SWNOVELS Chapter 34: The Labyrinth
Leila stared at the opened secret passage with unmitigated awe, her mouth briefly hanging open in astonishment. “How did you know the combination and the security codes, Hannibal,” she asked in puzzled wonder. “I never told you the combination. Furthermore, I never remembered the guardian ever acting the way we just saw. It’s never spoken before, and the combination and security codes are not what I remember. How is this possible?”
Hannibal walked over to Leila, leaned in and placed his hand on her shoulder with a warm but sober smile. “Obviously, much has happened since the last time you had access to the Crypt. I suspect Thoth may have changed the combinations and security codes before Bolthor sacked this place to insure the security of Ariel’s resting place. It’s what I would have done had I been in his position. He may have also given the guardian an extended level of autonomy to protect the Crypt in his absence since he most likely knew he’d not survive. Because of this extended mandate, I suspect Azriel’s programming evolved, allowing him to gain added power and sentience over the millennia since the fall of this place twelve and a half thousand cycles ago. With his new power, sentience, and freedom to protect the Crypt, Azriel was able to hold back the Darkness that swamped this place, protecting Ariel in her resting place from being contaminated by it.”
Leila’s eyes grew wide at Hannibal’s proposal. “I never considered that,” she breathed. “But I’m sure that’s exactly what Thoth did. He would have done anything and everything to protect Ariel, even altering the programming of the guardian to prevent any but those of royal blood uncontaminated by the Darkness to enter. Why else would the guardian have mentioned the Darkness Scans coming back negative for not just you, but all of us? He wanted to make sure Bolthor would never be able to steal away her again. That’s got to be what he did for only Thoth had the authority to alter the guardian’s programming in the way I just saw.” Tears welled up in her eyes and she choked out emotionally, “I’m so glad he was finally able to keep my sister safe, even if it was in death.”
“I know you do,” Hannibal said gently. “Now, shall we go see your sister and lay Thoth next to her as is proper?”
Leila composed herself quickly, replying softly, “Yes, it’s time for me to get true closure.”
Hannibal stepped back and smiled, saying, “Then let’s go meet your long lost sister. Are there any traps beyond that door we need to worry about?”
Leila shook her head, replying, “No; all that there is the Labyrinth with the Crypt at its center. There was no need for traps since only Thoth, Ariel, Beowulf, Ezra, Gordo, and I knew the old combination and security codes to trigger the guardian and open the door. Furthermore, we were also the only ones who knew the way through the maze to reach the Crypt. Since the Labyrinth itself is part of the Crypt’s security measures, we had no need of booby traps in the standard sense. The maze is so diabolical complexity one wrong turn can cause intruders to become hopelessly lost within it. Lose your way in there and you will never leave it. Fortunately, I still remember the way. When we go in, pay attention and stay close to me or you will never leave the Labyrinth.”
“Sounds like very good advice to me,” Hannibal said with a smile. Looking to his team, he said, “We stay close and don’t lose sight of one another. If we take our time and don’t panic, we’ll make it to the Crypt. Come on. Let’s get moving. Harry, I’ll take the scepter now.”
Harry handed over the scepter to Hannibal as he reactivated the left Draken Gauntlet that he’d closed up to grip the clawed hand of Azriel’s sculpture. The Gauntlet whirred and clanked, opening into its combat form in less than two seconds. Gripping the scepter in his right hand, he smacked its pummel against the floor, causing the crystal spearhead to shine like a lighthouse light. Gesturing to the entrance of the Labyrinth, he said to Leila, “After you, sister. I’ll be right here beside you.”
Leila nodded and glanced up at Josephine, who had taken position behind her wheelchair. “Let’s go, Jo. I’ll tell you where to go.” Josephine nodded with a grunt and pushed Leila in her wheelchair across the floor to the entrance.
