Chapter 11 : 'Aria'

"AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!"

Shit! Shit! Shit!! I'm about to hit the ground!!!

What the fuck was that bastard thinking throwing me and ONLY me!?!?

It's coming closer! The ground…!

As Aria was sent breezing with the wind, she had flown for a long time before finally reaching an elevation in which she could worry about hitting the ground.

Though she has questions, they were all buried under the screams of terror that came from her own vocal cord. 

Since most, if not all humans have a fear of tall heights, whether they're deep-rooted in themselves or exposed for the world to see.

Victims of acrophobia are quite commonly seen in the modern age when compared to the ancient ones.

Perhaps due to the advent of airplanes, tall skyscrapers and buildings that touched upon the sky, something a lost generation wouldn't have access to, they were able to discover their fear of height.

Ever go through that feeling of falling while sleeping? Aria had once theorized that perhaps that feeling was the human's natural instinct to the unconquerable fear of height.

But this is no longer a theory… but a practical exam!

BOOM

Her body impacted against the hard surface of soil and dirt. If she had landed softly, they would've probably been her lifeline.

But due to the speed at which she had flown, not only did the soft soil not cushion her, it felt even tougher than metal.

Before leaving, she had been advised by Rachel to keep out of strenuous activities. Aria thought that perhaps 'hitting the ground at nearly Mach 1' counts as a strenuous activity.?

…Unfortunately, she doesn't have time to humor herself as the pain immediately assaults her senses

Having a mental turmoil in this situation doesn't help as she could literally feel her spine and all bones connected to it practically shatter into pieces.

No… she shouldn't be worrying about her spine right now…

She landed face first.

The location in which the most nerves are abundant in… is the face.

Which means… It has the most sensitive pain receptors.

"Ah…."

A pain so unbearable she couldn't even let out a shriek of scream escape, her mind too busy trying to distract itself from the suffering.

If the pain had gone on for a few more seconds, perhaps she would have gone insane. Although she had felt unbearable pain before, this one was next level.

Her face and body was now buried deep underground in the middle of a big crater, made of rock and stones.

She had indeed gone deep enough underground to reach a stone layer.

In her old world, that would've been a world record for some stupid thing. Perhaps 'fastest human freefall without protection' or 'farthest range covered without a vehicle'.

In any case, she's in a very precarious situation. Body absolutely trashed while the mind is trying to cope with the pain, this could possibly be the worst that could've happened in this scenario.

Looking at it from a video game's perspective, a red [Game Over] would've already taken over her screen at this point.

"Cough..!"

Ah, was her lung punctured? That's a problem…

Not! Everything in her body was practically hanging onto a loose thread! How is she still alive? Nobody knows!

"Ah.. he–pp"

She vainly reached out towards nobody after pushing herself to turn on her back. Her vision was working just fine, which was a wonder with how hard she had hit the ground, remind you, head first.

Although the lack of color was an indication that some other receptors had probably died, she didn't mind it.

In fact, Aria was glad she was even able to see at this moment. As long as her vision is working just fine, she's alright with everything else being snapped out of existence.

Her sight had allowed her to take in the beauty of the world. All that is valuable, all that is of meaning.

Capturing the essence of the world, catching the apple of her eyes, seeing the seasons change as the date on the calendar quickly flipped through itself while the date of each day was ticked with a red circle.

…It seems being in pain had made her sentimental.

She was grateful. Perhaps, she felt guilt while being taken care of by Rachel.

The money provided, the roof over her head, the delicious food, although she did cook them herself.

This might be her final moments, she doesn't know. All that she acknowledges is that this moment had made her realize something.

'Rachel… I want her to see the world…'

This was extremely sudden. Aria was not even sure if Rachel even trusted her.

She doesn't even hold any attachment to this world that she had just arrived in.

In fact, Aria was certain that Rachel herself wouldn't mind staying blind for the rest of her life.

But…

'...She reminds me of you, Aria.'

There are vast differences in personality and looks. This train of thoughts just doesn't make any sense.

And yet, to her, it was everything she wanted.

You, the reader, will never understand her.

You… will never understand me.

—

Aria's face is contorted beyond recognition. At this point, even her own mother wouldn't recognize her.

That's just how bad her face looks right now.

A massive tear on her cheek, revealing the root of her teeth. Cracks on her skin, barely holding on from revealing her skull.

Face covered in blood in which she had coughed up herself.

And as mentioned before, her lower body is not doing better than the ones above her neck.

If she was able to turn her neck to glance at some spots of her body, she might just immediately faint.

Bones sticking out of her elbow, chest raptured by her own ribs and many other unthinkable abominations.

If she doesn't die from the shock, she should have died from the blood loss.

Once again she wondered, how is she still alive?

Wait, no. How is she even conscious right now?

Such unbearable pain had assaulted her for so long…

While in reality, it's only been a few dozens of seconds since she's contacted the ground. She had practically gone through the 5 stages of grief at this point, while currently accepting her fate.

Though, it was also quite fortunate that her neck somehow didn't snap?

"Hah… Fu…"

Aria tried to distract herself from the pain by calming her mind. Though it doesn't feel as effective as before, it is showing progress.

She could feel her mind becoming clearer and clearer with each oxygen intake she does.

Yellow began to encroach on her peripherals, slowly and slowly reaching the centre. Along with it, the colours of the world began to paint itself once more.

The once gray sky had now turned light blue, proving her breathing technique's effectiveness.

Actually no, this is not normal.

What she was doing had no relation to what's currently happening to her body.

Inhaling and exhaling may increase oxygen intakes, which in turn accelerate the regenerating process, but it's not instantaneous.

In fact, it should barely show any progress that's visible to the naked eye.

That's common sense.

While thinking of the reason, her body began healing at a faster rate than humanly possible.

Aria could now breath easily without obstructions. She felt relief around her throat.

It seems that the healing had started from her head, slowly going down her neck to the torso, then towards the tips of her fingers and finally reaching her toes.

Her newly bought clothes were unfortunately not a part of the healing process. The tear that was accompanied by visible bones were not healed, leaving small openings that revealed her pale skin, a side effect of the blood that had escaped.

After a few more seconds, she realised that she had fully healed.

Her mind no longer needed to distract itself, as the sight of the clear blue sky brought a sense of relief to her.

With that information… her vision blurred.

'Pain… Agh… Such a painful experience…"

She felt relief after being released from her suffering.

Bringing her arm towards her eyes, she covered them.

Although her body no longer felt the pain, her mind could vividly remember that exact moment.

Aria knows that this feeling would not escape her thoughts for a long, long time.