Sonya sighed. She didn't like being split up from the others like this. Worse, she was stuck with the most middle of the road, goody two-shoes of the group. She doubted Catria was even much fun to tease. The blue-haired girl's larger size was irritating too.
I should be the big one, not her! Though she remembered that this giant size was still only 2 inches tall.
The pegasus knight led the way, with Sonya following behind. It was true that Catria was probably better in battle right now, but Sonya was going to take any chance not to get her hands dirty. No, she was content to hang back and let her big friend do all the work... Though she somehow didn't seem as big as before...
"Stop!" Sonya suddenly shouted.
Catria raised her lance. "What is it?"
Worried, Sonya studied Catria's form. Was it just her imagination? Nothing seemed to be happening...
"Sonya?" Catria called back, concerned.
"It's... Nothing. Just my imagination," Sonya decided.
"All right." Catria lowered her lance and started moving once more. She somehow seemed smaller again. Was it just because she was moving away, or...
"Stop!" Sonya shouted once again.
Catria raised her lance again. "Did you see something?"
"All I see is you," Sonya answered, "but it's what's happening to you that concerns me, my dear. Come back this way."
Catria lowered her weapon, turning back, but stopped. Sonya was certainly bigger now! Confused, she walked over to find the mage slightly bigger than she was.
"You're bigger than me!" Catria said.
"Yes, it seems that way," Sonya agreed.
"But are you bigger, or..." Catria looked around. She somehow hadn't noticed, but the corridor was now twice as large as it was before!
"I think you're smaller, dear," Sonya suggested, "as much as I would prefer to be bigger..."
Catria was still looking around, worried. "Am I still getting smaller?"
Sonya placed her hand on the smaller woman's head, Catria wincing as her hair was pushed down. "No, it seems to have stopped," Sonya concluded, "strange, though... There was no magic, and I hardly noticed you shrink..."
"What did this to me, then?" Catria asked, getting anxious. She felt much more vulnerable at under an inch tall.
"I have an idea. Stay here," Sonya stepped forward and sighed. "I think I'm going to regret this..."
Sonya walked ahead, further down the corridor. Catria could only look on, puzzled. The image of Sonya she saw appeared to get smaller, but she was getting further away after all, so that made sense. But was that all it was? Now a few inches down the corridor, Sonya turned and walked back to Catria. The pegasus knight was watching carefully, but Sonya didn't seem to be any different. Coming to a halt in front of Catria, Sonya stared up into her gaze.
Wait, up?
Catria was indeed looking down at Sonya, the mage now a head shorter than the pegasus knight!
"Wait, but... How?" Catria asked.
"It's actually quite simple when you think about it," Sonya smirked, glad to have the answers for once, "the further we go down this corridor, the smaller we shrink."
"I... think I get it," Catria said, "when you walked away, I didn't notice you getting smaller. It must be happening gradually."
"That's right. No matter what we do, we'll get smaller if we keep going," Sonya said.
"So we shouldn't go down here, right?" Catria asked.
Sonya raised a finger. "Don't be hasty. This odd phenomenon is probably guarding something. We need to get down here, despite the danger."
"We should go back and get help, then," Catria suggested.
"I've got a better idea," Sonya began, "loathe though I am to admit it, your size is more important than mine. A tiny mage can fight better than a tiny pegasus knight, wouldn't you say?"
"I... suppose," Catria agreed.
"So here's my plan. I'll go first and see what lies ahead. If I come across any of those... Disgusting creatures, I'll run back to you. Then you deal with them. Deal?" Sonya asked.
Catria hesitated. This plan sounded risky, and she didn't like the thought of an ally risking themselves for her sake. But she had to admit that the plan made a lot of sense.
"All right," Catria nodded.
"Splendid. Now, be patient and wait here like a good girl," Sonya instructed, walking away. Catria watched the purple-haired woman as she headed off into the darkness, her form ever smaller as she went.
