"All right, let's head back," Celica decided, "getting everyone we can together will make this safer."
Palla sighed. "Very well, I'd better grow everyone back..."
Not long afterward, Celica returned with a new party. Mae, Genny, Sonya and the pegasus sisters followed their leader into the chamber. Boey and Saber returned too. Valbar waited outside again, glad that they at least left the pegasi behind. Palla was riding on Catria's shoulder.
"Our plan is to shrink and explore this passage," Celica summarized, "I don't think there's anyone else in the army who can be changed by Palla's new magic."
"I think you have too many," Sonya said, with a hand on her hip, "if this is anything like the fickleness of the pegasus, then you can be sure only pure-hearted maidens would work. Not me, at any rate."
"We'll have to see about that." Palla smirked, firing magic at the purple-haired mage. Sonya shrank swiftly, until she was only an inch tall. She crossed her arms in irritation.
"…fine," She huffed.
"Let us proceed." Celica nodded to Palla, who began her spell. The rest of the women joined Sonya at an inch tall. Genny cowered behind Celica.
"It's scary being so small," Genny said with a shudder.
"Don't worry, we're all together," Celica reassured her. She looked up at her giant comrades. "Saber, Boey, please stay here in case anything happens."
"Sure thing, princess. You be careful now." Saber said.
"Leave it to me, Milady." Boey replied.
Celica nodded at them, then turned to the small stairs. She produced a small fireball to light the way, then led her tiny party down the steps.
The steps led to a tiny corridor, roughly to scale with the miniature women. Celica was thankful that their weapons could be shrunk, though the pegasus sisters would have to make do without their mounts.
"What an odd little passage," Palla observed, "it must be about the size of a wooden beam."
"Yes, and here we are scurrying inside it," Sonya added, "smaller than mice."
"Ew! We'd better not find anything icky down here!" Mae said.
"Don't worry," Celica reassured her, "I'm sure we will triumph over any foes, even if we are a fraction of our normal sizes." Celica wasn't sure she believed her own words.
"When I woke up this morning, I didn't think I'd be shrunken so small," Catria mused.
"It's our own mini adventure!" Est cheered.
The miniature army proceeded. Celica's flame eventually revealed a wall blocking their progress.
"A dead end," The tiny priestess noted.
"Good, can we turn back now?" Sonya said. "I'd like my height back already. I'm not keen on being an inch tall in heels."
"Wait," Palla said, "look down in the corner. There's a small hole."
Celica crouched down. There was indeed a small hole, maybe about an inch or two wide.
Well, to our scale. It's much less than an inch wide. Celica reminded herself.
"Could that be a way through?" Mae asked.
"Yes," Celica stood. "But it seems like we need to be smaller to fit through."
"Forget that," Sonya interjected, "we should just leave."
"I ought to shrink you just for that." Palla teased. Catria thought her new power had made Palla more devious than normal.
"Maybe there's a switch or something on the other side," Mae suggested hopefully, "perhaps just one of us needs to get tinier."
"B-but then, who should we send?" Genny asked.
"I'll go," Celica declared, "I am leading us, after all."
"No way!" Mae interrupted, "you're way too important. Shrink me instead."
"Looks like we have a volunteer," Sonya sneered.
"Very well," Palla sighed, "but be careful. Please head back if there's any sign of danger."
Mae braced herself.
I don't want to be super tiny, but better me than Celica. She thought. Palla hesitated, not sure if she was able to shrink her friends smaller than an inch but decided to try. She cast her spell, and Mae quickly shrank.
"Yeah, this is uncool," Mae squeaked, her voice even higher pitched.
"Be careful!" Celica called to Mae as she scuttled into the tiny hole.
Beyond the wall it was pitch black. Mae summoned a tiny ball of fire, just like she had seen Celica do many times before. She grimaced when she saw many cobwebs illuminated by the flame. Looking to the left she saw an odd colored tile. She stood on it and sighed in relief as the wall between her and her friends slid to the side.
Celica was crouched near the hole, listening anxiously. She heard a soft scraping and stood to see the wall sliding away. It revealed the tiny Mae. She ran towards her friends, not noticing the spider approaching her from out of the darkness.
Celica acted quickly, lunging forward with her sword to save the miniature Mae. She impaled the spider between its eyes. Catria and Est ran forward to help her, finishing off the spider with their lances. Genny picked up Mae as the spider collapsed, dead.
"Phew, that was a close one!" Celica sighed.
"Where the heck did it come from? Never let me be brave again," Mae insisted, her voice shaking.
"You did very well," Palla reassured her, growing Mae back to one inch tall.
"Thanks. Next time Sonya can do it," Mae said.
"Not in a thousand years," Sonya sneered.
The party continued, cutting down many cobwebs on their way.
At least there are no more spiders. Mae thought with a shudder. The corridor ended in an opening, with no walls or floor. Celica peered out, recognizing her surroundings as a chamber she had visited earlier when at her normal size. She remembered thinking the beam running across the room at waist height was strange. The corridor here was somewhat like a pipe, with pieces strewn about the floor.
"Maybe we can fix this corridor and make a path to the other side," Celica suggested.
Palla joined her. "Yes, but I think we need someone normal sized to reassemble the path."
"So we need a big person?" Mae asked.
"Yes," Celica answered, "perhaps Palla could grow one of us back to normal size."
"I could," Palla agreed, "but then we would have one less person in our tiny army."
"Have you thought of something, Palla?" Catria asked.
"Indeed. We could send someone back to tell one of the boys to head over. I think we've been in here before," Palla said.
"No, grow me back and I'll carry all of you over," Sonya interjected.
"But that puts the rest of us in more danger," Genny whimpered.
"I don't care, I can't stand being this small!" Sonya argued.
"Up to you, Celica," Mae said, "it would be quicker to grow one of us, but maybe it would be better to get that big bozo Boey or Saber to help out."
This could be an important decision. Celica thought. The safe way, or the fast way?
