Once morning arose I was awakened by something poking my face. Out of reflex I immediately sprang up and tackled whatever was poking me and raised my sword over it, ready to strike. I stopped myself, however, once I realized it was May who was under my blade. She was smiling despite my intent to end her, and had somehow kept the balance of a plate of pancakes in her hands after I tackled her. Her smile brightened as she lifted the plate closer to me. "Good morning! Would you like some pancakes, Dedrin?"
I angrily took the plate from her. "Of course I want pancakes, you idiot! Never wake me up like that again! I could've killed you and set back my mission!" I got off of her and sat down to start eating. May held her smile as she sat up as well and poured a tiny bottle of syrup on my pancakes. "Aw, I knew you cared." I rolled my eyes but was yet again shocked at how good her food tasted when I took a bite.
After we ate, I got myself ready for the third test as May spoke to Saniel who was munching on an extra large pancake. I had no idea how she made one big enough for him but decided not to question it. She flew up to talk to him and waved as she spoke. "We're about to go, Saniel. We'll meet you on the other side, okay?" He gave her a nod and continued eating his pancake. May then turned to fly to me as I stood in front of the entrance.
I started walking down the stairs before she caught up, and prepared myself to be on guard. There were already lit torches lining the brick walls of clay, and the ceiling stayed at the same height as we went further down. At the bottom of the stairs, the hallway continued, but the path forked to both the left and right, with each wall reaching all the way to the ceiling.
I stopped at the fork and kept a sharp eye as I spoke to May. "We're entering the labyrinth. Last chance for you to turn back." I started to walk to the right and May followed me without hesitation. "We're a team and teams stick together!" I sighed as I held my sword in front of me with both hands. "Whatever. Just stay out of my way."
After a few hours of even more hallways that looked exactly the same, I was getting tired of waiting for something to happen. The floors were occasionally occupied by skeletons and cages with even more of the dead inside, but nothing more than that. May was uneasy as she saw them but was being herself and even a little happier than she'd been recently despite that, fluttering around and singing quietly as she followed me.
I was bored so I decided to ask, "Any particular reason you're being extra annoying today?" She stopped to hover next to me. "Not really, it's just that I had an amazing sleep last night! You should seriously consider joining me and Saniel's sleep pile, you'll wake up so refreshed!"
My expression remained irritated. "You already know my answer to that." Suddenly, without warning the ground began to shake. Dust came free from the walls and I froze to a roar that came from the darkness in front of us. I tightened my grip on the hilt of my sword and held my ground as the shaking became the pattern of huge footsteps. The tension was high and I focused my eyes on what was ahead.
I was then interrupted by the sound of a crunch and turned my head to May, angrily. "Are you eating?!" She shook her head hurriedly and raised her empty hands to show that she didn't make the sound. A moment later I heard it again and turned around to see Theodius lying back in a lawn chair while eating popcorn. "What the hell are you doing here?!" He shrugged as he grabbed another handful out of the bag. "I got bored. I was going to watch you through my crystal anyway. Might as well pop in for live entertainment."
I raised an eyebrow. "Wait, what-?!" I was cut off by the shaking becoming more intense and was pulled back into the moment. I turned my head to look into the darkness again and became shocked as I saw something step out of it. Just as I was told there would be, a Minotaur stomped his large hoof into the torch's light, bringing in the rest of his body after it.
The Minotaur was at least eight feet tall and covered with brown fur. He was half man, half bull hybrid, and had long black horns coming from the sides of his head that curled in front of him. His long ears were pierced, and he also had a nose ring like most bulls have. His eyes were yellow, and his nails were long and black. He wore gold armlets and a strap across his muscular chest that carried golden arrows in the sheath attached to it. A golden bow was around his chest as well, and he also wore a belt holding black torn material around his waist as his tail swayed behind him.
I was surprised to see such a beast and wondered just how I would take the bow from him. The Minotaur's eyes narrowed at me as he removed the bow from over his shoulder. "Intruders. This ancient ruin is forbidden to outsiders! Leave now or face the penalty." His voice was low yet powerful as it echoed through the halls. The last thing I expected was for this thing to be able to speak, but didn't let it phase me. "I'm not leaving."
He removed an arrow from the sheath behind him and pulled it into the bow as he answered me. "Then die!" He shot the arrow right after and I quickly dodged out of the way. However, the arrow suddenly turned around and struck me in the chest before I could think. The impact was so much stronger than I thought it was going to be, and I went flying past the Minotaur, landing on my back after rolling a few times a great distance away.
I heard May shout my name as I landed, and I sat up shakily. I looked down and realized that the arrow had gone straight through my armor and penetrated my chest. Luckily, it had missed my heart, but I could feel my blood spilling out inside my chestplate. I felt pissed as I stood up and yanked the arrow out of me. "You ruined my armor!!"
The Minotaur had turned towards me and raised an eyebrow as if he was impressed that I was still standing. He then smirked and pulled another arrow from his sheath. "Alright. I won't aim for your armor anymore. I always liked getting headshots anyway." Suddenly May rushed in to stop the Minotaur from releasing the next arrow. She grabbed his wrist even though it was obvious that what she was doing wasn't helping at all. "Wait! Please don't hurt him!"
The Minotaur then lowered the bow and grabbed her arm. "Sorry, honey I have this thing about not hitting girls." He then threw her into an open cage on the floor, and the door slammed shut behind her. "Ah!"