I didn't know what to do. How could I prepare for a possibly world ending monster to come fight me in ten seconds, in a cavern?

  Nine seconds left on the countdown.

  Ok, in my inventory I have… those tools I got from the school, a few long logs, two stool sized logs, firewood and a bag of rabbit meat… And in my backpack I have my camping stuff, but I left that just in front of the breach when I came running. My hunting knife in its sheath, Pendant on my neck, spear destroyed ages ago, and my hatchet is where I dropped it at the very beginning of the fight with the eel monster. Yeah, that's a bit embarrassing. I completely forgot about that. Do I rely on my claws in werewolf form too much? I have only ever used my spear as a throwing weapon, and never actually used any melee combat weapons in that form.

  Five seconds. I could hear an angry hissing chatter coming from the very same tunnel that the eel fled through, making me shiver.

  I leaped towards my hatchet, still in human form, and wrapped my hands around the handle and holding it just behind my shoulder as I held it ready to strike, transforming into my werewolf form.

  And it was right on time too, because the second I transformed and the world slowed and turned to a shade of red in my eyes, a sudden movement from the tunnel the thing was probably approaching startled me.

  There was a rumble that felt like a small earthquake and a huge gush of water was thrown up into the air, coming from the tunnel's mouth and creating a spray of water that doused the entire cavern including myself, and as it passed I could see what caused it. The entrance now had significantly less rocks around its opening, and in its place a large body stretched out from it into the center of the underwater part of the cave as it floated like a log on the water. The scraped and bleeding corpse of the glowing eel that had fled seconds prior. Its head seemed to hold the most damage, the wound I had made before now a crater with its head plate ripped almost clean off and the blue glowing substance mixed with the water inside the hole. The rest of the body seemed to have impact marks as well, parts that shattered and hung loosely attached to its bloody flesh. And it was most definitely dead. It's hard to stay alive when you can see the grey matter of its brain, which looked like it was put in a very angry blender.

  I cursed under my breath, my hatchet almost falling limp as I stood up straight on my hind legs, my muzzle pointed at the entrance where it came from. I didn't even hear a fight, just the chittering and I saw the results of the fight out in front of me, causing the water to go from glowing blue to dark red as the blood drained out into it. The cavern was much darker again, though I could see fine with the glowing bugs on the ceiling and my possibly night vision capable werewolf eyes.

  So I could see what emerged from the tunnel next with perfect clarity aside from the small amount of dust floating around in the air from the broken entrance.

  It was the size of a dog, but that didn't make it any less ominous or scary. In fact, that made it worse. A head in the shape of a triangle with two bulbous eyes sticking out, pincers and antenna sticking out in between the large eyes. Its body leaning forwards, bulky and encased in a dark green exoskeleton like the rest of its form. A long elongated body jutting out behind its midsection, four insectoid legs balancing its body on the body of the dead monster with three claws making up each of its feet. Its arms however, were distinctly different as they emerged from its shoulders just below its head, but they were shaped strangely. Its upper arms and forearms would have looked like a human arm if they weren't green, armoured, with the twiglike structure like an insect. But where hands would have been were scythes of a whiter part of its exoskeleton. It was a praying mantis. A very deadly looking one, the size of a golden retriever, without its earth counterparts camouflage and designed to look as deadly as possible with its sleek and sharp form. And judging by the corpse it was on top of… I didn't doubt that it lived up to its looks.

  And its smell… It smelled like death and decay to my nose, even from this distance. With a hint of venom.

  I tensed, feeling my heart beating in my head as my vision tinted into a deeper crimson. This was undoubtedly the monster that I needed to stop.

  I held my hatchet securely in my arms, ready for anything as I slowly stepped to my left without turning my body or head to maneuver myself towards the tunnel entrance I had come from without breaking the apparent standstill we were at. The mantis didn't seem to care much as it stared at me without making a sound, unmoving. Assessing.

  There was an intelligence to its eyes, though I wasn't sure how I felt that way because they stayed rather still and inexpressive without a human-like face or skin. Its twin antennae twitched here and there, aimed towards me and tracking my movements.

  Seconds passed in silence, the only noise coming from the water as it flowed in and around the body in the water. I came to a halt in front of the tunnel, still watching the monster and daring it to come closer with my animalistic eyes.

  It let out a chitter, raising its scythe like arms into the air to make itself look bigger and more dangerous than ever. I let out a growl in return, standing straight with my grip firm on the hatchet in front of my chest. This was a moment of challenge. You see it in the wild all the time, where the two animals size each other up, identifying who is the prey and who is the predator along with not just a little of the animalistic equivalent to grandstanding. This mostly happens when both or neither sides want to fight, but have something pushing them to fight. Though strangely I got a feeling this thing’s intentions were not quite aligned to that motive.

