Fantasy The Labyrinth

[nighttimecatplayer]

Mantle.

Traveling along the labyrinth walls.

Manticore.

Slightly injured and suspicious.

Following Arsa and Vujax from above.

---

A low chuckle arose as Mantle watched the two entities converse with each other. Their casual and lighthearted conversation was enough to almost make one forget that they were all trapped within a sentient labyrinth that probably had no means of ever letting them all go alive. Mantle had retreated far enough to still be within earshot as he carefully watched the human with a keen sense. Although admittedly this other creature was quite strange, he still wouldn't trust them, and it made his toes curl when the human ever so agreeably let the being pick him up without so much of even a decline. Given the circumstances he could also tell that the human wasn't entirely within his right mind and was fading fast from both recent injures and exhaustion.

He could have probably given them both a lift if he ever so desired. But why did it bother him so much that this one creature seemed to be caring for the human and he already wasn't? From all the time that Mantle had been following around this particular human he never even got his name and yet he still already felt so attached to him. Was it maybe jealously? Perhaps even loneliness? There was plenty of others that he could have been helping and yet he still stuck with this one individual who didn't even know that he existed. Even when the serpent once again invaded his thoughts, he still couldn't find a reason for protecting the strange human. Before Mantle could even have a chance to respond a familiar silky-smooth voice wavered throughout his mind spitting deceit and telling sweet lies.

"You know what you must do... Guide his soul throughout the maze and you'll find your everlasting freedom."

"Fail to protect him or die within this labyrinth and your soul shall forever become a slave to me."

"Trust is your greatest enemy. Trust no one or death will play you for a fool."

"See no evil, hear no evil, and speak no evil."

"We'll meet again soon."

The voice was enough to sweep Mantle off his feet as he stumbled and struggled to keep his footing onto the ground. He had only experienced this occurrence a few times now throughout the labyrinth, but each time was worse than the last. He never knew where it was coming from but the owner of the voice terrified Mantle more than any of these creatures ever would. Flashbacks started to take over as he struggled to distinguish fantasy from reality and visions started to dance around within his head. A beautiful woman who was scarily taller than any average human sent a sly smile towards the lion and fingered for him to follow her. In the near distance was the shadow creature and the very same human that Mantle was already starting to lose sight of.

With each passing moment a cackle started to rise from the woman as the two beings were getting further and further away from the petrified lion. Mantle was practically panting as a foreign figure appeared on the ground clutching over one of his eyes with blood pouring out. The strange woman took a step towards the figure and crouched down so she was at eye level with them. "Well what are you just sitting here waiting for? You're letting him get away. Don't waste my time." Slowly waving a finger the woman frowned before disappearing entirely into thin air. Almost as soon as she disappeared a faint laugh turned into a scowl above Mantle which he began to tremble, and a hand soothingly ran down his ear. "You've already failed me so many times now. You won't fail me again, now will you?"

Before a bite could have been taken at the hand that belonged to the female both the strange woman and the foreign figure vanished entirely leaving Mantle completely alone. He felt like the world itself was crashing down upon him as he frantically looked around searching for something that was no longer there. Where was the human? Quickly the lion took into the skies and crashed down onto the walls of the labyrinth in a frenzied panic. The shadow creature was already off with the human and he no longer had them within sight. If memory served the beast well, he knew that they were both heading towards the river which was somewhat alarming for the lion. Mantle wasted no time to break into a full sprint as he fought to catch up with the two and only hoped that the human was alright.​

​

 

[Tmd4772]

Mood: Stressed
Location: God Knows Where
Interactions: Open For Interaction

Joan

And [if] thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness [be] as the noonday: Isaiah 58:10

