Navigation - Bamboo Maze

Common sense told Pyralis it was a bad idea to go walking into this screwy terrain, this endless maze of bamboo, but when had she ever listened to her common sense?  Pyralis huffed as she sniffed at a stalk of bamboo that she had rubbed against earlier to mark her scent.  She was slowly working on a strategy to get herself out of this.  Wasn't that typical?  It seemed like so much of her life was developing strategies to get herself out of the messes she got in only to wind up in a new mess in need of new solutions.  Grumbling to herself she sat down, head craning to peer at the flecks of blue sky she could see beyond the leaves. "Talk" "You" Think

He sang to himself words that only had meaning to him in a language that he had only ever heard one other person speak as he traversed the maze. Every so often he stopped, looked up and then carried on, his tail swinging listlessly behind him. In truth he had picked the maze because he had assumed it was deserted; somewhere he could go without being asked what he was doing or what he was saying. The “mourning song” as Valentin had called it was an important part of their practice, a prayer of sorts designed exclusively for the priests to cleanse themselves. The song was composed of three verses; His own, Valentin’s, and one from Valentin’s master Ferdinand. The lyrics of the first verse thanked the Loa Ghede the guardian of the afterlife and eroticism, the serpent that no doubt blessed him, and the sweet drugs that eased his mind and gave him access to the crossroads. He only knew the words to the last two verses, not their meaning, knowing what another priest was most thankful for was a sign of disrespect in their religion, instead the lyrics echoed voices of those long past, reminding the spirits that once watched over him what made them happy, in order to prevent them from becoming demons. He glanced upwards again and continued to stroll, coming up on the last line of the song before his voice caught in his throat. Standing right before him was a female, a rather large and apparently agitated female. His mouth snapped shut, anticipating a “what the fuck was that?” and deciding to cut that off immediately with an overly chipper; “Marning cher!” speaking

Watching the clouds move across the sky was mesmerizing and she sat like that for a moment before it suddenly dawned on her that she was an idiot. There was enough light slipping through the cracks between leaves that she could roughly gauge the direction she was heading in and account for her position accordingly. Maybe she needed a nap. Pyralis never thought she'd grow tired of wandering but after this mad run, the gulping of freedom like air after drowning well… she was ready to dip back below the surface and sleep for a few good centuries. Her ears twitched as singing caught her attention and she turned in the direction of the voice but she did not stand and did not move. Pyralis was content to sit where she was and none but the Fallen god could move her unless she wished it. Her brow raised though as a most unexpected creature rounded the corner. A man cloaked in violent and strange vibrant greens greeted her. What an unusual creature. She grinned at his unusual accent. "Good morning to you to. Are you mortal or some spirit sent to lead the lost ever deeper into this maze?" She let out a laugh. "Or perhaps you are as turned around as I am?" "Talk" "You" Think

“No spirit I’m afraid.”He said with a wide grin. “Only their humble messenger.” He said, his eyes closing and his head tossing back as he gave his formal introduction. “Dumois Rosario, at your service cher.” He purred, his yellowing teeth visible in the wide grin that had formed over his features. “And as a matter o-fact, I know exactly where I’m goin’ thanks to some good Samaritan.” He said and looked up at the tops of the bamboo, silently urging her to do the same. It was difficult to see but someone had at some point marked the bamboo by biting and scratching in a particular area of the yellowed chutes, specifically toward one of the halls of the maze. Whoever had come through had clearly done so long ago; the marring had to an extent been somewhat faded as the plant attempted to heal itself, the marking was also considerably high, on the chute. “I’ve just been following those this whole time. I ain’t found no bones yet so I must be heading in the right direction.” He chimed happily, the end of his tail tossing happily from side to side. "Talk"  Thought "You"

A spirit messenger, hm? Ok, now this was getting interesting. That would certainly explain the mans unusual pelt and she supposed he had some dealing with a certain set of spirits for his coloration. He introduced himself as Dumois Rosario and he apparently knew where he was going. Pyralis returned his grin. "Well then, I hope this good Samaritan of yours was truly such and not a devil in disguise." He looked to the bamboo and she followed his gaze to the markings but it did not comfort her at all to learn that that was what he'd been following but she still found it amusing. "No bones… yet. So reassuring." She chuckled. "But what the hell, it's not like I've got any better ideas. Care for a little company? I'm Pyralis Abraxas, by the way." "Talk" "You" Think

I'd rather be dead than live a lie
BURN THE WHITE FLAG!

Natha's confidence had grown and she decided that it was time for the confrontation. As she wound her way through the maze she planned her escape. The trick would be to stay just far enough ahead of the woman that she could lead her away from the strangely colored man to where the two could talk privately and the lynx could get her answers. The maze was the perfect place to separate them but it would take some doing. She'd spent ages trying to memorize the twists and turns of the maze but it was simply to vast to memorize all of it. This plan could backfire spectacularly but she was not deterred. She'd survived much in her life and she would survive this. Stepping from around the corner she rubbed her cheek lightly against the bamboo. "Woman, I hate to trouble you but I think it's time we talked." With a grin and a sudden spurt of energy she was off through the maze.

-exit-

Pyralis had been taking her time, enjoying the mans company when her furry little ghost caught up with her. With a growl Pyralis turned toward the voice, eyeing the lynx that stood before her, perfectly solid. That smug grin, that arrogant, lackadaisical manner before the sudden explosion of speed. Being a proud creature herself she found something particularly irritating about the feline's behavior. There was also something else, something that gnawed at her. A feeling of familiarity. "Excuse me, Dumois. I have some skeletons I need to rebury." She took off at full speed her body banking off the bamboo as she aimed to take the turns with enough speed to catch the pesky cat. -exit- "Talk" "You" Think