Essentia Animus

74-Ancient Maze

Both girls tried to promote what information they could in order to sway things into their favour, but neither Sryine nor Vwyx were having much success in that regard. Desperation was building in both girls, realizing just how much they were at a loss.

"Wow, Vwyx, come on, work with me here, I thought we had a deal. Between stuff we already know and stuff I can tell you're just making up, it's almost as if you've got nothing more to offer. Come on, I'm trusting you here. You made me worry you were backing out on us before back at the observatory, don't make me feel like I'm misplacing my kindness." "You jerk, stop being so unreasonable. Why do your deals always suck so much, like the one you broke with my family. You're the one who is so difficult to trust here, I'm just doing my best." "Wow, so it's like that, huh? Vwyx, you wound me, I really thought I could count on you for something more. Well, if you're going to be like that, then I'll be honest with you, you're going to be in for a world of hurt. Poor Riyxia and Sryine are going to suffer so much because of you. If you're not going to save them working with me, maybe you had best run off and save them by yourself." Fhyernx's threat was very alarming for Vwyx, bringing her to a defensive stance urgently. Once she was gone, Fhyernx went into another nearby room and found Ieqyisa waiting for him already. Ieqyisa hadn't had much more luck either, but at least the arena was set. Ieqyisa opened a portal for Fhyernx and herself, Liyuzhe waiting for them both on the other side.

"So I assume both girls have been set into the maze, things going all according to plan." "Except for the total lack of useful information, everything is fine. Both girls really wanted to know more about Riyxia... What exactly became of her anyway?" "Oh relax, she's waiting comfortably at the end of the maze for when she is needed." Liyuzhe tossed forwards a small wooden talisman onto a nearby metal shelf, one that was very familiar for Ieqyisa. Ieqyisa picked it up concerned while Liyuzhe went to get some water to deal with a sore throat. Liyuzhe didn't feel like using her voice again for a while, and it didn't help that they had some pretty warm arrangements to look forward too. Fhyernx passed around some diving gear, a replacement for their power armor that would be fairly useless where they were going. Ieqyisa had already confirmed that their equipment in the observatory was still waiting in position, it could be warped over the moment they reached their destination. With a maze like arena such as this, the girls would be far too busy to try to catch up to them, so they wouldn't need to worry about stuff such as defenses or being followed, they could simply invest their complete attention to the flame. Liyuzhe pulled out the magnificent void crystal they had just procured with the help of Riyxia's blood, it was the last thing they had required in order to make their dream a reality.

Sryine ran from hall to hall, seeing very little that distinguished one place from another. It didn't take long to figure out either that the design of this place was built to make sure someone inside got lost. Passing around a corner, she noticed what appeared to be a blossom blowing in the wind, fluttering to the ground. It had caught her off guard for a moment, the only distinguishing feature of the place, but it seemed to be nothing at all. That was like something straight out of a storybook tale, following a blossom that tried to take her where she would need to, completely nonsense. She had tried earlier to use her acceleration too to get around the halls.. only to figure out that she was probably walking in circles and wasting her energy in the process. At the very least, walking in circles in normal time didn't drain so much out of her, but it also allowed her to resolve footprints on the ground that she might be able to spot sooner. When she walked into what honestly looked like an old fashioned laundry room, she fell to the floor in tears. This place wasn't just confusing, it was huge, she didn't have a clue where she was, where anyone else was, or where she was going.

Vwyx was certain that she had just walked into what could have only been a jail block. Damp dark spaces with chains and shackles littered the dreary environment, expanding into the unlit darkness before her beyond the reach of her glowing arm. It looked exactly like the best place to keep someone captive, which could very well be exactly where one or both of her friends were being held. Certainly, nothing about these bindings looked like it could actually contain either of them, but she was really running out of options here. Still, she could feel such a foreboding presence in the area, like something wanted to tell her she didn't belong here, not at this hour of the night at least. Finding the place to be sufficiently abandoned, she decided to take up such advice and find another place to visit instead.. a path that quickly led her into what appeared to be a very rudimentary sleeping quarters. Vwyx wasn't one to believe in ghosts, but somehow this place was starting to feel haunted from phantoms of another age.