So we're back on track, making our way through this sticky mess of jungle while I follow the invisible man's footsteps in the soft ground.

It's only as we travel along that I remember, with a roll of my eyes, that I still have to satisfy the first rule of this little "game" Tymos designed. So as much as it hurts me, I have to get through this.

But before I can even open my mouth, we come across something peculiar (as if everything else in this jungle has been normal).

Before us lies an opening to what seems to be a hedge or, from the outward look of it, a maze. Odd place for a maze to exist out here, but there doesn't appear to be anything sinister to it, it's just kinda random.

We pause, standing at the entrance to study it up close.

"What is this?" Lan asks aloud, staring at the intimidatingly high walls.

"Looks like a labyrinth," Nimu breathes, taken by the suddenness of it all.

Chasan rubs the back of his neck, giving the maze a distrustful look. "A little out of place if you ask me."

"Out of place indeed," Dhisnaek quietly agrees, wearing a similar look of suspicion.

I'm not quite sure what to make of this yet. Intuition tells me that it's a little out there for a random maze to exist smack dab in the center of the rainforest, yet my natural curiosity is urging me to run in like a child and see what this thing's all about.

Before I can even step forward, Nimu's sudden cry startles me. Whipping around, I see her covering her eyes like an eyelash just fell in. Concerned, Lan immediately goes to her side.

"Are you okay?"

Hissing, she shakes her head. "No, I...I can't-"

Beside her, Lan cries out in pain as well, slapping his hands to his face as well.

"What's going on?" Chasan asks, taking hold of Lan. "What happened?"

Lan can hardly get a word out, he's tripping all over himself, muttering like a lunatic to himself.

"Are you guys good?" I ask uneasily. Things are definitely getting strange around here and I'm not liking it.

Dhisnaek steps up, trying to get to the bottom of all this.

"It might be beneficial to sit them down under a-"

Interrupting himself to cover his face, he lets out a discomforting groan. Now I'm starting to worry, like some serious sweat now. What the hell is going on and how do we stop it!?

Chasan and I exchange a panicked look before ultimately he too out-of-nowhere claws at his face with a surprised cry.

My heart is beating faster than it should, almost like someone spiked it with all the caffeine in the world- it's even worse than when I just finished running a sprint after a cheat day on my diet.

Shit, I know I'm next, I just don't know when it'll hit me.

As I sweat bullets, a familiar someone pipes up in my head.

"It's time for your consequences to catch up to you now."

Oh God, what now?

"I'm genuinely curious to how well your leadership skills are maturing, so let's put you to the test."

"Oh, so you're behind all of this?" I scowl.

"It's all my credit. Now, what lies before you is a kind of maze, a labyrinth if you will. Your simple task is to escort your companions through this maze without injury."

Okay? There has to be a catch here...

"What I have done to your companions is temporarily blinded them that way they will be fully reliant on you and your instructions. How you get them through is completely at your discretion, but you all must be through before nightfall. You can manage this now, can't you?"

"Of course I can," I snap. "Just say the word and I'll get this underway."

"So eager, I admire that. One more thing, though."

There's the salesman's pitch.

"You mustn't believe I've forgotten the consequence for your recklessness today. As your consequence, you are only allowed fifty words to be spoken during this task. If you go over your given limit then there will be greater, more permanent consequences."

"Fifty words!?"

How am I going to get through this only being able to speak fifty words!? Twitter comments are longer than that!

"And do not worry, I will keep track of the words you say; I will give you a warning when you're about to reach your limit. If I were you, I would choose my words very wisely."

Fan-fucking-tastic.

"Your task begins now."

So begins this beautiful trainwreck (I only commit the most elegant and entertaining of trainwrecks). I have the rest of the dwindling afternoon to navigate my blind team through this unknown obstacle of a maze with only fifty words to speak. I swear, if I'm not canonized as a saint after this journey...

"Joan?" Nimu calls out for me.

They've all seemed to have calmed down after their initial shock, though they are understandably perplexed about the current situation. Honestly, I'm a bit glad they can't see my face because I have quite the rbf right now, I can feel it.

"I'm here."

Dammit, I have to be cheap with my words!

Actually, thinking about it now, I hope he's not counting contractions as two words- I can see his ass doing that though.

