Swiftcurrent Creek 'Cause I told you my level of concern

Hurried steps brought him far from the desert, back to a familiar valley. Panacea didn't want to remember when he had been here last, or how, or why. So he pushed it from his thoughts and instead filled them with what stood before him: a pack.

He stood, deer in the headlights, for several long moments. A twig snapped somewhere among the trees. Panacea stumbled back several steps with a sharp breath, startled.