Chapter 2: Was Death the Easy Way Out?
Deeper and deeper Noah ran. The walls felt like they were pressing in on him from all sides. Any sense of direction he possessed had already been corroded by the maze’s disorientating corridors. His only guiding light came from the scattered luminous rocks embedded in the walls. Faint as they were, they provided just enough glow to keep his sanity in check.
How he wished he still had his phone! There probably wasn’t a signal here, but he could at least use its flashlight feature. Unfortunately, it looked like the only object that had been transported with him was his wallet. Was it because his phone had flown out of his hands when the bus crashed? Possibly.
His mind raced, desperately trying to make sense of it all. That witch Anna had thrown them into this accursed dungeon. His teacher was dead. Josh and Ashley were dead.
But wait. Six people had been sent here in total. With three dead and excluding himself, there were two others still alive. What were their names again?
Bran and Sophie. He didn’t really know them that well. They were two of the more popular kids in class, always surrounded by their own group of friends, while he tended to stick to the same few people.
Even so, anybody’s company would be more than appreciated right now. Could they have survived the Diamantis attack? The little bit of hope that sparked within him quickly faded away. No, even if they had somehow escaped, they were just as hopelessly lost as he was.
Noah slowed to a walk, exhaustion threatening to take over. He was pretty sure he was now far enough away from the Diamantis.
But now what?
A random survival video he’d watched while sipping cup noodles in his bedroom came to mind. Oh how he wished he was back there now!
No, focus. What were some tips the video mentioned? The first step was to not panic. First step failed.
What was the second step? Observe your surroundings. He could barely see anything. Second step failed.
Wait! Stop rushing things! A little voice in his head scolded. Are you even going to try? Or have you already given up?
But what else could he do? He was basically blind. Robbed off his most important sense, was he supposed to just… rely on his other four senses...?
Noah stopped and closed his eyes. He inhaled deeply, trying to calm his nerves. A deep, rancid stench filled his nostrils, almost making him throw up. But otherwise, there was nothing of note.
Should he try tasting the air? Impossible, he wasn’t a snake. The walls? Pointless.
But he could at least feel them. Slowly, he brought his hand up… and a familiar blue screen popped up.
Gah! Noah jumped back. Oh right, he still had his Vitra. It wasn’t much, but the interface emitted just enough light to be useful. He brought it closer to the wall, inspecting its surface.
It looked like normal rock, uneven and moist to the touch. Was it hollow? He rapped his knuckles against it. Completely solid.
Panic began to creep up again, but— calm down, he reminded himself. He still had his sense of hearing.
He held his breath, focusing intently on the sounds of the maze. There was the sound of water trickling on the walls, the distant growls of what were probably very dangerous creatures, his own heartbeat…
And then, something else.
A steady rhythm, like something slapping against a wet surface. He strained to make it out. It sounded like… footsteps?
A notification flashed on the screen of the Vitra, nearly shocking him out of his skin.
—A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
You have unlocked GS1: Echolocation (Lvl 1).
—
GS1? What did that stand for? Whatever it was, it didn’t sound too bad. Cautiously, Noah tapped the screen. The Vitra refreshed, and a new section, Global Skills, appeared at the bottom of his profile page. Echolocation was listed there, right beside it.
How would he get it to activate? Maybe if he just tried listening again…
Noah leaned into the darkness, opening his ears once more. This time, the sounds in the maze were much louder and clearer. And yes, those were definitely footsteps. Someone—or something—was running.
Noah’s first thought was that it could belong to either Bran or Sophie. Could it be a monster? If so, why was it running? Was it chasing someone? He focused harder. Shoes. The distinct sound of shoes hitting the cave floor. And it was getting softer.
He had to locate them. It was another person, and whoever it was, he was willing to take his chances. It was either them, or eventually succumb to the monsters in this wretched place.
He turned off his Vitra and cautiously sought after the sound of the footsteps. Half a minute later, the sound grew much louder. Whoever it was must’ve heard him and was now searching for him.
Noah slowed again, staying pressed to the wall. The footsteps had slowed too. They were eerily close.
“H-hello…?” a soft female voice called out.
Noah’s heart jumped. Was that who he thought it was?
