“15 minutes to round start! Please make your way to the fountain!”

I had been standing in a growing crowd of contestants for the better part of ten minutes. The BIOS system simulated everything in minute detail, from the feeling of nausea induced by jostling next to hundreds of people to the dripping of sweat in every orifice of my body. Coming this early had been a mistake.

“You don’t look well, friend. Just nerves?” A lanky fellow with jet-black hair and an upward-turned snub nose elbowed me from the side. The motion sloshed the gruel still in my innards.

“Not quite. It's the odor of an unkempt horde that’s done worse for my health than fighting them.”

I put on the facade of a smile for the man. Truth be told my nerves had come a long way since round one. After the shock and awe of fighting for my life and the jarring experience of ending several others, nothing felt like it could shake me. The fluttering movement in my guts felt more like the rush of excitement I got from a game of cards than the shaky resolve of a circumstance-born killer. That and the unbearable stench, of course.

“Name’s Credence.” A bony hand extended from between the bodies obscuring his torso.

I took it firmly. It had a deceptive warmth, given its pallid color.

“Puck.” I nodded at the man.

“Puck. I like that.” His hand retreated into the masses. The two coal dots that nestled in his eye sockets appraised every ounce of meat on my frame.

“Say, what misfortune brings you here Puck. Pardon me for saying, but you don’t look like the type of fellow to come here willingly.”

Credence’s voice had a comfortable drawl to it that put me at ease, despite the intensity of his demeanor.

I scanned his expression anyway.

Current Emotion: Thoughtful

Physiological Status: Calm, placid

He looked a little off-putting, but his physiology exuded earnest care for our conversation. So I told him.

“I’m from a little mining planet called Pollux IV. You’ve probably never heard of it.” He shook his head in the negative and I continued.

“Well, I was raised by the streets of Cornell City. It’s a metropolitan hellhole. Like I said it was initially a mining colony set up by an interstellar conglomerate, Ophelia Corporation, and the excess population that resulted over decades of worker migration doesn’t have much in the way of luxuries or resources to support it. That’s who I work for as a technical engineer - Ophelia Corp.”

Credence kept a soft smile as I spoke. I realized I was rambling and he must be getting bored, so I cut to the chase.

“I’m a gambler at heart, though. I ran into some debt with a powerful underground organization in a game of cards and they pawned me off as collateral. Misfortune, yes, but really I brought myself here.”

That was perhaps the most candid response I had given someone yet. Sure I’d told Terrence but that was more to annoy him than to truly open up. Credence had a way of disarming me, putting me in a mental space to openly confide in him. I don’t know how I felt about that.

“We all have our misfortunes, Puck. I’m here myself after a failed job found me in the chains of my captors. My own stupid mistake.” His voice turned hard for a moment.

“Ah well.” The tall man relaxed. “At any rate, it has led to some personal growth. I think that’s what life is all about. In a place like this, you can truly grow. Do you feel the same way, Puck?”

“Yeah. I guess, now that you mention it.” I kept it shorter this time, fighting the urge to soapbox.

Credence’s eyes took on a dreamy expression.

“And you get the chance to make friends. Meet new people. You never know what light another mind has to enlighten your own.”

“The round brief will begin shortly! Please ready yourself for transportation.”

Our conversation hadn’t felt that long, but fifteen minutes had already melted away.

“It’s been a delight.” Credence winked at me, a grin sprouting between gaunt cheeks.

“Likewise. Stay safe out there.”

“ARE. YOU. READY!” Cheers and applause responded to the promptings of Dolos.

When the light had cleared and the dizziness faded, I found myself seated in a less spacious, yet more ornate auditorium. The chairs upgraded to a cushy velvet, the armrests now embroidered with silvery vines. Light flooded in from a grand chandelier that swung lazily on golden chains above. Gold leaflets framed the screen behind Dolos; the masque of a laughing face topped the elegant bordering.

The host’s volume had not shrunk to match the setting, nor had his garish outfit changed.

“It’s time for Round 3. And you know what that means?”

“WHAT!” Came the roaring of the crowd.

“Another chance to perform. To impress. To steal the hearts of the most important people in this universe - your audience. And this time we have a special treat for you all. We have hit our 25,000 contestants remaining milestone: 22,314 to be exact. But who’s counting?”

Dolos flashed a grin. He cracked the bottom of his cane on the glowing dais to enunciate his words as he spoke.

“A trial of wits and wills. The despair of forging ever-onward in a sea of self-doubt and seeming contradiction. Deathly traps, murderous creatures, the stuff of legends for time immemorial. Oh, I won’t tease you any longer. It’s… a LABYRINTH ROUND!”

