Likho

Smorodina

(TW: Major Character Death)

The drive to the base is so much shorter than Russia would have wanted. His heart races like he's about to fight as they all approach a large crater in the ground. Russia pulls over and everyone gets out carefully, donning winter gear and bracing themselves against the swiftly dropping temperatures.

The sun has only barely risen, the light shining dimly on the pit that had been part of the entrance, it having been haphazardly filled with dirt, ice and tree branches.

He shivers, though not from the cold. 'If I didn't know what it was, it would've just looked like a strange pit.'

Russia takes an attempted steadying breath, taking some of the cold, bracing air deep into his lungs. He walks around the truck and grabs what passes for his weapon, a heavy flashlight. With the batteries inside he could also use it for light as needed but he hopes that the sunlight solely rising will provide enough.

Russia checks and makes sure that he also has the pocket switchblade he got from the sketchy vendor at the last place they stopped before getting here.

He walks back around the truck, trying to shake the feeling of wrongness in his bones and failing.

'Something just doesn't feel right.'

Russia tries and again fails to shake off the thought, slowly joining the others in approaching the ominously filled in pit.

America is talking with the states, clearly some of them are going to stay out here just in case, but Russia cannot hear a word any of them are saying above the roar of anxiety in his ears

Done talking, America smiles and waves Philippines, Texas and New Mexico off. As soon as they leave, America's face falls.

"Is everything okay?" Russia asks, reaching out a hand.

"Yeah, I'm fine," America replies, drawing away from him. Russia drops his hand and nods.

Arizona starts melting some of the ice and Kentucky and California start slowly making a path down, following the path Arizona is blazing. At the bottom of the pit, there are a multitude of tiles all broken by their exit last time and dirty, but visible.

'Only the entrance was filled in,' Russia notes.

They can still reach the rest of the place, including offices connected to where they currently are, causing California to comment on how poorly the organization hid things.

With all of them down in the pit now, Russia can feel more than anything that there is an electricity to the air, spiky and wrong. He looks to America but he doesn't comment or seem to notice so Russia tries his best to ignore it for now, despite his growing unease.

'Something is off.'

He looks at America again. He is acting strangely and looks bothered but Russia can't tell why. He looks around, seeing if it's something he too can see, but sees nothing.

'Something is definitely wrong. But what?'America whimpering breaks him from his thoughts.

"Meri?"

America's eyes are spinning wildly around the room and he stares at Russia, unfamiliar horror in his eyes. Russia steps back, motioning the states to also move backwards.,

"Russ?" Kentucky whispers.

"Something's wrong," Russia doesn't take his eyes off of America.

"What do you mean?" California asks, stepping forward as if to pass him.

"Hide. All of you," Russia demands, in an anxious tone that invites no argument, slowly backing them up into the offices close by, "Collect what you can, but don't come back out until- "