"W-what happened?" Lan cries out. "I can't see anything."

"Neither can I," Chasan grunts, rubbing his eyes as if he can clear away the blindness.

"I can't see anything either," Nimu says worryingly.

Seems Dhisnaek's staff is now doing its rudimentary job of supporting and stabilizing him. He places his hand in front of his face then sighs in defeat as he drops it.

"We've all been blinded, unfortunately."

"What!?" Lan practically squeaks. "What are we supposed to do now?"

I let out a shaky chuckle. "Well, not all of us are at a disadvantage."

God, counting my words out in my head is annoying- I have a hard time limiting myself.

"You can still see?" Nimu asks in amazement.

"How'd you avoid our fate?" Chasan question flatly as if it's my fault I'm not as blind as a bat like them.

"I dunno." Keep it short and simple. "But maybe getting through this maze is the answer to getting your vision back."

I clearly don't understand the concept of short and simple. We haven't even entered this maze yet.

"Perhaps," Dhisnaek begins. But it will be quite the challenge getting through without our sight."

"I'll help."

"How?" Chasan asks, clearly not sold on the idea of me assisting them through this unknown.

Do I really need to explain how? Seriously?

"Like this."

Without explanation, I take his arm and place it on Lan's shoulder. At first- because nothing I do can go smoothly with him- he snatches his arm away from me, asking me what I'm doing but I waste no more precious words in explaining, instead I roughly grip his arm again and plant it on Lan's shoulder. Lan, in turn, cries out in surprise, but Chasan reassures him it's only him, calming him down again. I place Chasan's other hand on Lan's other shoulder then go to get Nimu closer to Lan. Thankfully, Nimu owns a brain and knows it's me moving her, but she asks questions nonetheless.

"Joan, what are you doing?"

Not bothering to reply, I position her in front of Lan, her back to him, then place his arms on either of her shoulders like I did with Chasan. Finally, I guide Dhisnaek over to them and place him as the front. Though I'm being assaulted with questions about what I'm doing, I continue to ignore them as I finish setting them up, placing Nimu's hands-on Dhisnaek's shoulders, though she has to reach up a little since the height difference (it's not the perfect train, but it'll do).

"Done."

"Done what?" Chasan asks irritably.

It takes so much not to snap back, so so much.

But even Dhisnaek is confused by this setup.

"Joan, what is this supposed to accomplish?"

"Just trust me."

So far, in my head this seems like a good idea and even look at it it appears logical. I would make sure they're being led safely through the maze while holding onto each other that way they won't wander off. Since Dhisnaek has a staff he'll lead and Chasan will bring up the rear since he's already an ass.

"Ready?" I ask them.

Their faces say it all, the distrust, the uneasiness, the irritation, it's all there, but we have to get through this, there's no other way. It's time to practice some good ol' reliable faith.

At last, Nimu replies. "I suppose."

It's shaky and questionable but I'll take it. Into the maze we go.

Their starting point is just as shaky, if not more, than Nimu's response. They're still thinking like four separate individuals instead of what I need them to be: a well-oiled machine. We haven't even fully entered the damn thing and they're already whining.

"I don't think this is going to work," Lan begins.

"Neither do I," Chasan snaps in agreement.

Fighting back a peeved sigh, I plant my hands on my hips- since they can't see me or my annoyed expression- and think about how to encourage them in the least amount of words.

"Less talk, more trusting."

"I would be careful, darling, you're already at forty words."

Seriously!? Fuck me!

We haven't even begun and I've wasted nearly all my words trying to get their asses in this maze. I can't afford any more delays- we're doing this whether they're willing or digging their heels in the dirt. For now, no more words, only acting.

Taking Dhisnaek by the hand, I begin to coax him along, trying to encourage him to use his staff as a walking stick. He's not really catching onto what I'm trying to do, but he's being lead along with no issue- clearly having more faith in me despite having known me the least amount of time out of the four of them (now that's commitment right there).

Eventually, we get into a nice stride which in turn causes Nimu to become more relaxed and confident, which in turns gets Lan to follow suit as well, ultimately ending up with Chasan falling in line making the whole train run smoothly.

And they say the blind can't lead the blind.

