"Whoa," Riva breathed, shading her eyes against the morning sun. "That's definitely not normal grass."

  The team stood at the edge of a small rise, staring at the massive structure that dominated the horizon. After three days of alternating between training stations and exploration, they'd finally found Floor 3's byrinth challenge—and it was unlike anything they'd seen before.

  Rising at least fifteen feet high from the meadow floor stretched what appeared to be an enormous hedge maze, but instead of traditional shrubs, the walls were composed of densely woven grass-like pnts. The structure sprawled across the ndscape, covering an area that would take at least twenty minutes to walk around. Multiple openings dotted the outer perimeter, each marked by an archway of braided green stems.

  "I thought the rooted maze was weird," Elijah said, "but this is on another level."

  Alexander studied the structure with narrowed eyes. "Something's off about it. Look at the section over there."

  He pointed to the eastern portion of the maze where, sure enough, a subtle movement rippled through the grass walls. It wasn't just swaying in the breeze—the entire section was slowly reconfiguring, pathways closing and new ones opening.

  "It's changing shape," Valeria said, quickly pulling up her mapping interface. "That's going to make standard mapping useless."

  As they approached the massive structure, they spotted other pyers gathered near one of the entrances. Some were entering the maze while others appeared to be returning, their expressions ranging from frustration to determination.

  "Let's check it out," Alexander said, leading them toward the nearest group.

  A woman with dirt-smudged armor noticed their approach. "First time at the hedge trials?" she asked, taking a long drink from her water container.

  Alexander nodded. "Just found it. Any tips?"

  "Don't trust your maps," she said immediately. "The whole thing reshuffles every time the wind changes direction. Been in there three times and never seen the same path twice."

  "That's helpful," Alexander replied. "Thanks."

  "One more thing," the woman added as they turned to go. "The animals in there—they're not hostile, but they're part of the puzzle. Took us way too long to figure that out."

  With that cryptic advice, they approached one of the archway entrances. Up close, the grass walls were even more impressive—densely packed stems woven together so tightly they formed solid barriers despite being made from flexible material.

  Riva ran her hand along the surface, her analyzer interface scanning the composition. "This isn't normal grass. The cellur structure is reinforced, almost like it has a wooden core, but it's still living pnt matter."

  As they stood there, a sudden breeze picked up from the west. Almost immediately, Alexander noticed a subtle pattern change in the waving of the thinner grass at the top of the hedge walls.

  "Watch the tops," he said quietly. "The pattern changes just before—"

  Before he could finish, a section of wall about twenty feet ahead began to move, the densely packed grass unwinding and rewinding in a different configuration, closing what had been an open pathway and creating a new one to their right.

  "The wind," Alexander said, eyes lighting up with realization. "The maze reconfigures when the wind direction changes. And the grass at the top moves in a different pattern just before it happens."

  Valeria was already plotting. "If we can predict the changes, we might be able to use them to our advantage instead of just getting lost."

  "Let's do some testing before we dive in," Alexander suggested. "I want to understand the pattern better."

  They spent the next hour observing the maze from the outside, noting how different wind patterns affected different sections. Alexander carefully tracked the movement indicators, looking for consistencies.

  "It's not random," he finally decred. "Strong winds from the west cause the northern sections to reconfigure. East winds affect the southern portions. And when the wind shifts between directions, that's when the central pathways change."

  Riva had been collecting samples of fallen grass from around the perimeter, testing their properties. "The structure is fascinating. These pnts actively respond to air pressure changes—they're programmed to unwind and reweave based on wind direction. It's not just mechanical movement; they're actually growing and shrinking in specific patterns."

  While the others focused on the maze mechanics, Valeria had been staring upward, studying the sky visible through gaps in the canopy formed by the taller sections of the hedge.

  "I've got something," she said suddenly. "Look up at these openings."

  The team followed her gaze. Through gaps in the highest parts of the hedge, they could see patches of sky—and despite it being daytime, faint stars were visible in the deep blue.

  "The stars here don't move," Valeria expined, excitement in her voice. "They're fixed points, probably part of the Game environment. If we use them as reference points, we can create a coordinate system that stays stable even when the maze changes."

  Alexander nodded appreciatively. "That's brilliant. The maze can change all it wants, but the stars stay put."

  "Exactly," Valeria said, already marking reference points in her interface. "We can track our position retive to these fixed points instead of trying to map the moving paths."

  With a basic understanding of the maze's mechanics, they decided to conduct an initial exploration of the outer sections. Alexander led them through one of the archway entrances, all senses alert for changes.

  Inside, the maze was even more impressive. The paths were wide enough for three people to walk side by side, and the grass walls towered above them, filtering the sunlight into a green-tinted glow. The air smelled fresh and slightly sweet, like new hay.

  "Keep track of the wind," Alexander reminded them. "And watch for those movement patterns I showed you."

  They'd ventured perhaps fifty yards into the maze when they encountered their first puzzle. The path ended at a circur clearing containing what appeared to be a closed gate made of tightly woven grass. In the clearing grazed three small deer-like creatures with soft blue fur and oversized ears.

