1 ACT I Chapter I: The Labyrinth

An unfamiliar place, unfamiliar scenery, and an unfamiliar feeling. The guy experienced this just after waking up. He was lying on the ground and his mind was still fuzzy.

He mumbled, "Where am I"? A few seconds passed but nobody responded to him. Maybe because it was too silent to be heard or there was no one around close to him to hear it.

He slowly tried to stand up and saw a faint silhouette. He rubbed his eyes with his hand and the silhouette became a clear figure, a human figure.

"Someone, is someone there?" He said as he forces himself to get up by pushing his body beside a wall. After getting up, he slowly paced himself towards the human figure. Feeling dizzy, he stumbled but he closed the gap with the human figure that he was aiming for. Again, he was back lying on the ground.

Feeling dizzy and no wall to help him get up, he nodded his head and saw that the human figure was walking towards him. He felt happy that someone is there.

The human figure was so close that he could already see it. It was a girl wearing a maid outfit. The girl touched him and just like a miracle, he didn't feel dizzy anymore. He felt like he could get up any second and that his body was functioning fairly better than what he was used to before.

He stood up and said, "Thank you. Also, who are you and why am I here?" As he let go of those words, he looked around and saw these huge walls that extend up high as far as the eye can see. Again, he felt an unusual feeling.

Mixed feelings of not knowing what is going on and why was he there. Knowing that he will only make things worse if he let his panicked feeling go wild, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm down.

He knew that he needed to assess the situation first to figure out clues as to what is happening.

He looked at the girl closely. Not seeing her properly earlier, he was shocked to see her having long protruding ears that are pointing upwards, just like a rabbit's ears.

He asked the girl, "Who are you?" Still, she didn't respond to him. He grabbed her with both his hands on her shoulders as if begging and said, "Please, tell me something." Still, she didn't speak of a word. All she did was look at him, emotionless, just like a puppet.

He lost hope in finding answers from her so he began to examine the place.

In that chamber, there were two open paths to take that was not blocked by the huge walls. As if being given the choice to choose where to go, he knew that walking down one of those paths was the only option he had. It was either left or right, and since he doesn't know where to go, he just decided to go towards the right path.

As he was walking towards the right path, the girl in a Maid outfit moved and walked towards the left path. Not knowing where both are going to lead him, he scratched his head and decided to follow the Maid.

He walked for hours, following the maid wherever she goes. If the maid were to go to the right, he would also follow and if the maid were to go left, he would do the same. The moment he decided to choose to go with the maid, he was dedicated to following her.

As they were walking, he finally realized that the whole place was like a maze. Huge walls with open paths to be taken. It's as if he was trapped in a labyrinth. He didn't know if there was an ending to that place or if he is just walking in vain. One thing is for sure in his mind and that is, doing nothing would surely hinder any kind of progress no matter how small it is.

But little by little, hours and hours passed, he doesn't see any change. He kept following the maid over and over, taking every turn that she goes to and making sure that he doesn't lose sight of her or he would be stuck in that place forever.

A long time has passed, feeling irritated, he shouted, "Are you sure we are going in the right direction? I don't know how many hours has it been but it's like this maze is forever to go through." As he shouted those words, the Maid stopped.

She turned back and looked at him for a while and looked up to see the sky. In response, the guy also looked up. There was no sun to be seen but it didn't seem to have changed. The sky that he saw earlier when he first looked up was still the same.

The maid turned back again and continued to walk. The guy, feeling annoyed in disbelief, said, "We aren't on earth, are we? I don't how I got here in the first place but I'll put my trust in you to lead me the way."

After hearing this, the maid stopped walking. At that point, he knew, that after this confirmation, his words are getting through to her. He understood that even though she doesn't talk, she listens and understand what he was saying. He felt relieved that she at least hears him out and that the maid understands her.

After a brief moment, the maid continued walking. Again, he followed her.

A couple of hours had passed and the guy looked up at the sky again. He saw no change as if there was no concept of time in that place. All he knew is that they have been walking for so long now that it should've been nighttime.

Also, after all that walking he understood, he didn't feel any pain, hunger, thirst, or fatigue. Although he still feels his body moving, there is no sign of pain.

To assess this situation, he plans on punching himself. He exhaled and prepared for what he was about to do. After much preparation, although a bit scared, he vigorously punches himself in his stomach. After doing that, he was shocked to know that his assumption was true. He doesn't feel any pain in that place.

After knowing this fact, while they were walking, he stopped. He looked at a wall and started punching it. "There has to be a way out of this place." He mumbled. He kept punching at the wall and slowly he can see a dent in the wall slabs.

While punching the wall continuously, he began to notice that the wall is like a mixture of cement and wood with a bit of a slimy substance that prevents much damage to the structure, fortifying it.

After a while of punching, the maid noticed what he was doing so she walked back to him. Seeing her coming closer, he punched the wall faster and stronger. As the maid comes closer, he saw that the wall is repairing itself.

The slimy substance is forming a thick solution in the dent and is fortifying itself back, repairing the place where he is hitting. Knowing that no matter how many times he hit, at that point, he will make no progress at all so he stopped.

He looked at his hands and saw a lot of blood. Even though he couldn't feel the pain, his body is still prone to wear and tear. The maid gently took a hold of his hands. Just like what she did back then when she first touched him, his hands were healed in an instant.

After that event, the questions he seeks became more vivid. Who are you, what really is this place, why was I brought here, and so on and so forth. After being lost in his thoughts, the maid looked up ahead and continued walking.

Seeing what is happening now, he smiled and laughed. "There really is no choice, huh?" he said in a soft tone before looking ahead to continue following her.