The arena sat in the middle of the valley. All around it, tiny dots slowly made their way to the building at different paces. High above from a cliff top, a distant ways away, the Divine Artificer stood with a solemn expression on his face. His white cape fluttered in the wind, his loose but comfortable grey and white robes moved to accompy the winds path. The only splash of color lied in Anglea's insignia that flew in the forceful wind. Next to him, looking past the cliff, her gaze set on the dots that moved towards the arena shortly stood Rosemary."Thank you for accompanying me, Ms.Raine." Serci said, his tone not as energetic as it always is. His mood was serious and somber. A pained expression lay on his feminine face as he mentally prepared for the oncoming trial. "Are you sure you have to do this?" She asked, slowly. Her voice was quite, but her face open with worry. He forced a smile that quickly dissipated. "As Divine Artificer I have to. But it goes more than that. Dalanesca is the anti-Angela… in a sense. They are two sides of the same coin. I'd be disappointed with my self If I missed an opportunity like this because I was too afraid of a challange." He paused as his words reached her. His face grew earnest as he continued. "A trail made from the goddesses of life and death. Love and Desire. As your mother's champion… I could learn so much from this, Rosemary." He said, his voice trailing off.  

Rosemary fidgeted where she stood, as she reached out with her hand to grab his. Halfway through, she retracted her hand, holding her arm with the other, emabarrsed at the act. Serci smiled, looking up to the sky, shaking his head. He turned around to face her, quickly grabbing her hand with both hands. He vigorously rubbed her hand between his. For too long have they danced around their attraction for one another. Ever since the ball, when they would spend time with each other, they would push their own comfort level to make an advance, only to retreat to avoid discomfort from the other. For too long have they have been denying their feelings.He reassured her with a bright smile as she stared at her hand, eyes growing with shock. "Rosemary… If I die…" He cut his sentence short, letting the words blow in the wind as he slowly began to minimize the space between them. He desired her touch. He craved her presence. As he was inches away from her, he bent down at his knees as he moved his face closer to hers, tilting his neck. He moved in untill he could feel her warm breath on his face. 
He leaned in to kiss her, his eyes wild with excitement as their lips almost grazed. He suddenly stoped his advance as he and Rosemary stood still. He let out a soft chuckle, and smiled as he back peddled away from her. "Im sorry, Rosemary. If I was a different man, things would've been different. I'd take you out on several chaperone dates before I ever made a move to kiss you." He patted off his garbs as he reached into his pockets, taking out a dirty, tattered brown leather bag. "If I die, Rosemary." He paused, holding the bag out to her. "Please give this to Angela for me. It's the Infinte Sands. Unforentuly. Once she ascended to Life and Love, the sands lost their muster and no longer transform. It's quite sad, really. However, I feel that they should go back to your mother." 

Clearly in shock from his advances she shook off her surprised face and her eyebrows furrowed as her bottom lip stuck out. She quickly huffed at him, taking out a similar leather bag as she took the inactive Infinite Sands from him. She poured off the sands into her bag and shoved the half full bag into his stomach. "I'll give her this half. You can give her the rest when you get back." She said with a pouty tone. She mumbled something about what not do when you lean in to kiss a girl. "Serci… Be careful." She said, concern in her voice. She unfolded her large wings, digging at the plumage with her free hand. She plucked a large spectaled white and silver feather and tied it around the hem of his pants with a red string. "For good luck." 

He smiled, running his hand through the feather, admiring the softness of the quill. He looked to her, taking her hand. "Thank you. Rosemary. It's amazing how much you can unnerve me." He dropped her hand, as he turned to face the arena. "I should get going. Take care of your self, Rosemary." Serci set off for the arena, no longer with a concerned outlook, but one of determined focus. He will survive the mazes. 

