I woke up feeling dizzy and unsure of where I was. The off-white tiles blurred and everything else spun around me. All I could feel was the warm water, streaming down over me like hot rain and the pain of my injuries reminding me that I was still alive, for now. My mind was fuzzy and the only thing I could concentrate on was her. I could see her clearly, even though I knew she wasn't there. She was always there when I was close to death, like my own personal grim reaper, waiting to comfort me in my last breaths. The darkness of her hair was contrasted by the bright blue of her eyes. It was like seeing bright patches of blue sky shine through on a dark, cloudy day. It gave me hope and peace. She wore the same dress as always, the light blue one with the black rose pattern. It was the last thing I saw her in before I ended up here, in this game.

But I knew this wasn't the end for me. I was still breathing and no one had come to finish the job, not yet. No one was around, I had no chills. That said, I knew I needed to move. If I lingered here, I would die. Maybe from another player of the game or maybe from blood loss, but I would lose all the same.

Using the wall as leverage, I shakily got to my feet and turned off the shower. Everything moved and swirled around me; I nearly fell back down, but I grabbed onto a support beam that was attached to the wall, with my left arm. The sting all throughout my arm and shoulder kept me alert enough to stay standing, if only barely. I took off my waterlogged jacket, it took some effort, but it finally came loose and I abandoned it, looking at the bloody mess on the ground, which I had made.

The longer I was on my feet, the more everything came into focus, but also the worse I felt. Light-headed, dizzy and tired, I wasn't sure if I should stay standing or sit back down. I found a sink and inched my way to it, leaning on it for support and looked at myself in the mirror. I had definitely looked better. I hadn't even noticed the cuts on my face or the bruise around my eye, and that was probably the part of me that looked best. I examined my dislocated shoulder. I didn't think I could put it back in its socket, not in the shape I was in. How was I going to do this? How could I keep going?

"Maybe I should find a team to finish me off," I suggested to myself.

"No," she said, although, I knew it was only in my mind. "You can do this. You have allies that will help you."

Her face was beautiful and her pink lips smiled at me. I wanted to kiss her. "What allies? Zack?" I huffed.

She shook her head, "Xander will help you."

Strange that he was the one to come to mind. He did seem loyal and I had liked him. Maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to seek him out. "Any ideas where I can find him?"

She looked towards the door and smiled, "Well...he's not in here."

I didn't want to leave just yet. I wasn't ready to let her fade away into my memory again, to return only when I'm about to die. Turning away from the mirror, I looked at her, ignoring the pain in my body. "I miss you."

"Then win this thing and find me."

I looked deep into her sky blue eyes, "How long has it been?"

"Too long. Come home."

"I'm not sure this one will be mine to win."

She looked at me for what felt like an eternity and I took in her beauty, letting it relax me as it always had. It took her three steps to reach me and she leaned in, our faces were an inch from touching. I closed my eyes, feeling the warmth of her breath and wanting to accept her lips onto mine. "I see nothing wrong with you that you can't handle," She teased.

I opened my eyes and she was gone. All of the air in my lungs had left and I swore to myself that I would never again close my eyes around her. Feeling sorry for myself, but determined to move on, I started walking towards the door. It was difficult to move but I managed, focusing on each step, rather than the destination. I got to the door and opened it, not sure if I was ready to brave the dangerous world I was in.

My eyes squinted involuntarily, trying to take in the bright, yellow sun as I looked around, searching for a sign for where to go. I moved away from the beach and towards the outskirts of the nearby town, hoping that no one would find me like this. The sand was difficult to walk through and I had never been so happy to see sidewalk when I reached it. Pain reminded me to stay awake. My body wanted me to stop and rest, but my mind wouldn't let it. One more step. Just one more.

It would be hard to find someone specific if I wasn't injured. There was no telling where Xander was and it was unlikely that I'd make it to him before someone found me. Nor did I know if he would take pity on me, or if he would simply attack me. I was free-game and he really didn't have any loyalties to me, at least, not in this cycle. The graveyard would be the best place to look for help. Maybe I'd get lucky and find that healing woman from last time. If nothing else, I should be able to stay there and treat my wounds for a little while. Allison had said that the graveyard was a bit north of the forest. The problem was, I didn't know where the forest was from here. I had lost my bearings. I decided to simply go in the direction I was already headed. If I found the forest or somewhere familiar, I would head north from there.

My stomach reminded me that I hadn't eaten in a long time; not since breakfast with Allison; and I was no longer sure if that had been earlier today or yesterday. I remembered putting food in her ability's storage space and wished that I had also packed some food in my pocket, but I hadn't. I had relied on her too much and now I was paying the price. I had made risky moves and made early mistakes during this game. I jumped off a cliff, nearly dying in the process. I had let Allison die after just becoming her ally. If I had been more prepared for the attack, maybe I could've saved her. Maybe I wouldn't have gotten injured at all. But this line of thought was dangerous; regrets do nothing but distract and dull the mind. I had to force myself to stop thinking about it. 'Keep looking at where you're going and not at the ground. If you see someone before you feel them, you might be able to avoid a dangerous situation. Just one more step.'

"Do you remember talking on walks with me?" She said, appearing out of nowhere and walking casually beside me, the blue dress blowing with the breeze.

"Yes."

"We would go for hours, talking about nothing."

"And everything," I added.

She laughed, then looked behind, "You're leaving a trail."

