Intertwined: Two fates

58 - Nightmare

Jungkook was certain he had fallen into the depth of Hell.

Everywhere around him was muddy swamp, and climbing out of it were tens if not hundred pairs of bloody arms. They grabbed onto his legs, his arms, his clothes, yanking and pulling him deeper and deeper. And no matter what he did, he could not free himself.

Voices. There were a lot of indistinct voices echoing around his ears. Some were familiar, but most were not. He had never heard them before— or to be exact, he had never heard them during the past seven years since he woke up from the coma.

He could tell that the scenes flashing in front of him was his past memory— the one he thought he had lost for a lifetime. However, every time he reached out to hold onto them, they would scatter away like faint dust and he could grab onto nothing but empty air.

Pain. The pain wrecking through his body was numbing. He could not put it into words. It was like someone had cut him open and used their hands to pull out his bones one by one, all the while keeping him awake and fully conscious. His body trembled uncontrollably, his teeth chattered non-stop and he broke out in cold sweat.

Like a wounded and trapped beast, he desperately struggled against the bloody arms that were dragging him down to the abyss. With his eyes red, he let out an enraged roar and destroyed everything in front of him. He could see nothing but ruin and wreckage. He could taste nothing but blood inside his mouth.

He could faintly sense that something was wrong in his current state. He was not -- he should not be this... savage. Out of control. Yet he just could not hold himself back. It was as if this destructive nature had always been a part of him, only falling into a dormant state and waiting for the right time to awaken.

And now, the time had finally arrived.

The scene in front of him suddenly changed. He was no longer trapped amid the muddy swamp. Now he was running with all his might. In front of him was a stretch of road with no end in sight but there was a voice inside him, telling him that he could not stop. He must not.

He had to keep running or else... those people would catch up to him!

Jungkook was stunned when this notion flashed through his mind.

Who? Who was he running away from?

He discovered that he could not seem to control his body. He was like an outsider occupying this body and could only see things from his perspective. He thought that he was dreaming at first. But for some inexplicable reason, everything was so... vivid. The tightness on his throat, the loud thudding of his heart, the near breathlessness...

He had no idea how long he had been running when all of a sudden, he was trapped in place. His entire body was immobile as if there was an invisible force binding his limbs. He struggled desperately yet was unable to break through this shackle of nightmare.

It was at that moment that Jungkook caught a glimpse of someone appearing at the end of the road.

Jungkook froze and his entire person entered a state of great alert.

He stared at that person coldly, sizing them up from head to toe as they approached him step by step. The light came from behind that person, blurring their visage. Jungkook squinted his eyes sharply and could barely tell that it was a man.

A man with his hair tied in a high ponytail, holding a katana in his hand.

As soon as he saw that katana, a burst of rage and loathe surged forth uncontrollably in his chest. It caught him off guard because this emotion was too strong, too consuming to the point where he could feel his sanity slipping away from him.