Premature Burial

The last thing Kano saw before an uncomfortable darkness seized him was a crack in the sky hurtling towards him, two tears forming by his and his sister's side revealing a disgusting shade of black that started to suck them in like a ravenous beast. Kano dove to the ground by instinct, to grab hold of the solid ground. But that too turned soft like a liquid under the suction of the tears, and the vine he was holding on to for dear life got dislodged with the soil and Kano was sent hurtling into the void.

The sensation of whatever was happening to him was extremely discomfiting. It was like he was falling endlessly at a constant speed, but there was no fixed direction to his freefall. It was like he was falling in all directions at once. It did not make sense. He remembered Medium Sis Jean talking about how the inner ear is the one that manages a person's equilibrium and balance. Kano didn't hear anything, maybe the problem was with his inner ear?

Was he dead?