[color=f26522][h3]Gregory Irving[/h3][hr][hr][/color] 
Sitting atop the tranquil surface, Gregory’s surprise faded quickly as he stared down towards the endless depths below him. The still waters inspired a certain sense of calm, but the darkness brewed apprehension. Yet for all that, he seemed to be a prisoner of this scene; observing but otherwise unable to move. And staring into the abyss, he couldn’t help but feel that something stared back. 

A small piece broke away from the depths. Miniscule, but nonetheless seen within the otherwise clear waters. It rose at a slow leisurely pace towards him, and he could do nothing but watch as what felt like minutes dragged on through its rise. Ice crept through his veins when the fragment finally touched Gregory as it granted him motion rather than freezing him in place.

Such a violent recoil only served to make him woozy though, and the world seemed to spin even as the water’s surface remained serene.[hr]
The room he woke up in was familiar enough that Gregory recognized it as one in the security outpost after a few blinks. His hand slapped lazily at a reformed cheek, and he couldn’t help but roll his jaws a few times. He rolled over in the cot to confirm that, yes, he wasn’t alone in a room and it seemed like the other participants had been crammed in here. 

[i]‘Fantastic…’[/i] Dry, unvoiced thoughts aside, Gregory pushed himself to sit up and frowned a bit as he reached out to rub at his legs to deal with the numbness. A few stunted wiggles of his toes brought a scowl to his face as he continued to massage his legs, hoping to return sensation to them. It was something to distract from his thoughts at the least as the pins and needles did a great job at cutting through them.