Shawn was fed up.
Completely fed up.
'Again?' he thought, watching as a new vision unfolded in front of him.
It was the queen.
Again.
She was seated on an improvised throne.
In front of her, a man knelt, begging for his life.
"Please, Your Majesty!" the man shouted. "It was a mistake! It won't happen again!"
The queen looked at him without expression.
"Execute him," she ordered in a cold voice.
The guards dragged the man away.
His screams echoed through the entire hall.
And then, silence.
Shawn sighed inwardly.
'I've lost count of how many times I've seen this,' he thought wearily.
Ever since God had shown him the first vision, it hadn't stopped.
One after another.
No rest.
No pause.
Visions of the queen lying.
Visions of the queen betraying.
Visions of the queen manipulating.
Nobles.
Servants.
Allies.
Enemies.
Everyone.
And when it wasn't direct betrayal, it was punishment.
Disproportionate punishment.
Shawn had seen the queen order the execution of traitors.
That was understandable.
But she didn't stop there.
She also ordered the execution of their families.
Their wives.
Their children.
Their parents.
Their siblings.
Everyone.
Without exception.
Without mercy.
A woman with zero empathy.
'This woman is a monster,' Shawn thought, watching yet another scene of mass execution.
At first, these visions had shocked him.
They had disturbed him.
They had made him feel sick.
But now…
'I'm bored,' Shawn thought with resignation.
It was like being stuck in an endless series.
A series where the same plot twist repeated over and over.
Betrayal.
Punishment.
Death.
Betrayal.
Punishment.
Death.
Again and again.
No variation.
No surprises.
'I get it already,' Shawn thought. 'The queen is bad. Really bad. Can we move on to something else?'
But he didn't say anything.
He didn't dare.
God was the one judging him.
And literally his boss.
Complaining didn't seem like a smart move.
'Well…,' Shawn thought, trying to look on the bright side, 'if this is the price I have to pay for healing the queen, then I can handle it.'
Watching boring visions wasn't so bad.
It didn't hurt.
He didn't feel hunger.
He didn't feel cold.
He just had to stay there and watch.
'It could be worse,' Shawn thought. 'A lot worse.'
And then, the Bible appeared in front of him, floating in the void.
Glowing with its characteristic light.
It opened.
The pages turned.
And golden letters appeared.
[Your time here is over. The hour has come to return to your body.]
Shawn blinked.
'Already?' he thought, surprised.
He had no idea how much time had passed.
Hours?
Days?
Weeks?
It was impossible to tell in that place.
But before he could think anything else, everything changed.
◇◆◇
Shawn opened his eyes.
The first thing he noticed was the darkness.
He was back in his room.
The second thing he noticed was that he was naked.
Again.
'Why do I always end up naked?' he thought in frustration.
He tried to move.
And then he felt it.
Pain.
Sharp.
In his stomach.
"Ugh…" Shawn groaned, clutching his abdomen.
The pain was intense.
Like something twisting inside him.
'What the hell…?' he thought, trying to figure out what was happening.
And then the cold hit.
A brutal cold.
Slamming into him all at once.
His whole body started shaking.
His teeth chattered.
Goosebumps covered his skin.
'It's freezing,' Shawn thought, the shivering intensifying. 'It's so damn cold.'
Desperate, he fumbled for something to cover himself.
His hands found the sheets.
He wrapped himself in them.
Tightly.
As if his life depended on it.
But the cold didn't go away.
And neither did the stomach pain.
'Damn it,' Shawn thought, cursing his situation. 'I haven't eaten anything.'
Now he understood.
The stomach pain was hunger.
Extreme hunger.
His body hadn't received food in… how long?
He didn't know.
But clearly it had been way too long.
And as if that wasn't enough, a new pain appeared.
In his head.
An intense, throbbing headache.
Making every thought feel like torture.
'This is awful,' Shawn thought, curling up in the sheets. 'This is absolutely awful.'
He was hungry.
He was freezing.
His head hurt.
'I need help,' he thought desperately.
And then he remembered.
The Bible.
Shawn looked around.
On the table beside the bed.
The Bible was there.
Waiting for him.
Shawn reached out with a trembling hand and took the book.
"God," he said in a weak voice. "I need help."
The pages glowed.
Golden letters appeared.
[What do you need?]
"I'm dying," Shawn said, exaggerating just a little. "I'm starving. I'm freezing. My head hurts. Everything hurts."
He paused.
"Is there any miracle I can use to heal myself?" he asked.
The book displayed its response.
[You cannot use miracles in such a selfish way.]
Shawn frowned.
'Selfish?' he thought, frustration rising.
And then he remembered something.
The first time they met.
God had allowed him to teleport.
From his room to the beach.
That had been a miracle.
And it had definitely been for his own benefit.
'Hold on a second,' Shawn thought, narrowing his eyes.
"God," he said out loud. "When we first met, you let me teleport. That was a miracle. And it was for my benefit."
He paused.
"Isn't that contradictory?" he asked. "Or are you lying to me?"
The book remained silent for a few seconds.
Then new letters appeared.
[That situation was different.]
'Of course it was,' Shawn thought sarcastically. 'How convenient.'
But he didn't say anything.
He didn't have the energy to argue.
"I feel like I'm going to die," Shawn said in a pitiful voice. "Seriously. I think I'm dying."
The book showed its response.
[I trust you can endure.]
Shawn wanted to scream.
But he didn't have the strength.
[Your body is blessed,] the text continued. [In one day, all those discomforts should disappear on their own.]
'One day?' Shawn thought in horror. 'I have to endure this for a whole day?'
That was an eternity.
Torture.
Hell.
Shawn closed his eyes.
He tried to breathe deeply.
He tried to calm down.
And then he felt it.
Pressure.
In his abdomen.
But it wasn't hunger.
It was something else.
Something much more urgent.
Shawn's eyes snapped open.
'No,' he thought, panic flooding him.
The pressure increased.
'No, no, no, no, no.'
He needed to go to the bathroom.
Urgently.
Very urgently.
'This has got to be a fucking joke,' he thought in resignation.