Hannibal stepped in front of her and held out his hand as they reached the entrance. The rest of the team gathered around in anticipation. “Let me check it out first,” he ordered, “Just to be sure it’s safe. I won’t leave your sight. I promise.” Leila nodded and waited as Hannibal penetrated the threshold first, stepping cautiously twenty feet into the passage, which rose sixteen feet in height and eight feet across with an arched roof. He marveled as he studied the area closely, seeing the passage appeared to be carved from light gray andesitic granite with large glowing crystals two feet long and six inches wide seemingly growing out of the rock itself. These crystals lay regularly spaced on each wall, providing ample light for the corridor. That light revealed the walls were completely smooth and bare of any sort of decorations, writing, symbols, or iconography. Looking down the corridor, Hannibal felt an icy chill race down his spine for the passage seemed to stretch out in infinity before him. “Holy shit,” he breathed in awe. “This place is unearthly.” Turning back to the entrance, he saw the seam where the six-foot thick stone door had slid into a pocket made just for it. Walking to get a closer look, he noticed the perfection of the fit with the seam so thin it would be impossible to get a human hair between them. When he finally looked down, he saw where the opening slab had pushed and disturbed the thin layer of dust on the floor, pushing it aside. “Wow,” he whispered, feeling the seam with his fingers. “The fit is absolutely perfect. I’ve never seen anything like this.”
“Is it safe?” Harry called out, snapping Hannibal out of his wonder.
“Yeah,” Hannibal answered distantly, “It’s safe, but I’ll admit I haven’t seen engineering like this since Tiamat. I’m blown away by it.”
“But is it safe?” Harry asked again with his eyebrows lowered in a stern look. “Are you sure it’s safe?”
Hannibal nodded, saying with a sigh, “Yes, it is. There’s nothing dangerous here, just a sense of alien antiquity that’s a bit humbling and very perplexing. Come on in and you’ll see what I mean. Tau, you may need to duck a bit for the ceiling is just a bit shorter than you are. However, it shouldn’t be a problem for you.”
“Okay,” Tau replied, “I’ll keep that in mind.”
Josephine wheeled Leila into the passage first with rest of the team following. Hannibal retreated deeper into the passage, standing to one side so the team could see what he meant. When everyone entered, they stopped and gawked at the alien nature of the strangely bare passageway. “Whoa,” Harry breathed, “You’re right, Hannibal. This place feels just like Tiamat when you first brought me there.”
“This place is positively eerie,” Thomas blurted out softly. “I see what you mean, Hannibal.”
“So do I,” Ned agreed in a subdued tone, “This place is absolutely unreal.”
“You’re telling me,” Andrew breathed in stunned awe, feeling the wall of the passage carefully. “This place is old, maybe even older than the rest of the fortress. It feels strange too, right down alien in a way and somewhat dangerous in a way I cannot explain. Nothing here is as it seems; that’s for sure. Can you feel it uncle?”
“I can,” Hannibal agreed grimly, “...and it does concern me, though my innate ability to sense danger is just barely twitching right now. It seems we’re safe for the moment, though that could change as we move into the maze. It may just be the dismal feel of alien antiquity that we’re feeling. This place is every bit as unearthly and alien as some of the stranger sections of Tiamat. I think Ned put it very well when he said this place feels unreal.”
“I think we all agree on that,” Assad commented in a stunned tone. “I’ve seen some strange places, but this is in a league of its own. Even worse, something doesn’t feel right about it, as Master Andrew suggested. The place is charged heavily with illusion. I can feel it.”
Hannibal raised an eyebrow at Assad’s observation. “You may be on to something, Assad,” he replied, intrigued at the thought. “Now that you mention it, I’m starting to feel it too. This place is not what it seems at first glance, as Andrew said. There’s something off about this place that I can’t quite place my finger on. Leila, can you tell us anything about the particulars of this maze? Was it constructed to confuse those who enter with illusions to get them off the right path?”
Leila paled as her eyes grew wide, her memories about the Labyrinth now flooding her conscious mind now that she was within it. “Yes,” she said with deep anxiety, “I knew I was forgetting something when you asked me earlier about the way to the Crypt. Just being here in the entrance of the Labyrinth has caused those memories to break loose. I had forgotten that the maze itself is a trap.”
“Go on,” Hannibal said soberly. “How is it a trap?”
“Well, the Labyrinth isn’t just a static maze, but a moving one,” Leila declared ominously. “There are hidden sensors and triggers scattered through the maze that will cause it to reconfigure in ways that’s hard to explain. That’s why I said we must stay together. If someone gets separated when this place changes, it’s impossible for them to find the way out if they survive the transformation.”
“This maze is itself a machine, isn’t it?” Hannibal queried sternly.
