Blank.

Everything was blank.

Just vast empty spaces of white that seemed to stretch all the way to the end of the world.

What is this place?

Why am I here?

I scratched my forehead to the point that it hurt, interrogating my memory for an answer.

There was the escort...

Soul Steel...

Runannan's Cut...

Gunfire...

Isa...

Wait...wait...wait...

"WAIT! ISA!"

My last thought seemed to pick up a voice, as it blasted throughout the vast space of emptiness.

Shouting her name felt good, it made me feel like I had a purpose.

I shouted her name several more times, but each un-answered echo only increased my worry. After calling out for an hour, I came to the realization that my shouts were nothing more than a whisper in the void.

I looked down.

I curled up.

I was exhausted, too tired too stretch, too tired to even think.

No...not like this...

Curses...

"Fresh meat."

The voice was unmistakable and I looked up to the source; my eyes stuck to the figure like a nail. After a brief recovery from the shock, I scrambled to my feet and simply blurred out:

"Isa..."

Her figure was solid, strong, confident, but at the same time her eyes were cold and distant. Even when I failed at a practice and during training, never have I seen so much detest in her eyes. I backed up a little.

"I mean sir," I fumbled with my words, trying my best to say this with a straight face, "Are you alright? At the cliff...I saw you stabbed right through..."

"You killed me."

That sentence caught me completely off guard, like a mine on a doorstep.

This can't be real, there must be some sort mistake...

I reassured myself, though part of me knew it was a lie.

I compressed my lips into a thin line and tried again:

"Sir, that's bullshit! I would never do something like that!"

Instead of an actual reply, she pointed a finger towards me. At first I thought she was just pointing at me then I realized she was pointing behind me.
I turned around and pain shot through my entire body, I looked down and couldn't even gasp. A long silvery blade has pierced my stomach and like a human kebab I was slowly being lifted up into the air. Blood gushed out of my mouth as I stared down at the figure, which appeared to be some sort of weird Barbie abomination. The body belonged to Soul steel no doubt, but its face...was a complete mirror of mine. I would have puked on spot if I could, but the pain was so much it stopped me from doing so.

"It's your fault." Came the sound of my own voice from the Soul Steel and me hybrid.

"Just shut the hell up! And let go of me you piece of shit!"

His expression went from a grin to a wicked grin, as he began to lower me and eventually let me slip away, but I didn't land on the ground like I expected. Instead I found myself falling through darkness with faces of my dead comrades consolidating in thin air every once and then, their expressions varying between degrees of agony to downright deformed.

First was the faces, then came the voices:

"Coward."

"Curse you 10 generations!"

"You killed us all..."

"It's all your fault..."

"Coward."

"You killed us all..."

"It's all your fault..."

"You killed us all!"

"YOU KILLED US ALL!"

"YOU KILLED US ALL!"

I could take it no more, as I spiraled down into the vortex of madness. My throat was raspy like paper; unable to deny the accusations. My body was frozen like a stone statue; unable to escape the persecution.

"It's all your fault."

That was the final blow, and I crashed onto the ground like a piece of broken clockwork. I looked up, and the corpses began to rain. And by the time it stopped:

I feel no more.

***

​Lights?

Voices?

My eyes flew open at once and I sat up a little too quickly; sending pain throughout my body. But moving on from the pain, I took a quick look at the surroundings and found myself in an almost identical room as last time, except it was dark and raining outside instead. The bed simply felt too humid, but when I tried to push myself up further, I found everything below my neck was strapped to the bedsheet.

Curses! So not only I am a patient, but a psychotic one too?

I leaned over to the side to inspect the straps. It was attached by hooks, probably enough hooks to even hold a truck in its place or something. It also had some sort of lock on it.

"Rin?" I called out, as I painfully wiggled my left arm out of the sheets.

"Kard!"

＼(≧▽≦)／

Her expression told me all about it, as she leaped from her projector in an attempt to hug me and only missed by a dimension.

"Kard you're awake!" she was literally tearing up, while I sat and watched. I was completely dumbstruck by her drama.

Dang, at this rate she will be the next virtual idol...

"Awake? How long was I passed out for?" I asked.

Rin stopped and the words seemed to be caught in her mouth, and when she did look like she was finally going to speak a voice cut her off:

"Kard! You're awake!" It was Dr. Cherrylove with her infectiousness smile once again. She was back in her doctor's clothes and when I looked behind her, I saw she was alone.

"Dr. can you help me loosen up those straps a bit? It's killing me." I said tilting my head towards her.

"Sure. I was just wondering how do you feel so far?"

"There was this dream...no, nightmare."

"That's unfortunate. Well you probably have a lot of questions, I will try to answer all of them, ok?"

"Okay..."

My brain went from 0 to 100 in a split second, with questions overflowing every single brain outlet. I winced, as I burrowed my head to concentrate. After only the gods knows how long, I un-borrowed my head and asked the first question that came to my mind.

"How's Isa? Is she still alive?"
There was an initial expression of shock, but that quickly turned into a sunny smile as she happily broke the news to me:

"Yes, there was surgery and all, it's a miracle she survived such a wound, or should I say It's a miracle its self that she was able to achieve such a superhuman body..."

Seeing my reaction, she giggled several times in a very un-adult manner and somehow I found myself laughing with her.

"So how long was I out for?"

Dr. Cherrylove pursed her lips before answering:

"A week and a day, if you count today."

"I see." I responded, not really surprised.

"Soul Steel?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

Dr. Cherrylove smile disappeared as she answered this one:

"I am afraid he has made an official escape, Rojin is re-hosting a new task force to take on the case. Don't worry, he will be caught soon."

"The men?"

Dr. Cherrylove blinked.

"I mean..." my tone plummeted, as if it was carrying several anvils, "did anyone else survive?"

She turned away for a moment, then said:

"Unfortunately, no. I'm sorry Kard..."

"You don't need to be sorry..." I said covering one eye with my hand.

Silence.

After what seemed like several eternities, I cleared my throat and spoke again:

"Can you remove the sheets now? My legs feel really stiff."

For a moment I thought I saw the color on her face change, but that was quickly put away as she brightened me up with a small smile on her face. A moment later, she produced a key from her white coat and unlocked one side of my bed sheet. Once free, I pushed myself upwards and threw away my bed sheets.

Dr. Cherrylove seemed panicked, something she rarely was. Curious, I traced her line of sight to where she was looking...

No...

This can't be real

No...no...no...

NONONONONONO!!!!!!

CURSES! CURSES!

CURSESSSSSSSSSSS!!!

Last thing I saw before I blacked out, was a pair of mechanical legs.

Q: How would you feel if all your limbs were replaced by robotic ones?