[Comm] Catching a break

As the wind rustled through the forest, brushing past crystalline formations and waking woodland creatures as it rushed through the foliage, Zin was awaiting the breeze of fresh air with anticipation and a content smile on her face. Closing her eyes as wind met fur she enjoyed the sun on her face for a moment longer before she tossed a glance over her shoulder to find a familiar face lounging behind her, the dark coat of Obsidian shone in the sun, colorful spots in cyan and pink adored his pelt and the bright jade green cracked markings, looked stunning as ever, their eyes locked for a moment, both of them matching each others smile.

The two of them had decided to undertake their purity trials together, being midway joined by the usual quiet Umendo, a tyrian with a deep green coat that gradiented into a bright apple green at the wingtips and tail tip- having passed the gates of the silver province as well as Nepte's Caverns, with them now finally exploring the forest of Ebrus which marked the halfway point of their journey with only the salt flats and then the white city of Hoius being their goal.

“Look at this place, Obsidian,” she said, her voice tinged with wonder. “I can never get enough of Vitalus, to think that a place as magical as this is our home- ” she stopped briefly, practically radiating happiness, "I'm glad that we are both here together today." The dark coated Puller pushed himself off of the cool grass he had been resting on and walked up to Zin who in comparison to him looked tiny thanks to their differing height. Umendo was taking care of carrying the provisions and gear of the group, they didn't mind and had volunteered themself to do so. After all, traversing the forest of Ebrus by flying over it wasn't in the two vayrons interest and she too, wanted to see what this forest had to offer. Seeing as her wings weren't needed for this part of the journey she also didn't need to worry about making sure that she didn't struggle to take off with all this extra weight.

Obsidian nodded, standing next to Zin surveying the landscape ahead, whilst Umendo followed suit and quietly inspected the foliage around them. The forest looked as if it had been painted, vines that pulsed with an otherworldly glow creeped across old oak trees with the odd mythical creature allowing the reoseans to catch a glimpse of it before hurrying off.

“It’s beautiful,” he agreed, his tone softer than usual as he glanced at Zin.

Zin laughed, a sound that seemed to harmonize with the magic humming in the air, she was giddy with excitement, and her excitement was contagious. “Let’s make haste then- I wouldn't want to miss what Vitalus has in store for us.” As Zin dashed off into the verdant forest beckoning to explore its secrets, it didn't need to be mentioned that Obsidian was right behind Zin, he too was excited for their Journey into the deeper parts of Vitalus. Sure- thanks to business the two of them had been around the continent, though their work saw them stick to the big cities- staying within city walls.

Heading out to explore the unkempt wilderness was not only exhilarating, but also allowed a nice break from the all encompassing work that being a successful multi business owner brought with it. Thanks to employees he knew he could count on and a very well managed time schedule trips like this were possible more often than one might think.

Umendo followed though their bulkier frame meant that they struggled to snake through the trees as effortlessly as the two vayrons did, nethertheless their keen eyesight and at times hearing allowed them to keep up with Zin and Obsidian.

Following after Zin, Obsidian stayed alert, keeping a keen eye on the white and beige colored chaser, the larger cyan colored spot markings on her pelt helped her stand out further amongst the foliage which was quite needed at times as Zin could be quite fast especially if something had caught her interest.

Pressing on further into the breathtaking glade that housed plants of all manner and sizes- all clearly touched by the arcane with some of them growing roots up, some defying the laws of gravity altogether, floating off of the ground or glowing on their own. It was evident that wild magic permeated everything in Vitalus and the forest of Ebrus was no exception. Obsidian didn't stop to more closely inspect the plants as catching up to Zin was at the forefront of their mind, yet Umendo quickly collected a handful of berries and other plants that looked edible at a glance as they hurried after the two.

"I think I see something!" yelled Zin over her shoulder, vanishing from Obsidian's stalwart gaze as she jumped through a bush ahead of her, in turn Obsidian made pace to close the distance between her and him. As he did he noticed it too- a shimmer came from past the brush in all hues of the rainbow- whilst the origin of this light could have been magical- something in Obsidian's experience told him that there was more to it.

Stepping into a glade Obsidian immediately felt it, somehow here- he felt light, weightless almost and the green lush forest seemed more vibrant in this glade too, yet that wasn't the most breathtaking thing, no. In the middle of the glade stood a tree, its shape unnatural almost as if someone had formed it from clay. The tree made a perfect half circle, with the other half of the circle being completed by gems that were gently floating in the air. As the crystals floated through the air they reflected the sunlight- casting colorful hues upon the surrounding forest.

Umendo caught up to the two vayrons, using their two clawed front arms to part the tree branches obscuring their view of the strange tree in the middle of the glade.

"It's beautiful," said Zin, marveling at the natural phenomenon in front of the three reoseans. "I've never seen something quite like this. Not in all of my years of travel. This seems intentional- almost handcrafted." spoke Obsidian returning to Zin's side where they took their seats.

The small chaser nodded, a paw beckoning Umendo closer as they wanted to quickly go through their supplies, without being able to take their eyes off of the light spectacle. Obsidian noticed and smiled, patiently waiting until Zin was able to pry herself away from the stunning spectacle in front of her. He had an inkling what she was planning to do and his theory proved fact.

"I think- this is the perfect spot for a break." said the small chaser, pulling out their rations from the backpacks secured to Umendos backs who asked the two vayrons a crucial question. "If we are planning to take a break now it might cut into our time that we need to prepare for the night. It might be smart to gather firewood right now so in case we haven't reached our goal for the day that we can go on for a bit longer, knowing that we are already set for firewood. I don't mind heading out and collecting it, if you set up something for me to eat when I'm back too."

"Good idea." spoke Obsidian, observing Zin who had returned to him with a bowl of berries, offering it to him as she sat down beside him. Tasks split, Umendo headed into the forest to gather firewood as the two remaining reoseans took a moment to themselves.

"Do you really think that it's time for a break already?" asked Obsidian, deliberately choosing to tease Zin as they didn't make the amount of progress on their journey that they typically chose to take a break after. He knew her reasoning very well without needing to ask, his intuition after countless hours spent at each other's side did after all never fail him.

"Well I..." she started only for the dark coated puller to interrupt her. "Don't worry, I think we should stay too. It is too pretty not to take in the sights." Zin playfully rolled her eyes at Obsidian, pushing the bowl of berries she had still held out to him firmly into his paws.

"Good then we can both agree to stay here a bit longer. I really want to commit this to memory." turning her glance to the circle formed by the tree and floating gems once again a small sigh escaped her as she allowed herself to fully lean on Obsidian.

As she did the puller turned to look at her and smiled. “I’m glad I’m experiencing it with you.” They spoke sincerely.

She looked back at him, her expression softening. “Always, Sid.”