Rebirth: Awaken, Milady

19 - Alena Croft

Aria woke up to a chilling atmosphere.

She was enclosed in a pitch black space. It felt suffocating, especially after she began to connect her past memories of being kept in captivity and this place together.

Her breathing became ragged. She struggled for more oxygen. Her wind pipes felt like they were being constricted.

Tears started welling up in her eyes.

"..No... Please, not again..." Aria sobbed as she grabbed her hair and sunk her head deep in her knees.

Her mind started going wild.

What if she wasn't reborn? What if the previous scenes were just to mock her for not following the right path? For being hasty, foolish, for being a coward?

What if it was all just a vision of how it could've gone if she was just a little bit smarter?

[I can assure you that that's not the case.] A warm toned voice entered her ears.

"..uh? Who.." Aria weakly responded. Her mental state was still being tested.

[It seems like this place is not suitable for you. I'm sorry. I can't change this.]

"Where is this...?" After confirming that her previous thoughts were false, Aria let out a sigh and tried to regain her composure.

[I cannot provide you with an answer. I do not have much time, so I will quickly explain.]

[The Administrators have noticed the anomaly and will definitely try to make you use your powers. You were originally not supposed to face any drawbacks from using the Hourglass. It was supposed to be redirected to the System. This matter, I will also apologize for.

I disabled the System when you were using the Hourglass. As such, your use count will be registered as 0. Unfortunately, your Administrator will notice this and be suspicious.

Though I can't tell you anything, you shouldn't use the Hourglass.. For you will lose yourself. When you reverse time, you aren't only affecting yourself, but the whole world. No one is supposed to play with time.

No one...]

"You-" Aria wanted to ask more questions, but the voice had already dissipated and her consciousness started to return in the real world.

Light suddenly entered her eyes and made it hard to properly see.

"Aria! Are you alright?" Julius' worried voice can be heard.

"Bro..ther," Aria's throat was dry.

Julius immediately brought a glass of water up to her mouth.

Taking a few sips, Aria got up and looked around.

The faint smell of medicine and alcohol entered her nose.

"Why am I.." Aria remembered the previous condition she was in after using the Hourglass.

"You lost consciousness, but your body seems to be fine. Everyone told me you seemed to be in pain before collapsing..." Julius sighed.

"No injuries?"

"Well, there are some scratches and bruises here and there, but that's all,"

"That's..weird," Aria was sure her whole body was affected that time.

"What's weird is you! How many times do I have to tell you not to make us worry?"

"Ahh..hahah," Aria weakly laughed before lying back down.