come on mess me up -

[Reichenbach]

LIKE ICARUS LOVED THE SUN -

His curiosity and his concern had piqued when the relic was announced as found - who had found it, why had they been searching for it? What were they now going to use it for? His brow had furrowed as he was told that it was an old Shaman that had discovered the relic - and that the maze that he now stood before was something of his creation. The maze was thick and thorny, it's depths unknown and dark in the early morning light. Reichenbach had camped on the beach the night before, knowing that it was closer than his home city and relishing the moment of silence as he had lain by his small, hot fire. The ocean had been relatively calm, though he had still been lulled to sleep by the sound of it's rolling waves. Only hours ago he had awoken with the sun, shaken the sand from his mahogany skin and set off at a purposeful trot toward the freshly sprouted maze.

Standing before it now felt ominous and unnatural, it's depths eerily quiet. Did the Shaman reside in it's centre? Reich was loathe to enter any sort of maze, feeling a sort of claustrophobia as he stared in silence, silver eyes worried. To enter the maze might mean risking his own life - nobody knew what the relic was or what power it had garnered over the years, it might be all powerful. The trail of his thoughts paused as he gazed at the mystery before him - for if the relic had the power to spring such vast life from nothing, what else could it do? A contemplative hum slipped from him, the sun slowly rising as he took the first step forward - into the maze he went.

@Random Events

[Random Events]

The Shaman Has Appeared!

As you enter the maze, the world around you seem to dampen and grow darker, the tall hedges casting shadows from every direction as they seem to lean in towards you. The air cools the further you venture in, crystals of ice covering a few delicate leaves on the hedges, the ground hardened under hoof. Each breath of air you take is cold, and small puffs of frost are emitted with every exhale. From somewhere up ahead comes a high pitched cackle, disembodied in the mist.

Rounding the next corner will show a lone figure standing there, his skin as pale and thin as stone, tangled locks obscuring a good portion of his face. Across his body is draped the skin of some animal you don’t recognize, covering frail shoulders.

”Is it the relic of almighty Tempus you seek, Sovereign?” he asks, his voice youthful despite his aged appearance, carrying a lilt you cannot place into any of the Courts. You do not know how he knows your name, for he is a figure you have never seen before, and you can only wonder what more he knows about you. ”You will have to follow me to find it.” And with that, he turns and takes off further into the maze, ever leading you northwards. His speed belies his age, for he is constantly just ahead of you, sometimes disappearing into the dim but never venturing far. As he disappears around the next corner, you become aware of another creature lurking somewhere behind you, one of the many beasts to have make the maze its home.

---

@Reichenbach you’ve found the Shaman! However he is not one to stay and chat, and has already taken off into the brambles. It is up to you to hunt him down or not, but be warned: the maze contains many hidden dangers and beasts lurking within it that you might just get caught up in!

Feel free to write in your own obstacles or beasts, or tag the Random Events account if you would like one given to you! You have until Wednesday, July 19th to get your next reply in, at which point the Shaman will again respond.

Happy writing!

[Reichenbach]

LIKE ICARUS LOVED THE SUN -

The air grew colder and colder with each step, Reichenbach's hot breath frosting in front of his black lips, slipping over his flared nostrils and away into nothing. It was hard to think that this Shaman could be anything but dangerous, if this was the kind of place he liked to create out of nothing - if this was the kind of place he'd like to be at the centre of. The moment the thought left his head, so appeared the wraith-like shaman. The corner he had turned was a sharp one, so Reich jumped at the sight of the skeletally thin bodied creature, eyeing him with a wary gaze, though not dismissing him as ill-intentioned despite his unsavoury appearance. The Shaman's voice was strange, an almost enticing, lilting sound that didn't match his frightful appearance. 

Sovereign, he sneered, and Reichenbach's expressive brows lifted involuntarily. News travelled fast in Novus - but the newly crowned ruler of Denocte doubted the Shaman had heard the news through the grapevine. He looked like he'd be more at home in a cave with the rats than socialising with anyone - perhaps the relic had made him all knowing. He uttered a curse as the Shaman turned and fled through the dark maze, leaving him to scurry after the thin man, ears flicking ever so nervously at the creatures that he could hear but not see. The further they went, the larger the sounds became, the closer they got. Every so often Reichenbach would see the end of a scaled tail, or hear the flurry of feathers, once he even thought he heard the sound of claws on stone. 

