Oblivion by Jessica Sorensen

Author:Jessica Sorensen [Sorensen, Jessica]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Borrowed Hearts Publishing LLC
Published: 2024-01-19T00:00:00+00:00

BEFORE THE BRANDING OF FLESH

I stand in disbelief for way too long before panic gushes through my veins and pummels straight into my heart. My skin beads with sweat as I reel in a circle, looking left, right, up, down, refusing to accept that Blaise could be dead.

“Blaise!” I call out, my panicked voice reverberating across the deserted acres of sand. “Blaise, are you here?”

A breeze whisks through the air, blowing strands of hair into my face, and flakes of dust spray against parts of my exposed body. But as rapidly as the wind picks up, the air unexpectedly goes still.

I cup my hands around my mouth. “Blaise!” I shout as I head toward a speck of silver glistening in the distance; the Broken City, I’m assuming. “Blaise, please, if you’re somewhere close by, answer me.”

Deep down, I know my search is useless. If Blaise were nearby, I would see him. But giving up seems like a horrible decision. Besides, I have no place to go. I’m stuck here, alone, until Reece figures out how to bring me back from the brink of death.

Not knowing what else to do, I begin trekking across the desert. The longer I walk, the more the thick soles of my worn boots scuff against the dirt, my footsteps becoming lethargic. The sunlight blasts down, coating my skin with a sticky layer of sweat, and the dust in the air clings to the dampness, making me feel icky.

Hunger and thirst choke at my throat as dehydration and starvation set in. The feeling reminds me of when I was trapped in the channels and the Wardens would revoke my eating and drinking privileges. Still, I continued to survive, even when I didn’t taste the wetness of water on my tongue for weeks on end.

I never thought about how odd my ability to live off nothing was until I observed the way Ryder and Reece needed food and water at least once a day. At least, that’s how I was, but now …

I topple over, collapsing onto my knees as hunger pains pinch my stomach. Dryness of the mouth and throat soon follow, magnifying the discomfort in my belly. It doesn’t make sense. I’ve only been in the Oblivion for hours, yet I feel like I’m starving to death and dying of thirst. How is that possible? Then I remember what Blaise told me about how time moves differently in the Oblivion.

Coldness slinks up my back, bringing on chills, as I become painfully aware that I’ve actually been here for weeks and my real body could be wilting away into skin and bones. I don’t know what to do to fix the problem.

The city could hold food and water, but it’s forever away. And I’m uncertain eating in here would nourish my real body. Blaise did tell me if I died while I was in the Oblivion, my physical body would die, too, so maybe.

“It could work,” I murmur, lifting my heavy head to measure the miles of desert in front of me.

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