I looked behind me and realized that I had indeed left a trail. Blood dripped every several steps, clearly pointing out my direction on the light cement of the sidewalk. There was little I could do about it in my present state, so I took a deep breath and kept moving.

She put her hands on her hips as she walked. "I guess you'll have to move quickly, or someone might find you."

The roads began to change. I wouldn't have noticed if not for one of the buildings being painted a bright purple; strange color for a house. It disappeared and was replaced with a bland, brown house. But thanks to that one building, I had noticed that I walked past another border. I was either at the top of the map, or the bottom, the ocean and the fields were the east and west of the map.

"If you don't do something soon, you're going to pass out again," she said casually. "You're losing too much blood."

"I can make it a bit longer."

"Better hope you find someone soon. Losing consciousness out in the open like this is risky business." She leaped ahead, turned to face me and raised a finger in the air while walking backward. "How about this? Shout out, Help!"

"That's a joke."

"Yeah. You're really not great at making jokes, you know? Not even to save your life."

A chill ran down my spine and I was alone again. I wasn't sure if I was happy to know someone was near, or if I was dreading the likely death that was about to come. I did the only thing I could do; I kept going. I was walking along the side of a gas station but just before I rounded the corner, I heard voices. I perked up a little because I recognized them.

"Would you accompany me?" A man said.

"Umm... wait a minute. Who are you?" A second male voice said.

I instantly recognized both of the voices. The second one was Xander and I couldn't believe my luck. It was doubtful that anyone would take me as an ally in the shape I was currently in, but Xander was different. He was still new to the game. It was easier for people to ally themselves with others that they are at least somewhat familiar with. Hopefully, I had made a good enough impression on him in the last cycle that he would help me. I just had to reach him in time. I was still a few feet from where they were.

"Keep moving," her voice urged, formless but still inspiring.

Everything hurts.

"Focus on each footstep."

I need to be faster. I need to reach him.

"Don't worry about what you will need to do or say, just take it one step at a time."

I summoned my sword as I reached the edge of the building. The man talking with Xander had his back to me and I wasted no time. I wasn't sure how much time I'd have before I lost consciousness from blood loss. Hoping that I had enough strength, I slashed my blade across the man's neck, only cutting halfway through, but still making him vanish. Xander jumped, frightened and his sword and shield were out in the next instant. His eyes widened when he saw me.

"He'd only lead you somewhere...to kill you." I managed, swaying in place. There was someone else with Xander but I could no longer see. Darkness overtook me.

It felt like I had only been unconscious for a minute. One moment I was asleep, the next I was awake. When my mind cleared, I realized that I was still in a lot of pain, but I was bandaged and not dead. My shirt had been taken off and my pants were rolled up to my knees. A hot dog, an open bag of chips and a plastic cup were sitting near me. Realizing how hungry I was, I sat up and quietly ate. I wasn't ready to stand up, so I stayed, leaning against the wall and breathed deeply, trying to expel the dizziness I felt. Someone walked into my vision.

"Oh, good. You're awake," she said. "Xander! He's up!"

"You," I said, remembering, "You're a healer."

"Yeah, but we need to talk before I heal you, okay?"

I nodded and waited for Xander to arrive. He looked good, confident and strong. I was proud to say that I showed him the ropes and trained him. I was also proud of the fact that he won his first game, beating Zack; it was an impressive feat. He looked at me with concerned eyes and he sat down with the healer girl.

"You look terrible," Xander stated.

"You should see the other guy," I grunted.

"What happened?"

I shook my head, "Just a rough start to the cycle. It happens sometimes."

"I'm surprised you didn't just lay down and die," the girl said.

"Who are-"

"Oh, right. I'm Anne," she said brightly.

"Anne. Nice to meet you. I'm still in a lot of pain, can you tell me why we're hesitant to heal me? I would hope that it's obvious that I am looking for a team to join."

"Well, that's good to hear and all, but there's a problem." Anne pointed at my right shoulder. "That needs to be put in place first. I can heal broken bones or weird things like that, but they heal as they are. A broken bone can heal wrong and you won't be able to use it properly unless it's rebroken, set and rehealed. A dislocated shoulder? I don't know what would happen if I tried to heal it before we put it back in its place."

"I see," I said and began to slowly stand up. Xander gingerly helped me to my feet and I looked at him. "I need you to do this."

"I've never done it before," he looked nervous.

"Relax." Once I said it, I saw his face quirk up and he forced back a smile. "I'll walk you through it. When you're ready, grab my arm by the wrist." Xander's face constricted in discomfort but did as I instructed. "You need to keep my arm straight, okay?"

"Eww... Okay."

"Now, we need to gently get my arm to shoulder height. Go slow and use a sort of up and down motion to gradually move it up." I clenched my teeth at the discomfort. Xander apologized but I told him not to worry. "Alright, we need to rotate my arm to get it in place."

"What?"

"Just feel it out." Xander tried, but he was being too gentle and nothing was happening, other than the pain it was causing. "You need to be more firm," I growled. I could feel a painful grinding sensation, which made me wince with every movement my arm made. Xander adjusted his approach, but the only change was that he was grabbing my arm tighter. "Come on, Xander, put your weight into it!"

POP!

"Ah! Sorry, sorry!" Xander said as I cursed and grunted loudly. But I could move my shoulder on my own now, albeit with some pain.

"No. I think we did it." I sat back down, landing hard on the tiled floor, "Thanks."

"Oookay," Anne said, "That was gross. Now that it's over, let's heal you up."