“Yes,” Leila admitted reluctantly, “It’s a machine with one purpose...to protect the crypt, just as the guardian is tasked with protecting its entrance.”
“Did the Caverias build it, milady,” Assad asked softly, truly intrigued by the revelation.
“I can’t tell without permission from Hannibal since he’s now the rightful King of Amacia,” Leila stated bluntly. “I was sworn to secrecy about the nature of the Labyrinth.”
Touching Leila briefly on the shoulder, Hannibal said, “It’s okay to tell us. In fact, I think it’s essential you tell us what you know about this machine so we know what we’re getting into here. I don’t want to go into the maze blind without knowing what dangers may lurk in there.”
Leila nodded grimly, saying, “Okay, milord; I’ll tell you what I remember of the secret of this place so you’re not going into it blind.”
“Is this machine alien in origin?” Hannibal asked sincerely.
“Yes,” Leila answered, “But no one knew who made it. The stories are the Labyrinth was here long before Ragnar’s father Rayden Ryu began construction of this fortress and the city around it. How Rayden found it is not said, but when he discovered the Labyrinth Machine here and managed to make it to its center, he purposed to build a stronghold around it to keep it out of the hands of the Dark Powers. He knew this place was built by an alien race much older and far more advanced than humanity at the time with a power so terrible the Dark Powers should never be allowed utilize it. The stories speculated this machine may have even belonged to the Etherian tyrants who ruled this planet in its earliest days long before humans appeared. Other legends suggested the machine might have been a residue of a crashed alien ship or even the construct of a remote civilization of angelic beings. However, no one ever figured out who built it. It was all speculation. Regardless of who or what built the Labyrinth, Rayden Ryu figured out its secret and utilized it as a vault for his most precious possessions and secrets. Eventually, by time the fortress above us had been reared, the Caverias line began using it as the family crypt.”
“That’s a most fascinating history, milady,” Tau commented warmly, “It’s good to hear that the Caverias line has been keeping powerful alien technologies safe from the claws of the Dark Powers from the very beginning. That seems to be an ongoing trait of the Caverias line.”
“I agree, son,” Assad concurred, “It shows the call to secure the ancient alien technologies from the Dark Powers goes all the way back to the genesis of the Caverias line. It also explains why Beowulf has the mandate to keep the ancient tech safe from the Dark Powers.”
“Indeed,” Hannibal said grimly, “If what Leila says is true...and I have no reason to not believe her since she was Thoth’s scribe during his time, then it explains why I’m the way I am. It explains why I’ve felt the call of ancient places and things all my life, even when I was in thrall to the Darkness. It seems this is what the Lord really means for me to do.” A strained brief chuckle of helpless resignation to his fate escaped his lips.
“Why do you laugh so mirthlessly,” Leila asked with puzzlement. “You don’t sound very happy to hear this.”
“Oh, don’t mind me,” Hannibal replied sullenly, “I just tend to get a bit bummed out when something reminds me of how the path of my life has already been decided for me. I’m sure the rest of the Caverias line probably felt the same way too when they discovered why the Lord made them.”
Leila nodded knowingly, saying compassionately, “I do, brother. I saw Thoth and his son Beowulf struggle just like this with their destiny, so you are not alone in this feeling. They fought it every day until that terrible day when I fell on the Tower of Caveria.”
A sober smile crept across Hannibal’s lips at Leila’s words. “Thanks for the vote of confidence, sis,” he said gratefully. “I need that, but let’s get back on point about this maze in front of us. It’s good to know it is a machine capable of reconfiguring unexpectedly when the triggers are activated. That means we’ll not be surprised if it happens. However, I think the sixty four million dollar question is how we get through it without triggering the reconfiguration. You said you remembered the path to the Crypt.”
“I do remember it vividly now that I’m here,” Leila insisted. “As I said earlier, only Thoth, Ariel, Beowulf, Ezra, Gordo, and I knew the safe path to the Crypt. It was a secret passed down the Caverias line from Rayden Ryu, who first discovered the way. He passed the knowledge of the path to his closest family and friends, which included Ragnar Omicron, who passed it down to his family, so on and so forth.”
“I get the idea,” Hannibal declared, “This is one of the great secrets of the Caverias passed down through the line from the beginning. What I need to know is if there are any reconfiguration triggers on what you call the safe path.”