“Sophie?” Noah called back. Finally, there was someone else with him!
All of a sudden, memories of false voices and mimic monsters from various stories he read flooded his mind like a tidal wave. Such creatures would use a friendly voice to lure their prey, only to tear them apart once they let their guard down.
Oh no. Could this be one of those?
The footsteps had stopped. The silence was nerve-wracking.
The voice repeated itself. It was hushed and trembling, but unmistakably familiar.
“Noah, is that you?”
A figure stepped forward from the black void. Their Vitra flickered on, casting a weak beam into the darkness. It revealed a face. The bangs of her long, brown hair partially obscured her features, but this was definitely Sophie.
There she was, standing right in front of him, looking every bit as broken and terrified as he did. Yet, every instinct screamed at him to run.
Was it her? Was she... real? For a moment, time seemed to stand still.
Noah took a step back.
Sophie paused in her tracks. “Uhh…Noah, that’s you right? Are you okay? Why’re you just… standing there?”
Her voice sounded right, but then again, mimics often got the voice right at first, didn’t they? And in this world of fantasy, would it be illogical to assume mimics existed?
“Noah, please! Say something!”
He forced himself to speak. “Who… what’s the name of our teacher?” he whispered.
“Ms... Hana. Oh my God… Noah!” she gasped, her voice finally cracking.
That was genuine emotion. There was no faking it. On the off chance that she was, then, well, he hoped his death would at least be quick. He just couldn’t be bothered anymore.
“I’m sorry, Sophie, I just… I had to make sure,” he swallowed. “But yeah, it’s me. I’m Noah.”
“Man, I… you really scared me there,” Sophie released a breath she didn’t know she had been holding. “Okay… you have any idea how we can get out of here?”
“I’m just as lost as you are,” Noah admitted. He activated his Vitra. “Speaking of which, what’s your talent? Mine just says Zero.”
“That’s… uh, unique, I guess. Mine says Looter,” Sophie chuckled awkwardly.
“Have you figured out how to use it?” Noah asked.
She shrugged. “I have no clue. And honestly, it doesn’t sound that useful.”
“Sounds more useful than mine,” he muttered, frowning at his screen. “Have you unlocked any skills yet?”
“Nope.” Sophie leaned closer, peering at his Vitra. “Wait… Echolocation? How’d you get that?”
For the first time in a long while, Noah felt a flash of pride. “I got it when I was trying to hear your footsteps.”
“So if I listen hard enough, I’ll unlock it too?”
“I think so.”
“Alright, might as well give it a shot.” Sophie cupped her hands to her ears and closed her eyes. Her face went tight with concentration.
Suddenly, her eyes snapped open. “Umm, do you hear that?”
“Hear what?” Noah re-activated echolocation. A familiar thudding sound was gradually getting louder in the distance.
“I can’t really get my—ooh! I unlocked the skill!” Sophie whispered excitedly, pointing at her Vitra. Sure enough, the same notification Noah had received earlier glowed on her screen.
So it wasn’t unique to him. Probably a low-level skill if it was that easy for both of them to just unlock it like that. Was that what ‘Global Skill’ entailed? A skill that just anyone could obtain?
“Noah, there’s definitely something heading our way,” Sophie repeated.
He could hear it too. And whatever it was, it sounded big and fast.
“We should get going,” he said.
The two of them hastened in the opposite direction.
But it was still getting closer. Dangerously close.
“…Noah?” Sophie gripped his arm.
“We gotta run for it.”
They broke into a sprint as panic spurred them on. But it was too late.
CRASH!
A massive figure barrelled through the darkness, skidding to a stop in front of them. Another Diamantis.
“Watch out!” Noah yelled, diving to the side as the gigantic mantis lunged.
Sophie screamed. But she hadn’t been fast enough. One of the creature’s serrated claws snagged the back of her shirt, lifting her high into the air. She dangled helplessly as the beast’s cold, unblinking eyes locked onto her.
“Help…” she choked.
Noah froze. Should he risk his life as well? Or run while it’s distracted?
It wasn’t a tough choice.
Die to a random monster elsewhere? Or die a hero?
With a yell that surprised even himself, Noah charged recklessly at the monster.