Labyrinth - The True Universe

[Villamvihar]

The universe is ruled by such beautiful stars, but even though their photons may please the human eye, they care not. They just shine on and on, like eternal gods, yet their lives are so brief when they are compared to that of the marvellous universe. Just as humans are as mayflies to the stars, the stars are merely specks of dust to the universe itself. Thus, it is not a surprise that the assumptions humans make about the very world they live in could not be farther from the truth. Indeed, it would be a sad universe if it was finite or infinite, a sorrowful reality if it was consistent and a weeping world if it could be described so easily by mere concepts.

The universe just simply is. There is no other way to describe it, because its existence defies any semblance of logic and it does not conform to any line of thought. It is its nature to be incomprehensible to all sapient life, as hard as they might try to understand it, for it is a paradox, a contradiction, something that should have never existed. Therefore, it is natural to conclude that the sane universe humans see is just an illusion and that behind the fabric seen by ordinary eyes lies something that has been never comprehended, something that is never comprehended, something that will never be comprehended and something that defies the description of comprehension.

It is a star that is seven in four, a four-edged square made out of seven lines, an eleven-sided dice that is numbered from one to twenty-eight. It is a place called Labyrinth by the madmen of the ancient ages, an endless maze that leads to countless of worlds, yet is closed to all of them. It is a place that reflects the true nature of the universe as it is ever-changing and always incomprehensible. Even the madmen that claimed to have knowledge of it have seen it only through their visions, in their dreams, or heard of it through their hallucinations. So then how it is that two sapient beings were able to cross the barrier between two perceptions of the universe?

Noket Sel Algelz did not know, but what he knew was that he finally managed to reach his goal. After all those years he spent researching the culture and the mythology of the ancient civilizations, he finally found the place that he sought ever since he saw that creature, the image of which was burned into his mind. He knew that he found his goal, because the needles finally disappeared from under his skin and the imaginary edge of death was no longer placed against his throat. Even though he left his family behind, on the other side of Labyrinth, he was more content now than ever.

If he could have, he would have embraced the walls of the huge maze as they spread out before him in their bloodthirsty impossibility, but alas, he had to do with engraving the strange symbols on the wall into his mind. He knew these symbols very well. They were the symbols that he claimed were fake, symbols the existence of which he denied, just so it was him that got first into this place, the only place where he could find the monster that plagued his life. It was also the only place where he could confront those unblinking eyes that conveyed death with a mere blink and it was also the only place he could End them.

He smiled. It was such a good day in such a wonderful place. Labyrinth would hide its secrets and its monsters from him no more. And through his discoveries, humans will know how arrogant they are in their beliefs, for they will finally see the true light, the light of those eyes that he discovered so many years ago.

 

[Daniella_Belli]

"Pluck a flower from my grasp, the skies shall darken, the wind will rasp. Prick your flesh of the the thorn, not a blessing but a curse to those lovelorn. Murdering passions, hopes shall die.."As she was not confronted with a nervous or screaming crowd, Morbidia's abyssal eyes opened to behold a new world. Bony fingers folding around the withering stems of her ghastly bouquet, the heavy heads of the demonic flora drooping as their weight could no longer be supported. She blinked a few times, attempting to dispel the illusion which had overtook her vision, but the hallucination of this strange new land could not be dissipated so easily.

Her stygian tendrils grazed a ghostly countenance as to follow the subtle movements of her head, hair that fell down her back in soft wavelets, like the churning of the tides of the River Styx when a newly departed soul is ushered into the afterlife. She was a conspicuous stain upon the streets she frequented, trying to unload her Skull flowers upon a collectively unwelcome public. Now there was naught another living soul as to harken her gloomy twist of tongue, naught another which possessed the lively flesh she so desired to gaze upon.

"...and uncontrolled, a weeping eye. Upon a sigh, your expired dreams, lost to your gaze, the lively gleam." The words skittered across her tongue, finding an exit between slightly parted lips in no more than a whisper. She began to inch forward, taking in the scene of mossy walls that seemed to be caked with ancient soil, she appeared to be stirring within the dead silence of a catacomb.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u66/TrinityDemonia/Kitten Kaboodle/MorbidiaMorthel.jpg

 

[Villamvihar]

((OOC: The image link does not seem to be working))

Labyrinth was simply fascinating for one like Sel. For one, as a historian, Sel could see the value of the strange, overly complicated symbols drawn onto the walls, each one of which told a story to those who were willing to listen to it. And how beautiful were those tales in their insanity! They defied every single law of human logic, every single physical law and even every single law of the universe, because those tales were the universe themselves. In their incoherent whispers, they told of battles between galaxies, of concepts coming to life due to the influence of the sapient creatures that dare to call themselves sane, of legends that originated before themselves, yet after these very stories were born. They shouted names, letters, numbers, places, they recited pictures, photographs, paintings, and they displayed sounds, music, melodies. In their synaesthesia, they were the one and only perfect representation of the universe's nature.

