'Si, you know I'm not going to leave until you come out and talk' Ethan sighed as he leant against the pale oak door. He'd been there for almost an hour, but now that they had a plan the redhead wasn't going to leave until his older friend came out.

'...You're seriously not gonna leave?'

'Simon, bro, I'm probably the most persistent guy you've ever met. I'm not leaving until you open this door - Heck, I'll literally get JJ and Harry to break down this door. Or you can not come out, and you won't hear our plan on getting Vik back, so-' Almost instantly the door was flung open, revealing the tired yet somehow energized form of the team's leader - The one and only Simon Minter.

'Why didn't you tell me sooner?!' The silver-haired man screeched, startlingly blue eyes wide as the younger male shrugged, a slight grin on his face 'I was using that as a last resort, to be fair. Before we tell you the plan, though,' Ethan scanned the older boy a few times and pulled a face, 'You need to have a shower. I'm not sure if you noticed, but you're an absolute mess... Also, unless you do that and eat something, I'm making sure that none of the guys tell you the plan'

'But-But we have a plan!'

'Yes, but there's also your own health that we're worried about' Ethan pointed out, propelling his friend into his bathroom and shutting the door before letting out a quiet sigh. It had taken him long enough, but now they could start putting their plan together and get the boys back.

Time for a change in the tides, lads...

~~~

His first bad choice had probably been running away... No. His first bad idea had been going to the caves. Nevermind, scratch that - The worst idea of his entire life had been agreeing to that stupid dare.

The rain had started mere moments ago, but his checkered jacket was already drenched - And of course it was beginning to get dark. He'd already had a close encounter with one of the Orespawns not long ago, ending with a nasty looking gash from what looked like a giant insect. The creature had grown bored and flown after an incredibly large mole after a while, leaving the boy injured and alone.

'W-Why... Why did I-I take up that stu-stupid, idiotic, useless, waste of-' The brunet cut himself off with a sob as he held his arm against his chest, stumbling backwards until his back met a tree as he slid down the thick trunk 'I-I want to-to go home,' He wept, cradling his arm as he leaned his head against the wood, 'They'll yell at me, b-but I don't care - I just want to go home!'

The tree provided a little shelter from the rain, but it didn't matter anyway - He was soaked to the bone. He'd risked a chance of illness, just because his weak and pitiful mind couldn't handle the truth.

'Why didn't I-I just stay?!' He wailed, tears mixing with the rain on his face as he weakly pulled his legs up to his chest, 'I'm so stupid, why did I run? Oh, that's why, because I'm weak'

A sombre silence fell around the boy, save for the occasional sniffle as the cold soaked through his skin. He wasn't sure how long he sat there for - It could have been minutes, or even hours - but eventually the cold began to take it's toll. Whenever he moved his head, it felt like his brain was swimming, and the world seemed to dance around him "Oh, gods... I'm going to die, aren't I? If I fall asleep, I'm not going to wake up, but I'm too weak to move.

"I haven't even accomplished much in my life - What have I done, I've let everyone down!" Struggling to move after staying in the position for so long, his reddened eyes skirted across his surroundings. There was what looked like small horde of zombies and skeletons around fifteen metres away, and he could hear the faint hiss of a spider behind him. He gulped nervously, haze darting around a few more times before he - painfully - managed to push himself to his feet. Stars swam across his eyes, but he slowly shook them away and turned to make his way into the forest...

Then, he heard the voice.

'Mitch!' Somebody yelled, and the sound of rushed footsteps filled his ears as he began to sway. He felt someone grab his arm, but an elongated hiss and the rustling of bushes paused the act as a large spider jumped from the foliage. It was larger than a normal arachnid, with a red and grey colour scheme opposed to the normal black and grey 'Oh, fudge - Run!'

It was too late. The spider - which could now be seen as four times larger than usual - lunged for the Canadian, using it's legs to rip him away from the grip before pinning him to the ground. Thick, green venom dripped from it's fangs as it stood over it's victim, eyes glowing with a crimson glare.

The mobs hissed once more, as if proud of it's catch, and reached down to puncture the petrified boy's neck... Before a brown and black blur tackled it to the ground. Two blurry figures kneeled by the brunet's sides as they tried to get him to say something, but his fading eyesight was focused on the battle. The red and brown shapes tussled on the ground, hisses mixing with growls and yelps '...okay?'

'Talk...us!'

'Mitch?'

'Mitch!'

~~~

'This is not good, definitely not good' Kenny spoke quickly as he felt for a pulse. His Canadian friend had fallen unconscious seconds after the spider had been tackled, but that wasn't the only danger. A large gash could be seen running from his left shoulder to his wrist, and various other bruises were scattered across his skin 'What d'you think happened to him?' Vik asked quietly.

'From what we can see, I'd say it was a Mantis attack, but we can't be sure... Wait, I think he's coming around!' Shuffling away to give the brunet some space, the blond thought fast and pulled off his black and grey hoodie to wrap around the wound. Instantly the rain began to pelt his skin - Even through his dark t-shirt - but he ignored it and tried to make a secure knot as Mitch's face screwed up in pain.

'Ack... Wha-What happened?' He muttered softly, his voice hoarse as he winced and tried to push himself into a sitting position 'Oh no, you're not moving anywhere,' Vik instructed, moving him back down as Choco joined their side, 'As for what happened, we were hoping you could tell us'

'How're you feeling?' Choco asked quietly, concern flickering in his eyes as the brunet groaned and shut his own brown orbs 'Like I've been hit by a... Uh... One of those things, what're they called? Oh hey, bananas' And with that, he was out like a light once more. Vik raised an eyebrow at his choice of words but smoothed the dripping hair from his face, giving a quiet sigh and shaking his head before looking back to the fight. His eyes widened, and he opened his mouth to give a call of warning before there was a loud yell of shock.

The one who'd originally pulled the creature from Mitch's torso - Jerome - reeled back, pressing a paw over his side as a glowing green substance oozed out of a jagged rip in his jacket 'Oh for - Ack!' He stumbled back, taking deep breaths as Lachlan managed to get away from the fight while the others made attempts to stop the arachnid with their powers 'Are you okay? What happened?'

'The stupid thing bit me,' The bacca hissed quietly, moving his paw away and wincing as venom dropped from his fur, 'You see that? That's nasty'

'Oi, it's nasty?'

'Yes, nasty'