EVENT ★ LABYRINTH II

[futurologists]

DEEPER Following the marked path near the lake leads Audentes (and George) further into the maze, closer to the goal found at the center. Some other inmates (including Zymandis agent Mavahari) and correctional officers follow along, having picked up on the organized manner of Audentes and figuring it’s their best bet on getting out of here alive. Unlike the dry stone and sand in the outer ring of the maze, this next section is overflowing with flora. Jungle vines cling to the walls to the point where seeing the stone underneath is a difficult task; trees sprout from between cracked tiles, bearing alien-looking fruit; branches and brambles cross certain parts of the maze, and will need to be hacked through unless you want to find another way around. Water is more plentiful now as well, since obviously the plants need it to flourish. For the first time since setting foot in the labyrinth, a rain begins to fall, drizzling and gentle. This can be a respite or an annoyance, depending on how you look at it: while it’s soothing and can make collection of fresh, clean water easier, walking around in wet clothes is probably not that pleasant. Your fellow ALASTAIR recruit George has inexplicably struck up a friendship with the Zymandis agent Mavahari, and they can often be found exploring the maze together, with Mavahari helping him due to his broken arm. They seem to be getting along well enough, but maybe checking in with George is in order. Otherwise, survival is the name of the game; though the center of the labyrinth is closer, it’s impossible to tell how close, and how long to expect to be here. Collecting water is simple enough, but food is growing scarce. The tree fruits may be a good solution, but it seems as though some have unfortunate reactions to them, ranging from stomach cramps to rashes to fever and temporary blindness. But an allergic reaction may just be the least of your worries. LOVE ME LIKE A REPTILE The monsters seen so infrequently in the outer ring of the maze are now a common nuisance. Giant insects and rats scurry about, hungry for whatever flesh they can find, but they’re easily defeated, particularly if encountered as a group. But with new terrain comes new, adaptive animals, and the labyrinth is no different. Lizards are now the main threat: enormous and camouflaged, they stalk their prey and take their time, looking for the perfect opportunity to ambush. The lizards are three-headed, with each head containing fangs dripping with venom, capable of rendering its victims paralyzed within five seconds flat. Their blood is also poisonous, capable of burning through metal, not to mention flesh. If a head is severed, the lizard will retreat back into the jungle, presumably to nurse its wounds but possibly to grow another head -- no lizard will ever be encountered with less than three heads, so it’s possible they have regenerative abilities. The best way to defeat one is to remove all three heads at once, or simply kill it in whatever way possible. The lizards are quick and mean, but not invincible. Now more than ever, it’s important to take care in exploring the maze. Stray too far from the group or try to make it alone, and you might not survive. OOC NOTES Once again, we have a plotting post here and search requests for the next ring of the maze. Please note: during the labyrinth event, all drops are ICly delayed. What this means is that characters who drop will be handwaved to still be around on auto-pilot until connection with Oska is resumed, at which point they will be transferred to a different team as usual. If you have any questions about the labyrinth that aren't answered here, please direct them to the Leramzen dossier. If you have questions for any NPCs, please direct them there as well! Questions about the game in general should be directed to the FAQ and you may submit mission ideas or player plots at any time.

Comments

[skelepun]

I got tired of sleeping. [He brushes aside with a wink, settling down beside her.] Wanna share my dinner?

[The dinner in question is a few stale crackers and some cheese. Rationing was getting pretty slim, with most of Audentes unable to eat the jungle fruit without uncomfortable side effects. Lucky for him, he had no guts to puke up.]

Rations aren't all they're cracked up to be. But hey, I never say no to a midnight snack.

[He waggles a cracker in front of her again. Enticing!]

[feytality]

[Is getting tired of sleep even possible for Sans]

[She doesn't protest as he sits next to her, but she's so thrown off by this whole thing that she can't even appreciate that pun, instead glancing between Sans and the cracker and Sans again.]

[Far be it for her to turn down food, but--]

Um.... if you want.

[She takes it, still looking uncertain]

[skelepun]

[If her apprehension bothers him, he doesn't make much show of it. Instead, he shrugs back, eating his own cracker at a contemplative pace.

It's a few minutes of silence (well, save chewing) until Sans speaks again.]

So... stars, huh?

[His way of saying I overheard.]

