I stepped out of the inn wanting to talk to Maya. She stood under a small awning, her hair soaked and her fists clenched.
—"Maya…" I approached cautiously.
—"What do you want?" she said, without turning.
I stopped a few steps away. I didn't want to push her, but I couldn't leave her like that either.
—"We all know something is troubling you. I wanted to know what's going on," I asked, worried.
She remained silent.
—"Maya, you can trust us. We've been through a lot together; if I can help with anything, tell me."
She lifted her gaze to the dark sky and, for a moment, her eyes seemed to be remembering something.
—"This rain… it's the same as that day," she said.
A thunderclap lit the horizon and her body shivered.
—"When I was a child… a rain like this hit my hometown," her voice dropped. "But that rain didn't stop; it lasted all day and all night. The river beside the village swelled and the water carried away all the houses… and the people."
I froze. I hadn't heard her speak like that before.
—"My mother, my brother, and I ran trying to save them…" her throat closed for a second as she gripped the hilt of her sword. "But then we saw it…"
Then I remembered what the villager had said inside the inn.
—"The Flood Beast?" I asked.
Maya nodded.
—"It's called the Flood Beast, and it's not a legend. It's capable of flooding entire villages… including mine. And now it seems to have appeared again."
She closed her eyes tightly and hugged herself, as if remembering it caused her great pain. I took another step and reached out my hand.
—"Maya…"
She noticed and stepped back slightly, regaining some of her usual hardness.
—"I don't need your pity."
—"It's not pity. Maya… if that creature is here, let's finish it once and for all."
Maya's expression shifted to surprise and finally she looked at me. Sadness and contained anger showed in her eyes.
—"Ren… that creature…"
—"Maya, I don't care if it's some superpowered monster or a mythic beast," I interrupted. "We won't let it destroy another village ever again. I'm sure the other girls will feel the same."
A lightning flash lit the sky and I clearly saw Maya's face; she was surprised, and then she smiled with determination.
—"Yes," she nodded.
—"Come on, let's go back inside to inform them of the situation."
We headed back into the inn.
—"Ren…" Maya said in an unusually gentle tone. "Thank you…"
Her words surprised me, and I replied with a nod and a smile.