Chapter 160: 3:20

"We will talk," Twali said, moving toward Ned. The silver cart to his left, Sasani to his right—sitting. "But first"—nodding toward the plate of roasted meat—"eat."

Ned sighed. He leaned forward, removing his back away from the curved bed. After pushing himself once more, he successfully reached for the cart with roasted meat atop. Fork with two teeth to the left of the plate, silver knife to the right. The cart was covered with a white cloth, it made the meat more enticing. Ned looked at Sasani and Twali he coughed. Did they think to watch me while I eat? Ned thought.

Sasani stood, drawing herself away from the stool. She curtsied together with Twali and left Ned to enjoy his food.

Ned stabbed the meat with the fork, cut it evenly. And as if revoked of meat for weeks, Ned gnawed the meat. Slowly, he could feel his energy rising going fifty percent, then sixty, then eighty, then—

He froze. His mind wandered away from reality. Boundless space in black skewed in a different pattern. Even Ned's figure was distorted to different forms: his eyes; the other was as big as his fist, while the other was tiny as a strand of hair. His head was deformed on different levels. Ned's body wiggled like a worm cut to half.

"What?" Ned said a voice echoed in space for a hundred times until it vanished in the far distance. Ned took his first step, yet he felt like he traveled a thousand meters ahead. He ran and stopped. And ran, and stopped. And ran, sweat formed beads on his forehead. He felt a force touching his feet, but no matter how hard he tried to run, he couldn't leave the spot he landed on.

Ned leaned forward, arms resting on both knees. He breathed deep and rapid, then sweat fell off his chin. The single drop of sweat dropped in slow motion in front of Ned. Space felt like time has stopped—no, time never stop. Where there is space; there is time. One couldn't exist without the other. But time inside this boundless space slowed down.

Ten breath, eleven, twenty. It has been sixty seconds, but the bead of sweat descent for only an inch. Ned brushed off the sweat, it then scattered into tiny bits of liquid.

"ICE?" Ned said, again, his voice echoed a hundred times. "ICE!" Ned's voice trailed the first echo.

ICE didn't respond. Ned ran, he could go left or right, but what's the point? The direction was useless inside the space. He kept on running until he couldn't count time. Sixty seconds? No more than that. Ned could feel he has been inside the space for an hour or two. Still, he kept on running.

Why? Ned thought. He stopped almost jumping. To his surprise, Ned's thought echoed the plain. He frowned. ICE? His thought was followed by an echo.

He still wore the clothes Sasani gave him. White cloth, almost loose, white pants or more like pajamas. He ran again barefooted.

To the distant, a speck of white light flickered with haste. Ned ran, the light came in closer. His foot thumped every step he made. Sometimes the sound was a hollow wood, next was stone, or mud, or none at all.

Ned stopped, the light was blinding. Ned raised to block the light across his eyes. He squinted, then in a quick transition, the light was gone.

What appeared in front of him was the crystal Core, floating as if shaking, still half-empty with black mist. The ran took the toll out of him, he bent and released breath with great relief. Since when did he felt this exhausted? Why? Ned thought and echoed. As if the voice snapped out his thoughts and became alive following the loud voice.

"ICE?" Ned said, still echoing. His breathing was rapid and noticed steam scattering to his left. It was the same liquid from before. It was his sweat. Then, how? How? Ned thought. He ran miles. Ned felt he left, he felt he traveled distance. But the sweat was still there. Then—

Something bumped his head, the crystal Core. Ned raised his head from bending, arms still stretched resting on his knees. Ned frowned. Then the crystal bumped to his forehead once more. The bumped echoed. Ned stretched and stood. White cloth looked baggy. The crystal then hovered around Ned, spinning. It circled Ned, from bottom to top, back to bottom. Then stopped across Ned. It then flew, bumping Ned's chest. Ned didn't need to guard himself. Why would I? A crystal, bumping me? More like touching me. His thoughts echoed, then the crystal Core hovered up and down, like nodding, as if agreeing to Ned.

