A quick look around showed he was boxed in some sort of hallway. With a wall to his back and forward as his only destination. All walls were of the same nature as the floor, which were dark stones with silvery veins. What do these people have with silver? he wondered absentmindedly. Thankfully his meager belongings were here with him. He quickly shouldered his bag and firmly grabbed his staff.

"Am I still in that ruin or?" he muttered aloud, as he tried to pick up clues. He had no idea how he got there. While the floor was similar, the ceiling wasn't. "Maybe I am below?" He peered up. Indeed, the ceiling was crackled and made of the same kind of stone as the walls. So it was a possibility. The wall came with a few magical lanterns every few meters, which didn't help him make out the details, with their flickering flames and moving shadows.

The floating book was strangely persistent in his floatiness and stayed firmly by his side, despite the few steps he took around as he was taking in his surroundings. Grabbing it with his left hand didn't pose much of a problem. It was a heavy tome, covered in leather and coppery edge caps. Strangely enough, its front held no title but a very stylish compass made of copper and silver intermingled stars. "Isn't that unusual... But maybe it is aluminum, I honestly can tell the difference," he muttered to himself. He lifted his right hand and compared both. Not that he had a need too, as he was already sure of it. The compass was a perfect match for his seal, except the book's was static. The book was still up for debate.

As he was about to open the book, he heard something. Stone scraping against stone. That doesn't bode well, at all. He left the book hanging and strode forward, stick first. Who knows if the floor will hold my weight? He clearly remembered the state the floor above was in. He still wasn't used to walking barefoot, and the floor didn't help him appreciate his involuntary new way of life. The hallway wasn't large, it was almost claustrophobic. He couldn't extend his arms without touching the walls. Still, soon enough he reached a three-way intersection. "Left, right, or across?" he asked himself. The sound had stopped already, but he was still on his guard. As discreetly as he could, he peeked around the corner. The new hallways were of the same sort as his current abode and continued for barely a few meters before angling away.

A soft breeze reached him from the left. The breeze must mean some access to the outside, or at least that's what they always say in movies, so it must be true... haha He was about to move when he heard the stone scrapping again. He closed his eyes, trying to get a better idea of its origin, turning his head left and right. The damn thing comes from everywhere, it echoes on the wall. He sighed. I guess I'll have to go left. Yet as he put the stick forward, his eyes crossed his right hand's tattoo.

"Could it be that stupid?" he wondered. The book had dutifully followed him, and he grabbed it again. Its compass was utterly static because of course it was fused to the leather cover. Derailed from his previous line of thought, he opened the book and found himself confused at the display. While the tome seemed wide enough to be a full dictionary, it only contained six pages. "The hell?" he muttered. The only inscription was on the first, bearing a large black square. Besides that ... Nothing. The few following pages were just blank. He closed the book again and this time looked at his tattoo. This compass definitely pointed to the right. "Okay... Maybe that's the north?"

"Either left or right then," he muttered. He looked across because that was the last of his options. It seemed to split into two other lateral options barely ten meters further, but there was something odd with the walls. All the other walls were battered and old. But while these had roughly the same shape and color, they were different in a way he couldn't quite put his finger on. Maybe it was the color despite the blue tint that bathed everything, as it seemed somewhat off. "Yeah, no."

He turned toward the left, trusting his nose more than some weird magical GIF tattoo. He heard the stone groaning again, and this time felt it even through the soles of his feet. "Clearly not cool," he muttered. He started to walk faster, as he reached the corner, again prudently peeking around. The hallway was longer, probably more than twenty meters long, not that he was a good judge of distances. At the end of it, he spotted another intersection.

"I really don't like this... It just lacks the mystical chants and that would be some demonic temple or a fucking labyrinth..." he whispered. For some reason, he felt discretion was the better part of valor. He looked back, just in case. The floating book was intent on following him closely, but he couldn't care less. A few steps further in this new hallway he felt a click coming from below. Because, of course, there would be a trap! he mentally cursed as his foot seemed to have triggered a hidden pressure plate. This time, for sure every stone in his surroundings groaned, especially behind him. It didn't take a genius to guess what was about to happen, as the whole floor seemed to shake and he dashed, barefoot, forward. He was surprised by his speed and thanked the god of apple trees for his quick recovery. Still, the pressured wind pushing at his back didn't bode anything well. As if that wasn't sufficient, the floor to his left and right suddenly dropped into some abyss. "SHIT!" Both trenches seemed to race with him and quickly overtook him. Right before the intersection, the damnable mastermind behind that trap decided to place a massive pitfall of at least three or four meters long.

