The Weight of His Chains

Chapter 1

As I slowly regain consciousness, my eyes falter, struggling to shake off the haze. I rise, my body screaming in protest, feeling crushed by an invisible weight. My head reels, and the light stings my eyes. My gaze feels heavy, my eyes itching with the effort of focusing. I'm surrounded by five ancient stone pedestals, each holding a faintly glowing orb that casts eerie shadows. Defying gravity, pebbles hover in the air, frozen in mid-motion. Before me stretches a desolate path, flanked by towering cliffs and scattered boulders. The dark, ominous "ceiling" looms above, its texture indistinct, the air thick with the acrid smell of molten metal and disturbed dust, making my nostrils flare.

As I rise to my feet, a shiver runs down my spine. Something in me clicks into place, like a door creaking open in my mind. Memories, long buried, begin to resurface.

The Between...I know this place...it happened before.

The realization hits me like a harsh wave, and I feel deja vu wash over me. I take a step forward, my legs trembling beneath me. Fragments of memories flicker in my mind, trying to piece themselves together.

Sky, his eyes, his face, his smile.

My heart aches with a mix of sadness and fear. I feel like a lost soul, walking in this wasteland with no purpose. I remember the pain, the darkness we had, the complicated love between us. It's all coming back to me now. All these memories coming back feel like a shot to my head. I rest myself on a fallen boulder, my head throbbing, my heart trembling.

My mind races, trying to piece together what had happened before the Between's repeat. I can feel the weight of the Between coming down on me, slowly crushing my soul. I let out a trembled sigh, taking deep breaths, calming myself, even if inside I'm screaming, wishing this is all over.

My gaze is lost, staring at nothing. My mind drifts away to the past, the fragmented memories I have of me and Sky, or 5091. We met in this desolate place, two souls trapped in this celestial prison. We didn't need words to understand each other, our bond was forged in silence. We walked together, sharing shelter we found. I thought he was like me. A lost person searching for a way out. He was human, like me. But I was wrong.

He revealed his true form to me, a monster, a creature of darkness. I barely escaped with my life that day. The memory of that encounter still haunts me, a tainted memory I keep in the back of my mind. Yet, despite the fear and pain he inflicted upon me, I miss him. I really do. The silence we shared, those little moments, catching each other looking. In the midst of chaos, we would hold hands. He hated me, he hates humans, I know. But deep inside I feel like he might love me too.

I have a strange longing for him, one I can't get rid of. The Between repeated, separating us. Now I don't know where he is. My hand craves the warmth it had in his hands, my eyes crave to gaze into his. I need to find him, because I feel as if he's my lamp in this daunting realm.

Then, it hits me. In the time before the Between repeated, when we first found out time was going to crumble on us. I remember 5091's desperate eyes, his frantic words, his trembling hands. He was losing his grip on reality, as he realized The Between was going to repeat again. I recall the words he said, 'pain, furnace, chains'. The way he begged me to find him. The mention of The Black Sun, which I know nothing about. The triangle shape he made with his hands, hoping I'd understand. And the worry, oh that worry etched on his face still scares me. I understood nothing he was saying, and now that he's gone, I have nothing but those tiny clues I must keep to find him.

One thing I remember him saying before it all ended, something that sends shivers down my spine. 'You'll probably find my corpse when you come.'

I swear I'll look under every rock and corner I find 5091. I just hope I find him in time, and maybe his words may be true. I'll find nothing but his corpse.