Joan awoke to a bright light that reached her eyes despite them being closed. Still noon, she thought. It had been noon when she fell asleep, it seemed the Labyrinth didn't want her to sleep her troubles away, so it convinces her no time has passed. Sleeping in the sun has left her parched, and she sadly has access to no water at the moment. Joan has, however, heard the sound of rushing water for 2 of what she thinks are days, yet time never seems consistent. She hears the water behind one of the walls, so it could be ten feet away but it may as well be oceans away. I am being tested and will not fail you, gracious lord Joan thought. She rose to her knees, held her rosary clasped in both hand to her lips, bowed her head, and proceeded to pray. After Joan completed her prayer, she rose to her feet, donned her makeshift pouch of flexible bark and flax string, and began on her way.
Joan feels as though she's been here for a few weeks, but they had been the longest weeks of her life. She's encountered no people, but she has bore witness to some live fauna, however she had neither the heart or the means, considering that she didnt have her sword or shield, to hunt them for a meal. Joan had been sustaining herself on plants and berries she encountered while walking, with never enough to store any in her pouch. She hadn't encountered a source of water since she first awoke in the Labyrinth a few weeks back, she didnt realize that water would be so scarce a resource, and lost track of the miniature pond rather quickly, as if it disappeared.
As she walked, Joan hummed a tune that constantly rang in her head and made her smile, though she can't recall where she heard it, perhaps her mother sang it to her in her youth. This cheered her up, and she rose her head with confidence, put a pep in her step, and continued the carved stone, man-made looking path in front of her... wait... she was just walking a dirt path... Ah whatever She thought and carried along.

 

[Fae13]

~Baird~

He Heard The Child call out to him, he had just started lowering his flute to respond when a blinding burning sensation exploded right over where his heart would be if he were mortal. The pain was sudden, he usually got a warning from the Labyrinth in the form of a tingling in his chest so he would be prepared, the closer the poor soul was to him when they entered the less warning he got, so this soul must basically be right on top of him. He felt his knees hit the ground as his vision went white, his ears were winging badly enough that that was all he could hear. His hand went to cover the now glowing sigil, it was a constant reminder of his greatest failure...how dare this...this...mortal make him remember it with no warning! As his eyes began to see faded shapes once more and the ringing began to dull he vowed to himself with an almost feral growl rumbling in his throat, wait when had he started growling? Whatever...that didn't change the fact...he was going to make this mortal pay for their unintentional actions, and if he had it his way, Baird would enjoy watching them dance for eternity until they danced their feet completely down to the bone or their heart simply stopped in its chest.

awriternamedian AMXRYLLIS

 

[Shog]

"Uhhh... where you come from?" Vujax asked. He wanted to ask more than he originally had, but supposed he' have to be patient. In just a couple more turns they should arrive at the small stream he heard earlier. He didn't think whatever made the roar he heard earlier would be there, but it depended on how far it had traveled since then. He also noted a distinct lack of the lion creature he saw earlier and decided to retract the spikes on his back. He didn't seem to need them anymore.

 

[Fae13]

~Asra~

Asra rested his head back against Vujax's upper arm, the rocking movement was very soothing. A smile spread across his lips as he recalled his hometown

"I come from a land called Azd' Oman, where the Oman sea meets the Persian Gulf. Where I am from there were jungles right outside of the city's walls that slowly morphe to seemingly endless grasslands which disguise the merciless desert beyond, many people thought to conquer the desert yet never returned...They'll think me one of those people by now..."

Asra's voice turned sad as he spoke

"I road a great beast that moved faster than the shifting sands of the desert, he's helped me before in my many travels...I was on my way back to my shop when I was spirited away into this place..."

Asra thought about his home, his eyes grew sad as his shoulders slumped. His poor sister...she didn't know how to run the shop alone...would she be okay without him...? Maybe he could get a message out to her? Maybe once he slept for a time he'd have enough energy to try a communication spell with her...but right now he was being lulled to sleep by the gait of Vujaxs walking.

Faust slithered out from the bag and curled up into Asra's lap, her head looking up unblinkingly at his face, he'd be safe to fall asleep with her on guard, even if he wasn't meaning to doze

 

[Shog]

This created several more questions that Vujax wanted answered, but knew he would only answer one at a time. After several moments of silence, he spoke again. "What do you mean by spirited away?"

After several moments of silence, Vujax looked down at the unmoving form of the human. At first he thought the human was dead and nearly dropped him. It wouldn't do him any good to carry a corpse around. Luckily, he remembered that humans needed sleep. Creator used to leave him to guard her while she slept. He stopped walking and observed the human. A sleeping form would still move, if only slightly, and careful observation revealed that Asra's chest rhythmically raised and lowered ever so slightly. Now reassured that his source of information was still alive, he pushed forward. Maybe when he woke up he should ask about that creature he kept with him.

