On Earth, in his modest bedroom, Noah woke up with a violent gasp that tore from his throat like a drowning man breaking the water's surface.
"AHHHHHHHHH!"
The scream was loud and involuntary, his body convulsing as phantom agony exploded through his chest. He clutched at his heart with both hands as if multiple swords were still embedded there, the memory of being impaled so vivid that his mind couldn't distinguish between past trauma and present reality.
His body was drenched in sweat, his clothes soaked through as if he'd been submerged in water. Every nerve ending screamed with residual pain that shouldn't exist but felt devastatingly real despite his apparent wholeness.
Looking around his familiar room with wild, disoriented eyes, Noah tried desperately to orient himself. The last thing he remembered was… what?