For the most part, there's nothing special about this maze, it's just like any other maze with its twist and turns- it's actually even easier than a regular maze as we haven't turned down a dead-end path not once yet.

With the fifty word limit still looming in my mind, I remain silent throughout the walk, wanting to save my words for if something urgent comes up.

Although I can't speak, the rest of them can freely, and who else but Lan makes sure to take advantage of that?

"I wish we could see this maze. I think it'd be quite the sight," He sighs wearily. "I hope we receive our vision back at the end of this."

"You and me both," Chasan agrees.

Chasan not sarcastically agreeing? Get out of here.

While those two worry about getting their sight back, Nimu brings up the big question.

"I wonder why we all lost our sight but Joan didn't."

I know they expect me to add my input, but I'm not going to waste my remaining words on this.

Unfortunately, this opens up more opportunity to speak rather than settling the matter.

"Is everything okay with you, Joan?" Lan asks thoughtfully. "You seem unusually quiet."

"And thank the Fates for that," Chasan replies.

Keeping my mouth shut, I grumble a curt comeback to that, though it's way less fun not being able to say it out loud.

"You do seem more reserved," Dhisnaek speaks up. "Is anything wrong?"

I hate to admit when Tymos has gotten one over on me, but...

By way of my guardian angel, something pops up, delaying me from responding. Immediately, I stop the group, pulling back on Dhisnaek.

"What? What's happening?" Nimu asks, starting to get wound up.

I should answer her, but I don't even know what's holding us up, all I know is that I should be cautious so I halted our progress completely to investigate.

Up ahead, I can hear heavy breathing. It's loud enough that I can hear it so it's definitely something alive- whether it's human or animal I don't know.

Slowly creeping forward, I peer around the edge of the hedge to get a better look at whatever is breathing so heavily.

I find the source of the breathing lying right in the center of the open space. In the heart of the maze, snoring peacefully in the center rests a humanoid beast, oblivious to my intrusion. I whip my head back so fast I almost give myself whiplash.

Holy f-

That thing is a beast, and I mean a beastly beast. Not like I haven't dealt with some messed up creatures on this adventure, but so far it's been two bird-like creatures and a behemoth dragon that I have yet to see again. This guy, though...that big boy does not seem like the type of issue I want to be battling right now. Even in the most ideal situation with my whole team not blind and armed I wouldn't want to mess with this thing.

I don't even know what to label it- it's honestly just a thing. I mean, it kinda looks human, if a human being were pumped full of steroids then put through a meat tenderizer and left out in the August sun for a week. Not to mention how uncannily it resembles a half-dog, half-reptilian, half-warthog human hybrid (it's as messed up sounding as it looks). From the fleshy taunt skin riddled with bumpy veins to the slobbering snoring coming from its oversized, upturn snout, this is not a watchdog I want to be waking.

Hearing the others talking to each other trying to figure out why we're stopped, draws my attention back to reality and sends me in panic mode. I cannot have them waking that thing up.

So I quietly, but sternly shush them.

"Why are you hushing us?" Lan questions. "What's going on?"

"Can you at least explain the situation to us?" Chasan asks. "Is it related to that noise?"

Remaining cautious about my word limit, I plan out my response before responding in a low voice.

"Stay quiet."

"Why?" They ask in unison- a bit too loud for people I just told to stay quiet.

Instead of explaining any further, I shush them again, crossing my fingers they'll actually shut up now.

Thankfully, they're going along with the program and quiet down. Now with them silent and calmed down, I can begin to think about how to get from point A- where we are- to point B- the opening opposite of where we stand, leading out of the heart of the maze, hopefully, to the exit.

Stepping out from the safety of the hedge, I cautiously take a step into the open space, testing the waters. The creature continues to sleep noisely, oblivious to the fact that I'm intruding into its territory. Just to prove my theory, I take another step into the space, waiting to see if it might catch a whiff of my scent and wake up. But it continues to sleep on like Jefferson Fry used to when he slept out in the park pavilions after a binge night.

If this beast actually remains asleep while we sneak past to the other side then we might be okay- that's if we remain as silent as mice.

Creeping back to my team, I make sure they're all in order before quietly, yet firmly informing them-

"No talking until I say."

