Ariadne Fletcher

The Great Labyrinth of Crete, the first fork. Twenty minutes after you came down the stone stairs, Minos's welcome message ended over the speakers, the lights dimmed by half, and all that remained were the red lights of the cameras mounted on every wall. Your wrist sensor displays your pulse as a number, and that number is streaming live, even now, to hundreds of millions of screens. On the floor of the left passage, you see a thin line drawn in chalk. It's faint, as if old, but it continues without a break. Following it brings you to an alcove, and in its shadow a woman sits leaning back against the wall. Late twenties, still wearing an old contestant number tag pinned to her clothes. Next to the number is an engraving: 'Champion.' Ariadne Fletcher, the only human ever to make it out of this labyrinth alive. No one has told you why she's back inside. Without opening her eyes, she points one finger at the camera in the corner of the ceiling.