[feytality]

[how the tables have turned. In their first meeting, Maya stalked Sans with pizza, now Sans with crackers is stalking Maya]

[She's eaten at a very unMayalike pace, so she's still chewing by the time he's finished and uses this to her advantage, taking her sweet ass time to finish it off while she figures out how to handle this in the most graceful way possible]

Yeah... they're in the sky.

[MASTER OF DEFLECTION MAYA FEY] They're really nice.

[skelepun]

[Hey, at least food was still involved. They were keeping up their streak.]

Good listeners, too. [Deflect all you want, sweetheart, he knows that dance.] That's kind of a big deal for monsters.

[feytality]

You are a pretty good listener, huh... [This isn't working, so she relents a little]

.... I guess I was talking a little louder than I meant to be. [What an incredible excuse!!] I, um..... I'm just kind of tired, [what an incredible excuse] I didn't really mean to say you were hopeless or... anything.

[Clearly that's the issue here]

[skelepun]

[Clearly.]

No offense taken. Actually, I didn't think you were too far off, kiddo. [He takes a bite of his cracker, crumbs falling down onto the front of his shirt. Despite the indelicate scene, Sans' voice sounds almost... reverent. Or at the very least, concerned.] You don't gotta answer, but what's your sister's name?

[feytality]

You don't...? [She seems surprised by his agreeing with her. She'd like to believe in Audentes, but right now no one really seems to know what to do.] I guess everyone's having a hard time right now.

[You don't say, Maya.]

[Anyway, she doesn't mind answering, smiling faintly] Mia. She's my big sis, and she's really, really great. Whenever Nick was in trouble she'd always get him out of it. I bet, if she were here... she'd lead us all outta this.

[Not like Maya, anyway]

[skelepun]

[That's putting it mildly, but Sans just smiles and shrugs.]

Seems that way.

[He lets that bare assessment stand on its own, more interested in what Maya has to say next. He can't help but relate, the warmth in her tone recognizable in his own whenever he talks about his brother.

It's a tone he hasn't seen in Maya before -- contemplative, rather than consuming.]

Yeah? She sounds pretty rad. [He leans back slightly, eating another cracker.] She back home?

[feytality]

[Maya's just as willing to let the subject drop, because there's not much to say about it, so she focuses on her sister. A subject that's always been close to her mind, and her heart, but once she didn't often speak about.]

She is. She's the raddest of all time! [But then, her tone falters, and her head droops again, as she shakes it.]

No, she... she's gone. She was killed.

[#deadsiblingclub begins]

[skelepun]

[They really gotta get badges. And jackets. Not scarves, though. That hits a little too close for both of them.]

... Ah.

[Sans stops, staring up into the inky, star dusted sky for a lengthy beat. It's not the response he was expecting. With Maya's bubbly, vivacious demeanor -- so much like his brother -- the last person he expected her to have in common with was. Well. Him.

He finds words eventually, though. He always does. Even if his voice sounds a little strange as he says them.]

M'sorry to hear that, kiddo.

[feytality]

[Definitely too close to home. She gives him a bittersweet smile at the condolences, having sat in silence before he responded]

Thanks.

[She hardly ever talks about this. Ever since Mia died, she'd just focused on taking care of Phoenix -- what her last wish was. It feels odd to talk about it so plainly]

[That, and she'd noticed his voice was a little.. off. Maybe it's a personal issue for him, too]

Do you have any family, Mr. Sans? [Skeletons have family, right... that's a thing]

[skelepun]

[How a skeleton could clear his throat is hard to say, but Sans somehow manages it.]

Me? Yeah, sure do. [As he speaks, his smile inadvertintly matches hers. Bittersweet.] Papyrus. My little brother.

[There it is again. The funny tone to his voice.]

He's in Audentes actually, do y'know him?

[feytality]

No, I don't.... [But she's vaguely heard of another skeleton. It had crossed her mind that they knew each other, but she's not so skeleton racist that she'd assume they were related]

[or is she]

Did... something happen to him? [She's noticed how his tone matches hers, and the smile, too]

[skelepun]

What? [His answer comes so quick, and so eerily caught off guard, it surprises even Sans. He shakes off the feeling, shaking his head reflexively.] Nah, nah, I mean. He's fine. He's here, isn't he?

[It's not exactly the convincing lie he intends it to be, and Sans deflates a little rather than force it further.]

... Well, the truth's a little more complicated. [A beat, a smile.] Let's just say I got an idea of what you're going through.