Still he followed, casting his argent gaze forward and turning his ears back so as not to hear the treacherous sounds around him. He would follow the Shaman until he could follow no longer - whenever that might be.

@Random Events

[Random Events]

The ground begins to shake, throwing the hedges to and fro in a frenzied motion as their fragile leaves break and fall to the earth in tattered shreds. From beneath the Shaman’s hooves the ground begins to split, two ends ripping apart from one another and leaving a gaping hole below. The pale figure crosses unharmed, but you are cut off from him now. From within the pit comes a low hisssss, a scaled mass climbing from its depths.

The snake raises its body up to face you, its height nearly reaching your own as it bares its pearly fangs and seems to smile, an invitation to dance with the serpent hanging in the air between you.

---

@Reichembach

You now have until Wednesday, July 26th at 11:59pm PST to get one last reply in before the Shaman reappears, so please reply accordingly!

Happy writing!

[Reichenbach]

LIKE ICARUS LOVED THE SUN -

"STOP!"

The Sovereign called just as the Shaman rounded another bend, the only evidence of him being the faint beats of his hooves as he sprinted through the maze. Reich cursed again, pushing himself faster, faster, faste -

A boom and shudder rocked the maze, throwing Reichenbach off of his hooves and onto the hard earth below him. "What the hell" was his irritated mutter, glancing everywhere for the cause of the eruption through concerned silver eyes. He continued until - there, there was the Shaman. A grimace twisted his face as he approached, slowly now, as if the Shaman might vanish any moment. The earth-shaking continued and Reich watched on in horror as the ground split, the depths of the cavernous opening unknown and shadowy. 

A form began to take shape and Reichenbach lost all thought of the Shaman as a gigantic snake appeared before him, it's slick face expressive as it dared him to dance, the glint of it's eyes enough to tell him that he wouldn't get past the serpent unless she allowed it. 

He glanced around him, searching for any other route, settling the fear that sat in his belly like a cold stone. His gaze turned upward, silver eyes glued to the eyes of the large snake before him. He smiled. It was a chaotic thing, full of carelessness and excitement and it seemed to set the rest of his muscular body afire with danger. His body shifted, swaying gently as he kept eye contact, grinning the whole time as his coins jingled and clinked with every movement. 

"Shall we dance then, Serpent?"



@Random Events

[Random Events]

The Shaman Has Appeared!

The serpent’s tongue slithers from its mouth, bright red against its otherwise dark form. It seems to smile, and then it moves. It mirrors the swaying of your body, scales mesmorizing in the dim evening light. Time seems irrelevant; it may have been seconds or hours, for a drowsiness has filled the section of the maze you stand in, threatening to consume you. Just when you think you can take it no longer the serpent collapses, length coiling in upon itself in slumber, leaving you free to cross its path.

The mist from before fills the corridor once more, and the Shaman walks back into view. His steps are unhurried as he closes the gap between you both, his smile glinting at you in the dim.

“So, you’ve made it to the center of the maze,” he says in his lilting voice, coming to a stop several lengths from you. “You've defended yourself from my pets. All you have left is to answer my riddle. Get it right, and what once was lost may again be found—get it wrong, and I will leave you here to face the Maze once again, without my guidance.

Answer me this:

“This thing repeats, no man ever yet did see,
it never was but is always to be.
From Orien’s first breath to Caligo’s great dark,
Birthed from nothing and returning thenceforth.
It leaves behind a single sign:
the passing of the sun across the sky.”

---

@Reichenbach

You may write your character interacting with the Shaman, but please pm your response to the Random Events account! Title the pm as “RIDDLE—Character Name.” You have until Sunday, August 6th to get your answer pm sent! Your IC may be made during that time or after the winner is selected. If multiple correct answers are received, a dice roll may be used to decide who the winner is.

Happy writing!