After a couple minutes of walking in silence he approached a circular area with two corridors attached. A stream flowed seemingly from the wall itself and continued down the other path. A couple larger rocks dotted the space and a lone tree hung over the stream, but the area was mostly a barren field of grass with the occasional flower. Vujax carefully set Asra down with his back slightly propped against a rock and the heals of his feet skimming the surface of the water. He then trudged through to the other side of the stream to lean against the tree, basking in it's shadow.

 

[Dalamus Ulom]

The trees whispered odd particulars and secrets to each other above Ductor's head as he trod along the dirt path, murmuring of manticores and newcomers and children and other such inane vaguarities all in that seemingly eternal midday sun. Ductor wasn't sure if the trees' whisperings were real or simply a product of his own mind gone mad with paranoia, but either one was solidly possible in this place.

He'd been traveling along this dirt path for three days now, ever since he set out to try and get closer to the Tower in the center. Well, Ductor believed it to have been three days, but the Labyrinth had kept it midday this entire time, so for all he knew it had only been an hour. Whatever the case may be, he had a solid, paranoia fueled hunch the Labyrinth was only keeping the sun so far overhead in order to try and keep him away from the Tower. Well, that and the seemingly countless number of traps he had been encountering on this path alone that seemed to dwarf the amount Ductor had encountered during the entire time he'd been in this thrice damned maze.

And that. . . that was a long time indeed.

Stopping for a moment, he pulled out a large water skin and began to drink, attempting to quench the thirst he had built up during his long walk to his point, before he was rudely interrupted by a large dart ripping through the skin in his hands and embedding itself into a nearby tree.

"Bloody maze shooting my bloody water..." He grumbled.

The trees laughed at this, and kept laughing even as he continued on his way.

 

[nighttimecatplayer]

Mantle.

Standing near the small stream.

Manticore.

Slightly injured and calming down.

Confronting Vujax and trying to communicate with Faust.

---

A heavy sigh rose into the air as Mantle skidded to a stop and loomed over the edge of the labyrinth wall overcasting a giant shadow that was blocking out sunlight to the entities down below. The lion quickly found the human which somewhat calmed his trembling nerves but frowned upon realizing that the shadow creature was still with him. It seemed that the human had finally succumbed to his injuries and fell asleep which gave Mantle the perfect opening to go and confront this new creature. Before Mantle decided to take the leap of faith he took in a shaky breath and fought to gather his flattening composure. He could still feel the touch of those icy cold hands and it was something that he never wanted to experience again throughout his lifetime.

Taking in a final breath Mantle reared back and leaped into the air with his wings spread opened wide. His shadow started to grow smaller as he grew closer to the ground and the breeze blew throughout his mane washing away the cruelty of the previous events. As soon as the lion impacted with the ground a sudden tremor shook the Earth and a small crater was left behind where he landed. Mantle took the time to shake out his fur before immediately stomping over to Vujax which he could just barely see him resting against a tree. He could also see the human sleeping on the other side of the stream which meant good news for him. He still didn't trust himself enough yet to allow himself to get close with the human and the last thing that he needed was to have this other creature alert the human to his presence.

From a distance Mantle could see that the serpent from before was curled up on the human's lap and was protectively guarding him while he slept. Although he wasn't entirely certain if it was the serpent who called out to him maybe it was best to still try and communicate with this small creature anyways. After sending a strong glare towards Vujax who was resting only a few feet away Mantle turned his attention towards the charming little snake and tried to send him a warning message. "I wouldn't fully trust this being if I were you. There are many creatures out there who will try and gain your humans trust only to trick him and lead him into a life of despair and misery. Don't let the same thing happen to your human as it did to me."

