The Golden Helping Hand

Everyone continued to destroy the cabin. May it be from the inside or the outside, Alex, together with his friends, smashed, kicked it with their strength and sliced the wooden walls with their spears, leaving the turtle in an excruciating pain.

The tide seemed to turn in favor of the humans when the earth suddenly trembled. "What's happening?" Darline said. The ground's movements put the destruction of the cabin into full pause as they grabbed the foundations of the cabin to get hold of the sudden tremors.

Alex looked at the monster behind him and noticed that the monster stopped and gave out an evil smile. The soft ground became softer as the ground continue to tremble, the swamp around them seemed to get closer as water rose from back of the cabin and still rising towards them.

"Guys! The swamp's getting bigger!" Ivan shouted.

Gloyd moved away from the inside of the cabin, "It's sinking the whole place!"

"Everyone, get out!" Alex shouted. Everyone went outside where they saw the turtle monster not moving from its position.

The swamp's water continued to move from the back, they looked around and they're coming from the sides, too.

Loud bangs resounded over the place as the wooden cabin, fell and was sucked deep into the ground.

"It's concealing his house. By sucking it." Alex said. A battle who was seemed to be in their favor earlier was now turned back to the way it was before, worse.

"What now? We can't run towards that monster! We'll die!" Darline panicked. The waters continue to run, now touching their feet. "I can feel myself getting sucked." Gloyd said. "I guess this ends our journey here." He added.

Alex was speechless, how can they be always in this kind of situation, where they're always powerless from the hands of these monsters. He blinked his eyes, hard enough to be of use to think.

"Oh no you don't!" Ivan shouted, he grabbed Darline by the legs and put her on the sinking cabin's roof. "Now, follow!" he shouted. Everyone extended their arms to grab something that can help them life themselves up and put themselves on the roof of the sinking cabin.

The monster chuckled, "No use."

Helpless, they stood at the sinking roof, waiting to their literally sinking deaths. Suddenly, a buzz sound whispered in Alex's ear. He looked above and there he saw Kent, together with her guard bees swiftly flew towards them. "Get them." Kent commanded. One by one, they were held by the guard bees' feet and were put to safety – above.

"Sorry, I'm late." Kent said. Alex smiled, I was about to put you in a fine, be a model, mayor!" Alex chuckled. And everyone else laughed, too.

"So, that's the one responsible for Christian's captivity?" Kent asked.

Alex nodded, "You bet."

They looked at the ground who was now an enormous swamp with nothing but only the turtle monster standing on it. "We discovered that the cabin was his shell, but when we decided to destroy it, he took action by sinking the place, the whole place." Alex explained, giving Kent the status of the situation. Kent nodded, "But does that mean he's now prone to attacks, now that he's house have sunk?"

"We don't know, if the woods are the ones that should be destroyed, it must have prevented it from breaking by preserving it below the ground." Alex said.

"That means, this monster's still impenetrable." Kent replied.

Alex nodded, "What a cheat."

Alex looked at Kent, "Now that you're here, we might have stood a chance against him."

Confused, "You knew I have another syringe that possess another trait?"

Alex nodded, "Yea--, What?!!" he could not finish his sentence.

"I do, I defeated one of the birds, when it tried to mate with me, and successfully killed it. luckily, the others respect privacy and decided to go out. Ughh! I still can't believe they try to do it with me!" Kent grossed out and handed the injection towards Alex. "Make use of it." Kent said, smiling. "And by the way, Maeje's safe. He's nowhere reachable by this swamp." Kent added.

Alex smiled, thankful of the safety of one of his friends. He thought that Maeje was sucked first by the ground when it started to tremble, but thankful, Kent arrived to help. Alex looked at the injection, it's the same as the queen bee's but different in color, it's black now. Another trait, another power. This will be the keys to their survival on this planet. Alex wanted to inject it in his own, but he wants to keep his friends safe first. And by giving them something that is powerful, means giving them the utmost security that they could possess. Everyone looked at him. "Who will be the one to turn into a monster next?" Darline said.

"Can we vote?" said Alex.

Everyone agreed. "I think---" Alex couldn't finish what he was about to say when the bloody bludgeon, the turtle monster's weapon passed through in front of him giving him a big shock, and by that, he extended his arms and injected the syringe on Gloyd's chest, giving them an election that was decided in an instant.

Gloyd started to scream, he screamed so hard that he's trying to get out from the guard bee's grasps. He must be suffering, Kent experienced it too when she first transformed into one. Gloyd's movements where uncontrollable that it made the guard bee's who was holding both Alex and him lose grasp of him. Gloyd started to fall. Kent flew swiftly towards, but the pace of them was different that it kept Kent from reaching his classmate difficult.

