Cooperation was, honestly, not a word well-defined in Rattler's rather limited vocabulary. It'd taken months for her to adjust to the friendly presence of another horse at her back, and she was still getting used to the 'togetherness' of traveling with a companion. Moritz, as it was, thankfully did not need much babysitting and traveled far more silently than Rattler herself did. An impressive feat, in her humble opinion, and an invaluable asset. Even now, their hooves together made little sound on the stone beneath them as they prowled their way through the caverns. There had been more than one instance of the two of them falling in behind another party and going completely undetected - neither thinking it was prudent enough to break the silence.

Turns out that one could learn a lot by listening, and that most courser gossip was harmless and useless. But, Rattler had learned it could be rather valuable. She cared little for the pettiness of others and long standing feuds between families, but she found she liked a braggart. Most of the inflated egos around only needed a little prod, a kind word.. and then the information just came out, completely unchecked and potently honest. Rattler was Rattler, and she was always a bit.. reactive to situations, so Moritz being around helped kept her head on straight. And they helped sell the non-threatening dungeoneer vibe, which Rattler had a tendency of ruining all on her own. It was odd - people seemed to just open up to Moritz, much to their utter dismay. They didn't do anything to encourage it, either, which made the entire situation that much more comical.

Truthfully, the whole thing was quite thrilling for Rattler. Moritz and their subtle teachings had allowed her greater freedom within the dungeons: their presence was key. No, their presence was the key. Never before had she dared to venture so deep, and she was slowly learning their way of diving. She found this method suited her. Every day built her confidence - she could now forage and sustain herself if she got lost, and her navigation skills were improving. Somewhat. Moritz never seemed to trust her sense of direction, which meant it probably wasn't very good innately.

Moritz suddenly stopped and Rattler immediately stilled, ears straining to pick up any sign of movement as her eyes searched the dimness before them. To their left, the floating eye Moritz was bonded to came rocketing out of a cavern. Rattler snorted softly and ground the earth beneath her front hooves, ears flattening against her neck. The eye spotted them and made a beeline for Moritz, and what followed seemed to be some sort of strange communication between the two of them that Rattler had negative ability to decipher. The eyeball was blinking, and it's gaze kept snapping back towards where it had appeared from. The expression on Moritz 'face turned grim, and some of the muscles in their neck bunched.

Rattler didn't have a chance to ask 'what' before a strange, flaming figure stepped out of those same caverns and into the open. Her nostrils flared and she heard Moritz spook behind her, their hooves clattering anxiously on the ground as they shifted closer to her. Not one for running, the courser stood statute still as the flaming.. thing surveyed its surroundings. Apparently, Rattler had drawn its attention as it immediately locked onto her, surging forward with a strange, lurching gait. Moritz was quick to turn tail and flee a safe distance away, meanwhile Rattler felt like doing the very opposite.

The mare surged forwards, teeth bared as the figure outstretched its hands. Nothing actually happened, at least nothing Rattler could see, but he intent to harm suddenly disappeared. She skidded to stop just short of the flaming creature, kicking up a cloud of dust and wind into the dark cloak it wore. Confusion and alarm warred for dominance for a moment before Rattler really started to take in the situation, finding herself literally face first in it. The first thing that stood out to her was the fact that the flames didn't feel hot. There was warmth, yes, a strange nearly uncomfortable warmth.. but it came with no pain, no true discomfort. The stench of sulfur, however, did cause her to recoil slightly even as those strange, blistered hands slowly reached for her.

Again, the urge to trample and bite coursed through her - but the figure thus far had made no attempt to hurt her, though she got the sense it probably could harm her with proper provocation. With a very heavy sigh, the mare allowed the figure's hands to lay on either side of her jaw. It wasn't the best feeling in the world, if Rattler were honest. Touch had always been a bit of a "no, thank you" kind of thing for her, but it seemed to make some of those that hung out around her feel better. Maybe it would make this thing feel better too? They remained like that for a time, until one of the hands absently slid over the bridge of her nose and up towards the base of her ear. Rattler protested that movement, tossing her head and actually knocking the figure with the motion. One hand cupped her chin, jostling the soft flesh there with an almost playful gesture.

Rattler bit the air, though she kept her teeth to herself.

So very strange. That was probably the last coherent thought Rattler had before the flames exploded around her, engulfing the figure and it's dark cloak. The world seemed to still, and she could have sworn a pair of rough knuckles gently brushed the soft flesh of her nose. After that came the heat. Rattler closed her eyes to the blast, twisting her head back to her flank to avoid the brunt of it. She wasn't sure how long the fires raged, but thankfully she remained unburnt.

When she finally opened her eyes, she was standing alone in that chamber with nothing but a ring of ash around the front half of her body and the feeling that something far beyond her had just occurred. A quiet nicker from Moritz brought her back, drawing her attention to the entrance. Some of her fur was singed pretty badly and she certainly didn't smell great, but she was still alive and kicking. Weird.