Maggot forgot how much living out here could suck. The desert of the Abiding Boneyard, on top of being an arid and endless expanse of disease and rot, was hotter than the Plaguebringer's fever.
She tugged up her canteen and took a quick swig before continuing forward. She should find shade, the shadow of a rock or the bone of some unfortunate centuries old titan. Anything to get out of this relentless sun.
It was a spire of multicolored rock that finally gave her relief, the painted sandstone jutting over the canyon's edge. It's angle was precarious, but provided her a cozy (and cool) enough overhang to rest in.
Nestled and seated with her tail draping over the sheer edge, Maggot finally removed the worn map from the case at her hip and began to scan it over again.
Four eyes scanned the worn out map, a scraggly claw tracing the marked route she had taken. A twisting route up sharp inclines and at least one sheer cliff had finally brought her to the top of the canyon. A part of her nagged that she shouldn't be up here, in the open Boneyard. It wasn't safe.
But the thought soon vanished, the hum of treasure in her head pushing it quietly to the side.
Maggot poked her head out from behind her rocky shelter, eyeing the arid landscape as she glanced between the map and the landscape.
It took a few solid minutes, but her eyes eventually found something that matched. It was a small gathering of rather large rock spires, the five figures reaching to the sky. They were bone white, shining hot under the unforgiving sun, and sat about a hundred feet to the northwest.
Evenly spaced apart, they served as a good enough landmark for her to finally get her bearings.
A smile cracked her face before she turned back to her map, the small bit of charcoal in her fingers (when did she grab that out of the case?) quickly marking her approximate position on the aged parchment.
It seemed like a simple journey from here; head toward the bone-white circle and bank north. After that, follow the dried out river bank to the spiraling pit shape drawn on the map. From its distance from the circle, it would be about a day and a half trek.
As she packed the map away and made her way back out into the heat, the idle thought that she had never seen the weird pit on any other map of the area before fluttered through her head. Ranchero kept plenty of up to date maps on the ranch. They were necessary. They needed them to track the fields and the herds.
She took a turn at the ring of bone-white stones, heading north.
The thought continued to nag her as she moved, the constant whispering of treasure at the end slowly being drowned out by her worry and...something. There was something she should be remembering, something about the area that--
She stopped dead, a soft hum leaving her lips as her eyes locked onto a lone figure; a simple post, sturdy yet old, with a worn out blood red rag waving in the wind at its tip. A warning sign.
Her fingers twitched as she stared, conflicting thoughts flying through her brain as a honeyed whisper told her to ignore it and move forward and claim the riches at the end of this road.
The other part loudly called her an idiot for considering.
With a growl she whipped the map back out, glaring at the faded parchment. The charcoal back in her hand, she marked a small 'x.'
She turned then, moving westward and breaking from the map's path. A half mile later she saw another marker, waving lazily in the wind. Another 'x' was added.
Her trek continued, marking each new flag as she went.
Ten flags later she finally stopped, frowning at the map. Her marks made a clear border, something that filled her gut with frustration. The map was crunched in her hands as she let out a frustrated grunt, turning to stare over the large expanse of Boneyard beyond the warning flag.
Her goal, the treasure promised by the ridgeback merchant, was in the large stretch of the Wasteland that was patrolled by the Boleslaw.
An impossibly large guardian, the Boleslaw was a violent thing. Nothing with any intelligence entered her territory and made it back if she could help it. She was a beast Maggot had only seen at a distance, but had no desire to see the guardian up close.
After a few minutes of quiet interrupted only by the soft sound of paper crunching in a tightening fist, the quiet of the setting sun was cut by a frustrated curse from Maggot's mouth.
This was frustrating, to put it mildly. She bought this map and now she had to return it or find a different route in. Neither of which sat right with her.
She turned, stomping back along the line she had followed, the shadows growing ever longer as she went. She wouldn’t be able to make it back to Rotwater tonight. Too dangerous to go traipsing through the Wasteland in the middle of the night alone.
She’d set up camp here, she decided, arriving at the spire-circle she had passed through not too long ago. Already it was shaded and cool, the warm desert land giving off its heat as the sun passed beyond distant rock faces.
Grumbling, the map was re-rolled carelessly into its case and thrown to the side, the bamboo case clattering loudly. The sound hung in her head and caused her to frown.
It almost sounded...mad.
She snorted, removing the thought from her head and her vest from her chest. She made her way toward one of the curved spires, eyeing the rough surface before pulling some of the dried brush that grew in its shade.
As the sun faded at the soft stars above began to glow, a fire was crackling. Maggot herself lay quietly by it, vest folded and under head as she stared up at the twinkling lights.
She thought of this journey, the merchant who made her frills twitch in agitation against the dirt, and she thought of Rotwater. And as she turned over and closed her eyes to sleep, she thought of Slough and hoped she hadn’t worried him too much.
And as she drifted off to sleep, the wind rattled the map case angrily against the stone.
Oh I figured I’d update you guys. I AM still working on part 2 of my Astral Event entry. Unfortunately I had to put it on the back burner because I fell into a massive depressive spike that seems to just NOW be lightening itself up. I’m slowly making my way back to reblogging things to here too. I’m sorry for my absence and my silence, but I’m hoping to be able to funnel more energy into that now that I seem to be getting back on my feet.
