Days and nights had passed in bunches since the dark fae covered in her fathers and lovers blood had entered these lands. Change in time brought change within the wolf, for now strength took over fear as confidence overshadowed her doubt. Proud now of who she was and what she could do Chiara walked with a new air and spring to her step. Her savior and leader Esmerelda had started the fire within her and she silently vowed to never disappoint her. Every day the fae pushed her muscles to the burning sensation and her limbs till they shock beneath her tired body. Faster and stronger she had become from weeks of running and sparing against pack members. Chiara now had her own fighting style, but spars against the hunters of the pack seemed worthless to her, no she wanted to test her skills on an stronger opponent. Coming to the water lined caves today thoughts of sparing with a higher rank clouded her mind. So much in fact that now the warrior was deep in the caves, her pelt damp with sour water.

Scents of fish and dying slime filled her nose, making it recoil from the sour scent. What a retched place she had come, yet it was quiet and allowed her peace with her thoughts. Images clean and bright as yesterday still burned in her eyes of her last battle, solitude wouldn't remove them from her mind. In her ears as well Damon's last words to her, forever lost to the living word echoed clear, giving her strength and a reason to fight harder. Sighing nw from the thought of him Chiara's eyes blinked to accustom herself to the black obis. Wet caves walls and some some of moss could be seen on the drier spots, but no exit to this cave was seen. Curious if a exit was further ahead the fae cept in her current direction, careful to avoid stepping on dead fish.

The melodious sound of dripping was nearly making her mad as her paw steps echoed louder than her own thoughts. No scent of wolf could be detected, and from the looks of the cave she could tell why. Water marks went clean up to the ceiling, signaling to Chiara that the tide would kill any that entered. Making a mental note to exit in a timely fasion the black wolf continued forward until a opening in the ceiling provided light to a vast cave. Opening up to a large cavern Chiara suddenly felt very small as the walls loomed over her, towering like a giant. Shrinking back slightly at the sharp, dagger like rocks around her she walked over the a small puddle and lapped at a drink, hr mind still open to the idea of journeying further within.

The fae stared at the rising tides as she made her way through the caverns. Her legs were soaked in water, her nose assaulted with the stench of the dead. Once or twice, her paw had stepped down into the rotting body of a fish. Nyx couldn't deny how this area had both disgusted and interested her. Why so many fish were dead, she had yet to find out. When she had woken up from her den, dead creatures were the last things on her mind. She had wiggled from that small space within the ground to patrol the borders, marking them fresh with the Erenyx scent. The fae knew that the last thing her Alpha would want is to have his lands mistaken as ones of Helidos. Days had turned into weeks, and she had grown accustomed to how her days would play out every day. Today had been different though. Nyx couldn't help but follow the dark figure of the wolf, causing her to come upon this deadly and interesting place. The dark fae hadn't left her sight, though she had been trailing her for a while. Her dark figure disappearing into the mouth of a cavern caused Nyx to pause and give the tide a wary glance. It would rise soon and most undoubtedly block her way from leaving unless she left very soon. Giving a trembling sigh, the snowy fae padded into the cavern after the dark fae.

Now in the dark abyss of a tunnel, she tried to focus on not stepping into anymore fish. The mush had sunk between her toes and made her very uncomfortable. Smells of sour and old water infiltrated her nose and nearly gave her reason to pause and wretch.  Her eyes had adjusted to the darkness as she tried to gather the other wolf's scent. Most of it had been washed out and covered by the stench, but there were faint traces within the air. There were areas so dark, she was sure something was keeping her sight from viewing within them. A sliver of light ahead caused her to pad faster, sloshing her paws in the filthy water. The figure of the other wolf had come into view, allowing her different colored eyes to examine slowly and carefully. She was suddenly in very shallow waters, though it still smelled terrible. Nyx made her way closer to the other wolf, clearing her throat as to not cause a startle as she made her way from the dark.

"Hello."

