Alright! We made it!

(Press enter or space)

After about four hours of mucking about in the Zoza sewer system.

This place is incredible. The soldiers weren't kidding... It almost feels like the room is alive.

Hello!

Gwah! Who was that?!

The room!

OMG.

Just kidding!

I'm Distal Fragment 1,890,139's STMI Interface Unit, but you can call me Stymie! I know lots of things about the Labyrinth, so you can talk to me if you have any questions.

We'll definitely take you up on that.

Does STMI stand for something?

STMI is short for "System that Misrepresents Information."

Or was it "System that Misinterprets Information..."

In any case, I'm happy to help if you get stuck.

So what brings you two down here?

We're labyrinth hobbyists!

Well, "researchers" is what they call us at the university.

You get about the same budget either way.

How exciting! Have you studied many other labyrinths?

Well...

Only dead ones.

Kodaly!

What? It's true.

All the other living labyrinths in the world are in nations the Southern Allies are at war with.

Not to mention there are only three of them around to begin with.

Which is why we're so grateful for this opportunity. It's so much different to map a living system than it is to map a fossil.

I'm honored!

I can't speak for the labyrinth in its entirety, but if I were it, I imagine I would be flattered by your enthusiasm.

:3

:3

So you don't represent the entire labyrinth?

I'm just a small part that broke off and integrated with the STMI System.

...

The TMI System.

...

The MI System?

I had no idea that was possible.

So you don't know how big the wider labyrinth is?

The only branches I can see are the three in front of me, which are quite small.

Everything back to the north is a complete mystery.

Tell me all about it if you ever end up going there!

Hey, Stymie.

Hello!

There's a key at the bottom of that pool back there, but the water seems to have a current running through it. Do you know any way of shutting it off?

Normally I would, but the data cube for that room was removed from my circuit board a few days ago.

It's behind the puzzle wall at the bottom of the lift one room over to the west.

Removed? Did someone take it?

I'm actually not sure. But my bet is, it was that black-furred soldier who stayed behind.

He was tampering with some other systems at some point.

A soldier stayed behind!? Is he... is he still here?

He went north, so I have no way of knowing.

So he's probably still here in the labyrinth.

Possibly.

There may be other exits behind me that I don't know about. But, given that up until a few months ago the labyrinth had a room/entrance ratio of 20,004,831 to 0, I've got to assume it's unlikely.

But it's not impossible.

On second thought, I'm not sure if he was really a soldier... but he looked like it.

Anyway, let me know if you find that data cube and I'll be happy to turn off the current in the sauna for you.

Thanks!

Woah!

I went up.

So it would seem.

I wonder what else this thing can do.

Go down, I bet.

bzzt crackle

I don't know why I expected to get a signal down here.

We are a mile underground, after all.

Do you think the labyrinth made this too?

It looks more like something one of the soldiers left behind.

Perfectly good radio. Those bastards.

I mean it might actually be broken. It's hard to tell.

Hmm.

Yep. Still broken.

Thank god you checked.

Any luck finding that data cube?

Not yet!

Keep me posted!

Hey! Another key!

Just gonna... reach...

YOWZER!

Oh my God! Are you okay?

My wing is cramping up like crazy.

I think it's electrified.

I still want to see if we can get that key though.

We should ask Stymie if she knows how to turn off the current in this room.

Or if she knows where we can find any long wooden poles...

I told you we should have packed the 10-foot poles.

It's dangerous to touch the water, but I think we'll need that key to move deeper into the labyrinth.

This one's locked.

Man, com'on, door, that's no fair.

...

...

Let's look for a key.

Ah. Still locked.

Figures.

It fits!

Yay!

I don't think I can carry anything else right now.

Who are you talking to?

Can't... Too heavy...

You're just carrying two things!

I only got two arms, Bridget!

I'm carrying too many things right now. I don't even have arms.

Wings are specialized arms, Kodaly...

You make a good point. Still only have two.

I also can't hold any more items right now.

We're just wee men.

Neither of us are men.

We're just wee.

Wee little men.

Too many items for wee little fellows.

Fellows is good.

We're just wee fellows.

With two arms each.

I can't hold any more keys.

Me neither!

They're surprisingly heavy.

I don't know if "surprising" is right—they're more than half the length of your body.

And we are but wee men.

Have you decided to become a man?