But Sel could enjoy Labyrinth on another level that normal humans could not even think of. As one who survived an encounter with a creature that seemed to reflect the nature of the universe, he could hear the walls calling out to him. He could see new tales being written before their subjects were born, yet they were made after they have died. He could sense new concepts coming into life and old concepts withering away. He could feel that this place was his home, that Labyrinth was where he belonged, not into the world that decided to call the true universe sick. How foolish it was of them those theories based on a word of a single man. How foolish it was of them to think that they could comprehend what was far larger than themselves.

Unfortunately for him, it seemed that he was not the only human who found out about the existence of Labyrinth. Close by, there was a woman who seemed to be reciting some sort of poem while she carried some sort of a bouquet made out of flowers that Sel has never seen before. While he was not surprised by the appearance of something completely unknown to him as he knew what Labyrinth was, seeing another human being was completely unexpected. By their nature, humans rejected Labyrinth's existence subconsciously and only through years of conscious effort could they overcome those barriers. If one found such a place by accident, they would go insane, unless they had a natural affinity for insanity, a natural compatibility with the true self of the universe.

Sel smiled at the sight of the woman. Even though it was unexpected, company was not a bad thing to have in the depths of Labyrinth, especially if one could sacrifice their companion for the sake of discovering a secret, especially if the other did not understand the ancient symbol. From the looks of the woman, she must have been one of those who stumbled across Labyrinth by accident, as even if she continued reciting the poem, the pause between her words and the surprise on her face were evident.

"Good day," said Sel, still smiling at the woman. "I am Noket Sel Algelz. Who are you?" he decided to ask, skipping to the chase. There was no need for personal attachments if one wanted to sacrifice the other, after all.

 

[Daniella_Belli]

She walked about under the shroud of her personal sorrow, one that seemed to envelope both sky and land and everything between. She seemed to exude gloom from every pore, it radiated from her like an aura. Her presence seemed to ensnare all as to share her depression, as misery loved company. Morbidia allowed for her grasp to loosen, and soon her signature flowers littered the path. She seemed oblivious to him, the nightingales which plagued her mind with their melancholy tune finally ceased their almost incessant chirping long enough to alleviate her ears so that they would capture his voice.

Lifting her gaze to the one which had greeted her, her black laquered lips glistening with the spittle that moistened them parted so very slightly as to take in a breath. The breath would well up within her lungs and become the fuel for the strange dance of her tongue as she wove her response. "I am Morbidia Morthel, and Skull flowers I have none. But, like all others you shall behold one last time, the setting of the sun. For you, like mortals all, the clock will no longer toll, as you shall be laid to rest in a cold, black hole."

Meaning this as not the death threat he may perceive, she simply extended her hands as to summon his into her grasp. "How dost this place ensnare the living, as it seems to be a perdition where the dead should roam? Within you beats a pulse so strong, although you dwell within a land that is as bleak as a corpse's home."

 

[Villamvihar]

Even to the eyes of one such as Sel, one who has stared down death, and without question, won, this young woman looked strange. Her skin was deathly pale, her eyes were emphasized with makeup, her clothes were black, her her was raven, her irises cold, cruel steel grey that pierced through all. If he did not know any better, Sel would have thought that he was standing in front of nothing more than a mere corpse, a being who was only a shadow of her former self. But alas, Sel has seen way too many parts of history to underestimate whatever was standing in front of him, for he was sure that whoever she may be, she was not quite human. Of course, she identified herself by a human name so as to lure him into a sense of safety, but he knew the ins and outs of this strange plane very well. He knew the inner workings of Labyrinth and how it tried to end mortals as soon as plausible, so he could only laugh at this feeble first attempt.

Oh if the forces of Labyrinth knew whom they were dealing with! If they knew what a mind lurked under his features, if they knew how long had Sel studied this place through the writings he branded as fake... If the forces of Labyrinth knew that, then they would waste no time playing with him. But alas, even if this was the place which represented the true nature of the universe, if the universe could not be understood by humans, then the universe could not understand humans either. Just as people could not comprehend the thought processes of plants, or the one of dust, the universe could not comprehend the thoughts of those who were less than mayfly-specks-of-dust in its eyes. Being so insignificant in the eyes of what truly mattered was a sword with two blades.

For a brief second, Sel wondered what kind of two-bladed sword would be thrust into his hands by this woman, but then he cleared his thoughts. This was absolutely no time to be thinking about something like that, for the woman has already introduced herself, and what was more, she spoke in rhymes, as if she was talking to an audience that never existed in the first place. She also seemed to beckon him towards herself, but he stood there firmly, his back against the wall. He would not fall prey to the machinations of Labyrinth so easily.

