Fate of Pandora - Book I

Tengu's Wrath

It was a dark night, and the moonlight and blue flames that splashed into the maze barely illuminated the walls with a hazy glow. There were narrow pathways that separated everyone, and the six lost kids stared all around, confused and terrified by this new challenge.

"Hello? Someone there? Can you hear me? Anyone?" Coalt yelled as loud as he could. He was sure one of them had to be nearby, but he didn't hear an answer.

Not only him, but everyone called for each other, wanting to know if they were fine or if they knew what to do. However, even if there was only one wall separating them from one another, they couldn't hear their voices.

Lukas knew Coalt was right beside him before a wall had appeared between them. He punched the walls with his strong knuckles to break a hole and reach for him, but even though the boy was the strongest between them, he wasn't even able to make a small crack.

"What is this?" Lukas asked, breathing heavily after punching the wall so many times that his hands grew sore. "Coalt? You're there, right?" No answer reached him. The boy looked at the only path he could take, thinking that maybe he could find the older boy if he could reach the other side of the wall.

Risa had seen the two boys nearby when the walls appeared, but she didn't hear either of them now. Instead of breaking the wall, she tried to climb it and see from above where the others were. But no matter how many times she tried, she always slipped and fell back to the ground.

"What is wrong with these walls? They are so slippery even though they don't look it!" she grumbled in frustration after falling for the eighth time.

Ayame tried to leave marks on the walls to guide her in case she reached a dead end, but similar to Lukas, she couldn't make a single scratch. The walls appeared to be made of concrete, but they were unusually strong like diamond.

Luna remembered where Jay was. She rushed though the paths in an effort to get closer to her, but of course, it wouldn't be that easy; the maze was complex. The closest she could get was with only a single wall separating them, but of course, she did not know that Jay was right beside her.

"This is a labyrinth." Jay analyzed her surroundings coldly and began walking a random path. "We are alone this time. So close, yet so far away from each other. I think that metallic monster's goal was only to separate us enough to allow someone else to raise the walls. Tch, what a cowardly plan."

Jay sounded like she was talking to herself when, in fact, she was talking to Jasmet inside her head. They were the only ones who could not be separated by any walls, not even a cursed maze.

"We need to keep moving: we must find the others and leave this place. Arika is still in danger," Jasmet's voice echoed in her mind.

"If we are lucky enough to find the others. We'll lose too much time trying to solve this," Jay growled, visibly angered by the situation they were in. "This was clearly a set up by whoever is after us."

"Pandora, isn't it?" Jasmet reminded her.

"I'm not sure." Jay turned a corner to her left, and then right. She kept moving ahead until she reached a dead end. Without another option, the albino girl was forced to turn around and try again. "This is clearly a labyrinth. I wonder... if the Osarizawa myth was true, is the maze myth true as well?"

"I really don't want to stay to find out," Jasmet suggested.

"Good point." Jay hurried her pace, not thrilled at the thought of discovering the maze's myth either. The poor light reflected off her bright eyes and hair, giving them an eerie blue tint. Over the top of the walls, she could see the roof of the factory where Arika and their attackers were. She knew she had to go in that direction, but the paths she found always lead somewhere else.