Light.

Dark.

Light.

Dark.

Light.

Dark.

Each time my eyes open, all they do is prove that they aren't capable of facing the blinding lights of above yet and fall closed once more, drowning me in an abyss so powerful, that I fear each second within it could very well be my last. Wait, where am I? Last I remember, I was on the floor of some building as an armed lunatic was closing in on me, likely with intent to, kill.


I can't be dead. That's crazy. Any second now, my eyes will open and I'll be back home, lurching forward while drenched in enough sweat to fill an Olympic swimming pool with a heart beating as if it was powered by the Energizer Bunny. I'm not dead. The abyss that I'm currently trapped in swells around me, coating my skin with its leathery touch as I continue my free fall to nowhere at a leisurely pace.


I stay, stuck in suspended animation as my appendages stay static as rock, not moving even an inch. My elbows jab into the sides of my ribcage with every breath I take. My chest is still expanding and contracting. I'm still breathing.


"Oh, but what if you are? What then, Kendall?"

That's when I see him.

Samuel Klein. The whole reason I'm stuck in this situation in the first place grinning back at me. His figure jotting out from beyond the furthest reaches of the abyss, dressed in the same clothes he was during the meeting and abduction. Black suit jacket, white dress shirt on underneath, with a mysterious red stain on the bottom that I didn't notice before, black trousers and a black tie. I could only wonder what the stain is, how I missed it the first time is astounding. He walks, smile wide and taunting, towards me as the leathery touch of the abyss turns to sandpaper grinding against my skin. Even on my immobile arms and legs, the scratching hurts. I try to scream, only for it to once again fall silent as Samuel stops his approach for a moment.

He's clapping.

Slowly.

If looks could kill.

"I hope you see the irony of that comment here."

He snaps his fingers and I feel nothing anymore. Not the clawing, scratching sensation of the abyss on my bare skin. Not my hair resting unsettled against the back of my head. Not a single thing. Once again, I assure myself, I'm not dead. This is all just a terrible nightmare and I should be waking up right about now.

Okay, now.

Now?

"Why is it that you all try to run and hide from the truth? Are you really not prepared to see the other side?"

I'm. Not. Dead.

"Oh, is that so? Well, silly me! Of course you'd know that information, wouldn't you?" He continues his walk towards me as he says that. The closer he comes, the more and more I can hear a faint rumble in his voice; repeating everything he says a second after he says it at a much lower pitch. "Come on Kendall, I thought you were smarter than this."

Light. Sweet light comes to my aid, blinding me yet at the same time lifting my body towards the sky. I try to force my eyes to remain open, despite the obvious straining I can feel as they struggle to keep themselves from shutting.

Dark. Depressing, deplorable darkness once again takes grip of my entire body, teasing me with the smooth leather touch. Samuel's closer now than he was when I vanished, almost a few feet away from my head. He stands laughing, clapping his hands once more as if he were a spectator and I was a performer on stage. My breath slows down, my chest starts to expand less and less the closer he draws.

Something's definitely not right here.


"Kendall, this isn't a dream. Do you even know who I am?"

Of course he's taunting me. Typical Samuel Klein.

"Wrong." His grin becomes especially cold and serpentine, his eyes fixed on mine.

My hands are shaking.

I can't control them, but I can feel them.

The leather of the abyss has once again become sandpaper. It's almost a routine. Wait...


"Is it not obvious? Do you need it spelled out? W-R-O-N-G. Wrong. Incorrect. Opposite of right. Ringing any bells?"


"You think-- you think that I'm lying to you? How dense can you get? Do you still think this is a dream?!"

He's starting to lose some of that calm and collected demeanor. That could be either really good, or really bad. For the love of God, wake up.

"For the love of God? My my, I thought you didn't believe in God Kendall. What happened to that?"


"You didn't have to because I'm not Samuel Klein."

Nothing. I feel nothing once more. Soon the light will be back and I can wake up. He snarls and points to my stomach, causing an unspeakable amount of pain to wash over me like a wave of jagged glass penetrating my pores. I'd scream if I could.

I'd clutch my stomach if I could.


"I bet you felt so in control there, didn't you?"


"Huh? What was that? I couldn't hear you over your constant denial of the truth."


"I'm surprised you even have to ask."

Oh no.

Oh fuck no.

There's no way it could be-- I'm not dead dammit.


"Keep fighting it Kendall. You won't win."

He vanishes.

He's gone.

He's, actually gone.

I start to rest easy, knowing that he's gone and that soon enough the light would be coming back to take me to the land of the conscious once more. It has to.


A thick liquid pours upwards from the back of my throat, filling everything up to the back of my teeth with its suffocation fuel. I try to swallow it, but it won't go down my throat. It just stays stuck in its place, no matter how hard I swallow. Over the silence of the abyss, I hear Samuel's laugh cut through everything and frantically look around for him with no luck. The same liquid starts to fill my nostrils as well, dripping out of them and onto my bare chest, smearing it black.

Where is the light?


Light.

"Nope."

Dark.

I'm still choking.

The liquid's still dripping onto my chest. It starts off feeling ice cold, almost as if it could cause frost bite. As the seconds pass however, it becomes hotter and hotter, scorching my skin until I can literally feel it start to peel away.

Cold.

Hot.

Cold.

Hot.

I don't know which is worse.

Light.

I can hardly contain myself as the blinding light beats down on my eyes. They're hurting from staring at it directly still, but they aren't instantly closing this time. Faintly, I can hear Samuel screaming but it's soon drowned out by footsteps and wheels rolling around what feels like right next to me. I swallow -- I can swallow. I'm not choking any more. I'm breathing frantically, gasping for any bit of oxygen around me without a second thought.

"I think she's waking up," an unfamiliar voice assures as I start to make out my surroundings a little more clearly. The pain in my stomach hasn't subsided, but it feels a lot more dull and bearable now.

"She's okay!" I hear Kara shout, and that's when I put two and two together.


My head falls back against the pillow. My eyes grow heavy once more.

Light.

Dark.

Light.

Dark.

No abyss.

No danger.

Just light.

And dark.