The scent of the rising tide wasn't the only scent that entered the fae's nose. Scenting Nyx before she announced herself allowed Chiara to formulate a plan in case things turned bad. Flicking her ears in Nyx's direction a smirk grew on her face as the scent of Erenyx filled the cavern. Knowing now a pack wolf joined her calmed her uneasiness, but she still was on alert. "Hello yourself, don't think I've that pleasure of meeting you before, who are you?" She questioned, though her voice rang out as more of a demand. Ignorant to Nyx's rank within the pack Chiara figured she was just another warrior, unimportant and undeserving of respect. Looking now to her the dark fae sized her up, unimpressed by what she saw. Dropping her gaze to the approaching water her eyes fluttered to the light above them. "Seems that is our new way out, I for one don't fancy drowning." She said, more to herself then her new companion.

Along the walls of the cavern were large rocks, slick with stale water. Perhaps the pair could shimmy up them and to the surface? Ignoring any future comments from Nyx Chiara walked over to a wall, looking up it and saw a shelf not too far up. Tracking it she saw it led half way up then led to a gap of about ten feet to another shelf that seemed to lead towards the hole. If she could get to the first shelf she could pull the younger fae up, they might have a chance then.

At first, she was wary of the fae's unfriendly attitude. "Elite Nyx, and you are?" Her tone had turned slightly less open as she looked at the dark fae, wondering who had peed in her breakfast. She quickly shook the behavior off, knowing full well that the anger couldn't be angered fully on her. The tunnel was beginning to flood with more water, alerting her that there was longer a safe way out. Nyx gave a deep sigh and looked at Chiara and then up to the hole in the roof. A deep sigh deflated her lungs, and she looked around. "Neither do I, so I guess we'll just have to work together now won't we?" She said it in a matter-of-fact tone, not being snotty or taking advantage of her ranking. Nyx's paws had grown heavy and water-logged, as she tried to think of a way out. The shelves along the walls caught her eyes first, alerting her that they could gradually gain higher ground. Looking at Chiara, she gave a slight nod. "Any suggestions?"

So she was an Elite now? This made things all the more interesting, especially seeing how she was just wishing for a stronger opponent to train with. Knowing now was not the time for sparring as the water continued to rise Chiara blinked at Nyx then looked to the shelf above her. "I have one, if we can get up there and jump to that second shelf there might be a way to the surface." Looking up she saw the water line only went up a bit past the second shelf, giving them a chance if they got stuck there. "Names Chiara by the way, Warrior Chiara." She said, her voice equally as indifferent.

Getting closer to the shelf the fae reared up on her hind legs to see the distance to it. She could nearly reach a paw hold, but she needed an extra foot. "Boost me up and I'll heave you up as well." She said, her voice rushed as more water flowed into the cavern. "Once there we can jump to the second shelf and find a ay from there, its worth a try."

With the water steadily rising, Nyx knew they were hard pressed for time. She walked over to the rocky walls and put a paw to test. The surface was slippery, but it had enough traction. They would be able to climb if the rock got less slippery the farther they went up. Nyx flicked her ears back to listen to the one named Chiara, nodding along to her words. "It's a long shot, but it might just work." Nyx padded to Chiara, pushing her body beneath the fae's back legs and pushing up. For a moment, her mouth and nose were dunked into the water. She coughed once and sputtered slightly as she pushed up, lifting Chiara with her shoulders. Turning her head, the fae both heard and saw the rush of water coming from where they had entered. She gave a final push and that would most likely heft the darker female onto the shelf before rearing up on her hind legs. Her claws dug into the rock as she tried to lift herself up more. Nyx looked up at Chiara, hoisting her scruff higher for the other female to grab. "Pull my scruff, and I will help by climbing up as well." She curled her tail, trying to keep the snowy fur from being drenched in the sour water. Nyx could now see more dead fish floating within the water. Something touched against her back leg, but she refused to look for the sake of not getting sick. Nyx pushed on her paws further, trying to lift herself further. Her claws slid lower slowly, but her paws stayed firm.

