MINOTAUR

Chinatsu could barely take in the sight of the Minotaur before it swung down its heavy axe.

He felt the axe cut through the air in front of him, just grazing the hem of the skirt, as he was violently pulled backward.

Miyabi had yanked his arm hard enough that it felt like it was going to rip off, first pulling Chinatsu away from the axe, and now dragging Chinatsu down the path they had just taken as they fled from the Minotaur.

The Minotaur lumbered after them as Chinatsu struggled to keep up with Miyabi. She was in his body now, after all, so of course she was the faster and stronger one. They passed the dead-end where they entered the maze and went in the direction that they perhaps should have taken to begin with.

Chinatsu’s ankle rolled. He slipped out of Miyabi’s grasp and crashed to the ground. The Minotaur bore down on him.

“Chinatsu!!”

The Minotaur made a wide, sweeping motion with its axe. Chinatsu flinched away just enough to feel the axe graze a few flyaway hairs on top of the head, followed by a loud crash.

He felt himself lift into the air and opened his eyes to see that the distance between himself and the Minotaur was increasing. Miyabi had flung Chinatsu’s body–her real body–over one shoulder and ran with desperation.

Chinatsu saw what really saved him, though. The Minotaur had driven its axe into the wall and was now pulling it out.

Miyabi and Chinatsu rounded the corner at the end of the path, a left turn, only to find themselves on the opposite end of the wall where they had first encountered the Minotaur. There was only an illusion of choice to begin with.

However, there was a single path leading away from that spot. If they could make it there, then perhaps they’d be able to shake off the Minotaur.

Miyabi pressed forward but lost footing when she stepped on something that crunched and crumbled under her foot. She recovered but still managed to drop Chinatsu, who landed with a thud. Just what did they step on?

There was no mistaking a human skeleton.

The ground was littered with bones. They were so stripped and scattered that it was hard to tell what bone was even what to begin with, but there was no mistaking the caved-in human skull at their feet.

The smell of decay crept into Chinatsu’s nostrils.

“I think I’m going to be sick…” Miyabi started to retch.

“Miyabi! There’s no time for this–” Chinatsu leaped up and started to drag her.

The Minotaur rounded the same corner that had just led them to that spot. Were they even going to be able to outrun this thing together?

“Miyabi! Let’s split up!”

“I thought I told you–”

“Just trust me this time! It can’t run after both of us if we’re split up, right?” Chinatsu pleaded.

“Fine! But right now I’m faster than you, so I’ll run!” Miyabi shouted, running straight toward the Minotaur.

“Miyabi!!”

As the Minotaur readied its axe, Miyabi dropped and slid underneath like a baseball player aiming for the home plate.

Chinatsu started to run in the opposite direction after seeing the Minotaur momentarily hesitate while deciding which one of them to pursue. It chose Chinatsu.

Suddenly, a glint of light shone off of something. The hilt of a sword!

Chinatsu dove for it, narrowly avoiding the Minotaur’s axe again.

“Chinatsu! Why is it chasing you!?”

“Hell if I know!! Can you get its attention?” Chinatsu shouted while trying to lift the sword. It was heavier than he expected.

“Come and get me!!” Miyabi shouted while hurling rocks and whatever she could find on the ground at the Minotaur.

The Minotaur turned its attention to Miyabi.

As it stomped towards her, its hooves crunched down on the bones scattered about. Chinatsu noticed that it was unsteady on its feet on the uneven terrain. The Minotaur’s body was both its strength and its weakness, wasn’t it?

“If we can knock it down, we might be able to run!” he shouted.

“Just how exactly are we supposed to do that!?”

Miyabi dove out of the way as the Minotaur swung its axe towards her, instead hitting the corner of a wall and chipping off stone.

The Minotaur did seem to move with a much lower level of agility than the two teenagers. Knocking it down really did seem like the best strategy. It was possible that they could even find a way to kill it if they disabled it somehow.

“If I could just…swing this sword…!!” Chinatsu struggled to lift the longsword. Miyabi–her body–was around 160cm tall, and this sword was nearly as long as that.

The Minotaur tripped on some of the rubble it had chipped out of the wall, momentarily losing its footing. Miyabi took the opportunity to run to Chinatsu’s side.

She yanked the sword out of Chinatsu’s hands and held it up with ease.