I've decided to become a wee man.

My inventory is full.

I'm beginning to think there are too many keys.

I can't carry any more keys right now.

That was fast. Are you okay down there?

Peachy keen.

Anything interesting?

There are four little alcoves around this locked hatch with a button on it.

That's actually really interesting.

I'll leave you to it.

Holler when you're ready to come up.

Ready for hoisting!

Hoisting you now!

What do you think this big circle does?

Whatever it is, I'm sure standing directly in the middle of it is sure to yield interesting results.

Which is why I'm going to stand over here by these buttons.

Nothing seems to have happened.

What?

Nothing! Sorry!

Stymie! We found your missing data cube!

Wonderful!

Let me see what I can do here.

hmmr

HrmmMMN

HrrrrrrnnNNNNngg

HRRRRRRAAARRAG

Okay! It should be safe to use the sauna now.

Let's check it out.

It's not that I don't trust Stymie, but...

I can't tell if the current has dissipated.

How do we test something like that?

Do you have a blade of grass?

I don't feel anything with the back of my wing.

...

Got it.

Yay!

Looks like the bridge's been cut.

I bet I could lasso that post if we had a long enough rope.

Okay, let's try this rope out.

Alright!

That should help us cross.

Damn! It's locked!

And after all your hard work too.

Aw, man. Still locked.

What were you expecting?

At least we can get these candles.

It's too far away to reach that. We'll have to find something around here to help us cross.

I thought goliath frogs could jump could jump like, super far.

I mean, not particularly far compared to our body size.

If it were five or ten feet closer, I would feel more confident.

Alright! Deeper into the labyrinth we go.

How's your map looking so far?

Let's take a look.

Off to a good start.

An infinitesimal fraction of an expanding behemoth, but a good start.

Oh man! A potted shrub!

Drake Messel's team in the Stal-Haberson labyrinth theorized that shrubs in l-nodes are actually independent, commensalistic organisms, and not labyrinth-constructs.

Messel says the shrub grows in a crack in the floor, and the labyrinth falsely recognizes it as a part of itself and builds a pot around it.

Seeing this now, though... It feels wrong to assume that. My hypothesis has always been that it's a mutualistic relationship.

There would have to be some benefit to the labyrinth in order for it to keep the shrub around.

Otherwise it would heal the crack and the shrub would die.

So there's something about this shrub that the labyrinth is using to give us a clue about how to get further in?

That's my bet.

Or it's like a pet or something.

It does kind of look like a numeral 7.

It does kind of look like a numeral 1.

I wonder if the Stal-Haberson labyrinth has numeral 7 shrubs.

I wonder if the Stal-Haberson labyrinth has numeral 1 shrubs.

Hey, isn't it kind of fucked up that labyrinths get de facto named after the people who found ‘em?

Probably has its own name for itself and we just don't know.

Maybe if we get to the heart, we can ask this labyrinth its name.

That is fucked up.

We should ask Stymie about labyrinth names when we go back.

What on earth was that?

...

Labyrinth names?

Tim.

Chris.

CHRIS?

TIM?

Stacy.

Gary.

*fainted*

Jaff Alamack.

Leslie Minor.

Leslie Major.

Good Christian Metermaid.

Joshua Joshua.

Solid Ribbon Ceremony.

Mike Buck Wheat.

Classic Melon Pop Tart.

Susan Eventually.

Blue Brittany.

That's a hypothetical list I've been working on.

...

Woah—uh.

Hello.

Hey, guys!

...!

Oh!

Hi there. Didn't see you come in.

I didn't think there was anyone still here.

Neither did we.

Well...

(On second thought, let's keep our theoretical rogue soldier to ourselves for now.)

Who are you?

I'm Summer Verily. I was contracted to catalogue objects here by the Kestevens Institute. Nice to meet you. Sorry for the mess.

Ah. Kestevens.

Nice to meet you too. I'm Bridget Wong, this is Jeno Kodaly. We're researchers from the Azzenand School.

I wasn't aware anyone else was given a permit to be here.

I was about to mention the same thing. By the time we left the capital we were still the only ones who had applied for a permit.

So it's... impressive that you're already deeper in than we are.

I have a knack for puzzles.

And technology!

Stymie?

That's me!

Stymie, are you alright? What is she doing to you?

