake was still waiting down there. They couldn't come up with anything. They just had to wait.

The storm raged for about two hours. The team used the time to rest and restore their energy. That was all they could do.

As soon as the storm subsided, the expedition team began to feel something strange with the tree they were in. It felt like the tree was shaken by an earthquake! Slowly at first, but gradually as the storm began to stop, the tree shook harder. They heard a loud creaking sound like something was snapping or being ripped apart.

Cindy realized what had happened. Her ears and instincts were working again. She signaled to her friends to follow what she was doing. She tucked her body so deep into the pile of nests.

Ran and the others hurriedly followed what Cindy was doing. They had completely trusted Cindy's instincts. Just in time!

Snaped....cracked...Baaaaammm!

The giant tree collapsed toward the ocean with a thundering sound. It broke right in the middle hitting the churning lava river. The part from the base to the middle stem immediately sank in the lava river. While the end of the nest where they took shelter fell on a soft beach. But starting from the middle of the fault, the tree started to burn!

Everyone in the nest didn't know what was going on. Except Cindy of course.

----