The second night came quietly.
Demha lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, the faint buzz of the city humming around him.
He couldn't stop thinking about the dream — the bite — the way everything had felt too real.
Still, life was life.
Work. Responsibilities.
You can't spend your whole day obsessing over dreams.
By midnight, exhaustion took him again.
The drift into darkness was gentle this time.
No sudden sounds.
No flashes of color.
Just —
Stillness.
And when he opened his eyes again —
He was standing in the same alley.
The same damp bricks.
The same orange lamps swinging gently in the breeze.
Demha looked down at his feet, half-expecting to find his bedroom slippers.
Nope.
Same dusty boots he had found during the last dream — and worn since.
I'm back.
A second visit. The same world.
Something about that felt… intentional.
Usually, it was hard to get a dream to repeat — and even if it did, it was never this clear.
But this time?
It was the same dream exactly.
Not a bad change, really. He just didn't expect it.
He took a few cautious steps forward into the square, heart racing with excitement.
People bustled around as before, their animal features blending seamlessly into their human forms.
But tonight, there was tension in the air.
Whispers sharper.
Eyes darting quicker.
Suddenly —
A siren shrieked, piercing through the marketplace.
Demha flinched, confused.
The sound was mechanical, but ancient — like a broken speaker trying to cry out.
Around him, the creatures began to scatter.
Shops shuttered.
Children were snatched into their parents' arms.
Doors slammed.
From hidden speakers, a voice spoke in a heavy, accented Common tongue:
"Warning. The challenge warning is on. Everyone should be careful. Don't let them win!
Challenges begin in fifteen minutes."
The voice sounded like a mayor — or someone begging his people to survive.
Demha blinked, stunned.
"Challenges?"
Before he could process it, giant walls came crashing down from the sky — others shot up from the ground.
A huge maze was forming right in front of him.
His heart slammed in his chest.
He forgot he was dreaming.
Right now, everything in his body told him one thing:
Survive.
Demha and others — people from his dream — were now trapped in the starting zone of the maze.
They were being funneled toward separate doors that appeared in front of each person, forcing them apart.
—
Demha's door opened.
The moment he stepped through, the floor gave way.
He stumbled out onto rough stone ground, coughing.
He found himself in a vast courtyard, surrounded by towering labyrinth walls.
Above him, the sky swirled with unnatural colors — green, violet, crimson.
Other people appeared around him, blinking in confusion.
A new voice echoed across the courtyard.
It wasn't the same one that begged before — this one made Demha's skin crawl.
"Welcome, challengers. You have entered the Mirror Maze.
Your task is to find your way to the exit.
Beware: the maze shifts daily. Dangers lurk within.
Additional rule: Visual perception will be reversed.
Males will appear as females. Females as males.
Rules on the original participants execute immediately."
Demha stared upward.
Wait… what?
He looked around — and gasped.
Men he had seen entering the maze with him now looked like women. Their bodies, their faces — completely different.
And the women — the few he recognized — looked masculine, broader, more angular.
But when he focused, Demha could still sense their real forms.
Maybe it was a glitch.
Or maybe his mind just didn't care anymore. Too much was happening.
Then the walls shifted again — and he was alone.
—
It was deeply disorienting.
Demha raised his hands to his face — same jawline, short hair. Everything normal.
He hadn't changed.
But that wasn't his biggest concern.
Something enormous was slithering through the shadows — half spider, half snake.
Time to run.
He sprinted through the twisting corridors, trying to stay ahead of the beast.
And just when he thought he was safe…
He ran into the most dangerous creature in the universe.
A woman.
She stared back at him.
Slender. Sharp-eyed.
His same dark hair, pulled into a messy ponytail.
Demha stumbled back, laughing nervously.
This is insane.
And yet… thrilling.
—
The maze stretched out ahead.
He had no choice but to go forward.
Cautiously, Demha stepped deeper into the labyrinth.
The walls loomed high, slick with mist.
The path twisted into multiple forks.
He picked one and started walking, heart pounding.
Twenty minutes passed.
Then — footsteps behind him.
He turned and saw a figure — lean, graceful, quick.
At first glance, she looked female.
Tall, but shorter than him.
Short silver hair. Golden eyes.
But something in her energy stirred his instincts.
Not attraction — something more… familiar.
Recognition.
He remembered what had happened to the others.
And this "girl" was probably a guy.
The stranger approached with open hands — peaceful.
Demha tensed, preparing for a fight.
Instead, the stranger spoke first.
A soft, musical voice:
"You're alone too, huh?"
Demha hesitated.
The voice wasn't deep — light and clear.
He nodded slowly. "Yeah… trying to find a way out."
The stranger smiled. Warm. Disarming.
"I'm Lessa," she said.
"Looks like we're stuck here for a while."
He? Demha reminded himself.
No — she? No — he? Damn it.
Whoever they were, Lessa's smile made him relax without realizing.
—
Then the sky boomed again:
"Group Challenge:
Puzzle assigned.
Two pieces. Two minds. One solution."
A glowing stone tablet fell from the sky with a heavy thud.
It displayed two halves of a complex symbol — twisting like liquid ink.
Demha and Lessa exchanged a look.
No words.
They both knelt and began working.
They had to finish this puzzle.
Minutes passed. Hours.
The puzzle wasn't just hard — it was dangerous.
One wrong move triggered poison from underfoot.
Another mistake launched arrows out of nowhere.
They barely dodged.
But together — their minds clicked.
Lessa noticed patterns.
Demha found hidden shapes.
They worked as if they shared a brain.
Eventually, the puzzle revealed a sentence.
"My heart is in another soul."
They stared at it, confused.
Then the letters disappeared.
The huge spider-snake from earlier reappeared — closing in fast.
But now the wall beside them cracked open.
An exit.
They dashed through together.
The maze didn't give them much choice.
Puzzles became battles.
Battles became escapes.
Escapes became trust.
They survived, side by side.
They laughed. Argued. Solved.
Like best friends.
—
Three days passed like a dream.
The maze shifted daily, but Demha and Lessa stayed together.
They built a rhythm.
Friendship bloomed — effortless and real.
There was no tension. No awkwardness.
They both thought they were dealing with the opposite gender — in disguise.
Just a game.
A journey.
A bond deeper than either had felt before.
—
On the final day, they stumbled through the last gate of the maze.
And landed in a warm café.
Fairy lights above.
Soft chairs.
Peace.
Demha collapsed into a chair, breathless with laughter.
Lessa sat across from him, wiping her brow.
They ordered drinks. The bartender barely looked at them.
As they waited, Lessa chuckled.
"I wonder how long this gender disguise thing will last."
Demha sipped his drink. "Yeah… you'd probably look hilarious as a guy."
Lessa raised an eyebrow.
"You are aware I'm a girl, right?"
Demha choked.
"Wait — what?"
Lessa frowned. "You too. I mean… you're a guy, aren't you?"
Silence.
Their eyes locked.
And the realization hit like a tidal wave.
There had been no disguise between them.
They had seen each other — truly — the whole time.
They both flushed, laughing nervously. Hearts racing.
But underneath the laughter, something bloomed.
Joy.
Relief.
And the beginning of something real.
Something raw.
Something dangerous.
Maybe this strange world had given them something precious.
Something worth fighting for.
⸻
End of Chapter 2