"I have a purpose, yes," said Sel as he glanced over the form of the woman once more. "And this place is far from being a graveyard. It is something else entirely," he said, gesturing towards the strange glyphs, symbols and letters engraved into the walls around them. If this young woman did not even notice that, then Labyrinth was truly a fool to send such an imbecile after him. He would have fun playing with this little kitten, then sacrifice him when the time demanded so. There was no other way to achieve his goal, after all, and now that he thought the plan through, it was already set in stone. He would confront the beast with the help of Labyrinth's forces themselves. Then, using their own forces, he would End the monster that lived for so long in his life, once and for all.

 

[Daniella_Belli]

Within her lithe form a heart functioned in a way to possess her with the blood flow needed to fuel her innards and extremities with life sustaining juices, but she was far from being alive. However, she had only experienced death so briefly, her soul soaring across the pitch colored firmament to become lain as listless as her flesh was within the grave, at the doorstep to the heavens. The Gods would imbue her with life once again, for she had suffered an untimely fate and therefore was unwanted in the eternal dwelling of the clouds.

Her brain was divided into two hemispheres, one that thought of life and produced a spark of coexistence to become animated inside of her,and the other which was of the necrosed matter associated with decay.These two halves were in conflict from the moment she was released from the grip of death that had made her rigid, producing within her the willpower as to dig herself from the prison of soil she was inhumed. She had not the memory of which had felled her, of what accident or deliberate act which had ultimately took her life. Her body was not marred in such a way as to give her the telltale signs of hanging or other executionary means of demise, and she was unpoxed as to reveal that she was not one of the many victims taken by plague.

What event had taken place as to resign Morbidia from the world? That was the key which in being forged, would unlock the door to her inner bastille, the imprisonment of her soul within the vessel which roamed the temporal plane. She seemed all too eager to thrust the Skull flowers into the grasp of another, as if the transaction itself was supposed to fullfill something of purpose. To the gaze of others, she would appear as a peculiar woman, youthful but with crimson rings that decorated the flesh about her eyes, as if she had at one time shed tears of blood. Death lingered with her in such a fashion as her skin was not pigmented with the hues of life, no matter how long she spent in the sun. As for the undesirable flora she usually could not be parted with, The apetuous heads resembled the skulls of infants which drooped upon withering spines. the eyeless sockets seemed to scast one's mental state to the abyss if one were to opt for a closer inspection, the strange, toothy smiles seemed as manufactured as the work of a dollmaker.

Morbidia simply stood there, gazing upon the canvas of this living creature, with not a thought as to evoke a sense of danger from him. Her empty hands lowered to her sides, and her face was turned toward the uppermost region of the invisible shell that seemed to enclose them. Odd growths began to bud upon her skin, which would be only discernable because of the holey condition of her clothing, which would priorly derive a conclusion that her garments were moth eaten. The sullen Bard turned her attention back to Noket, her smile was just a tiny twitch upon her face as if the lips were tugged by strings. Meanwhile, the bumpy protrusions upon her flesh were metastisizing, until they took the semblance of the very flowers that she had stood upon. She hurriedly plucked them from the body which had acted as their soil and fertilizer, the quivering veins being pulled from her own vessel did not seem to invoke any verbal or visible expression of discomfort.

"Accept my gift, make a wreathe, it shall decorate the the door to your wooden sheathe." She eventually found the lyrics to speak in a monotonous tone, continuing only as the hand which was occupied with a new collection of Skull flowers jutted out toward him. ..in the event of burial six feet deep, none shall disturb your earthen sleep."

 

[Villamvihar]

"I do not plan to die here," said Sel, slightly disgusted at the process of how the strange flowers formed from the bizarre woman's skin. While he knew horrible Labyrinth was, he had never experienced its incomprehensibility in first-person, so naturally, what he saw shocked him. Fortunately for Sel, though, he managed to recover quickly as he firmly anchored his sanity to the human world by counting down prime numbers, making sure to leave seven, eleven and seventeen out. He really did not want to attract the attention of Labyrinth nor its guardians, which existed because they had no existence, not to mention that if any eyes were watching him, they would be instantly attracted to him as the denizens of Labyrinth.

He did not know why these rules existed, but the numbers four, seven, eleven, seventeen, twenty-four and twenty-eight seemed to have a large significance in the texts that mentioned Labyrinth. More often than not, they were considered holy numbers, each one of them representing an aspect of Labyrinth, but what exactly they represented, Sel could not find out. The fragments that described the significance of these numbers have disappeared a long time ago into the abyss of time, never to be found by humans again. Perhaps they were scattered across other universes, but for now, that did not matter.

