"The Labyrinth of Menin" by Max Fry, summary Automatic translate

The fantasy novella "The Labyrinth of Menin" was written in 2000. It follows the adventures of Sir Max, a detective in the magical city of Echo. This book concludes one of the most important stages of the hero’s life: he must learn the bitter truth about his origins, say goodbye to his mentor, and take personal responsibility for saving reality from destruction. It concludes the original "Labyrinths of Echo" cycle, being the eighth book in the series. It is preceded by the collections "The Outsider," "Volunteers of Eternity," "Simple Magical Things," "The Dark Side," "Obsessions," "The Power of the Unfulfilled," and "The Chatty Dead."

White stones of Harumba

Sir Juffin Hally entrusts Max with an unusual mission. The hero must escort the dying Grand Master Nuflin Moni Mach to the distant continent of Uanduk. There, in the mountains, lies Harumba, the closed Land of the Dead. Its inhabitants receive a kind of immortality by paying a colossal fee, but they are forever barred from leaving the magical city. Nuflin insisted on Max as his guard: the cunning old man trusts only him.

The travelers are flying on Buurakhri’s invisible magical bubble. The old man is rapidly weakening with each passing hour, death literally breathing down his neck. Nuflin offers Max a useful protective spell: mentally build a wall of white bricks around himself. Max practices diligently throughout the journey. That night, he falls asleep and has a terrible dream: his spirit is trapped in Nuflin’s decrepit body. The magic sword of the ancient King Menin, dwelling in Max’s chest, awakens its owner with sharp physical pain. It turns out the notorious white wall was a mental trap. Nuflin tried to steal Max’s young body to cheat death and escape a lifetime of imprisonment in Kharumba.

The relationship between the companions becomes cold and strained. That evening, the skies literally open up, raining a dense fiery storm upon the floating bubble. A frightened Max reflexively hides in an imaginary white wall. A magical trap suddenly transports them both back in time — to a calm morning of the same day. Nuflin realizes the attack is the work of his longtime political enemy, Magister Honna. This powerful sorcerer has gained incredible power far from the Heart of the World.

Max uses Silent Speech to communicate telepathically with Honna. He spends a long time persuading the sorcerer to spare the helpless old man. Honna reluctantly agrees, but demands a high price: Myonin’s magical sword. Max hands over the artifact, depriving himself of his reliable, invisible protector. Honna takes the sword in her dreams and takes the travelers under her wing. They safely reach Harumba. The tall Guardians carry Nuflin to the city. In gratitude for saving him, the old man leaves a note for Max. The note contains a powerful spell. By uttering the cherished words at the gates of the residence, Max can become Grand Master of the Order of the Seven-Leaf or appoint any worthy candidate to the position.

Menin’s Labyrinth

The quiet routine of the Secret Investigation is interrupted by the disappearance of King Gurig the Eighth. The monarch has become lost in his own palace. Juffin explains to his colleagues: the king accidentally opened a secret entrance to the Menin Labyrinth. This infinite space is woven from patches of various realities and fragments of other people’s dreams. Juffin himself is unable to enter due to ancient magical restrictions imposed by the Labyrinth’s creator. Max and Sir Melifaro immediately set out to search for the monarch.

The castle door vanishes without a trace behind them. The heroes find themselves on the shore of a dark, oily lake, where a giant warty toad crushes them to death. Max and Melifaro come to in an empty museum hall, decorated with original paintings by artists from Max’s homeland. They open another door and find themselves in a white desert under the scorching rays of several suns. The air becomes unbearably hot, and the heroes burn alive, experiencing terrible agony and despair.

The next resurrection takes place in a cozy, clean kitchen. The mysterious hostess hospitably offers the detectives a wormwood infusion. Melifaro sees her as a beautiful young woman, while Max sees her as a caring old woman. After resting and changing clothes, the detectives continue their journey. Max notices an important pattern: the Labyrinth’s appearance is sensitive to their emotional state. Panic leads to death and suffering, while carefree abandon opens doors to pleasant, well-fed, and safe worlds.

