Chapter 261
Awake (2)
IAM looked around and saw that the voice had originated from Reuel, who had a concerned expression on his face. Reuel's tone still echoed faintly in IAM's ears, he could hear it was tainted with disbelief and relief at once.
IAM blinked several times, his vision sluggishly sharpening as the blur in front of him began to settle into clearer shapes. He could see Henry and Yohan moving closer, their faces filled with worry. Beside them stood a man dressed in hospital clothes.
It was then IAM realised he was lying on a hospital bed. The faint smell of disinfectant hung in the air, and the soft hum of distant machines reminded him he was awake.
His limbs felt heavy, as though he had been asleep for years. With a quiet groan, he pushed himself up, his muscles trembling slightly, and looked around the room with dazed confusion.
White curtains hung neatly from a metal rail, dividing the space into narrow sections meant for privacy. The walls were a pale cream, simple and unadorned, and the floor reflected the soft glow of overhead lights.
A small table stood beside his bed, cluttered with folded cloths, a few clear bottles of antiseptic, and a metal tray holding unused medical tools. At the far end of the room, a pair of chairs sat close together, one of them slightly tilted forward as if someone had been sitting there for hours.
The air was cool, carrying that distinct scent only hospitals seemed to have—a mix of cleaning agents and something faintly metallic. The window blinds were half-open, letting in thin stripes of daylight that cut across the room and fell over IAM's blanket.
Everything looked ordinary, but it also felt distant—like a world he'd forgotten existed.
The man in the red hospital clothes stood beside the bed, his outfit simple—a clean red shirt and matching trousers that marked him as medical staff.
The only thing missing was the stethoscope around his neck...
IAM turned his gaze toward the others. Henry stood a few steps behind, his arms crossed tightly with his expression being a deep, worried frown. His concern in his eyes was unmistakable.
Yohan, on the other hand, looked conflicted. His face was neutral, but the way his thumb moved nervously against his palm betrayed his calm exterior. After a moment, he broke the silence.
"Are you okay?" he asked quietly, his tone was uncertain.
IAM didn't answer. His throat felt dry, his voice rough and foreign to him. After a pause, he finally managed to rasp out, "What… happened?"
"'What happened? What happened!? Did you forget? We were playing Una and suddenly you just started tripping balls. You were sweating, and had this terrified look on your face, staring at us with… such a strange look…" Reuel exclaimed, raising his eyebrows as his voice trailed off.
Henry picked up immediately, his tone firm but edged with concern. "And then you just passed out, so we brought you here."
Now, IAM wore a solemn expression as he asked, "How long have I been asleep?"
A tense silence followed. Yohan, Reuel, and Henry exchanged uneasy glances, their expressions reluctant and heavy.
Just as IAM began bracing for the worst, a member of the medical staff stepped forward and said gently, "Don't mind their teasing. It's only been thirteen hours."
Relief washed over IAM—thirteen hours wasn't nearly as long as he had feared. Still, a strange feeling lingered. In that other place, amidst the spawnling gas and the endless blue, he had felt as if years had passed, each moment stretching infinitely. Yet waking up revealed it had been only thirteen hours. Long, yes, but not the eternity he had imagined.
"When they came carrying you through the front door, I was quite surprised," the man in red said, his tone was calm yet edged with curiosity. "After a bit of probing, it seemed you'd entered some form of coma. You were completely unresponsive to any external contact—there was no reaction to light, sound, or touch. All we could do was wait and hope you woke up soon."
He paused briefly, his gaze sharpening. "It was actually quite an interesting case. There didn't appear to be anything wrong with you physically or mentally, yet you remained trapped in that state. The only anomaly I noticed was that your Avien wasn't active."
The others nodded in agreement, as though confirming his words. They, of course, already knew the reason behind that and were neither surprised nor curious.
The man turned back toward IAM, studying him for a moment before speaking again. "Still, we'll keep you under observation for a while longer. You've been out for thirteen hours — I want to be certain there's no delayed reaction."
He gestured to one of the assistants, who moved closer with a small diagnostic device. It hummed softly as it swept over IAM's body, scanning for fluctuations in his brain activity. A faint blue light traced over his chest, arms, and forehead before dimming out. The assistant glanced at the display, then shook her head.
"Same as before. Nothing irregular," she said quietly.
"Alright," the man replied. He leaned over and placed a small oxygen patch near IAM's neck, monitoring his pulse for a few seconds before removing it. "No physical issues. For now, just focus on breathing steadily and don't strain yourself. If anything feels off — pain, dizziness, numbness, anything — tell us immediately."
The assistant nurse leaned in with a penlight, shining it briefly into IAM's eyes. "Pupil response normal," she said softly, stepping back.
The man in red glanced at the readings before jotting a few notes on his digital pad. "Good. No lingering neural disruption. You seem fine—just… drained," he said, his tone professional.
He gave IAM a light nod. "Rest for today, and don't push yourself for at least twenty-four hours. Your system needs time to recalibrate."
He then turned toward Henry, Reuel, and Yohan. "Keep an eye on him. If he slips back into an unresponsive state, alert us immediately. "
The others nodded firmly, relief visible in their faces as the medical staff quietly packed their equipment away.