In a dark room shrouded in darkness, Ray woke up with the taste of rust in his mouth.
The world before him blurred as loud sounds rang through his head. The pain pulled out broken memories that surfaced at the back of his mind.
That loud grenade blast right next to him. He remembered slamming into a brick wall, numbness spreading all over his body.
Bang!
There was a muffled sound, and something hit his head. The world after that turned blurry as blood gushed all over his body.
He collapsed onto the ground. He heard muffled laughter before everything went black.
Am I dead?
Soon, his senses sharpened. He felt the cold floor beneath him as he stared at the patched ceiling.
Layers of webs hid parts of it, while multiple holes riddled the remaining sections.
Did they capture me? He tried to sit up, but to his shock, nothing happened.
His limbs refused to obey.
He strained to look around, but his neck remained rigid, and he couldn't even blink.
A terrible thought emerged in his mind. Paralysis.
His heart rate increased. The only good thing was that he could still feel his limbs.
Then he noticed the familiar strained sensation in his arm. Shit, don't tell me I'm cuffed.
Suddenly, loud footsteps came from outside.
A sense of uneasiness mixed with helplessness rose in his heart. He never thought a day like this would come.
Just then, his finger twitched.
Wait, how? Ray focused on his arm and tried to move his finger, but instead, his left leg shifted to the side. What's going on here?
That was the start. His hand moved again on its own and began rubbing his left eye.
He tried to stop it, only for his leg to fold. His body was moving by itself.
The footsteps outside continued to approach.
From this dungeon-like room, he knew screaming was a terrible decision, but he was at his wits' end, so he did it anyway.
"Who is there? What have you done-" Mid-sentence, he froze. Even though he could hear his own voice, his lips hadn't moved at all.
At that moment, his body sat up on its own.
As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he looked around the room.
The problems with his body hadn't even ended when he realized he was inside a large room.
The room wasn't empty.
A large bed stood near the opposite wall, covered in a thick layer of dust.
Nearby was an empty wooden shelf draped in spiderwebs. Both pieces of furniture carried an abandoned, decayed feel.
There was also a pair of chairs just two arm-lengths away from him, which looked used.
The marble floor was in even worse condition, covered in brown and red dust… No, wait–were those bloodstains?
At that moment, a foul smell assaulted his senses.
Turning toward it, he saw a plate with half-eaten food placed near a large gate made of iron bars.
If not for the familiar prison gate, the room could have passed for an abandoned medieval castle.
The thing controlling his body tried to stand, but a metallic pull yanked him back, and he slammed onto the floor.
He looked down and saw chains wrapping him.
Ting! Ting!
Not only that, but the chains were connected to the wall.
One. Two. Three. Four.
In total, there were four chains. Two were binding his hands, and two restraining his legs.
He noticed multiple marks all over the thin, small body. Wait, small? What happened to me? This isn't me.
The thing controlling his body pulled against the chains.
Pain shot through his palms as the uneven iron dug into his skin.
While the body struggled, Ray focused on the left palm. It was covered in cuts, but no matter how he looked, he couldn't find the large birthmark his old body had.
Shit, don't tell me I'm in someone else's body.
Before he could think further, a loud metallic screech echoed from the door.
Creeeakkkkk!
The cell door opened, and a muscular man entered, holding a leather whip.
Splash!
The whip struck the floor, and Ray shuddered.
No, it was the body that shuddered. Even though he couldn't read the controller's thoughts, he felt goosebumps spread across his skin.
It was a surreal, detached sensation. He could feel the body's fear while maintaining a strange mental clarity.
Ray knew the fictional concept of reincarnating into someone else's body, but in his case, it felt like the true owner was still alive.
Just then, a solid blow landed on his face.
Pat!
"Waaaa," a young, immature cry rang out.
Ray screamed internally. Ahh.
That was the start.
Pat. Pat. Pat!
The muscular man continued whipping. The thick leather lash bent with his arm, moving in a brutal arc before slamming into Ray's body.
Pat!
"Waaa-"
Pat!
"Waaa, just two years-"
Pat!
"Waaa, I will survive-"
Between the sobs, the broken, immature voice echoed inside Ray's head. It was the voice of a young teen.
The hollowness in that voice sent jolts through him. He almost wanted to smile and laugh at the moment.
The force behind the whipping was so strong that the skin on Ray's back split open, blood leaking out.
Each strike brought familiar pain, yet nothing compared to the shattered voice.
The jailer suddenly grabbed the kid by the neck and pulled him close. "Will you stop whimpering?"
Ray stared into the man's eyes. He saw the reflection of a skinny teen, sobbing with tears streaming down his face. But the blue eyes… Though blurry, Ray recognized the emptiness in them.
The muscular man threw the kid aside. "Shut up!"
Ray slammed into the wall. His vision blurred as the man resumed whipping, this time targeting his face.
The sobbing grew louder, but so did the dread resolve.
"I… will survive… waa…"
Unable to control himself, Ray burst out laughing. Haha.
He didn't care if anyone noticed him. The situation was simply too interesting, too amusing.
The sound of the whip cracking and the ugly cries echoed throughout the cell.