I'd rather be dead than live a lie
BURN THE WHITE FLAG!

This cave was definitely the cave Natha was looking for. The opening was unnaturally formed and strange metal strips disappeared inside it. The work stank of hooman work. Her golden eyes peered deeper into the tunnel but there was only so much light. She felt her macaque, Ragna, rest a hand on her shoulders.

"Are you really sure you want to explore in there?" Natha nodded. She'd made up her mind to explore these strange hooman cave systems and that's what she was going to do. She stepped gingerly into the entrance, noting immediately the wooden beams that formed the entrance she'd just walked through. She assumed the hoomans had sculpted an existing cave into this strange shape but as she looked more she was wondering if this was the hooman version of a den. Had they dug their way in here?

Kamilah had been known to travel to different lands in search of ideal habitat for her future herd, scouting out the various fields and streams, familiarizing herself with different options in case of emergency. There was no arguing that the open grasslands of the Dancefloor of the Gods was more than suitable to care for several horses during a rich summer and spring, but as the temperatures dropped, the green vegetation was quickly becoming scarce. So the mare pushed east, in hopes of greener pasture. It wasn't until a great mountain came into view that Kamilah finally felt drawn to a land. However, when she arrived, it was clear the land had recently gone through a significant travesty; a wild fire perhaps? She had turn to head back when her hooves clanged against a odd metal shape on the ground. It was smooth, but covered in a dusting of dirt, as if it had not been touched in quite some time.

Intrigued by the structure, the roan woman turned and found the metal structure continued, long and smooth rails, into the mouth of an oddly formed cave. Though her search had been in interest of future homes for her herd, she could not deny the curiosity that crept up her chest as she continued to peer into the darkness. What had created such a contraption? Why was there wood slabs found on the inside of a mountain cave? Clearly something had placed all of it there, but why? What value did it have? Going against her better nature, Kamilah inched into the mouth of the cave, ducking her head in the event of a low hanging ceiling. Perhaps this would be a useful hiding place, or maybe there would be a trinket or two she could take back and use. The fading light behind her, Kamilah let out a short snort when an strong iron smell smacked into her muzzle. Her sound echoed into the depths of the cave, making her realize this cave was more like a tunnel, but where did it lead? Calling out into the darkness before venturing forward, in case this was someone's home, "Hello?"

"Kamilah"

I'd rather be dead than live a lie
BURN THE WHITE FLAG!

Natha shifted her weight to her hind legs as she stretched up the wall, pressing lightly at the walls. These strange tunnels seemed stable enough. Still, one could never be sure. She told herself she'd only go a little ways in, maybe explore a few tunnels and then call that good. She didn't want a repeat of the Dreamer's Col. A strange snort caught Natha's attention. Her fur stood on end and she flattened against the wall as something very large came toward her. What on earth was that! It looked like a moose, but a pretty moose without antlers and lots more hair in certain places. A voice called out toward her.

Natha stepped away from the wall and approached on her soft, quiet paws, calling out to alert the other creature to her presence. "Hello? I'm Natha. Are you an explorer too? I don't mean to be rude but uh… what are you?"

There was a brief moment of silence that followed her call, enough so that her mind would drift to the cool breeze that flowed from within the cavern, grazing over her skin in slow waves. It was chilled, and it was slightly damped, but most caves were like this. What other caves did not have, was identical wood beams along the sides and wedged into the ceiling. Suddenly a voiced called back to her, and Kamilah's ears perked up right in response. At first, the towering mare did not see who spoke, not until her blue orbs were cast downward. There she found herself staring into the eyes of a small feline, causing the woman's body to tense up. The scars on her backside were all too fresh, the memory of having a mountain lion latched onto her rump, all too vivid. This cat was a great deal smaller, but that did not mean it was less of a threat, or even worse, if she was greeting a cub of a much more dangerous foe.

