#vorigins

       The crunch of gravel under boot-heel became far more pronounced upon taking those first few steps over the official threshold into the deeproads. There seemed to be a particular stillness in the already stagnant underground air, bringing attention to the scraping echoes as if to punctuate the oppressive uncertainty that laid ahead. It stopped Theo dead in his tracks where before, he had barely paid mind in favor of joking with the newcomer Oghren, sharing harsh sips from whatever was in his flask.

       Now, his upbeat poo-pooing of danger rang hollow in his bones as amber eyes scanned the vast, ancient stone arches that had been left to the mercy of time. He’d come to pride himself on adaptability in any situation...but...this was all completely foreign to him. Already, he yearned for the surface, again. They had barely yet ventured into the darkness and already he felt drowned by the underground alleys surrounding them, his heart gasping for a breath of fresh open-sky air.

      His hand subtly reached for the mabari at his side, scratching at the scruff of Toki’s neck for some semblance of comfort. It was passed off as the opposite, as if staying his hound’s unease instead, to mask his own anxieties the best he could.