The heroes find themselves at a joyful amusement fair with a matriarchal culture, then in a cramped sleeper car on a train rushing past a crowd of crazed naked people. Then they nearly drown in a bottomless, icy ocean. Weaving a magical life-saving circuit from their own clothes, Max and Melifaro escape. They once again travel through bright and joyful worlds, lingering at feasts and carnivals. Max carefully monitors his mood, categorically forbidding himself from becoming depressed or homesick.

On the street of one of the ghostly resort towns, the detectives accidentally encounter King Gurig. The monarch is genuinely enjoying his freedom and is in no hurry to return to the palace. Hearing of possible coups, Gurig reluctantly agrees to cut his vacation short. He leads Max and Melipharo out of the Labyrinth: the monarch can control doors by sheer willpower. Once in Echo, Max discovers an unpleasant side effect: ordinary household doors now seem like entrances to other worlds. With the help of Lady Melamori, he learns to focus his attention sharply and regains the ability to move normally around his home.

Quiet town

Late at night, Max is visited by the Master of Perfect Dreams, Gretti Tumois. He shares terrifying news: he has been having dreams in which the ancient King Myonin regularly appears, promising a quick meeting. Soon, Myonin does indeed appear at the ruler’s residence. King Gurig discreetly departs for a country summer castle. Sir Juffin Halley mysteriously disappears from service.

Max meets with Myunin in person at the palace. The ancient monarch discusses the nature of time at length and names Max his sole successor. Myunin declares that the universe needs the Arbiters for only one purpose: to preserve reality from physical destruction through the force of their passionate desires. Leaving Max completely bewildered, the ancient king vanishes again without a trace.

Secret Investigation is left without a permanent leader. Max distributes administrative duties among his colleagues: the detectives agree to take turns leading. Another criminal case brings Secret Investigation an ancient artifact — the dangerous Yonoh Seal. Any statement certified by this seal inevitably comes true within the shortest possible time. The instrument is stored in an armored safe. Longing for his missing mentor drives Max to a desperate act of misconduct. He writes a phrase on a piece of paper about helping Juffin return home and decisively seals the document with the Yonoh Seal.

A powerful spell instantly transports Max to the Quiet City — a cozy, heavenly prison for self-imposed exiles, from which escape is virtually impossible. There, he meets Juffin. The Chief reveals a terrible secret to Max. Many centuries ago, powerful sorcerers learned that the World was doomed to imminent destruction. To save reality, an Arbiter, whose wishes are always granted, was urgently needed. Menin voluntarily went to the Quiet City: an unbearable longing for home transformed his desire to preserve the World into a powerful support for the Universe.

When Myonin grew tired and decided to retire, Juffin tried to find a suitable replacement. Numerous searches failed. Using ancient forbidden rituals, Juffin literally invented Max. He imbued the created hero with his own best qualities and false memories of a difficult childhood in another, uncomfortable world. Max’s spell with the Yonoh Seal radically reversed their positions. Juffin departs through an invisible border to Echo, and Max remains in the Quiet City, holding onto reality with the force of his unbearable melancholy.

Left completely alone, Max falls into a deep apathy. He befriends the local bar patrons, listens to their endless stories, and gradually transforms into a calm, well-fed old man. Noticing these frightening, degenerative changes in the mirror, Max decides to act immediately. He asks a werewolf friend to bite him, infecting him with incurable rabies. The artificially induced madness restores his aggressive will to fight. Max becomes a homeless vagrant and begins openly cursing the Quiet City on the streets.

The Paradise prison reacts to animal hatred: it rejects Max, transporting him to a secluded, empty house with yellow carpets, but does not return him to Echo. Max pulls himself together. He decides to use his innate power differently. Max begins writing detailed books about Echo, mystically publishing them in his so-called historical homeland. He wants hundreds of thousands of readers to fall in love with this world and, with their sincere desires, support its existence in his stead.

The daring plan works. Three years later, a plump storm-bird flies in through the open window. The bird turns to Melamori and says, "You are free from all previous obligations." Juffin conveys that the World has become completely reliable and solid. Max’s literary method has finally saved reality. Now the hero is free of invisible shackles and can return to Echo at any convenient moment.