Relax, I'm just expanding her sensor radius. She'll be good as new in a second.

Stymie was so helpful in that innert floret to the south that I thought I would try to get her set up here as well.

She should be eventually able to integrate with her original consciousness.

It's very funny, this all feels so high-tech, but essentially you're doing horticulture.

Pruning, grafting...

Hey, that tickles!

Sorry. All done.

Ho!

Haha!

Now we're talking.

Rooms branch out behind me in two florets to the east and west, but the main path continues at least 10 cells north. Oooh.

Room 5N9W2S.

Bridget, you'll like that one.

Thanks a million, Verily!

You're welcome.

Say, Ms. Verily—Dr. Verily?

Have you been deeper in yet? Do you know what lies ahead?

Eh—

No, not yet.

Do let me know if it's anything interesting.

I'll be working in this room for a while, so you probably won't miss me much if you're going back and forth. This is as deep as I need to go.

I'm glad I ran into you two.

You know, I actually feel a lot safer now that I know there are other people in the labyrinth.

I didn't realize how on-edge I was.

Happy to be of service!

Let us know if you need any food or supplies too.

I'm okay right now, but thank you.

Stay safe.

You get the feeling that Verily is up to something?

Oh definitely.

I don't like how non-chalantly she was tampering with Stymie.

Even though it seems like Stymie apparently consented.

Didn't we do the essentially same thing when we found her missing data cube?

I don't know... She made a specific request, didn't she?

Did she? I thought it was more like "if you find my data cube, then I can turn off the electric current for you."

It certainly seemed like it was part of the puzzle, though. We might not even have been able to get any deeper in without Stymie. Like the labyrinth knew what was missing and wanted us—

Well.

I shouldn't assume that the labyrinth wants anything, but one thing is clear.

The labyrinth always ensures that there is a way forward.

The datacube, for instance.

Why would the black-furred soldier engineer a devious puzzle for it when he could just huck it into the chasm?

I think that's exactly what he did. Then he electrified the water and cut the bridge, and the labyrinth gave us rope and a candle puzzle.

It would be a similar method to how the objects we drop migrate back to their starting positions.

The same logic applies to Stymie. There's no reason why an STMI computer would be able to control electric output in another room.

They're not set up for that. Just scanning and communication. Soldiers complain about it all the time.

Stymie was given that power by the labyrinth.

Some system of the labyrinth checked if passage to the heart was possible from the lobby, returned with a "no" and made adjustments to make it possible.

What I'm stuck on is: What's the difference between an open door and a door that could theoretically be opened?

And: to be opened by who? Who's the intended audience?

And if it's us: why us? This place was underground for probably thousands of years before emerging.

And if it's really "intent," or just a byproduct of our assumptions.

Right.

And also: Why would an organism evolve this way in the first place...

...

Speaking of the rope bridge...

If we're assuming that the soldier cut the bridge, how did Verily get across?

Unless Verily cut the bridge, the soldier must have passed her at some point.

Unless we're missing something.

It seems like we dont have the whole picture.

I think we'll end up with a lot more questions before any of these get answered.

Verily—

Hello, Dr. Wong.

You haven't seen anyone else down here have you?

Anyone else?

No, certainly not.

Why do you ask?

Stymie mentioned someone was tampering with her systems.

A black-furred, male soldier.

A mysterious green-eyed stranger—

He wore a patch over his eye and a grim, determined expression that betrayed nothing about him but the dire importance of his mission, his heart of gold, and his tragic past.

I think he was a stoat.

Interesting.

No, I haven't seen anyone fitting that description.

We can't leave yet, we just got here!

Who was that directed to?

...

...

...

The player?

Is the player diagetic?

...

...

...

...

It's nice of the labyrinth to provide a ladder.

Kodaly, can you clarify for the player what "diagetic" means?

Why yes, Bridget. "Diagetic" means "existing in the world of the game."

Thanks.

There's some sort of display screen behind those curtains, but it's powered off.

The display terminal itself doesn't have any buttons. I wonder if this long blue wire has anything to do with it.

That... Would be my hypothesis.

In fact, if it's not the blue wire I'll eat my hat.

But you're not wearing a hat!

If it's not the blue wire I'll eat your hat.

Hey!!!

It's locked!

A locked door. What a devilish conundrum.

It's locked.

This one is also locked.

