The Solution to the puzzle is posted here. Needless to say, my path was not involved, in any way. I could easily feel like a fool right now, and yet I don't. The images I found are real, and I am glad I was able to find them.
I now believe that my path was an elaborate Rabbit Hole. Those who know me know that Rabbit Holes are my kryptonite; if you've followed Tribute, you know it well. It's humbling to be shown how susceptible I am to an endless mystery, and a lesson about overconfidence. But that's enough self absorption. I'd like to show you some of the cool images I found down this amazing set of Rabbit Holes. These will mostly be closeups of larger images, that will prove that there was in fact something to find (and that I'm not quite as crazy as I seem).
I'm just going to post images, with little to no explanation. I think it would be cool if you could find these images, and others on your own.
First, a closer look at an image I called "The Red Queen and The Cheshire Cat". Note the moths near the borders.
The Red Queen is in the center, and the eyes of the Cheshire cat look on as an overlay.
I called this one "Praylien", because it features a devout creature of unknown origin.
That's all for now. If you can't see anything in these images, I can't convince you that there is anything here.