Salome found herself in a vast cavern, its dome-like ceiling composed entirely of an intricate tangle of roots.

  The tree trunks, standing in great intervals throughout the space, sprouted their roots in some places in an unusually steep, almost vertical manner from the ground, stretching up to the dome where they branched into a labyrinth of wood and gnarls. In a way, the place somehow reminded Salome of Fundament, with its world pillars piercing the clouded sky. Moreover, it was dark—though not as dark as she had initially assumed, for here too, scattered luminous beetles scurried about, albeit far fewer than above, and the large mushrooms grew only sparsely and far apart.

  Salome took several deep breaths and struggled to rise to her feet. With every movement, waves of pain shot through her body, and she nearly collapsed once again. Yet somehow, gritting her teeth, she managed to balance on one leg. Tentatively, she tried to set her left foot on the ground and bear the weight, but the effort made her nauseous. Thus, she had no choice but to limp cautiously onward.

  "I'm ready," she cried, her voice strained. The sooner she escaped this strange, eerie place, the better.

  "Alright," replied Kiran. His voice now held a calmer tone than before. "Just move in the direction from which you can hear my voice."

  Salome heard the sound of footsteps—the two boys moving somewhere above her. Slowly, she limped after them, a task made all the more difficult by the tall grass around her, almost reaching up to her stomach. She noticed how unusually dry and gray it appeared.

  "Watch out down there!" Van called out worriedly. "If you need help, I'll come to you, no matter what that blockhead says."

  Kiran snorted audibly but did not comment, adding, "Don’t forget: be wary of unusual sources of light! And if you hear rustling grass nearby..."

  "Then what?" Salome replied anxiously, scanning the vast cavern suspiciously.

  "Forget it. Just hope it doesn’t come to that."

  Salome swallowed hard.

  It was terribly exhausting and slow to hobble on one leg. She had to pause now and then, leaning against a tree trunk or a root. There was nothing here besides the grass—no fallen branches she could use as a cane, no thinner roots she could tear off, not even stones or other plants.

  "What kind of place is this?" she cried, panting as she groped along the bark of a trunk.

  "A labyrinth," came Kiran’s voice. "All those who are not meant to be here eventually find themselves here. The path isn't open to everyone."

  "And why not?" Salome asked.

  "There are things that must be protected, and there are those from whom they must be safeguarded."

  "Aha," Salome remarked, wincing in pain. "And what are wisps?" she groaned.

  "You never heard of wisps?" Van interjected, astonished.

  "I’m surprised you know about them," said Kiran.

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  "Well, 'knowing' is probably not the right word. I’ve heard stories of solitary wanderers being hypnotically drawn to strange lights, suspended in midair, and straying from the path. But those stories never end well. Most often, they fall into some hole or abyss, or blindly wander into a swamp where they drown."

  "Wisps are simple spirits," Kiran declared. "They cloud the senses and obscure the mind—not out of malice, but because their nature is the very essence of stray. A deep construct that effortlessly influences the delicate fabric of the human spirit. One must be wary of them, yet they make for diligent guardians."

  Ghosts, then.

  At another time, Salome might have leaped for joy upon hearing that ghosts truly existed. But now she merely ground her teeth, hoping never to encounter one. Getting lost in her current state was the last thing she wanted, especially since the boys’ conversation brought her some solace. She focused entirely on their voices and let them guide her.

  Time dragged on agonizingly, particularly because she didn’t know how much longer she could endure. She tried not to think about what might be lurking in the shadows at the edge of her vision, watching her hungrily.

  "How much further is it?" she asked wearily, already feeling her leg cramp and the effort to keep her balance growing ever more strenuous.

  "We’re almost there," Kiran called out.

  The pain had scarcely subsided, and on top of it all, Salome noticed her ankle was swollen. Removing her foot from the boot would be a nightmare.

  In the distance, she could see blue sources of light, solitary and murky, drifting in the darkness. It was as if, at night, she were gazing into a deep pond, upon whose bottom gleamed shiny pearls. But were they bugs? Or was one of those wisps lurking among them? Wherever Salome looked, the same image confronted her. Without Kiran’s guidance, she would never have found the correct way down here.

  "Salome, the exit is near. Hold on," Kiran said. She gritted her teeth and ignored her exhaustion. She walked between two trees standing unusually close together and headed straight for a strangely branching tangle of roots that arched just above the ground in several directions before rising towards the dome. As she approached, similar constructs emerged from the darkness until it appeared as if there was a grown wall of living wood. And in all the gaps between the roots, blue light shimmered.

  "You should now be right in front of the exit," Kiran called. "You must pass through a gap near the ground. But you have to find the correct one! All the others are guarded by wisps, and if you touch them, you’re lost! The exit will look just like all the others at first glance, but that is merely an illusion."

  "And how am I to recognize it?" Salome asked wearily.

  "Just look closely," Kiran replied simply. "You will find it."

  "I don’t like this," Van said grimly. "How do you know she’ll find the right way?"

  "There's something about her. I'm not sure how to put it into words, but..." He paused. "Anyway, right now we have to trust her. There's nothing else we can do."

  Salome tried to breathe steadily. To the pain in her leg now joined a piercing headache from the exertion. As if in a trance, she studied the wall of roots more closely while slowly hopping towards it. In all the openings that were large enough to slip through, blue light shimmered. There were no bugs visible anywhere that could be exuding that ghostly blue. What was she to do? If she chose the wrong opening…

  Suddenly, she heard soft rustling. She turned around and stared into the darkness behind her. There it was again—soft, barely audible rustling, as if something were moving through the tall grass. She turned back to the lights and tried to ignore her racing heartbeat. What did Kiran say about rustling grass again?

  Some of the lights differed from the ghostly blue of the insects, though not in any way she could describe in words. They seemed merely brighter, lighter, or perhaps… less real? Near her were two openings that resembled Kiran’s description. But which one was the exit? Which was a wisp and which was not?

  She glanced over her shoulder again and was horrified to see the rustling coming from different directions. And it was drawing nearer. She almost thought she saw the long blades of grass parting around something that was advancing in its concealment.

  She had to decide. If her strength failed her here, in this place, she might never see the light of day again. And whatever lurked behind, she certainly did not wish to come into close contact with it.

  So she gathered her remaining energy, chose the left of the two openings, and limped as fast as she could into the unnatural blue.