"I suggest we stay together so we can navigate around here," said Sel to the woman as he looked around. There was a passage to the west, a passage to the north, and a passage to the north-east from his perspective. Each one of them had the same symbols engraved into them, telling him that every single corridor was 'The Hallway of Chimeras, Crabs, Canes and Coyotes', whatever that meant. He noted that the letter C repeated itself four times, which had to have some sort of a significane. If only he knew what the number four represented, he might have been able to make an educated guess about which way to take, but alas, in his current situation, there was nothing he could do. He did not have any of his reasearch with him as he did not expect that he would actually make it alive to Labyrinth.

Then he looked at the woman, or rather, entity, who called herself Morbidia, and realised that she looked as if she was dead. He wondered if that was just an illusion of Labyrinth, or perhaps both of them appeared so to each other, only seeming normal to themselves, because while their bodies have given up on their lives, their souls still clung to their spark. It was an interesting thought that filled him with both dread and anticipation.

 

[Daniella_Belli]

Her head moved in a slight nod as to agree to the notion of comaderie, although even if he had bid her presence away she would still trail eagerly behind, the scent of curdling blood wafting off of the odious bouquet she clutched at her bosom. If this ghastly black clad figure were to truly fall under the scrutiny of ones gaze, a disturbing story would indeed unfold. As Noket fell prey to a gaze that was the embodiment of extinguished flames, she hoped he was enlightened to what this place truly was.

Would the blind lead the blind in a realm she could only entitle as Perdition? Perhaps he was merely some other condemned soul, cast into this endless void as to roam for an eternity. She had escaped judgement for her past transgressions, other than feeling the consequences of being revived from her deathly rapture and the grotesque way her children haunted her. Could this really be some world for those forsaken souls, some wicked exilement for entities burdened with guilt and remorse, or lack there of? As the cadence of his numeral counting fell upon her ears, she could recall the source of her predicament, what events had led to the inner grief as to force a sanguineous lacrimation to fall from her eyes.

The Morthel family had been one of the most prominent along the countryside, the manor which squat upon a vast parcel of land was remodeled to better accomadate the fourteen that resided within its spacious walls. It seemed to all that they possessed some sort of magickal charm or gained favor with the Gods as to ward off any sort of hardship which could have befallen them, and the won the scorn of every covetous heart they had met.

They would savor life like this for a mere couple of years more, their spirits not dampened by the clouds, heavily pregnant with rain, which were soon to overtake their sunny skies. Rolyph would become sick at the most ill opportune time, and succumb to fever. His death had unleashed financial misery upon the surviving members, and they felt the toll poverty would take on them, as the good life began to crumble into the sea. Morbidia would stand in the town square day after day, pleading to all which crossed her path to relieve her of the children she birthed, lest they fall to hunger and sickness, but her prayers seemed to fall upon deaf ears.

Another year had made them all older, and worse for wear, and Morbidia's woe-torn heart couldn't take anymore. She buried the children whom wrestled with consciousness in the cemetary, all twelve accounted for beneath the cold, damp soil. They did not stir or struggle as she shoveled each heap of land onto them, worm riddled earth that already devoured most of their frail forms. She then would walk to the end of the earth, the shore line met by the softly churning tides of the sea.

 

[Villamvihar]

"So? Any ideas?" asked Sel, still trying to figure out why the number four was significant to the denizens of Labyrinth. He could not know that this was just a whim of the universe, a coincidence just as massive as the existence of the human species and of Earth, so he thought that he could make a logical conclusion. That was, of course, a mistake, however, that did not became appearent until the walls started trembling as if they were leaves being played with by the wind. It was a subtle movement at first, but then, the walls started to ripple quite literally, and Sel found himself putting his hand in front of his mouth to prevent the contents of his stomach from escaping through the wrong orifice. Indeed, even if he was used to reading the language of the universe, the sight of Labyrinth was still as nauseating as ever.

Before anything could have happened, though, a roar shook Labyrinth, a roar which was quieter than a whisper, but louder than the noise that the Big Bang, the theoretical start of the universe made, if such a thing even existed in the first place. It was a roar that was terrifying in its serene beauty, a sound that was a brain-melting noise and a divine melody at the same time, an experience that had the power of a tidal wave, yet the gentle grip of a mother. It was Labyrinth personified, a paradox that ruled over all existence, an event which did not exist in the first place, but for the casual observer, it was an absolutely terrible sight to behold. Such a roar would have driven most men mad or it would have turned them into servants of Labyrinth, but Sel did not even flinch.