Line formed in-between Ned's brows. The droplets still descending to his left. The only sound Ned could hear was his heartbeat, the blood running through his veins, and his breathing. Ned was relieved that the feeling of distortion vanished.

The crystal Core pushed to Ned's chest again, like communicating. After the push, Ned's chest rippled like water disturbed by stones. The black mist racked back and forth inside the crystal Core, then it bumped to Ned once again.

"What are you?" Ned said, his voice was now the loudest. Then, the crystal shook, as if saying: 'I don't know.'

Ned raised and flicked a finger toward the crystal, the feeling of crystal against the tips of his finger was real. It was hard. The sound rippled after the flick. The crystal then swayed back and quivered. Like it was hurt with the flick. Then it bolted to Ned, quick almost blurring. Ned was hit straight to his chest and was thrown backward like someone tied a rope behind his back and was pulled by a hundred people.

Ned flew endlessly into space, one minute has passed, yet he didn't stop. Mid-air, Ned spun. Preventing himself from propelling backward, he then flipped, and with grace, he landed with one foot first followed by second. Before he could stance himself, the crystal Core hit him from behind. The crystal Core shuddered, like laughing with great disdain.

Ned twisted his body, stopping the shove of the crystal Core. Again, he spun to land himself on the space.

"So, you wanna play?" Ned said the last word echoed and repeating. He raised his hand, focusing to let the mana into his body travel and be focused at the flat of his palm.

"Fireball," he said. Fire formed. Orange shone bright, but only at his palm. Then it condensed, like water heated to the boiling point; the fire steamed and vanished.

Crystal Core shot toward Ned, hitting the only spot it hit the first. His chest. And again, Ned was thrown. Body stretched like rubber, limbs pulled like strings, the plain made impossible; possible.

Ned flipped, stopping the force. He then raised his hand to form a stance that guarded his body. The crystal Core shot toward Ned as a bullet opened to fire. This time, it shone brightly. Silent and blurring, it was aimed toward his chest.

Ned's vision blurred, fingers distorted, head bent to unimaginable angle, silver hair wiggled intensely. Like a vacuum sucking everything that touched its mouth, the boundless space, along with the shooting crystal Core, sucked into Ned's chest.

Ned was back in the room. The window across him, the cart in front of him, food wares clutched with sweat wetting his palm, and sweat dripping into the cart (forming a tiny pond).

Ned lost the appetite to eat, he paced the utensils back. Wiped the sweat that was left beading on his forehead. He pushed the cart to make space to stand. Clutching the bed cover, he forced himself to stand. Then like a rope knotted even tighter, Ned's head felt aching. Stretching his hand to rest, he used the cart as support. He knelt on one, then sweat started to flow. He felt cold, chest felt warm like has been hit with a blunt object a dozen times. His back prickled with pain.

With his free hand, he covered his face with the flat of his palm. One eye peeked between the gap of his fingers, he stared at the floor varnished with brown.

"ICE," Ned said, voice muffled against his palm.

A chime rang, indicating his system was there to support.

[Ned.]

[Energy rapidly deceased.]

[Mana almost exhausted.]

[What happened?]

[My system noticed different spikes of your heart.]

[The same spikes when you are fighting.]

She doesn't know? Why? Ned thought shaking his head, releasing him of the burden his head was having.

[Does not know what?]

"Nothing," Ned muttered. He reached for the edge of the bed and laid to rest. Forearm covering his eyes. "Status."

[Mana Points: 10/ 4,000.]

[Energy: 2%.]

"How?" Ned whispered. "ICE, didn't I just regained energy from eating?

[Yes.]

[But for some reason. You were lost in thought. After that. Energy rapidly decreased followed by your mana.]

ICE remarked.

[There is a muscle increase in the body despite not moving.]

[The growth was done like you were having training.]

You're saying, I grew? wait—how long was I lost in thought? Ned queried in his thoughts to ICE.

[Precisely three minutes and twenty seconds.]