Chapter 49: Monster

Evan’s consciousness finally broke through the darkness.

His eyes snapped open.

The first thing he felt was the weight of someone lying on top of him, followed by the metallic taste of blood lingering in the air. His vision was still blurred, but when he lowered his gaze, his heart immediately tightened.

Lumi was lying unconscious against his chest.

There was blood on her lips, more of it staining the front of her clothes, while some of it had splattered across Evan’s face when she suddenly coughed it out inside his mental space.

"Lumi..."

His voice came out hoarse.

He tried to move, but his entire body felt as though every last bit of strength had been drained from it. His arms trembled as he struggled to push himself upright, only managing to lift his head slightly before the exhaustion forced him back down.

He looked around desperately.

The broken dungeon was still around them, with pieces of stone scattered across the ground and the faint smell of something burned lingering in the air. Somewhere nearby, he could hear the others moving, but his vision refused to focus properly.

"Leon..." His voice was barely audible.

He swallowed painfully and forced himself to speak louder.

"Leon... Raphael..." His breathing became heavier as he tried to gather enough strength to shout. "Call the medic!"

The moment the words left his mouth, Evan’s vision suddenly went black.

His body went completely limp beneath Lumi. And once again, the strongest Sentinel in the Empire collapsed.

=====

Evan opened his eyes again.

The familiar white ceiling of the hospital greeted him, and for a few seconds, he simply stared at it without moving, his mind still struggling to piece together what had happened. Then the memory of Lumi lying unconscious on top of him suddenly rushed back.

His eyes widened.

"Lumi..."

He immediately turned his head, only to find Darian sitting beside the bed, his arms folded across his chest as he watched him with a tired expression.

"Where is she?"

Darian’s eyebrows lifted. "Good morning to you too."

"Where is Lumi?"

Evan tried to sit up before Darian could answer, but the moment he moved, a sharp pain spread through his entire body. He flinched, his hand instinctively gripping the bedsheet as his muscles protested against the sudden movement.

His entire body hurt.

It wasn’t the familiar soreness after using too much Sentinel power. This time, every muscle felt as though it had been torn apart and put back together, while his head throbbed from the strain of forcing himself out of Rampage.

Darian immediately reached out to steady him. "Easy. Don’t try to get up so quickly."

Evan ignored him and tried to push himself upright again, his jaw tightening as another wave of pain ran through his body.

"Where is Lumi?" he repeated, his voice rougher this time.

Darian’s expression finally became serious. "She’s here."

Evan froze. "Here?"

"She’s in the operation room. The doctors are still treating her."

The tension in Evan’s shoulders eased for barely a second before his expression tightened again.

"What happened?"

Darian straightened himself, his expression becoming more serious.

"Her body received too many of your blows and couldn’t recover fast enough. I mean..." He paused, seemingly struggling to find the right words.

"She was badly injured before you finally came out of the Rampage, and even though she has an unusual ability to heal herself, her body still needed time to recover from the damage."

Evan’s expression darkened. "How bad?"

Darian hesitated again. "Bad enough that the medic didn’t want anyone disturbing her while she was being treated."

Evan’s fingers tightened around the bedsheet. "Why the hell did you send her in?!"

Darian stiffened. "I—I thought she could—"

"Shit! Damn it!"

Evan covered his face with one hand, his breathing becoming heavier as fragmented images flashed through his mind. He remembered Lumi standing in front of him, remembered her voice, and remembered the feeling of her presence somewhere deep within his consciousness, but everything else was blurred beneath the chaos of his Rampage.

He couldn’t remember exactly what he had done to her.

That was what frightened him the most.

"This is my fault..." he muttered, his voice strained. "I shouldn’t have brought her along..."

Darian stared at him for a moment before answering carefully. "You didn’t exactly remember what you were doing either, Evan."

Evan slowly lowered his hand.

"I know." His gaze dropped to his trembling fingers. "But that doesn’t change what happened to her."

Evan remained silent for a moment before lifting his gaze toward Darian. "Where is she now?"

"In the operation room." Darian answered again, although he did tell him earlier.

Evan’s expression tightened. "How long?"

Darian glanced at the time before answering. "Eight hours."

Evan’s eyes widened slightly. "I’ve been unconscious for eight hours?"

"Yeah."

"And Lumi has been in there the entire time?"

Darian nodded, "She was taken into the operation room shortly after you both collapsed. She’s been there ever since."

Evan’s fingers slowly tightened around the bedsheet again.

Eight hours.

He had been unconscious for eight hours, while Lumi had spent every one of those hours inside the operation room because of the injuries she had suffered during his Rampage.

His chest tightened at the thought.

Evan lowered his head, his fingers slowly curling into the bedsheet as a heavy sense of guilt settled over him. He couldn’t remember everything that had happened while he was in Rampage, but perhaps that made it even worse.

He knew what he was capable of, and he knew how easily his power could turn against the people around him when he lost control.

And this time, Lumi had been the one standing in front of him.

"I did it again..." he muttered.

Darian frowned slightly.

Evan’s gaze remained lowered as an old memory suddenly surfaced from somewhere deep within his mind.

He was younger then.

It had been the first time his Sentinel power had completely overwhelmed him, and he had nearly killed Leon before the adults managed to restrain him. Evan could still remember the confusion, the screaming, and the electricity tearing through the room as everyone desperately tried to stop him.

But what remained clearest in his memory was his mother’s voice.

Her frightened face. And the word she had thrown at him while looking at the power surrounding his body.

Monster.