"The Lost!" Rose exclaimed. The witch cackled in agreement with Luciel's chuckle. The joke, in truth, wasn't particularly funny but Rose seemed to find absolutely [i]hilarious[/i]. "How funny! There is no need to be embarrassed Little Luciel. Hmmmm, I do like you, you're quite the cute one, aren't you?" Of course that wasn't really a question, more Rose's unsolicited observation. "And young Miss Gish... I suspect we'll be great friends. I can feel it." The witch tip toed slowly towards the fish-girl. "You'll find that I'm a very valuable friend to have. Allow me to give you a piece of advice, as a friend," The witch's face hovered closer to the girl as she squatted down to whisper in her ear so the others would not hear. Her previously chipper tone turned serious and her grin faded, "Stay away from Mr. Guttman. Definitely do not go somewhere alone with him. He is more dangerous then he appears. Tell Little Luciel as well, will you? Make sure Victor doesn't hear you, of course." Rose moved away, giving the girl a small wink as she turned towards Victor, who was ready to move on.

"Yes! We must blaze onward, and uncover our lost memories!" The witch said, extending her finger to point down the hall, her voice oozing with exaggerated gusto. The fangy grin had returned to her face. As she began to move down the hall Victor probed her for additional information, "Hmmm... well, I know a few landmarks and many legends, but I can tell you little of the path ahead. The halls are... well, they're tricky, to say the least. I've heard rumors that the halls path's have a tendency to change... roads disappear, places move, likely by the work of some magic... very powerful magic, no doubt. Of course it goes without saying that this is rumor, and rumors have a tendency of being exaggerated. In this case I think I must agree with Little Luciel, we only need to take the first step!" Rose trotted down one of the cavern's many offshoots with little reason evident to her choice. 

[hr]
The cavern proved to be a bad choice, or at least it seemed to be at first. The group pushed onward through it for what seemed to be several minutes, the cave slowly beginning to narrow inward until Rose had to stoop to continue. In truth she may have considered turning around, but she urged the group onward, the sound of cascading water promising something was ahead. A strange breeze flowed down the tunnel, an odd occurrence beneath the surface of the Earth to say the least. The air was cool and carried a strange scent, the smell of perfumes but also a hint of something else... rot? As the group pushed on Rose seemed to chatter ceaselessly, switching subject with little care for finishing her thought and saying few things that mattered and more things that were prone to annoy.

"You know, they say there's a road that connects many of the important places in these halls, The Bright Road, they call it. We need a team name, y'know? Something cool and catchy. Did you know root of mandrake is a purgative?" She continued speaking in this manner, caring little for the other's input, until the dark tunnel slowly began to widen again and the sound of water grew closer and the smell grew stronger, until suddenly the group emerged into a large cavern. Rose estimated it to be about a few miles to the opposite wall, where another cavern snaked towards destinations unknown. Far above at the top of the ceiling was a large hole, letting in sunlight and providing the cool breeze. However of far more interest was the strange lights display that played across the ceiling- points of light of just about every color imaginable rapidly sputtered in and out of existence rapidly, like multi-colored twinkling stars. Rose gazed up, taken in by the light show, but what lay below was of far more interest to the group.

They stood on a raised platform, able to overlook the floor of the cavern with a path ahead spiraling down towards it. The cavern looked more like a field then a cave- tall grass coated the floor, speckled with a large variety of flowers that came in many shapes and colors. What also dotted the field were strange looking scarecrows that were likely like nothing any of the group had seen before. In the distance they would've passed for humans but up close they were clearly anything but. Their skin was jet black, and they had no discernible eyes of nose. They possessed mouths, lined with a sharp row of fangs, matching the deadliness of their claws, which were long and ebony in color. They were muscular and lean, and stood with an oddly perfect posture. They were not moving in any discernible manner, not even breathing, standing perfectly straight with no indication that something was holding them up. There was also no indication that they were alive. 

In the center of the cavern was a small picturesque cottage which seemed to radiate a sense of peace. It looked like a very pleasant place to be, the light emanating from the windows promising warmth and comfort. To the right of it a waterfall came from a hole in the cavern's wall, water falling into a lake below. The water didn't seem to be going anywhere, but the lake was not filling. Overall the cavern was beautiful, the lights above creating a spectacular skyline which paired well with the field below. Sunlight filled the room, something that would likely be a rarity in the Endless Halls. There were only two things that detracted from the cavern's beauty- the strange scarecrows below, and the smell. It was pleasant, like lilac, but there was a stench beneath it, like rot and decay. The smell was strong and permeated the room.

"What a beautiful vista!" Rose exclaimed, deciding she would let someone else lead the way.