There were many places in this land that were unknown to the shadow mare. For someone tasked with keeping track of the comings and goings of the herds and information gathering in general, this seemed like a major flaw. It was one thing to hear her informants talk about a region, but without actually having been there herself it was difficult to truly understand the trials and difficulties they might face.

So, like the true wild child that she was the little mare took it upon herself to change her lack of knowledge. It had become stifling in the Throat lately anyway ever since the unicorns of the Basin had been driven out, and for someone like her who thrived in times of chaos, she found that she had to stir up some trouble herself in order to remain sane.

Perhaps the stinking, muddy, mosquito-infested marshlands hadn't been the smartest of destinations to pick, however. It had been one thing to fly over it, and a completely different experience wading through the greasy muck. Her ears were gone, hidden into the wad of thick coarse mane in a frown of disgust that was threatening to become permanent as she shuffled forward, sweating and panting in her efforts to keep a straight line. Getting lost would be no hard feat; already she had only the sun in the sky to navigate by, and sometimes not even that as vine-covered trees and tangled branches blocked the sky from view. It felt like she was walking under water, the humidity so high that it was all but impossible to breathe - and the dirt was everywhere, as were the insects. Hissing snakes, snapping turtles, hungry looking fish in the deep pools made the raven reluctant to set her hooves down at all, but she had to. There was no room to spread her wings here, she was a trapped bird who had lost track of where the opening to the cage were.

Eventually she had to stop. Chest heaving and with the lavender eyes dimmed and fatigued from exertion Skuggi leaned her shoulder against the trunk of a tree. Immediately the biters came swarming in, leaving her skin twitching and tail flinging as though she stood in a minor hurricane. It was painful, maddening; but not more so than knowing that it was she herself who had gotten her into this mess.

She licked her lips thirstily and peered around, wishing, not for the first time, that there was something to drink. Her spirits brightened as she caught the glimpse of something glittering up ahead, and with renewed energy the shade heaved herself forwards again. Breaking through the tough the heavy, dripping underbrush she emerged in a small clearing where the trees parted just enough to let down the sun. Light played over the surface of a mirror blank, silvery pool that exuded the sweet scent of fresh water. Smiling brightly at the thought of icy (okay, lukewarm, but still) liquid running down the throat she trotted forward to the water and lowered her nose towards the surface...

Too preoccupied by her own thirst, she failed to notice the bloated carcass of a deer on the brink a few yards away, half-hidden by bushes, its head sunk beneath the surface of the small lake.

@[Carnesîr]