Aira could hear the pounding of her heart in her ears, loud and insistent, drowning out every other sound. The silence of the chamber was oppressive, suffocating, as though the darkness itself conspired to choke her. She turned her head from side to side, eyes straining, but the void was complete. There was no movement, no flicker of life. Nothing.
Her fingers clenched tighter around the hilt of her weapon until the cold bite of the metal dug into her skin. The sting grounded her, though it did little to ease the panic thrumming through her veins. She would not—could not—let go.
Drawing in a sharp breath, she summoned her ability.
White aura burst from her body, warm and luminous, flowing outward in waves as though seeking to illuminate and sense the world beyond. The warm aura to of her ability enveloped her in a soft glow, a beacon in the endless black.
She could sense no one close to her and that made her breath easier.
