(Time-Stilled World, Unknown Underground Cave, Six Hours Later)
Six agonizing hours crawled by, each one slower than the last, as Leo lay motionless in the nest, counting every minute through the dull, pulsing throb of his half-healed body.
The darkness around him remained unchanged, the cold straw beneath him offering no comfort, as nothing in his surroundings shifted in the slightest—no flicker of light, no change in temperature, no sound to suggest that even a second had passed at all.
And yet, somewhere in that hollow stretch of time, the pain dulled just enough for his thoughts to sharpen again, as his clarity returned piece by piece, and with it came the realization that he needed to understand exactly where he was, if he had any hope of surviving, let alone escaping.
But he didn't rush.
He didn't even flinch at first, knowing full well that a single misstep could snap his fragile state and plunge him straight back into unconsciousness.