Leila sighed grimly, saying, “Yes; there are three trigger points on the safe path, but I know the way to the Crypt once the triggers are activated. I can guide you safely through the maze through the transformations to the center. Once we have gained access to the Crypt, there is a control panel of alien origin in there that opens a direct path to this spot. Upon leaving, the secret entrance will seal and the Labyrinth will return to its default setting.”
“That sounds very good to me,” Harry commented. “But what happens to those who get separated and lost?”
Leila shook her head, saying darkly, “I wish I knew. No one has dared to stray purposely from the safe path to look for the lost. Anyone stupid enough to do that is just as dead as those who got lost. That’s how dangerous straying from the path I will show you is.”
“Oh, right,” Harry replied softly, stunned by Leila’s bluntness, “Just asking.”
“That’s why we’ll keep together,” Hannibal said sternly, “Leila; do you recall where the triggers are on the safe path?”
“Each trigger is in a round dome-shaped chamber roughly thirty cubits across with six different exits including the one we’ll enter through,” Leila stated, “If I recall correctly, the trigger is motion-activated and will only engage once we’ve reached the center of the room. When the trigger is activated, the exits will seal first, and then the dome will rotated clockwise for about a minute. When it stops, six doors will open in different places from the first six. Only one exit will lead us to the next trigger chamber. Stepping through any of the other doors will cause them to seal behind you and the Almighty alone knows what happens after that. That’s why we must stay on the right path for it’s the only way to safely traverse the Labyrinth.”
“I see,” Hannibal murmured, rubbing his chin. “Since you know the only safe path, you can lead the way, Leila, but I’ll be right here beside you as we go.”
“That will be just fine,” Leila stated as her courage rose with the anticipation of finally getting to see her sister one last time. “I won’t steer any of you wrong. Just stay close and we will get through the Labyrinth in one piece. Come on, Jo. Let’s get moving.”
“Okay, Leila,” Josephine replied rolling Leila forward into the seemingly infinite corridor. “Just tell me where to go.”
“Don’t worry, I will,” Leila reassured as Hannibal fell in beside her on the left with the others following close behind. Nemesis instinctively took up the flanking position on her right, keeping a very close eye on everything even though the place seemed benign.
After moving a hundred yards, the team encountered the first intersection of corridors where a lateral passage crossed the one they were in. Josephine stopped with a puzzled look, looking at the branching passages to the right, left, and ahead. A pang of fear crept into her mind and heart. “Which way do we go,” she asked hesitantly. “They all look the same to me.”
Without hesitation, Leila pointed left, saying confidently, “We need to turn left here. Don’t go into the other passages if you value your life.”
“They’re traps, aren’t they?” Hannibal surmised soberly.
“Yes,” Leila stated grimly. “Let me show you what I’m talking about.” Reaching into her pocket, she procured a dagger she’d brought as a security measure, saying, “Now watch this and understand why I told you not to go into those other passages.” With a flick of her wrist, Leila tossed the sheathed dagger into the passage heading right. The moment the dagger landed, a stone door slammed down from above with a startling bang that kicked up a dust cloud. Every eye grew wide with surprise at how fast the passage sealed.
“Holy shit,” Harry breathed in astonishment. “That thing closed like a snap trap! Is it going to cause the maze to shift?”
“No,” Leila stated, “The trigger for that door is not one that initiates the shift of the entire Labyrinth. Those triggers are randomly spaced around in the maze in those domed rooms I spoke of earlier. I’m sure there are trigger rooms beyond the three I mentioned lying on the safe path. However, that door will not re-open until the Labyrinth reset is triggered in the Crypt. If any of you had been in that passage when the door shut, you’d be lost to us. Now do you understand why I insisted you stay close to me and not stray from the path I show you?”
“We do now,” Hannibal said bluntly. “Thanks for the object lesson of the dangers of this place. Everyone stay close and we’ll be all right. Okay Leila, please guide us on now that you’ve proven your point.”
“Of course,” Leila replied. “Come on, Jo. Let’s go down the left passage here.”
“I’m glad you know where you’re going,” Josephine said softly as she guided Leila into the left corridor, “because I’m already beginning to lose my orientation in here. These walls are resisting all my scans. They just absorb and dissipate my scans without showing anything. Are you seeing the same thing, Nemesis?”
