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SoulBound [Progression Fantasy]
Chapter 1 - Endless Maze

Chapter 1 - Endless Maze

A silence whispered through an endless amount of hallways and rooms. The silence was sharp, and any sudden noise could slice it like paper. A whisper echoed throughout the silence, followed by another whisper. The whispers began to build, devouring the silence and reverberating throughout every room and hall.

In the silence, a gasp echoed out. A man had awoken, his eyesight blurred and his head aching with an unbearable pain. He gripped his forehead, trying to calm the thumps that echoed through his head with each heartbeat. The pounding was loud, unbearable, but the pain began to slowly calm itself as time passed.

Before long, the pain had been just a vivid memory, being fully subsided. The man's vision had returned and he raised his head slowly, fearful that the pain would return.

Where… am I? What is this place? The man had no memories of how he had gotten there. This surprised him, even scared him, as he turned to view the room in attempts to recall such missing memories. The place was unfamiliar and brought no memories back to his quiet mind.

In search of anything, he looked through his mind, hoping to find some sort of hint, but he could only find one thing. His lips parted as he spoke aloud, “My name… is Quinn Cyrus…”

This was the only piece of his mind that he could remember. Everything else had been cast away to an unknown place, whether that was of his own volition, or of someone else's, he didn't know.

He rubbed his hand against the floor, its wooden texture was smooth and cold. Slowly, he pushed himself up, motioning into an upright position.

He held his head in his hand, making sure it would not beat with pain again, before dropping his arm and searching the room with a glance.

I've never seen this place before. Quinn looked forward to find a beautiful grand wooden staircase made of glossy wood, carved with beautiful designs and a red silk carpet that covered the steps. On its sides were more stairs, similar in look that led downwards.

Quinn turned around to see what was behind him. A giant ashy wood door towered over him. It looked old, and its nob was made of a rusted silver metal.

Quinn wasn't sure where he was, but he knew he likely shouldn't have been there. In an attempt to leave, he grabbed the door handle and tried to twist it, but the handle would not budge a bit. He tried twisting it again, much harder this time, but it still wouldn't move.

That's strange… maybe there is another way out? Quinn took a step away from the door. He turned his head to look at both sides of the door and spotted two windows, both boarded up. Moving over to the right window, Quinn tried to peer through the gaps of the wood panels, but the wood was placed tightly together making it impossible to see through.

Why are the windows boarded up? Maybe they are broken? This place seems to be very strange. Quinn tried wrapping his fingers around one of the boards, pulling at it to see if he could make it budge, but the board was held firmly to the window.

He lightly gasped for breath after failing to make the board move. Stepping away, he tried thinking of another way he could get out of there.

There were two rooms on both sides of the staircase. Deciding he had no other choice, he decided to make his way into the room on his left.

He stepped through an archway onto old purple carpet. In the center of the room was a recliner that faced an old box T.V that sat in the corner. Not far right of the T.V was a table with a small plant that seemed fresh and lively. At the back of the room, right of the entrance was an old wooden door. It seemed to be an old living room.

The room was dark, with nothing but the static of the T.V screen to illuminate the room. Quinn decided he might be able to get information from the T.V, so he made his way over and started tampering with it. Twisting the old knobs and moving the antennas, nothing seemed to change on the screen.

He was very disappointed in the fact that he still found no clues of how to get out. After finding nothing in the living room, he moved towards the old door and opened it, stepping to the other side and shutting it behind him.

Quinn’s eyes opened in shock as he saw where he was located. It was a room he had not yet entered yet, but one he had caught a faint glimpse of when he awoke near the front door. Currently, Quinn was standing in the kitchen, which was located on the opposite side of the staircase from the living room.

Usually, there would be no problem if the rooms had a hallway connecting them, but they did not. They seemed to have an impossible connection!

Quinn turned back, opening the door and glancing at the living room that stood behind him. It was strange, but after a few moments, Quinn had turned back around, closing the door behind him. He believed that maybe the rooms were just an optical illusion, so he forgot about what he saw and carried on, looking for a way out.

Before he made it any further, his stomach growled loudly. He hadn't eaten in an unknown amount of time, so he believed getting food would be a good idea. Luckily for him, he was already standing in a kitchen.

