MANTICORE

As they walked along, Miyabi nudged Chinatsu and gestured behind them. Masha walked arms linked alongside Joel, who seemed confused by her sudden interest in him. Since they’d fought the Kobolds, Masha seemed attached at the hip to Joel. The two teenagers giggled to themselves over this.

“Up ahead will be a courtyard with a big fountain. We can make our camp there tonight,” Peony explained, guiding them forward.

“Will it be safe there?” Miyabi asked.

“I can’t make any promises, but I’ll do what I can to protect you,” the Elf said, smiling brightly.

Chinatsu noticed that Peony seemed to favor Miyabi. He felt a pang of jealousy in his chest at the thought of those two hitting it off, but caught himself. Why would that make him jealous? He never cared who was interested in Miyabi before. Sure, he wanted to get to know Peony too, but not like that.

Peony had told Chinatsu that he was an “interesting person,” so maybe they thought Miyabi was too. Those two could get to know each other. Become friends. In fact, Chinatsu was glad they were getting closer since Miyabi treated Peony as a suspicious person initially. It was good! So why did he feel like he wanted to get in between the two of them when they talked?

“Is everything okay, Chinatsu?” Miyabi asked.

“Huh?” he was brought back to reality.

“You seemed like you were off in your own world. That’s a little uncharacteristic for you,” she replied.

“Is it?” he wondered. He usually funneled his feelings into his athletic pursuits–sports, martial arts, weight training–so it did feel a little strange to be so inside his own head. But it also felt normal?

“If something’s on your mind, you can always tell me,” Miyabi replied, patting him on the shoulder. She was always like that. Always trying to solve everyone’s problems.

“I’m fine,” Chinatsu said, shaking her off. Miyabi shrugged and walked ahead.

Chinatsu fell back to walk alongside Joel and Masha. Her tail was wagging like crazy. Joel shot Chinatsu the kind of look that said “help me” with just his eyes. Chinatsu only returned a knowing grin.

After a few more meters, they reached their destination. The walls opened up into a central courtyard with many archways to diverging paths off every side. In the center was a large fountain with running water that looked so cool and refreshing. Here and there within the maze, they had come across a few smaller fountains–fed by a spring, according to Peony–but they hadn’t been able to refill their water since the day before.

Much like the pond, this place felt like an oasis compared to the passageways of the maze. Along the walls were a variety of climbing plants–green ivy, wisteria, and even grapevines.

“Look! There are stinging nettles!” Masha said, pointing to vegetation in the corners. “There’s also dandelions and ramps! We can eat all of these.”

She rushed to pluck up the plants from the ground while Chinatsu rushed over to the grape vines for a snack. He plucked off a handful of green grapes, hoping they were ripe.

“Mmm! These are muscat grapes!” Chinatsu exclaimed, savoring the sweet flavor.

“Let me try!” Miyabi said, taking his hand and bringing it to her mouth to bite off a grape from the bunch.

“AH!” Chinatsu felt his heart skip a beat and his face get flushed.

“S-sorry! That was weird of me!” Miyabi said, pulling away. Her face was blushing too.

Chinatsu looked around to see if anyone had seen that exchange, but everyone else seemed preoccupied. Masha was still fervently gathering up edible plants within her apron, while Joel was refilling his water canteen from the fountain. Peony was…

Wait, where was Peony?

“Can you feed me a grape, too?” Peony asked, pointing to their mouth. Chinatsu nearly jumped out of his skin. When did they sneak up behind him?

“Um…sure.” Yeah, they definitely saw that. Chinatsu obliged and delicately fed Peony a grape.

“Mm! Sho good!” the Elf exclaimed before trotting off.

Chinatsu stuffed his mouth with grapes, trying to forget the awkward predicament he found himself in. As he moved along the wall, he approached one of the archways leading to an unknown path. Wisteria grew on both sides of the passage with branches arching across, their blossoms dangling like stalactites.

It was already the time of day when the walls cast tremendous shadows within the maze, but the branches and blooms blotted out light down this corridor even further. Chinatsu thought he saw something move and strained his eyes trying to figure out what it could be.

A man’s face turned toward him.

“H-hello?” Chinatsu called out.

The man began to move closer after Chinatsu called out. He had wild hair with a long beard and appeared to be much older than anyone in the group, save for Peony in the technical sense.

As he got closer, a chill went down Chinatsu’s spine. The face of a man, but the body of a lion. Grapes bounced across the weedy cobblestones as they fell out of Chinatsu’s hands.

Chinatsu backed away from the archway as the creature approached. It moved so quietly. He wanted to call out to the others–to scream–but the terror of this monster muted him.

Emerging from the shadows revealed the beast’s deep black fur, razor-sharp claws, and stinger-like tail. The Manticore crushed the dropped grapes with its massive paws.

The great beast took up so much space within the archway, it had to be about as tall as the path was wide. Chinatsu felt the strength leave his legs and collapsed.

