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Malodore reached down and touched one of the roots, digging its claws into the bark just enough to feel the living wood. The constant wagging of Shehk's tail was infectious - emotionally, if not literally. "So people enter these catacombs to seek the wonders of the living, rather than the dead... it has a certain poetic ring to it, don't you think?"

It was a bit difficult for the plague doctor to pick its way over the ever-encroaching roots, though; it flattened its wings as best it could and curled its tail up. Even it could now detect the scent of green and growing things, water that was not stagnant but flowing, and the light was becoming a bit brighter with every foot gained.

"Let us hope this leads to a good entrance, and not merely an impassable crack..."

Shehk kind of wanted to bury her face into the grasses and chew on them for some reason. There was something about really fresh greenery that got her like that. She sniffed along the roots of the wall curiously, before she continued to cautiously lead the way forward.

"There's too much fresh air running through here to not lead to a wide enough opening for us to get through." she insisted - she put a lot of trust into her nose, after all.

As they progressed on, the walls seemed to just be roots, rather than any actual stone - likely because the forest had grown a bit wild and crumbled them all away, beginning to widen the path the trio walked down in their curious venture.

Shehk had a very valid point there.

Jericho had to watch his step, not wanting to accidentally trip over the roots that were all over the ground at this point. It was an amazing thing, but also a bit of a trip hazard at the moment. When he heard Malodore's question, he paused to listen.

"I think you may be right! It doesn't sound like a small one either. The area up ahead must open up to an even bigger space."

"Ah-" As the light cleared, Malodore walked faster, reaching up one claw to trail through the leaves above. The ceiling stretched away, higher and higher though never quite vanishing - and then it was in a vast cavern, not immensely wide but very tall. Ancient, gnarled trees stretched upwards, branches curling against the far-away ceiling and intermingling with stalactites high above. The light seemed to come from a few large cracks and holes, filtering down in rays.

And, coming out from one wall of the cavern, there was a tumbling waterfall. Not terribly large, not much more than a vigorous creek, but it was still beautiful to behold. The scent of greenery, flowing water, and the occasional flower permeated the air.

"... It is as I imagined," Malodore said, voice quiet with awe.

Shehk took a moment to take her shoes off, her stockings following right after as she stuffed each one into its respective shoe and left them settled on a nearby rock before she went splashing into the small body of water, disrupting the fish and sending them scuttling away. The pricolici made a small squeaking noise as she half lifted her feet out of the water, shaking them off.

"It's cold!" she noted. It was probably to be expected, given the underground nature of it, but sometimes the obvious had to be stated.

There was a small look in her eyes as she turned to look back at her companions again. Devious, perhaps plotting. She was up to something, and after a few more steps she suddenly moved to splash the pair, grinning as she skittered away playfully.

The water really was cold as it suddenly splashed the rather warm dragon. It made him jump from shock as a result. As Shehk hurried on away, he eyed her before shooting a glance towards Malodore.

"Oh rea-"

Splash.

"I may be a fire breathing dragon but you do not want to get into a water fight with me!" he boasted before tossing aside a part of his cloak. He had a secret weapon called a giant a** wing. The very same wing that he used to scoop into the water to basically make a little wave towards the two undead.

Jericho's massive wing-powered wave knocked Malodore right off its hooves; it fell back onto the stream bank with a surprised sound. For a moment it stayed there unmoving, water dripping from its hat. Yes, plague doctor clothing was largely waterproof - but it was meant to deal with things like blood spurts. Not massive waves.

"I am not so waterproof as I thought," it said, after a long pause. And then it started to laugh - an actual, genuine laugh, the first time it had done so in a long, long time.