3:20 AM.

We are inside the make believe, yet all too real realm of The Man With No Face. Even with the passing time, the light shining in this vast room remains constant, as if its source never moves or falters. He is still looking straight ahead at his prize, an unmoving Shi Seien.

He is just as still as he was when we were last here. But as observers, we know that something should happen after this. If Seien will not make a move, then The Man With No Face will. It may not be happening now, but it will happen soon. Very soon. Time passes, and neither of them budges from their place. We focus our energies on the both of them, making sure that each miniscule movement is given notice.

Something just moved in Seien's face.

Even if we're anticipating all possible movements, we are still taken aback with this. We train our vision to Seien alone, as if to verify if this observation is correct. His face is at rest. Ethereal. Lifeless. Then, a twitch emerges from his lips. And another. A vibration starts from his chin to his lower lip, like a tremor. Something is happening within Shi Seien.

Soon, the twitch moves to his cheeks, underneath the eyes, and in between his brows. His fingers curl upward into fists, then straightens again. His lips finally part. His eyelids now twitch, first shutting tight, then back to its normal state, then tight again. It's like watching a robot being powered up for the first time, but since we are talking about a human being, we can conclude that Seien is gradually emerging into a state of wakefulness.

Even his shoulders now start to move after many weeks of atrophy. They move up, and down. His head tilts up. His hands form into fists, firmly gripping the linen sheets. Then, he buries his hands in the mattress, and with this sheer force, he rises upward. The way he does so is slow, but the move is calculated. When his torso is finally perpendicular to the bed, his eyelids move upward, until they are completely open, revealing eyes that remind us of emeralds. His long lashes bat rapidly with the sudden abundance of light. He raises his arm to shield his eyes from the unforgiving light. Even his body seems to be fighting his state of consciousness. His legs curl up. Is he in pain? We don't hear him flinch, nor can we see his face clearly due to his arm. But he remains on this position for a while.

Time passes. His face finally re-emerges after a few minutes. His eyelids seem to be more stable, only blinking once every few seconds. He looks at both his hands first, and having been satisfied with their state, he looks at the unusual surroundings, his green eyes moving unstably. He realizes immediately – this is not his room.

He stares directly ahead, and for the first time, acknowledges the presence of The Man With No Face sitting in front of him. His gaze suddenly darkens and becomes menacing.

"Who are you?" His voice is low and cracked – his vocal chords may have yet to wake up. "Why did you bring me here?"

The Man With No Face says nothing, but leans forward, seemingly in response. Seien's brows come together, as if he is trying to comprehend something. We do not hear anything else as this transpires. Seien's mouth opens slowly.

"Your prize? Me? For what? Who sent you?" He demands.

The Man With No Face is silent, but he shifts his position ever so slightly.

"What is there to win when you took me? I am not worth anything until I have my father's inheritance!"

The Man With No Face leans backward, and folds his hands into a steeple. His position is relaxed.

Seien's eyes move rapidly, left-right, left-right. His lips quiver, as he hears the answer in his head, in his own voice. His eyes widen unnaturally. His hands grasp the bedsheets again.

"No!" He shouts. "You cannot have me! I am not finished yet!" He screams hoarsely. He shifts his entire weight to the side and gets up from bed, but having not stood up for a long time, he wobbles and falls down to the ground. He grimaces with the pain. Just as he gathers whatever strength he had gained from waking up, he feels a strong force pulling him up from the ground. He looks to the left, and sees The Man With No Face. He is immensely tall, taller than he had expected, taller than what we expected. And immensely strong, that he is able to lift Seien's weight effortlessly with just a hand.

Seien tries to regain his footing, but he realizes that even his feet are up in the air. He gasps, then retreats his left elbow and pushes it onto The Man With No Face's solar plexus. His chest is hard, but he doesn't budge. Seien hits him again, but it is to no avail. The Man With No Face turns toward the bed and throws Seien like a ball, sending his entire body slamming onto the mattress. He cries out loud, the force stunning him completely.

The Man With No Face hovers over him, in his hands he carries a long, steel chain. Seien's eyes widen in horror, He pins Seien with one hand to the bed, and starts to tie him in place with the chain. His whole body will be tied down. Seien tries to squirm away from his grasp over him, but he is too strong. No adrenaline rush can possibly make him win over this otherworldy being. He now feels the cold, unforgiving chains strapped closely to his body, tearing his clothes. He is unable to move his arms or legs. He is rendered helpless, with just one hand, by The Man With No Face.

The Man With No Face now closes in his silicone-like mask over Seien. Cold sweat begins to break on his face. Then, he feels a sudden, unbearable weight over his body. The Man With No Face is over him. He straddles his legs on Seien's hips, and presses the top of his head on Seien's forehead. He breathes rapidly, his eyes rapidly move in sheer horror. He knows this is something he cannot overcome.

At the corner of his eye, he sees the gloved hands of The Man With No Face come near. His hands grasp his silver hair, which he suddenly pulls, making Seien scream with pain. When the force exerted is over, Seien sees a clump of his hair on the hand of The Man With No Face, which he casually dumps to the ground. He extends his other hand this time, on the other side of his head, gathers his hair and pulls it with the same splitting force.

Tears begin to spring on Seien's eyelids. The pain is already unbearable, but the voices in his head are more horrifying.

You can never go back again.

You can never go back again.

No one knows you're here.

You can never go back again.

"Let me go back to sleep again!" He pleads, but it is unheard by anyone except him and The Man With No Face. "Let me go back! I have to go back!"

You can never go back again.

"Let me go back! Let me go now!"

You can never go back again.

The Man With No Face shows his other hand, with a clump of wavy, silver hair on its palm. He lets it fall on the ground. Now with both hands, he closes them in on Seien's neck, fastening them slowly, making sure there is no gap in between his fingers, making sure that his work is clean.

Seien feels helpless, Every ounce of hope left within him is vanquished as he feels the cold hands grasp his neck. "I want to go back! Let me go back to sleep!"

The voice in Seien's head stops. Silence.

Then, a strong, firm grip strangles his neck. Seien's head snaps backward with the force, his mouth grasping for air that his nose couldn't anymore, but as the seconds progressed even this is futile. His fingers twist unnaturally as all the air is drained from him, as all the life is drained from him.

Blood erupts from his mouth and nose. The light on his eyes begin to fade. His lips begin to close as his eyelids start to droop. But as if in one last effort, he mouths a faint cry for help.

"Ryuu ... ki ..."

A cracking sound echoes around the room. The Man With No Face slowly lets go of Seien's neck, rises from his dominant position over Seien and walks away.

Shi Seien is sleeping soundly, once again.

Since we are just observers, there is nothing we could have done to prevent this. It may seem redundant, but it is important to emphasize that our role is to see, and say nothing. Seeing that the climax of this situation is over, our form permeates back to reality, beyond the TV screen into Seien's room. The bed is still empty, and we see in the screen the other bed beyond, the one which contained Seien's body.

The screen flickers. Static returns. It slowly grows, intensifies, until the image of the day-lit room is completely covered. Flicker. Static. Flicker. Static. Darkness.