Chapter Three: Music and Eggs
Music was playing, breathtakingly beautiful music.
It reminded one of anything innocent and pure: dancing fairies, the sweet laughter of a child, the peaceful breathing of a sleeping baby. It was all wrapped up into a beautiful, endless, magical song that made the listener forget any troubles or worries. It made the listener forget anything at all, feeling the only thing that mattered was that the music didn't stop.
Farid and Brianna listened as if under a spell. The music was the most glorious sound either had ever heard; they could tell even as far away from it as they were.
They stood up. There was no need for words, for they both knew that the other was thinking the same thing as themselves: that they had to find the source of the music.
"It's so beautiful," Brianna whispered wonderingly.
Farid nodded, but gestured for her to not say anything else, a rapt expression on his face. The music was too extroardinary to be interrupted by their common human voices.
They followed their ears, and soon the music began to get louder. They were getting close...
And then, as they came to a third turn in the maze, they came to a wonderful sight.
Four trees were scattered next to the tall leafless black ones. But these, unlike their sinister neighbors, were actually normal: the branches were brown, and on them large green leaves grew.
There were people around the green trees: men, women, even children. They were all dancing, hair flowing and skirts whirling. This was where the music was coming from, though Farid and Brianna couldn't see what caused it. It almost seemed to be connected to the dance: when the people whirled faster the music sped up; when they gracefully slowed their movements the music, too, sank to a slower pace.
Behind it all the maze was as black and sinister as ever, but Farid and Brianna weren't interested in what was beyond. Nothing mattered except the music. As they listened, all the sorrow and grief of the last few months seemed to be lfited off their shoulders with each new note. They forgot everything: Dustfinger, Rosanna, the rose that was still in Farid's hand, the two other items, the maze...they just forgot it all, listening to the music. The beautiful, beautiful music.
Neither of them knew it, but the music was a spell. Now that they'd heard it, it would be very nearly impossible for them to leave.
Not that either of them had any thoughts about leaving.
For the first time in months, Brianna was actually happy. Content. It was utterly perfect. After the turmoil of the last few months, and the horrors they had experienced in the maze so far, this was paradise.
The music kept playing. The longer it went on, the more of Brianna's memories vanished. It was all slipping away. Soon she didn't remember where she was, what she had been doing before...she even forgot who she was. And though Farid stood beside her, thoughts of him vanished as well.
Her head and heart were empty now, filled only with the music, but it didn't matter. She was happy, so utterly happy, listening to the music. She never wanted to leave...
Brianna and Farid would have gone on listening to the music with the intention of staying there forever, but soon they would have died one of the worst deaths imaginable; if only Brianna had never let her eyes wander.
But she did, and what she saw saved them.
A corpse.
It was halfway hidden behind the trees, but Brianna saw it all the same. It was impossible to tell whether it had been a man or woman. The face was almost completely gone; it could have been eaten off. The clothes were tattered, broken rags, draped over a body that was missing more than a few limbs.
It was utterly gruesome, and it shocked Brianna so much that she forgot about the music for a moment.
And then everything came rushing back to her: the maze, the rose, her father, Farid...
"Farid!" she gasped.
He was still standing next to her. His face wore the same rapt expression her own had had before she saw thew corpse.
But now only one thought was running through Brianna's head: that they had to get away from the music. Seeing the corpse had broken the spell, and now Brianna knew they had to get away. Or something terrible would happen. Something very terrible, and very soon.
The dancing people were still smiling, but they no longer looked innocent to Brianna. She imagined their smiling faces were just a mask they hid their cruelty and evil behind. Were they cruel enough to kill Farid and Brianna the same way the corpse had been killed?
Maybe, Brianna thought. Probably. After all, nothing was as it seemed in this strange, terrible maze.
They had to get away. But the horrible, beautiful music was still playing. Brianna felt herself beginning to forget again, falling back under its spell.
"No!" she whispered.
Oh, but the music was so beautiful...so perfect.
Brianna quickly put her hands over her ears. Once the music was blocked out she felt her head beginning to clear again. Okay, we have to get out of here, she thought. She looked at Farid apprehensively. His eyes were glassy; he looked like he was under a spell, which he was. Okay, so she just had to make him forget about the music and remember everything else; then he too would realize that these dancing people were more sinister than they seemed, and they would be off before they were killed in a violent, painful way. Simple as that.
