Chapter Text
It happened so fast.
One moment, he was paused, tied to a chair with the torturous memory headset, and the next, suddenly he was in the air.
He couldn’t even register what happened when he felt himself falling. On instinct, he tried to summon his flame to propel himself upwards but nothing came out, he attempted again, and it was no use.
In just the next second, he plummeted into the water, the cold water hit his skin roughly, and he could feel the saltwater stinging his bloodied and open wounds.
It burns.
It feels like he’s being slashed all over. Nails prickling to every inch of his skin, and he's struggling to breathe.
Why? What is—
It was then he realized.
He can’t…
He can’t swim.
Trying to ignore the pain, he use his working arms to scramble his way back to the surface, using much more energy than usual. As soon as his head was out of the water, he gasped for air.
As soon as he breathed in the air of freedom, just for a second his limps went slack as he relaxes his body. It wasn’t until he felt his legs go numb and limp that he started to panic, the stick flailed his arms repeatedly and desperately to stay afloat.
No—
He tried kicking his feet.
Water started to made its way down his throat, blocking his airway and making it harder for him to breathe.
He felt himself slowly sinking. His legs were failing him.
Please—
Struggling to stay afloat, his legs gave out and with one last short breath, his head was underwater and his vision was filled with blur. What was once seen as the clear blue sky now turned into a dark, blurry picture. As seconds pass by, he sinks into the deep darkness as his consciousness began to drift away.
He tried to say something, one last plea to survive, but deep down he knows it’s futile.
…Ah.
Then it hits him. Is this what death feels like?
The thought about death made him recall some of his memories of the other stickman. The red hollowhead who is strong, fearless, feared by many, creative, a genius, hard-headed, his best friend, his partner, his other half, his brother, and..
…Someone he had failed.
And now, that someone is dead, and it was all his fault.
His vision blurred even more, he can’t tell if it was from the tears or from his lack of consciousness.
It was then it all came back to him.
I’m dying.
Oddly enough, this time, he felt relieved. Maybe this will all finally end, nobody has to suffer anymore, everyone will be happy and things will be better off without him.
Black spots swarmed his vision, as he let himself sink further down into the water.
Its getting cold…
Perhaps his death would be a quiet and peaceful one. He hopes so, even if he felt undeserving for it.
And so with one last thought,
‘It's finally...over.’
He lets his eyes shut.