Sonya's kindness had gotten the better of her. Fighting ability be damned, she should've let that Catria wander off and be shrunk to the size of a mite. Yet here she was, dwindling into darkness for the sake of another. She at least had the ball of fire at her disposal, so could see easily enough. She couldn't tell she was shrinking, but every now and then she would notice that the corridor was much more spacious.
Further and further she walked, seeming to go on forever.
Probably just my legs getting shorter. she thought with a shudder. Eventually she came across something she really didn't want to see. Something that rendered her whole plan pointless. In front of her was a wall, no way through apart from a small hole that matched her much-diminished size.
"...Blast."
Catria waited as she was told. Without Sonya there was little light, save for an odd glow in the walls. She peered down the corridor, hoping all was well. What if Sonya had been attacked? Would she ever know? She had no choice but to wait, no matter how long it took.
In the darkness, she could see the faintest glow. Leaning forward and squinting, Catria tried to see what it was. The glow was getting brighter. She realized it was Sonya's fireball. But from so low down? She could just about see a small figure, walking below the guiding flame. Sonya, of course. But how small was she? Catria's jaw hung open when she realized just how small she had become. Standing before the pegasus knight, the mage wasn't even half-way to her knee!
"Sonya..." Catria gasped
"Yes, yes," Sonya squeaked, "I'm even smaller now, let's move on please."
"But why did you come back?" Catria asked. The purple-haired woman didn't seem to be in a rush.
"My plans were foiled, I suppose," Sonya folded her arms, "there was a hole that was too small for you to get through. Therefore I wouldn't have been able to lure anything back to you."
Her condescending tone is adorable at such a high pitch. Catria thought, but she decided not to mention that.
"It was a good idea," Catria reassured her, "but I guess there's no way around it."
"Indeed. Now hurry up!" Sonya shouted, pulling at Catria's boot, "join me in tiny town already!"
Catria sighed, walking down the corridor.
Sonya walked ahead, but Catria was stuck walking very slowly behind her. It would take ages to get anywhere at this rate. But the pegasus knight had an oddly devious idea...
She bent down, scooping Sonya off her feet. The mage protested vocally and wriggled about, but Catria ignored her and carried the tiny passenger down the corridor. As she walked, she noticed Sonya growing in her grasp. Rather, it was her that was shrinking, she reminded herself. Soon enough she was too small to carry the mage comfortably, so she set her down. They continued to walk side-by-side, Catria glancing at her companion every now and then to see how much smaller she was becoming. She gradually shrank smaller and smaller as they walked, until finally she was the same size as Sonya. Not long afterward, they reached the dreaded wall.
"And here we are," Sonya announced, "now it's your turn to go first!"
"I suppose that's only fair..." Catria agreed.
Catria led the way down the small tunnel, now looking to Sonya over her shoulder occasionally. Fortunately, neither of them seemed to be getting any smaller. Eventually they found themselves in a bigger corridor, about the same size as the previous one. Except now they were much smaller.
"Careful now," Sonya warned Catria.
Catria nodded back. The two nervously headed deeper.
Suddenly the ceiling ahead gave way, the two women shielding themselves from the dust. They looked up to see a truly frightening sight. Another spider-like golem, except it was much bigger to them now. They were far smaller than even one of its legs, what hope did they have against such a titan? They both turned, realizing that the small corridor was their only chance of escape. The spider did not pursue them, merely launching an orb of web towards them. It struck the ground, releasing a gas. Coughing, the duo fell to the ground, unconscious.
Trapped in a small space, stuck in a sticky substance. That was the last thing Palla remembered. She groaned as she woke up, coming round from an unpleasant slumber. The first thing she realized was that she was looking down. She gasped, feeling like she was about to fall, only remaining where she was. She was in the air, seemingly a few feet high. Well, to her scale anyway. She couldn't move her arms or legs. She wriggled about, trying to get free. Palla was stuck. Grunting, she kept trying as she looked around. She seemed to still be in the temple but stuck in a spider's web. Thick webbing was wrapped around her body, sparing only her wings. She looked like a green fly, trapped in a spider's web. Fortunately, there didn't seem to be any spiders around. What of her friends? Where were they? She seemed to be alone. She would have to get herself out, first...