So Tyrus had been right. He didn’t seem the type to intentionally deceive, preferring silence to mistruth. Still, his distaste for me made it unlikely for him to offer help in any way. Perhaps the higher-ups in the organization really had taken an interest in my progress.

“In a few short moments, our brave contestants will find themselves in the midst of a sprawling maze. These constructs are as diverse and deadly as the warriors they are designed for. They will not have the chance to encounter one another, but make no mistake - the rigors of our labyrinths can bring even the strongest to their knees.”

“Tantalizing, no? The people back home are in for a real treat, and you are too.”

The host leaned heavily on his cane.

“Remember warriors, when the end seems nowhere in sight, continue to push onward. The labyrinth is solvable by any with sufficient fortitude and determination. And if you are to die, do it gloriously!”

“And without further adieu…”

Dolos straightened and raised both gloved fists. His cane balanced on its point, not so much as wobbling on its narrow support.

“To war!”

That flashing light was going to cause me some kind of brain damage before this competition was through. Assuming I made it far enough for the damage to matter, that is.

Shifting my stance scattered the loose detritus around my feet. Sand?

I gazed about the antechamber I found myself in. The flickering luminance of torchlight offered me limited visibility. Shadows grew in the corners that torch flames couldn’t reach. Megalithic limestone blocks fit together neatly to form the walls of the chamber. Four hallways, one on each side guarded by a pair of torches, extended outward from the square room that spanned about 15 meters in length and width. I could not determine the height of the room - the siding reached up and disappeared in the darkness.

I approached one of the hallways for a better glimpse at its construction. An archway of wedged sandstone slabs supported the upper curve of the tunnel. Its width could accommodate maybe three men abreast. Etched in the arches’ cornerstone was a pictographic symbol of a feathered creature standing upright. Its legs had man-like anatomy, but its head ended in the curve of a beak.

The bird on my coin bore an eerie resemblance to the engraved creature. I rubbed it absentmindedly.

A slithering sound brought my attention back to the main chamber. Turning about just in time to spot a pointed appendage thrust from the darkness above, I rolled to the ground to narrowly avoid its sting.

The black carapace of a hulking arachnoid clambered down the side of the wall adjacent to mine. Three scuttling legs on each side supported the monstrosity, while its thickly armored front claws poised at the ready to crack anything in its clutches. Its mandibles quavered hungrily beneath two beady black eyes. Yellow saliva dribbled from its lips and splattered down to the floor. The substance sizzled on the hard sandstone.

The appendage that reached for me sprouted from its rear. Now in better lighting, I could see it had two such tails writhing about from the base of its husk that I approximated were seven meters in length.

“Holy shit!”

5% chance of winning

Like hell I was going to stand and fight this thing. Without hesitation, I threw myself into the bird tunnel. No sooner had I done so than the second tail crashed down where I had stood. The impact shattered the stone, sending shards of rock and dust flying.

I scrambled to my feet and down the shadowy hallway. It stretched on for as far as I could see. I hoped the sparsely placed torches were to blame for that. The scrambling of six legs echoed behind me. I turned my head just slightly as I ran to get a gauge on its speed.

In an open environment, the arachnid would have probably caught up to me. Fortunately, its bulk played to the creature's disadvantage, and it had trouble fitting itself through the tunnel.

Its determination won out eventually. The creature dragged itself into the shaft’s confines by the brute force of its claws and began to slither after me. I had already placed a considerable distance between myself and the supercharged scorpion, but there was no telling how long this hallway would go for. It may have ample opportunity to make up for the lost time.

The solid impact of a hardwood door answered my question. It had been carved with the intricate care of a master. Angelic figures bearing rods in hand populated the lower panels of the acacia frame. In the panels above, stylistic renditions of what I gleaned to be several planetary bodies sported weaving, brilliant patterns.

I didn’t have time to sit and admire the trimmings. Scrambling up from my ass, I thrust on the two doors.

Nothing.

I scrabbled at the portals helplessly for a few seconds before realizing they could be opened by pulling on the wrought iron handles bolted into the middle section.

“Idiot,” I muttered under my breath.

The doors gave way to a cavernous hall that dwarfed the size of the preceding antechamber. Enough room for a monster scorpion to prowl around in.

Acting quickly, I shoved the doors closed and looked for something to brace them. Basalt statues of regal figures, prim animals, and foreign symbols stood motionless in alcoves carved from the room’s limestone walls. I tugged on the base of the closest one, a slender fellow with a rectangular beard and some kind of crooked utensils held in an X shape across his chest. He didn’t budge.

Precious seconds ticked away. The scuttling behemoth drew ever-closer.

