"Ugh."
A groan broke the silence.
"Argh."
I heard it again, then finally realized the sound was coming from none other than me.
Creak.
Huh? What's that?
Why can't I see anything? Why's it so dark, so damn dark?
My breathing came in ragged bursts. Haah, haah, haah.
I'm tired, so tired I can barely think straight.
"I can't feel... anything," I said, trying to orient myself but it wasn't working. I only grew more exhausted for some reason, like my body was shutting down.
What the hell is happening? Did I die?
Sighs.
Stupid. I'm so stupid.
How could I miscalculate that much? I mean, I knew wandering this world would be dangerous—I KNEW that. But I just didn't expect it would be THIS dangerous. I underestimated the strength of the monsters that dwell here, and I don't even know why. Perhaps it was because I thought they weren't supposed to be at the level of Nightmares, and since Nightmares weren't here, I figured I could handle myself.
I was wrong. So very wrong.
Not one monster was an easy target. Every single one of them, no matter how small, was larger than I was. EVERY. DAMN. ONE. The worst of it all was that monster that had marked me for some reason—the freak wouldn't back off no matter how much I ran. Even diversions couldn't throw it off. It always came back, always found me, always kept chasing. I can even bet all of what I have left that it was the very thing that had knocked me out at that final moment. It must have tracked me down like it always did.
What in the world did I even do to deserve this?
I just ended up wasting my second chance and killing myself with my very own hands. Everything from incapacitating Veronica in a stunt that almost killed me, to breaking the goddamn door, to walking out of that mansion—it all led to one end.
My death.
Stupid. I should have just found another way.
But then again, what way? If I don't get stronger, I'm cooked. Yes, I could manipulate those characters when I get the chance and all that, but what if I don't GET that chance? I have a feeling this run might not be like the last. I plan to completely stray from the plot, and that means staying completely off the radar of all main characters. But can I really do that? Can I really avoid all of them? What about Amelia then? What if she becomes just as obsessed as she was in the past? What then?
Without strength, I can't stop or control her. That's a given.
This isn't like Earth. No, this isn't Earth at all. This is Atlantis, and in this world, only power matters. That's why the family doesn't give a fuck who Artemis is—he couldn't awaken the bloodline, and that's the same reason those bastards were able to abandon me in the first place. I was the weakest, the most expendable, the most replaceable, the most worthless.
"Fuck."
Damn it. All this thinking is making me angry, REALLY angry.
No. It can't end like this. It can't end so pathetically. I have a life I DESIRE to live, a life where I die satisfied. NO. I can't die. I WON'T DIE LIKE THIS!