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Tiahs POV
We've been traveling all day well actually, it's been three days. Even though Nico has been doing all of the walking for me I'm still dead tired.
At about noon Scott said we were back into regularly traveled territory and he said we would soon be hitting his favorite base. I'm starting to realize their soon is very far from mine.
The sound of rushing water started a while ago but i still haven't seen a river and it's starting to get dark. Reds and oranges shine down through the leaves.
There was a small shuffle up at the front of the group, Amelia was putting all the bags that were strapped to her Nerix on Avas Nerix. The rest of the group looked just as confused as I did and turned around to ask a question only to see Scott frantically shushing me and pointing back toward the front.
I snapped my mouth shut and turned back around to see Ava standing on the back of her Nerix, Jessabelle i think, a bow drawn and pointed off into the distance at something i couldn't see in the dimming light. Amelia was sitting on her Nerix in a ready position knees bent and holding herself up like shock absorbers, her Nerix knew what was coming to he had his neck crouched down and was creeping instead of walking like the rest of the Nerix were. Ava took her time aiming, the sunset glinting off the point of her arrow, she sucked in a deep breath and released the arrow.
The second the arrow flew above Amelia she and her Nerix were gone in a blur of cream and taupe. You could hear the hooves of the Nerix pounding the ground in the distance just above the sound of roaring water.
"Is she gonna bring it back or is she gonna deal with it out here and bring us the rewards later?"
Scott's question rang out against the silence of the group.
"She gonna take care of it out there, had a good pelt so i went for the head, pretty sure i went right through the eyes actually"
Ava packed up her bow and transferred two of the bags that were now clipped to her saddle over to Mae's saddle.
"What was it i couldn't see it"
"A Naepa, had amazing coloring i pointed it out and Amelia offered to rewrap my knife handles if i hit it so she must have an idea for the pelt"
"Probably she always has good ideas when it comes to pelts. What do you think i would have to do to have my knife handles rewrapped i need them redone and i don't feel like doing it."
"Just ask her i don't know usually she just wants you to ask"
"Fair point"
The Nerix sauntered on at a slower pace they were normally rested about now but we were still walking.
The roaring sound of the water was about defining at this point i still had no clue where it was coming from. Ava took a sharp turn at the front of the group and that's when i realized we were at the source of the water. Instead of trees to I was greeted by open water and sand, there was rock and a large waterfall pouring down into the lake that spanned in front of us a house-like structure was seemingly molded into the side of the rock wall that raised up out of the ground hundreds of feet into the sky. On the far side of the roof where the waterfall was closest, you could see the roof glint with water. Ava and her Nerix walked toward the house. The path to the house had been carved into the rock and arched only a couple of inches over the Nerix horns.
The house had a large circular door on the side that the pathway led to.
Ava jumped off her Nerix, narrowly avoiding the edge of the pathway and what looked like a cold plunge. Unlocking the door that i only now realize is oversized.
The Nerix knew the drill and entered the door ducking under the doorway to avoid snagging their horns on the doorframe which didn't allow them clearance. The Nerix sauntered inside the house and turned to the left where the house met the rock and ducked under the archway that was present instead of a wall.
Inside the rock was carved out with what looked like a scoop or a spoon and the room was incredibly tall, about as big as the tree fort that they had stayed in days previous. To the right side of the cavern, where the Nerix were taking them, was another stable much like the one that was seen previously in the last cave. To the left were smaller house structures much like the one they had entered just a moment ago all molded into the wall; there were six in total. Three on the bottom and three on top accessible by a set of stairs that lead to a deck-like structure that crosses in front of the three huts. There was more on the back of the cave but it was impossible to make out even with the sunset staining the room as it bleeds through the many windows in the entrance.
3rd POV
The Nerix trotted right over to their assigned stables and put themselves up for the night. The riders slipped off their saddles and were directed over to an unseen section of the cave where a small open area in the rock led to a smaller room filled with chairs and a fire pit. Scott started a fire well Ava removed the Nerix saddles, with the backpacks and supplies still attached, and hung them vertically outside of the proper Nerix stalls. Walking back over to the group Ava watched the fire blast to life as Scott managed to get the kindling to burn.
"Scott you mentioned this was your favorite camp, why"
The question came from the back corner of the cave but it was difficult to see who had asked in the low light.
"Well my friend, the reason is the showers. Weird thing to be excited about I know but I'd rather have a proper shower than have to bathe in a river or stream or worse have to go without one because of the desert"
"Fair point"
"Actually speaking of which"
Ava's sentence tapered out as she opened one of the cabinets built into the left-hand side of the fireplace room; she pulled out three towels and shut the cabinet turning back to the group.
"There are three who going first?"
