Crimson Oasis

✧ v. ✧

Kari kept running. She kept on running. She wouldn't stop. She kept going. Beyond the town, over the dunes, she ran.
She took a quick glance back at from where she ran from. Lights flickered in the distance. Oh, no. I'm pretty far away... how will I get back?
With a sigh, she turned around again, pacing over the dunes. Suddenly, she halted from the dune and looked down.
Some kind of oasis. But instead of being purple, the water was red.
Engaged, Kari slowly slid down the dune, sand swallowing her legs as she trudged to the surface of the lake. She took another glance at her glowing wrists; they were still stinging, but they seemed to be stinging in a certain direction.
Towards the lake.
Wait...
If I put my arms in the lake...
The stinging will stop...?
Kari examined her glowing wrists again. The trainee bracelets were still fixed onto her arms. Gently, she dipped them into the red lake. The water was, surprisingly, not too cold. But it wasn't warm either. It was a perfect temperature.
With the feeling that the crimson water was seeping into her body...
Darkness swallowed her.