5

Laliel and Carla walked slowly, the silence of their path broken only by Laliel's murmured prayers. He held his rosary tightly, his fingers moving rhythmically, his low voice echoing faintly with almost inaudible words.

Carla finally stopped, clenching her fists.

"Hey, what are you doing?" she asked, her tone sharp with irritation.

Laliel glanced at her but didn't stop praying.

"Praying for our souls," he said calmly. "Only He, the Almighty, can save us from this place."

Carla crossed her arms, letting out an exasperated sigh.

"Then why don't you pray for Him to give you stronger legs? Can't you see I've already slowed down to keep up with you?"

Laliel's eyes narrowed, his expression hardening.

"Are you intolerant of religion? Don't you believe in God? Your soul is already bound for hell, anyway."

Carla's eyes widened as she stepped closer, disbelief written all over her face.

"What are you talking about, old man?!"

Laliel stepped back, clutching his rosary tightly to his chest. His voice grew harsher, almost accusatory.

"Don't play dumb with me. I know you worship Satan. That's what this is, isn't it? Beware—God won't tolerate blasphemy. He will punish you!"

Carla laughed sarcastically, shaking her head in disbelief.

"You've got to be kidding me! Where the hell did you get that ridiculous idea? Just because I don't want to listen to you muttering nonstop?"

"That's exactly how it starts," Laliel shot back, raising his rosary as if it were a weapon. "First, you reject prayers. Then, you mock faith. And before long, you're working with the devil himself!"

"You've completely lost your mind!" Carla snapped, throwing her hands in the air. "It's no wonder we're all stuck in this insane place. You should be praying for someone here to have the patience to deal with your church conspiracy nonsense."

Their argument grew louder, their voices echoing into the emptiness around them. Carla stood with her hands on her hips, glaring at Laliel, who stared back at her as if she were an enemy of God himself.

"I'm praying for your soul, girl," he said finally, his voice low but firm. "Even though you don't deserve it."

"Great!" Carla replied, spinning around sharply. "Because I'm going to need a lot of patience to deal with you."

Laliel and Carla walked in tense silence, the towering walls of the labyrinth stretching endlessly in both directions. Then, ahead of them, something unusual caught their attention—a passageway carved into the stone. A long, dark corridor extended beyond it, disappearing into the shadows.

Carla slowed her steps, staring at the eerie entrance.

"The entrance to the labyrinth..." she whispered.

Laliel scoffed, his expression grim.

"A portal to hell."

Carla rolled her eyes but chose to ignore him. Instead, she looked around. The area surrounding the entrance was covered in a vast field of yellow flowers, their petals vibrant against the dull gray stone of the labyrinth walls.

She hesitated. Something about this place felt... unnatural.

"Should we check it out?" she asked cautiously.

Laliel, however, wasn't listening. His gaze had softened as he looked at the sea of yellow.

"My wife loved flowers like these…" he murmured, almost to himself.

Without another word, he stepped into the field.

"Laliel—wait!" Carla called after him, but he didn't stop.

As he walked, something caught his attention—a hole in the ground, partially hidden among the flowers. He stepped closer, peering inside. His eyes widened.

"Hey, look at this!" he called.

Carla hesitated but moved toward him, keeping her distance from the flowers.

Inside the hole, ten backpacks were neatly stacked, their straps tangled together.

"Supplies…" Laliel muttered, kneeling to get a better look.

Carla frowned. Something about this felt off.

"Laliel, we should go back. These flowers… something's weird about them."

But the old man ignored her, reaching into the hole.

That's when she saw it—a fine yellow dust, rising from the disturbed flowers, catching the light as it swirled in the air.

Carla's stomach clenched.

"Laliel, stop!" she shouted, but he didn't even look at her.

She exhaled sharply, shaking her head. Forget it. He never listened anyway.

Carla turned away and started stepping out of the field.

"Do whatever you want. I'm getting the others."

Laliel scoffed, tugging at the strap of a bag.

"You're not even going to help me carry these? I knew it—you're a servant of the devil!"

Carla spun around, her glare sharp as a knife.

"Watch your mouth, you senile old fool!"

Laliel huffed, gripping the backpack harder, his voice filled with self-righteous fury.

"God will punish you—!"

A sudden, muffled crack beneath his feet.

His words cut off. His expression shifted from anger to confusion—then to fear.

