Raze's eyes snapped open and he gasped, lungs burning as if he'd been drowning for hours. Air rushed into his chest in desperate gulps, his body demanding oxygen with urgency that bordered on panic.
Gasp gasp gasp.
His hands clawed at the rubble beneath him, fingers scraping against broken stone as he tried to orient himself. The world spun violently, his vision swimming with afterimages that made distinguishing reality from hallucination nearly impossible.
He rolled onto his side and retched, stomach heaving though nothing came up. The dry convulsions wracked his body for several seconds before subsiding into trembling weakness.
Hack hack hack.
His breathing gradually steadied, becoming less frantic as his body remembered how to process air normally. But confusion remained absolute, his mind struggling to grasp where he was or what had happened.
