The first thing Athena heard was a gentle beeping.
It echoed strangely in her skull, threading itself through the fog of unconsciousness until awareness slowly tugged her upward.
For a few disoriented seconds, she wasn't sure if she was dreaming. Her eyes were still shut, heavy, almost glued together. She lay still, breathing shallowly, listening.
Where… am I?
The beeping continued—steady, mechanical, too clean and too calm to belong anywhere near the horror she remembered.
A strange, impossible thought drifted through her mind.
Was she in heaven?
She almost snorted. It was absurd. She didn't feel like she was floating through pearly gates or wrapped in angelic warmth. She felt… grounded. Heavy. Mortal.
Yet confusion thickened inside her as she tried to remember. Her mind, sluggish from sleep, searched for answers. The memories came slowly at first—blurry shadows, muffled voices, firelight, the smell of gas, boiling water…
Boiling water.
Suddenly everything sharpened.
