Godless Domain

I rushed to Zane's side, my heart pounding in my chest. 

His body was writhing, convulsing violently against the cold floor, the muscles in his arms and legs jerking as if controlled by some unseen force. His breathing was shallow and ragged, his skin had taken on an unnaturally pale. 

I didn't know what was happening to him, but the sight of him in such a state after everything we had just survived, brought a new wave of panic washing over me.

"Zane!" I screamed, tapping his face violently. "Come on, man! Stay with me!"

He didn't respond. His eyes were wide open, but glazed over, unseeing. His lips trembled, and with every twitch of his body, a sickening crack sounded in the room, like bones that didn't quite belong to him.

It was like the fight, the rage that had consumed him moments ago had left him in a broken heap, consumed by something else. Something I didn't understand.

Terror clutched at my chest, making it hard to breathe. I didn't know how to help him. I'd seen seizures before but nothing like this. Not this bad. This wasn't just a fit. This was... something else entirely.

I grabbed his shoulders, lifting his upper body slightly in a desperate attempt to stabilize him, but he didn't respond. 

His body was heavy, limp—dead weight. I had to get him out of here. There was no time to waste. Not with those... things still out there. Not with the endless horrors lurking, ready to drag us back into the nightmare. 

There was no time to waste. Not with those things still out there, not with us stuck in this hellhole of a building, one step from becoming their next meal.

Think, Kade. Think!

I tried lifting Zane, but he was too heavy, his body limp, barely responsive. He was almost like a ragdoll in my arms, and the thought of leaving him here, alone and helpless, felt like a knife to the gut.

 I couldn't leave him here like this. Not like this. But I couldn't carry him either. I had to find another way.

Panic rose in my throat, and I paced the apartment in frantic circles, searching for something… anything that could help. But what could possibly help in a situation like this? The air felt thick, and suffocating, and I couldn't think straight.

I stumbled into what appeared to be the master bedroom, a room that was almost as cold and lifeless as the rest of the place. A balcony. That was my only option. 

I dragged Zane in and gently placed him on the bed, trying to make him as comfortable as possible, though comfort seemed a cruel thing to offer right now. I quickly closed the door behind me, shutting out the nightmarish sight of the destruction just caused, and stepped out onto the balcony, gasping for air as if I could breathe away the weight pressing on my chest.

The wind hit me, harsh and bitter, stinging my skin, but it was the only thing that could cool the burning panic in my veins. I leaned against the railing, trying to calm my mind, forcing myself to make sense of everything that had happened today. All I wanted to do was freeze time, to stop this nightmare from progressing. But I couldn't. I had to think. I had to act.

The only thing that came to mind was up. The only way out was up.

I needed to get Zane to the upper floors. It was the only chance we had, away from the goblins, the moles, and whatever else was hiding in the dark corners of this godforsaken place. I gritted my teeth, swallowing my fear. I had no idea how I was going to get him there, but I had to. Even if I had to drag him every step of the way.

While I mentally steeled myself for what I knew was going to be a hellish climb, I saw it. The fire escape.

It was just outside the balcony—narrow, rusted metal, bolted to the wall. A metal ladder stretching upwards. My mind raced, my thoughts clicking together. If I could get us there, we could climb. We could make it. The top floors would be safer. Or, at the very least, less vulnerable. It was our best option. Risk climbing to safety... or risk fighting our way up through hell.

I moved quickly, dragging Zane's prone form toward the balcony, each step feeling like it was taking an eternity. My heart pounded in my chest, the thudding in my ears drowning out everything but the sound of my own breath and the terror gnawing at the back of my mind. 

I used the bedsheets, tying them around him to form some sort of makeshift harness. I'll admit, I had no experience with this—hell, I barely knew what I was doing—but more was better, right? 

The knots weren't pretty, but they held. By the time I was done, Zane looked like a giant, clumsy fluff ball, awkwardly tethered by two rough ropes made from torn curtains. It was ridiculous, but it was the best I could do in the moment.

