The words hung in the atmosphere for a while, almost as if the name itself demanded a dramatic pause.
[Elias] "The world in between?"
Confusion hit first. What the hell was it in between? And why wasn't this place affected by the reformation of the world?
Then realization hit.
He was between the dream and the real world. Elias was quite literally in between worlds right now.
That door wasn't just a door to a random corridor; it was a gateway into the insulation of the world itself.
Elias reached out to touch the walls, but the moment his fingertips brushed the surface, his hand jolted back on instinct.
Ripples spread across the walls like disturbed water. His touch was clearly not welcome here.
Elias shot a look at his mentor, prompting him for an explanation.
['Elias'] "The world in between isn't a world for the living. In fact, this place is more like a prison."
A prison?
The wording felt wrong—uncomfortable.
['Elias'] "A prison for souls. Most similar to death row. The world in between is made for nothing to consume."
His explanation was somehow even more confusing. Nothing consuming souls? How could nothing consume anything?
[Elias] "How can nothing eat if nothing doesn't exist?"
['Elias'] "Truly naive. Nothing doesn't have to be the absence of everything. Nothing is still something—something alive."
Pieces began slotting together in Elias's head.
[Elias] "Nothing… is an entity that feasts on souls. This place prepares those souls for consumption, then?"
'Elias' simply nodded. But a nod wasn't enough. If this place was a preparation chamber for being eaten alive, why were they here at all?
He realized he had said that last part out loud when 'Elias' responded:
['Elias'] "While it is true he eats souls, he cannot eat me. Nor can he eat flesh."
['Elias'] "If a soul is deep enough, it regenerates here faster than 'nothing' can consume it."
It made sense—sort of. There were still dozens of questions Elias wanted to ask, but he feared annoying his teacher.
At the end of the lecture, all he could muster was a long, weary sigh.
What kind of being could create a place that even "nothing" couldn't fully dominate? Whatever it was, Elias was both relieved it was gone and terrified that something even worse had replaced it.
The corridors were long and white, stretching for hundreds of feet before turning inward. The place gave Elias an odd mixture of wariness and warmth—a combination so unnatural it made his skin crawl.
The more he thought about it, the more he realized the emotions were fighting each other.
And if they were fighting…
Elias froze.
Which feeling was his?
[Elias] "Teacher, when can we escape this place?"
At the word "teacher," 'Elias' laughed. A short, amused sound — but his smile tightened afterward.
['Elias'] "I am unable to leave for now. The wounds I took during the reforming are too severe to move yet."
[Elias] "Your physical state looks fine. Even your, uh… unpleasant arm is normal now."
To that, 'Elias' smiled.
'Tsk tsk.'
He clicked his tongue.
['Elias'] "Although they look fine on the outside, my cells are still reforming inside. In this place, 'nothing' prefers its potential prey to look appetizing, before actually being appetizing."
Unease slithered into Elias's heart. Something out there—something that dared label his past self as prey—was a thing he hoped to never see.
[Elias] "So how do I get out?"
'Elias' pondered for a moment, eyes rolling upward like he was scanning his own memories.
'I think…'
['Elias'] "I think you're a complete and utter idiot."
His patience, already thin, thinned even further. Before he could snap back, 'Elias' cut him off:
['Elias'] "All you need to do is walk back out the door you came through."
Elias paused.
Maybe he truly was a complete and utter idiot. The solution was so embarrassingly simple his face burned.
At least he could—
Why did he feel like he was being watched?
He looked around several times, waiting to catch someone in the act.
Nobody was there.
And that scared him more than if someone had been.
So he bolted for the door with zero hesitation—
Exactly unlike someone who would be a complete and utter idiot.