“A place that is far enough from the drowning lands to feel comfortable.” An expected answer, and one that was equally unsatisfying. She huffed at his response, feeling homesick. How long were they going to have to keep moving for? After Zane stepped into the clearing, Elcid felt it was safe enough for her to follow along behind him. As he nosed at the ashes and burnt foliage, she instead turned her gaze to the trunks of the smoldered trees. The burnt trees looked incredible! The ashes beneath her paws were warm and in some spots she stepped quickly when she found an exceptionally warm patch. The warmth, however, did not stop her from moving tree to tree, staring closely at the way the bark looked. Her mind imagined all of the art she could make out of such colored timber. Then there was, of course, the charcoal its self. It made a wonderful medium for sketching out her ideas. Elcid didn't want to live here, but she definitely wanted to return here to gather materials some day. "I don't think so either." she mused as she stood up on hind legs, her front two paws rested against a burnt trunk. She experimented with the strength of the tree and pushed against it. The burnt exterior slipped away in falling ashes, but the tree held steady against her shoves. With a "Hmm" she fell back onto all fours and returned to Zane's side. "What if it was a dragon?"" she started as she focused again on the vastness of the burned clearing. "Or a phoenix bird! Or maybe it was started by a fire ant!" She shifted her eyes from the clearing area around them to the ground, suddenly searching suspiciously of ant piles. "You remember the story of Pyra, right? The fire ant who held an extraordinary gift, the only known one of it's species to wield actual fire, and was said to bring sweeping flames across the lands to those who disrespected nature. What if this was Pyra's doing! Oh, then that means some group in the area disrespected her and the forest! I will respect you, forest. I'll turn your burned woods into something beautiful one day." Perhaps when she returned to claim some of the burned wood, there would be foliage growing here once more, some greenery in the vast density of the dark forest. The fire would eventually have to go out, which would make the smoke go away, which would let the sun through, right? --- Speech. |
Dark Forest
The ground and trees here have taken on a dark hue and a permanent cloud-shadow looms over this area. A tall, thick forest grows and in its deepest reaches, no light can penetrate the thick foliage. Strange, dangerous creatures lurk in the darkness.
[P] Refuge?