Fable - Ask Labyrinth: The first, path of the fae

[Nidraak]

Perhaps you shouldn't have slept in that fairy ring, perhaps that drink was too strong, and now you are one of many lost in this wicked gloom.
Wake up.

Wake up

You found yourself in a circular room, it's walls were trees so dense one could not see far. Between those ancient roots grew an aberration of a bramble.
Its stems were bare and only thorny, growing so thickly intertwined to be an impassable wall. Even the sky was not spared of its cage-like growth.

At least the grass beneath was soft and dense. It was the kind that tickled the fingers and grew in shades. One could wonder what strange things hid there.
Fruitflies buzzed and basked in the ever-present lustre of the setting sun while crickets already began to serenade into the night.
whatever light the trees and bramble let through, it was minimal and a patchwork game between light and darkness.
One might almost get the feeling that you could cut the god rays with a knife.

Towards the north side of the small woodland chamber room was a small gap, it led east.

 

[Kromud]

Tag: Nidraak

---

​

This was not usually how Kromud woke up in the morning. Aside from being someplace he didn't recognize, it was relatively familiar -- a slight pain in his forearms, probably from blocking hits during a bar fight. A slight ringing in his ears and a hangover migraine, probably from being at the bar. Sleeping in the wilderness...

Except this wasn't the wilderness in most places. This was more beautiful. The wildlife here had been shaped, sculpted by the hands of those who knew how the world worked. So, of course, Kromud's first question was why he was here -- had he disturbed a fae spirit? He assumed he'd probably have been killed if that were the case. Maybe he'd been brought here for something greater.

As usual he slept with all his belongings close at hand, so he did a quick check of his equipment after stretching a bit. The half-orc donned his armor and hefted his claymore, resting the long weapon on his shoulder as he began to head towards the exit to the east. Not like there was any other choice in terms of exits. It'd be much worse if he turned his weapon on the trees.

"Hello? Anybody out there?" He called, not much expecting a response. For now he focused on putting one foot in front of the other.

 

[Nidraak]

"Hello? Anybody out there?"

"Hello? Anybody out there?"

"Hello? Anybody out there?"

"Hello? Anybody out there?"

Completely empty. Perhaps quite expected.
The path continued west for a good measure. Squirrels ran flush against the bramble and branches, as if unharmed by them.
The path slowly turned south before clearing an opening.

There was a crossroad with one path going in each direction. North, south and east. On the middle of this crossroad lay a small chunk of chalk hidden by tree's roots.

 

[Kromud]

Tag: Nidraak

---

​

Not a great start. No one else was here, just a few squirrels, and he was pretty sure he couldn't talk with them. The shamans of his tribe had that ability, but he'd never learned it. Not that Kromud could be a shaman, anyways. He was marked by Gruumsh, but not among his chosen. It wasn't the best situation to be in. Still, many others had made their way before him, so he followed that same path.

Kromud was in no rush; he walked leisurely down the path, noting the curve. He realized he should probably check his compass to better get his bearings, but then he remembers he broke his compass weeks ago. Still, he takes a guess by the position of the sun as he comes upon the second clearing.

Maybe it was some kind of labyrinth? Sure seemed like a confusing way around. So many paths... he wandered over to the center, picking up the chunk of chalk. He could use it to mark his path -- right, he had some more chalk in his bag. It was surprisingly useful stuff. With the chunk he made a mark on the roots, a little circle to denote he'd already been here, as well as a mark to the path he'd just come from. After that, he decided to head east, towards the sun. Surely all of these paths lead somewhere...

 

[Nidraak]

Kromud
The path east seemed to be just as long as the path into the crossroads. The narrow thorny alley soon curved north and then east again, in fact, it felt as if this corridor was a mirror of the previous one, except at the end was no room, but another fork in the path.

Peeking either way; the path east was very short and curved north within sight. The southern path opened up and seemed a lot more illuminated.

 

[Kromud]

Tag: Nidraak

---

​

All this twisting and turning. Kromud was hoping that he could find a way out quickly; he was pretty sure that soon some kind of monster would end up chasing him around... then again, the stories he'd been told about the magic labyrinth as a kid were usually about a great orc warrior defeating a strong creature and escaping quickly after. He didn't really want that.

Upon arriving the fork in the road, he looked both ways and immediately began to head south. It was the obvious choice... well, probably a terrible one. If there were magical lights, there had to be something else there, right? He'd find out soon enough.

Hopefully it was just an exit.

 

[Nidraak]

Oddly enough, it was a large room. There's likely lots of stuff stuck in debris here and by the looks of it, one could find some interesting stuff if only they looked. Something that might come handy down the line. The curious soul is quick to benefit.

The room was well illuminated by light from above. Fruit flies congregated en masse beneath the thick god rays.
A small pool of water was located right before the entrance and it took up roughly one-third of the whole room.
A lone beaver mucked around in the soil, taping the floor with its heavy tail. The beaver was much larger than any normal beaver and there didn't seem to be any hole around here big enough for it to fit.

 

[Kromud]

Tag: Nidraak

---

​

Kromud swatted at the fruit flies as he walked, and they held his attention long enough such that he hadn't entirely realized he'd walked into a room until he'd... well, walked into the room. Was this really a room? He squinted up at the 'ceiling', trying to discern if it was more of a thick canopy created by some nearby plants.

Still, there were many other things that drew his attention -- he began with the debris. Not like anyone would be using it. At least, that was what he assumed. This was a room, and rooms tended to be owned by people, so it wasn't out of the question that he was stealing. Didn't stop the half-orc from poking around a little, hoping to find something of use or a clue to where he was.

Next was the beaver. He wandered over to the large creature and squatted next to the pool. "You stuck here too?" He asked the furry beast. Maybe it'd show him a way out... or maybe this was its home, and it wasn't going anywhere.

 

[Nidraak]

Indeed, it seemed almost ordinary.

The beaver yet bared its gnarly yellow teeth as the orc had spoken to it.
It's back arched and it's fur spiked. It let out a hiss before it threateningly feint-lunged at Kromud.
Of course, it was only displaying...for now.
The beaver growled once.

 

[Kromud]

Tag: Nidraak

---

​

The half-orc yelped and moved away from the beaver -- well, he wasn't entirely sure that it was one -- to the centre of the room. There were a lot of orcs in his old clan who probably wouldn't have flinched at that. They were the ones who died doing stupid, crazy, heroic things. It was cool and all, but Kromud thought that his human side made him a little more cautious and a little more intelligent.

He didn't take his eyes off the beaver, but calmed himself by taking a deep breath and feeling the environment around him. The shamans often told him of how they spoke to the beasts. The trick was to be unflinching, yet approachable. Kromud stared at the beaver, stepping forward and showing no fear. Then, he knelt and reached into his bag, producing a little bit of the travel bread he'd brought and offering it to the beaver.

"C'mon, bud, help me out?"

 

[Nidraak]

The beaver's flared hair slowly lowered. It's tiny claws dug into the ground a little while it's massive snout let out some huffs and puffs.

After a minute of staring, he made a few turns and dipped itself into the shallow water.