The tunnel was shrinking with every step, forcing them closer together. They tumbled into a wall at the end of the tunnel. There was no door.
No way out.
“It’s going to crush us,” Oryen panicked.
Sebastian drew his sword and jammed it between the walls. Jax followed suit. The screech of strained metal joined that of the grinding stone, but the walls didn’t slow. Then, an eerie calm fell over the group. Kara’s heartbeat slowed. She was drawn to Sienna, whose hands were glowing a deep violet.
“Panic will not help us,” she called. “Calm yourselves and look for a way out.”
Gregor and Morra dropped to the ground and scanned the soil, Jax, Sebastian and Oryen searched the walls for a button, a lever, anything. Kara placed her hands on the stone, hoping – desperately – that her magic could sense something the others couldn’t. But it was flat, unmarked, and moving relentlessly towards her. She glanced upwards. Saw something. A small rune, tucked away, practically hidden.
“There!” she shouted, and all movement around her halted. “There’s something up there.”
Sebastian looked up. “I can’t reach that high,” he growled.
“Give me a lift,” Kara said to Gregor. Without hesitation, he bent and locked his hands together. Kara clambered onto them and he lifted her with ease. But not high enough. Yellow magic erupted from Morra’s palms and roots shot out from the soil at Gregor’s feet. They lifted him another foot off the ground.
Kara’s palm slammed against the rune.
Nothing. The walls kept grinding closer.
Come on–
The grinding stopped. The juddering ground stilled. The pressing walls gave a final tremble – then slid apart with a hiss, revealing a narrow archway on the other side of the chamber. Gregor lowered her down carefully.
Sebastian let out a breath. “Good spot, Hale.”
Kara smiled.
High praise indeed.
“Thank you to you as well, Sienna,” Morra said shakily. “I doubt we would have found that if the panic had taken us.”
The others murmured fervent agreement. Gregor even patted her on the shoulder. Sienna beamed.
“At the next fork,” Jax muttered, “Maybe we flip a coin.”
Relieved laughter echoed around the group. Kara joined in gladly.
That was too close.
“Come on,” Sebastian said, “we’ve got to be nearly there by now.”
He was right. As soon as they walked through the archway the maze opened into a clearing. There was a large oak tree at its centre. One by one, they placed their hands upon its trunk. Kara went last. The moment she placed her palm against the bark, the whole tree trembled. The wood groaned and split open, revealing a narrow staircase spiralling downward into a hollowed core.
“Stairs,” Jax said, blinking. “In a tree.”
“Old earth work,” Morra said. “Difficult magic.”
They descended the stone steps quietly. They led into a dark tunnel, and at its end they came upon another set of stairs, leading upwards this time.
And then – light.
It burst around them as they stepped into the open, blinking against sudden sun. They’d emerged onto a raised stone platform in the arena, somewhere beyond the maze, surrounded by hundreds of faces, cheers rising across the stands as the crowd registered what they were seeing.
Applause exploded. Wild. Deafening.
House banners waved. Shouts rang out from every tier. The wind whipped through Kara’s hair, the sun warm on her face. The shoulders of her teammates pressed against her. Even Sebastian had a genuine smile instead of his usual smirk. For a moment, she couldn’t believe it.
