It didn’t make much sense to me. Whatever you do, you always see some parts of your body. Even if you look straight in front of you, you’ll notice if something is wrong with your appendages. I didn’t. Until I met rabbit Aurora, I didn’t seem to notice that I had changed. As if subconsciously I thought that everything was normal. That my hands were always meant to be of a forest green hue. But halfway through her words I came to a realization. And... Was it the only bit I didn’t pay attention to? What if there was something even more important that I was missing?

“Aurora. What do I look like?” I steeled myself, trying to expect the worst, only to discover that I had no idea what the ‘worst’ could be, my imagination drawing all kinds of phantasmagorical creatures that were never meant to be.

“It’s alright, don’t panic. Most importantly don’t panic, alright?!” I was unsure whether Aurora’s advice was directed at me or herself. It looked as if I had somehow spooked her. “So you look like a ummm… human-tree covered by moss? It really seems rather neat, no need to worry, alright?”

“You are the only one who is scared, Aurora. Dezire, get her out of here. NOW!” Richard suddenly increased the volume of his voice. Dezire jerked from being called out, her tentacles that were hanging in defeat stirred alive.

Everyone acted strange. Unnaturally. What is it that I don’t know? Hopefully Richard will have a reasonable explanation.

Jellyfish Dezire yanked rabbit Aurora and took off in the direction of dragon Isabella. Deep blue. I suddenly realized that jellyfish Dezire had changed her color while I wasn’t looking at her. Finally the two of us were alone. I waited. Richard was still silent, providing no explanation I wanted so badly. Finally he pointed at my legs, “It will be better to get rid of those flowers. Stomp them, I guess. Or make them shrink if you can. And please don’t make them appear again, unless… things go south so far, it will not matter anymore.”

Confused, I looked at the direction he pointed at. There indeed were six small light blue flowers, their stems climbing up to my shins. They weren’t there before. Did I really make them appear?

“What’s the matter with them? They look innocent enough?” I decided to dig to the core of the issue.

“That they do. But looking at Aurora’s reaction they might be more than just ‘innocent’. Hopefully I’m just overthinking,” so Richard wanted them to be gone only because rabbit Aurora started to act weird? Or perhaps he was only feigning his ignorance? Well, whatever. A bunch of flowers wasn’t worth an argument, was it?

The moment I stepped away from the spot I stood on the flowers shook – just a split of a second - and they wilted away.

Our time alone didn’t last long. We had a company. A grin. Wide enough to show us both rows of razor sharp teeth. A tail, waggling from one side to another like that of a pup. A dorsal fin in all its grandeur. Seeing me, it blinked, probably realizing that we didn’t recognize each other, “Flying shark Jedediah Smith at your service.”

Behind him stood a human. A real human! And he was a spitting image of someone I knew. Jace Six. It was him. Though his hair was a little bit longer, his face was slightly more… handsome?! His body looked a bit sturdier than before?

“Richard, go to the boarded passage. They’ll need your help out there. Jedediah will accompany you. I’ll show our lost friend what’s here to see,” now that he opened his mouth I knew that it wasn’t only Jace’s appearance that was a subject to change. That powerful, domineering voice was very distinct from the one I knew though I felt that the owner of that voice didn’t change much. Which I found myself content with. Jace was a top-notch student. Hardworking, good both at studies and sports, teachers often used to bring him up as an example to others. He didn’t give off that almighty vibe before but at least he didn’t become a flying shark. A tad of serenity in this tumultuous place.

Richard thought for a moment, threw a glance at me, slowly nodded and went away with shark Jedediah.

Only then Jace continued, “Richard isn’t much of a talker. He leaves too much information to himself. And now it’s the time to share information. How much do you know?”

“Few minutes ago I realized that I’m not as human as I previously thought,” I smiled, praying deep inside that my wooden face would properly relay my expression. Suddenly, I felt a change deep within myself. My smile crumbled but I didn’t linger over it, my thoughts flowing further.

I used to hang out with Jace from time to time. There weren't many people I trusted in my class, but Jace was one of them. As such I didn’t mind being blunt when talking to him.

Jace chuckled, “Not much then. If it makes you feel better, all of us don’t know what’s going on though to a different degree. You said you just realized you changed? A belated deduction, but a correct one nonetheless. I have already met with everyone, besides Henry. Everyone changed. In one way or another. I have seen no exemptions. And if we head in the area of assumptions, I reckon it has to do something with our desires. Hidden wishes about what we’d like to change. I mean, from all opinions I had heard, I had liked this theory the most, though it doesn’t explain how we got here.”

