✧☽∘₊ 𝔼𝕟𝕥𝕖𝕣, 𝕗𝕣𝕚𝕖𝕟𝕕 ₊∘ ☾✧

[aberrant.]

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𝕊𝕠𝕗𝕥, 𝕔𝕠𝕠𝕝 𝕝𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕕𝕒𝕡𝕡𝕝𝕖𝕤 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕗𝕠𝕣𝕖𝕤𝕥 𝕗𝕝𝕠𝕠𝕣 through the quaking leaves of the forest canopy outstretched above you, nestled quaintly between dominating mountains. Ferns and brambles brush your legs, moss cushioning each step, as you slowly make your way through the wood. Skin damp with the gentle fog that surrounds you, filling out your lungs with each careful, quiet breath. You listen. The thrum of a downpour in the distance chases you. Lightning fills the sky of your peripheral vision. A storm is coming.

A quick look around reveals no respite from the oncoming thundershower. Your steps quicken with an imperiled vigor, eyes scanning the horizon streaked by towering trees. There-- not 50 yards ahead, the unmistakable blot of darkness breaking the rolling silhouette of the forest: 𝔸 𝕔𝕒𝕧𝕖.

The promise of shelter fuels your gait as the first raindrops fall upon you through the leaves above. As you grow nearer to the cave, you notice the faintest illumination emanating from deep within the bowels of the abyss. It beckons you to enter.

𝔼𝕟𝕥𝕖𝕣

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[aberrant.]

𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕤𝕙𝕒𝕕𝕠𝕨𝕤 𝕠𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕔𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕖𝕟𝕘𝕦𝕝𝕗 𝕪𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝕗𝕚𝕘𝕦𝕣𝕖 as you bid the rainy forest behind you goodbye. The clammy, stale air of your refuge was somehow welcoming as you tread ever deeper, steps quietly echoing, harmonizing with the whispers of dripping stalactite. The large mouth of the cave soon gave way to two, parting throats.

To your left you are teased with the pale-green
light that had initially drew you inwards toward the
belly of the cave. The ground before you appears
well-trodden, and scrapes carved into the other-
wise smooth rock hint at clawed-toed culprits.

ℙ𝕣𝕠𝕔𝕖𝕖𝕕 𝕝𝕖𝕗𝕥

On your right, the ceiling drops drastically and
shimmering, white mineral build up on the walls
decorate the pathway, reflecting the illumination
from the left like dazzling stars. Stalagmites rise
from the earth like snarling teeth.

ℙ𝕣𝕠𝕔𝕖𝕖𝕕 𝕣𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥

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[aberrant.]

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𝕐𝕠𝕦 𝕔𝕒𝕣𝕖𝕗𝕦𝕝𝕝𝕪 𝕨𝕖𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕪𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝕨𝕒𝕪 𝕓𝕖𝕥𝕨𝕖𝕖𝕟 𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕝𝕒𝕘𝕞𝕚𝕥𝕖𝕤,
palms that brace your weight along the walls becoming damp with
cold moisture. The breeze you felt from the outside world fades
with every furthering step. The daylight slowly wanes until only
the twinkling crystal build-up lining the cave walls remains lighting
your path. Eventually, narrow passage gives way to another large
chamber. The faux-night sky provides just enough light to see:
small tufts of grasses, sticks, or other nesting materials are finely
positioned on islands of pillowy flowstone between stalagmites.
Eggs of all different shapes, sizes, and colors are arranged before you.
𝕋𝕙𝕚𝕤 𝕚𝕤 𝕒 𝕕𝕣𝕒𝕘𝕠𝕟 𝕙𝕒𝕥𝕔𝕙𝕖𝕣𝕪

𝕐𝕠𝕦 𝕚𝕟𝕤𝕡𝕖𝕔𝕥 𝕖𝕒𝕔𝕙 𝕖𝕘𝕘, closely taking note of
each unique texture and color of shells. Each future-dragon
was at varying stages of development; Some seemed freshly
laid, others seem to already be cracking through their
nurturing sheath.

Not wanting to linger or be found loitering when a mother
dragon returns to check on her babies, you return to the
main chamber of the cave.

