The Beast had a head of a dragon, a body if a lion, and a tail of a venomous snake.

Fire danced dangerously on Ashwa’s palm. Her eyes were dull red. The beast approached, ready to kill. But she didn’t care. She let the fire spread, across her arms, to her sleeves. However, it didn’t burn. Then before she knew it, her whole body was on fire. On her right hand, a fireball stood, waiting. For the first move.

The Beast growled and charged. Ashwa ducked. The Beast sailed across her head at great speed, tearing a hole in her shirt. Blood came out, bloody red. She fired. The Beast fell and stumbled a little, then growling again, it charged for the second time.

But this time she was ready. As the Beast pounced on her body, she lunged the fire balls at its eyes, leaving it screaming and howling in pain. She thought the Beast would turn away and give up, but a second later, it turned and spoke, like any human can. It was weird coming from the massive animal’s mouth but not a doubt, it spoke.

“No one escapes, puny mortal. For I am the Lord of Ways! I am mighty, I am strong, I am—,”

“Very stupid,” Kayla stood up, her face pale white. Ashwa didn’t know how she managed to say anything to the animal like that.

Beast reaction: It growled annoyingly, setting itself onto a pouncing state. Ashwa’s fire glowed deep red, then turned into hot white-blue, ready to strike at the Beast.

“Ugh. Puny mortal. SO ANNOYING!” and it charged.

Sidestepping, the beast banged onto the sandy wall of the maze. Sand fell on the animal, and shudders were felt as it toppled and rolled aside.

Only one thing was in Ashwa and Kayla’s mind. “RUN!” they screamed together, then ran away, holding hands tightly, trying to get away as fast as possible. Then there was what they hoped for.

A speck of sunlight. Freedom.

Running faster than ever now, they raced to the golden rays. Panting, they burst through the maze, leaving the monster’s angry howls. Embracing the warmth again, they sighed in relief. Hope had won. They had made it. Out of the Maze. And most of all, alive.

In Kayla’s mind however, a bunch of questions sprouted in her mind. How did Ashwa conjure fire out of thin air? Even normal elf abilities didn’t include the great Four. Is that why Dunce had asked for her?

Most important of all, was her brother, Asco okay? She had known him when she seen him first. She had tried not to tell him everything, that was why she had been so silent. Was that about to change?

There was no time for thoughts, as they walked the path to the magician’s home.