The kitchen walls were painted bright yellow and the cabinets were a light blue color. Next to the door Quinn had just entered from was a fridge, so Quinn decided he could just take some food out of it and no one would notice.

After opening it up, Quinn noticed that there was nothing inside, so disappointed, he closed the fridge and began to search the cabinets. To his surprise, all of the cabinets had been empty as well.

This place is very strange. Maybe I could at least get some water.

Walking over to the sink, Quinn turned the tap but no water came out. Quinn sighed in disappointment.

Come on. What does a man have to do to get some food, or even something to drink? Quinn’s stomach rumbled once again, but he tried forgetting about it after realizing he wouldn't be able to get any food. To distract himself, he continued looking for a way out.

He left the dining room and entered a dining room that was connected to it. There wasn't much, just a silver chandelier hanging over a small table, so he didn't bother with it much and reentered back into the room where he awoke.

Deciding to check once more, Quinn stepped into the living room and checked the door, seeing if there was a chance he just missed how they were connected, but his eyes had not deceived him the first time.

Opening the door, Quinn saw the kitchen, with no hallway connecting the two rooms. He looked in both shock and horror, trying to figure out what had occurred.

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This is definitely not an optical illusion. This disobeys the laws of the world! Quinn closed the door, stepping away and heading back to the staircase.

Maybe I should head upstairs and see if there is anything I can find up there. Before making his way up the stairs, Quinn spotted photos that climbed up the wall, following the staircase. Each photo was hand drawn, but had extremely good detail, carving the faces of each person in the portraits to perfection.

A small golden tag with a person's name could be found under each and every one of the photos, each one ending with the same last name, “...Lazareth…”

At the bottom of the staircase, a photo with the top half of the image ripped off could be found. The face could not be seen, but the name of the person could still be found on the gold nameplate beneath it. Quinn leaned in close, reading the name of the person with the ripped photo, “Nile Lazareth.”

These must be the owners of the home. They are likely all ancestors that have lived in this place, like a family home.

Quinn paid no more mind to the photos as he stepped slowly up the stairs. After reaching halfway up, he turned around to continue moving upwards but was stopped in his tracks, almost falling backwards, as he stared at the room at the top of the stairs.

In front of him, the giant ashy door soared above him. It shouldn't have been possible, couldn't have been, but there it stood as broad as daylight.

How! That isn't possible! First the living room door, now this? Quinn rushed up the stairs to confirm it was the same room, and surprisingly, it was. In a burst of energy, Quinn ran up the stairs once again to confirm his suspicions. After reaching the top of the stairs, the ashy door stood in front of him once again.

“It's the same thing!” Quinn ran down the stairs, expecting a different result, but it was still the same as the times before. The door had an oppressive aura as he stared at it.

Quinn slowed down, his energy leaving him as he fell to the ground. Sweat poured from his forehead, dripping to the floor.

I think I need to rest for a moment. Quinn walked over to the purple chair in the living room and sat down, trying to regain his composure.

The front door wont open, the living room and kitchen door doesn't lead anywhere new, and the stairwell is a never ending loop. If none of those lead to a new place, then how am I supposed to get out of this place!?

After a few minutes of trying to calm down, Quinn stood up from the old chair and made his way to the door at the back of the living room. After opening it and stepping through, he closed the door behind him and tried searching around the kitchen once again, this time not for food, but for a way out.

After finding nothing of use, he decided to check the living room once again. He walked over to the door at the back of the kitchen and tried using it to get into the living room, but for some strange reason, the living room was not on the other side of the door. Instead, a long hallway with bright yellow wallpaper could be found on the other side.

Huh…

Quinn stepped through the door into the unfamiliar place. He turned back to make sure he was seeing things correctly, before turning back around and looking through the hallway.

But why did the kitchen door suddenly lead me to this new hallway? And how is this even possible in the first place? Quinn tried finding reason in the unreasonable, and surprisingly, he thought of something.

Is it because I never opened the kitchen door from the kitchen side and always used it from the living room side? This was the only answer he could come up with at the current moment. It was the only thing that made sense with this illogical predicament.