Reaching the end of the balcony, I hesitated, glancing both up and down, my heart racing with each passing second. I checked the coast no sign of movement, no oddities lurking in the shadows. For just a brief second, a sense of relief washed over me. The ladder and the balconies were clear. But that relief evaporated as quickly as it had come.

How long could Zane stay like this? His body was twitching every so often, his red aura flickering faintly around him, as if the violent seizure hadn't truly stopped. His skin was slick with sweat, his body stiff, fighting against something I couldn't see. I couldn't wait any longer. I had to move.

I hoisted him, barely able to support his weight, and propped him up against the wall. I wasn't sure if I could manage the climb with him in tow, but there was no choice. I had to try.

I started up the ladder slowly, my grip tight on the metal rungs. The first few steps were shaky, my body protesting the strain, but I didn't dare stop. 

Muscles screamed for relief, my legs burning with every pull. Each step higher felt like I was climbing through thick mud, a weight pushing down on me with every inch I gained.

 I forced myself not to look down, looking was the last thing I could afford. The very thought of losing my balance and plummeting into the unknown below made my stomach churn.

Zane's spasms continued, jerking his body, pulling at the ropes. Every few steps, I felt the sudden tug of his movements, a sharp reminder that he wasn't gone yet, that he was still here, fighting something I couldn't understand. 

The sound of his tortured breath reached me, and I could only imagine the pain behind it. His face, twisted in agony, though I couldn't bear to look at it directly. I clenched my teeth, forcing my eyes forward, praying the monsters below wouldn't find us.

With every floor I passed, my hope seemed to wither. I wasn't sure how long it would take before this old building gave up on us, before the walls crumbled and swallowed us whole. I could hear the faint creak of the ladder, the bolts straining as I climbed higher, and the sound suffocated me, reminding me of how precarious this entire situation was.

Midway up, Zane's body suddenly went still. For one brief, fleeting moment, a thread of hope sparked within me. Maybe... maybe it was over. But no, it came crashing down just as quickly when his body spasmed again, the violent jerks even worse than before.

 He gasped sharply, and I thought for a horrifying second that his breath had stopped. His chest wasn't rising, his body was rigid... please, don't stop breathing. I could feel the sweat on my palms as I gripped the ladder tighter, the fear clamping down harder than the cold metal in my hands.

I cursed under my breath, my heart pounding in my throat. I couldn't think about that. I couldn't let myself think that way. Not now. Not while we were so close.

The final push to the 15th floor felt like an eternity. My legs were like lead, my breath ragged and shallow, but when I finally reached the top, I had no words left—only the desperate instinct to keep moving. I set Zane down on the closest balcony, my arms trembling from the strain. My heart still hammered in my chest, but at least, for now, we were on solid ground again.

The door to the balcony was locked. Of course it was.

I couldn't afford to waste time figuring out a solution. Without thinking, I rammed my shoulder into the door, my entire body slamming into it with a force that made the wood creak and groan. The third time was the charm, and with a sharp crack, the door gave way.

I stumbled into the apartment, disoriented, wind whipping at my face. It was empty, but at this point, I didn't care. The silence inside the apartment was almost... welcoming. For a second, I thought I might actually breathe again, but I couldn't relax—not yet.

At least for now, we were safe. At least for now.

I dropped to my knees beside Zane, my fingers trembling as I checked his pulse, his shallow breaths still the only sound between us. His body twitched again, his breaths erratic, but the worst part? The worst part was how far away he seemed. Not physically, but mentally—whatever that light had done to him, whatever transformation it had triggered, it was pulling him further from me, from everything he had been.

I wanted to comfort him, to speak to him, to tell him it would be okay. But my throat was dry, a lump lodged so tightly in it that words wouldn't come. I couldn't speak past the terror that clawed at me.

What was happening to him? What was that light? Was it the thing that had changed him?

I didn't know. All I knew was that we had no time. No time to figure it out.

And no time to stay in one place for too long.