Peony darted in between the Manticore and Chinatsu. They raised their staff in defense–the rings on it jingled as they settled into place.

Chinatsu felt himself pulled up to his feet by Masha as Joel and Miyabi flanked Peony, ready for combat.

“Elf,” the Manticore growled. “Why do you take up arms against me?”

Its voice was something in between human and beast–like an animal trying to imitate human speech. It gave Chinatsu goosebumps.

“Leave these ones alone. They’re presently in my care,” Peony replied.

“Nonsense!” the Manticore roared. “You would turn your back on me? You would help humans?”

Do they know each other!?

“Please leave us at once, and you shall not come to harm,” the Elf urged through gritted teeth. Peony had been so unflappable at this point–even intimidating at times–but now? Their hands shook.

“Elf! You would turn your back upon yourself?” the Manticore hissed. It clawed at the ground, tearing up cobblestones and weeds.

What is it talking about!?

Peony averted their gaze from the Manticore and said nothing. The Manticore looked at Peony with disgust, then shifted its gaze to Masha.

“And you, beast woman…” it growled. “You would also side with humans?”

“They’re my allies!” she shouted.

“Lies!” the Manticore hissed. “These foul creatures will never consider you an ally!”

Masha loosened her grip on Chinatsu. Her ears and tail hung low.

“That’s not true!” Chinatsu shouted. This thing was trying to get into their heads, and he wasn’t going to let it.

“It is exactly as I say! Is it not, Beast Woman?” the beast roared. “You and I are exactly the same–an aberration…”

“N-no!” Masha shouted, putting her hands over her ears. She cowered.

“Don’t listen to that thing!” Chinatsu put his hand out to her, and she flinched away.

“Join me, your brethren. Kill them and I will let you pass,” the Manticore growled.

All eyes were on Masha now.

She gripped her ears hard enough that it looked like she could just rip them off her head. Her tail curled between her legs. Masha mumbled something unintelligible.

Masha drew her knife and gripped it hard with both hands. Chinatsu flinched away.

“See! You are hated! You are feared!” the Manticore’s voice fluttered, almost as if it was laughing.

“Enough!” Miyabi yelled.

“I’m...not…” Masha mumbled. She was crying.

“Will you join me? Or would you rather die like a dog alongside these humans?” The Manticore raised its huge paw, ready to strike.

“I’m not like you!!” Masha shouted as she rushed the Manticore. “I’m a good girl!”

“So you have chosen death…”

It swung its tail at her, sending her flying into the fountain with a splash.

“Masha!” Chinatsu shouted, rushing after her.

He helped her up as she coughed up water with flecks of blood. She didn’t appear to have been hit by the stinger, thankfully.

“Are you okay!?”

“Don’t worry about me. We have to help them,” she said. The others had launched an attack on the Manticore.

Masha waded out of the fountain and picked up the knife that had been knocked out of her hand. Chinatsu pulled the slingshot and pencils from his pocket, ready to join the fray.

Miyabi swung her sword at the Manticore. It hopped away from her strike, the tip of the blade just grazing it.

Joel sank his knife into its other side while the aberration was focused on Miyabi. The Manticore winced in pain.

It swiped at Joel’s midsection. The claws ripped through his button-up shirt as he fell backward, landing on the hard ground. Peony had knocked him off his feet with their staff.

“Was that really necessary!?” Joel shouted at Peony.

“Fine, I won’t save you again!” Peony huffed.

The Manticore turned its attention to Peony.

“Elf! I am so disappointed in you!” it roared. The Manticore leaned forward and curved its tail over its body, ready to strike.

Chinatsu readied a pen in the slingshot and launched it. The pen just bounced off the Manticore’s hide.

Shit!

Miyabi slashed at the Manticore’s hind leg. It snarled and whipped its tail at Miyabi, knocking her back.

As the Manticore readied its tail once more for a sting, Masha jumped onto its back and sank her knife into its neck. It roared and bucked, but Masha held tight to its mane. She pulled out the knife and stabbed again.

“Traitor! Traitor to your kind!” the Manticore roared.

“We! Are! Not! The! Same!” Masha shouted, punctuating each word with a stab.

Blood dripped from the neck of the Manticore. Its tail rattled and curved, aiming right for Masha.

“Watch out for the stinger! It’s poisonous!” Chinatsu shouted as he tried launching pens to distract the Manticore.

Joel yanked Masha off the Manticore right before the stinger could pierce her body.

Miyabi lunged at the beast with her sword, stabbing it right in the belly.

Blood spilled out from the wound as she ripped the sword free. The Manticore kneeled. She readied the blade to strike its neck.

Peony thrust their staff in the path of Miyabi’s sword.

“Yield!” Peony shouted, locking eyes with the Manticore.

It sneered at Peony. The tail was in position to strike through Peony if the creature so desired. Chinatsu could only look back and forth between the Elf and the tail, waiting for something to happen.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the Manticore relaxed its tail and bowed its head.

“Very well,” it said in a low growl. “I yield.”