The general voice channel was swarmed in chaos.
"Where is she?!"
"The remote mines are all converging on the same location!"
"They must have been in the middle of the ritual."
"How many remote mines did we deploy?! I can hear the explosion from here! Are we trying to rescue her or kill her?!"
"Only a few went off. I've disabled detonation."
"Cult members are trying to leave that room! Eliminate with prejudice!"
"Get to Marine first!"
***
My head is in a haze.
My body feels heavy.
Everything is slow.
Laborious.
Cumbersome.
As if I'm wading through a swamp.
Viscous elements cling onto my skin.
The ferric scent lingers. It's arid. It's sharp. It's metallic and it's bitter. It churns my stomach. It tightens my throat. It crawls along my back like a spectre's claws.
My heart races.
It's familiar.
It's the stench that appears when life beckons death. When the jaws of the underworld open up to eat its fill. When the reaper himself comes to collect his dues.
A debt must always be repaid.
But I refuse.
Because I'm scared.
Countless souls are down there, awaiting my descent, begging to tear me apart. I know it. I've seen them all the time in my nightmares. They're always watching me, praying for karma to finally grab my ankles. And drag me down to the watery depths.
I refuse.
And so I cut.
I swing. I slice.
The vague vestiges in front of me fall.
Blood sprays.
Muted screams echo.
My nerves wail.
My heart shudders.
But I keep cutting.
Cut.
Cut.
Cut.
The screams lessen. But they're still there.
Cut.
Cut.
Cut.
I add to my growing list of sins. One day they'll be too much for my back to bear.
But until then, I'll cut.
Until the echoes finally go quiet. Until there's nothing left.
Until I'm alone.
Two more shadows stand in my way.
I advance.
YOU ARE READING
A Distant Reverie
Fanfiction"Careful now. Try not to move too suddenly, alright?" Vesper Noir wakes up one day in a foreign land with gaps in his memories...and a sharp blade pressed against his throat. His assailant? A beautiful, self-proclaimed female pirate with a sweet voi...
