"Grass!" Ren shouted, throwing her arms out wide. "Glorious, itchy, green grass!"
She collapsed backward onto the meadow floor, limbs splayed out, and began frantically waving her arms and legs.
"Look at me!" she cheered, staring up at the blinding blue sky. "I'm making a grass angel!"
She took a deep breath of the air. It smelled like pine needles and freedom. It didn't smell like rotting eggs or fish breath. It was paradise.
A few feet away, Kael sat on a large rock. The massive Tiger King was covered in dried swamp muck. He was scrubbing at his muscular arms with rough, frantic motions, his claws scraping against his own skin to dislodge the caked-on dirt.
Ren sat up, wiping grass blades from her hair. She looked around for the rest of her party.
