If your eclip came out on the axle somehow, that could have let your axle slip through. eclips also get loose and make noise so maybe that was where your noise that you first heard came from. Your cam bearing could have also wore out/broke somehow causing the friction from shooting to create noise, and further, bend/move your axle. These are all just theories of course but you have to start somewhere. It will be easier to tell once you know if anything is really damaged or not.
Derek