Slowly, the night dragged on and I found myself falling asleep. In one moment I was in my hospital bed, in the next I was back in an all too familiar floating space. “Why am I???”

“YOU!!”

A shout that shook me to the core caused me to unconsciously turn my head to where I thought it came from. To my surprise, Lilia wasn’t floating there. Instead there was a kid with a deep scowl on his face. His hair was sparkly silver and his eyes were a myriad of colors. His attire consisted of a white t-shirt, black vest and khaki shorts and dress shoes.

Before I could say anything, another shout erupted from him. Pain shot throughout my body and it felt like I was being torn apart from within.

“YOU RUINED THE GAME!!!” The child screamed as a myriad of lights erupted from his figure.

“SHUT UP!” I screamed with all of my might, but to no avail. The child continued screaming over me.

“RUINED IT! RUINED IT! RUINED IT! RUINED IT!!!” I watched in horror as the child transformed into various animals and creatures that I could never have imagined.

Pain wracked my body, and I began to pass over and over again. Only to be reawakened by the same screaming that knocked me unconscious.

For who knows how long, I was trapped in a seemingly endless cycle of fainting, reawakening, and unimaginable pain. Until..

“YOU DIDN’T FOLLOW THE RULES!” The child finally stopped his temper tantrum, and stood over me.

A multitude of questions flooded my mind. But, one stood out more than the rest. “...are you the one that made the game?”

The child scoffed. “What a stupid question? You’re just a stupid mortal doing stupid stuff!” The child pointed a finger at me. His finger shined a sionster red and I felt shivers run all over my body. “I’m going to destroy your soul right now…”

If I die.. It’ll finally be over. Finally…

The images of Riri, Saya, Hannah, Miyuki, Kenzie, Jennifer flooded my head. Like a memory that refused to die. A fire burned inside of me, burning away all of my negative thoughts.

I can’t give up!

I don’t know why.. But I have a really good feeling that he’s the one that punished me for breaking the rule.

Breaking the rules.. Ruined the game.. He’s speaking like.. “...But…would that be fun?”

The child paused, tilting his head to the side. “What?”

Every child likes to have fun.. It’s a game after all.. “Wouldn’t it be better for me to struggle before I die? That would be really fun…”

The red light on the child’s finger suddenly disappeared. “Maybe…”

“Maybe…” I responded in kind. R

There was an intense stalemate between the child and I as he looked to be contemplating my suggestion. I could feel myself shaking as I patiently awaited his answer.

The child’s eyes narrowed, and he held a curious gaze in his eyes. “Hmmm… I guess you’re not so dumb after all.”

“Thank you.” Careful… he’s still a child and an unstable one at that. Who knows what will set him off.

“..It’s going to get really hard from now on..” The child smiled cruelly, and a sinister gleam passed through his eyes. “~and there's no backing out~”

Alarm bells were blaring inside my head, but I ignored them all. “Of course...”

The child giggled innocently. Though his laughter sounded completely malicious and filled with malice. “Loki said you were interesting…” He suddenly clapped his hands and adorned a big grin. “Okay! It’s time for me to send you back to the game!”

“Huh? What?! Wait!” This could be my only chance!

“I don’t want to get in trouble!” The child suddenly flew away, faster than what my eyes could track. “Bye!!”

My vision was clouded by the bright light of the stars. And soon after, I found myself back in the hospital.

Sweat was pouring down my face and my heart was beating frantically. My chest hurt and it felt like I was breathing through a straw. It took me a solid minute before I was able to catch my breath. “Damnit!”

“Argrgrgrgrgrrrrrrr!!!” I punched my bed and threw my pillow against the wall. “Every fucking time!”

I collapsed and fell back on my bed, my body depleting all of my energy only after a few minutes. My chest heaved up and down, and fought the urge to sleep. My eyes filled with water. “I have to win! I have to save them..”