"Tristan!!! We finally found you!" a feminine voice called down to him.
As he raised his head, he noticed Lyla and Lily sitting atop the maze's walls, their hair ruffled by the wind. They were beaming ear to ear and waving their arms enthusiastically. They were excited to see him once more and were relieved to have located him.
Tristan was glad it wasn't one of the beasts or sirens lurking in the maze and that it was actually the twins. He gave both females a pleasant smile as he quickly melted the ice dagger in his sleeve.
'Who would have guessed that I would be delighted to see them?' As he carefully walked up to the walls, Tristan questioned himself.
He cautioned them, "be careful up there," as his eyes swept the area in search of any threat.
Lyla jumped down from the wall and landed softly, saying, "don't worry about us, we've done this before. We are skilled at avoiding traps while navigating the maze. There are benefits to spending time above and having an excellent memory."
Following suit, Lily landed close to her sister. "We've also discovered the most efficient way to reach the maze's center. We'll show you the way," she added.
"But, first, though..." Tristan was forced to take a step back as Lily spoke while turning to look at Lyla. Almost simultaneously, both of them grinned mischievously.
He was drawn in for a hug by Lily and Lyla. Both girls hugged Tristan closely till they started giggling in unison, oblivious to the fact that Tristan stiffened slightly at their proximity. Before entirely letting go of Tristan, the sisters gave him a tender stroke on each side of his shoulders, dusting off the accumulation of snow.
'Why did that make me feel like a pet?' Tristan grimaced.
Lily, amid breaks of giggles, apologized shyly, "we're sorry about earlier. We panicked and leaped onto the maze tops to catch up with you more quickly as we noticed you strolling ahead of us…"
"However, Lily lost track of you after becoming preoccupied with a really large snowflake that had fallen next to me." Lyla apologized as she concluded. She winked at Tristan with a big smile before becoming serious once more. "We won't let you slip away again, so here we are."
'How lovely! I'm sure Neriah and Selkie would be so pleased to meet you two.' Tristan saw them abruptly squabble about who was to blame for their carelessness and he reflected on what could happen if they were all in the same space with the siren royals.
He held a finger to his lips and whispered hoarsely, "could you two lower your voice?! You're going to draw in the other sirens."
Since the sirens intended to seduce the participants, they would only attack anyone who provoked them. Still, though... When it came to women from other races or tribes, those sirens weren't known for being welcoming. Instead of patiently waiting for prey to approach sufficiently enough for seduction, they would decide to investigate further if they felt something strange nearby.
Lyla apologized while putting her palm over her lips. "We're just so happy we found you."
"How did you sneak in here without being noticed?" Tristan questioned, tilting his head in confusion.
"We have our ways," Lily said with a wink. "We're experts at stealth, remember?"
"R-i-g-h-t." He affirmed with a nod.
*****
With twenty-six minutes spent since the start of the task, Tristan decided that he wouldn't waste any more time talking and focused his attention on leading the way, his senses on high alert. The maze could be filled with traps and hidden dangers, and he didn't want to take any chances.
Lyla and Lily informed him of everything they had learned about the maze as they proceeded. To find any information that would hasten Tristan's arrival to his goal, they had just finished scouting the area and making a map of it.
A hair strand was twirled around Lyla's finger as she remarked, "we spotted a few traps along the way. Pressure plates on the ground cause spikes to emerge from the walls. You need to watch where you tread."
Tristan nodded as he paid attention to the caution. "What additional findings did you uncover?"
Speaking up was Lily. "The walls in a specific section of the maze are thinner, and you can scale through them. That is the most efficient route to the center."
Tristan nodded once more, his admiration for their resourcefulness. "Nice work. Let's proceed as per our plan."
The only sounds they could hear were the crunching of the snow under their feet and the wind whistling through the maze as they continued to move discreetly. While attempting to remain alert and aware of his surroundings, Tristan's mind raced with possibilities. He was unable to relax his guard for even a moment.
Then, from up ahead, they abruptly heard an overwhelming growling roar.
He motioned to Lyla and Lily, "get back," and stepped in front of them. To locate the noise's source, he searched the surrounding area. That is when he noticed it.
