As Adam forced breath into his screaming lungs, a torrent of memories, vivid and raw, flooded his mind. Not of this world, but of the one he'd left behind.
Flashes of Emily, her presence a constant, unwavering light in his darkest days. He saw her, wiping tears from his face after his parents' death, her embrace a desperate anchor. He remembered her fierce defiance when he'd contemplated giving up, her desperate slap stinging his cheek, her eyes blazing with a fierce, unconditional love he'd been too lost to see.
Why didn't I notice? he thought, blood and tears mingling on his face as he fought for breath, for mana regulation.
The images were a relentless assault: Emily, her face etched with concern, her voice pleading, Please look at me, Adam. He remembered her final, heartbreaking words: If one day I am not around anymore, please live for my sake. He saw her tears as she hugged him, a farewell he hadn't understood.
He finally opened his eyes, the pain in his body receding as his mana, fueled by this emotional surge, rapidly healed him. Tears still streamed down his face, now fueled by a crushing regret. Why didn't I see it sooner? Why was I so consumed by my own pain that I couldn't see her? Why didn't I love her in her final moments?
As he closed his eyes again, consumed by regret, a new image of Emily appeared, vibrant and cheerful. Her voice, clear and strong, echoed in his mind, "Even if this world is harsh, I will always be with you. I will be with you in this life or the next."
Strings of Fate
A sudden, blinding explosion of mana erupted from Adam's body, enveloping him in pure, white light. The light turned to black, then slowly, began to coalesce into a single, vibrant red string.
It shimmered before his eyes, a delicate thread unlike anything he had seen with his mana vision before. This red string, he instinctively knew, was connected. As his gaze followed it, he saw it stretching, impossibly, far beyond his current reality, connected to Emily's heart. He looked down at his own chest, and there it was, the other end of the string, firmly tied to his own heart.
Adam's eyes snapped open. He was awake, the scent of damp earth and alien flora filling his nostrils. The pain was gone, his body completely regenerated. But the image of the red string, the impossible connection to Emily, remained burned into his inner vision. It wasn't a dream; it was a profound truth, a bridge across worlds, a reason to live beyond mere survival.