The Dragon Crystal.

Chapter 6. The Minotaur.

As the sun hung in the middle of the sky, the two boys walked deeper into the forest. They both carried their wooden swords in their hands and were determined to find whatever clues they might find along the way. After a few hours of walking, they finally reached a large clearing surrounded by cliffs. A small trail led them to where the cliffs were located, and they followed it along with caution. Although the cliff sides were rough and rugged, none of the rocks seemed to come closer to hitting them. The cliff tops were littered with boulders and trees which created a strange and wild beauty. But, even though the scenery was quite beautiful, their main priority was finding their prize. The sun was slowly setting on the horizon; it would be dark within half an hour. They were not able to see any further than a hundred feet away due to all the dense foliage. So Cameron decided to scout ahead while Callon sat down on a rock near the cliff wall. As Cameron inched forward towards the cliff, he noticed a group of three animals sitting together watching them with curious eyes. Two of the animals were wolves and the other was a goat. Both creatures were very dirty and filthy, but the dirtier animal appeared smaller than the others. Its fur was matted and dull, making it hard to distinguish between black and white. There was another animal too. It was 10 feet tall, with black fur, and two horns. It reeked of rotten meat. "The Minotaur!" Callon whispered. It growled, as if not liking to hear its own name. It crouched, ready to spring. "Watch out!" It lunged, missing them by inches. "Wait for it to run at you, then sidestep, it has no sense of direction and horrible eyesight, but it has really good smell." As if on cue, the beast started sniffing the air. "Hey meatloaf! Come and get me!" Cameron shouted. "ROOOOAR!" The Minotaur ran at Cameron, kicking up dust. At the last second, Cameron sidestepped, hurling the Minotaur into a tree. It's horn was stuck. When it finally got free, it roared in pain. Cameron picked up the horn from the ground and stabbed the Minotaur dead. "Well that was fun," Cameron said. "Now let's go to the next clue." Callon agreed with a chuckle. He walked behind Cameron and watched carefully. Cameron moved quickly through the trees and bushes and branches, until he finally found something. He knelt down and examined the area closely before standing up. It was a large stone, about 3 to 4 feet wide and 7 to 8 inches thick. It looked like it had been carved by someone wielding a giant hammer.
"What do you think this thing is?" Callon questioned. "I don't know, I can't tell what it is." He grabbed the rock and swung it with all his strength. It didn't budge. "Hmm, guess we need to break it," Cameron muttered, taking one of his swords out of his belt and attacking the rock repeatedly. The stone began to crumble and eventually broke apart, revealing a small hole. "There we go," Cameron said. He handed the broken pieces of the rock to Callon and stepped back. "What now? Do you think it leads somewhere important?" Cameron asked. Callon nodded. "I can see a latter, I'll try going down." As Callon descended, Cameron got the eerie feeling he was being watched.