The Battle with the Beast

The Battle

The room felt tight, as if the wisps of smoke that flitted around had wrapped themselves around their necks. Quentin's hands stung from all the defensive spells he and his friends had been throwing at the Beast in attempt to slow him down, but nothing had worked thus far. Running seemed like a good option.

He vaguely heard his best friend Julia calling for him to hurry followed by a shout from Alice about how he was gaining on them. Quentin watched as Penny, Eliot, and Margo waved for Alice and Julia to hurry around the corner, but for some reason Julia paused. The rest of the group continued, too busy in trying to escape to notice the two of them were no longer run. As soon as Quentin reached the corner he noticed why she stopped.

"Julia, we have to-" The words slipped from his tongue, his attention instantly drawn to a bright flash of red followed by a pop sound and then silence. The two watched as a single piece of parchment fluttered around a few times before settling neatly on the ground.

They approached it with caution after having checked to make sure the Beast was no longer behind them. Slowly, Quentin lowered himself to one knee, lifting the piece of paper in between two fingers.

"Être Piègè. " He read aloud. "A trapping spell. Say these words 'Par la magie dans ces mots je te pièger' and even the most magical of beings will be confined to the object of your choice. Good luck. - A friend."

"Who-" Julias question cut off with her own scream of terror as a fire ball soared past her head, slamming into the middle of a ceramic bust behind them in the ancient castle hallway. "Go!" She cried.

"This way!" Quentin called, pointing to an open door way a little ways down the hall behind them. They ran as hard as they could, the Beasts booming laughter ringing in their ears.

Quentin slammed the door, throwing paper and books off of a nearby desk and shoving it in front of the door. In his mind he knew it wouldn't hold the Beast, if he wanted in he would come in, but in his mind the precaution made him feel the slightest bit safer.

"What do we do?" Julia stuttered out, scrapping her hands back through her tangled hair. "We- I "

"I don't know- I don't know. Okay. Think, think." Quentin pounded his palms against his temple. "The trapping spell!"

"Can it really be that simple? I mean, just saying a few words? No preparations, no-no-"

"Have a little faith, Julia." A voice called from behind them. They both gasped, spinning around with raised hands. "Relax. I'm here to help."

A young girl, about fifteen years old stood before them. Her fiery red hair that reached her shoulders was nearly unnoticeable beneath the black hood. The cloak she wore reached her knees, coming just high enough for them to notice the ghostly paleness of her skin, but what was perhaps the most shocking feature of the odd stranger were her glowing purple eyes.

"Who are you? Where- where did you- are you-" Quentin exclaimed all in one breath.

"Yes, I left you the note, and yes it is that simple, but you must aim it perfectly at the Beasts heart through his back. Prepare yourselves, he's here."

"But what do we-"

"Don't worry. I'll distract him." She nodded at the corner of the room on the far side of a bookshelf. They hurried over to it, dropping to the floor, ripping the paper out of Quentins pocket.

Not three seconds had passed before the desk that once made Quentin feel somewhat secure flew across the room, smashing into the wall and shattering. Pieces of splintered wood flew everywhere, one piercing Julia's thigh.

She slapped a hand over her mouth to silence her cry of pain, dropping it to her leg moments later, her mouth remaining open in a silent scream.

"Oh my god, Julia! Are-"

"I'm okay." She nodded, motioning for him to lift the paper up.

Across the room the mysterious girl seemed to be holding her own well enough until the swarm of moths that once surrounded the Beasts head flew at her, engulfing her in a frenzy of flapping wings. She let out an ear piercing shriek, swatting frantically at the flying creatures.

"Now!" Julia whispered as loudly as she could. They shared a look, as if saying 'together', before clasping hands. The moment the two of them began chanting a purple mist swirled around their combined hands. They could feel the electric buzz of raw and pure magic from their cores racing through their veins. And before either of them, or the Beast who stood with his back to them admiring his work, knew what was happening a bolt of electricity shot straight into his back, piercing his heart from behind.

"Argh!" He shouted, bending backwards at an unnatural angle, his body twisting and contorting in pain.

"We need an object!" Julia cried. "A box or something!"

With his free hand, Quentin reached into his pocket, pulling out the little box that once contained the key to Fillory. Popping it open, the black and purple mass that was once the ever so fearsome Beast seemed to be sucked inside the box, the lid snapping shut seconds later.

Quentin fell to his knees and gasped for air. His head and heart both pounded ferociously against his skin. Glancing back at Julia who was laying on her back on the floor, he carefully tapped the leg she had just pulled a piece of wood out of. "Nice."

She sat up, releasing the breath she'd been holding for too long. "Guess we didn't need this after all." She pulled the blade out of her pocket.

"Wrong." A voice called.

"You're alive?" Quentin raised his eyebrows in surprise at the girl across the room who was dusting herself off.

"Well don't seem so disappointed."

"No! No-I-"

"You need to blade to stab the box and that will destroy the beast for good." She cut him off. "No need to thank me."

"Who are you?" Julia asked.

"A friend." She replied with a wink before disappearing before their eyes.

The both laughed in astonishment and relief. "Here goes nothing." Julia handed the blade to Quentin.  He turned the blade over a few times in hands before sighing once more and raising it above the box. "Ready?" She asked.

"Ready."