Take Back the Light

Chapter 34

"And then Pronto gets blasted into the crowd, and the molenoids all crowd around him, and we find out he's actually the king of Molemound."

Max's eyes widened, but Sam looked unsurprised.

"That makes sense," she said, taking a sip of her coffee. "If it would be anyone, it would be Pronto."

"That's what I thought. I didn't see it coming, but it wasn't too hard to believe," Alana said with a smile.

It was the evening after a day spent at Molemound, racing Diablos Nacho to a famed map of every cavern and hidden passage in Slugterra, while Pronto dealt with issues regarding the molenoid throne. On the way back to the hideout, Alana had split off from the rest of the gang to meet up with Sam and Max. She had a few cuts on her arms where Nacho's Briardrill had caught her, but otherwise, she had made it out of the firefight unharmed.

Alana sat on one side of a booth in Lolla's Diner, Sam and Max on the other. The three of them had ice cream sundaes, Sam's paired with a coffee to prepare for a night shift at Bonnie Springs.

"So why was Nacho in Molemound, of all places?" Max asked.

"He was after one of their maps," Alana explained. "Blakk's looking to increase mobility. We beat him to it, and decided it was best to destroy the map rather than risking Blakk getting it."

That wasn't the entire answer- the map had held more than secret tunnels, and even more than the way to the Deep Caverns. It had the Drop marked on it, and that put an entire other world at risk. Eli hadn't hesitated to prompt Pronto to destroy it.

"Speaking of Blakk, what did he want that night he came to visit?" Alana asked, glancing at Sam, who sighed and shrugged.

"I don't know," she admitted. "He went in and talked to Eberly for a bit, then left. And Eberly never tells anyone what they talk about. I don't think he wants anyone to panic."

"Yeah, I was panicking enough as it was," Max laughed, shaking her head. "Just being in the same place as him is scary. I'm kind of glad to be moving into my apartment soon."

Alana's eyes lit up.

"Are you staying in Bonnie Springs?" she asked excitedly. Max nodded.

"It's pretty peaceful, and the scenery is gorgeous. I have a nice apartment picked out, and I already know some of the locals," she said, glancing up at Sam, who smiled back. Alana watched the two for a moment, a small smirk on her face, but she didn't say anything.

"That sounds nice, I'm glad something good came out of that mess," Alana said, her eyes flicking toward the small edges of scars sticking up from Max's dress collar.

"Yeah, it all worked out in the end," Max agreed. "Although I definitely won't be camping anywhere."

"I sure hope not," Sam said, and paused as her phone began to buzz. "Ah. I've gotta get back to the hospital for my shift, Alana."

Alana nodded, and the three got out of their booth. Sam hugged Alana before setting gold pieces down on their table to pay for their meal.

"I'm glad to see you looking better," Sam said, smiling fondly. "Stay safe, okay?"

"No promises," Alana said, and Sam raised an eyebrow. "Fine, fine. I'll try my best."

~~~~~~~~~~

As Alana sat on a bumpy ferry leading to the most well-fortified prison in Slugterra, a staffed blaster pressing into her back loaded with a Vamparo ghoul, she couldn't help but think about the conversation she'd had with Sam Gray two days ago.