The young man didn't even have time to think things through. He pushed himself forward, grabbed whatever speed he could muster, and jumped, hoping against all evidence that he would somehow make it to the other side. Suddenly, he felt his ears pop and the other side met his face at a tremendous speed. He rolled over and landed on the back, his nose hurting something fierce. But what held his attention was the large boulder that crashed against the pit he'd just vacated and covered it snuggly, just a few centimeters from his hairless head. A resounding boom sent dust everywhere and burned his eyes, adding to his predicament.

"Goddamnit!" he shouted. His heart hadn't yet calmed, and he didn't care for stealth anymore. He felt his heart pumping throughout his body. And slowly, drawing on whatever resources he had, he attempted to calm down. He still had both his stick and his bag. I'd kill for a bottle of water right now. Coke even. he thought. To his surprise, the book had followed him and was still hovering above him. What's his problem? A click echoed below, and the boulder scrapped against the pit and slid into the abyss below. A few seconds later, he felt the wall at his feet move. The battered young man quickly got to his feet and watched the rest of the wall retracting into the floor, revealing a stone display in a little alcove, on which a pair of faintly shining beads were exposed. A green and a red one.

"A labyrinth. Or a maze whichever. Or... a dungeon?" he muttered. The last option was the worst to his mind. Because it would mean malicious intent and active will to see him dead, at least according to his vast literary expertise. "Still, it seems that challenge equates to a reward of sorts." The floating book didn't seem to indicate one way or another, so he decided to ignore it. "Should I take further precautions? Usually, it's for golden figurines that one requires to provide an equally weighted bag of sand..."

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

He sighed and looked around. Either hallway didn't seem to provide an immediate solution to his conundrum. He could leave an apple in compensation but he didn't like the idea either. Should something happen, he'd run to his left and hope for the best. He took a deep breath and walked toward the display. He left his stick against the wall. Fearfully he raised his hand and grabbed both beads. Nothing happened. He sighed in relief. "Okay, so far so good."

They were smallish things, barely the size of a fingernail. He couldn't fit them in his bag, they would fall through the vinemails. His robe lacked pockets. He could probably tear a piece of his clothing and make a makeshift pouch. "Got any better ideas?" he asked his book companion. It didn't answer. "Yeah, I thought so." And for some reason, it opened itself on the first page. The black square was still there. Within a few lines appeared.

Jade Orb of Strength +3 (uncommon):

When fitted in a Seal, increases the wearer's Strength attribute.\

Task: Collect ten Orbs of Strength (0/10).

Jade Orb of Dexterity +3 (uncommon):

When fitted in a Seal, increases the wearer's Dexterity attribute.

Task: Collect ten Orbs of Dexterity (0/10).

"What the?" he muttered. "What's that supposed to mean?" He looked at the orbs in his hand. He put the green one on the display, and the lines about the Orb of Dexterity disappeared. "Guess that explains it. What about these tasks though?" The book turned its pages and both tasks appeared.

Task: Collect ten Orbs of Strength (0/10). [ ]

Task: Collect ten Orbs of Dexterity (0/10). [ ]

This time a strange little square appeared beside the task's text. "What's that?" he asked. Out of curiosity, his finger touched the inscribed text. He couldn't feel any indent or anything. It was like printed text. Yet when his finger reached the square he distinctly felt something. It was like a small bump. Curious, he pressed and he felt his finger sinking into the book. He quickly pulled it out. "The hell is that?" he asked, but he suddenly had a stupid grin. He took one of his curious Orbs and pushed through the square. It eagerly absorbed it, and promptly the counter rose to "1/10".

"Nice!" he exclaimed. He tried to push his finger in once again, and this time he distinctly felt the Orb within. Adding his thumb to the party, he took hold of the Orb and dragged it back. It came out easily enough and the counter reverted to "0/10". "So that's how it works." He grinned, "You're a very useful book to have around, aren't you?"

The book of course didn't react. He sighed and turned the page back to square one. "It says that these little Orbs could grant Strength and Dexterity attributes. And they must be fitted." It didn't say how, but he had a rather good idea. He grabbed the Strength Orb with his left hand and pulled away his right sleeve to reveal the compass tattoo. With a finger, he traced the outlines of the several roundish depressions he had spotted earlier. "The size seems corresponding, so I guess that's where they go."