I hated to use one so early in the round, but I felt like I had no other choice. Ripping a plasma grenade from my belt, I cracked open the doors and peered outside.

SMACK!

The gleaming point of a tail slammed into the cracked open door and nearly knocked me off my feet. Right on time.

I depressed the blue charger and rolled my sphere of death into the hallway, pressing the door shut with my entire bodyweight. Something heavy slammed into the doorframe but I held firm. A second shockwave followed closely after - this one had the force to send me rolling. I tumbled down the shallow staircase that led into a rectangular depression taking up the center of the room.

Whirling about to face whatever may still lurk behind the smoking entrance, I found it clogged shut. The force of the grenade brought down a significant portion of the supporting archway and likely collapsed the tunnel behind it. I breathed a sigh of relief.

ATHENA’s voice kicked on.

“Welcome to Round 3!”

“Yeah, quite a welcome I’d say,” I muttered, nursing my bruised shoulder.

“I apologize for the abrupt start. The unpredictable nature of the algorithm sometimes results in premature encounters. But we at LimeLight see this as a silver lining, it keeps things lively!”

“Not much lively about being scorpion feed.”

“Some rounds generated by the BIOS system are based on real historical locations and mythological settings.” ATHENA ignored my comment and carried on.

“While tailored to a contestant’s skills and experiences to provide the best-suited challenges, these enriching locales call upon inspiration from the greatest minds of the sentient races to provide a truly stimulating environment.”

As the lively AI continued her monologue I took in the room in greater detail. Despite the circumstances that brought me here, the catacomb certainly had an air of fine craftsmanship and subterranean beauty. I counted at least two dozen of those basalt statues around the circumference of the room. A yowling feline with a ruby-encrusted mane, a stoic warrior wearing a burnished brass chest plate untouched by dust or wither, a triangular shape brimming with fan-like wings that extended from every angle.

Eight quadratic pillars placed evenly around the floor’s area supported the vaulted, pyramidal ceiling above. A lone beam of sunlight streamed in from a narrow hole in the ceiling's apex that lit up the depression I stood in. Stepping closer to one of the pillars I found it inscribed with hundreds of pictograms. Minute warriors clashed with a worm-shaped figure that boasted a gaping maw of razor-like teeth. Above them, a sun with many eyes shot bolts of light that pierced smaller versions of the worm wriggling in the sands around them. A regal figure standing twice the height of his army raised an outstretched scepter from atop a coverless palanquin.

Such scenes decorated the pillar from head to toe. Whoever made these must have devoted hundreds of man-hours to their construction.

“This is our fantastical rendition of the tomb of Thutmose I, a ruler of a great empire many millennia ago on one of humanity’s home planets. He was said to be descended from his pantheon’s god of knowledge, science, and truth - often depicted as an avian-like figure. Thutmose’s patron deity had perfect knowledge of all things, seeing all events and recording them for the heavens. It is said this god judged the weight of every soul in the afterlife, allowing them into paradise or condemning them to eternal torment. Nothing could escape his gaze.”

This Thutmose guy and his daddy sounded intense. An avian god, huh? That would explain the bipedal feathered creature I saw engraved on the tunnel’s entrance.

“Evidence of his worship is prolific throughout the tomb, which spans many cubic miles of twisting catacombs, hidden passageways, and protected chambers. Thutmose was a grand architect who valued the protection of his sacred holdings above all else. You would be wise to tread his resting place carefully!”

“The primary objective of a Labyrinth Round is to find the exit. However, you are encouraged to take full advantage of this once in a lifetime opportunity to explore a captivating historical vista and uncover the hidden knowledge and treasures of the tomb - and perhaps some secrets about yourself along the way.”

Secrets about myself? What could these blackmarket underground hacks know about me that I didn’t?

I didn’t have much time for taking in the scenery. If something else even a fraction as terrifying as the scorpion king was lurking in the shadows I didn’t want to stick around. It would be worth a careful search of the tomb as I continued on, though. Who knew what loot there was to repurpose in the crannies of this place.

Two doorways on either side of the room were the only way out. Left and right. I waited a minute or so after ATHENA’s speech ended to produce the miniature tracker my agent had given me from my Saker.

I held the black grain of rice to my chest like I would a compass and waited for it to direct me, spinning in a slow arc between the two entrances. Its tip flashed yellow when I passed over the left entrance.

So that was the way forward - if I could trust my captors that is.

As I approached the unknown of my chosen path, something atop the edge stopped me. A singular eye with the narrow-slitted pupil of a predator watched me as if to evaluate my worthiness.

“Nothing could escape his gaze.”