A soft sigh echoed through dead and dusty passageways as Xibalba quietly explored what was left of his wonder. He wasn’t keen to go back to the suite area where he’d encountered his own little piece of the Code. Therefore, he’d decided to explore the rest of the (obvious) prison complex. So far, he’d found one or two little offices near ground level. But he rather suspected those of being sentry stations. No, the real heart of his wonder was buried deep below the surface of Mars.

He thought back to his previous visit and the monstrously huge cell he’d passed by. That had been the deepest part of the place. Well, okay then. THat’s where he’d poke around.

As he began follow the corridors that led downward, the tall blonde found himself silently thanking the natural caution that had caused him to bring along a good flashlight. And the next time he visited, he’d bring another and plenty of spare batteries and store them in his office or near the top entry. It probably wouldn’t hurt to bring a camp stove either just in case he ever lost his damn mind and tried to spend the night.

By the time Xibalba had reached the bottom-most level, he had a small list of things to bring up and stash around the place to make it a bit more comfortable. He’d also made up his mind to bring Chariklo up here and show her around. He knew she had a whole planet and maybe someday she’d feel impelled to show it to him. But until then, well. It was enough to think about it.

Swinging the flashlight towards the darkest set of shadows, Xibalba marveled at the sheer size of the cell. Whatever had been kept here had been something that no one had wanted to see get out. Inching closer to what was left of the door, Xibalba found himself staring at the hinges and what was left of the door itself. Time and decay had made a muddle of whether or not whatever it was had broken out or if someone had broken in to let it out.

And that, the tall blond thought with a slight chill creeping up his spine, was more than enough exploration for one visit. And it was more than fair enough to suggest that his pace upon leaving the cell was something approaching a run. And he didn’t stop running until he was back in the space he considered his office. Once there, he sighed and folded to the floor, hands cupping his face.

One thing was certain, he wasn’t venturing back to that cell without a whole lot more light and someone to help watch his back. Until then, he’d keep his visits to the smaller cells and offices he’d found so far. And once the edge of fear had worn off, Xibalba turned his attentions to the room he sat in. Well? He was up here anyway. No reason why he couldn’t clean up and try to preserve some of the items in here.