Standing at the rim of a very large hole in the ground, Warja stared into its inky depths. Wave after wave of oppressive heat billowed from the void, but that was the only clue as to what was down there. As far as the sunlight reached jagged rocks and narrow pathways could be seen. The hole was deep though, and descended far beyond what the eye could see. It stretched out beneath them like the mouth of an impossibly large creature. This 'mouth' was even fitted with impressive, rocky teeth. Climbing into this living, breathing hole in the earth would be crazy--and yet, that's what she intended to do.
Above them, the sun was finishing its plunge into the horizon. What little sunlight was left cast a rosy glow across Mount Volkan; an effect that would have been beautiful if not for the terrifying journey ahead. Warja, filled with nervous energy, was giddy. She'd been here before. The gaping hole had opened up during an earthquake and once the dust had settled, Warja had ventured in. She hadn't viewed the whole thing in one go, instead taking bite-sized exploratory trips until she'd come out the other side. The youngling intended to take Kismet on a tour of Hell. The path she chose came out somewhere near the base of the mountain and was easily managed in a couple of hours. There would be no rest for them this night. No, sleep would probably have to wait until the following day.
Turning to Kismet, an excited grin spread across Warja's features. "Ready?" Suspecting he might try to back out, she didn't give him time to answer. Instead the grey scale wolf turned from him, tipped over the edge and jumped down, falling approximately four feet to a ledge below. A small cloud of dust wafted out of the hole, pushed by a wave of hot air. After making room for him to jump down, Warja turned around and grinned up at Kismet.
"Speech"
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