★ Follow the Fireflies

Deeper into the cave Maverick went, following the almost hypnotic light of the fireflies as they led him down the winding tunnels of the cave system. Their colors shone off the shiny stone walls, damp with mildew and dripping ground water, ever shifting as he went as if changing with each step. Red, blue, orange, green, violet, yellow... A whole spectrum of colors that enticed him further and further, deeper and deeper. As he went, Mav made sure to remember which turns he took where so he'd be able to find his way back out again. He was no fool, and this was not his first time spelunking. It was, however, the first time he'd gone into a cave where he began to feel... strange. The deeper he went, the stronger that strange feeling began to grow on him. Like a sort of anxiety, a knowing that something was off, but not being able to put his paw on it.

As Maverick reached a leveled out section of cave, he began to realize what was off about this place. The air felt thick, heavy with something on it. A sniff sampled no strange scents, no flavors to alert him to anything, but he felt like there was a miasma closing in around him. The anxiousness grew. His head began to feel light. With every breath drawing in the invisible noxious gases, the chemicals began to wreak havoc on his psyche. Faint whispers played in his ears, coming from down the tunnels in all directions. Teal eyes swerved about, trying to find the source of the sounds. Or were they even sounds? Was he imagining things? Maybe he shouldn't have come in here so brashly after all...

"Maverick"