When the flash of light disappeared, the four girls immediately caught the scent of fresh wildflowers and moist grass in their noses. As they looked around, they saw that they were now in the middle of a dark forest. Their eyes fell upon the single house that rested just ahead of them on the other side of the stream.
A cute, small, yet ample cottage. However, it seemed to be abandoned for cobwebs and moss adorned the building, as if nature was trying to reclaim it. Oddly enough, the cottage reminded the girls of a similar one they once read in their old fairytale books.
"So this is Dwarfs' Mine... It used to be prosperous, thanks to magic crystal mining but..." Deuce began to explain as he and the others began walking through the forest. "So all we need to do is to find this mine, right?" Aria asked.
She then felt something gripping at her arm and looked down to see Grim clinging onto her as he began to quiver and glance at each corner of the area. "Uuuuhh... Feels like something could jump out..." he whimpered fearfully. "It's okay, Grim." Aria gently said as she petted his head.
"There's nothing to be afraid of." Kira just scoffed as she rolled her eyes. "Chicken..." she muttered under her breath. "Oh, there's a house back there. Let's go ask them about the mine." Ace said, pointing over to the cottage.
They crossed the bridge and took a quick look around the place before they approached the house. Deuce knocked on the door. "Good evening..." he said as he opened the unlocked door, only to see that the room inside was empty and full of cobwebs.
It was so quiet and slightly dark it became clear to the teens that the whole house was abandoned. "I guess it's abandoned...It's a mess in here." Deuce said as he stepped inside the dusty house with the others following suit.
The girls took a moment to look around the cottage and smiled when they saw it was beautifully decorated with ornate wood carvings of various animals and little dwarf figurines. Almost every object, from a chair to a candleholder, was intricately detailed in some way.
"Even so, it's really pretty inside." Alice said as she traced her hands over the carvings on a nearby chair. Deuce looked over at her and quickly realized that he hadn't made any proper introductions to her or her friends.
So he walked over to her and did so accordingly. "Excuse me. I'm sorry, with all this commotion that has happened, I've forgotten to introduce myself." he said formally. "Oh, no. It's alright. A lot has happened all at once, so it's understandable." Alice said. She then gave him a cute little bow and a friendly smile.
"My name's Alistair Liddell. It's very nice to meet you." she said politely. "Deuce Spade. A pleasure." he replied, giving a small bow as well. Alice then turned to her friends. "My friends here are Kiro Ironclaw, Arlo Oceanspray and Jazzim Raija." she said.
Deuce turned to the three girls. "How do you all do?" he said politely. "Nice to meet you, Deuce-kun." Aria replied. "Likewise." Jazmin added. "Yo." Kira said with a friendly wave, even though she still felt annoyed about helping the boys out of the predicament they themselves made.
Grim then let go of the honey blonde-haired girl and ran around the room, only to sputter when some of the cobwebs got in his face. "Puwah! I got a spider web in my face... Peh! Peh!" Grim coughed out as he scrubbed the cobwebs off his face. Ace walked over to a nearby dining table and noticed how small the table and the chairs surrounding it were.
"Aren't the tables and chairs on the small side? Are they for kids?" he asked as he counted the seats. "One, two... There's seven! So many!" Deuce looked around the room. "This was probably a lively home when Dwarfs' Mine was thriving." he said. Ace then shrugged.
"Staying here is pointless. The coal mine is probably our best shot at finding a magic crystal. For now, let's go check it out." he said. With that in mind, they left the cottage and followed a pathway that should lead them to the mine.
As they walked down the pathway, Kira walked up to Jazmin. "Okay, so tell me. You and the others are actually gonna involve yourselves in the mess they made?" she asked. "Yes. All of us are." Jazmin said, nodding.
Kira rolled her eyes. "Oh, gosh! I don't believe this." she scoffed. Jazmin turned to face Kira with a stern look on her face. "We were placed in charge of watching over Grim." she said firmly. "We promised the Headmaster that we'd keep Grim out of trouble. But we failed and now, we have to compensate for this."
Kira crossed her arms over her chest as she scowled at Jazmin. "In case you haven't noticed, Jazzim... First of all, we are not Grim's caretakers!" she said angrily. "And second, we never even wanted to be here in the first place!"
"I mean, look at me! Look at what this place has turned me into! Don't think I haven't forgotten!" she said, pointing at herself. She then pointed at Ace and Deuce as she continued to rant. "Besides, it's those two bozos' own fault they got themselves into this mess! So why should we involve ourselves in it?!"
"Because they're in serious need of help. We have to help them, or else, they'll face expulsion. We can't ignore that." Aria added. "Please, Kira-chan. Don't be like that. Let's help them out." Alice pleaded.
But Kira just glared at them and shook her head. "Well, it's not my problem. You guys go on ahead and help them out." Kira said as she turned to walk the other way. "As for me, I'm outta here. Who cares if I get expelled?"
"What?!" the other girls exclaimed in shock as they watched Kira march off into the woods. "Hey, where're you going?" Ace asked. "I'm getting out of here. What else?" Kira replied. "Kiro-kun! Please come back!" Alice said. But Kira just ignored her and disappeared into the bushes.
