The forest floor was a squelching, brown tapestry of mud and wet leaves. Ren picked her way through the underbrush, her bare feet sinking into the cool earth with every step.
Surprisingly, despite the biblical deluge that had just occurred, there wasn't a puddle in sight. The ground had drunk it all up.
Ren nodded, impressed. "Nature has excellent drainage. If this much rain fell in New York, the entire subway system would be an aquarium and Ratatouille would be captain of a boat."
She took a deep breath. The air was crisp, cool, and smelled of crushed pine needles and wet stone. It was like inhaling a high-definition nature documentary.
"Okay," Ren exhaled, feeling the tension in her shoulders loosen slightly. "Maybe I won't die of stress today."
She pushed aside a massive fern frond and stopped dead in her tracks.
"Woah."