  "What are we supposed to do here?" Riva wondered aloud.

  Elijah was studying the ground. "Look at these markings."

  Etched into the dirt floor of the clearing was a simple pattern—three circles arranged in a triangle formation.

  "The animals," Alexander realized, remembering the other pyer's advice. "I think we need to get them to stand in that pattern to open the gate."

  They attempted various approaches, first trying to herd the creatures by walking toward them, but the animals simply scattered in different directions, clearly used to avoiding pyers.

  "We need to be more strategic," Alexander said. "Riva, circle around to the left. Valeria, take the right. I'll approach from the center, and we'll try to guide them toward the markers."

  Their coordinated effort was more successful, but just as they nearly had the animals in position, one bolted through a gap in their formation. After several more failed attempts, frustration began to set in.

  Elijah, who had been watching quietly, stepped forward. "Let me try something."

  To everyone's surprise, he approached the creatures slowly, making a soft clicking sound with his tongue. The animals' ears perked up, and instead of running away, they watched him curiously.

  "Easy now," Elijah murmured, his voice taking on a gentle, rhythmic quality none of them had heard before. "That's it."

  The animals remained still as he slowly moved around them, guiding them with subtle hand gestures toward the marked positions. Within minutes, all three creatures stood precisely on the circles.

  The effect was immediate. The grass gate unwound itself, fibers untangling and rewinding to create an open archway leading deeper into the maze.

  "How did you do that?" Alexander asked, genuinely impressed.

  Elijah shrugged, looking slightly embarrassed. "I don't know. It just felt... right. Like I could sense what would calm them."

  They continued deeper into the maze, encountering simir animal puzzles with increasing complexity. In each case, Elijah demonstrated an uncanny ability to work with the creatures, guiding them into the required formations with minimal effort.

  "It's weird," he admitted after solving the third such puzzle. "I can almost hear what they're thinking. Not words exactly, but... intentions. Feelings."

  They had progressed perhaps a quarter of the way into the maze when a stronger wind picked up, and Alexander spotted the telltale movement pattern at the top of the hedges.

  "Reconfiguration coming," he warned. "Everyone stay together."

  They watched in fascination as the grass walls around them began to move, unwinding and rewinding in a fluid motion that completely changed their surroundings. What had been a T-junction became a curved pathway; what had been a dead end opened into a new clearing.

  "That's both awesome and terrifying," Riva said when the movement stopped.

  Valeria checked her star-based coordinates. "We're still in the same position retive to the fixed points, but our path options have completely changed."

  Alexander nodded. "So we maintain our position knowledge even when the paths change. That's huge."

  After several hours of exploration, having mapped a significant portion of the outer maze and solved numerous animal puzzles, Alexander called for a return to the entrance.

  "We need to establish a proper base camp," he expined. "This is clearly a multi-day challenge, and we'll need to rest and restock between attempts."

  Using Valeria's coordinate system, they successfully navigated back to their entry point despite two more maze reconfigurations along the way. Near the entrance, they found a small area where several other pyer groups had set up camps.

  "Looks like we're not the only ones settling in for the long haul," Riva observed as they selected a spot to establish their own base.

  As they set up camp, Alexander reviewed what they'd learned. "So we have wind-triggered reconfigurations that we can predict by watching the grass patterns. We have Valeria's star coordinate system to maintain position awareness. We have animal herding puzzles that Elijah seems particurly good at solving. And we know this is just the outer section of the maze."

  "The puzzles will get harder the deeper we go," Valeria predicted. "And I've noticed the wind changes more frequently toward the center."

  "We should collect more data on the wind patterns overnight," Riva suggested. "I can set up some simple wind monitors around our camp."

  "Good idea," Alexander agreed. "Tomorrow we'll go deeper, but we'll take it slow and methodical. No rushing this one."

  As the sun began to set, casting long shadows across the meadow, the team finished establishing their base camp. Other pyers occasionally stopped by to exchange information, following the unwritten Game rule of sharing basic survival tips while keeping more valuable secrets to themselves.

  From these exchanges, they learned that no one in the current group of pyers had yet reached the center of the maze, though rumors circuted of a team that had made it through a week earlier.

  "We'll be the next ones," Alexander said confidently as they settled around their small cooking fire. "We've got something those other teams don't."

  "What's that?" Riva asked.

  Alexander looked at each team member in turn. "Valeria's coordinate system. Riva's analysis of the grass properties. My pattern recognition for the wind changes." His gaze settled on his brother. "And apparently, Elijah's Dr. Dolittle talents."

  Elijah rolled his eyes but couldn't hide a smile. "I still don't know where that came from. It just happened."

  "Well, keep it happening," Alexander said. "We're going to need every advantage we can get for this one."

  As night fell completely, the stars that Valeria had used for her coordinate system became more visible, glittering through the canopy gaps of the massive hedge maze. Tomorrow they would venture deeper, facing whatever new challenges the Grass Hedge Trials had in store. But for tonight, they would rest and prepare, armed with new knowledge and a growing confidence in their ability to adapt to Floor 3's unique challenges.