"Kiro-kun, wait!" Aria called, reaching out to Kira. But Jazmin stopped her. "Just let her go." she said, shaking her head. "Give her some time." Alice and Aria looked at each other uncertainly, then they nodded. "Okay." Aria said.
"Is he all right?" Deuce asked. Jazmin nodded. "He'll be fine. Just give him some time to calm himself. He'll come back." she said. "We don't need him! Good riddance!" Grim huffed as he walked off. "Grim!" Jazmin snapped as she glared at him, making him zip his lips. The five teens then went on their way to the mine.
Thankfully, the mine wasn't too far from the cottage, and they soon found themselves staring at the blackened entryway of the mine. Just like the house, it was old and semi-run down. The rail tracks leading inside were almost rusted through.
"Goodness. It looks...r-r-really dark in there..." Alice said worriedly as she took a small step back from the cave. It was completely dark inside. There, almost anything could happen inside. Just by looking at it, Grim's whole body shook as he hid behind Alice's back, gripping at her shoulder.
"W-We're gonna go in that pitch black hole?!" he fearfully asked. Ace smirked at the cat's sudden change in tone and mocked him. "You scared? How lame." he taunted. "Hey now, don't tease him, please. It's only natural to feel a little scared." Alice said softly, trying to stop him from teasing Grim.
Of course, both of them made Grim mad for he released his grip on Alice, hopped down and stomped in front of them. "Naaanh?! I'm not s-scared at all!" he shouted, quickly gaining his courage. "I'm taking the lead! You guys, follow me!"
The girls tried to call out to him, but he just ran in, not waiting for anyone's response. Ace just shrugged his shoulders while Deuce shook his head before heading in. However, they stopped when they noticed that Alice hasn't moved yet. She was just staring through the darkness of the mine and her legs were shaking.
"Oi, aren't you coming?" Ace asked. "Y-Yes, I-I am..." Alice said, trying to sound confident. She tried to move, but the unsettling fear of the dark mine entrance was slowly overwhelming her. She never liked walking in the dark. Then again, going into a dark, cold mine is no one's idea for a pleasant walk.
"Are you okay?" Deuce asked, noticing how badly she was shaking. Ace, at this point, was getting tired of waiting and walked over to grab hold of her hand. "Come on, let's go." he said as he pulled Alice along inside the mine.
Alice wasn't expecting Ace to do that, but when the darkness began to enshroud her, she started to feel a sense of dread. Still, feeling Ace holding her hand firmly, feeling the warmth of his hand on hers, began to ease her fear. She never liked walking in the dark. "Don't tug on him too hard." Jazmin said.
It was a small gesture, and he might've done it to get her moving, but Alice really felt safe just by holding Ace's hand. Alice took in a deep breath to calm down and forced herself to keep walking, reminding herself why she was out here and that she wasn't alone in the dark. She was with friends.
She gently squeezed Ace's hand as a sign of thanking him. Ace was quite thankful that it was dark in the mine, for he felt his face starting to heat up for some reason as she held his hand. The five teens travelled deep into the mine, making their way through as a few shiny, bright stones helped light their path.
Still, it unnerved them on just how quiet the whole mine was. Just then, a sound reached Deuce's ears and he stopped in his tracks. "...?! Wait!" he suddenly shouted, forcing everyone to stop. "What?" Ace asked.
"Something... is there!" Deuce said as he whirled around, pointing over to the direction from where he heard that sound. The others turned and jumped back in shock at what they saw. "Eeek?!" Grim cried out, his fur standing on end. A deep, foreboding feeling crept over them.
Something was coming out from the darkness. As they looked closer, the five teens saw several ghosts wearing hooded cloaks floating towards them, grinning madly at the five teens.
"Heeee hee hee! Our first visitor in ten years!" one of them said with a creepy laugh. "Make yourselves at home. For eternity!" another said, its big grin widening. The five teens and Grim all shook with fear. They were in serious trouble. Grim's cobalt eyes widened with fright.
"Fugyaaa~~~~!! Th-Th-Th-They appeared———!!!" he shrieked. Grim was so frightened by the strange ghosts that he immediately wrapped his paws around Ace's pant leg and started to whimper and blubber like a baby. Ace looked down at him in annoyance.
"Hey stupid, calm down!" he snapped, trying to pry Grim off his pant leg. The ghosts then started to close in on the five teens, giggling eerily. Frightened, the three girls immediately went behind Ace and Deuce's backs, trembling fearfully.
"Wh-Wha-What...d-d-do we do...n-now?!" Alice asked shakily as the five students back away from the approaching ghosts. Deuce glared at the ghosts angrily. "Shoot, even though we really don't have any time to be taking on any ghosts...!" he cursed under his breath. He turned towards his companions.
"We gotta run and shake off these ghosts! Follow me!" he said as he started to run deeper into the mine. Seeing that they have no other choice in their current situation, Ace, Grim and the three girls didn't waste any time in bolting after Deuce with the ghosts laughing and chasing after them.