First Step on Wood

Quiet. Dark floor. Cold beneath my claws. I shifted weight onto my left foot. The bone clicked. It responded. I leaned forward, testing balance, and took one firm pace ahead. Directly in front sat a horned skeleton, silent and still. I lowered my snout and tapped the tip of its brow horn with my jaw. Solid. Inert. I stood ground, steadying my tail across the smooth planks.