Palla tried to wriggle free again, but she was stuck fast.
I can't get out. I'm stuck! Then she had a brainwave. Closing her eyes, she focused on the magic she knew. Invoking a spell, with herself as the target, she shrank down in size. The webbing came loose, the pegasus knight having shrunk into the middle of her bonds. She fluttered to the ground and grew herself back to half inch height. She smiled at her ingenuity.
I'm never stuck for long!
A single corridor led out of the chamber. The ceilings were high, but nowhere near enough to facilitate her at full, or even half size. She would just have to remain tiny for a while longer. Shrinking was useful, but it would be better if she was a bit more flexible with her size control.
The hall was quiet, no signs of life. While it was good that there was nothing nearby to attack her, it meant there was no sign of her allies either. Had they all been caught, like she and Mae had been? Regardless, she had to find everyone and escape this maze.
A while later she came to a big stone door, several times her size. Hurrying towards it, she tried pushing and pulling it open. It didn't budge. Sighing, she let go, and started to turn when she saw something on the wall. Some strange text was inscribed there. Dusting it off a bit, she initially thought she couldn't read it but then realized it was in her language...
"The sage sealed the high witch in the mountain..." Palla read aloud. A strange sentence, with no context. What could it mean? Was this a clue to open the door? Palla had no idea, but there was another corridor leading off to the side. With no other way forward, she ventured in.
This corridor was quite dark and had a low ceiling. Palla conjured a ball of flame, illuminating the passage. She was warmed by the flame too, just as well given the cold wind blowing through. She found the gust somehow reassuring, like it was fresh air. Was there a way outside? She couldn't get ahead of herself, she had to still be careful. Resisting the urge to run, she slowly proceeded down the corridor.
As she walked further, the gust got stronger and stronger. The corridor was getting lighter too, very different from the magical light that had illuminated the rest of her journey. Palla smiled when she reached the source, a section of the corridor where the ceiling and most of the left wall had crumbled away. Gasping, the tiny Palla stared out into the horizon. The sun was high in the air, the Valentian landscape basked in its light. She took in a deep breath of the outside air. If she wanted, she could fly around in the outside world, free from the stuffy ruined corridors.
I have no time to waste. She reminded herself. My friends and sisters need me.
The flapping of giant wings filled the air. Palla looked up to see a colossal gull, perched next to the tiny passage. Its eyes studied her carefully, seemingly confused by the bright green bug.
Is it going to eat me? Palla's unspoken question hadn't been answered when it brought its beak down. The tiny woman barely sidestepped the huge yellow object.
Can I run for it? But my magic can solve everything! Palla shrunk herself again, down to a minuscule size. It didn't seem likely that the bird could see her when she was so small. It looked around, confused once more. Palla ran for the shelter of the other end of the corridor. It was probably even more dangerous outside, but she was glad to know she could escape if needed.
The wind was now at her back. Growing herself again, Palla continued down the path. She noticed bits of webbing about, a concerning sight for the tiny woman.
Are there more spiders down here? She had to proceed regardless of her fears, for there was no other way.
The depths of this passage were even darker than the last. Palla lit the way with another fireball, but the darkness threatened to swallow it. She shivered in fear. She really didn't want to be caught again...
The corridor seemed to branch out into another chamber, maybe about five inches high. What she could see of the walls were covered in webbing. But what she cared about the most was the small bob of blue hair illuminated by her fireball.
"Catria!" Palla called out. The downsized pegasus knight looked to her sister, obviously much smaller than Palla was. She was tied up with webbing, a single strand suspending her from the ceiling.
"Palla!" Catria shouted, "run! Get out of here!"
Palla was confused and shocked by what her small sister had said. But it wasn't long before she realized why she had said it. A spider golem stepped out of the darkness; its blue eyes had a sinister glint. The puny pegasus knight knew she stood no chance against this creature. But this time, she was ready.
Before the spider could attack, Palla was already shrinking herself with magic, the web going over her dwindling form. Next she took to the air. The golem was unable to hit its tiny, fast-moving target. Palla's next spell was aimed at Catria. The blue-haired girl's bonds ripped as she shrank, and she fell down. Palla flew below her sister, catching her in both arms. Without delay, she flew off down the corridor. She was lucky her sister was even smaller than she was, light and easy to carry. Behind them she could hear the clanking of stone legs in pursuit.
The wind grew stronger as Palla flew, almost strong enough to blow the flea-sized girls away. Palla pressed on, determination powering her through but at a decreased speed. She glanced back to see the spider catching up. In the next moment they were bathed in light, having reached the broken part of the corridor. Exposed to the light, the spider sparked with magic, its eight legs spasming. The stone creature collapsed, its legs detaching from its body, and the glow in its eyes faded.
Seeing their tormentor's demise, Palla landed. Casting her spell, she grew herself and her sister back to her previous scale.
"Oh, Palla!" Catria hugged her big sister without warning, a rare emotional outburst from the girl. The smaller sister only reached Palla's knee. Smiling, Palla bent down and returned the hug. "I didn't think I'd get to see you again!"
"I'm glad you're safe, Catria. But we have to keep going. Est and the others may need our help," she reminded Catria.
"You're right," Catria nodded. The sisters headed back down the corridor.
A short while later, they reached the stone door again.
"Now this is where I got stuck," Palla said to her sister, "how do we get this door open?"
"A tough question," Catria replied. She noticed something out of the corner of her eye.
"Look here, Palla!" she said, crouching down, "There's a tiny hole!"
"It seems that way. So does one of us need to go inside?" Palla asked.
Palla wasn't keen on splitting the two of them up when they were only just reunited, but it seemed to be the only way to get through the door. Which of them should go through the hole?