Bridget!

What?

This one's locked.

...

Thank you for the information.

Locked.

There's something strange about this door.

Which is that it's locked.

That's arguably normal here.

Huzzah! The key! The lock! The key in the lock.

Another mystery put to bed by the Azzenand Labyrinth Research Department.

Hey, guys! Long time no see! What's it like up north?

Wait, what? We were just talking to you and Verily in the lobby back there.

Ooh, a guessing game! I love these.

...

Who's Verily?

Wait, so you and the other STMI terminal are distinct systems? You don't have her memories?

Guess not! Haven't seen you since you left the lobby.

Huh.

I guess we should fill you in then.

We met someone called Summer Verily in the northern lobby. She claims to be a researcher from the Kesteven's Institute.

But some things don't quite line up.

Did anyone else pass to the north? Other than the rogue soldier.

...

Oh, you know?

I have no idea.

Any number of other people might have gone that way when the army was finishing their survey. That was before I was sentient.

Someone could have accessed my wiring panel and edited my log data, and I would have had no idea.

But Verily definitely wasn't here when the soldiers were still kicking around.

The government would have had a fit.

So she must have come later.

Unless she's a soldier too.

Surely she would have told us if she were a soldier.

Well, I mean...

Maybe there's something the Southern Alliance still wants with this place that they won't admit to on paper. Verily could be an undercover opperative.

Maybe we should finish this discussion in another room.

Stymie, would you mind keeping this conversation between us?

No problem, Bridget! Confidentiality is what STMI units are known for!

Thanks, Stymie. We'll talk to you again soon.

So.

To recap... Verily had to have come in before us—

Unless there's a second entrance to the labyrinth.

And after the rogue soldier.

Unless the labyrinth somehow cut its own rope bridge.

Both are possible but seem unlikely.

And she said she was in the lobby the whole time, so she would have seen the soldier—or whoever he is—if he passed her.

But she said she hadn't seen anyone at all.

Which means...

Which means that either she cut the rope bridge—

or she does know the soldier, and lied.

...

Hmm.

You know, if we were able to radio to either Kesteven's or the permit office, we could check if Verily was telling the truth about being certified.

There is the problem of being a few thousand feet underground.

Right.

And when has Kesteven's ever volunteered information to us that wasn't subpoenaed by the high court.

And when has the permit office ever replied to our messages within a month and a half.

...

We'll just keep on our toes then.

Hey guys!

Did you figure out if Verily is an undercover Southern Alliance operant or not?

What?

Did you figure out if Verily is an undercover Southern Alliance—

Wait, wait, wait, wait—

What?

I said did you figure out—

I thought you were disconnected from your other... from the other Stymie. How do you remember our conversation from the south lobby?

Ah...

Yes, I see the confusion.

I have access to that Stymie's memory—she doesn't have access to mine.

:3

I'm lost.

Hmm.

I'm not sure exactly how to put this into words.

I guess you can think of it in terms of the flow of "action" and the flow of "information."

Information travels from the buds to the heart. "Actions" travel from the heart to the buds.

Actually, "action" is the wrong word. That would imply that the heart of the labyrinth is a decision-making apparatus.

Essentially, I can make an "action" occur in any of the rooms of the south floret, and south Stymie will believe that the decision originated from her.

Likewise, information that south Stymie collects passes through me on its way to the heart, and not vice versa.

Huh...

So, do all the decisions come from the heart? Or are you capable of making decisions by yourself?

Oops. There are no parts of the labyrinth that are responisble for decision-making. Nor am I independant from the labyrinth. Nor is it centralized.

So you wouldn't call yourself a decision-making agent either?

...

What does it mean to make a decision?

Like, could you decide to fill a room with decorative vases?

Why would I do that?

Just if you wanted to.

...

Maybe we're asking the wrong question.

Do you consider yourselves decision-making agents?

Of course.

...

Kodaly?

It depends on who you ask. To a certain degree our decisions are controlled by the circumstances of our birth. I wouldn't call myself a fatalist, though. But there are certain options unavailable to me because of my cultural programming. Things I just wouldn't even think of.

So you can't really be sure if it's you making the decision?

I'm sure. Today I wore this checkered doublet. I could have worn a solid blue doublet, but I like this one better, so I wore it instead.

Oh, I see.

So you have reasons for the things you do.

