How long she swam in darkness, Rebeca didn’t know. It was pleasant, for once. No dreams or memories intruded upon her mind, no pains or irritations threatened to rouse her. For the first time in two years, she could just… be. It was nice, and she was sorely tempted to just stay there. 

And then it changed. No longer was she alone in the dark. Something tugged at her, trying to draw her out. A warmth, a fire, a desire that burned, roiled and yearned, lighting up the darkness. She reached for it, but found her way blocked. A barrier, intangible but impassable, kept her from reaching that warmth. She tried to get around it, but could find no purchase in the cage. She could feel the warmth trying to get out, seeking her, but something told her that it was beyond her reach. Frustrated, she lashed out, trying to break it free, but there was nothing there to resist her. The only answer was a burning brand. 

A shift occurred again. Another warmth pulled at her, weaker, but somehow more familiar and insistent, calling her back, demanding that she leave the darkness. She could feel pain and memory on the other side of it, things that she had hoped she could put aside. Yet, somehow she knew she could not. It was [u]her[/u] pain, [u]her[/u] memory, [u]her[/u] burden. She turned back to the first warmth. It was patient, it would wait. Nodding, she turned back and left.

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More than anything, she felt that she was awake. Pain wracked her body, though it was not as bad as she was expecting it to be. Everything was stiff and screamed in protest when she moved. The worst pain was in her head, a constant drumbeat that hammered against her skull, causing her to groan and press a palm against her forehead. That in itself turned out to be a mistake; a lance of pain shot through her side, and her body spasmed, which in itself only made things worse, coughing and whimpering as tears gathered in her eyes. [i][color=crimson]Ow, dammit. Okay, that was dumb Rebeca. Easy, easy, remember last time.[/color][/i]

Taking slow breaths, she winced as she wrapped her arms around herself as she sat up. When she felt something slide down from her chest, she opened her eyes. Someone had apparently laid a coat over her while she was out. [i][color=crimson]That was… nice? I guess? Wonder who did tha-[/color][/i]

She froze, her eyes widening, mouth gaping. Several feet away, embedded into the pavement, lay Mihkail. A large crack ran the length of his face, from which thin streams of blood weakly flowed. “[color=crimson]…Mihkail?[/color]”