Chapter 4—Sleep
"What is the threat level?" the agent questioned again, his voice rising.
"I'll check," Jasper replied.
"Go—what are you waiting for?" the agent yelled, making the doctor almost lose his grip on the phone.
"Yes, I'm on it," the doctor said.
"You know what to do if the threat level is high, right?" the agent asked after a beat of silence.
Jasper didn't reply. He clenched his empty hand hard.
"You have no choice," the agent said coldly.
---
Back in Ryle's hospital room.
"What did you mean?" Sera inquired, holding Jasmine's shoulder.
Ryle didn't respond. 'I thought this world was ordinary… I was wrong.' he kicked his legs irritably. 'But this world is something else entirely.'
"Look for yourself," Jasmine said, pointing to her mobile.
A webpage opened on the display, titled—'What is the government hiding? Exclusive interview with a suspect.'
The interview was written out in full. Ryle peeked in as his mom sat next to him.
---
Interview: What happened?
Suspect: I woke up one day with my legs chopped off.
Interviewer: How? And aren't your legs fine now?
{Suspect is present with four functional limbs.}
Suspect: My entire bed was covered in blood. According to the doctor, I almost died from blood loss.
Ryle's throat went dry.
Interviewer: The legs?
Suspect: Coming to that. Yes—after being taken to the hospital, the doctors couldn't understand how my legs had been severed. The next day, my hands were chopped off as well.
Ryle's lips twitched. 'It's spreading…'
Interviewer: What?
Suspect: Yes. All four limbs. It was a horrifying experience. I was admitted on the 22nd of November, and I don't remember anything that happened on the 23rd or 24th. On the 25th, I found myself back in my bed with a perfectly healthy body.
Ryle frowned, 'As if nothing had happened.'
Interviewer: What happened exactly?
Suspect: I checked the hospital records and everything, but there was no record of me at all. The government issued a report saying I had taken the wrong medicine, which put me in a coma for a few days.
'Erased...' Ryle's vision blurred for a second. 'Time gap… hidden just like that—'
Interviewer: Coma? Did you inquire with other doctors?
Suspect: Yes. I contacted other doctors—they said I was perfectly normal and couldn't identify what had happened. I would have classified it as a bad dream, but I still remember my body and the pain clearly. It was definitely not a hallucination or mental breakdown during a short coma.
Ryle's chest tightened. 'This is real.'
His eyelids dropped halfway. 'Stay awake…'
Sera patted Jasmine's back. "Don't scare me."
"I'm not," Jasmine retorted. "Here, check."
She pulled up several more webpages where similar interviews had taken place across different media companies.
Sera asked, "Do you know any of these suspects? We could contact them directly for more information."
Jasmine sighed. "All of their identities are hidden."
'So it's true.... hidden.' Ryle wanted to yell, but held back.
Sera shook her head. "No—I have to call the doctor." She couldn't decide whether to believe Doctor Jasper's words or the webpages in front of her.
"Wait," Jasmine muttered. "I remember someone from my company was also injured while sleeping."
"Yes, call them," Sera said, her voice unsteady.
Jasmine opened her contacts and dialed. Sera clasped her hands in front of her chest.
"Hello?" A soft female voice echoed from the phone.
"Hello, Rina. I'm Jasmine from the department of…" Jasmine said quickly, afraid the call would get cut off.
"Oh, Jasmine. I've heard of you." Rina's voice turned cheerful. "Do you need any help?"
Jasmine explained everything.
"Nothing to worry about," Rina said firmly. "It's what the government said. Don't believe all the rumors and attention-seeking media."
"But then—" Jasmine was cut off as Rina added, "Don't pressure yourself. It's a simple injury. Doctors handle it."
"It's fine," Sera exhaled, relieved.
Jasmine cut the call. "Thank you."
Sera turned her gaze to Ryle, who was still forcing his eyes open despite his eyelids drooping shut.
"Why aren't you sleeping?" Jasmine asked, slipping her phone into her pocket. "Rest is very important—sleeping helps the body recover."
"You aren't able to sleep?" Sera inquired, moving closer to Ryle.
She patted his head as he said softly, "I'm not sleepy."
"Okay." She nodded. "Then wait until you feel like it."
Jasmine sighed. "You always agree with whatever he says." She walked out of the room with heavy steps.