ℝ𝕖𝕥𝕦𝕣𝕟

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[aberrant.]

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𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕚𝕝𝕝𝕦𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟 𝕓𝕚𝕕𝕤 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕗𝕠𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨 and rewards you: Beautiful luminescent green crystals span the cave passageway, some spanning up the entire height of the ceiling. Your awe carries your forward, deeper into the bowels of the mysterious cave. You hear echoes of thunder-- no, not thunder... a roar, the outcry of dragons.
Curiosity captures you and you press on, now taking nervous glances at every potential turn. Following the path around a corner you see new light: trickles of blue, orange, yellow, and deeper green light are filtering in. Another corner reveals the colored lights come from different sources. The forked crossroads forces you into another decision.

𝔽𝕠𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕓𝕝𝕦𝕖 𝕝𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥

𝔽𝕠𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕠𝕣𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕖 𝕝𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥

𝔽𝕠𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕪𝕖𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨 𝕝𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥

𝔽𝕠𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕘𝕣𝕖𝕖𝕟 𝕝𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥

𝕋𝕦𝕣𝕟 𝔹𝕒𝕔𝕜

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[aberrant.]

𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕤𝕠𝕗𝕥 𝕓𝕝𝕦𝕖 𝕝𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕚𝕟𝕧𝕚𝕥𝕖𝕤 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕠𝕟𝕨𝕒𝕣𝕕
as the path grows ever so slightly hazy. Despite this,
the air feels fresh and cool, a welcome change from
the musty dankness behind you. It's not long until a
decision, already made, lay before you.
The tunnel forks. One path heads toward an upwards
incline, fog slowly tumbling down and dissipating
at your feet. The other path continues only feet ahead;
A cave-in stops it prematurely. Cracks of blue light
shine from between the rocks, and the ebb and flow
of water can be heard from behind the cave-in.

For now, this path will remain elusive. You take the left
fork and begin the ascending trek toward a destination
unknown.
You lose track of time, meandering up the path between
alternating stalagmites and stalactites. Soft drips echo
throughout the tunnel, increasing in frequency as the
air grows cold and thin, condensing humidity from the
air onto the cold stone and minerals surrounding you.
It's not long now until the white light grows brighter
and the air grows cooler. Just up ahead, you finally see
an opening.

The egress stand before you as wind kisses your cheeks. You are near the top of the mountain now, just barely above the low-laying cloudline. The cave tunnels gives way to a rocky plateau on the side of the mountain-face. Upon it, dragons brood and play, none yet catching scent of your presence.





Your awe is disturbed as you feel your body begin to shiver. You were not equipped to deal with the cold like these dragons. Without a thick hide of sturdy scales to keep the bite of cold air at bay, you have no choice but to return into the caves and descend once again.

ℝ𝕖𝕥𝕦𝕣𝕟

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[aberrant.]

𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕠𝕣𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕖 𝕝𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕝𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕤 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕕𝕠𝕨𝕟 𝕒 𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕖𝕡 𝕕𝕖𝕔𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕖,
deeper and deeper into the earth. The air grows stale as you
persist, its growing warmth a pleasant refuge from the cool air
of the forest feeding the cave's main chamber. The light enticing
you forward slowly, bit by bit, glows evermore intensely, fending
off the darkness behind you. It draws you in, like a warm
embrace.

You lose track of time, sweat now beading at your forehead,
until your path ends abruptly and gives way to a broad,
sweeping cavity. Intense heat radiates up from the bottom
of the pit, as you realize the source of the orange glowing
light, not 50 feet below you: spitting, sizzling lava.

Though this is not what holds your attention. Across the margins
of the cavity you see alcoves and recesses-- the homes of fierce,
fiery dragons.

Your eye-line moves upward and reveals a small daylight-blue hole in the domed-ceiling hundreds
of feet above you. You realize you are standing within the belly of an old volcano. Your stomach
drops as the gravity of this revelation sets in, and you turn back from where you came.

ℝ𝕖𝕥𝕦𝕣𝕟

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[aberrant.]

