It wasn't long before the blob spotted Deuce, immediately coming in a range of attacks. "Leave! Leave!! Leeeeeaaaave!!" It yelled, bringing down the pickaxe at its victim.
The raven managed to dodge the first strike but was thrown against the wall by the thing's arm. "Deuce!" Xinyi called, leaving for the young man to leave, Ace following close behind her. She knelt beside him, gently lifting his back.
"Stand back if you have no control, Mr. Serious! I'll stop it! Haa!" Ace called running in front of the two. A blast of wind was thrown at the thing but it only moved a bit. Xinyi had just managed to get Deuce in a proper sitting position, when Ace landed right beside her, a cut going up his hand.
Panicked, Grim launched himself off the girl's shoulder, taking a deep breath before spewing fire. "Stay away!" he yelled frantically, as Xinyi got the boy's to their feet. Monster only growled as the flames surrounded him, but other than that it was not bothered. "I-it's not working at all!" Grim retreated for a moment, getting near the girl.
She had just barely gotten Ace up, hacking on a bit of the smoke, when something caught her eye. "Did something just sparkle!?" she mumbled, looking around the monster.
Ace followed her gaze, his face becoming shocked at the sight. "Behind that thing! At the end of the tunnel, something…" he called, making Deuce look over.
Deuce looked as well, seeing the same twinkle in the darkness. "That light… is it a magic crystal!?" he yelled to them, but unfortunately the monster heard them.
"Won't give!!" it yelled going for another strike.
Deuce was lucky to be pulled out of the way, the stone shattering behind him. He looked at Xinyi, her hands shaking as she let go.
"L-l-l-let's get out of here! We're done for at this rate!" Grim yelled, racing towards the exit.
Xinyi put Ace's arm over her shoulder, preparing to run."We need to escape! Now!" she yelled, picking up the pace. "Retreat! Retreat!"
Deuce looked back behind him, but one last call from the girl made him hightail it out of there. The monster roared behind them, as the four retreated into the silent forest. For the most part, none of them knew where they were going, just that they needed to get out of there. They didn't dare stop, at least not until Xinyi collapsed onto the ground.
"Xinyi!?" Grim called, hearing her fall. Deuce did too and soon all three of them surrounded the girl. She was breathing heavily, clutching her chest tightly in pain.
"I-I f-fine," She muttered trying to get her breathing under control. "J-j-just n-need a m-moment."
There was a roar in the background, causing everyone to jump. Deuce swiftly took the girl, placing her on his back, and ran. They didn't stop running, not until they were sure the thing was no longer chasing. "Is this far enough?" Grim asked as they stopped to breathe. They were outside the cottage once more, but still no sound greeted them. Deuce put Xinyi down to let her rest, she was still recovering and looked ghostly. Once she believed she was fine she got up to collect some stuff to treat injerst. Despite everyone's protest, she went to work, looking for the needed equipment.
Only when she was out of earshot did the boys talk. "Owww… what in the world was that? No one said anything about that!" Ace moaned as he looked at the newly formed bruises.
Deuce shook his head trying to understand what that thing was. "It didn't seem like any old ghost," he said before becoming quiet.
It was then that Xinyi returned, carrying small rags as well as herbs. Ace sighed as she applied a soaked rag to his arm. "Let's give up and go home. I'd rather get expelled than fight that thing," he muttered, not looking at them.
Deuce exploded at his words. "Wha!? Don't screw with me! I'd rather die than face expulsion!" he exclaimed. "There's a magic crystal right in front of us and you wanna go home!"
Ace laughed. "You talk big for someone worse at magic than me. Go alone if you want. I'm done."
"Oh, that's right? Then stay right there cowering like a spineless coward!" Deuce rebutled.
Ace growled at the boy but was held down by Xinyi. "Huh? Coward? Who exactly are you talking about?"
Grim looked at the girl who had the same gaze as he. "U-uh… Deuce. Did you switch up your character?" the monster asked.
Deuce was surprised by the question. "Huh? A-ahem! My bad, I lost my composure a bit." he said, finding his resolve once more.
Xinyi shook her head as she finished up with the injuries. "What to do…" she whispered then looked at the group. "C-can m-magic help u-us at all?"
Deuce looked at her sadly, shaking his head. "Like the headmaster said earlier, magic isn't all-powerful," he explained. "If you can't imagine it then it won't materialize. Large-scale or complicated magic requires a lot of training to use."
"But that's why we have schools for magic. You have to practice a lot to use magic just as it comes to mind." Ace continues, looking away from them all. "You'll screw up if you lose your cool."
"So that's why Grim can only use fire." The girl states before looking at them. "E-everyone has just b-been using it willy-nilly, so I-I didn't understand how it worked."
Ace nods at her. "You can use instinct for the stuff you're good at," he states a small twister forming in his hand.
Deuce shakes his head. "At any rate, I'm going in there. I'll figure out how to beat that thing and come back with a magic crystal," he said, picking himself up and heading off to the trail.
"But… judging by the chandelier incident, you're a complete idiot," Ace states. "You couldn't land a single hit earlier but now you'll 'figure it out'? It's going to end the same."
Deuce whirls around face reeling with anger. "Come again!? You think of…"
"Here they go again," Grim complains as Xinyi stands.
"Will you two knock it off!" She yells startling everyone, making them look at her. She was clutching her chest again, but her left hand was balled into a fist.
Grim was the first to react. "Why are you shouting all of a sudden?" he asked, a bit started by the girl's outburst.
She looks up, exposing her golden eyes. "Neither of you could do anything back there." Her voice was stern and carried a heavy weight over the group. Everyone looked away, not wanting to meet her eyes.
"Guh… B-but… what exactly should we do?" Deuce ground in distress, falling to the grassy ground.
"Let's put our heads together." the girl explained, sitting next to the raven. "We have to come up with a proper strategy."
Ace looked at her. "Strategy? You mean get along and work together?" the ginger almost laughed. "That's cold. You have no problem saying lame things with a serious face, huh?"
"Agreed. No way am I working with this loser." Deuce says, glaring at his classmate.
Grim looked at the two then looked at Xinyi, who was looking at the two, worried in her eyes. "But… I feel like it's way lamer to get expelled on the first day of school," he said sitting with the girl for the moment.
Ace looks at the creature and then looks away. "Ah...that's…" he couldn't finish his words, not knowing what else to say. Deuce looked like he was about to argue as well but no words formed on his lips.
Xinyi looked at Grim, petting his head a bit. "That's not cool at all," she states before looking at the others. "I do have one idea, but…" she waited for them to say something, to deny or agree.
There was silence for a bit before Ace heaved a sigh. "Fine! We just have to get it done, right?" He then looked at the girl, a small grin on his face. "So, what's your plan?"
She quickly explained her ideas, earning a nod of agreement from everyone. Soon she and Grim were walking towards the mine entrance once more, its gloomy doorway greeting them.
Grim looked at the girl and back at the entrance. "You… really think it'll go as planned? I'm sca- no. just nervous." he shook a bit, but he tried to hide it.
In all honesty, Xinyi had no idea. She too held fear in the back of her mind but she forced a bracing smile for reassurance. "We just have to accept our fate." she started taking a step towards the doorway.
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Albert Einstein