Chapter 54- A Hand That Stretches From The Darkness (Part 2)

Chapter 54: Chapter 54- A Hand That Stretches From The Darkness (Part 2)

Chapter 54- A Hand That Stretches From The Darkness (Part 2)

Time started slowly moving; each tick felt like ages for Rize as he stared into the blank space, not knowing what to do or think. He felt cold, his blood drying up on his skin as he felt the repercussions of his own injuries piling up on him. The bullet wound was already starting to get infected due to the fact that he hadn’t treated it yet, and the pain was hellish to say the least.

However, Rize was accustomed to immense pain, so he didn’t make a noise or show a reaction on his face. Instead, he focused on his breathing. That was quite simple and straightforward... Until it wasn’t anymore.

See, one thing that Rize didn’t know about his current situation was how severely dangerous being upside down for prolonged periods of time was. The first hour, he didn’t feel much, as it was still normal, even if he was a bit dizzy.

However, as the second, third, and fourth hours passed successively, Rize started feeling things... Or rather, seeing things.

His eyes were staring blankly into the distance, his face as red as a tomato from the accumulated blood, and his heart rate was increasing slowly but surely as it struggled to pump blood into the rest of his body.

"Ugh..." He groaned tiredly as he squinted. His vision was extremely blurry, and black spots started appearing in it.

’I’m so nauseous...’ He thought to himself as he shook his head, trying to clear his vision. However, as time passed, it only got worse.

"Please! I can’t remain like this! I will die!!" Rize yelled as he shook the chains, trying to get the man’s attention. The panic was slowly settling in as he realized how bad his condition was about to get.

However, nobody replied to his cries. He didn’t know if they even heard his cries or if they simply could not be bothered.

"Dammit... I’m so nauseous." Rize tried to close his eyes and ignore the pain. However, it only got worse with every passing second.

What made it even more hellish was the fact that Rize didn’t know how much time had passed. It could’ve been hours, or it could’ve been mere minutes; his brain could not think that entire time properly.

By the time the 6th hour ticked by, Rize had lost almost all sense of his surroundings. His only intact sense was his ears, which somehow... had gotten so sensitive to noise that even the rattling of the chains gave him a strong headache.

His urge to vomit kept building up slowly until... Rize vomited out all the food he ate that day mixed with what he assumed to be blood.

’Fuck... My organs are failing...’ He thought to himself as he clenched his teeth and held back the cough. His breathing became hurried and uneven.

By the tenth hour, Rize was swinging between being awake and falling unconscious. He would find himself losing sense of everything for a while before snapping out of it and trying to remain conscious.

He was terrified of the idea of closing his eyes and never opening them again. He wished this hell would end sooner rather than later.

By the 15th hour, Rize had already coughed blood several times, and his heart was racing so rapidly that he could practically hear it thumping in his head. The feeling was so odd and uncomfortable.

At that point, he also started seeing things that didn’t make any sense. He saw weird colors that didn’t belong to that place, odd shapes and moving creatures that he could not even understand. His mouth uttered words that he wasn’t aware of.

"U...gh..." His eyes were bloodshot red. ’What... is... happening... to me?’

Rize felt as if his life was slipping away from his hands bit by bit. Each bit was torn from his very soul with sheer agony and pain. It was the worst feeling he had ever experienced in his two lives. Each part of him wished for this pain to end. He couldn’t bear it anymore.

’Ple...ase...’ Rize thought to himself. ’It... hurts... so much...’

"You’re really pathetic."

At that moment, he heard a voice that penetrated his skull and made him open his eyes again. This time, instead of the usual illusions he saw, he saw something that shook him to the core. A few meters away from him, a man was standing still.

He was overweight, with disheveled hair, acne, and sweaty clothes. He stared at Rize with disdain and loathing in his eyes.

That man was someone he knew very well. Why? Because, well, that was him. That was the person Rize was before he was transported to this world... Ethan.

"Hahaha, you’re stuck in this shithole and no one will come to save you. Just like how you’ve always been." The man said with a cold laugh. "Ironic, isn’t it?"

"..."

"You thought you would escape that fate and be someone. But, truly, what is different than before? You’re still the same person. Someone who will always be forgotten. Someone who will die alone, whether that was in this body or that body. You were always bound to be lost, Rize."

"N... o... I...’m... fine..." Rize replied with a disturbed tone. "I’m... not... forgotten... Venera..."

"Venera? What is she going to do, hm? Haha, just because she showed you some kindness, will she go out of her way to save your pathetic ass?" Ethan asked with a wicked look on his face. "I truly pity your naivety."

"You’re... lying..." Rize replied with great difficulty. Even though he tried to ignore those words, the man kept repeating them as if they were an echo in the chambers of his mind. Each word was like a knife that was plunged into his hope to survive.

’Venera... will come... right?’

"She had betrayed you before. She had thrown you to your death without even looking twice, and you think she will suddenly change? Didn’t you take an oath that you would make her pay? Tell me, Rize."

"Shut... up..."

"Didn’t you? Then why did you abandon us? Why did you leave me behind to live this fantasy of yours, huh?"

"Shut... up..."

"The reality is that no matter how much you change, you’re still me, Rize. You’re still me... Ethan."

"I said... Shut... up!!!" Rize yelled as he forced all the frustration out. "I’m not... you... anymore!!"

Ethan stared at him silently for a few moments before he sighed.

"Truly pathetic." Then, he approached Rize slowly and crouched down so he would stare him right in the eyes. All Rize could see in Ethan’s pupils was emptiness... There were no emotions behind them. As if he were a mere doll, an empty husk of a dead person that was somehow moving.

That single glance sent chills down his spine as he tried to pull back.

"You will realize what I’m saying is the truth soon enough. When that happens, you won’t be able to go back to our life. You won’t be able to hole yourself in a room, far away from people’s eyes."

Slowly, he stretched his hand and grabbed Rize’s face. "Nobody will stretch their hand to you."