He had a sudden apprehension. "Last time I messed with these things I've fainted, been teleported, or forced to run for safety..." he wondered aloud. "Is that such a great idea to do that now?" He looked at the book, which was still floating. "What do you think?" he asked. The book didn't answer.

"Caution is the mother of safety," he concluded. He had the book open once again at the Task's chapter and pushed in both his Orbs. He glanced at the following pages and found that the book had updated itself. A lexicon of sorts had appeared, with two entries. Both Orbs were listed, and their effects were described. "That's nifty," He wondered what else he could use this book for. "I guess I'll have to find out, but later."

He grabbed his staff again and headed toward the left hallway, as the right one probably went back toward his previous intersection if he judged the direction it went correctly. His hall quickly turned right again and again. Both times the young man checked cautiously both the ground and then the corner. He wouldn't be caught off guard again. Suddenly, the lighting was getting dimmer. He backtracked his steps and confirmed it was a general thing and not a local one. "I guess I'll have to find the exit soon." He felt his fear rising a notch. "I don't want to be stuck here in the dark."

His hallway never stopped turning left and right, like a madened lizard. His focus must have slipped at some point because he was surprised to hear another click quickly followed by a dozen Pfumpf sounds. He didn't have time to wonder what happened again when he felt himself getting pummeled by several projectiles. Two of them hit him in the legs and got him to his knees. He barely had the time to raise his hands to protect his head when another round punched him in the ribs. He dove forward and got his arms to protect his head. He heard the projectiles whistling above him, and hitting the walls around him. After a minute, he decided they would never stop and he had to keep going. So he crawled, wincing each time he got hit by a lucky shot, but he managed to reach the end of the hallway.

Another click echoed and the projectiles ceased their assault. He sighed in relief. "That was close." He got to his feet and looked behind. The hallway was littered with black balls. He grabbed one. It was heavier than he expected. And quite solid too. The walls had been battered by the impacts, leaving scraps of stone on the ground. It's not like he felt fine and dandy, but... "Why am I not dead?" he asked himself. These weren't gummy balls. He checked himself, he had several bruises, and probably a bump or two on the back of his head, but nothing more. His ribs hurt but didn't seem broken.

He looked at the book. "You're not going to tell me, are you?" he asked. The book didn't answer. He could probably get an analysis of the ball but it seemed like useless information anyway. Another click echoed and the wall at his left retracted, revealing another small alcove and a display. This time a single Orb was exposed. It was a brown one. "Let me guess..." he muttered and pondered for a second or two. "Will it be Constitution? It's a common enough trope, right?" he asked his book friend, also still intact for some reason. He opened the book and read.

Jade Orb of Constitution +3 (uncommon):

When fitted in a Seal, increases the wearer's Constitution attribute.

Task: Collect ten Orbs of Constitution (0/10).

"Sure thing." He grabbed the Orb and pushed it through the Task's space holder, closed the book, and moved on. It was getting dark. He grabbed his staff and moved on. The hallway didn't provide any more opportunity to change course, and he still occasionally felt the draft that led him here to begin with. He was getting tired, both physically and emotionally. When he checked the next corner, he was greeted by an intersection among whose options were a series of steps. "Oh come on!" he muttered. "I'm not in the mood for this!" He sighed. He walked to the steps and looked up. Thankfully they're going up. Emerging from the top of the stairs, he could see some silver light shining. Hope rose in his heart. He quickly climbed the stairs, forgetting to check them for traps, and found himself back in the room with the doors. He sighed in relief. "Finally!"

Beside the stairs, the absence of the silver blob of liquid death, and the three lit doors, the room was still the same. Even the outside was still the same. The setting sun hadn't moved, and neither had the clouds. He shrugged, he was bone tired. "Maybe I can rest a moment, right?" he asked his book. It didn't answer. He sighed and sat down. He took an apple from his bag and chewed on it. "I'd kill for some water."

He was pretty sure he wasn't the same guy as when he stepped into this strange ruin. Should I care that much? If I can take a beating, I guess that's kind of useful. He wondered, Plus there was whatever that happened with the boulder. And the things with the Orbs. He sighed. I guess I'll have to find out. He munched on. I'll have to find out, but later. I'm too tired to care right now.

By the doors, on a pedestal, an intriguing small wooden chest had appeared. I hope there is water in it!