Beyond The Crimson Gate-Chapter 43: Recovery

Kale’s eyes flew open. Everywhere was pitch black.

He tried to move but his movement was restricted by something that encapsulated him.

’Am I dead?’ The single thought persistent in his mind, made him dejected.

’I guess I really died, huh? And I didn’t even get to avenge my parents.’

A wave of exhaustion washed over Kale and he closed his eyes to rest.

Blinding light broke through the darkness covering him. The brightness disturbed his retinas through his eyelids and his eyes fluttered open.

Kale tried to move but found his movements restricted with cuffs attached to the frame of the bed he was on.

The strong odor of disinfectants wafted up his nose and made his eyes burn slightly.

The white walls and ceiling did nothing to calm him. Instead, it only made him more scared.

He started jerking his hands, trying to free them to no avail.

His mouth opened to scream but before he could, the door on the other side of the room opened.

A familiar doctor walked through. Doctor Stephan smiled slightly as he watched Kale’s panic.

"Kale. We really need to stop meeting like this, with you almost dying. Can you just try to find me for a courtesy visit?"

He approached Kale’s bindings and undid them with a key from his pocket.

Kale rubbed his wrists, eyeing him with trepidation.

He tried to remember what happened but his memory was quite foggy.

"What happened?" Kale’s voice wheezed, a sigh of dehydration but he didn’t feel thirsty.

In fact, he felt more energy than he had ever felt in his life.

"Interesting, you don’t remember? Well, Dimension Zero can do that to you." As the words left Doctor Stephan, Kale’s eyes shrunk.

Images and scenes flashed in his mind and filled in the blank spaces with everything that happened from his poisoning to his death.

Kale screamed and kicked the air as more images filled his mind.

Faint scale marks started to decorate his forearm like a tattoo, this didn’t go unnoticed by Doctor Stephan.

He quickly tapped on a button beside the bed and a silent alarm ring through the hospital wing.

Kale slowly calmed down and let out a shaky breath, sweat poured down his face and soaked the white sheets he was under.

His eyes went to his forearm where he had been stung, not only was it healed but there were now tattoo like scales on it.

Kale’s eyes immediately darted to his hand that has been bitten off by the snake and his breath ceased.

His arm was fully regrown and appeared even better than his original, still bearing scales.

’Only the heavens know what sort of high tech materials they used to make me regenerate. The military has insane tech that still shocks me.’

Focusing on Doctor Stephan, Kale shifted slightly under the latter’s direct gaze. He seemed unaware of his thrashing a few moments ago.

Three fully armored soldiers stormed in through the door, all holding crystal augmented weapons.

The sight of them, coupled with their sinister focus on him made Kale shake.

"My bad, he’s stable... for now." Doctor Stephan whispered to the three soldiers who only grunted before stepping out but waiting just shy of the door.

Kale looked at the doctor, questions sparkling in his eyes.

"On behalf of the military, Kale Vincoff, I would like to congratulate you." Kale was confused, congratulate him on what exactly?

’Is it because I survived Dimension Zero?’

Doctor Stephan let out a slow clap, "You are the first person amongst the recruits to get a beast infusion."

The words turned Kale’s eyes to saucers. He immediately shot up from his bed.

’Beast Infusion?! I got a beast infusion?! I thought there was a quota that had to be reached?’ His mouth hung open.

Kale tried to speak and choked on his words because multiple were trying to come out a the same time.

Calming himself, he inhaled slowly.

"How did I get back?" That was the first question he thought to ask.

Dr. Stephan smirked, "You brought yourself back."

It seemed impossible but Kale’s eyes widened even further than before, ’How could I have brought myself back? Is it like Dorolez and the Witch of Ox?’

"I can’t go too deep into the details but yes, you brought yourself back. Next question?" Dr. Stephan managed to snap him out of his thoughts. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Why was I given a beast infusion?" That was the next important question.

Dr. Stephanie adjusted his lab coat, "A friend of yours pulled some large strings to make it happen. That’ll all I know."

Kale didn’t need to ask who it was to know it was Axel but what had his best friend done to get this done? He hoped that Axel wasn’t going to be in trouble.

"Finally, how bad was my condition when I was brought in?" He asked his final question, sitting back down on the hospital bed.

Dr. Stephan let the question hang in the air for a minute.

"You were gravely injured, dead even and mutating. We managed to restart your heart but that only sped the mutation."

The words were heavy for Kale to hear but he needed to know.

"If not for the beast infusion, not online would you be dead, the military you had spent months in would have been the one to put you down." Dr. Stephan concluded.

Kale sat in silence, remembering everything that happened in Dimension Zero and related them to Dr. Stephan’s words.

"Though I do find it odd that a beast followed you back." Dr. Stephan’s words cut through the silence.

Kale hummed in confusion, "A beast followed me?!"

Dr. Stephan chuckled lightly, "Don’t worry, that lizard is harmless. It’s even a bit cute."

Hearing the description of the beast reminded Kale of his companion in the hostile Dimension.

Without it, he most likely wouldn’t be alive. Well, he would have died earlier than he did.

"That’s not a wild beast." Kale’s words intrigued the Doctor.

"It helped me survive Dimension Zero."

Dr. Stephan choked on air, "What?!"