Even with the crowd of people swarming towards the newly emerged arena, Evridiki felt alone. That's not to say that she had never been on her own before; hell, for most of her adult life, she had ventured out on solo missions, never staying in one place for too long because she knew how hard it would be to leave. But she slipped up and got attached to something, someone, and as soon as she realized her mistake, Evri had left. The camp of refugees had somehow taken precedence over her self-proclaimed purpose in life, and she had simply fallen into a routine without noticing. She blamed herself for becoming invested in the people, especially the children. How could she have walked among them for so long, knowing that the blood of innocents had stained her hands? If she was being honest with herself, they all would have been better off without her in the first place. Especially Viserys.

Saying goodbye to him had been the hardest part of removing herself from the camp. As Evri stared blankly at the ground beneath her feet, she recalled all the pain she had seen him go through in her wake. She hadn't really been the cause of most of it, though she did end up bringing plenty of his past to the surface. He had told her about his daughter's death, and she had confided in him about her time in captivity. It had been nice to actually talk to someone about the ordeal, even if the circumstances were less than ideal. They had formed a strong bond, one of true friendship. Then, their relationship began to feel familiar. The half-angel started to have nightmares about being bound in heavy chains as her feathers were plucked from her wings slowly and painfully, one by one. Each memory brought physical pain with it, so much so that she would wake up in the middle of the night screaming and out of breath, trails of blood where her own nails had dug into her skin. Explaining that to Vis had been complicated. Eventually, the nightmares got so violent that Vis had insisted on staying in the same room as her. That was when she knew she had to leave.

Now, Evridiki followed the many people who wished to prove themselves in the mazes. Maybe it was the fact that she needed something to distract herself from the guilt of abandoning the camp, or perhaps participating simply felt right, but something was driving her to the building. Her sword bounced against her leg as she listened to one buff-looking man brag about his resolve, only to be chastised by his partner, a meeker, more bookish man. A small smile tugged at the corners of her lips, only to be replaced with her default solemn expression. She would not have a partner to go with her. She would have to complete the mazes alone. Others discussed the danger of the mazes, stating how some have already died trying to complete it. Chuckling dryly, Evri shook her head. Not because she was confident in her survival, but because she did not care if she escaped with her life or not. There was no one to miss her if she died, no one to go back to. She was nothing.

As she neared the building, her eyes landed on one of the less busy entrances to the maze, and she was instinctively drawn to it. The construction of the doorway was truly magnificent, reflecting both the tones of the Mother and the Reaper in a perfect harmony. Despite her reservations about the Reaper due to her previous act of destruction, the half-angel still held a certain respect for the goddess. So, Evri bowed her head while she entered, allowing her thin hair to brush against her left cheek, in a sign of respect for the twin goddesses. When she once again lifted her head, her gaze fell upon the orbs in the center of the room. Physically, they all appeared the same, but what differentiated them were the emotions that radiated from each one. She was first drawn to the one that caused her to remember every detail of her life in full, up until the present. Evridiki remained fixated on the orb, somewhat forgetting where she was or that anyone else was around. 

Serci made down from the cliff side he and Rosemary were talking on. He set a steady stride to the arean, following along with other soldiers as his sword bounced restlessly in its sheath. As neared the entrance, he could already feel the influence from both of the gods. It had Angela and Dalanesca written all over it, and in truth, it both excited him and saddened him. Dalanesca's part in the warped tower caused a lot of grief for Serci. He was always over trusting of strangers, always believing in the best of individuals, but led to him being hurt, it was no different this time. He was foolish for thinking of her a friend, believing she had pure soul. There were ways to make point, slaughtering innocent was not one of them. Angela, on the other hand, he had the utmost respect for her. It would seem, if he was victorious in the mazes, he would be asking her to court her daughter, a conversation he dreaded. But in the end, Angela always approved of Serci and Rosemary. Going as far to set the two up at the Reverie ball in Zetski Cradle. As he entered the arena, his right hand fell to the right side of his hip, resting on the hilt of his sword as he crossed into the arena. 
He made his way to a detailed wall, explaining the various mazes and combinations. He settled on Life and Love first. Fitting, for the champion of Life and Love. Although his mind set was serious, he did sofly chuckle at the situation. With grace, he made his way to the orbs where an adventure stood, staring at the orb. Serci gave the female the space she needed and softly innterupted "Excuse me, swordswoman. May I borrow the orb?" He asked, gesturing at the orb. The female seemed in shock as she quickly regained her surroundings and politely moved out the way. He gave her a warm smile, speaking before he was warped to the maze. "See you on the other side, yes? Good luck." 

