Alex slowly opened his eyes.
His blurry vision gradually focused on the sterile white ceiling above him. For a long second, he simply stared at it, blinking slowly, as if his brain was still buffering reality. The steady hum of fluorescent lights filled the silence, oddly calming.
Then the pain hit him.
A dull, throbbing ache bloomed at the base of his skull and radiated across his body like aftershocks from an explosion. He let out a groan, clutching his head.
"Aah—damn..."
His thoughts struggled to realign themselves. Where was he? Why did his body feel like it had gone twelve rounds with a mutant gorilla?
And then, the memories came crashing back.
"Oh right… I was in a duel with the Prez," he muttered to himself. "When nothing worked... I used the fifth form of my sword art."
He rubbed his eyes slowly, trying to sit up, only for a stabbing pain in his side to argue otherwise. With a grimace, he leaned back into the pillow.