There wasn't much arguing about who was gonna shower first, especially after they were told the showers were only cold due to the water in the lake above being too deep to warm and the sun is set at this point.
Tiah, Kaily, and Mae were first. Ava handed each a towel and directed them to grab a change of clothes from their bags.
Once the group returned Ava led them to a door in the rock to the right of the stables where the stables had a strange empty spot instead of touching the rock wall.
Behind the door the glowing flowers made a comeback, instead of the rose-like flowers, these ones hung upside down and had a heart shape to them. These flowers emitted a soft pink light instead of yellow like the previous flowers and were much smaller yet grew with many flowers per stem so the light level was consistent. Teal glowing moss grew along the walls and ceiling supporting the flowers and lighting up the hallway. Ava led them back into the hall. At the end of the hallway, there was another door and a left turn with two more doors all lit up with flowers and moss. The air was humid like water spray was in the air. Each person picked a room and entered, Ava left them to shower. The rooms were of a mid-size larger than expected but not too large; round but not like a semi-sphere it was a cylinder with a flat ceiling. Starting to the right of the door moss grew along the walls and the ceiling with flowers on the walls and the floor right next to the wall. There was a curved-off area in the back left of the room where there was no moss or flowers. It had a wooden curved rod going along the ceiling and a cloth hanging from the rod and a small inch tall ridge on the floor that curved along with the back of the room before disappearing into a small hole in the wall.
A thick patch of moss about a foot wide followed the ridge around the shower acting as a bath mat. To the left of the door the moss, and flowers continued but in small patches just enough to light up the area. There was a wooden bench and a few hooks one right next to the shower probably for easy towel access on the wall.
The bench had a small circular bowl fused into the bench which was odd. The shower head was simply a hole in the ceiling that was plugged with a ball of the glowning moss but leaked in a steady drip. Once you pulled the moss ball out the water came out in a steady stream and it felt like it was raining due to the large "showerhead".
Maes POV
The shower wasn't the most pleasant thing due to the cold water, but the wonderfully scented shampoo and other bathroom products that Ava had wrapped in our towels made up for it.
The small hand sculpted bottles were adorable and the glowing moss floor mat outside of the shower was a nice touch. The hanger right outside the shower where I hung my towel was the best part though. Not sure if that was intended for that purpose but it's worth using it like that.
Dressing and then walking back through the hall and over to the fire room to hopefully remove the chill that has settled into my bones I rubbed at my arms in an attempt to warm myself.
Settling down in front of the fire I watched Taylor and Ava leave for the showers.
Sebastian was sitting toward the back of the room curled up in a blanket cocoon well he waited to shower. The other two girls in the room sat in front of the fire trying to thaw themselves out from the cold shower.
Scott could be seen Walking around the fire room pulling what seemed to be cooking supplies out of the cupboards that were placed occasionally around the room. He would occasionally leave to check and peek out the windows in the house structure despite it being pitch black at this point.
3rd POV
Soon the girls finished showering and Ava took Scott's job. She set up a large pot holder-looking structure around the firepit and placed a piece of stone over it. The stone had a circle cut in the middle where Ava placed a pot down into the stone.
Ava got up and walked over to the windows peeking out into the darkness. She hovered for a second before nodding to herself and walked over to the stables. She found her saddle and reached into one of the three bags hooked to it. She pulled out a large bag, walked back over to the firepit, and dumped a portion of the contents out onto a part of the stone before spreading them out to cover half of it. It turned out they were Nuts and acorns that she was roasting for on the go tomorrow. She then grabbed the pot out of the center and walked back to the shower rooms. She checked the first door and saw the curtain at the end of the short hallway closed so she moved to the second Scott often moved to the last shower so this one was open. She filled the pot by only opening a small hole for the water to trickle into the pot and quickly scampered back to the fireplace.
Ava plopped the pot back into the center circle and grabbed the tongs Scott had pulled out of the cupboard previously. She rolled around the Nuts and acorns checking to see if the stone had heated up. Ava picked up an acorn with the tongs and scrutinized it before cautiously tapping the stone. Apparently, it wasn't hot yet as she finished shuffling the food with her hands. Ava dropped some spices and herbs into the pot right as Scott and Sebastian came back from the showers.
The water bloomed a beautiful golden yellow color as the herbs simmered in the pot. Scott grabbed a spoon from the cupboard and stirred the water simmering in the pot. Scooping out the excess herbs once the water stopped changing and deposited them on a cloth that he had produced. Ava watched and continued to flip, spin, and roll the acorns and nuts to toast them evenly. When Scott was done he tapped the spoon on the edge of the pot before laying the spoon over the pot and walking over to the windows in the hut for the thousandth time. This time however when he peaked out the window he looked out for much longer before opening the oversized door.