“Just tell me what to do!” she commanded.

“If you can cut the tendons on the back of its legs, it shouldn’t be able to stand or walk!” Chinatsu explained. “I’ll distract it!”

Chinatsu ran past the Minotaur, which was now focused on Miyabi.

“Over here!! You big...nasty…thing!!” he shouted while waving his arms at the beast.

The Minotaur’s attention was only momentarily drawn to Chinatsu before it turned back to Miyabi. She was steadfast with the sword pointed out, ready for defense.

Chinatsu picked up a fist-sized rock. It was heavier than he expected, but it should work. He wound up a pitch and threw as hard as he could, only for it to land on the ground with a thud, falling short of the minotaur. What the hell!? Is that the best this body can do!?

He started hurling whatever he could at the Minotaur, including the textbooks out of the school bag.

It seemed to ignore everything. Perhaps it saw the sword in Miyabi’s hands as challenging it directly.

Chinatsu frantically looked for something, anything, in the bag that could help, when he found it tucked away inside the pencil case. A bright pink pig-patterned craft knife.

He extended the blade and charged the Minotaur. Much to his surprise, the blade sank into the Minotaur’s thick thigh. It roared in pain and turned its attention fully to Chinatsu.

The Minotaur was in a frenzy now. It swung the axe wildly without care for its footing.

“Now Miyabi!! Swing the sword at its legs!!” Chinatsu urged.

“How!? I’ve never used a sword before!!” Miyabi said, swinging the sword erratically.

“Swing it like a baseball bat!!”

“I don’t know how to do that!” she said, slashing at the Minotaur.

“Maybe you don’t, but my body might remember!!”

The Minotaur swung down, but Chinatsu barely dodged this time. The axe grazed his calf, tearing the sock and drawing blood. Pain brought him to his knees. The Minotaur readied the axe again.

“Aaagh!! Miyabi, do it now!! With all your strength!!”

Miyabi closed her eyes and swung the sword in a sweeping arc from shoulder to shoulder. Just like a baseball bat.

The sword sliced through the tendons on the back of the Minotaur’s legs as if it were butter. Blood splattered on to the white uniform shirt as the Minotaur toppled over.

“Miyabi! Let’s run!” Chinatsu pulled himself to his feet.

Miyabi had a crazed look in her eye. She approached the Minotaur and raised the sword high above her head before driving it down into the beast’s neck. Again. And again.

“That’s enough, Miyabi!” Chinatsu pleaded, finally breaking through to her.

Now out of breath, she threw down the sword and then calmly began picking up the textbooks that had been thrown around in the chaos.

“Don’t throw my books around, idiot,” she said, tucking the books back into the school bag.

“Don’t throw– That’s what you have to say!?” Chinatsu was beside himself.

Miyabi dropped down to the ground and began laughing.

“‘Over here, you big nasty thing’? Seriously? That was so lame,” she said through her laughter.

Chinatsu sighed and sat down next to Miyabi. His heart was still beating so hard and fast in his chest that he thought it might burst, but he couldn’t help but start laughing too.

“Hey, I was really scared,” he smiled.

“Me too,” she said, grinning.

“We really almost died, huh?”

“Yeah…” Miyabi regained composure and got to her feet. She held out her hand to Chinatsu and pulled him to his feet.

“Do you think we’ll encounter more of those things?” she pointed to the Minotaur.

“It’s possible, it’s a maze after all.”

“Then I should hang on to this.” She picked up the sword and looked for the scabbard on the ground. When she found it, she sheathed the sword and tucked it into the belt on the pants.

“Hey, that’s not fair! I want one too!” Chinatsu whined.

“Then try to find one you can lift with my wimpy arms,” she smirked.

Chinatsu’s eyebrow twitched. She’s enjoying the new body, isn’t she?

The pink craft knife was still embedded in the Minotaur’s leg. Chinatsu attempted to pull it out with care but still managed to break off a few of the blades. He sighed at the shorter knife, but tucked it into the skirt pocket all the same.

“How is my–your leg? Can you walk?” Miyabi asked.

“Oh! Um, I think the bleeding already stopped,” Chinatsu replied, checking out the shallow cut.

They were both dirty, bruised and bloodied.

“Then let’s go.”

Chinatsu and Miyabi proceeded through the path opened up by the Minotaur and ventured further into the maze.