Just the thought was enough to cause Kamilah's nerves to fry, her heart rate picking up as she eyed the creature warily. Best to play along for now, until she could find a way to back out of the cave safely. The mare's width far too great for the length of the mine, a disastrous after thought. Swallowing a lump in her throat, she spoke as evenly as she could, trying not to give away her fear. "Greetings... Natha. I am Kamilah." So far so good, she just had to keep it up. "I suppose you could call me that. I am a nomad, one who is always moving. It is the nature of our species; horses, that is." It was strange to her that the little cat had not come across other equine, but when Kamilah thought about it some more, she realized the lands of Boreas severely lacked a healthy herd population. There was probably a great deal of creatures who had never seen her kind before! It was a tragic realization, but it only fueled her desire to build her empire more. "Tell me, Natha, do you live here? Perhaps with others of your kind?" She was testing the waters, seeing just how much danger Kamilah was in. If there were more lurking around the corner, hiding between the shadows, the mare wanted to know.

"Kamilah"

I'd rather be dead than live a lie
BURN THE WHITE FLAG!

Natha continued to gaze up at the creature, getting familiar with the smell and sight of her. The creature, who introduced herself as Kamilah, didn't seem terribly comfortable with Natha's presence. Did they have lynx where she was from? Ah so she was a horse. Ok, that was interesting. Natha committed the word to memory. It felt familiar but she couldn't place where she'd heard the word before. She was fairly certain though that she'd never seen one up close in person before.

Natha shook her head as she leaned up against one of the posts that formed the mine frame. She rubbed the side of her face along the post for a moment. "No, I don't. We cats prefer to live separately in most cases. And I would never live here. This place reeks of hooman work." She balanced on one of the metal rails that lead deeper down into the mine shaft.

Curious, it was, that this feline did not seem at all bothered by Kamilah's presence, but rather intrigued. It was good, the mare could rest easier knowing that at least this cat didn't want to take a bite out of her hide. As Natha answered the questions, Kamilah was surprised to learn of this structures creators. Hoomans, Natha had called them. It was a faint tale within the herds... a two legged species that had once lived in these lands. Their creations still lurked in some areas, some of their dwellings or knacks could be found. Hearing their hands were involved in this structure as well, had her curious. Blue orbs looked about the cavern, seeking something out of the ordinary. "You don't say? Apologies for assuming. I've had a recent run in with a larger feline and... well it wasn't so pleasant as this." The large equine would shuffle her hind quarters to allow Nathan a view of her fresh scars; long claw marks gripping her hips and dragging them down over her rump. "What do you know of these.. humans? Do you know what this dwelling was for?" Perhaps there was something useful hidden deep within these cavern walls. Something Kamilah could use to better defend herself... or maybe even craft into something to carry her future collections. Humans were such odd creatures, and their downfall seemed only inevitable, but they had intelligence that not even Kamilah could ignore. It was something she would strived to mimick, to bring to her old herd. It obviously never came to light, as the roan woman now stood alone. But there was still hope, a hint of others like herself still roaming these lands... she could potentially build a new herd.. and still achieve her goals. "Speech"

Art by Ulfeid3. Table from Ardent.

I'd rather be dead than live a lie
BURN THE WHITE FLAG!

Natha stretched, scrunching her shoulders up near her head as her spine curved down and then up in an arch. She was getting anxious to move on. Hooman constructions weren't her favorite things about these lands. She gazed lazily at Kamilah's scars and chuckled. "Ah, I see. Don't worry, you're far too big for me for one thing and for another I don't usually take to eating creatures that know the Common Tongue." It was a real nuisance when your food started to talk to you.

Natha shook her head. "Only a little of this in that. I've heard they were great featherless birds. They walked on two legs but committed some great evil against Mother Nature and so she cursed them, taking away their wings so that they couldn't fly. She removed their feathers so that they were naked and cold. Their beaks and talons so that they were vulnerable. She left their minds so that they might repent for their mistake. They never did and ended up devouring and destroying themselves." She gazed about at the structure they were in and shook her head. "No idea. Not for anything good, I'm sure of that." She stretched again.

"It was nice to meet you but this place is giving me the creeps. I think I'm ready to move on."

-exit?-