“That’s nonsense. What kind of desire turns you into a living tree covered by moss,” I refuted.

“I had some problems. Too many expectations and too much pressure. Sometimes, I thought that I won’t be able to continue. That this kind of living will break me for sure. You have already noticed my changes, right? I feel refreshed. I feel that now all those problems won’t be able to drag me down anymore. Although at the same time I don’t want to relive them. I want to finally get some sleep. Some wonderful sleep, that will cast all my problems away…” Jace yawned after covering his mouth with his hand, his face growing distant for a split moment before returning to normal. “Anyway. President wanted to be all-knowing and as a result turned into a book, Richard and Vlad had their own share of troubles. I suppose they wanted to be less stern and a bit more open? Wanted others to accept them? Well, whatever. About Otto. My family is on good terms with his so I do know a little about his situation. And I have a good hearing. Quoting his mother Otto was quite a troublemaker. He liked to fool around. It seems like his father didn’t like it though. He had to change. Though it seems that his hidden emotions didn’t die. And now they came exposed in quite a way. Hey Otto, come out, I know you are listening to us,” called out Jace.

One of the doors opened a little and another classmate of mine walked out. He was an old man in baggy motley clothes wearing a clown’s mask with a smile drawn on it somewhat exaggeratedly. “Hello,” I heard a raspy voice.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“...” I couldn’t bring myself to connect Otto who was brimming with youth with this quaint old clown. Otto, who I knew was a docile older brother. I knew that his parents decided that he should start to go to school with his sister who was a year younger so his school years started a bit later. His sister Ursula always kept distance from her brother as well as from her fellow classmates. Still I wanted to ask, “Where is your sister?”

“I don’t really know. She ran away somewhere soon after she got out from the labyrinth and confirmed that I’m alive,” Otto’s grating voice made it hard for me to pick out what he was saying.

“If it’s alright to ask, how Ursula looks like now?” My head was already full of weird images. I was quite curious about which form she would take.

“She didn’t take any flamboyant appearance. Just a lone wolf. Well it actually suits her,” Jace answered in clown Otto’s stead.

It appeared that my hopes were vain. Jace didn’t know much of anything, and besides his ‘assumptions’ he didn’t have much to tell me. When it was clear that there’s no value in proceeding our conversation, we went to the passage that led underground.

I couldn’t agree with Jace’s words about hidden desires. If we were to consider them as truth, what weird thoughts would turn someone into a living tree or a floating jellyfish, a shark and a rabbit? It just didn’t seem right to me. I didn’t have any special feelings neither for trees nor for nature.

“There’s nothing we were able to find inside this underground passage that could be put to use. Using pumpkin Jack’s lantern we were able to search inside that place. What’s peculiar about it is that it doesn’t have even a single fluorescent stone inside. As you should have noticed, those stones emitting light are virtually everywhere. Well, with the exception of that place. Under that helix stairway lies a relatively small room with a shrine in the center. The whole place is carved with strange symbols. We don’t have any sources of light with us right now. So, going down is pointless, even dangerous in case one of us misses a step. Let’s better head towards the boarded pathway,” said Jace.

The pathway had more people crowding in front of it than I expected. It seemed like all of my classmates were slowly gathering there. Jace asked President, “What’s the matter, Pres?”

“After finally taking off all those planks we found out that there were three different tunnels and there’s a considerable chance of unknown danger hiding. Until now, everything went smoothly, but there’s no way of knowing beforehand where those passages could possibly lead us to.”

What followed after was a ginormous amount of heated discussions about how to proceed with exploration. It was a time wasting in a sense, yes, but for me it was a perfect opportunity to finally see the rest of my classmates.

Rita Knox. She became a witch. At least such an impression I received after seeing her current attire. It seems like her appearance didn’t alter at all. Only clothes. Was she like Jace? Maybe her voice now is similar to the nasal accent that’s inherent to those hundred-year-old broom riders in my memories? Unfortunately she stayed silent during discussions. Noticing my scrutinizing gaze she nodded back. It’s too loud right now but I’ll get my answer later today. Back in school, Rita was a friend of mine. We never were especially close, but did talk from time to time.