“I am,” Nemesis stated as he walked beside Josephine and Leila on the right while Hannibal flanked them on the left. “Scans are completely useless in here. The scans are absorbed so quickly I cannot even use them to create an adequate map of this place, though I’m only using passive scans here. I think it would be folly to try using an active scan in here. It may trigger something bad we may not be able to escape, so I’m not tempting fate with an active scan of this place.”
“That sounds very prudent,” Assad agreed as the team followed close behind Leila and Josephine. “It may have some security measures to deal with unwanted active scans that we’d be wise to not disturb.”
“Agreed,” Hannibal concurred. “We have no idea how active scans would affect the alien machinery of this place, though your passive scans aren’t apparently causing any problems as of yet. Still, that doesn’t mean those passive scans won’t arouse some ill effects deeper in, so I suggest you stop scanning at all except for your visual capabilities. Discretion is the greater part of valor here. Let’s not poke that snake if we can help it, if you know what I mean.”
“I do indeed,” Nemesis replied. “I have already discontinued even my passive scans apart from my visual link, which I have limited to the visual spectrum.”
“I’m doing the same,” Josephine declared as she pushed Leila along in her wheelchair. “I’m not chancing my cybernetic scans triggering something bad in here. Do we have to worry about that in here, Leila?”
“I honestly don’t know,” Leila stated, “The effects of active scans on this place was never studied as far as I know, but I believe it’s wise to just turn off all scans in here. As you’ve seen, scans don’t do any good so let’s not tempt fate with them.”
“We won’t,” Nemesis stated as they moved along at a steady pace, “I don’t relish garnering the ire of the ancient machines of this place by foolishly provoking them with my scans. Furthermore, I suggest none of us touch anything unless you say it’s okay, Leila. After all you’re the only one who actually knows what lies in here.”
“That’s a very good idea,” Hannibal concurred while he constantly eyed the passage ahead, “...especially if we come across something that doesn’t appear to belong here. Who knows what new security measures Thoth added when he changed Azriel’s protocols and programming. It may have extended to the machinery of the Labyrinth, but I have no way to know for sure.”
“I seriously doubt Thoth changed anything concerning the machines of the Labyrinth,” Leila commented. “As far as I know, no one has ever been able to alter the mechanisms of the Labyrinth itself. The only thing they could make changes to is the guardian’s orders concerning the entrance to this place.” When she saw another four-way intersection, she said, “We go straight through the junction we’re coming up on.” Everyone acknowledged the order and continued through the interchange.
After twenty minutes and three more junctions where Leila made the appropriate turns from memory, they finally reached the first domed chamber Leila said housed the reorientation trigger. She stopped them just before entering the mysterious room, saying ominously, “This is where we will encounter the first of the reconfiguration triggers. Do not proceed to the center of the room until all of us are in here. If anyone is out here in the corridor when the trigger is activated, he’ll be separated and lost to us for I have no idea whether anyone can survive the reconfiguration of the Labyrinth once it has been activated.”
“How close to the center can we get without activating the trigger,” Hannibal asked.
“Stay at least five cubits away from the very center of the chamber,” Leila ordered. “Come on. Follow me.” With that, she motioned to Josephine who moved her into the chamber. Everyone else quickly followed, clearing the threshold without intruding on the center area of the domed chamber.
Hannibal felt his danger meter tick up several notches, sensing something inherently dangerous about the room. He quickly looked over the dome-shaped chamber that spanned nearly forty-five feet across and rose twenty-five feet in height. Five other exits lay around the perimeter of the room with an enormous five-foot long by two-foot wide octagonal milky-white crystal protruding from the very center of the dome high over their heads. It glowed with enough radiance to light the chamber completely, giving the room a distinctly alien feel to everyone. Hannibal’s eyebrow rose when he saw the first evidence of writing since entering the Labyrinth. Small alien runes encircled the large crystal on the domed ceiling. They were so worn only someone of exceptional eyesight looking for the symbols would have ever found them. “Leila, did you know about the runes around that big crystal on the ceiling,” he asked with great interest. “It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen and can’t read them.”
Leila looked up and gasped in amazement, saying, “No, Hannibal; I didn’t even know they were there, though I suspect Thoth may have known about them since he was the only one who knew the real secrets of this place.”
