Scarcely conscious, Moss didn't realize what was happening until the process was almost completely finished. By the time he woke up, he had turned from a stiff, ugly, clumsy pupa into a breathtaking, broad-winged, powerful Imago. He felt free and easy in his new skin. He could fly again!! Liberty felt wonderful. By this time he had almost completely recovered from the shock of the fall.
He looked up towards the top of the shaft. Could he climb the wall? Impossible. Could he fly up? Maybe, but he hadn't flown in so long that he'd almost forgot how. He walked over to the brink of the ledge and started flapping his wings to exercise and strengthen them.
(I wanna see what happens! It’s fine with me)
(I wanna see what happens too!)
Lepidoptera was genuinely surprised to find that he was standing in a cavern of considerable size. It was dark, the only light came in a thin sliver from the crack behind him, but his sensitive eyes adjusted quickly. The cavern was clearly natural, not dragon made, and filled with thick columm-like stalactites. Stalactites need water to form, there must be a stream somewhere nearby.
When he felt ready, Moss took a test glide around the circumference of the shaft. The first try was a bit shaky, but he did better the second. He decided to try to reach the top. He flew up, up, up.
(continuing from previous post) He thought, hoping the water wasn’t corrupted. He carefully wove between stalactites and stalagmites, gaping with awe at the massive structures. He followed the scent of water, but he didn’t hear any sounds of running streams. The path he followed began to narrow until it was quite tight. He could’ve sworn he was heading downwards, and he must’ve been, otherwise he would have come out of the other side of the cave by now. A breath of cool air stirred from ahead, and the walls surrounding him were visibly damp.
Eventually the top came closer and closer. And then- finally- he reached it. With a weary sigh he plopped down on the ground. Then he remembered he was still in extreme danger, so he got up and exited the cave as quickly as possible. He threw some logs over the opening to the cave and then headed for home. He vowed not to return again until his strength was completely restored.
Lepidoptera continued forward down the cave shaft, slick wet cave rock slowly growing rougher and…mushier. It took him a moment to process that he was walking on moss. He could make out a faint, ethereal light up ahead. He felt a pang of disappointment, light meant that he had reached the end of the cave. It was fun while it lasted. He thought. The narrow tunnel twisted suddenly, growing thinner until he thought he would no longer fit. He squeezed through the crack and dropped suddenly, falling several feet before splashing into freezing water. He screeched suddenly, splashing frantically as he tried to escape. Fortunately, he found purchase on dry land a few feet away. Shaking himself off, he sniffed suspiciously at the water, worried that it was corrupted. Oddly enough, it looked perfectly normal to him. At least, he didn’t feel diseased yet, so he turned his attention from the water to see where he had fallen.