Sophie Rantala. She got more dazzling and her back now was adorned with a pair of pure white wings. An angel, her very being surrounded by an aura which puts you at ease. When she walked past me I felt like something gently brushed the nape of my neck. I turned to look at her. It was then that I finally noticed her eyes, the look she had. Wrong. There was something very wrong about her. I would need to be cautious around her, I made a mental note. Sophie’s eyes seemed almost empty, drained of humanity with only an occasional glimmer breaking through. Sophie was friends with ghost Melissa from what I remember. About the latter.

Melissa Herrera. She was a lively girl as well as my neighbor. I saw her quite a lot in my childhood years but as time flowed we distanced from each other. I still considered her as a friend though. Her skin became paler, her hair somewhat translucent. She was staring at an empty spot on the wall absentmindedly paying absolutely no credit to the conversation raging around her.

Polly and Paul Lamarre. Twins. Now they were a pair of a goblin and gremlin respectively. To be honest, looks never were their forte so they didn’t lose much in that department. They were trying to add something to the conversation but their words died in the overall rumble.

Hugh Reinhart. Don’t know much about him and it’s not like I tried to learn more. Saw him a few times with President, dragon Isabella and Jace. They didn’t look like close friends though. He studied well so I guess it was the only thing they had in common. He seemed somewhat arrogant and implacable, which repelled me from him naturally. He became a headless horseman sitting on a black horse. He was actively stating his position with many gestures, seemingly confident that his idea was the best whatever it was.

Reina Magister. I didn’t know much about her either. She had some kind of disease or so it seemed from her sickly appearance and how President and vice-president dragon Isabella often looked after her in class. Reina became a three feet doll. She stood aside from the main group with a scrunched up face, covering her ears with her hands.

Also there was a gloomy Leo Contessa. A loner. Now he was a fluffy slightly flattened ball wobbling around seemingly uncomfortable with loud debates.

Sooner than later, the overall noise started to die out. The conclusion was that since there are three tunnels and we are pressured by time, we’ll divide into three groups and will explore them separately. Unknown tunnels. With possible danger. All at once.

In their defense I could say that some of them were afraid to venture into the unknown. But there was an issue. I knew not whether a living tree needed to drink and dine but some of them were scared of the possibility of us starving to death. In the end, need outweighed cautiousness. Maybe it would be more reasonable to make a single group of those who will be the most suitable to travel through the tunnel and run away in case of danger. But chaotic group discussions were never known for reaching the most reasonable conclusion.

I moved closer to witch Rita as I finally gained a chance to ask the question I was curious about, “Hey! After seeing you I was somewhat relieved you didn’t turn into something… weird. Your clothes look like those of a witch though. I wonder does your voice sounds like one of those ancient sorcerers?”

She shrugged, “Well, if you reallyyy did hope to hear a decrepit voice, then I will have to disappoint you,” rolling ‘really’ over her tongue without any weird nasal accent. Were her clothes the only change? All of us were completely remolded. Was she instead visited by a wardrobe entity?

Richard joined us, “Time is running out. Groups are already being formed. If neither of you mind, I propose that the three of us will explore one of those tunnels together.”

Neither of us objected, at the very least not audibly. Groups were formed rather quickly. Much more quickly than I expected them to. A few classmates who didn’t form any group were shuffled into the three groups, one of them being mine.

Unicorn Vlad and doll Reina joined my group. The former still looked dejected as he couldn’t reunite with Henry. After joining our group he had yet to say a word. The latter was admonished by President to remain inside the cave but to no avail. She was dead set on exploring the uninviting bleak tunnel as if it was a treasure trove. President rustled exasperatedly but relented seeing that his efforts fell flat on porcelain ears.

Not everyone joined the exploration. Dragon Isabella was too massive for that matter as her tail alone was enough to fill the tunnel’s opening. Some of my classmates like fluffy Leo and gremlin Paul were cautious or possibly fearful enough to stay out of danger. As they weren’t exactly suitable for the task, no one insisted.

Then the matter came to which tunnel each group should explore. To avoid another tiresome conversation I simply pulled my group towards the right tunnel. While leaving, I noticed that Jace’s group headed to the left, leaving President with but a single choice.

While leaving, I looked over at my group once again. Me, Richard, witch Rita, unicorn Vlad and doll Reina. Will six of us be really enough to deal with whatever there’s in the unknown?