As he landed in the first of the mazes, he steeled his senses, conentraing on slowing his heart beat and examinating the claustrophobic area. There was no immediate threat, and no sounds to cause worry. He stepped off the warp platform and continued down a strait path that took a left. As he rounded the corner, the path seemed to stretch an impossible distance, with no sign of a fork or intersection of walls. With a quick thought, he untied the worn bag that held the infinite sands and poured a small amount on the ground as he walked forward along a path that stretched towards the horizon.

After a moment of watching people come and go, Evri decided to follow the same route as the man who'd spoken to her. He seemed to know what he was doing, and she did not want to end up like one of the wounded people limping from the warp platforms. Either she would succeed in the mazes, or she wouldn't come out at all. With her mind made up, she took the orbs of life and love in her hands, feeling the emotions already overwhelming her. Carefully, she set them down in front of the gate, allowing herself to be transported into the maze. Light surrounded her while she was teleporting, nearly blinding her. She squinted her eyes as the light died down, revealing a narrow path with no clear threat ahead. Evri sighed, setting off through the twists and turns.

At first, the obstacles on the path included minor bumps on the ground, or the occasional thorn bush. Her wings were helpful in some instances, but they became more of a hindrance the deeper she went. They were too big to properly fly, and the walls began to have jagged edges that would cut her if she extended them. Eventually, she had lost herself in thought and was simply wandering through the maze. The biggest danger in this particular one was never escaping; but Evri wasn't too concerned about that. Dying in a place like this, although it might be slightly uncomfortable, seemed peaceful. Breathing in the refreshing air, the half-angel fell into a steady pace until she stumbled across something on the ground. Bending down, she examined the substance and saw that it was… sand. But there was something ethereal about it, though she could not exactly place what it was. For a minute, she contemplated the grains of sand, then she decided to follow its trail. It could have been a way out, or perhaps a trick. Either way, Evri had nothing else to go off of. So she followed the sand.

Surprise was not exactly what she felt when she came across the man dropping sand from a pouch at his side. "You're clever," she noted blankly, standing with her arms crossed as she studied him. He definitely looked strong, though she didn't think he was much of a threat to her, given his naturally peaceful disposition. She scratched at the shaved portion of her head, absentmindedly rubbing a few grains of sand between her fingers. "Sorry, I won't intrude," Evri assured him, preparing to turn back. There were several other paths for her to take that would surely be empty. Before she did, though, she looked up at him with a thin yet weary smile. "I just have to ask…" Her voice wavered with hesitance, but she persisted. "How is it that you know the Mother?" The sigil he wore indicated that he was at least a follower, but the way he appeared to float through the maze with ease suggested that he was familiar with Angela's type of trials. "You fight for her, yes?"

Serci was startled by a disturbance behind him. As he turned around he saw the woman who was absorbed in the orb she held, recognizing the shaven head. He gave a friendly smile, and held his hand out in a non treating manner to show he meant no harm. "Your clever for following the sands." He said, walking towards her. " I left a trail for people to follow, I'm glad you found your way here. My goal is to help everybody as much as I can. I may be alone, but I can still help others." He said, as he dropped another small handful on the ground. "By no means are you intruding. It's nice to see a smiling face, at least." He said, as he stopped before her. "There are rumors that Angela has named a champion. The rumors are true." He said, giving her a polite bow, "I am the Divine Artificer, Serci." He paused to brush the strait, golden hair out of his eye as he cast a look around the maze. "These mazes only get harder as we progress." He made sure to choose his words carefully, but polite spoken as always "I noticed you came alone. If you don't mind, I would love the company?" He asked extending an invitation while he held out his right hand in attempt of a hand shake.