But unfortunately, that was easier said than done.
"Farid!" she cried, shaking him.
For a moment he looked vaguely confused, but then he just slipped from her grasp and his eyes turned glassy again.
"Farid, you have to stop listening to the music! Come on, we need to get out of here or something terrible will happen! Farid, please, listen to me!"
But the music was working its magic on him even more than it had with her. He didn't seem to be taking in a word she was saying. Brianna began to panic. Farid didn't seem to remember her, and time was running out. Soon the dancing men and women would do something horrible to them, she was sure of it. They had to get out of here now.
She stepped forward to him with renewed determination. "Farid, it's me, Brianna! We have to leave!"
Farid actually turned to her, but his eyes were still those of someone who knew nothing. As long as the music was still playing he wouldn't remember anything.
Brianna removed her hands from her ears. Immediately the music filled her head again, but she managed to block it out. She couldn't fall under its spell again. If she did, there was no hope for either of them.
She put her hands over Farid's ears, trying to stop him from hearing the music. With a cry he pushed her away and took a few steps back.
Brianna swore. She could almost feel the time slipping through her fingers. She had to do something! She started to sing loudly, trying to block out any other sound. Frustratingly, the volume of the music rose as well, drowning out her voice.
"Farid, forget the music! It's Brianna, don't you remember me?" She spoke faster and faster. "I'm Dustfinger's daughter! Don't you remember? Don't you remember Dustfinger?"
At Dustfinger's name Farid had involuntarily started. And then a light started to come into his eyes...Yes, he remembered! But no, his eyes had gone vacant again.
Then Brianna got an idea; she knew what might get a response. She pushed aside her guilt at what she was about to say; it would be worth it of it made him forget the music.
"Farid, remember Dustfinger? Remember how he sacrificed his life for you?"
Her father's name seemed to get a reaction more than anything else, so Brianna said it again, even though it tasted of pain. It hurt to say his name as much as it hurt to say her next words.
"Dustfinger's dead, Farid! He sacrificed his life for you. You as good as killed him!"
Brianna felt terrible saying those words, but for a moment it seemed they had worked. Farid's face lost the vacant expression. The effect of the music seemed to have gone.
But then, as quickly as it had come, it was erased. The spell of the music hadn't been broken after all.
Brianna gave a cry of unsupressed fury. They were running out of time!
Then inspiration hit her. Of course! He could remember the same way she had! She pulled him towards the corpse.
As Farid saw the mangled, mutilated body, his eyes widened in horror. The pure shock of seeing such a thing blocked out the music for a minute. That minute was just what Brianna had been waiting for. She could almost see all his memories whizzing back to him.
At last his eyes cleared, and she could see that the effect of the music was finally broken.
"Farid?" she questioned, just to make sure. "We have to leave!"
"Brianna," he murmured, his voice sounding far away. "Yes...yes, you're right."
She could have cried and hugged him with relief, but there was no time. Suddenly she gasped. "A leaf from a blossoming tree!"
The second item was right there in front of her! Why hadn't she realized it before? She had vaguely wondered why there were four normal trees mixed in with the black, but she hadn't fully understood what it meant. She was about to pluck one off, but then she realized something was wrong.
The music had stopped.
Brianna slowly turned around. The people had stopped dancing. Instead they just stood there, glaring at the two teenagers. And then, right before their eyes, the people began to shrink and change. Skin turned black, fingers became claws, wings spouted from their their backs. Soon there were no longer human beings standing before them, but bats instead.
"Oh no," Farid said quietly, his voice filled with dread. The two small words were just what Brianna was thinking as well.
The black bats rose in the air, then swooped down at them. Brianna screamed, but she couldn't hear herself over the bats' cries.
It was chaotic. She couldn't think properly. All she could see was the flurry of the flying animals; it was like a thick black cloud surrounding her. Where was Farid? She tried to call to him, but a bat flew into her face, knocking her painfully to the ground.
What were they to do? Just try to get away from the bats? What good would that do? No, they needed the leaf. They couldn't leave without it.
Brianna forced her way through the bats. She could now see the trees again! She stumbled forward to one with leaves, reaching out her hand- and then heard herself cry out as a sharp pain filled her left arm. A bat was sitting there, digging it's claws into her. With her right hand she hit it as hard as she could, and it flew off.
