The Forsaken Girl

Deeper Into The Maze

Luca led them further into the vast maze that encompassed the labrynth, the smell of mildew and mold permeated the air as they passed by another stagnant pool of water, which occasionally littered the edges of the narrow dirt path they traveled upon. Bile rose up in his throat as he trudged forward in the relentless journey through the maze of stone. The weight of what was to come to the young woman left in the clearing by Luca was almost too big of a burden for him to carry.

Was it because of him that they had been traded to Nadiss like sheep being led to slaughter? Their pure blood to be splattered on the ground in a grisly painting of crimson as the demon dined upon their flesh.

They continued walking several more hours more Maya began to slow down, the endless walking and fast pace was finally catching up to her and Nate saw the fatigue begin to wear her down. Leaning down he scooped her quickly up into his arms, a look of pure relief momentarily flashed across her face before exhaustion overtook her features and he knew that he'd have to somehow convince Luca to let them stop soon so that she could rest for a bit. The poor child had barely more than a few hours of sleep since they'd left the village a several days ago and by the looks of her heavy eye lids, she was in the verge of falling asleep as he carried her.

Shadows danced along the walls as the scarcely placed stone lamps shone brightly amongst the dense black that fought to consume the light, the dark fading into nothingness. It was a battle between the pure and tainted, good and evil. The darkness was winning.

A flickering glow appeared in the distance, drawing him forward like a moth towards the light. Picking up his pace he quickly caught up with Luca, the faint sound of trickling water slowly getting louder the closer they walked towards the light. Maya's head lolled against his shoulder, eyes finally closed as she succumbed to the relentless pull of slumber.

Fifteen minutes later they rounded a bend in the labyrinth, the sound of the trickling water turned into a whooshing and now he realized why. The edges of a lake blocked their path, the water lapping at the shore before them. A small wooden dock extended over the water, a broken rope lay dangling over the edge as the tattered end caressed the water like one would a long last lover. Nate walked forward, the soles of his boots squelching in the wet sand, just mere inches from the waters edge when Luca's voice stopped him mid step.

"I wouldn't go into the water just yet. That lake isn't filled with just water, it's also filled with hydrofluoric acid, which is extremely toxic to humans."

Nate quickly jumped back, his eyes wide with panic as another wave of the toxic water rolled towards him, hungrily washing over the sand and rocks as it flowed right towards them.

"What the fúck is hydrofluoric acid?" He couldn't manage to keep the panic from edging its way into his voice, something Luca didn't miss either.

"Basically it's hydrogen fluoride that gets mixed with water. Many years ago this labyrinth was a part of a human military storage sight for chemicals, amongst other things. During the war some of it was dumped into the water by the humans. Stupid creatures thought it would slow the demons down, little did they know that it allowed the demons to set up a trap. Thousands were driven into the water. Those who didn't know swam willingly into the lake, thinking the clear crisp waters was an easy escape. Little did they know what awaited them in the depths of the lake. A horrific death."

"How is it so deadly? It just looks like water to me, it doesn't smell wrong." Nate wasn't certain if Luca was telling the truth, despite his history of doing so he didn't trust demons and the mischief that shone in Luca's eyes was enough to make him cautious.

"Simple. At first the person entering the lake doesn't feel anything beyond that of the cool caress of the water. Soon though the scentless toxins flow into the skin and that's when the trouble begins. It seeps into their body, attacking the vital organs, then destroying the calcium in their bones. The skin then begins to blister and burn, sometimes even forming ulcers. The pain is supposed to be excruciating. Even if the person somehow manages to escape the poisonous water it's too late, death is guaranteed. Definitely not a pretty way to die. "