Sean gasped for breath.
That was the first thing he did as his eyes snapped open. It was akin to finally coming out of the water after being held underneath it for a long time. He breathed the air in as much as possible. Nothing hurt, but he could still feel the pain. It felt like something was pressing on him. It took him a while to regain control over his legs and lower body. They felt like they weren’t even there until the blood fully circulated through his body.
Without even moving at all, he was already short of breath, breathing loudly. It felt exactly like waking up from a nightmare, except it was more vivid than anything. People couldn’t feel more pain than they had felt in their life in a nightmare. Sean had. It didn’t feel good. His eyes were wide open and his body shivered ever so slightly as he simply lied there on the ground.
He wasn’t back at home, that much was for sure. Otherwise he wouldn’t be lying on the hard concrete of the road, looking at the night sky. Numerous notifications were in his peripherals, pushed away to the side so that he could see what was in front of him.
But Sean didn’t look at them. Not yet.
He was catching his breath after finally having climbed up to a sitting position. That one moment of having his arm flicked off replayed itself in his mind as he bit his lips. If only… if only he was a bit stronger, he could have defeated him. Just a little bit faster, stronger and smarter.
That was in the past now. That’s what Sean told himself, but the memory did not fade. It felt like it was an eternity away, but he didn’t even know how many hours or minutes had passed ever since that. The pain had the effect of scrambling his thoughts and making time a non-factor.
Then Sean realized he was drowsy, but his eyes turned to the notifications resting in his peripherals. As he regarded them, they brought themselves to the front of his vision. There were many of them.
System Notification
You have gained the status ‘Conqueror’ for completing the Calibration Stage with a Progress of 100%. You have gained the right to be summoned for the Planetary Summit of Planet ‘Earth’.
Reward: Conqueror (Status)