Welcome to Gaia! ::

Generally speaking, Mimsy's parents had not ever been especially insistent upon bring present for every single outing that she wanted to take. They both understood that her interests were occasionally something of a solitary sort, or that company would ruin whatever set of data she was trying to gather that day, so they had more general rules for her safety instead. These took plenty of factors into account, and she and her siblings were always allowed to present a case for why a limitation should be changed or removed.

She had learned of the strange bioluminescent specimens in the reservoir caves some time ago, but with the terrain, the darkness, and the general level of ease there was for a young girl to get lost (or worse), they were not something that she had been allowed to go and observe on her own. This led to requests lobbied to her mothers on a basis that was becoming more and more frequent as time went on, but the timing never seemed to work out, for one reason or another. It didn't bother her when they had to postpone the trips; she had plenty of other things that she could access to satisfy her seemingly boundless curiosities.

But this year was different. When summer rolled around, and her studies became more independent, she had once again made the request to take the trip out to the caves. This year, she noted, marked milestones of both growth and safety education that should allow her to venture into the caves on her own. And after some discussion, and agreements on times to check in, they accepted her proposal.

The caves didn't frighten her, nor did the darkness or possibility of becoming lost somewhere in the tunnels. None of it came from a place of overconfidence, of an ego out of control - it just was not part of her consideration whatsoever. She was here to study the strange larvae, and nothing else mattered all that much when compared to the subject of her focus. That didn't mean that she came unprepared, of course. That would be a senseless reason to impede or otherwise fail her field study. She was cautious with her descent with this in mind, taking things as slowly as her alotted time would allow, never once taking an unnecessary risk en route to her goal.

When she finally reached the likely destination, she held her breath as she turned off her light.

And there they were, more incredible than she had imagined them. There was so little information that she could find online, and witnessing them firsthand was unparalleled. She felt like she was an astrobiologist, making a discovery deep beneath the surface of some distant planet. Something new and alien, untouched and undiscovered.

Taking great care to avoid crushing any present members of the fascinating species, she brushed off the floor of rock beneath her and made a place to sit, waiting for her eyes to adjust to the dim light. There, so fully in her element, she removed her field journal and pencil and smiled into the darkness, ready to learn.