  It swayed and leaned this way and that, looking and testing for an opening. It wanted to fight. I could sense a feeling of glee in its eye, a sort of bloodlust. Though tempered somewhat. They were icy cold and calculating, and hot blooded at the same time. I responded in kind, keeping my feet grounded firmly as I looked into its eyes and made myself tall. I growled again, deeper this time as a warning.

  “Go back where you came from, mantis… You don't want to fight me.” I growled out a warning, my attention razer focused. The emotion of my words and body language would hold as much importance as my hatchet that was glinting in the low light of the cavern. I really didn't want to fight this thing. I REALLY didn't. Though if I had too, then I would give it my all. And mutual destruction was a deterrent all by itself. You never fight a beast with its back against the wall, that was embedded in nature’s rules.

  It seemed to still, its antennae twitching harder and faster as it seemed surprised almost. Like it understood. It tilted its head to the left, its scythes coming down to rest in front of its body though still ready. Though it didn't move back.

  I went quiet, lowering my guard as I hunched my back to normal and held my hatchet down just a little to show a mutual action.

  Then something strange happened. Its antennae seemed to shiver, like a wave of vibrations passing up their length and I could hear a strange buzzing pass through the air. Then I heard something, not coming from the air but from my own head as I felt a small vibration pass into my skull from the direction of the mantis. I growled a little, warningly and putting my guard back up. Magic.

  Then the buzz sharpened into a clear sound that rang clear in my mind. “You speak?” I heard words, completely understandable and clear though utterly inhuman. More chattering and buzzing like an insect rather than the smooth voice of a human.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  My eyes widened and I almost dropped my hatchet, my body going a little limp with surprise as my mouth fell open in shock. “You speak?” I asked out loud, repeating its words in shock. ‘It can talk!?’ I thought to myself in absolute shock as I felt myself straighten up a bit as the thought ran around my head.

  “Yes. What is your kind?” Its voice rang out in my mind again, and though I couldn't be exactly sure I read its tone correctly, I got the feeling it was curious though still on guard.

  I felt myself transform back slowly as my concentration on keeping up my werewolf form along with my heightened emotions I had been using to fuel it faded and the power of the Pendant faded along with it. It only took a second, and I stood straight after it was finished. I shivered as the weakness I could feel hit me like I was coming down fast from an enticing high before I answered the praying mantis.

  “I am human.” I answered simply, though I supposed that I wasn't entirely human anymore, physically, that didn't matter much. Not when I was talking to a sentient bug on another planet, or more accurately, in another planet.

  “How do you know of my kind, human?” It asked next, unmoving from its position on top of the floating dead eel across from me though its stand didn't seem threatening it seemed wary.

  “I have heard… stories from my home. Of a species like yourself.” I said slowly to it, explaining vaguely. But that seemed to be enough for it, because it seemed to relax just a touch.

  “You are from the surface?” It asked next, glancing behind me with a hint of anticipation. That made me tense up a bit.

  “Yes…” I confirmed slowly and warily. The quest said that this… thing, was a threat to the surface. It said that about any and all things from the underworld, but it put a lot of emphasis on that. If this thing got to the surface, I would fail the quest. Though more importantly, apparently life on the surface would be wiped out or something. Like an invasive species wiping out other native ones. Exactly like that. And I happened to live there. There were enough monsters as is.

  “Why are you here, human? The Underworld is not kind to those not of itself.” It asked, seeming to me curious, then he seemed to wave away his previous question as he turned to look behind him back to where he came from. “Would you be willing to take me and another to the surface with you when you return?” He asked next, cautiously as if sensing I was tense with this line of questioning.

  “I have been told you are a threat to the surface.” I replied somewhat hesitantly, watching its reaction.

  “You have? Why is that?” It asked, seeming genuinely surprised by the statement as its mandibles clicked, seeming restless but not coming any closer. But I knew better than to trust it. But the question gave me pause. Why is it a threat to the surface? Before the system was talking about how the monsters of the Underworld would spread, reproduce and ‘corrupt’ the surface. But this is one monster, and an intelligent sapient one at that.

  “I mean no harm, and I assure you that my friend does not either.” It interrupted my musings, and I squinted across the distance at it.

  “Your friend?” I asked as I looked to the tunnel that the mantis came from. It clicked its mandibles, and looked back at the entrance as well.