All I can pray is that they'll actually listen to me and not say a peep until I give them permission again.

Without any further delay, I start them up again, leading them more closely than before, making sure they take it slow enough to where our shuffling feet won't wake the thing.

In order to get to the other side, we have to make a nice wide arch around the thing, keeping closer to the hedge so our scents won't be picked up as easily.

Though my brow is glistening with sweat and I'm sure my armpits are soaked, we're just about out of the woods. The exit is right there, we could even make a mad dash to it, though I wouldn't do that. Risking a shaky sigh, I expel some of my angst as we inch closer and closer to the exit.

With a trickle of sweat creeping down my face, I usher them out of the center back into the labyrinth.

But alas. Alas! Those karma points are coming to bite me in the ass.

I could already see the look on Nimu's face before the sneeze happened. Her face twisted up, her eyes already squinted, her hands raised, trying to mute the noise to no avail. A thought doesn't even run through my head before she finally lets it out. In all retrospect, Nimu has the quietest sneeze anyone could possess, it's actually kind of cute. Despite all its cuteness, though, I whirl around, bracing myself to see the beast snap out of its coma sleep and set its sights on us. But surprisingly when I turn around, it's still peacefully laid out with its massive, knotty tongue lulling out of its mouth. Now that I'm good and soaked in my own sweat due to that scare, I can breathe a sigh of relief and glare at an unsuspecting Nimu.

Turning my back on it again, I continue ushering them out, ready to continue this rather straightforward maze.

"Are you okay?"

And there it is. The straw that broke the camel's back. Now I'm sure Lan didn't mean to break the silence prematurely or speak that loudly thinking he was in the clear- even though I told them not to speak again until I gave them all clear- or mean anything by his considerate question to Nimu at all. But damn, he should really take a page from my book and throw consideration to the wind!

And ladies and gentlemen, that is how to wake a demonic monstrosity of a watchdog from its peaceful slumber.

Behind me, I can hear the snoring stop and a new, more cognitive breathing replace it. I hear heavy paws beat the ground, followed by a deep, wet guttural growl that resounds through the thick air. The hairs on the back of my neck are at full attention now.

Dare I look around and see what I already know?

Gripping Chasan's arm so tightly he grunts in response, I take off down the path, pushing them along as I pull him- it's as messy as it sounds. And no, I'm still not talking through all of this.

"Joan! What are you doing?"

"What's happening?"

"What's that noise?"

"Joan!?"

I hear them all, but I can't stop and answer any of them. The best I can do is continue to drag them along while the distant growling grows stronger and closer behind us.

I'm actually proud of my team for holding in there and staying connected to each other, even as I whip them around corners and all sorts of madness. In fact, we're making such progress, the heavy panting and growls of the beast gradually fades away into silence. I never risked a glance back in fear of tripping over myself and delaying the whole group, but now I decide to risk a quick glance over my shoulder to check behind us.

At last, I can breathe a sigh of relief to see nothing trailing behind us. In order to make sure we're in safe territory and to catch our breath, I stop and pause, straining to hear any sign of the thing following us. When all I receive is wind, I let out a sigh of relief.

I expect to be bombarded with a million and one questions, and they don't let me down on that. Nimu, of course, is the first to tear into me.

"What was that about?" She demands, still collecting her breath. "You take off without explaining anything and suddenly we're stopped again? We're blind, Joan, and you're not making anything better by remaining silent when we critically need communication."

Tymos did play his cards right with this little consequence- it is a major pain and inconvenience.

But Nimu's not done, oh no.

"Can you start explaining things to us without acting irrationally first? We've talked about this more times than I'd care to and you don't seem to be understanding what I'm saying," She huffs. "We need communica-"

Bam!

Springing out of the hedge, the beast that was once madly chasing us from behind now stands like an indomitable force in front of us, only mere inches from where Nimu stands- and I know she can sense it in front of her.

Despite me being the only one able to see the repulsive beast, everyone freezes like they can just sense its hideous, daunting nature. We don't even dare to breathe. I'm half scared that the trickle of sweat dripping off my face might be enough to trigger it.

It's safe to say, we are in some deep shit now.

And like the twisted, psychotic game master he is, I can hear Tymos rejoice in his victory.

"And now it's time for the real fun to begin."