The guy started running soon after doing it. Althea touched the spot, it was blood. At first, she didn't feel anything. Slowly, the pain registered. She had been stabbed there times. Twice at the ribs on her left side and one nasty stab, 1mm by her heart which punctured her lung.

"Are you... are you...?" Liz, leaning beside her, tried to calm her sobs and asked.

"N... no." Althea managed to say. It'd be a miracle to everyone if she'd even survive. The guy could still be seen running far so, she tried to calm herself down, she started feeling this very warm like liquid just running down her chest and each time she breathed, more such liquid just shot out. It was her blood.

Then, the pain started to kinda sink in. About that time, she had started getting this feeling like being poked a thousand times with needles on her legs. She wobbled and fell on the ground, no longer able to maintain her posture. She started losing a ton of breath and breathing became a chore in itself. Each breath just got shorter and shorter and she couldn't even do anything about it.

When she tried taking a deep breath, her body just didn't let it in and she got a really sharp pain with each heavy inhale. She wasn't even taking in that air. Slowly, she had lost all her energy and her legs have already given up completely. They had just become straight up noodles while she fell.

She tried getting up. At that point, she was barely able to get up, with loads and loads of support from Liz. Her legs literally couldn't stand. She was bleeding out for fourteen minutes on the street, after all. She thought she heard Liz speak. But, there wasn't any sound. Next thing she noticed, her hearing had already started to fade. People gathered around them soon, to help.

When a cop was talking to her, she literally started hearing the cop say one sentence and then, there would just be the lingering echo effect. It sounded like he said it 3 times or 4 maybe? Each time his voice faded away some more, just like the canyon echo effect.

Suddenly, her vision started getting black. Her eyes were open but her vision started getting darker. It was like a back circle almost closing in, and she could just see like that small light in the middle. Everything else started getting blurry. At that point, it was 18- 19 minutes after the stabbing, and she started hearing a ringing noise in her ears.

Suddenly, all her pain, left. The nothingness came back, just like before. It was this weird peaceful like quietness and it just made hee want to close her eyes and sleep at that point. Now, she didn't even fear dying. It was so surreal and peaceful, no pain... It was such a weird experience. Just the stillness and a small fading light in her vision. Everything else around her sight was a dark blurry circle. It was very tempting to close her eyes and just let go.

Out of nowhere, images of her loved ones flashed before her eyes. How would they feel if she didn't even put a fair fight? She tried. And fought so hard to stay awake. Liz was trying equally hard. She wouldn't let Althea close her eyes and would do a light slap on her face, occasionally. She placed Althea' head on her lap and would stop her multiple times from closing her eyes. The other gathered people were putting pressure on her wound.

They didn't even care that they were getting her blood on their clothes or hands. So this is how it felt like to be stabbed right in the middle of the chest... Althea thought. And, with this final thought, her eyes closed themselves on their own account.
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Another experience of darkness and light playing with each other, led Althea to be awakened before Bathala, the Almighty.

"So? Can I get my answers this time?" Althea smiled awkwardly. She knew he was one the few who could come up with the answers.

"Not yet. My child." His voice was slow, more calming than ever.

"Just tell me this, was it my destiny? To die like that, the last time I came here? And, is the original Althea back in her own body or mine?"

"Original Althea... She has become Adriana by now. And you, my child, would be going back to become Althea. About your first question... Just as I said before, there's nothing prewritten. Believe in destiny, but, at the same time, you need to believe that destiny is written step by step. Remember, "whatever we do in life we get result of it in the same way" that is KARMA. If we are good in our own eyes then destiny takes us to our best. So do good and destiny will take you to your best."

"Ahh... I tried. I really did. But..." Althea stopped, not knowing what more she wanted to say.

"In a way, destiny is in your hand. You can make something happen according to you only if your actions and their timings are good. But if you know that your contribution towards life is bad then, destiny will take you to it's own way and you are going to live the way it's been written for you... Fortunately, that's not the way. Someone tried to recreate destiny." He explained, his voice laced with anger on the later part.

"You mean Lilith? Is she a God?"

"That, she isn't. Just a spirit. Unfortunately, I can't meddle but, I think you know who can. Go and seek her help. I wish you luck for this life, child." His fading voice and figure was a proof enough for her to know that the time had come.

This time, she'd not fail... With this thought, Althea welcomed another wave of darkness that engulfed her.
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Number of words : 1001
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