40 Revelations (1/2)
Through the pain and the pressure, I cracked a smile. If I could bear the next few seconds, I would be free.
Five seconds until breakthrough.
I knew that the pleasure would come, wiping away all my pain. I had to use that to my advantage.
Four seconds until breakthrough.
When it came, I would be free to act. What was the game plan?
Three seconds until breakthrough.
First step: take care of Tai. Attack him and obstruct his vision.
Two seconds until breakthrough.
Second step. Grab the other scholar and sprint through the door.
One second until breakthrough.
I charged my legs with qi and gathered my thoughts.
Breakthrough.
The ecstasy was overwhelming, nullifying the pain of every broken bone, every ruptured organ and every burst blood vessel. My mind was left clear, my plan precise.
In a split second, I flicked my wrist and charged towards the crippled scholar. I gave one golden arm the command to strangle Tai and the other to crush his head, blocking his sight.
There was no time to check if it had worked. I grabbed the scholar and sprinted to the door.
”You can't stop me Schwarz!”
Ignoring him, I thrust my mangled arm at the granite door, bashing it open. My forearm crumpled under the force, broken bones puncturing my skin, but I felt nothing.
Rushing down the hallway, I felt the wave of relief subside. A dull ache seeped into my bones. There was no time to think, I had to escape.
If I collapsed here, Tai would just drag us back. As much as I hated it, there was only one option. Ignoring the tearing sensation, I took the deepest breath I could and screamed,
”DONG!! HELP ME!! DOWNSTAIRS!!”
Reaching the end of my ragged scream, darkness crept into the corners of my vision. Pinpricks of light sparkled and flickered, and I became faint and lightheaded.
The relief cut off as quickly as it came, my body plunged into torment once again. Unable to withstand the hellfire of sensations, I passed out.
Had I been successful? Wait… why could I think?
”Oho! He made it here!”
That sickly sweet, almost musical voice sounded familiar.
”Come on sweetie, open your eyes.”
My body felt strangely foreign and it took some struggle to open my eyes.
”Tada! Look who it is!”
Sitting at a pristine white table were Sirius and Helga.
”What… where am I?”
”With us, silly!”
”But why?”
”Well,” Sirius interjected, ”I believe you would call it a 'near death experience'.”
I expected to feel some fear after hearing those words. But there was only warmth and peace.
”Tell me, how do you like my place?”
Helga spread her arms openly, golden bangles tinkling as she moved. We sat next to a crystal-clear lake, nestled in rolling green hills. The warm sun shone unobstructed by the idyllic clouds floating by.
A cool breeze kept me at the perfect temperature, wafting the scent of freshly cut grass and blooming flowers. Every sound was perfectly harmonious, creating a heart-warming natural symphony.
”It's perfect.”
”See, that is exactly my point Helga,” Sirius commented, ”without imperfection, your realm is dull.”
”Oh boohoo. Would you rather this?”
Helga snapped her fingers, and all brightness and colour disappeared. Surrounding us was the very picture of hell.
We sat on a precipice overlooking a bubbling pool of magma. Pitch black, shard-like mountains pierced the tumultuous clouds in this gloomy landscape.
Gone was the beautiful music of life, replaced with a harsh cacophony of inhuman screeches and howling wind. I almost vomited at the revolting stench seeping from the earth.
”Helga, don't be stupid,” Sirius complained, ”you know that this realm is not fit for life.”
”See how silly you are?”
She snapped her fingers again, and we returned to the picturesque lakeside scene.
”Anyway, sweetie, you took a real beating down there! I thought I told you not to die before the age of 30?”
Helga frowned in mock anger, pouting at my disobedience.
”Am I… dead?”
”No, no. Quite anticlimactic if you ask me. But you sure cut it fine!”
”And to think that you believed my experiment was so limited in scope,” Sirius scolded me, ”well, never-mind the details. How do you feel now that you are here?”
”I feel at peace. Like I'm in a warm blanket.”
”Oh,” Sirius's disappointment was palpable, ”is that it? No unnerving sensation?”
”Sirius darling, of course he wouldn't feel anything! The qi here is overwhelming, it's a miracle he's kept his form for so long!”
”But he has made the most progress, I thought that maybe…”
”Don't put so much pressure on the boy!” Helga interrupted, ”If you break him, I'll be really mad at you. I've been having so much fun!”
”Helga, you could simply go spectate one of the others.”
”Are you telling me to visit one of those old fogey's realms? Sirius darling, you really need new friends. I can introduce you…”
”NO!”