As the roar dragged on, Sel started to realise that maybe it was not so terrible after all. In fact, it sounded like the roar in his memories, the roar which belonged to the beast which was seven in four, the roar which belonged to the beast which had eleven, blood white eyes, even though it had none. At that though, a smile spread across his face and in that moment, he felt that he could shred Labyrinth with his bare hands, an illusion that he quickly dismissed as fantasy. After all, Labyrinth was eternal and even though its walls wobbled and seemed to cover in fear, it was doing its best to chase the intruders away, to exile all semblance of logic from its place of existence.

"Trying to defeat me, huh, Labyrinth?" asked Sel with an ever-growing smile on his face. "Well that will not be so easy!" he shouted, then he put his palm on the walls to feel the pulsating rythm, to feel the significance of four in the eyes of Labyrinth. He did not understand why he did that, he only knew that it was something he needed to do with all his might, or the beast that he chased through his entire life would get away. He wasted no more time for words, but experienced the nature of the universe for himself, opening his mind to the meaning of four... And just before he managed to comprehend it, the wall before him literally exploded, sending shrapnels flying everywhere.

 

[Daniella_Belli]

Fear gripped Morbidia, its paralytic toxins loosened rapidly into her bloodstream so that not another step could be yielded of her. It was not as if she were unaffected amidst the chaos, the quaking of their surroundings which seemed to threaten to entomb them in felled walls of stone, and the way this 'Labyrinth' communicated with them with a roar so powerful that she was surprised their forms still contained the outer cloak of skin.

It was more so that she realized Labyrinth could confess the secrets she wished to keep buried. What had been the significance to the different shapes chisled into the stone plinths anyway? Noket's numeral counting would suggest to an outsider that he suffered from some kind of obsessive disorder, but perhaps he was chanting numeric counterparts to words of a spell?

She gazed at him with much interest, noticing the way his brow furrowed, as if he were dwelling on a thought. What was he thinking? Whatever it was, the very idea had entranced him so that he seemed unable to perceive the oncoming danger. The distracted fool was going to become impaled a thousand times over! Morbidia would dive at him in such a way as to knock him to the floor, where she would procede to cover his body with her own.

 

[Villamvihar]

Sel could not act as fast as Morbidia as his reflexes were still bound by his body, but perhaps his inability to move as also part of the reason why he came to Labyrinth. He came to seek knowledge, to discover the legacy of insanity and that of the long-dead, old sages. He was here to embrace the true nature of the universe, then defeat a creature which was probably older than the percievable universe, a creature in which Labyrinth's power was made manifest. Therefore, if it were not for Morbidia, Sel would have died more than once, but as it stood, the flesh of the young woman was strong enough to block the sharp bits of the wall that went flying everywhere.

"Useless," muttered Set as he pushed the woman off himself and stood up. "What were you thinking? I was about to understand everything! Now I do not know which way to go! Can you understand that? I have been cut off from the true secrets of the universe because you decided to act rashly!" said Sel, containing his rage towards the young woman. "And if you say you saved my life, then you did not. Salvation is death. All who listen to the voice of Disarray kno..." Suddenly, Sel put his hands in front of his mouth. Disarray? Who was that person and why did he know her? How did he know that Disarray was a woman? What did that even mean? Was the meaning of number four disarray? But then how could that help them navigate Labyrinth?

"Nevermind," said Sel as he looked at the woman. "I am sorry to have snapped at you," he said, returning to his more human self. "But I want to know what makes this world tick. What do you want, Morbidia?" asked Sel, already contemplating a plan that would involve abusing this young woman's strange properties to his advantage. Yes, if she could block those shrapnel, then she would make a very useful tool in discovering Labyrinth's secrets. He would promise her to help with her goal, then when the time came, he would toss her in front of the beasts that lurked inside Labyrinth. Then he would watch as they ate her, and take notes so that he could understand the beasts better. It was a good plan.

 

[Daniella_Belli]

To Morbidia, being scolded for what she considered to have been a good deed was a pain greater than the shrapnel faceted back half of her body. She rose in a wholly unnatural manner, rigid and rocking upon her heels. She winced as his words seemed to lash her like scourge fall, but could not find it within herself to retaliate. Noket simply had shown no gratitude for the willing sacrifice of a human life as to leave another unscathed. The errie figure which stood in the stead of the former vessel the signs of life had thrived recalled her own sacrifice for the horrible trangressions she had committed as to take the lives of the children which were bound to her by blood.

The gently rolling waves seemed to readily accept her, and she hadn't known how far she had ventured until she was released of the apathy which had gripped her, and was pulled beneath the murky depths. But was this Labyrinth to really be a place of eternal unrest for a soul which still clung to the life of its mortal shell? At least she had the companionship of Noket, and not invisible to his gaze. "My beautiful little flowers.." She started, pining at the loss of the children in which she had interred beneath the swollen earth all those years ago.