Quinn shut the door behind him, and after opening it once more to confirm that the door led into the kitchen, he closed the door behind him and started searching around the hallway.

At the end of the hallway, a door could be seen, along with two doors that sat across from each other on both sides of the hall. The first place Quinn visited was the doorway on the left wall of the hall.

Hesitantly, he opened the door and glanced inside of the room. Inside was a bathroom with a toilet and a small sink. With hope, Quinn turned the sink on and water poured from the faucet. Quinn got a sudden burst of excitement after finally finding something useful. He bent his head under the tap and, with huge gulps, inhaled the water without a break. After getting his fill, he stepped back and started washing his face. The sensation of the water across his face began to calm him.

Lifting his head, he stared into a mirror that hung above the bathroom sink. Looking back at him was an unfamiliar reflection, one he had forgotten before awakening in this strange place.

The face was of a man with sharp eyes and a nice jaw. His hair, raven black and semi long, uneven and overgrown. A silver earring reflected in the mirror, hanging from his earlobe. His eyes were dark brown, almost black even in the light. How he could forget this face, one he had been born with, he didn't know.

His clothes were nothing special, only being a long black sleeved shirt along with long gray pants and shoes that matched his clothing.

After admiring his face a little bit longer, Quinn stepped away from the mirror and made his way to the room on the other side of the hallway. Stepping inside, he spotted a small office with a wooden desk and bookshelves surrounding it. The wallpaper was dark green, giving the room a nice aesthetic. At the back of the room, another door.

Quinn stepped over to the desk, checking the drawers for any clues or information of where he was and how to get out. All he could find were blank papers that were scattered throughout the drawers.

Just as he was about to step away from the desk, the door in the office suddenly burst open and footsteps began to rush towards Quinn. He tried turning around to defend himself, but froze after feeling a sharp object to his throat.

“Who are you?” A female voice demanded. Quinn raised his hands slowly, indicating he had no weapon, and that he did not want to harm her.

Slowly and calmly he replied, “My name is Quinn Cyrus. I am sorry if I am trespassing inside of your home. I only just awoke here less than thirty minutes ago.”

Quinn had assumed that the woman was one of the owners of the mansion, but the hesitancy in her voice indicated otherwise, “You aren’t the owner of this mansion?”

Quinn was confused, “No, I thought you were the owner of this… mansion.”

The girl slowly pulled the knife away from Quinn’s throat, and Quinn slowly stood up and faced the woman. Her hair was black and flowed slightly below her shoulders. Her eyes, bright blue and had a sort of elegance. Her face was soft and she looked to be the definition of beautiful.

“You are the first person I have seen in days, roughly two days if I counted correctly.”

“Two days? You mean you have been stuck in here as well?” Kiara nodded her head in confirmation. Quinn’s face turned pale after realizing his situation may have been worse than he thought.

“My name is Kiara Bella, it's nice to meet you.” Kiara held out her hand to Quinn. Quinn grasped her hand, shaking it hesitantly.

After shaking hands, Kiara looked past Quinn and spotted the bathroom behind him, “Is that sink working?”

She walked past Quinn hurriedly and made her way to the bathroom, “Yeah, I used it just before I met you.”

Kiara pulled out water bottles from a green bag Quinn had just noticed and began to refill them with the sinks water. After refilling the bottles, she took out a wrapped candy bar and tossed it to Quinn, “Here, I assume you are hungry. I was the same when I awoke. Hopefully this will hold you over until we can find some proper food.”

Quinn caught the candy bar and Quickly unwrapped it, eating it in only a few bites. After the candy bar was gone, he sighed with relief before putting the wrapped to the side.

Kiara stepped out of the bathroom and looked at the two doorways at the end of the halls. Quinn realized what she was thinking, so he quickly replied, “The door on your left is the only door that I haven't been through yet. I recommend going there.”

Kiara nodded as she made her way to the door. She turned around and stared at Quinn who continued to look at her, “Do you want to join me?”

Quinn didn't need to think long as he had no other choices, “Sure, I'll join you.”

Kiara opened the door to the next room, a bright light shined into the hallway before Quinn and Kiara stepped through to the other side, closing it behind them.

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