Five days passed in complete silence.
When Erin Volter finally fluttered her eyelids open, the agony in her skull had subsided into a dull, hollow throb.
She was lying back on her bed, her pale skin drenched in a cold sweat, her body completely exhausted. The vomit on the floor had been cleaned away, and the soft, warm scent of pine filled the room.
"You have returned to us, my lady," a gentle telepathic voice echoed softly in her mind.
Erin turned her head weakly. Sitting beside her bed was the Doom Overseer, its emerald eyes watching her with a quiet, somber sadness.
Erin squeezed her eyes shut, a fresh tear spilling down her pale cheek. She curled her knees tightly to her chest, trembling violently under the wooden blanket.
"I died..." Erin whispered, her voice cracked and broken. "I saw... I saw myself dying on the floor... covered in blood..."
