Redhawk Caldera Misty mountain hop

What Somnia found is Peridot, a gem/jewel thing that is often found around volcanoes as they are formed in the mantel of the earth and are brought up when the molten rock, lava, magma, etc. rise. As this is a caldera, chances are most of the tunnels would be formed from lava when it erupted when the lava found other spaces besides the top of the volcano and forced its way through. If the way I typed that makes sense. :P

Elwood agreed with turning around. It was, for Somnia at least, not as easy as it seemed. It probably had something to do with the fact that she tried to turn around right then and there, which didn't have enough space for her to do so. After figuring out that it would not work, which was about three tries, Somnia followed Elwood's lead, backing up to where there was enough room.

That settled, they made their way out uneventfully. Once they got out of the tunnel, Somnia darted around Elwood, to a spot where the most light shined in from outside. She didn't even bother to get out of the cavern before checking the object out. It was a gem-like thing that was a light-green color. Her tail wagged happily at her finding while she let Elwood check it out.

Oooh, neat! That does make sense! :)

They reached the entrance of the cavern and stopped, pausing within its confines before stepping out into the sunlight. Here, there was enough room for them to stand side by side, and the darkness had receded so that they could check out Somnia's treasure. She dropped it at their feet, looking quite pleased with herself, and Elwood lowered his snout to get a closer look.

It was green in color, with many facets that made it reflect the light and sparkle enticingly. He touched the tip of his nose to it, feeling that it was hard and had some sharp edges. "It's pretty," he said, admiring its bright hue, "but what do you think it is? Think it has something to do with the old volcano?" It was a shot in the dark -- literally -- but Elwood used his powers of deduction to make the guess. They did live in and around a dormant volcano, after all.

It was pretty. "It could be... Can't rocks and stuff form from lava? Maybe it's old lava?" Somnia was somewhere along the right lines, though the main point was off. It had been made from the pressure of the earth's mantle, not the lava. That lava had only helped get it to the surface.

Then, a few more ideas stuck in her mind. "What should we do with it?" Then, before Elwood could answer, "What if there were more in the tunnel along the walls and we couldn't see them?" Then, Somnia's mind zipping back to the first subject. "Ooh! Since Peregrine and Fox want to have children, what if we give it to them as a gift if Fox ever gives birth to pups?"

Since this thread is dated to before Fox went into heat. :/

We can start to wrap this one up, if you want! It was fun, and I like the idea of them giving the peridot to Peregrine and Fox. :)

"Sounds right to me," Elwood replied with a laugh. He really had no clue, so her guess was as good as his. It made sense, and he wondered if there were other gems similar to this one inside the mountain. They would have to have another exploration session in the near future; maybe they could start a mining business!

Somnia then had the exact same thought as he did, contemplating whether or not there were more pretty rocks hidden within the tunnels. "I bet there are tons more in there," he agreed, then his ears perked at her next suggestion. "That's a great idea! I think they would really appreciate the gift," he said. It wouldn't be a particularly useful present, but he thought that they would enjoy having a little something to decorate their den -- and at the very least, maybe the pups could play with it.

Okay, and thanks! This could be my last post. I'm doubting that I'll do it tonight, but in the near future I'll have a thread where Somnia seeks Elwood out so that she can apologize for her actions when she was delirious from hypothermia. :)

"We'll have to have another adventure in there sometime soon then. Maybe we could even get Ashton to lend us some of his leaves with fireflies stuck to them, so that we could see if there's more in the walls?" Somnia suggested. Her tail wagged with the excitement of possibly finding more.

"Think I'm gonna scadaddle now, those caches won't fill themselves. I'll leave this in your possession for now." Somnia said. She pushed her snout into Elwood's shoulder as a friendly goodbye gesture before entering the outside world. She did, however, leave the Peridot jewel at Elwood's feet.

Sounds good! :)

The idea of borrowing Ashton's "night lights" was something that Elwood hadn't thought of, but that he instantly approved of. It would allow them to delve deeper into the mountain's belly and see what kind of treasures they could unearth. In the next moment, Somnia excused herself, though she left her prize with him. He would keep it safe until it was time to present it to Fox and Peregrine.

"Sounds good -- just come find me whenever you're ready for some more spelunking," he called after her, his tail waving a farewell. He then picked up the green gem, holding it gingerly between his teeth, and trotted down the slope towards his den.