For a while, Jake said nothing.
If silence had a sound, it was the low hum of his own thoughts echoing in the emptiness. The void stretched endlessly around him, colorless, timeless, and yet alive—breathing softly, waiting.
The white energy still clung to him.
It no longer tore at his essence, but it didn't release him either. It wrapped around him like a beast in slumber, its breath cold, its presence heavy. Every faint ripple of movement in that energy felt like the stir of something that could awaken at any moment and devour him whole.
Jake's awareness tightened.
How… do I get rid of this thing?
He studied the energy with the only sense he had left—his consciousness. It was vast, dense, and predatory, coiling lazily around him, patient. Not attacking, not feeding… just waiting.
It's like it's watching me, he thought grimly. Waiting for me to weaken. Waiting for a single slip… and then it'll strike.
The realization crawled down what would've been his spine, cold and sharp.
Even here, even after surviving everything, he was still prey.
He remembered the sensation of being consumed, that helplessness, the suffocating numbness as his essence was devoured. His chest—or whatever replaced it in this state—tightened at the memory.
But this time… he wouldn't let it happen again.
He'd already faced death once. He wasn't planning to do it twice.
Jake tried everything.
He twisted his will, poured his energy outward, even attempted to tear the thing away from his essence—but nothing worked.
The white aura clung tighter each time, as if mocking every attempt to escape.
Minutes… hours… or maybe centuries passed. Time had no meaning here.
At last, he stopped struggling. His will trembled on the edge of exhaustion.
The more he resisted, the more the energy pulsed—like a heart that wasn't his own.
So this is it, he thought. I can't shake it off. Then maybe… I need to understand it.
Silence returned. Only the faint hum of the void surrounded him.
Jake began to think—deeply, methodically.
How did I even survive it before?
He replayed the memory, that moment when the light had eaten through everything—his body, his soul, even his sense of self.
He should've vanished. He almost did.
Then it struck him.
It wasn't strength or technique that saved him—it was emotion.That final surge of defiance, the raw, desperate will to exist, had blazed through him like fire, pushing the consuming energy back for a heartbeat.
And in that heartbeat, his consciousness had snapped awake again.
"The energy…" he whispered to himself. "It feeds on weakness of will. It waits for the mind to falter—then invades, consumes, erases."
The realization hit hard.
This wasn't ordinary power. It wasn't attacking flesh or soul—it was devouring resolve.It seeped into the cracks of one's consciousness, hollowing it out until nothing remained.
By rough estimation, Jake guessed that when he had regained his awareness, the protective shield around him—whatever force had saved him—had already been holding for a long time.
He didn't know how long. Maybe it was moments. Maybe eternities.But one thing was certain: once the will collapsed, there was no coming back.
Jake closed his eyes, feeling the faint tremor of that energy still pulsing beneath his consciousness.
Now he knew its nature.
And that meant, for the first time since this nightmare began… he had a chance to fight it on its own ground.
Jake took a slow breath — or something that felt like one in this shapeless void.
The white energy still lingered around him, coiling like a silent predator.Even now, a faint chill ran down his spine. Fear still existed — deep, buried, refusing to die.
But he wouldn't let it show. Not again.
Last time, fear had cracked his will… and that had almost cost him everything.He couldn't afford to tremble before this energy anymore — because he knew now what it truly was.
"The only thing that can fight you…" he muttered under his breath, eyes narrowing, "…is my mind."
He had learned its nature.That energy didn't destroy flesh — it devoured consciousness. It thrived on doubt, weakness, and fear.And now that he knew that truth, he finally had a weapon.
He smirked faintly — but the confidence didn't last long.
Hmm… I've found the answer, he thought bitterly. Mental energy — that's the key.But as the thought settled in, another followed right behind it… a colder one.
How do I even use it?
He frowned, frustration boiling inside him.He had a problem — and now he had a solution — but that solution brought a new problem.
It was like being handed a sword you couldn't lift.
Jake gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. The veins in his temples pulsed as he let out a sharp breath — half growl, half sigh.
"Ahhhhhhhhhh…!"
His voice echoed endlessly in the void, swallowed by the silence that followed.It was a scream of anger, confusion, and helpless determination — all mixed together.
The void didn't answer.Only that sleeping beast of white energy stirred faintly around him… as if amused.
"Think, Jake… think!"
His own voice echoed inside the empty void, harsh and desperate.
He had already faced death, been consumed by energy, torn apart, and reborn through sheer will… yet here he was again, lost and powerless.
"You don't have much time," he whispered to himself. "You don't even know what's next… maybe another second, maybe eternity."
He chuckled — a dry, bitter laugh that sounded almost mad.
"Hah… what's the point of time if it doesn't even exist here?"
The void offered no answer.
Only endless silence — endless nothing.
"Come on… think, damn it…!"
He slammed his fist into the unseen ground — or whatever surface this nothingness had — and the echo that followed twisted into a scream.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
The sound cracked through the void like lightning. His voice, filled with rage, fear, and exhaustion, was swallowed again by the emptiness.
"WHERE… THE… HELL… AM I TRAPPED!!!?"
The white energy pulsed faintly around him, as if mocking his fury.
Jake stood there, breathing hard, mind racing — and then, for the first time, he laughed again.
A hollow, self-mocking laugh.
"Fallen from the sky, stuck in a damn date tree…" he muttered, shaking his head.
The phrase fit perfectly — it was exactly what had happened to him.
Neither alive nor dead.
Neither free nor bound.
A man who escaped death… only to end up caught in something far worse.
The void hummed faintly, as if enjoying his misery.
Jake looked up, eyes burning faintly with defiance.
"…Figures," he said softly. "Just my luck."