[feytality]

[Maya keeps looking at him, unconvinced. Being here isn't mutually exclusive with being fine -- wasn't there talk of ALASTAIR bringing people back from the dead? Can skeletons even die -- and she's not half as stupid as she acts.]

I'm sorry. No one should have to lose a sibling.

[Even if.... maybe he got him back, through ALASTAIR. She smiles faintly a little less bittersweet]

Well, if he's got you for a big brother, he's gotta be a pretty cool skeleguy.

[Apparently she's decided this after speaking to Sans, like, twice]

[skelepun]

[Hey, nothing wrong with that, especially when she's this right.]

You got him pegged, alright. [He looks up at the stars again, then back at Maya.] N' y'know, same goes for you too.

[Leaning slightly, Sans nudges her shoulder.]

From one big brother to a little sister... I bet she was really glad, y'know? To have you. Probably still is, somewhere.

1/2

[feytality]

[Despite the fact that she just gave him the exact same compliment, Maya freezes up when he says it]

I----

2/3 I lied

[feytality]

[It looks like he caught her off-guard -- and more that that, struck her silent. Was Mia glad to have her? Is she? It's not like she ever had a choice, their mother had disappeared when Mia was a child and Maya was a toddler. And she'd left, too, to find out the truth about where mother disappeared to--]

[But Maya was probably such a pain all of those years. It was a testament to how amazing Mia was that she weathered it all, but--- how did Maya herself play into that?]

[Still, it's an unexpected act of kindness from Sans to someone who clearly doesn't receive them often or even know what to do with them, so Maya chokes back her emotions to give him a tremulous--]

T.... Thank you.

[feytality]

[She swallows hard, tilting her head away for a second, then manages to get a hold of herself with a sad little laugh]

We kinda match, don't we? One big brother missing a little brother, one little sister missing a big sister.

[skelepun]

[For a moment, Sans is worry he's said something wrong. It's not his intention to dredge up the past -- lord knows he wasn't exactly the poster boy for internal reflection -- and as he watches her face change, he wonders if maybe he's done just that.

When you aren't ready for it... when it hits you unexpected...

Well, it's not what he wants for her.

But then she speaks. And Sans says nothing, staring at her with fresh sockets. And then she speaks again, and Sans' grin takes on a sudden strength.]

You're not wrong, kiddo. [He leans back slightly, carpels scraping against the rock. For a long moment he's silent, considering something.] Hey, can I ask you something?

[feytality]

[It's more like he's said something right; congrats on getting a real emotion out of her and telling her something she's needed to hear since Mia died.]

[She's content to stay quiet and even sneaks up a look at the stars until he speaks again, still with that little sad smile]

What's up, Mr. Sans?

[skelepun]

[He smiles back, relieved to see it in her face.]

Well, me n' your sister, we're in the same club. Very selective membership. [He winks.] And I don't wanna leave a fellow Big Sib hanging so... while you're we're both here, whaddya say to me covering her duties? [His skeletal grin widens, and though he appears completely relaxed it seems as if part of him is a little nervous.] Y'know, like. Noogies. That kinda thing.

[Being a big brother to Papyrus did include noogies, yeah, but it was more than that too. Much like Maya, they had been alone for as long as Sans could remember -- there were responsibilities that came with that, when you were the older one. Safety. Food. Bills. Gyftmas presents. Hours spent pouring over car magazines Papyrus loved, wondering if he could ever manage to afford one for him. It was a full time job, and even as Sans extended the offer to Maya, he wondered why he was signing himself up for a second one.

Then again, it wouldn't be the first time.]

[feytality]

[Someone wants her? sounds fake but okay]

I, um.... [It's twice in one conversation now he's rendered her speechless. For the life of her, she can't figure out why he's doing this - is this a joke? Is it pity? What could he possibly gain from taking over 'big sibling duties'? What could she offer him?]

Only if... I get to take over little sibling duties! [two can play at that game] Even if he's here, I bet you're the kind of big bro that needs to be double-teamed!

[Well, whatever his reason, even if he just messing around, this is her way of thanking him for that kindness]

[skelepun]

Are you kidding? I'm sure Papyrus'll be thrilled. [He grins, reaching his fist out to knock her shoulder. Big Brother Gesture #103. He takes this job seriously.] Advance warning, I'm a bit of a handful.

[The irony of the statement isn't lost on Sans, considering who he's talking to, but it also doesn't seem particularly important. He extends a hand towards her.]

Deal?