Chiara nodded her head and reared up, stretching herself to reach the ledge. Behind her she could feel Nyx push her up, lifting her to the eldge with a few scrambles. Now above the Elite Chiara reached down and grabbed Nyx's scruff, careful not to bite too hard. Pushing against her front feet and using her core muscles the Warrior lifted Nyx up with mild ease. Now the pair were crowded at her ledge, but Chiara saw a narrow path that lead higher up. "This way," she said as she bounded forward, walking along the path which led above. Following the path soon the pair reached the gap that led to the ledge above. Looking up Chiara could see that the second ledge led up to the large hole in the ceiling, perhaps that was the way out?

Looking back to see if Nyx was keeping up the Warrior motioned to the gap in front of them. It was about twenty feet wide, a challenge of a jump even without these conditions. Confident in her abilities Chiara coiled her muscles while backing up a few feet then took off and jumped. Nearly scraping her back on a rock above the fae's front feet landed first while her back ones nearly slipped off the ledge. A few bad steps and the Warrior pulled herself up, panting from her effort. "It's a bit long, but its doable just watch out for that rock up there." She yelped back at Nyx, motioning to the high rock.

As Chiara held onto her scruff, Nyx pushed her paws against the slippery stone. For a moment she found traction and lunged her body up as the other fae pulled. Her short claws dug in and her muscles heaved her up onto the stone. Looking up, she found herself looking at the dark fur of Chiara. Nyx quickly angled her head away, seeing the jump before her as her ears slightly pinned backwards. Her different colored eyes looked to the warrior and watched as Chiara leaped across the large space. Nyx quickly stepped after the other fae, bunching her muscles and pushing off. Like Chiara had said, Nyx was careful as to not hit any other stone besides where she wanted to land. The wolf’s ears were pinned to her head as her body stretched, looking at where she wanted to land. Her front paws hit the space she had been watching, she her back paws scrambled to find holds. When she was stable, Nyx looked to her companion and then to the rock. It seemed less slippery to her as they climbed higher. Nyx moved a paw across the ground and it skidded along semi-dry stone. Nodding once, she looked to Chiara. “Alright, lead the way.”

Looking back to Nyx Chiara simply nodded before going forward again. The path in front led upwards in a swift incline. Peering down below them the Warrior could see more water rising, putting the pressure on the pair. Searching now almost frantically Chiara saw the small sun hole above and a rock close enough to leap to it. Not even looking back at nyx the fae scrambled up the rock and lept at the hole. Her front paws clungs to the ragged edge, her hind swinging in mid air. Now she was stuck and dangerously close to falling below. Wild eyed Chiara swung her hind end back and forth till she flipped herself out of the hole and on to land above.

Looking back down she barked to Nyx, "Jump!" A curt request with a demanding tone to it as danger pressed forward. Pleading with her eyes for the Elite to jump Chiara stepped back to give her room in case she needed help getting up.

Nyx didn't want to look down, didn't want to see the water rising rapidly like she feared. The situation wasn't good from the start and how could she be so mindless? The fae was alerted when Chiara jumped for a small hole in the top of the cavern. It was very close, and Nyx's stomach clenched in fear that the darker fae would fall. As soon as she saw the other female was okay, Nyx began to move faster and prepare herself to jump as well. By now, the water was just touching her paws. It wasn't a pleasant feeling, but one she feared quite largely. Nyx's heart began to pound in her chest and she bunched her muscles beneath of her. The minute Chiara yelled, the white fae launched herself in the air and stretched to reach the opening. Her front paws found crumbling ground, but she scrambled for a solid hold. Nyx's back claws were digging into the stone and trying to heft herself up. Stretching her front paws more, she finally found solid ground and began to slowly pull herself up. She kicked off with her back legs and threw herself forwards just as the water rose enough to touch the tip of her tail. Fully out of the cavern, she fell onto her side and looked around. "Well, that was fun."