Phase 26 “The Awakening”
“Get the hell away from me!” When Nathan finally opened his eyes, he let out a terrified scream as he emerged from the nightmare he had been suffering. What exactly was the nature of that nightmare? Because he could still feel the pain penetrating his entire body, it gave the impression to him that it was a very genuine event. It appeared as though he had not been dreaming at all during that entire period of time. Everything was real.
“Na... than...” The feeble voice of Benji gave Nathan a sudden shock and frightened him. He quickly moved his gaze to the right. He was more terrified when he saw Benji was struggling to breathe while lying on the ground with blood all over him. Nathan tried to go to Benji's side as quickly as possible, but the chains that were attached to both of his legs stopped him from doing so. It was pointless for him to struggle because he could see that Benji was also chained on his feet.
“Ben... I'll get us out of this. Please just hang in there,” When Nathan turned to look around, he realized that they were in some sort of dungeon or prison underground. The bar was constructed entirely of metal, yet the ground, the walls, and the ceiling were all made of clay. Somehow, it reminded him of the cave that he saw in his nightmares.
“Nat... I... I was...” Benji was unable to utter a proper word because the bitter cold and the excruciating pain were taking their toll on him. Benji was requested to be quiet by Nathan, but he ignored his request and said, “I was... bitten and... So were... you...”
Nathan's body went completely still. He gazed intently into Benji's tired eyes for a long time. Benji was having trouble breathing, and although Nathan was unable to locate a vein, he could feel that Benji's heartbeat was weak. In the meantime, Nathan was doing completely well, and he could confidently assert that he was healthy and even in better shape than before. After regaining consciousness, Nathan looked at his watch and noticed that more than an hour had passed since he had last seen the creature in the woods. At this point, he ought to reanimate as a zombie, or at the very least appear to be somewhat undead.
“I don't get it...” Nathan was so confused and scared that he was on the verge of crying out in distress. Both he and Benji came out of nowhere, were bitten, and their lives were in danger. They were unable to get in touch with Dominique because the younger man appeared to have disappeared. It was possible that Kaien and Allen were also suffering and dying somewhere or already been killed.
“You... screamed... a lot, Nathan.” Benji's words came out in the pauses between his labored breaths. “You suffered a nightmare... and the pain... kept coming at you... over and over again...”
After that, Nathan's memory began to return to him in small fragments. He shuddered as he had the sense of the lethal death pain almost getting him again, but it was just a delusion on his part.
“You're like them, Nathan... turned out to be one... can't be infected...” Benji mumbled and repeated himself. “You're like them, Nat...” Benji grimaced in discomfort as he was unable to proceed and finish his sentence. Nathan hurried to catch up with Benji, only to be flung down on the freezing floor. No matter how hard Nathan tried, the chain would not break. The situation was hopeless. Even worse, he even bled himself.
The abrupt cries that came from Benji filled the still air, and they tore to the very core of every living thing, including Nathan's. He could not take it any longer. Seeing Benji fall apart piece by piece in front of him while he was powerless to stop it was unbearable for him. The dread did not abate, and as a result of Benji's struggle, the gash on his shoulder opened up once more, and blood began to seep out. This made the situation even more terrifying. Nathan initially reacted with shock, but then he understood what had happened.
Benji had a chance to survive, no, Benji needed to survive or otherwise Nathan would kill him. The process, the suffering, the screams—everything seemed so perfect, just like when a broken one awakened. The only question that remained was whether or not Benji would make it. Would Benji have a chance of winning against it? The only thing Nathan could do was curl up into a ball and pray that Benji would be okay.