It was crazy to think that this small creature could actually hear his own thoughts, but he wasn't exactly the sanest of creatures and it wasn't the craziest thing to happen within this maze either. The crazier thing was probably the entity in front of him who almost seemed to be blending into the shadows itself. Although it was true that he didn't want to fight this creature Mantle still didn't know the true reasons behind his intentions and he heavily disliked how close he had already gotten with the human after such a short amount of time. On the other hand, he also seemed to be helping the human and it was plausible that they were both working towards similar goals. Mantle decided to simply find out for himself as he took a step closer to Vujax and snarled with saliva dripping down his fanged teeth. The creature’s reaction to the challenge would end up being the ultimate deciding factor.​

 

[Fae13]

Faust's head swiveled towards Mantle as his thoughts interrupted hers. She did a small head bob and sent a thought back to him, the concern she held seemed to color the thoughts as she seemed to be looking between the two creatures to make sure nothing was going to happen to hurt her master before she could rouse him

'Asra not safe? Should wake?'

Faust could feel the good that the sleep was having on her master, even in the short amount of time that he'd been dosing his magic stores were already beginning to refill, of course, that could have to do with also being so close to the water, her master had always loved water and being near it, so it was no wonder to her that he found comfort in it now.

 

[Shog]

Vujax kept his eyes glued on the best from the moment he landed. This creature appeared to be the same one from earlier, which put him on edge. It was true that it hadn't attacked earlier, but that didn't mean much. Perhaps it enjoyed stalking and toying with it's prey before making the kill. An even worse possibility was that it just looked like the same from before, but was in fact one of many. It may have just left earlier to alert others of its kind and they were all closing in now. This thought caused him to quickly scan the surrounding area, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. Turning his attention back to the creature, he decided it was getting a bit too close to his information source. Even though it's attention seemed to be focused on himself, he wanted to keep him from getting any closer to the human.

He purposefully walked out of the shadow, but didn't immediately approach the beast. Instead, he made sure to position himself between the beast and the human. Only then did he start approaching the beast, though slowly. If it was a fight it wanted, a fight it'd get. Vujax's right hand morphed into a large ax and his left into a sword-like blade.

"Leave," he commanded in as forceful a voice as he could muster. He would not make the first move (at least not yet), but would not back down. He'd slain many monsters since being created. This one would be no different.

 

[nighttimecatplayer]

Mantle.

Lying down near the small stream.

Manticore.

Slightly injured and becoming protective.

Protectively watching over Arsa while he sleeps.

---

Even after Vujax commanded for him to leave Mantle still held his ground and continued to stare off with the shadow creature. It was an honest surprise for the lion when the creature put himself in-between the human and was almost protectively guarding him from Mantle. Time seemed to stop entirely as they were both waiting for someone to make the first move. Mantle quickly over glanced towards Faust when that same voice surged throughout his mind and confirmed to be from the serpent. The snake was looking towards him and was eagerly waiting for an answer. "There's no need to wake your master. This creature doesn't seem to have any dangerous intents towards your human, but I would still watch him anyways just to be safe."

Directing his glance back over to the creature Mantle made direct eye contact with him as he tried to figure out the facade behind his true intentions. As soon as Vujax morphed his hands into weapons Mantle's single lone eye grew wide and a large variety of emotions flashed throughout his crestfallen features. There was a mixture of anger rage grief and sadness as he started to back away from the shadow creature and he slowly lowered his ears down to the ground. He never liked weapons much and the exact moment that this creature made the choice to draw was the exact moment he started to dislike him. Once he was at a far enough distance Mantle whispered something towards the serpent and he started to charge at Vujax full speeds. "And besides, I wouldn't ever let this creature hurt your human as long as I'm still alive and breathing."

Instead of Mantle attacking Vujax he leaped over his shoulders and landed directly on the other side of the stream next to the tired human. His harsh gaze never left the other creature as he protectively wrapped himself around Arsa and Faust with both of them resting straight smack in the middle. He was almost treating the human like a small child as a low growl arose in his throat and his tail was furiously whipping back and forth. Mantle opened his wings to shield both of them from the sunlight and lowered his head down to the ground. It was the closest that he had ever gotten with the human, but he couldn't deny that his protective instincts were starting to take over. Even when Mantle grew weary, he still wouldn't let Vujax out of his sight.
​

 

[Fae13]

Asra stirred only slightly through this whole endeavor and simply curled closer to the warmth surrounding him, a hand coming to twist and tangle into Mantles main as his breath sighed in contentment...Asra hadn't been warm for so long while traveling in the Labyrinth, he had never dared to stop long enough to make a fire to warm him and then nights were bitterly cold and Mantle was like a furnace. Faust also seemed to relax as Mantle got close, she was, after all, only a Snake and couldn't actually protect Asra from any danger, she could only wake him if something happened...oh what a sad time for her to be so small...