[Glitch Identified: Xorax]
The way forward was blocked by a monster that was at least eight feet tall! It had dense fur all over its body, which contrasted with the white background to give its skin an orange tint. It growled loudly at them, dripping saliva as a pair of razor-sharp fangs protruded menacingly from each jawbone. Dark green scales covering its torso were hidden by thick muscles that protruded beneath them, hinting at concealed razor claws. Behind it, two enormous horns protruded upward and curved sharply downward toward its sides.
With its sharp teeth exposed, it lunged at them. Tristan didn't think twice, but he forced his hands to fall to his sides. Lily and Lyla were standing next to him one second, and then suddenly they appeared several feet above the ground and directly behind the Xorax, a red glint in their eyes glistening and curving as they slashed ruthlessly with a barrage of thin earth disc projectiles and a torrent of wind, respectively. The Xorax was struck many times in various sections of its anatomy and shortly died as blood spurted everywhere. It left almost no sign that it had ever attempted to attack as it fell heavily to the ground.
"Eh?" As he silently observed the corpse laying still on the ground, Tristan addressed in surprise. 'They did so in a matter of seconds. A lot of blood, just how I like it.'
Their harsh gaze was fixed on the Xorax corpse as they dropped to their feet.
The earth beneath the Xorax began to tremble like a volcano spouting lava as Lily mumbled to her sister, "this beast tried to steal Tristan's attention from us. We just got him back." To ensure that every inch of flesh suffered an equal amount of punishment, she made sharpened rocks levitate and pierce the beast all over. "That won't occur again!"
"Death was its only justifiable outcome! There will be absolutely no type of retaliation except Tristan darling says otherwise." Its body gradually darkened in blue discoloration as Lyla persisted in furiously sucking out any air in its lungs. "Anyone who attempts such treachery deserves a painful death, no matter how strong it may appear!"
Amid the commotion, Tristan stood there as though he was begging for help like a lost child. 'This... this isn't so bad,' he observed, his head drooping in thought. He muttered to himself, 'they are almost like my personal guards, guards for me! Ha!' because he believed that if they journeyed together, he wouldn't have to worry about certain things.
Lyla turned her gaze toward Tristan and flashed him a wicked smile. "Let's continue shall we? There isn't much left of this place anyway."
Lily ran in the direction of Tristan and buried her face in his arms. Despite it being chilly outside, her breath gently caressed his neck, giving him chills all over his body. She adds, "I was so scared!!!" as she reaches up and brushes a few stray platinum blonde hairs off his forehead with her trembling fingers. "We are grateful for your protection."
'What in the hell are you saying? I'm not blind!' Because of how content she seemed, Tristan refrained from responding sarcastically. Instead, he merely gave her a firm hug while savoring the warmth that emanated from her. He held her for a while, then unwillingly let her go.
"Are you two okay?" he asked softly.
Both girls nodded vigorously. Their cheeks flushed pinkish-reds, matching perfectly with their fiery eyes which slowly transitioned to its original radiant blue.
"Yes," Lyla answered first. Turning to look at Tristan, she smirked knowingly. "Thank you very much for saving us."
'You don't need to rub it in girls.' Tristan grumbled internally.
Lily then took a step forward and again positioned herself directly in front of him. But this time, she leaned in and kissed him right above the cheekbone. She gave a suggestive lick to her lips before walking away and purred softly, saying, "next time, make sure you protect us better."
As they exchanged a knowing glance, the two sisters burst out laughing. Tristan's smile was sincere and without hostility for the first time since he could remember. He actually liked these two ladies because they seemed a perfect match for his explosive nature. They appeared to like having him around based on the looks they gave each other whenever they turned to look at him. 'Maybe... maybe I ought to think about being surrounded by someone…? Just long enough to figure everything out.'
He shook his head violently, clearing his mind. "We need to keep moving. We can't let our guard down."
They continued through the maze, their eyes and ears peeled for any signs of danger.
As they made their way deeper into the maze, Tristan couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched.
His suspicions were verified when Lily glanced at the ground with crooked fingers moving in anticipation and red glowing eyes, as well as when Lyla noticed a change in the wind currents around them all at the same time.
They then locked eyes as they both recognized why they had recently started feeling peculiar presences about them: "They made part of our retribution a lot simpler." With twisted grins on their faces, they spoke at the same time.
'Part? What retribution?' Looking for any indication of activity, Tristan combed the surroundings. That is when he noticed it.
At least a dozen sirens were gathered together and perched on the ice walls that lined either side of the path in front of them, intently scrutinizing them as they stood.
*****
A/N
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