Ignoring her bleeding arm, she reached out again, and this time felt it close around one of the delicate leaves.
Immediately the bats flew at her, causing her to cry out again.
"Brianna?" she heard Farid yell.
She couldn't answer; she was enveloped again in the moving black cloud, trying to keep the bats off her face. Soon she managed to break out of it. For a moment she felt relief. Then she realized she was no longer holding the leaf.
Brianna turned, ready to dive back into the cloud of bats to retrieve it, but a hand on her arm stopped her. Pain immediately shot up her arm; it was the scratched one that Farid had grabbed. She ignored it and shouted it him, "Let go of me, I have to get the leaf back!"
"I know," he said breathlessly, moving his grip to her hand. "But we need to stay together."
The leaf was lying directly under a whirling clutter of bats. The animals did all they could to stop them, clawing and scratching at their faces and hands, but despite the unwelcome distractions, Farid and Brianna managed to retrieve the leaf.
As soon as the leaf was in Brianna's hand again, they ran. The bats tried to stop them, but didn't chase them. Soon Farid and Brianna were far from their clutches.
"Are- you- alright?" Farid gasped out, still running.
"I'm- fine," she managed breathlessly. The minor scrapes and cuts from the bats' claws weren't important. "You?"
"Fine," he gasped back.
They only stopped to rest when the stitches in their sides wouldn't allow them to go any further.
"Still have the rose, right?" Brianna asked, trying to get her breath back.
Farid nodded, extending the black flower. It was somewhat the worse for wear, but that didn't matter. At least, Brianna hoped it didn't.
"Two items. I think we might actually make it out of here alive!" Farid said. "If we can find the slippers."
Brianna nodded eagerly, glad that he agreed with her unspoken thought.
"I can't believe we're not dead yet," Farid said wonderingly.
"Yes, really," Brianna agreed. "It's quite a wonder we're still alive, what with bats, a wolf, beautiful music, dead sisters, annoyingly tempting offers, and ghosts."
"We must just have a talent for surviving," Farid said. Then his face darkened. "Let's not get excited yet, though; we're still in the maze. Let's go."
The whole ordeal with the music and the bats, though it had very nearly cost them their lives, had proved to be for the better in the end. Gone were the weary teenagers who had lost all hope, waiting for death. Instead Farid and Brianna felt fire burning in their hearts again. Hope was tiny, like a spark that could be put out any minute, but it was there, and they both felt it. They would continue fighting. That was all this was really: a huge fight for their lives. The odds were against them, but maybe they would make it through.
They went on with a feeling of urgency greater than they had felt all throughout the events so far. The fight was on. They were racing against time.
They made turns left and right, the black trees always looming over them. It would help immensely, Farid thought, if they could view the maze from above, so they had some idea of how close to the exit they were. But they couldn't, and there was nothing they could do about it, so they continued on.
How much time do we have left? Brianna thought desperately. Ten minutes? Twenty? She didn't know for sure, but she knew it wasn't much.
Soon they reached a crossroad. There were three ways they could go: left, right, or forward.
"Which way?" Brianna asked.
"Left," Farid said, guessing randomly.
It turned out to be immensely lucky that he chose left, for soon they came to something.
It seemed to be some sort of house, though it was only the size of one room. It stood in the middle of the path, taking up the entire width of it so there was no way around it. It was also completely silver, with large double doors.
Brianna and Farid quickly exchanged excited glances. This was a change from the endless black trees they'd seen previously. The slippers could be in there, or maybe it was even the end of the maze! With another quick glance, they entered the silver building.
As they passed through the doors, they saw that the inside was silver as well. What else they saw wasn't exactly what either had expected. Along the walls were dozens of shelves, on which were what looked like large eggs. They were lined up in neat rows on the silver shelves. The eggs were all sorts of colors, too- scarlet, lavender, sky blue...there was practically every color imaginable.
At the end of the room was another door; Farid and Brianna immediately made for it. Farid put his hand on the knob and tried to open it, but much to both their disappointment, the door was locked.
"Why, did you plan on leaving without so much as saying hello?" an injured voice said behind them. "Now that's just plain rude."
Farid and Brianna whirled around to see a girl with blonde curls standing a few feet behind them. They hadn't seen her before. She wore a frilly purple dress, and on her feet were a pair of silver slippers.
