Red veins erupted across his skin like lightning made of blood, spreading from his heart outward in branching patterns that traced down his arms and up his neck.
The sensation was like being branded from the inside, as if molten metal was flowing through his circulatory system, rewriting every nerve ending with liquid fire.
Jack collapsed to his knees, a scream tearing from his throat that echoed off the mountain walls.
His back arched as waves of agony crashed through him, each pulse feeling like his bones were being shattered and reformed.
The pain was so intense that his body convulsed, muscles seizing as if struck by lightning.
His vision went white, then black, then white again as consciousness threatened to abandon him entirely.
Saliva mixed with blood dripped from his mouth as he bit down hard enough to crack his teeth. Every heartbeat felt like a hammer blow against his ribs from the inside.
