5 - Solitary

Crimson Covenant is a chronological narrative. Make sure you’re caught up!

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Light.

Warm light, enveloping everything.

The roar of the vortex still echoes in my ears but begins to transform slowly. The high-pitched ringing softens and separates into glimmery tones that bounce around in my mind.

Am I dead?

Atoms scattered across the universe swarm and gather to reform pieces of my body, starting at the crown of my head.

Neurons begin to fire in my brain again, igniting complex pathways of thoughts and memories.

Memories.

Familiar sensations return.

I identify each of my veins as they materialize, my blood pumping through them again.

Chilly beads of sweat rest on my brow and chest. The light gradually pulls away from my peripherals and gently collects at the right-hand corner of my vision.

I’m lying on a soft, grainy material with a cozy give to its firm surface.

Sand?

And with a sharp breath, I sit up, my eyes snapping open. The graininess beneath me shifts and yields — not the rough grit of a beach but the gentle weave of cotton sheets.