Cold.
Adam had never felt more cold in his life.
The icy water filling his lungs made him feel like he was going to freeze.
He probably couldn't breathe, but truth be told, Adam wasn't even trying. He just let the water flow around him, in him, uncaring, indifferent…
Cold.
Suddenly, Adam's head hit something hard. He'd been moving at a snail's pace, so it's not like he was doing any more damage. Even so, the suddenness of the action made him inhale slightly in surprise, sending the water (that had previously been slowly flowing down his throat) rushing down his windpipe like it was being vacuumed.
It was as if a switch had been flipped. Adam immediately began to writhe around, the instinct to survive reawakened, driving him to make his way to the surface. It was a long shot, sure. Frankly, the fact that he was even conscious was absurd. Any second now, his strength would leave him, his wounds taking their toll and dragging him down to the bottom. Or maybe it would be the cold that would take him down, seeping into his bones and freezing him before he could even take a breath. Either way, he was probably only delaying the inevitable. He was done for. He was already dead. He was-
He broke through.
The sensation of air flowing into his mouth and down his windpipe was almost orgasmic as Adam's head rose from the water, taking in a massive gulp of air. However, the ecstasy was soon replaced by the horrible feeling of water starting to push itself out of his lungs. Flailing his arms around wildly, Adam's hand slapped a low-hanging edge. With strength he didn't know he still had, Adam dragged his heavy, wet, wounded body up and over, eventually managing to flop face down on a hard yet welcome rock floor, at which point the man promptly began vomiting out blood and water, barely giving him space to breath.
Eventually, Adam's body decided he wasn't in imminent danger of drowning, and stopped regurgitating fluids. Groaning and soaked to the bone, Adam rolled over onto his side and clenched his stomach, palming the two stab wounds there. The icy water he'd spent the past few minutes submerged nearly killed him, but in a sense had also saved his life; the cold had slowed the speed of bleeding and numbed his senses, allowing him to largely ignore the pain.
For a time, Adam just lay there, his heavy, quivering agonal gasps gradually achieving a steady rhythm, deepening and slowing down. The oxygen washing over his brain, Adam forced his eyes open and tilted his neck, ignoring the dull throbbing in the back of his neck. He was in a surprisingly well-lit cave that hit a dead end a few meters from where he was lying, through he could see a pathway leading further down off to the side. The sound of rushing water told him that he wasn't that far from the waterfall. In fact, he wouldn't be surprised if the waterfall was the only thing preventing the cave from being seen from the cliff, which would explain why it was so easy to see. Yes, he had to be near the waterfall.
The waterfall…
The cliff…
His sword…
Yang…
Blake…
Blake.
Blake.
"AHH! Shit….!" Adam groaned, the pain rearing its head as he turned back onto his front and began forcing himself to stand up. Now that he was becoming more aware, the pain in his stomach and head were only getting worse. It took every ounce of his will not to just collapse onto the floor and sob. Grinding his teeth, he transferred his weight to his feet and rose up. He felt like he was going to throw up his insides, but he was standing. He could still walk.
Taking long, deep, shaky breaths, Adam looked down at his side. Surprisingly, Blush was still clipped to his belt, and seemed to still be in working condition, at a first glance at least. Hopeful, Adam looked around the surrounding area, but couldn't see Wilt anywhere. He shook his head. He'd be unable to use his semblance in a controlled manner, but as long as he could find a sword of similar style and quality, then it should be fine. Even so, the prospect of having to part with one of his most prized possessions was… irritating, to say the least.
Exhaling, Adam took his first, tremulous steps forward. Each time he lifted a foot he felt like he would fall over, but he was soon able to establish an uncertain sense of balance. Swimming was out of the question, so he began making his way over to the path leading away from the area. He had no idea where it led. Hell, it might not even go anywhere. But Adam pushed such thoughts from his mind. It would lead somewhere. It HAD to. After all…
… he still had a promise to keep.
A/N
Let me just end this little intro with a few things. One, as you might have noticed, I've retconned Episode 12 a bit so that Adam got stabbed in the stomach instead of the chest. It's still enough to cause major injury, but it does make his survival a bit more likely.
Two, this is simply a "what-if" scenario exploring what might happen if Adam survived. I'm NOT writing this because I'm pissed about how Adam was handled and am trying to one-up RT because I think I can write a better story than them. Although I certainly did like Adam as a character and was sad to see his role in the story end, I'm still satisfied with how he was handled (mostly) and think his descent into obsession and madness is among the more interesting character arcs in the show. Again, I'm not writing this because I'm frustrated with his "wasted potential", I just think this would be an interesting concept to explore.
So yeah.
Follow fav and review if you're interested.
A/N