At once Farid began to think of how to best get them from her. Tackle her to the ground and grab them off her feet? But what then? The door was locked; where would they go?
"I'm so glad to see you!" the little girl cried, smiling happily. "Though I'm amazed you made it this far; not many do. And you got the leaf and rose!" she added, talking very fast. "Now how in the world did you manage that? Many men and women far greater than you two have perished barely ten minutes into the maze. Oh, I am so glad you made it all the way to me!"
The little girl clapped her hands gleefully. Farid and Brianna were both too shocked to say or do anything. This girl was quite unlike anything they had encountered so far.
"It's not often that humans come into the maze, you see," the girl continued. "When they do we all fight to be the one to kill them. But we're all bound to our own places in the maze. I get the least humans of anyone, they usually die long before they're even close to me, 'cause I'm so far away from where they start out. You've reached the finish, you know," she added. "Not that it matters, because you won't ever make it out."
She began to spin around happily, while Farid and Brianna watched in silent bemusement. They were at a complete loss for what to do now.
"I'm positively thrilled that you're here!" the girl said again. She stopped her spinning to observe them. "I've always thought it so unfair that I get the least humans out of all of us. And I kill the most interesting ways, too! Everyone else is always exactly the same."
The girl paused for breath before continuing. She seemed very talkative. "The ghosts will try to convince you to become one of them, and when you say yes, they devour you alive," she informed them.
Brianna noticed that Farid went a few shades paler at this news.
"And then the vampires would suck your blood, and the weird musical bat people hypnotize you with their music and dancing. Then, when you're completely under their spell, they pull you apart limb from limb, listening to your screams of pain echo through the night." Talking of such violence didn't seem to disturb the girl in the least bit. She continued, "But me- I'm so much more interesting than them! I don't always kill exactly the same way. Sometimes I burn my victims. Sometimes I have them bitten to death by some deadly insect. The possibilities are endless!"
Up to this point Farid had been listening to the words tumble out of her mouth in a sort of daze, but now he shook himself out of it. There wasn't much time left.
He looked at Brianna. Her eyes seemed to be saying: the slippers are right there! Let's grab them and get out of here!
The girl seemed to read what she was thinking as well, for she shook her head and said, "No, that's a bad idea, dear. The door's locked, you can't go anywhere."
Brianna didn't like being called 'dear' so condescendingly by a girl who looked around eight years old, but she didn't say so. There were far more important things to worry about.
"Oh, I know!" The little girl clapped he hands delightedly, curls bouncing. "We'll play a game! I try to kill you, you try to kill me! The only weapons we can use are the eggs. You have the advantage of two against one, while I have the advantage of knowing what each and every one of these eggs does, where-as if you break one, whatever comes out is just as likely to turn on you instead of me. If you win you can take the slippers off my dead body, and if I win...well, you'll be dead by then, so it doesn't really matter to you what I do, does it?"
She smiled charmingly.
Farid felt sick. Was this really their only choice? To play a game with a little girl that would result in either her's or his and Brianna's death, the latter being more likely? What if they got the chance to kill the girl and take the slippers? He didn't think he would be able to kill her. She was cruel, but she was just a child, or at least she looked like one.
Brianna was looking at him despairingly. It seemed that there was nothing they could do except play her game.
"On your mark...get set...go!" the girl cried.
Farid and Brianna were totally unprepared. The girl, on the other hand, was perfectly collected. She selected a bright red egg and almost lazily tossed it a few feet away. Where it hit the ground and cracked, a large flame shot up out of it. Brianna shrieked as her skirt almost caught fire, but leapt away in time.
The girl smiled challengingly at her, then took a light green egg off one of the many shelves. This one she threw high into the air. It shattered when it hit the ceiling, and a dagger came falling down, which the girl caught expertly and threw at Farid. He avoided it easily, and it stuck into the wall in between two shelves.
"Well, come on, you two!" the girl cried, carelessly throwing a glass bottle a pink egg had left. "Be adventurous! Break some eggs!"
They didn't respond; Farid had pulled Brianna away only just in time for her to avoid getting a face full of glass.
The girl swung around the room to observe the many eggs. Carefully she selected a dark blue one. When she cracked it on the floor, dozens of large, hairy brown spiders crawled out.
Brianna froze in absolute terror. She couldn't move. She couldn't breath. She had always been terrified of spiders, perhaps even unnaturally so.