“He probably did,” Hannibal agreed solemnly with a bit of unease. “But I find myself on edge in this room and I don’t know why. Yet the sense of having been here before is almost maddening.”
Selina edged up to him and gently grabbed his arm, saying, “Steady, my prince; I can feel your anxiety. Keep your cool and don’t let the strangeness of this room shake you. Remember, we have a job to do here.”
“Thanks for the help, princess,” Hannibal answered. “Your calming words have chased away my unease, but you must admit this room has an ominous alien feel to it.”
“It does,” Selina agreed, “But we’ve felt far worse and you know it.”
Hannibal chuckled, saying, “That we have, Selina. I guess what I’m sensing is the actual alien machinery in this room.” Turning to Leila, he asked, “Do we need to worry about the triggering of the machinery in here?”
“No,” Leila stated, “But it would not be wise to be close to the walls when the trigger is activated. Whenever we came in here, we made sure to keep at least three cubits from the walls just to be safe. Most of the time, we gathered in the center where the trigger is when we were ready to use it.”
Hannibal grunted with a nod, saying, “Then we should activate it so we can get moving. Besides, I’m curious to see what happens.”
“Come then,” Leila ordered. “Roll me into the center of the room now that everyone is safely out of the passage, Jo. Just stand clear of the walls everyone.”
Josephine rolled Leila into the very center of the chamber with the rest of the team gathering close around the perimeter of the area Leila identified as the trigger area. Hannibal and Selina chose to follow Leila to the center. Once in the center of the chamber, nothing happened at first. Then after fifteen seconds, a deep ominous rumble rose from all directions. The ceiling crystal then flickered for a few moments before blazing into an unearthly brilliance. Concern rose on everyone’s face except for Leila, especially when the chamber began to tremble physically. Seeing everyone’s worry, Leila called out confidently, “Stay where you are and don’t be afraid. This is supposed to happen.”
In moments, a slab of rock sealed every exit from the room with thunderous bangs that shook the bones of everyone present. Seconds later, everyone felt a sensation of the chamber slowly falling while spinning clockwise that was quite disconcerting. Hannibal happened to look up at the giant blazing crystal, seeing the runes shining noticeably as they rotated clockwise around the giant crystal, which didn’t seem to move. His eyebrows rose as a smile crossed Hannibal’s lips. Understanding came to him and he let out a soft chuckle before murmuring, “I should have known.”
“Should have known what, Hannibal?” Samantha asked as she started to stagger with growing dizziness.
“This room is an elevator, and a strange one at that,” Hannibal reported, “I’ve encountered similar rooms in Tiamat, Kaal Bek, and Acheron. Can’t you feel the floor sinking beneath your feet? However, this is the first time I’ve encountered one that actually rotated while it descended.”
“So, if this is an elevator, then the Labyrinth must have multiple levels,” Harry surmised as he too wavered in dizziness. “That must be why Leila believed the Labyrinth reconfigures itself when these rooms are activated. She didn’t realize the maze had multiple levels. Did you know this room was an elevator, Leila?”
“No,” Leila replied in stunned amazement. “It never occurred to me that the Labyrinth had multiple levels. All I knew is that the maze changed every time we encountered these rooms.”
“It’s okay,” Hannibal reassured Leila, “It really doesn’t matter since you memorized the way through the maze. I’m sure at some point once we’ve fully restored Srandi, we’ll eventually find the specs for this great machine.” As he spoke, the spinning and descending motion slowed to a stop. Seconds later, six exits revealed themselves as the slabs hissed and rose into the wall above them. Gusts of stale noxious air of eons past blasted into the chamber. It caused some of the team to cough on its fetid odor. Scanning the newly revealed passages, Hannibal’s eyebrow lowered with puzzled concern. “Okay, Leila,” he said, “Which way do we go?”
Leila pointed to the passage second from the left on the far side of the chamber, saying, “That’s the one. Come on. Now that the doors are open, it’s safe to leave this chamber.”
“Lead the way,” Hannibal ordered with a sober smile.
“Let’s go, Jo,” Leila ordered and Josephine once again pushed her into the indicated passage with Hannibal at her left and Nemesis at her right. The rest of the team fell right behind them.