 

[WillfulWren]

Napping in the sunshine was all well and good, a lovely way to laze the day away, especially as Silver rolled over onto her back, squirming so gravel relieved those nasty little itches. The fur on her feline form's belly was almost white, and fluffy as... Well, cat belly fur. She sighed in happiness, then got to her feet, shaking dust from her fur.

A good way to spend a day - if one had plenty of water. She considered changing form, but decided against it - the fluffy silver cat was better at finding water than the skinny teenage girl. She could hear water trickling a small distance away, but decided against heading towards it. The possibility of her finding it was slim. So she found it how she found everything else - squeezing her eyes shut and flattening her body as close to the ground as she could and squirming through a tiny gap under a hedge and running full pelt around - just as one's pet cat may do in the wee hours of the morning - turning corners at random.
And then she skidded in a small puddle of water.

Jackpot. A happy purr as she crouched to lap some up, then looked around for it's source. It hadn't been raining in the Labyrinth for a while now, and puddles of water didn't just... appear.

So, she started following the whispers. The trees were certainly aware of her, and they whispered of a traveller passing through... Up ahead. If she just hurried, she could catch up....
And she had been looking for someone to play with.


The cat shimmered and faded, the silver haired girl getting to her feet and shaking out her limbs, rolling her shoulders a little with a contented noise. "Hello? Mister?" She called, hurrying down the corridor Ductor had taken. Perhaps hurrying a little too fast, as she ran into his back.

Dalamus Ulom

 

[Shog]

As the beast jumped over Vujax's large stature, he immediately spun around and swung the ax hand at where he landed. At the last second, however, he stopped and held perfectly still. If he had followed through with his attack then he might have hurt the human which this beast was now standing over. He didn't know why it was acting like this, but it couldn't be good. He had yet to come across a monster with good intentions for humans. Maybe it just wanted to try and scare Vujax off before digging into a meal. He wasn't going to let that happen.

He retracted his weapons, his hands returning to normal size. He slowly approached the beast, trying to be cautious. The task of fending off this beast was only further complicated as the human grabbed at it's fur. No good could surely come from that. While he was still a good distance away he shot out his hand as fast as lightning. As it flew towards Mantle his hand split into several tentacle-like appendages which wrapped around Mantle. One or two would certainly be secured around his body and another in some position around the neck, but the remaining two would probably struggle to control the beast's legs. Once he had the beast's body secured he would raise him off the ground, slow enough for the slumbering human to let go but hopefully fast enough to keep the beast from marring him.

"You didn't leave," Vujax stated as though it was a threat.

 

[Fae13]

Faust was beside herself, What was a 3-foot snake supposed to do in a situation like this?!? Asra whined in his sleep at the movements around him before he began coughing hard, he'd been already getting sick while traveling back to his homelands, the conditions of the Labyrinth were simply aggravating his illness. The Warmth had been helping ease the tightness the illness had created in Asra's chest and Faust was aggravated...so she did the only thing she could think of, she reared back and attempted to sink her fangs into one of the tentacles like fingers as she basically screamed in her mind at both of them

'no fight! NO FIGHT! Asra Sick! NO FIGHT!'

 

[nighttimecatplayer]

Mantle.

Trying to pull himself out from the small stream.

Manticore.

Slightly injured and freezing cold.

Resisting Vujax and not paying attention to Arsa.

