Chương 36: Chapter 35: Into the Void’s Embrace
As Adrian stepped through the door, the familiar sensation of weightlessness gripped him. The darkness beyond the threshold wasn't just an absence of light—it was an oppressive void that seemed to absorb everything, even the faintest hint of hope. The air was cold, almost freezing, biting at his skin as he crossed the boundary between worlds.
This time, though, it felt different.
The void had always been suffocating, but now it welcomed him like a long-lost friend. The pull wasn't frantic or chaotic—it was deliberate, as if the abyss had been expecting his return. And maybe it had. The further he walked, the more the echoes in his mind grew louder. They weren't just voices anymore. They were familiar—Elara, the girl from the hospital, and others he had long forgotten. They all whispered to him, calling his name, luring him deeper into the blackness.
For a moment, Adrian closed his eyes, letting the voices wash over him. He had no idea where he was headed or what awaited him, but he couldn't deny the pull any longer. There was no escaping it. The shadows had claimed him long ago, and now, they demanded his full surrender.
The path before him seemed endless, and yet, there was something guiding his steps. The floor beneath his feet was cold and smooth, like polished stone. He felt as if he were walking on the surface of the abyss itself. With each step, the darkness around him grew thicker, denser, as though the void was swallowing him whole.
But Adrian felt no fear.
The fear had left him long ago, replaced by a numb acceptance. Whatever awaited him in the depths of the abyss, he was ready for it. He had to be. Too much had been sacrificed, too much had been lost. And now, he had nothing left to give but himself.
Ahead of him, a faint glow appeared, a flicker of light barely visible in the sea of blackness. It was small, fragile, like a candle struggling against the wind, but it drew him in, calling to him. Adrian quickened his pace, the whispers growing louder, more insistent. The voices of the abyss seemed to merge into one, forming a singular entity that spoke directly to his soul.
"Come closer, Adrian. You are almost there."
The light grew brighter as he approached, revealing what lay ahead—a figure standing at the edge of the void. She was bathed in the glow of the flickering light, her form ghostly and translucent. It was Elara.
Her face, pale and haunting, stared back at him with an intensity that pierced through his very being. Her eyes, wide and filled with a mixture of sorrow and something darker, held him captive. She didn't speak, but Adrian could feel her presence like a weight pressing down on his chest.
"Elara…" Adrian's voice was barely a whisper, but it echoed endlessly in the void.
She raised a hand, beckoning him closer. The light around her flickered, casting long shadows that twisted and writhed in the darkness.
"You've come far," she said, her voice soft and ethereal. "But there is still more to see."
Adrian took a hesitant step forward, his heart pounding. "What is this place? Why did you bring me here?"
Elara's expression softened, her eyes filled with a deep sadness. "I didn't bring you here. You came on your own. This… this is where the truth lies."
Adrian's breath caught in his throat. The truth. The one thing he had been running from all along. The truth about the girl, about the shadows, about himself. It was all here, waiting for him in the void.
"You've always known," Elara continued, her voice barely more than a whisper. "The void is not just a place. It's a reflection of you, of what you've hidden, of what you've denied."
The words struck him like a blow, the weight of them sinking deep into his soul. The truth was too much to bear, but he couldn't turn away now. Not after everything. Not when he was so close.
Adrian took another step, the light growing stronger around Elara. Her form became more solid, more real, as if the void itself was beginning to give way to something else. But the darkness still lingered, clinging to him, to her, to everything.
"Then show me," Adrian said, his voice steady despite the turmoil inside him. "Show me the truth."
Elara nodded slowly, her eyes filled with something akin to pity. "Once you see it, there's no going back."
Adrian hesitated for only a moment before nodding. "I'm ready."
The light around Elara flared, blinding him for a moment. When it faded, the void was gone, replaced by a scene so familiar, so painfully real, that Adrian almost couldn't breathe.
He was standing in the operating room at St. Vincent's Hospital, the same room where he had performed the surgery on the girl. The harsh fluorescent lights buzzed overhead, casting a sterile glow over the scene. Adrian's younger self stood over the operating table, his hands steady as he worked to save her life.
But there was something wrong.
The girl on the table wasn't the same. Her face was different, distorted, as if the void had twisted her features. Her eyes were wide open, staring directly at him, accusing him. The room seemed to warp around them, the walls closing in, suffocating him.
Adrian's breath came in shallow gasps as the truth began to unravel before him. This wasn't just a memory. It was a revelation.
The girl on the table… she was Elara.
His heart pounded in his chest, the realization crashing down on him like a tidal wave. The surgery, the girl, the shadows—it had all been connected from the very beginning. The void hadn't just claimed Elara. It had claimed him, too.
Elara's voice echoed through the operating room, soft and mournful. "You tried to save me. But some things can't be saved."
Adrian's legs buckled beneath him as the weight of the truth finally became too much to bear. He sank to the floor, his mind reeling. The void had never been about the girl. It had always been about him.
And now, there was no escape.
The abyss had claimed him. And this time, it wasn't letting go.
As the scene faded into darkness, Adrian realized that the void wasn't just a reflection of his soul.
It was his soul.
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