  It was then, almost as if on cue, that something much larger than the small mantis emerged from the tunnel. My guard raised as I looked up to the figure as it walked on top of the body that almost filled the entrance, ducking down to avoid hitting its head before standing straight. Normally I would be shocked to see someone even slightly human, and I was, but that wasn't what caught me off guard as I saw them. No, they were made of dirt. And rock. It seemed about my height, with its free flowing body shaped into a human form orbiting in a circular motion that ever here and there revealed a fist sized hunk of crystal or gem that seemed to be like someone took a brown gem, cut it in half, then glued it together with blue crystals. The core of it I would guess.

  “An elemental?” I asked, genuinely shocked. ‘Not what I expected. Ok, yeah. No way I am fighting these things. I would die. Instantly. Doesn't matter if the Pendant heals me or not, I would die. …In a straight fight.’ I thought to myself as I looked between the pair. ‘A earth elemental, possibly with another element if the core is any clue, and a praying mantis that straight up smells like death, decay and poison and killed something that nearly killed me, without a fight. Separately? Maybe. Together? Hell no.’ I realized quickly, putting my hatchet down slowly.

  “Right…” I said to the pair with a grimace. “So I think we got off on a bad start. My name is Killiad Jones. What would your names be?” I asked with a small smile as I tried to not show panic. The mantis can talk at the very least, and they said that they ‘meant no harm,’ so I could talk my way out of this? Unless it wants me to lower my guard. Come on, the Doctor does it all the time! He has only had… A few hundred years doing stuff like this to get good. That doesn't really help, does it?

  “You can talk?!” I heard a remarkably high and girly childlike voice come from the big moving figure of rock and dirt ask with clear excitement. She then turned to the mantis, and picked it up in her arms like a dog. “Did you hear that? They can talk!!! I haven't seen another person down here in FOREVER!” She said energetically, making me blink at her enthusiasm as she bounced up and down holding the mantis, her face stretched into a wide smile. It looked really weird, considering that her body was made from floating moving rock and dirt. Kind of cute though. Like a cute happy toddler. Which made this entire thing weirder.

  “Uh… Yeah. I can talk.” I responded somewhat confusedly as I looked up to the pair from their position above me on the corpse floating in the lake. I glanced at the mantis, seeing it glaring at me with a hardness in its eyes that warned me off of commenting on why the elemental child was holding him up like a pet. I cleared my throat, turning my eyes away and looking up into the face of the elemental.

  “So what's your names?” I asked again with a little softer of a voice, faced with what I was pretty sure was the elemental equivalent to a child. Or just one that acts like one at the very least.

  “Oh! I am August, The Oncoming Fall! But that's too long, so you can call me Augi! And this is Slicer-of-dry-leaves, but call him Leif. He is a good boy! Do you want to play?” The elemental responded in a rapid fire excited tone that left me trying to process what she said.

  ‘August, The Oncoming Fall. She has a title literally naming her imminent destruction. Though Slicer-of-dry-leaves is a little more tame. More of a description than a name, but that's probably just a cultural thing? I think I read names like that here and there in fantasy around some monster cultures. Augi and Leif… Why does the ‘imminent threat to the surface’ have to carry around a child?’ I thought to myself, processing things before glancing at Leif again. ‘Is this a play on his part? Why don't things make sense?! Everything is confusing.’ I wondered, trying to figure things out in vain.

  “No, no, I don't think I can play right now… Maybe later?” I responded absentmindedly to the elemental’s question out of hand, figuring out how to work things out in my head. “Right… So You two want to head to the surface..?” I asked somewhat tensely to Augi who is still holding a quiet Leif in her arms.

  “Yeah! How did you know? Do you know where it is?! We have been looking for a loooong time!” She confirmed emphatically, bobbing her head up and down quickly and flying down from the body to land on the stone ground in front of me and bouncing energetically, her core glowing brightly.

  I took a step back from her, especially careful to avoid touching her or the praying mantis in her arms. “I do know where it is. But why do you want to go to the surface, Augi?” I asked, a small edge to my voice as I did.

  “I dunno!” She replied happily and simply. I paused. We stared at each other for a moment in silence broken by the sound of Augi’s body swirling around in an invisible grip.

  “You don't know.” I asked, just to confirm I had heard right.

  “Yup! I just know that I wanna go! I wanna explooorre!!” She replied emphatically, her energy seeming to go up at the prospect and then she seemed to get distracted and lifted off the ground a bit to fly in circles around me as she happily started laughing again. With her mildly unwilling passenger mantis still in her arms.

  I couldn't help but start laughing, the tension of the whole situation deflating instantly. ‘Ok, come on system. This is a little girl. With a deadly monster as a pet/friend, but they seem harmless enough with her around.’ I thought with some derision, though a hint of warning started sounding as I thought the words.

  “You know what? What the hell. I am going to need to keep an eye on you two, but you guys can come along with me, if you want?”