Ryle clenched his jaw. 'Cannot sleep. Cannot. I mustn't.'
His eyes nearly closed for three full seconds. 'Whoa—I almost dipped under.'
Then Jasmine returned, followed by a middle-aged nurse holding an IV fluid bag. She had a nameplate on her chest that read Ava.
Nurse Ava moved quickly and set everything up.
'This might help...' Ryle thought, bracing against the discomfort. She swiftly inserted a needle into his vein just below his wrist and connected the IV line. Clear fluid began dripping steadily into his bloodstream.
The sharp jolt helped Ryle pull back from the drowsiness—but it didn't last. Within moments, his eyes were sliding shut again.
"Wait—what is this?" he said, voice low. His eyes were shutting fast. "What did you inject?"
Sera and Jasmine flinched.
"Nothing to worry about," Nurse Ava said with a small smile.
Ryle forcefully clenched his fist and yanked out the drip, his face twisting in pain. The IV line fell onto the bed.
"What are you doing?" Sera hissed, grabbing his wrist.
"I can't sleep!" Ryle roared, his eyes already closing. 'The liquid is already working.'
His vision blurred, the room tilted.
For a second, he saw—Another Ryle. "No—!"
"I cannot—" He clenched his fists again, sending a bolt of pain straight through his hands. The burning heat tore through his drowsiness like a knife.
"Are you insane?" Nurse Ava snapped. "You cannot do that."
"What is wrong with you?" Jasmine asked, grabbing his legs as he tried to stand.
"I'm telling you—I cannot sleep," Ryle said quickly.
"I just spoke with Rina," Jasmine said softly. "She said there's no problem."
"It's just sleep—a few hours," Sera added, pressing down on his shoulders so he couldn't stand.
Nurse Ava reached over and pressed a button next to the bed.
"What did you press?" Ryle's eyes went wide.
He tried to shake free, but Sera held his shoulders firm, and Jasmine pinned his legs. Nurse Ava gripped his right arm—his left was free but useless against all three of them.
Thud! Thud!
Several young nurses rushed in.
"Quick—hold him tight," Nurse Ava ordered.
All of them pressed down on his limbs and shoulders. "I'm telling the truth!" Ryle roared, his voice carrying clear into the hallway outside. "I can't—don't let me sleep!" He shook hard to break free, but their combined grip barely moved.
'Why can't I move—?'
Sera, hearing him, loosened her grip. "Remove your hands," she waved at the others.
Nurse Ava asked sharply, "Did he suffer a dream injury?"
"Yes," Jasmine nodded quickly.
"Then he must sleep," the nurse holding his right leg said.
"If he doesn't, it gets worse," Ava added. "Now is the best chance to put him under."
Sera glanced at Jasmine, who sighed. "Mom, you heard her. It's going to be fine."
Ava quickly reinserted the drip.
"No—I'm…" Ryle couldn't finish.
His eyes closed.
The world slipped.
He lost.
---
Jasper was on the staircase when Ryle's scream reached him. 'What happened?'
He broke into a run. 'I hope it's not too late.'
He was too late. By the time he reached the hallway outside Ryle's room, the nurses were already filing out. Ava stepped into the next room.
"Doctor Jasper."
"Doc!"
He didn't respond to either greeting. He stepped into the room swiftly and stopped.
"Crap." His shoulders dropped as he saw Ryle—asleep, still, with Sera and Jasmine sitting quietly beside the bed.
He turned and left without a word.
---
In an empty room, Jasper quickly dialed Agent E415.
"Did you estimate the threat level?" the agent inquired, his voice stern.
"No, but—" Jasper explained everything.
Silence spread through the room.
"You must save everyone," Jasper said, jaw tight. "Including that kid."
"We don't have time," he added.
"I'll arrive soon," the agent replied.
Jasper cut the call and scowled. "I'll fire those nurses if I survive this."
'Who the hell told them to put him to sleep?'
---
Half an hour later.
The sky had turned dark and cloudy, heavy rain falling in thick curtains.
A dark-purple-skinned middle-aged man with two-inch black horns on his forehead stood beneath an umbrella as water drummed steadily against it.
He wore a long white coat and studied the multi-story building before him—Bright Medcore Hospital, the name mounted across the top.