#panstarter

Having heard the hubub about the tunnels leading to somewhere that seemed to be the inside of the tower, Una had taken herself down into the bowels of the island, following what seemed to be newly trodden paths. Rock giving way to smooth tunnel, dust scuffed by the passing of feet - it seemed as though everyone was keen to explore.

To explore. To learn. To uncover more mysteries.

Una, herself remains unconvinced. The revelation the tunnels brought had, after all, followed the unveiling of the mass grave. And Una is mostly concerned that people might be walking themselves into a similar fate.

It seemed as though the Island was doling out tidbits, one at a time. A slice of danger, a tipple of temptation, and she couldn't help but feel a sense of foreboding in her gut as she stepped through a metal door into the interior of the place.

There were voices around and about, the presence of others coming down from above, picking their way through the new discovery.

The blank walls and sheer surfaces reminded her of her incarceration. All sleek and functional. But her eye is drawn to the door... Hardly surprising given that it dominated the space. Glowing and pulsing with some otherwordly power. The shudder that jars her spine is nothing voluntary. And if anything, she can feel that consciousness in the back of her mind whimpering, cowering from the thing. The wolf part of her does not like it one bit.

If anything, it feels... Unnatural.

So far removed from instinct that she almost feels confused, trying to resolve the desire to run from this place with the practical and rational side of her mind - the human brain attempting to make some sense of what she's seeing.

It's too much of a conflict and it's making her... Dizzy... Taking a few steps quickly backward to at least put some space between herself and 'it'. And in the haze of confusion, she hasn't even realised that someone has entered the room behind her, bumping awkwardly before spinning - eyes wide...

...teeth bared.

Back home in Missouri, there was a popular swimming hole that was visited by most of the 300 residents living there. It was clean, though a little murky, but refreshing on a hot summer day. The last thing Crystal remembered was floating in the water, face up to the stars and the moon, as she enjoyed the peaceful, empty quiet of the night. For a brief moment, her eyes closed, but when they opened, suddenly the sky above her was bright, blue, with a few stray clouds floating by. She was still in water, but not the same pool of water she was used to.

Lifting her head to look around, Crystal saw a white sandy beach, with a scenery of tall trees, open grassland and a large volcano looming behind it. To her left, she saw a hut and a dock out on the water, and to her right it looked like there was an array of buildings scattered around. Her brows furrowed, it was strange, but also…quite beautiful. Peaceful even. Did she dare question the how and why of it? She never had the chance to visit a tropical beach, but she's always wished for a way out of Missouri. It seemed like she had finally gotten her wish.

As she moved to the edge of this pool of water to rest her arms and survey the area properly, she noticed someone (who she assumed was a local?) walking past. "Um, hello there! Excuse me!" she called out to them, smiling and raising her hand to wave when they turned towards her. "Hi, beautiful day, isn't it? How are ya? I just have one question, if you don't mind. Where are we exactly?"

Why was everything so fucking warm?

Apollo sat down on a rock on the edge of a tidal pool, dipping his feet into the water below, disappointed to find the water to be lukewarm. Ever since the craziness that had taken place on and off the ship, whose existence encompassed an absurdity he couldn't even begin to fathom, all his senses circled back to the heat he was constantly feeling. Granted, his turtleneck was a very unfortunate choice of clothing for destiny or god or whoever decided to put them there to pick for him, but that's what his closet mostly consisted of nowadays anyway.

But he definitely didn't deserve the heartburn. He rubbed at his chest as if he could soothe the pain that was building underneath and tried to take those deep breaths that the doctors had advised him to those days when burning was all he could feel. He closed his eyes for a second and tried to steady himself, when his effort for peace and quiet was interrupted by the sound of footsteps behind him.

"Looking for a hideaway as well?" he asked, instinctively trying to appear calm and collected as ever.