Oh, the old hag laughs to see them all come- equine and unicorn and pegasus and hybrid. Each one so different, but each one all the same. So greedy, so wanting, so oblivious. None of them know what lurks in the shadows of the maze, but they come anyways, and this is what she laughs about. She knows what secrets are in the maze. The rest will only find out.

She begins with Ilios. She senses a struggle in him and knows within her feathered heart that he is not right for the job. She swoops down upon him just as he meets Elsa in the maze. Spreading her wings wide, she suddenly screams out in a screeching voice, “Run girl, run!” She says it as though it is most urgent that Elsa leave rapidly, although there isn’t any obvious reason to do so; however, her wings block the path of Ilios, who will not be able to pass her. Instead, she begins furiously flapping, the massive gusts pushing Ilios back down the path he came from. He will not pass through this maze today.

Next, the old hag worries herself with three others that have converged together- Rhoa, Faeanne and Tandavi. Hopping and flapping her way to where they have come together, she cackles as she settles in front of them. There are again three paths, but the old hag blocks the right one. “Together or alone, together or alone,” she cackles, as though it amuses her to know whether they will go three and zero, or two and one down the paths she has left for them to choose from. Here she remains until all three have chosen. She does at least, while she waits, give a wink to Natraj and Rhoa, both of whom have managed to amuse her in one way or another.

She does not bother Hotaru and Desperado, both of whom have ended up alone on their paths, each with their own demons to attend to. Hotaru is harassed by vines and branches that reach out to grab her on the limbs and her hair. Is she scared yet? Desperado, on the other hand, is presented by something more clandestine. The ground where his path splits into three is actually well camouflaged quicksand. Oh, the old woman wishes she could be there to see his fright. Only Sikeax and Amani manage to make it through the first phase of the maze unscathed. Will their good luck continue?

The old hag waits for each horse to make their next choice of left, center, or right path before taking flight again to trouble them all with new terrors.