The ground caved in.

Laliel barely had time to gasp before he vanished into the hole, a cloud of thick yellow dust erupting into the air.

For a moment, there was nothing but silence.

Then Carla exhaled, hands on her hips, staring at the settling dust.

"I told you, you old idiot "

From a distance, Carla shouted, "Hey, Laliel! Are you okay?"

Laliel's trembling voice rose from the hole.

"This is your doing, isn't it? You set this trap, you demon!"

Carla scoffed.

"Don't be ridiculous."

"I knew that walking with a servant of the devil would bring trouble!"

Carla rolled her eyes, her patience thinning.

"You really want to stay down there, huh? Listen up, you old fool—I'm the only one who knows you're down there. So if you don't want to stay trapped forever, you better start behaving."

Laliel let out a shaky breath, but his voice remained firm.

"God will save me," he declared with certainty. "The devil may try, but God will always be victorious."

Carla sighed, already fed up.

"I'm done with you. Bye-bye. Stay there with your God."

"No—wait! I was joking… Don't take me seriously!" Laliel's tone shifted instantly, his arrogance crumbling.

A pause. Then, his voice grew weaker.

"I'm hurt. My leg is bleeding a lot. Can you come down and help me?"

Carla muttered under her breath.

"Hypocrite."

She eyed the yellow dust still hovering over the flower field.

"I can't. That weird dust is floating everywhere. I'll go get Kalyl, and we'll pull you out, okay?"

Laliel hesitated.

"Please… can't you at least try?"

Carla exhaled sharply.

"I think it's better to get the others. I promise I won't take long—ten minutes, tops. I'll run, okay?"

A long pause. Then Laliel muttered, almost to himself,

"Just… don't leave me alone for too long."

Carla turned away, heading back to the others—but unlike what she had just promised, she walked slowly, deliberately taking her time.

"Damn old man… Let's see if he finally learns a thing or two about respect."

...

Ângelo and Rich walked along a stone path they had discovered earlier.

As always, Rich was full of energy, trying to start a conversation, even though he and Ângelo weren't exactly friends.

"Do you think it could be aliens? What if we're in some kind of reality show? And everything we do is being monitored?"

He paused dramatically before continuing,

"That would be crazy, right?"

Ângelo, speaking quietly, replied,

"I don't think it's aliens..."

Rich furrowed his brow and snapped his fingers.

"Then what could it be? A mass illusion? No, no... What if it's like one of those VR games? We put on a headset, and bam—we're inside the game!"

He laughed, amused by his own theory, but quickly moved on to another.

"No, wait! I've got it! I cracked the code!" He pointed to himself proudly. "This is a human experiment! Think about it—we experiment on rats and other animals... What if a more advanced species is doing the same to us? Hahaha, I'm a genius!"

Ângelo kept his head down, processing Rich's words. His prolonged silence made Rich raise an eyebrow.

"Hmm..."

"What? You don't agree?" Without waiting for an answer, Rich threw an arm around Ângelo's shoulders, as if they were lifelong friends.

Ângelo stiffened at the gesture but said nothing. He just sighed. The labyrinth was a mystery, and as absurd as Rich's ideas sounded, nothing seemed impossible in that place.

Ângelo and Rich continued walking along the stone path until, in the distance, they spotted a peculiar forest. The trees were twisted, their trunks growing intertwined in an unnatural way, as if they were part of a single organism. The sight was unsettling—nothing about it seemed normal.

"This is strange, don't you think?" Rich remarked, staring at the distorted shapes ahead.

"Should we go in?" Ângelo asked, uncertainty clear in his voice.

"Of course we should! Whatever this is, we have to uncover the mystery!"

"But what if… if there's something inside?" Ângelo stammered, a shiver running down his spine.

"Oh, come on, there won't be anything!" Rich said confidently, puffing out his chest. "Trust my intuition. I know what I'm talking about!"

With no better argument, Ângelo just sighed and followed along.

The two of them stepped forward, crossing the invisible threshold between the path and the strange forest. As soon as they took their first steps among the twisted trees, an eerie sensation filled the air

The first thing they saw upon entering the forest was a passage leading into the labyrinth, not too far ahead—about twenty meters away. The twisted trees extended inside, their unnatural shapes continuing beyond the entrance. The air was heavy, carrying a faint scent of sulfur.

