Chaos had never been anywhere quite like this. Well, he'd been in caves, and he'd been up the volcano in the east to stare down into the bubbling cauldron of magma there, but he'd never been a cave that shimmered with the heat and sullen red glow of a volcano's distant magma. Fog rose from the cave mouth as the moist heat of the cave hit the cold winter air. Fascinated, he hovered around the cave's entrance for a moment, considering whether to enter, but oh who was he kidding of course he was going to go in. Two long strides brought him into the cave, and he had to halt as the sudden change from cold dry air to the moist air of a cave superheated threatened to take his breath away. "Whoa buddy," he managed to whoop with what breath he had managed to take in. His voice echoed really strangely once it had bounced past what was visible to him of the cave. He was intensely curious as to what was outside of his eyesight, but he needed to take a moment to adjust to the thick feel of the air.

Chasing Twisters In The Canyon

Her tour of the north was going pretty well though she was a bit disappointed at how quiet it had been so far. She supposed the weather was partly to blame. The severity of the winter was palpable. She'd been lucky to find a few carcasses to scrounge off and one fresh kill. Meager pickings though all in all. Pyralis new she'd need to cut the trip short and check on the going on's back home but for now she was content to go her own way. To forget about her family, the fallen god and anything but the earthly pleasure of enjoying well… the earth.

She was working her way up when she passed by a cave entrance. It would've gone unnoticed except that the air seemed to shiver about it, like a mirage. Curious she moved closer and soon felt the heat. An underground chamber? She hadn't been expecting to see signs of volcanic activity out here. Now she knew going in could be risky but to heck with it.

"Oh Pyr, you can't be serious."

Alkali hopped onto her back, the sudden weight causing Pyralis to stagger. The large bird hunkered down and Pyralis chuckled as she slipped into the cave. Alkali hated going in caves and anything even remotely underground. "I promise to protect you from the wee beasties." The bird scowled. Pyralis was impressed with the heat. The air was heavy and dense and as she moved further in she noticed a handsome man with unusual markings and noticeably large fangs that curved down past his lower jaw. She grinned.

"Enjoying the sauna?" She could feel Alkali shift, the birds talons digging into her back. "They're supposed to be good for the skin, unlike crabby hawks." She turned her head to glare at the bird who shot her an equally dirty look.

My Cathedral Is The Badlands

Chaos was getting used to the heat and was about to continue on further when he was startled by a sudden silhouette against the bright mouth of the cavern. He was turning as a voice hailed him. The stranger stepped forward away from the light, and as she did he was able to make out a tall female a little older than he was, a rather disgruntled looking hawk clinging to her. Chaos grinned at her and with a lowered voice as though confiding so her hawk 'couldn't hear' he said "I left my owls at home. They can be a pain in the ass when I drag them on adventures, and it's no fun getting ganged up on by great horned owls let me tell you." He laughed, then added in a normal tone, "Are you here to explore or are you just here for beauty? You certainly don't need the help, if you don't mind me saying."

Chasing Twisters In The Canyon

Pyralis turned gracefully back to face the man. She grinned as he spoke of his owls. At least she wasn't the only one that had to deal with cranky birds. She let out a chuckle. She couldn't imagine getting picked on by two massive birds of prey. "Makes me glad I have only one cranky bird to deal with. Can't imagine being outnumbered!" Although she had debated trying to pick up a second companion after the tournament. Many wolves seemed to team up with a pair of companions and having to deal with those extra opponents could make all the difference.

Are you here to explore or are you just here for beauty? You certainly don't need the help, if you don't mind me saying.

Pyralis grinned and shifted her head towards her shoulder as if she were suddenly bashful but that was far from the case. She had to admit she enjoyed the little bit of attention. It was hard to feel beautiful once she was over the hill. "Your tongue is dripping in honey my good sir. Do you always take to making women's hearts flutter so? I'd imagine you've broken a few in your day." Pyralis turned to face him fully, her golden eyes reflecting the red-orange glow of the lava.

My Cathedral Is The Badlands

The woman responded with a charmingly falsely bashful turn of her head, and Chaos gave her a crooked grin. "I speak only the truth - your loveliness inspires this poor cold heart to poetry." He struck a faintly ridiculous, dramatic pose, his gaze upraised and a woeful expression on his fanged visage. Then he grinned again, and jerked his head towards the intriguing glow further in the cave. "I found the idea of exploring this cave intriguing, but I admit that you, my lady, intrigue me far more than such a mysterious fiery glow." He avoided her comment about all the hearts he'd broken, because frankly he seemed to have more of a history of falling for others than they did falling for him... it was a definite 0 for 2 at this point as far as that went. He didn't think he needed to admit that embarrassing little tidbit to a stranger, though.

Chasing Twisters In The Canyon

"I speak only the truth - your loveliness inspires this poor cold heart to poetry."

Pyralis was flattered despite herself. What a charmer! She laughed at his dramatic pose. "Only your heart and nothing a bit lower?" She winked at him, enjoying the wit and flirting. It'd been awhile since she'd talked with a man who had so quick and clever a tongue.

"I found the idea of exploring this cave intriguing, but I admit that you, my lady, intrigue me far more than such a mysterious fiery glow"

Alkali rolled her eyes and took off to roost on one of the rock formations, dipping her head to clean her feathers. Pyralis rolled her shoulders languidly forward and back. "Ah, how strange to find you speaking my exact thoughts. But I don't see a reason we can't sate both our desires. Come, how about we wander this strange territory together and enjoy the company of a fascinating stranger."

My Cathedral Is The Badlands