Angela's Divine Artificer, hm? An appropriate title for her champion, Evridiki supposed, looking at him more carefully. Squinting her red eyes, she studied his earnest gaze and searched for any sign of deceit, but there was none. She thought on his offer for a moment, before ultimately deciding that she should just accept the invitation and follow him out of the maze, given she didn't have many better options. With a weary smile, she nodded and stepped closer towards him. The maze was too narrow for them to stand side-by-side, so she simply stood a few paces behind him. "I'm Evridiki," she greeted as they traversed through the pathways. While they walked, the half-angel noticed the walls beginning to open up, and they began following a clearer path. Curious thing…

"There was no one to come with me, I'm afraid," she explained, her gaze fixated on the ground beneath her feet, knowing fully well that she had friends who would've willingly followed her into the maze. Guiltily, she attempted to smile through her own self-pitying thoughts. But she was such a bad actress that anyone paying attention could see right through her; perhaps Serci wouldn't turn around and catch her awkward expression. "What about you? Who is outside waiting for you?" The questions came out in a desperate effort to change the subject, though she was genuinely interested in his answer. She wondered if there was someone he needed to get back to, or even someone he wanted to find.

Serci rounded a corner to his left, his hand gliding across the wall as he made the pass. He occasionally glanced at Evridiki as she talked. He caught the awkward  pause as she mentioned there was no body that followed her into the maze, her eyes focused in at the dirt. He smiled, leaving the situation untouched for now. She casually asked if there was somebody waiting for him. He chuckled, shaking his head. "Oh boy, is there." He replied. As they followed the path in front of them, they came across a four way intersection. Serci reached into t
his bag and grabbed a small handful of sand and dropped some as he walked the path to the right. "A half angel, really." He said, casting a glance at his partner for reassurance. "Goes by the name of Rosemary-Raine." His hand dropped as he absent stroked the large speckled white and silver feather that was tied to the hem of his pants. "It's silly to say, now that I say it out loud. Serci, The Mother's Champion, too afraid to confess to the woman he feels for." He softly chortled as they climbed a small series of steps that layed in their path. 

"Her mother waits for me too, or rather, I wait for her." He said with a small pause as he examined the next course of action. He followed a series left and right turns before finally following a left turn that went ahead strait for awhile. "Call me old fashion, but I want the parents approval before I court a lady." He said, a warm grin spreading across his face. "The only problem is, her mother, is Angela." He paused to let the information sink in. "Does that make me, a bad person, Evridiki? Falling for attraction to my patron goddess's daughter?" He asked, the grin from his face replaced with a look of curiosity. "Bah, either way, I've come to terms with it. Angela has showed me she approves, but it's a personal problem I have to deal with. When the mazes are behind us, Dalanesca in her place, I'll ask for her approval then." He said. He took a left at an intersection, followed by a right. "I have a sister too, that I am trying to find." He said, explaining his life to a stranger he just met. "However, with so much going on, that has been put on hold for the time being."

As the pair followed the path, he held his out, stopping in his tracks. A smile grew on his face as the walls patterns were diffrent from the others. "See that?" He asked, the a section of the wall glowed at the edges with a faint light. It was almost hard to miss, if one was caught up in panic. "This is the trick of the maze. I'm sure there is an alternate path that leads to the exit, but this is the maze of Life and Love. Not everything is at is seems, dear Evridiki." He closed his eyes, placing his hand against the cold wall. He thought about his life. From his time as a small child, learning sciences and sword play. To his teenager years and young adult life, spent in a drunken depression from his parents death. He thought about his servitude to Lady Angela. And he thought about love. Love was something he had not a lot of experience about, but he thought of what it could be like to love somebody. Even if that person was Rosemary. He imainged a life full of love with Rosemary.

A series of clicks and thuds came from within the wall, and upon opening of his eyes, the wall had opened in on its self, revealing a well lit strait path. He cast a look at the half angel he was traveling with a large closed smile. "Perks of being champion of Life and Love, I guess." He said, with a soft chuckle. When they walked the path, the wall closed, and the dirt they were walking on slowly mixed in with a cobble stone path. In a short time, they had arrived at the center of the maze. He smiled and turned to Evridiki. "Well, that's one maze down. I'm afraid I won't be able to do that again. All the mazes from here on out are mixed with Dalanesca's influence. But, I'm sure between the two of us, it won't be a problem." He said, with a comforting tone. He led them too a small warp platform that transported the pair back to the dusty arena, now clear of warriors and sound. It was empty, and even the sounds of their foot steps caused a small echo. 

