Without giving the children time to process everything he had just said, a figure wearing a mask and a black robe shouted, "Move!" At the sound of that voice, the knights—carrying large round shields made of black metal and long serrated swords—began to close in slowly, forming a perimeter to push the children toward the labyrinth. Those who refused to enter would find only death waiting for them.
The children, seeing what was happening, stepped back hesitantly. Most of them resisted going in, unsure of what dangers lay ahead. That changed when a piercing scream, filled with agony and pain, shattered their hesitation. A girl who had been standing too close to the knights was stabbed in the stomach. She collapsed to the ground and, in a desperate attempt to save herself, began crawling toward the labyrinth. Unfortunately, she was too far away. The soldiers gave her no time to reach it, pressing forward without pause toward the entrance.
They trampled her, crushing her alive. The only sounds that followed were cries and whimpers of pain, until seconds later, everything fell silent.
That was the breaking point. Witnessing such horror, the children trembled, terrified of what awaited them. Panic took over. They began to run, shoving each other in a desperate rush to enter the labyrinth.
Eric, watching the chaos unfold, tried to step away from the frenzy, scanning each entrance the children were pouring into. His earlier hesitation about entering the labyrinth had been justified. It didn't take long before he heard frightened screams echoing from some of the passages. He waited a moment, then chose the one where a group of children had gone in. It seemed nothing had happened there—yet.
He ran toward the passage near the center of the labyrinth, trying to let his eyes adjust quickly to the darkness. Moving cautiously, he advanced. "How big is this place? And what kind of things made the children scream?" Eric wondered, troubled by the questions swirling in his mind.
No one answered him. He kept walking through narrow corridors and occasionally wider chambers. The only sounds, apart from his breathing and pounding heart, were the faint drips of a strange liquid falling from the ceiling. He didn't know what it was, but he hoped it wasn't something dangerous. He moved slowly, trying to make as little noise as possible so that whatever lived here wouldn't find him.
Eric honestly couldn't remember where he had come from. Every wall and cavernous passage looked the same, leaving him to wander aimlessly. That was until he turned a corner and spotted a kind of hole with something glowing inside. He approached carefully, unsure whether it was something good or bad. He crouched down and picked up a stone from the ground, then threw it toward the glowing spot.
The stone landed, and after waiting a minute, nothing happened. Relieved, he stepped closer. When he was near enough, he saw a bottle containing a strange golden liquid.
Eric picked it up and examined it, hoping to find some clue about what it was. Unfortunately, there was nothing written on it. Still, judging by the quality of the bottle and the color of the liquid, he was certain it was something valuable. The problem was, what was it for?
"Well, if I'm ever dying of thirst, this is better than nothing. At least it's worth trying," he thought. He took off his vest and wrapped the bottle in it to keep the glow from attracting creatures—or the greed of others.
"This place is enormous. I think I've been wandering around for almost an hour. I'm starting to doubt I'll ever find a way out," Eric murmured, a trace of worry on his face.
"Luckily, I haven't run into anything yet, but what's strange is that I don't hear anyone else. Ever since I stepped into the labyrinth, the screams stopped." That last thought unsettled him. He had seen himself transported through a vortex and three moons in the sky. A spell that rearranged the walls or distorted the senses wouldn't surprise him at this point.
As that thought crossed his mind, Eric quickly picked up a sharp stone and tried to carve his name into the wall to mark where he had been.
Once he finished the mark, he dropped the stone and kept moving. After several minutes, he noticed traces of what looked like black liquid ahead of him. He turned to go back, but it had appeared behind him as well. Alarmed, Eric didn't know what to do. He picked up another stone and, even if it was useless, prepared to fight to the end. He was cornered.
The level of the black liquid began to rise slowly. All Eric could do was wait and hope that whatever it was wouldn't harm his body. When it touched his skin, he was surprised—it simply felt a little cold.
"Hmm, feels like water. It's just the color that makes it look suspicious," Eric muttered.
When the liquid reached his waist, something suddenly grabbed his right leg. Terrified, Eric struck with the stone in his hand, hitting whatever had seized him with all the strength he could muster.
The creature let go, and a thick blue liquid spread across the surface of the black pool surrounding him. Eric stepped back, still holding the stone, watching as the trail of blue liquid moved toward him.
From the black liquid, protrusions and white ridges began to rise, resembling spines—sharp and rigid like freshly honed blades. A long, segmented form emerged next, similar to a tail, ending in a pointed tip like a spear.
Then, as if pushed from within, a faceless, elongated head surfaced. Its pale, sickly skin was marked by black veins that twisted like serpents. At the top of the head, a wound from the impact of a rock oozed blue liquid that looked like blood. The mouth was grotesque, filled with jagged, uneven teeth that shifted unnaturally, as if constantly moving. It opened wide, revealing inner jaws that snapped shut with a threatening click.
From its throat came a high-pitched, piercing roar: "AHHHRRRRRR!" The sound echoed through the cavern with a terrifying resonance.