Everyone looked at the pursuit of the queen bee towards the fallen classmate, making them anxious in a high level. Falling to death was not a good way to die. Much when they just escaped from one.

Kent extended her arms, trying to make hold of Gloyd when gigantic black wings spread in front of her, where she crashed towards it.

Gloyd transformed. Big black wings sprouted from his back his feet turned into what looked like a bird's claw, his hands and body retained but now covered somewhat with tattoos that looked like feathers.

Everyone shouted. Ecstatic towards a successful transformation. "My face." Kent said while holding her nose from the crash towards Gloyd's black wings. Gloyd laughed, "I'm sorry. But, thank you." Kent smiled, "Anytime."

Both Kent and Gloyd flew upwards to reunite with the others. "You look amazing, Gloyd!" Alex said, smiling.

"I guess the turtle chose you, and not us." Darline said, chuckling.

They laughed. "I will never waste this power nor this opportunity to be not of use. I will do my best to try to keep us all safe. Thank you, everyone." Said, Gloyd.

Alex smiled, "Of course you will."

"So how do we defeat it?" Angel asked.

"Easy." Alex said confidently.

Alex laid the plan, and the others immediately get it, with another power in hand, this battle would be in their favor without even asking. Few minutes have passed and they decided to set their foot towards the destruction of the turtle monster and the reacquisition of their captured classmate, Christian.

"Now you all know what to do, let's do this." Alex commanded.

"Yes!" everyone said together. With the guard bees, supporting those who cannot fly, the swamp would be of not threat to their unreachable distance. The guard bees fired arrows towards the turtle monster and was parried by the turtle's impenetrable skin.

"As expected, the turtle's skin continues to be impenetrable." Alex said.

"That's why we have this plan." Kent said. Alex smiled, "Gloyd. Now."

Gloyd opened his mouth and let out a shrieking voice. The sound waves travelled fast and hit the monster's ear. The turtle was now on his knee, kneeling on his swamp.

"Everyone, together!" they fired the place where the cabin was place earlier, focusing on one target with arrows and spears, convinced that the cabin was not put too deeply by the swamp. The turtle opened his mouth, symbolizing the destruction of the wooden planks. They're successful. Alex looked at Kent and Kent sent countless bees to the monster's mouth where they stung the insides of the turtle with lethal poison. Not long when the turtle dropped dead from the swamp it made.

The waters of the swamp subsided slowly, after the turtle monster's death. However, the trees and grasses that was sucked deep into the earth did not appear back from where they were before along with the cabin. Only the hole made from their attacks were discovered when the waters weren't there anymore.

The corpse of the dead turtle monster, changed its color as poison took over its place in its body. "Ew." Said Darline.

Kent order one of the guard bees after they put everyone on the ground, "Check the corpse." The guard bee moved the corpse and saw what was expected, another syringe that possess the turtle's powerful traits. The guard bee extended his furry hand to its queen where Kent took hold of it.

Everyone looked around, expecting to see their captive classmate. But they saw no one.

"Christian?! What about Christian?! Why isn't he here yet?" asked Darline.

Everyone was anxious, the things that were sucked by the swamp weren't able to rise back again, what if Christian can't too? They thought. Darline's eyes fell heavy as tears rolled down from his face, not expecting that Christian did not have a chance to see the surface again. They all bowed down their heads as they grieved their lost friend.

Footsteps were approaching where they saw Maeje and Christian walked happily towards them. Everyone's face lightened as they witnessed Christian once again. They ran and hugged each other, reunited once more. Tears of joy were touching every bits of their dirty faces as they celebrate.

Alex asked, "How did you get caught by the turtle monster when you were eaten by the eartheaters in the first place?"

Everyone stopped celebrating and listened to what would Christian would say.

"There are others." he answered.

Dumfounded, "What do you mean?"

"Like us, they also survived and managed to get hold of powerful traits. Like Noel!" he answered.

"Are you sure?" asked Gloyd who now changed back into his human form.

"Yes!" he exclaimed. "I was given to the turtle monster by the one from the void. They even called me subject 42. And I don't even know what that is." He explained.

Alex hearing this information, he could not stop himself from being curious and ask for something more, "What about subject 42? What about it?" Alex said.

"I don't know. I was held captive after that and was locked below the surface. When I noticed that the earth started to tremble, the cell that was made from soil who I was locked into turned to watery mud and I swam directly towards the surface, which I met Maeje. He said you're all here and so we're here." Christian explained.

Everyone was dumbfounded, a rise of questions tickled their brains to ask for something more.

"Let's discuss this with everyone, after we get home. Today, let's just celebrate that none of us gets to die." Kent said.

Everyone agreed. And they walked back to where they were once before, to home.