Part 1

Chapter 1

4 April 3253

A haze of confusion engulfs me. A black dot slowly fades, revealing a myriad of cryptic sights. From my observations, I am in a dark, ancient underground maze that appears alive. The stone walls pulse with an eerie luminescent glow, as if breathing. Twisting corridors stretch endlessly, their surfaces covered in strange, vein-like roots that slither and shift. The air is thick with mist, and distant whispers echo through the labyrinth. The maze is filled with shifting pathways, hidden traps, and mysterious glowing symbols that change when seen. A haunting, supernatural atmosphere permeates, with dim, flickering lights, and deep shadows. I clutch onto a Red Ruby Pendant I found on me. I wonder where I got it…

14 April 3253

I have been in this place for ten days. I feel crazy. Nothing makes sense. I run as far as I can yet end up in the same place. This maze plays tricks on me. I hear whispers from the past. I feel as if something is not right. It is as if the maze is alive.

Chapter 2

24 April 3253

Another ten days have passed. I still have not done anything. I have found what I assume is the center of the maze. Luckily, the maze is open. It rains occasionally but is quite humid. I survive on food from a field here, yielding many grains. Occasionally, a low growling sound is heard. I hide in the cracks in the walls until the creature leaves. It is happening more often. There is a strange inscription on the wall I cannot decipher. I am trying my best to adapt to this lifestyle.

4 May 3253

I made a breakthrough today! There are marks from earlier inhabitants. I am closer to decrypting the code. I am not sure how much longer I will stay here. Something is happening. I keep waking up, screaming, from the same dream. In it, the floor cracks, the walls disappear, and the maze swallows me. Then, darkness. I wake up. It repeats. Is it a sign?

14 May 3253

It is my birthday today. Happy Birthday to me! I turn thirty this year. I wonder how my family is doing. Do I even have a family? I do not know anymore.

When I woke up in the maze, I remembered nothing. Is there even a normal world? From my clothes, I deduce I was an archaeologist. I hope to regain my memories.

Chapter 3

14 June 3253

I have not written for a month. I am no longer trying to record my findings. I have almost decrypted the wall’s inscription. I feel hazy nowadays, unmotivated. I feel like I have lost a piece of myself. What is happening?

14 August 3253

I am losing my will to live. Life seems so hard. But I must survive, to regain my memories. I have something to live for—to get my normal life back. But what has happened to the world? Dark thoughts overwhelm me. I hope my next entry brings better news.

14 November 3253

I have lost track of time. How long have I been here? Almost eight months. I need to find a way out. I am losing my mind. First my hope, now my sanity. My hands keep shaking. I almost got captured by a creature the other day because I forgot to hide. I keep going into trances. When I snap out of it, time has slipped away. There must be a way out. The maze is manipulating me, controlling me, piece by piece.

14 January 3254

I deciphered the wall’s inscription. It says, “Beware, stay out. There is no escape at all…” This proves people once lived here. I am starting to lose hope. Maybe I should stay here until my last moments. Maybe there is nothing to return to. It is pure torture…

Chapter 4

14 May 3254

I have been here over a year. It feels like an eternity. I nearly forgot my birthday, only remembering by reading earlier entries. I am starting to believe the wall’s message. The people before me all lost control and failed. I have also failed. I give up. Life is not worth living anymore. My dream of destruction is becoming reality. The ground is splitting, the walls cracking. This will be my final entry. Goodbye, world. There is no escape…

Part 2

Chapter 5

I glance upon this diary and read all the entries. I, too, have lost all my memories. I cannot remember anything. I have been here for one day, and it is worrying. But I find comfort knowing I am not alone. Many people have gone through this, and I will appear successfully. I will escape this maze.

First, I built a small shelter in the wall’s cracks. As the diary warned, creatures roam at night. I must protect myself. As time passes, I adapt. I craft weapons by sharpening wood. I cook with grains from the field. I need to act fast. The maze starts to control people over time, draining their hope, mind, and sanity, like a parasite. People go mad if they stay too long.

Night falls. I hide in my shelter, sensing the creatures’ gravelly growls. I catch a glimpse: shadowy figures lurking in the mist, barely visible, their forms shifting as if made of darkness. Their bodies are elongated and gaunt. Their faces are obscured, but multiple glowing eyes pierce the fog, watching from the maze’s depths.

Their movements are unnatural and fluid. Their presence feels ancient as if they have always been part of the labyrinth, waiting for lost souls. The mist swirls around them, revealing sharp, yellow teeth. Something hangs from their necks—a crimson gem, as if made of blood. I gasp. The same jewel hangs on my wrist. This cannot just be a coincidence. Maybe there is a reason why everyone in this maze has it. As I gaze deeply into it, I find myself being transported into another world…

Chapter 6

“Behold, I am the maze,” an ancient, majestic voice speaks. I am transported to a world inside the ruby. The maze itself speaks, reenacting a scene before me.

“I was once a nurturing land, filled with magical creatures: fairies, dragons, ogres, and dwarfs. I provided them with plants to eat. As they lived and died, their magic transferred to me. I gained a mind of my own, becoming a magical land. Soon, I began to age. My inhabitants grew tired and left, one by one. I pleaded, but they refused. I was alone. As the final creatures left, I cursed them. They left me alone and deserved punishment. I cursed them to spend the rest of their lives as monsters, tortured and stripped of magic.

They brought this fate upon themselves. I built this maze with my resources and trapped the monsters. Occasionally, I planted people here. They slowly lost their minds, becoming insane. Soon, they became monsters.”

As the maze speaks, the scene unfolds. I am standing at the center. I glimpse a small hole in the middle and approach. The maze continues, “Everyone became monsters. But you are advancing too fast. I must end this!” The ground shakes, cracking. I run to the hole, inserting the ruby. “No!” The maze shouts as the world shatters.

Chapter 7

I found myself not back in the maze, but in a vibrant, fertile land teeming with lush trees and diverse wildlife. The once-shadowy creatures transformed before my eyes, reverting to their original, magical forms—fairies, dragons, ogres, and dwarves. A flood of memories surged through me, and amidst the rejuvenated beings, I spotted a familiar figure.

“Dad!” I exclaimed, rushing toward him.

“Arlo!” he cried, embracing me tightly. Tears of joy streamed down our faces as we reunited after years of separation.

As we held each other, the land around us continued to flourish, a testament to the curse being lifted. The maze’s oppressive influence had dissipated, replaced by a sense of hope and renewal.

“I never gave up searching for you,” I whispered.

“And I knew you’d find me,” he replied, his voice filled with pride.

“You were the one who wrote the diary, weren’t you? You helped me so much,” I exclaimed.

Together, we walked through the revitalised land, ready to face whatever adventures await us beyond the maze.