The ground, however, was black, as if contaminated by something unknown. The sight alone was unsettling.

"I don't like this place…" Rich muttered, frowning.

"I... I... I don't like it either... I think... I think we should go back..." Ângelo stammered, his voice trembling with anxiety.

"Don't be such a coward, I'm here!" Rich said with a grin, once again throwing an arm around Ângelo's shoulders, as if his presence alone could ward off any danger.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, Rich noticed something among the dark roots.

"Look! I think we found food!" He pointed at a cluster of red mushrooms with small orange spots.

"I don't think they're edible, but…" Ângelo hesitated, now a little less tense.

They walked slowly through the forest, searching little by little, trying to find something different. Each step on the dark ground seemed to echo in the eerie silence, while the faint scent of sulfur lingered in the air.

"What exactly are we looking for again?" Ângelo asked uncertainly.

"To be honest, I have no idea," Rich admitted with a shrug. "Kalyl just told us to look for food and water. Well, we found food—we just don't know if it's safe to eat."

"Then why don't we go back?"

"I don't know… I was thinking that maybe this place could have some kind of clue or hint about how we can survive in the vast labyrinth."

Rich paused for a moment, lost in thought, before continuing.

"If you think about it carefully, the panel said we have 30 days to leave Area 10. That means it will take us at least 20 to 30 days to make it. And we're a group of 10 people. Will we have enough food for 10? Enough water for 10?"

He glanced at Ângelo before going on.

"And besides… Survival isn't just about food and water. What if the group splits up because of disagreements? After all, wherever there are humans, there are fights."

Ângelo was silent for a few seconds, processing Rich's words.

"You're right… I hadn't even thought about half of those things..."

The weight of reality was starting to settle in. Surviving in the labyrinth wasn't just about gathering supplies—it was about navigating the challenges of being trapped with nine other people, each with their own fears, opinions, and, potentially, conflicts.

While Ângelo was still deep in thought, Rich suddenly started staring at him, eyes wide open, as if he had just seen something shocking.

A chill ran down Ângelo's spine. Instinctively, he took two steps back.

"What?" he asked, a bit unsettled.

"Look behind you..." Rich said in a low voice. "But slowly."

Ângelo's heart pounded as he slowly turned his head, scanning his surroundings. But… nothing.

"I don't see anything."

"On the tree..."

Following Rich's gaze, Ângelo finally spotted it—a black bird with glowing red eyes perched on a branch. It looked like some kind of crow. The bird was pecking at something metallic, embedded in the bark. The object had eight sides and emitted a faint golden glow.

"What is that?" Ângelo asked uncertainly.

"I don't know either…" Rich replied, still speaking softly, his eyes locked onto the strange object. A nervous chuckle escaped his lips. "Haha…"

Then, suddenly, the metal piece gave way. It fell from the tree and hit the ground.

The moment it landed, a golden beam of light spread through the air.

And then the ground shook.

The tremor came from the labyrinth, growing stronger by the second. It was so intense that Ângelo lost his balance and fell to the ground. Rich, quicker to react, managed to grab onto a tree while watching the golden stone roll toward him. Without hesitation, he scooped it up and shoved it into his pocket.

As soon as the tremor stopped, Rich staggered over to Ângelo, who was still a bit dazed.

Ângelo opened his eyes and saw Rich approaching.

"Are you okay?" Rich asked, still catching his breath.

"I think so..."

Rich reached out and helped Ângelo to his feet.

Then, a sound pierced the silence.

ARRHSGGH!

It came from the labyrinth.

A deep, guttural roar—filled with rage.

Suddenly, thousands of black birds burst from the labyrinth's entrance, swarming into the forest. The flapping of wings and shrill cries filled the air.

Rich didn't hesitate. He grabbed Ângelo by the arm and sprinted toward the stone path.

The two of them ran without stopping, without looking back, until they finally made it out of the forest.

"What was that?" Ângelo asked, breathless, as he looked up and saw thousands of birds flying rapidly overhead, vanishing into the dark sky.

"I don't know… Probably some kind of beast…" Rich replied, still holding onto Ângelo's arm. His tone was more serious now—different from his usual carefree attitude.

He tightened his grip slightly and gave a small tug.

"Come on. Don't think too much about it. We need to find the others."

Without arguing, Ângelo nodded, and the two of them took off running down the stone path.