---

It certainly wasn't expected when tentacles shot out and wrapped around Mantle barely giving him any time to react. The lion was already struggling midair as he thrashed around and fought violently to escape the sickening grasp of the other creature. He didn't want to hurt the human but this was a less than optimal position as he could have easily landed on the human and crushed him. The slimy appendages were trying to restrain Mantle and it was starting to become worrisome when the hold on his neck tightened. He also couldn't fly away due to his wings being wrapped and the human was already starting to stir which angered Mantle greatly. If he thought anything good of Vujax before he certainly didn't think anything good of him now as he growled dangerously low and started to snap at the tentacles that were binding him.

With each passing second Mantle was getting more panicked and it was getting harder to contain him. He really didn't want to fight this creature and his primal instincts were making it extremely hard now to resist because it was telling him to do the exact opposite. As the small serpent screamed throughout his mind a dark chuckle flooded his thoughts and the same woman from before appeared for only him to see. "Well, well, well what do we have here? A fly caught within the spiders’ web. You aren't going to just sit here, and do absolutely nothing are you?" The woman laughed almost teasingly as she took this opportunity to stand in front of Mantle and leaned on his head using his own body as a support crutch.

This occurrence already happened twice now in such a short window of time and Mantle didn't understand it. His entire body was quivering, and he stopped struggling entirely as everything else became numb to him and his only focus was on the woman. A smile slowly crept onto her face before she fully busted out laughing and doubled over clutching her stomach. This entire situation was nothing more than an absolute joke to her and everything about it was hilarious. Mantle said nothing as he waited for her to go away and closed his eye tightly trying to block her out. The woman frowned greatly upon seeing that Mantle was trying to ignore her, and the mood changed almost instantly as her face grew dark and she became dangerously close to Mantle.

Reaching behind her back the woman forced Mantle to look at her face and started to pull something out from a black sheath. "Let me give you a little tidbit of advice." With a quick flick of the wrist she pulled out a glistening stiletto and had the lion pinned by the throat. "Never let your guard down. Otherwise you're going to get CUT." Upon saying this the woman quickly slid the knife across his throat and Mantle began to full blown panic as the woman dispersed leaving him alone to deal with the aftermath. His instincts started to take over as he began to thrash violently, and his tail managed to slip free from the appendages that were holding him down. The spines on his tail started to release as he launched them towards Vujax and slashed at the tentacles.

The exact moment the tentacles released Mantle broke free from their grasp and rolled out of the way, so he wouldn't land on the human. Instead he ended up rolling into the stream as he collided with the freezing cold water and made a giant splash. Although the stream wasn't very deep it was still a fast current and Mantle had to claw onto the side to prevent himself from getting washed away. Unfortunately, he was resting only a few feet under Vujax and was left vulnerable to the other creature as he was still in shock and shaking uncontrollably. Being a cat hybrid, he absolutely hated water and the water was abnormally cold for his species. Mantle could only glare up at the creature standing before him as he hopelessly clawed at the land trying to pull himself out. ​

 

[Shog]

For the second time that day Vujax heard a voice that originated inside himself. It was one of the most unnerving things he had ever experienced. It was enough to distract him long enough to give the beast a momentary advantage. Vujax only had moments to try and harden his skin where the spikes were heading and was only partly successful. A couple harmlessly bounced off, but most had varying degrees of success planting themselves into his body. He'd worry about removing them once he was done with his current business.

While Vujax was preoccupied with the spines, the beast managed to free itself. He noted that it worked specifically to avoid landing on the human. He wasn't particularly known for his observational skills, but such actions were hard to miss. He certainly didn't trust this beast, but perhaps it had no intention of hurting this human. Asra? Was that his name? That's what the voice said. Regardless, he couldn't focus on that now.

He looked down at the beast fruitlessly clawing at the ground. He actually seemed to be dangerous just moments ago, but this was just sad. He stepped forward and onto Mantle with one foot, it morphing into an iron grip around it's body and wings, and pushed it further into the mud. The tentacles gripped around the tail to keep it out of the way and his free hand formed back into an ax. each part holding Mantle hardened like metal. A relatively soft metal, but metal none the less. "This pathetic. Any reason Vutha not kill monster?" If it could communicate at all, this would be the time. Not that it'd probably help.

 

[Fae13]

Asra woke with a start as his head hit the ground

"Wha-?"

He was surprised to see the conflict around him as his face went blank...what was he watching right now?