𝔸𝕟 𝕦𝕟𝕞𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕜𝕒𝕓𝕝𝕖 𝕙𝕖𝕒𝕥 𝕕𝕣𝕒𝕨𝕤 𝕪𝕠𝕦 𝕥𝕠𝕨𝕒𝕣𝕕 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕕𝕖𝕖𝕡 𝕘𝕠𝕝𝕕𝕖𝕟 𝕝𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥. The echoes of dripping stalactites fade into obscurity as you realize the cave is beginning to dry. You curiosity is piqued but is destined to remain unsatiated; Fallen rocks, covered with a thick layer of settled sandy-soil and dust, block your path. The pileup does not quite reach the ceiling, allowing the golden light to spill forth upon you from above. There is no way forward.

ℝ𝕖𝕥𝕦𝕣𝕟

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[aberrant.]

The green light continues to beckon you deeper into the caves. It is not long before signs of life begin to surround you: tufts of moss, the fluttering-by of a moth, the slow creep of vining foliage. The smell of damp soil fills the air as you press forward. You wonder if you have stumbled upon a second entrance to the cave system from the forest you came from when your path is divided in two. From the left you hear the soft howl of the wind swirling through the labyrinthine passageway. From the right, you feel a wave of warm, humid air.

.............ℙ𝕣𝕠𝕔𝕖𝕖𝕕 𝕝𝕖𝕗𝕥

ℙ𝕣𝕠𝕔𝕖𝕖𝕕 𝕣𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥.............

𝕋𝕦𝕣𝕟 𝔹𝕒𝕔𝕜

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[aberrant.]

𝕐𝕠𝕦 𝕗𝕠𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕡𝕒𝕤𝕤𝕒𝕘𝕖 𝕝𝕖𝕗𝕥, pursuing what you believed to be perhaps an exit for the cave. Though maybe not actively seeking an exit from this adventure, you reckon it would be wise to at least be aware of potential accidents, should you run into any less-than-good-tempered dragons whilst exploring their cave. Eyes wandering the environment around you, your foot slips and you catch yourself on a favorably placed stalagmite. Investigating this small mishap, you realize there was a small stream running through the cave-- just enough of a trickle to induce a sheer film of algal growth. You carry on, steps now placed with a conscious caution.

Soon enough the tunnel gives way to a large, forested grotto. This was
not an exit, but the sheltered abode of forest dragons who sought haven
from the wilds outside. Daylight, let in through an opening in the ceiling
above, spills into the cavern and is filtered through the leaves of trees,
now wholly blanketing you in soft green light. You realized the stream
beneath you originated from a small pond precisely below the window to
the outside world, fed by the rain from the storm that steered you below
the earth. Along the banks but safely out of reach from the showers,
dragons lounged.

The wind that once howled to you from deep within the cave now brought with it a misting of cold rainwater. Once again, the thunderstorms direct you back to the interior of the earth.

ℝ𝕖𝕥𝕦𝕣𝕟

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[aberrant.]

𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕡𝕒𝕥𝕙 𝕥𝕠 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕣𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕠𝕗𝕗𝕖𝕣𝕤 𝕒 𝕘𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕝𝕖 𝕕𝕖𝕤𝕔𝕖𝕟𝕥
deeper into the innards of the earth. Heated humidity
verging on stuffy rises to meet you on your route like
an uninviting admonition of what lay below.
Nevertheless, you advance, curiosity shepherding
you forward.

The decline soon levels out and unveils a lush
subterranean paradise: Towering trees are covered
with vining plants lunging upward for their piece of
the rays of sunlight let in from above by a smattering
of small openings in the ceiling above. The downpour
of the storm is made gentle through the filtering

awning of leaves above. There is hardly ground to
be seen through the thick mass of plant matter,
though spouts of warm steam spray upwards
from geothermal vents below.
Lurking in the shadows of the vivacious jungle
before you are dragons.

You linger at the margin of the jungle, eyes following the reptilian beasts in awe. It's not until sweat begins to bead on your forehead that you notice just how slick your skin is becoming, with sweat and condensed humidity. You retreat for the promise of cooler, crisp air from whence you came.

ℝ𝕖𝕥𝕦𝕣𝕟

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