And now there were dozens of them coming towards her and Farid.
Luckily he had more wits about him that she did at the moment. He urgently scanned the shelves, seeing that the eggs would be their only hope. The spiders crawled closer. He quickly smashed a pale yellow egg. It was out of pure luck that a see-through blue shield errupted, protecting them from the spiders.
"Ooh, very good choice!" the girl laughed from the other side.
Soon the shield disappeared, but by then the spiders had as well. It seemed that everything the eggs brought disappeared after a few minutes.
The girl continued breaking eggs, but now Brianna and Farid were breaking them as well, desperately searching for something that could help them get the slippers and escape. Soon the floor was covered in colorful egg shells. There were several strange creatures roaming around as well, along with many useless objects lying on the ground. The girl had been right when she said that whatever came out of the eggs could just as easily turn on them instead- a couple of times they only narrowly avoided being killed.
Farid and Brianna were beginning to panic. Time was running out, and they were no closer to getting the slippers than when they first entered the room of eggs.
Some of the eggs had very odd items inside. One that Brianna cracked revealed a slice of chocolate cake, while another one Farid tried left a bright pink wig.
"Try it on!" the girl commanded, giggling. "Let's see how you look with pink hair!"
Farid ignored her demand, preferring his black hair over the pink wig.
Many of the eggs were dangerous and deadly. Flames shot out of two more red eggs, which Farid put out with a few fire words, and one time he barely avoided getting bitten by a snake.
Brianna threw another at the wall, where it shattered into a dozen pieces. A large ball was now bouncing in the egg's place.
The girl squealed delightedly and picked it up. "Catch!" she cried, tossing it. "Oh, you're no fun!" she added when Brianna dodged it instead.
The girl whirled around, curls bouncing, and took a black egg off the shelf. This one, unlike the others, she cracked very carefully. Inside was a small black stone. She slowly took it in her left hand and turned her gaze to Brianna.
The effect was immediate. Farid watched in horror as Brianna dropped to the ground, screaming. For a moment he couldn't seem to make his legs work. When she gave another pain-filled scream he tried to knock the stone from the little girl's hand, but she merely laughed and skipped back.
Farid was more horrified than he'd been all through the maze so far. The girl was hurting Brianna, and he didn't know how to stop her! He looked around desperately for something he could use to throw at her, but the items the eggs had previously left had disappeared by now.
Brianna gave another agonized scream from the ground, sounding as though she was being tortured. The scream cut into Farid's heart. And the girl was laughing gleefully. Actually laughing, as if there was nothing more pleasurable to her than listening to Brianna's cries of pain.
Suddenly Farid felt a burning anger, more intense than he'd ever felt before. He reached out knocked several eggs off the nearest shelf. Fire ants crawled out of one, water shot out of another, and a third revealed a knife. The girl didn't even notice, she was concentrating on Brianna too much to think about him.
Farid picked up the knife, raised it- and hesitated.
Then Brianna gave another drawn out scream, and his hand acted almost of its own accord.
He watched, barely believing, as the knife sailed through the air. He watched as it plunged through the girl's heart. He watched as she fell to the ground, her own blood making pools around her.
The stone rolled out of her hand, and Brianna abruptly stopped screaming.
Farid was in a daze. He had just killed her. He didn't know what to think or feel.
Everything was silent except for Brianna's quiet whimpers.
Brianna...he needed to go to her, see if she was alright...but he had really killed the girl...but she had been torturing Brianna; what else was he to do? Oh god, he had actually killed her!
It seemed so unreal. He hadn't really killed her, he couldn't have. Any minute now she would leap up, curls bouncing, laughing at him for believing her to be dead so quickly, and the battle would continue.
But no, her purple dress was now red with blood, her blonde ringlets were scattered limply around her face, and her eyes were still and glassy.
The girl was dead.
A/N: Thanks so much to everyone who's read this far! Hope you're enjoying it! I'd really, really love reviews! It's okay if you've never reviewed before, you can still review now! To everyone that HAS reviewed before: thank you very, very, VERY much! I've read and reread all your reviews. Please do review again and tell me what you thought of this latest chapter! It doesn't have to be anything very long, either- even just a few words makes me insanely, absurdly, wonderfully happy!
There's only one more chapter left after this, which will be posted sometime in the fairly near future.