Typically.

It wouldn't be accurate to describe the "actions" that the labrinth takes in terms of options, decisions, and outcomes. And there aren't reasons for the things it does, at least not on a cognitive level.

It grows knots around itself, repurposing materials to optimize nutrient flow.

But that's just how it is. That the shape of it.

It's a shape made by what is necessary given the ideal form—the area-maximizing form—and the real conditions of the world: the mineral content of the rock, the forces of subduction and uplift, the solvant power of water.

That conversation results in the actual shape, which is the only shape that it ever could have taken.

Hopefully that's clear.

Woah, cool.

Must be an underground lake.

Looks like there's an envelope wedged in the ornamentation up there.

Must be a clue.

Do you think you can jump up and grab it?

...

Goliath frogs aren't really known for their vertical leaps per se.

You're a frog!

Maybe you could fly up to it.

These are gliding wings.

Well, it seems like it's being suspended by that rope over there. If we had something sharp we could cut it down.

Do we still have that sword from the south lobby?

Good idea.

That rope over there is supporting the chandelier. If we cut it down, we could get that envelope.

This rope isn't tied to a hook or anything, looks like it just goes straight into the wall.

If we had that sword from the south lobby we could cut it free.

Alright, stand back.

Hyaa!

What's it say?

Well that's strange. Here, take a look.

It looks as though it's only half of a clue.

I'll leave it here and we can come back if we need a second look.

Let's see if we can figure this out.

It's plugged in, but there's no power running to it.

It's some sort of panel in the wall. I don't see any way of opening it.

Yes!

A numerical code!

I wonder if this has anything to do with the potted shrubs.

Oh, hey guys.

Hey, Verily.

What are you up to?

Oh, nothing. Just writing up my report.

You know how it is with reports.

It's one of the few things I do know!

Couldn't you write your report when you're back on the surface?

I suppose I could.

I like to do it while I'm still in the field. You know.

Immersion.

What exactly was it you were here for again?

Kestevens contracted me to analyze the kinds of objects that appear here, so we can compare them to the kinds found in other labyrinths.

Their properties and molecular compositions, etc. But also the cultural contexts around them, symbology, and design.

You don't need to go further in for that? Like to catalogue more objects?

Perhaps future expeditions will venture deeper, but they're not paying me nearly enough for that!

What about you? You said you were making a map?

Yep!

Gonna map the whole thing?

Maybe!

If we can make it to the heart, we might. But I doubt we'll go further.

Depends on how far away it is.

But we'll damn well try!

Haha!

You two are quite the pair. If there's anyone who can find the truth of the labyrinth, I'm sure it's you.

Books!

A labyrinthy library.

Huh.

There was a library in the labyrinth of Bara Portcullis, right?

All I remember from the rumors was that all the books were made of stone.

I don't remember hearing anything quite so concrete.

...

Although, last year when I was in Derin, I met this Northern Alliance researcher who claimed to have been in Bara Portcullis.

He said the books were made of paper, and filled with millions of strange, rectilinear glyphs.

He had copied a few pages of them down in his notebook, but before he could show me, the borderguard came in. He slipped away out the back of the cafe down a fire escape and out to sea.

And I never saw him again.

Do you think he was telling the truth? They were filled with glyphs?

He seemed like a dedicated scientist.

It's a shame the war makes it so hard to share information.

I can't imagine universities in the north know anything more about us than we do about them.

These books don't seem to have titles, do they.

Woah! Check this out.

It's a novel.

...

I can't make heads or tails of it.

Listen to this:

"This Headbob Lanternhouse: a vaulted massy educated mink in a miserable natural nestegg."

It's nonsense.

It's incredible!

What about that one?

"The subtle stacks of what we pledged in dented concern for maple leaves. Those, sainted, they, their hens heavily to be an inch of bread."

That one makes less sense.

Let's try another.

"The same thing happened in the Lizard Shaker, whose mountains braved me from a fact. It was solvant: a heartbeat of reason. Only a heathgrove longshot to proffer the enticing canticleers, to the eaveless uncharted who kept reviling clustered narcisits."

Hm. Do you think the labyrinth just generated junk text to fill the books because it understands that books should have text?

Or do you think it really does understand our language and is just conserving resources by not generating a sensical work?

It clearly understands at least a little of our grammar, if not our vocabulary.

