Tale of a Hedonistic wizard

Jaegar sighed heavily, running his free hand through his hair. "Damn it, you just had to bring me here of all times, now."

"What's so important that it outweighs the flame, boy?" the deity demanded. "I don't know how this labyrinth exists here, in the midst of the city, or how no one noticed it until now. But if the other gods were to learn about this, I'm sure she would rush here immediately."

Jaegar sighed again, feeling a mix of frustration and restlessness. "I don't even know where my master is."

The deity's tone was harsher as he warned him. "I sensed a presence in that tower. There was someone behind closed doors, a very strong woman. If she had come out, you would have died then and there. Be thankful that I saved you."

Jaegar frowned, his mind racing. Could that presence have been his master? But if so, why couldn't he sense her?

There must have been something blocking his senses—some powerful magic that the deity could easily surpass but that left Jaegar in the dark.

As they talked, Jaegar had been moving forward, following the winding path of the corridor.

Suddenly, he found himself in a vast, round space. He stood at the edge, holding his flame high to illuminate as much of the area as possible.

What he saw took his breath away. The chamber was like an enormous well, with no visible top or bottom. The curved walls stretched up into darkness and down into an equally impenetrable gloom.

But it was what he saw on those walls that truly captured his attention.

Doors. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of doors lined the walls of the well. They were of all shapes and sizes, some ornate and others plain, but each one was unique. They spiralled up and down as far as Jaegar's light could reach, creating a dizzying pattern that seemed to shift and change if he looked at it too long.

The deity's voice echoed in his mind, urgent and commanding.

"Down," he instructed. "We must go deeper."

Without questioning, Jaegar willed the orange flame surrounding him to descend. He plummeted downward, passing door after door in a dizzying blur. The air grew colder, damper, and tinged with an acrid scent he couldn't quite place.

Now that he was here, he decided to the get the flame and get himself out of here quickly. He needs to find his aunt and master immediately.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity of falling, Jaegar's feet touched solid ground. The orange flame flickered and dimmed, barely illuminating the space around him.

He found himself at the entrance of a maze-like structure, its walls twisting and turning into impenetrable darkness.

"This way," the deity guided, its voice now a whisper in Jaegar's mind. "Quick now, before the labyrinth shifts."

"Just why in the hell did they built something like this just for a flame?" Jaegar asked the deity.

The first time he found the deity, it was in a forest, and the entire thing was lost to nature in time. No one seemed to find it, even though it was so open in the forest. He remembers Deity saying that the goddess who sealed him took the flames from him, but why did she leave it behind here and why did she seal it here?

Deity started to speak, thinking about the events that happened back in his days. "Boy, you don't know the value of the flames, especially the black flame. Even though it's inferior to earth flame and blue flame, no one can stand against its ferociousness. After taking the flame from me, she used to kill a powerful individual in the realm.

Even though, she succeeded in taking the flame from me, she couldn't hold on to it. The flame ate away her essence. I am sure, she must have just dropped it here and built these places to guard it. This flame, no human can wield it, but she must have built these to conceal it against the gods."
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"Who is she?" Jaegar asked; he had heard about her second time from him.

"Just some shitty woman. I can't say her name; otherwise, she would know I have gotten out of that place. Though, she might know for sure if we take out the black flame."

"You said no human can wield it; then how will I be able to help you?" Jaegar asked.

The deity answered after a moment of pause. "I will help you; don't worry."

Trusting in the deity's knowledge, Jaegar moved swiftly through the maze.

"You need to stay focused, and I think these maze walls are imbued with her magic. I don't know for sure on how they will attack you. But be on guard," the deity warned him.

Jaegar simply hummed and continued walking as the deity guided him.

When Jaegar took a left turn, he heard his name, like someone was calling him. Then in an instant, he saw a figure dressed in white running towards him, and soon he saw her face and froze.

"Mom!!"

It was Diana, dressed in a white gown, who reached him. He couldn't believe his eyes. She seemed so real, and for a moment he forgot where he was.

Just when Jaegar reached out to touch her, she turned into something, which made Jaegar wince.

Then Deity's voice bellowed in his head, "Stupid kid, I told you to be on guard."

Jaegar swiftly moved back, staring at the creature just transformed in front of him. Jaegar didn't understand how did the maze found out about his aunt. The maze seemed normal, but could it be the maze can access one's memories? If so, then the goddess created this maze; just how powerful was she? Jaegar wondered.

"No time to think, boy. Quick, make way to the centre of the maze."

Left, right, straight ahead, doubling back—the path seemed random, but the deity's instructions never faltered.

Just as Jaegar felt his lungs burning from the exertion, the narrow passageways opened up into a vast, circular chamber.

In the centre of this space stood something that made Jaegar's breath catch in his throat. A furnace-like structure, wreathed in flames as black as the void between stars. The flames danced and writhed, seeming to absorb what little light there was rather than cast shadows.