He quickly added the combination of Life and Desire and with a red light light, they were warped to a new maze. This particular maze he was fearing. It was a maze of lust and weakness. In his mind, it was harder than Dalanesca's beast maze. He turned to Evridiki, "Welcome to Life and Desire. Here, we will face the weak faucets of our selfs, and worldly desires." He started walking, stopping at an intersection, spending a large amount of time before deciding to head left. "Weakness and fears." He repeated, solemnly. "Do you have any fears, Evridiki?"

Listening to him speak was rather soothing, similar to a lullaby being sung to a child to calm them down. His worries about Rosemary, though unfounded, were natural, or so she had been told. If anyone was going to understand his intentions, it would be the Mother, Angela. What else was to be expected from the goddess of life and love? He seemed to be quite comfortable discussing his life with her, though Evri was not surprised. Sometimes, talking about one's life to a stranger could be relieving, since they would likely not see you as often as a close friend might. Perhaps she would open up to Serci. After all, who better to listen to her life than Life's champion? "There will always be a reason to put off courting her," she mused, glancing down at the feather he had been gifted. Obviously, she must have loved him, if she was willing to pluck her wings for him. Although Evri didn't know how other half-angels were, she did know that her own wings were extremely sensitive, and removing feathers hurt. "Don't let fear or reluctance or other priorities stop you from pursuing who you love."

At some point they had reached a point in the wall, so minute that she easily would have missed it on her own. Serci, she imagined, had been trained specifically in the ways of Life and Love, or maybe simply Earth and Life, given the Deity's realms had changed but recently. No matter the reason, his observance was helpful in allowing them to escape the maze unscathed. Hope suddenly began to fill her heart, and though she was unsure of what brought it on, Evri didn't mind the feeling. In fact, she preferred it to the melancholy sadness she had been engulfed in before. The bright light surrounding them gave her a new drive, as well as a new goal. If she escaped the mazes with her life, she'd let go of any past hurt and allow herself to move forward.

As they warped back into the arena, the room somehow felt fuller than before, despite being fairly desolate. With her newfound confidence, she heartily patted the champion on the back. "Don't worry. We don't need that little trick, anyways," Evri assured him, smiling slightly. However, her positivity was somewhat dashed when she heard of what maze they were to enter next. "Weakness and fear, hm?" Her wary voice echoed through the quiet halls, accentuating her hesitation. "I guess I'm mostly afraid of failure." If there was ever a true statement that had left her lips, that was it. The honesty was different from her usual distance towards strangers, though she attributed this to the maze. "Failure to keep people safe. Failure to say what I need to say. Failure to trust." The half-angel shrugged, adjusting her wings under her armor. "All things I fear, even though they happen all the time."

They traversed through the maze for some time, until Evri began getting visions of memories from her past. At first, it was awkward encounters, or small choices she shouldn't have made. But then she saw her parents' charred bodies buried under a pile of rubble. The faces of the numerous people she had killed in her vengeful state flashed through her vision, each one filled with fear and pain. Evridiki had to physically stop and gasp because of how real every memory felt. They were at a dead end, and amorphous beings began closing in around them. Her eyes could tell that they were weak, and she'd be able to take them on singlehandedly, but their appearances shifted. She saw them as her parents. Miyu, and the other bandits that had kept her enslaved stepped nearer to her, and her fear kept her paralyzed. "I can't move," she whispered, hoping the thought of Serci would pull her out of her frozen state, although she wasn't sure what he was seeing. Whatever it was, no doubt it was part of his own worst fears.