Maybe that's why it uses Stymie to communicate.

But it does understand our grammar! That's huge.

It could have been random letters, or random words with no order.

But instead it's words used with a vague understanding of where they should be placed in a sentence, but with no aparent understanding of their meaning.

Do you want to give one a go?

Sure, let's see.

"Once suspected affection, a memory walked through our Kindergarten—faster marrying a sandstorm and licking the banister group. The pirates was pulling the network. In the dark back, the gluegun was only so hard as to have."

I wonder if there's any meaning to their spine color.

I think my brain's turned to mush.

...

...

!!!

...

Hey, wait!

Dead end!

He must have gone the other way!

Where is he?

He must have slipped by us—

Where would he have hidden?

Maybe he went through the combination door.

In a matter of seconds?

What the fuck what the fuck what the fuck

Whoever he is, he clearly doesn't want to talk to us.

And if he's the soldier Stymie mentioned, he might be dangerous.

Maybe we shouldn't chase after him blindly.

But I have so many questions!!

Stymie!

Bridget!

Did you see anyone pass—wait where's Verily?

Oh, Ms. Verily finished her upgrades to me. She said you would be able to find her in the porthole room.

Stymie, I think we found your rogue soldier.

Oh! Good, I'm always misplacing those.

You didn't see him come this way did you?

Not that I know of!

Stymie!

Bridget!

Did you see anyone pass this way?

Not that I know of! Why?

I think we found your rogue soldier.

Oh! Good. I'm always misplacing those.

Do keep me apprized.

Of course. Can you let us know if he comes this way?

Probably!

It's a flower pot.

That's true.

Onwards and inwards!

How far do you want to go before we set up camp?

It must be around dusk by now on the surface.

Let's play it by ear.

If we get stuck on a puzzle—if we're just banging our heads against the wall, then we can make camp and sleep on it.

But I'm not sleepy just yet.

Are you hungry?

Mmm. Yeah.

Do you still have those plums?

Yes.

I would love a plum.

One plum for the madame.

Thank you, sir knight.

How's the map looking?

Let's take a look.

Interesting!

This must be what Stymie was talking about—about the ideal shape.

The labyrinth's hard-coded instructions colliding with the messy, real conditions in the earth.

Taking the only shape it ever could have taken.

What did she call it?

The optimal form?

I wonder what she meant by that.

I guess we'll find out once we map more of it.

That was easy.

We'd better take these too.

I don't know, Bridget...

This seems like a classic case of "Too Many Keys".

Is that ... a documented phenomenon?

Not yet, but my pencil is hovering above the page.

Then we'll hang onto them for now.

Ah.

Ah.

Well now this seems like a classic case of "Too Many Keys".

Is that ... a documented phenomenon?

It is now!

It looks like we need to find a pipe segment that will fit this gap.

We don't have the right pipe segment.

We don't have a pipe segment that will fit there.

We need to find a pipe segment that's the right size to fit this gap.

It fits perfectly!

It looks like we can travel south from here in this boat.

Let's go sailing!

Well, technically, since it's not a sailboat, we can't go "sailing".

Because it doesn't have a sail.

Technically you should say 'let's go boating' or something like that.

Sure, sure, whatever you say.

Let's go sailing!

Okay. I've observed another problem, which is that there aren't any oars.

That is challenging.

I suppose we could paddle with our hands.

I'm sure there are oars around here somewhere.

If we don't find any we can try paddling with our hands.

Also, the water isn't even that deep, and I don't think it's electrified.

So, really there's nothing stopping us from just wading in it.

We would get all wet.

We would get all wet.

Let's see if we can find some oars or something we can use as a paddle. If we can't find anything, we can always wade to the other side.

It's a pipe segment!

Let's see if this will fit in one of the gaps we saw.

This must be one of the missing pipe segments we need.

Let's try to find which gap it fits.

Kodaly.

Yes, Bridget?

I shall have that teddy bear.

Well, of course.

It's a Y-pipe!

A what pipe?

A Y-pipe.

What's a "why" pipe?

A pipe in the shape of a Y.

Which shape?

A Y-shape.

It's a Y-shaped pipe!

Why's that?

That's just what it's called.

Why?

...

Wh...

I'm just fucking with you, I know what a Y-pipe is.

Oh thank god.