When Chase woke up, it took him a while to actually figure out where he was.
However, after his clouded mind returned to its normal state, he found himself in his own bed, inside of his own dorm room.
His eyes met the wooden ceiling, and he tried to speak.
Thankfully words actually came out.
"Eternity..."
He didn't know why he had said such a word, but if he didn't acknowledge the strange feeling, he felt that his very soul would have torn itself apart.
Tears started to fall from his eyes, as he pushed himself up.
Luckily, he was alone. Fully alone.
No godly presence was waiting patiently for him to least expect it, that he knew of at least.
Perhaps it had all just been a dream, but then why had he found familiar bandages resting overtop of his knee.
The bandages that Poppy had wrapped around his impaled knee, were stained with his own blood.
'Why does it feel like it never happened...?'
He thought, until he heard the familiar growl inside of his chest.
"Hey Sparky... Do you know what happened?"
This time... Instead of a faint growl, he heard a violent roar within him.
A terrible chill ran down his spine, as he realized that he had actually slightly understood.
'Free you?'
"How the hell am I supposed to do that!"
Chase screamed, slamming his fist into the mattress at his side.
After he had finally gained control of his own emotions, he stood up, cleaned himself up, and then opened the curtains on his window.
The moon was resting in the middle of the night sky, surrounded by the bountiful constellations.
He let out a tired yawn, and noticed a small note resting underneath his locked door.
Walking over curiously, he picked up the note and read it.
'Good work cleaning up the dungeon! I've forgiven your classroom antics from the other day. - Luke.'
Chase scratched the back of his head.
"But... Did no one tell him what happened?"
He asked no one in particular.
Surprisingly, Sparky gave him another growl.
He figured that everything had actually happened, because he could actually somewhat understand his canine friend now. Which wasn't the case before the whole "Dream" incident.
Had he actually died?
Was he dead?
He truly did not know.
But Sparky was quite urgent with his demand to be freed.
So Chase grabbed the coins off of his bedside table, and quietly opened his door.
He then snuck past the several night guards, and left the academy.
It was strange, too sneak out of the place he had once wanted to go to so bad.
He figured there was a joke in there somewhere.
Running down the side of the steep mountain, he knew where he was going to go.
It was time.
No more running.
Well not litterly, it seemed he would be running quite a lot in the coming days.
Especially with the Frostfang game right around the corner.
Sparky continued to growl from within his soul, it seemed he was trying his hardest to actually tell Chase something.
But he only knew the basic canine language, which was growl and roar at this point in time.
The same name continued to echo within his mind, as he ran into the vibrant Sun City.
Chase recalled the directions that him and Gabriel had taken when they delivered their final package of their first job together.
Then he stood in front of the small crevice, that led into The Underbelly.
The heir of the Phoenix clan crept his way into the underground black market, with the word "Eternity" threatening to take his sanity.
Sparky seemed to be actively taking the pressure off of him, as if somehow that had been the entire purpose of the hell hound.
Soon enough, he spotted the blue lights at the end of the tunnel.
But this time it was quite different.
He could hear loud chanting on the other side.
And something else...
"War horns...?"
He whispered, confusion leaking into his exhausted voice.
He figured it must have been some sort of festivity, and was proven right once he exited the tunnel.
The lights emanating from the surrounded crystals led his vision to the center of the lowest floor.
Where a confusing sight was taking place.
Chase felt his jaw threatening to drop to the floor, as he stopped in his tracks.
Looking down from the highest balcony of The Underbelly, he spotted a boy with blue hair fully dawned in battle armor, battling a giant man who wore a gladiator's vibrant gilded armor.
Thousands of spectators were cheering violently all across the arena.
They all echoed the same words.
"FOR ETERNITY!"
The word threatened to rip his heart out from his chest.
He had to use all of his Axis energy in order to keep himself standing.
One of the cloaked figures to his right leaned over, and whispered into his ear.
"Who you got winning?"
The elder man asked with a curious grin, not daring to take his stormy eyes off of the fight before him.
Chase didn't sense any threatening intent from the man, and felt inclined to ask him the following question.
"Sorry, I just got here. But who is fighting if you don't mind me asking?"
The man's grin grew wider.
"Oh! Why The Great Gregor of House Imperial is fighting to the death against the young Neo of House Cobra!"
He exclaimed, the cheers around them growing louder.
Chase felt a terrible chill, and without saying anything else...
He jumped off of the balcony, and rushed toward the lowest floor of The Underbelly.