 

[Villamvihar]

"Flowers?" asked Sel, taking Morbidia all too literally. He wondered what they had to do with Labyrinth as he could not remember any single flower motif amongst the legends which mentioned this place. Then again, it was possible that across different planets, worlds, and maybe even planes, Labyrinth would manifest itself through a different kind of madness. The insanities that appeared in his reality, his interpretation of the world, were probably just a fraction of what Labyrinth was truly like, and even this place he saw was likely just a fabricated version of the true Labyrinth, rendered so because his own senses had affected Labyrinth, changing it into something remotely comprehensible to the human mind.

As he wondered about this, suddenly, an old symbol came to mind that may be interpreted as a flower. He hastily took his knife into his hands, and onto a wall, he drew a simple symbol. It was just a circle, surrounded by seven, even-sized, deltoid-shaped petals that connected to it, however, he all but forgot that it was a picture which symbolised Labyrinth. As such a picture, even if it was man-made, in the fabric of this place, it created ripples. These ripples, while they were as mere ripples in a lake at first, turned into waves and then the waves turned into whirlpools and then the whirpools turned into a storm unlike any other.

The tides of this stormed overwhelmed what little of Labyrinth was seen by a human called Noket Sel Algelz and twisted it around their non-existant fingers, weaving a new nightmare from the fabric of reason's worst enemy, the universe itself. Walls rearranged themselves around nothing but pure imagination, concepts were born as human words died, new senses and sensations confused the intruders with their synaesthesia and a wave of pure chaos swept over everything. Black light claimed the walls as white darkness flooded into everywhere, backed up by a faint, barely visible, blood white glow which stripped everything of reason. Symbols, pictures and new constellations carved themselves into existence and Labyrinth settled down.

Amongst the middle of it all, Sel could only stand and watch as his sense of reality was torn to shreds, then rebuilt again. For him, this experience was simply beyond fascinating.

 

[Daniella_Belli]

"Withered the flower falls petal by petal,
ruins of the beauteous bloom,
upon the wind floats the expired ambitions,
as to marry one with their doom."

Morbidia thought Noket was trying to initiate a rhyming response from her, so her eager tongue wove the ominous verse, given life per her flat vocalizations. It seemed that her partner was suffering his own insanities, drawing his knife to yield a shape into the stone, and she could not comprehend what could had driven him to do so. Proceeding the carving of this bizarre symbol, Noket had begun to exhibit signs of further madness as nothing had affected the world around Morbidia, but this strange male seemed to delve deeper in the unraveling of his own mind each passing moment.

She thought of reaching out to him, but refrained, her left hand hovering in the space between them as he may react to her touch like a creature possessed. Should she quell this savage beast with her words? Or would he snatch the tongue from her, as the portal to her palette could admit his intrusion at that moment? She decided upon backing away from him, as to give him the comfort of not feeling restricted by her presence which had been in close proximity to this madman. Her hands wavered before her should he rush upon her docile movements, as to weakly defend from any strike he may try to land upon her body. Morbidia's eyes, the hue of the void itself fixated upon Noket, she did not realize that she was backing into a tear in the very fabric of the atmosphere.

 

[Villamvihar]

Then, the illusion exploded and fractured into a thous and one pieces, stripping Sel of what little understanding he gained. As always, Labyrinth obeyed only its own laws of perspective, thus, even if one were to view it from another point of view, at first, they would think that they have gained new insight on how Labyrinth worked, but then they would have realised that it was just a trick. Such was the case of the human called Noket Sel Algelz as well, for he thought that he was on the verge of understanding Labyrinth's terror, but just when he would have reached a conclusion, everything fell apart. Labyrinth returned to its previous form with endless corridors, walls filled with strange symbols and even stranger angles that bent around themselves as if they were curves as opposed to sharp collisions of planes.

Defeated, Sel could only slump to the ground and clutch his head.
"No," he muttered as he looked at the non-existant sky with all of its strange qualities. "And I was so close to understanding!" He babbled, not realising how insane he must have sounded to Morbidia. "Why do you torment me so, Labyrinth?" he asked of no one in particular as he stood up, wiping the imaginary dirt off from his face. "Why must you deny me the knowledge that I rightfully earned, huh? Why, Labyrinth? What do you want from me if not to kill the plague in your system?" he asked, going off on his own tangent. Of course, he knew that it was useless to talk to this place, for it did not even understand the concept of words, but right now, he was in the grip of his own madness. It was only a short time before he started shouting incoherently at the walls, making his presence know to all residents of Labyrinth, but he soon calmed down.

