Serek stepped through the swamp, leaping over as many puddles and as much mud as he could, but, inevitably, his pelt became covered in muck. He wondered if he would ever get used to the feeling of wet and cold creeping into his skin. Probably not, but at least he could enjoy the sights along the way.

Because, to him, Cetus was beautiful. To be fair, he had only really explored Canis before and this was a drastic change. Trees of firm wood reaching to the cieling, mist hanging low and glistening off the lights. Colorful fungus dotting the ground, all kinds of thriving swamp life growing on the surface and below the murky water. He loved it and he wondered if he would ever get bored of searching through the mist for something new to look at.

For now, though, he was focused on one thing - the tree the towered above the rest, gigantic, with aged, twisted bark. Dragon had said that there were secrets there, secrets that needed to be unraveled. Serek furrowed his brow and wondered what these secrets were. Was it no just a tree?

But as he approached, he realized that it was, in fact, not just a tree. He shivered as he gazed upon its roots and base, looking up to its sprawling branches. There was something about this tree that put him on edge. Something either within its cored or dancing upon its skin. Either way, there was something to be found here. He was sure of it.

He turned, wondering if the snake was still following him. "Uh, hey, are you still there? What do you think we should do?" He turned back to the tree, thinking deeply. "Dragon said there was something to be found here. But how do we find it? It's just a tree."

"I'm screaming submission"
I don't know if I am dying or living

tags: @Sizzle
notes:

Sizzle had, admittedly, fallen behind.

Of course, that was rather a given. She was a snake, made for slithering through the trees, looping around branches. Not slogging her way through a swamp, having to slither through mud and water. Each puddle piled more mud onto her scales, leaving her looking rather like a muddy vine, instead of a striking snake.

Thankfully, she could still hear Serek up ahead, the hybrid making a fair amount of noise as he leaped over puddles. So she didn't worry about getting lost, simply struggling her way to him.

To her relief, he came to a stop, and she slithered up behind him, clambering onto a rotting log. Rising up onto her coils, she shook herself off, attempting to get the mud off of her. "I am still here," she hissed when he asked, raising up to look at the tree.

Her forked tongue darted out, and she fought the urge to shiver. Something about this tree wasn't normal. It sent shivers running through her bones, and she fought the urge to run - well, slither - away. "Perhaps I could try to climb it? Or maybe we should seek out a Gembound who can see the past."

@Serek

Serek pawed at the ground nervously, wondering if he had offended the young snake. "S-sorry, I didn't mean to be rude. I...just thought-" But his voice was so quiet she probably didn't even hear and she continued speaking. He pushed it away, but felt an air of awkwardness around him. Maybe he was just imagining it.

He looked up with the snake and his heart dropped to his stomach. It was so big. Would she be able to get up there? He opened his mouth to voice his concerns but then immediately snapped it shut. He'd just end up insulting her again. He'd have to have faith in her. He took a deep, silent breath to steady his voice. "Yeah, maybe there's something up in the branches. I would go, but you're probably a better climber then me." It hurt a little to admit it, but he didn't want to make the snake dislike him any more. He had already made a bad first impression.

He thought about, then, what he could do. Could he try and get a vision from the tree? Maybe. He was, after all, the son of the Bonecaster. Perhaps it was in his blood to See. Perhaps he should try. "Mmm, let me try. Maybe I can do something..."

He stepped forward towards the tree and tried to summon magic. What kind of magic he was pulling up, he didn't know, only that there was something there. Not really knowing what else to do, he awkwardly bumped his nose against the tree stump, waiting for something to happen. Not that anything would happen. The magic that came up was simply magic and not a spell.

"I'm screaming submission"
I don't know if I am dying or living

tags: @Sizzle
notes: