The ground was shaking and making a loud noise. Maxine was very scared. She and Daniel had broken a special stone, thinking it would stop the bad things that were happening. But instead, they made things much worse.
Daniel looked very worried. "We've released something much more terrible," he whispered. "This was not just a curse, it was a prison."
Maxine was confused. "A prison for what?"
Before Daniel could answer, the ground split open and a bad smell came out. Maxine felt like throwing up. Then, a deep, scary growl came from the open ground. The room started to shake and dust fell from the ceiling.
Daniel grabbed Maxine's arm and pulled her away from the opening. "We have to get out of here, now!"
They ran up the stairs, but the ground was still shaking. Maxine fell down and hurt her legs. The noise got louder and something started to come out of the open ground.
Maxine looked back and saw a big, dark shape. It was like a hole in the air, but it was moving and looked very mean. Dark tentacles were coming out of it, like snakes looking for food.
"What is that?" Maxine asked, her voice shaking.
"The true evil," Daniel said, his voice very quiet. "The curse was just a way to keep it trapped. We broke the seal, and now it's free.
" Maxine was very scared. She thought they just wanted to stop the curse, but instead they released something much worse.
The darkness tried to grab them, but Daniel pulled Maxine to her feet and they ran. They reached the top of the stairs and got out of the basement. But even as they were escaping, the darkness was still trying to get out.
They ran to the front door, but the lights went out and they were in complete darkness. Maxine couldn't see or hear anything except her own heartbeat.
Daniel was still with her, holding her hand. "Keep moving," he said. "We're almost out." Maxine was trying to move, but the darkness was getting closer. She felt something cold around her ankle and screamed. Daniel pulled her away, and they finally got out of the darkness and into the main building.
They collapsed on the floor, gasping for air. Maxine was very scared, but Daniel was determined to find a way to stop the darkness.
"What do we do now?" Maxine asked, her voice shaking.
"We need to find a way to stop the curse," Daniel said. "It was like a bandage that kept the bad thing trapped. But now it's open, and we need to close it."
Maxine nodded, but she was worried. "But we don't know how to do it. The special rock we needed is gone, and we don't know how they trapped the bad thing in the first place."
"I don't know," Daniel said sadly. "But we don't have much time. If we don't stop it, it will destroy everything in its path."
Maxine shuddered at the thought. The bad thing was not just mean - it was also very hungry. And if they didn't stop it, many people would be hurt.
"We have to try," Maxine said, trying to sound brave. "We have to find the answers, no matter what it takes."
Daniel nodded, looking determined. "Agreed. But we can't do it alone. We need help from someone who knows about magic and how to fight it."
Maxine thought for a moment. She didn't know anyone like that, but she knew that big cities like theirs had secrets and things that most people didn't know about. Maybe they could find someone who could help.
"Then we start looking," Maxine said, standing up. "We don't have much time."
As they left the basement, Maxine felt like they were running out of time. The bad thing was still there, waiting to happen. And it wouldn't wait forever.