"Morbidia?" He asked kindly, turning towards the woman, as if the previous episode of his had not happened. "I need your help. You need mine. We must explore Labyrinth together," he said, extending his hands to her. "I know the symbols and I know Labyrinth. What do you know?" he asked as an unnerving smile spread across his face, revealing his teeth. Of course, he had no way of seeing himself, so he could not notice the way his teeth seemed to have become ridiculously sharp spikes for a split second, nor could he notice the fact that his grin was simply not human. His smile seemed to imply madness beyond insanity, disarray beyond the grip of any order, knowledge without understanding.

But it lasted only a mere second, and Labyrinth was left unimpressed by the man who had tried to imitate it in its incomprehensibility. However, the eyes of the place have already been plastered onto Morbidia and Sel, watching them at all times so that they could not enter the forbidden areas of Labyrinth.

 

[Daniella_Belli]

She awoke to the sensation of being blanketed in a bed of damp soil, the crushing weight of it extinguishing any attempt at intaking a breath. Morbidia wrestled the spasms of her fluttering eyelids so that the bothersome grains of dirt would not find entry to the ocular orbs that the thin curtains of flesh was protecting, but she ferociously clawed at the mound impregnated with her living form. But rigidly bent fingers seemed to pass through the earth as if the solidity of the structure compared to the whispering touch of breeze upon one's flesh. Terra firma. It was made of clay and organic matter, but she seemed to be interred in a spectral tomb.

Meanwhile, the physical body of Morbidia sat somewhere beyond this realm, slumping forward like a holey sack of flour. The vessel was an inviting vehicle for the malevolent spirits seeking another chance at life, and living. As her own spirit seemed to be on some kind of nightmarish vacation, surrendering control to one or many of these invading ghosts would occur with no effort at all. Her lips birthed a strange smile then, which would induce a shiver up the spines of any whom were to look upon it. She rose unsteadily, as if a child was holding the reigns to this ghoulish marionette, her head turning stiffly in the direction of Noket. She would not speak, not yet, but a small nod of agreement was produced of her.

 

[Villamvihar]

Even though Sel was quite clear with his question, Morbidia did not answer. She seemed to have noticed that he tried to ask her something, but for some reason, she just jerkily moved towards the historian, as if she did not understand. But he knew that he was quite clear with his question, as he asked if Morbidia was good at something. So why would she ignore him? Why would she not answer? And if she had not understood his question correctly, why did she not ask about it? Oh of course, now she was the playing the role of the fool, one who could not be involved in any role whatsoever, realised Sel. She wanted to wiggle her way out of this situation, to escape from Labyrinth, to rob him of his future! But he could not allow that.

With extreme conviction, the historian stepped closer to Morbidia, not realising what Labyrinth did to her body. He did not even notice when the reality of Labyrinth twisted, turning everything upside-down for all possible perspectives, and invisible eyes opened on the ceiling which was once the floor. He did not feel the piercing glare of Labyrinth's eyes, nor the glare of the monster which was now intensily studying both of them, nor the presence of the spirit which was in Morbidia. Blinded by his building rage, the human called Noket Sel Algelz strode over to Morbidia, then without a second thought, punched her with all her strength, causing Labyrinth to let out a silent laugh of amusement.

"Who do you think you are, Morbidia?" Asked Sel, staring into the eyes of the woman. "You will not rob me of my prize. I have already made it so far, I have already went through countless legends. And now that I have a human with me, we can work together to solve Labyrinth!" said Sel, putting that lie to his little speech so Morbidia would have a reason to follow his lead. "With your help, do you know what I could do? Do you know what you could do? Yet you pretend to be such a fool in the sight of so magnificent so you can return to your own reality!" He said, then he was about to start a rant, when suddenly, something flashed through him and made him stop. A piece of his soul clicked back into place for a few seconds, making him human for a brief second.

"What am I doing?" he asked in his brief moment of humanity as he tried to fight off Labyrinth's ever-growing insanity.

 

[Daniella_Belli]

Suddenly the spiritual essence of Morbidia was ejected from the freshly tilled earth, as if her presence had been but a toxin to the very ground she had writhed beneath. Sanguine stained eyelids unfurled to capture the grostesque panorama before her, she saw her very own demonic flora towering overhead, eyeless faces broad enough to eclipse the sun. How could the most unholy of structure become adorned in a firey halo? Fragments of bone whipped about like thorny vines, attempting to ensnare her arms. What of Noket? Could he lie strewn in pieces across this great universe? Did the Labyrinth devour this poor soul, draining its energies as to cast it into non existance? Her thoughts seemed to travel the expansive plane, her gloomy tidings trying to reach for him, if there was any hope that breath still sought his lungs.