Serci let out a harmonious chortle as he listened to Evridiki. He understood her fear, in fact he shared her feelings about failure. "I believe everyone feels that way, Evridiki." He said, with a pleasnt tone to comfort her with. Failure is a fickle thing. Only those who truly know what failure is can understand the fear. Serci knew failure, and he could hear the tone in Evridiki's voice. She failed to do something in her life. It was a sad thing, failure is. The mazes were created to test people's strength, and strength lies in knowing one's weaknesses and coming to terms with one's past failures. Serci silently repeated the phrase as he tried to steele his nerves for the upcoming trials.

He led the party left and after a while, found it was a dead end, as he turned around, he heard Evridiki barely whisper as she was frozen still. He rushed to her side, as he gently grabbed her by the shoulders. "Hey, hey. Evri. It's okay. It's okay. Hey. Listen. You're alright. I'm here." He said, as he tried to comfort her. She was visablly shaking, as he try to still her. "It's just the maze, Evri. Whatever your experiencing has already happened. You are here, in the maze." He gently cooed. He lightly tapped Evridiki on her cheeks until eyes stilled and her shakes calmed. "Hey there, you okay?" He asked, as he dug into his endless bag that hung at his hip. He pulled a flask containing a large amount of Angela's homemade wine. "Drink it, it'll help." He said, as he handed the flask out to his partner.
. "We should probably keep going, Evri." He suggested. He turned around, leading the party out a dead end as he they made left through an intersection. The sands he carried were running low in supply, which was worrisome for Serci. The mazes would be harder with out landmarkers, but he was happy that Rosemary carried half of the sands. Angela wouldn't be too upset. The sands were useless anyways. Following a series of rights, Serci began seeing flashes of his time in the desert. His battle with Rudjeck still haunted him to this day. There would be nights where he would wake up in pain, fearing his legs were being but into by the flesh eating scarabs. He would see Dalanesca's hellfire, as it consumed him in a corner. The images were short, but intense. Small beads of sweat formed at the beggining of his forehead. He turned to Evridiki, holding out the torn leather bag containing the sands. "Would you mind leading for a moment?" He asked with a wipe of his brow.

Inhaling a shaky breath, Evridiki closed her eyes and allowed Serci to ground her back in reality. Once she felt calm enough, she opened her eyes, smiled gratefully at him, and drank some of the wine he offered her. "Thanks," she mumbled as they continued onwards through the maze. If the creatures were already having an effect on her, she could only imagine what would happen further along in the maze. For her, however, fighting through it seemed to be getting easier, each step surer than the last. She couldn't say the same for Serci, though, who asked her to lead for a bit, to which she merely nodded. Evri wondered how he was able to be so calm in a place meant to challenge one's deepest fears and earthly desires. But he probably had better experience in dealing with his personal issues than she had, so it made sense for him to be only slightly affected. Still, she kept glancing back at him to be sure that he was alright.

The sands were obviously beginning to run low, so Evri tried to drop a conservative amount as they went, just enough for them to see on the dark ground. The path was beginning to open up, and Evri continued to take rights, with the occasional left if she felt an instinct to go that direction, until they reached a dead end. When she studied the wall blocking their path, she could tell there was something strange about it. Her eyes stared at it long enough that she realized it was slightly transparent. The path continued on behind the wall, but Evri could not pass through it. Perhaps it required a code, or some other way to unblock the road. Recalling how Serci revealed the hidden passage, she decided to try a similar solution. Gently, she stepped up and placed her free hand on the wall, closing her eyes. She thought of her failures, her past, and her selfishness. She let the guilt and grief wash over her. Then, once the memories had all resurfaced, she let them go. Her fear was replaced by an overwhelming sense of calm upon reflecting on all of her good memories.

When she opened her eyes, she had completely phased through the wall, now somewhat more content than she had been. As she scanned her surroundings, Evri realized that Serci still had not passed through. She attempted to squint through the wall, but it was no longer transparent. Instead, a mass of dull gray stone stared back at her, silent as ever. "Serci? Can you hear me?" Even if he could, she doubted she would be able to hear his response. The wall appeared to only work one way. Deciding her best option was to wait for Serci, she hummed a hymn as she smoothed out her feathers.