She thought of the days she used to reside at 'Luette's Loot and Lute, the thieves guild which was home to those cast away by society. "Embraced by the shadows I do desire, to warm my flesh by the fire..." Her words echoed against the darkness, amplfying at their descent to pelt her with the deafening crackles of thunder as lightning tore across the skies. Morbidia's fleshy form parroted the words supplied by its missing piece, as the body moved in an effortless glide toward Noket. "Embraced by the shadows I do desire, to warm my flesh by the fire.." The tongue seemed to conjure these words into a sinister entity, given life by the rasping voice that crooned them.

"...The walls abound with the tune of a lyre, hips asway in wanton swirl, many to bed a drunken girl.." The being within Morbidia delved deep into her memory, extracting more verses which had been ingrained long ago.

 

[Villamvihar]

"What are you?" Asked a surprisingly sane Noket Sel Algelz, which made Labyrinth's non-existant eyes, numbering exactly one thousand and one, to frown in disgust. What was this creature covering before them, and who was his companion, the deathly pale Morbidia? They asked themselves that question as many times as their numbers, yet they could not find the answer, so they just continued watching from far away, observing how their own body changed and evolved. However, their presence was still very strong, and if one paused for just a second, they could feel the eyes staring into their very souls, as if they wanted to rip it out of their flesh then present it in front of the insanity that was Labyrinth. Fortunately for the duo, though, only the eyes of this place were interested in them so far.

Unfortunately for the duo, though, Labyrinth was not composed of a single entity as Sel was about to discover. As his insanity manifested itself again, he realised that Morbidia was talking to him as if she was asking him to solve some sort of a riddle. Then again, it did not sound very much like a riddle. It was more like a poem about something that passed long ago, something that went into the past, until Sel realised that Morbidia was coming closer. And she was talking about warming his flesh by the fire. From what he remembered from literature class, fire could be used to represent the soul. Therefore, it was as good as a conclusion as any that Morbidia wanted his soul, a fact which not even his questionably sane mind took well.

He stepped backwards and put the knife in front of him, ready to defend himself from the ghastly Morbidia as he stared into the eyes of the woman. He did not care about the rhymes she spewed anymore, he was just focused on the threat as if that was the most important thing before him, not even realising that what Morbidia was talking about might have been clues.

"Come on, witch," said Sel as he looked at Morbidia with a mix of nervousness, excitement and determination. He knew that he had to survive this encounter if he wanted to kill the heart of Labyrinth. "I knew from the start that you were of Labyrinth. But if you want to kill me, you will have to go through my knowledge and this knife first!" He shouted threateningly, attempting to intimidate his opponent. The fact that she was already dead did not even register in his mind.

 

[Daniella_Belli]

The eyes of the severed spirit widened as she attempted to traverse the world forged of her greatest nightmares, the unmistakable presence of evil looming behind every gnarled tree and between each withered blade of grass. The cadaverous creatures seemed not just bound to land but to sky also, the expansive, atrophied wings of carrion birds flying overhead in a ring like formation. Out of their shrivelled throats came a deafening caw, releasing decay to further ravage the realm.

Morbidia uttered a small whimper, a sound expelled from her as if she was caught in the constricting grip of a serpent. A fierce wind began to howl through the knotted treetops, branches thrusting upward as to orchestrate the conflicting heavens. She felt the monstrous fingers of something unseen curl about her waist, and thought at that moment it was to be the grasp of the Reaper himself, come to finally steal her soul away to the Underworld. She flailed in its grasp, mustering all the strength she could to try to break free. "No-ket.." She stammered, her eyes full of pleading as she hoped her petition would settle upon his ears. "No-ket.." Morbidia mimicked, as the body's new inhabitants continued to stir within her.

After what seemed an eternity of being suspended in mid-air, the spectral being finally wrenched herself free of the fingers coiled about her slim waist, only to have her garment stained of the ectoplasm from its touch. "Noket!" Her words would echo across this plane for an eternity, if the ever devouring void hadn't consumed them, and with his name, finding access to her voice. She began to choke, a resurgence of sensations she felt that fateful night she had cast herself to the call of the waves. Her lungs began to swell with air which had been blockaded from passing and she fell to her knees.

"Our names are as unimportant... as the unmarked graves our bodies lie. Savor, sweet breath, for soon it'll be ...extinguished and ...upon this hallow ground you'll die."

Morbidia, robbed of voice and body had naught to drown out the sounds of flapping wings which had taken residence in her brain the very moment she was born anew, she knew she could no longer attempt to reach Noket by use of the body something malevolent now puppeteered. Each advance she had made thus far seemed thwarted by the very whims of Labyrinth. (My voice my instrument...my words a petition. Now he'll succumb to this Perdition.) Twin rivulets of blood stained her cheeks as she wept, she opened a palm to catch some of the sanguine rhuem which she thought was long dried and turned to ash. Unbeknownst to her, something preyed on her, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike.