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5
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As Raoul had freed himself from the underwater entrapment he had fallen into once more while going after Christine, the ceiling began to come down on him in burning pieces. He shouted as he felt himself become aflame, and ran all the way back up the stairwell, forgetting of Christine for the moment. Christine had already found the Phantom at that point and would not be returning to Raoul anytime soon.
Fire workers who were searching the front of the building for any left over people trapped in the blaze saw Raoul reach the top of the stairwell and run out through the hall and collapse onto the floor in front of the exit.
Two workers helped him up as the others continued at their post, still searching for any sign of inhabitance. Raoul was unconscious in their grip and they transported him outside so that they could work on reviving him.
They set him down on the ground near the medical carriage and saw to his wounds. A crowd began gathering around him, wondering what had become of the Vicomte.
When Raoul regained consciousness and woke up, he found himself lying in the back of the medical carriage. He remembered faintly the events that had occurred, but ran up some blanks in certain areas.
Raoul lifted an arm up and felt unbelievable pain. He saw that his arm had been bandaged thickly with white medical wrapping. He thought it strange, nevertheless, nothing really big. As he tried to sit up, he felt the incredible pain again. It surged through his body, making him ache all over in such a way that he wanted to scream, but held it in.
There was a small mirror on the wall of the carriage. He moved his head so that he was directly in front of it. When he viewed his reflection in the small mirror, this time he did scream.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhh! Dear God!" He screamed so loud that the entire crowd, who were chatting amongst themselves quite loudly, could hear him perfectly from within the medical carriage.
The two fire workers who had pulled him from the opera house and a doctor came to him to see what all the commotion was about. They realized that he had looked in the mirror and now they had to explain.
Tears began to flow from Raoul's eyes. "What's wrong with me?" He asked, looking at the fire workers.
The fire workers looked to the doctor and the doctor cleared his throat nervously. "Uh, Vicomte... we are sorry to say that while you were in the burning opera house your face was burned dramatically beyond repair. We are so, so sorry."
Raoul sniffed and cried more. "I... I'm a monster."
The doctor gulped and looked to the fire workers. They simply shrugged at him. "Uhh, well, it will heal soon and certainly look less severe in some time. Of course... it will never fully heal."
"Oh, God, no," Raoul bawled, unable to even look at the doctor and fire workers now. He felt so inferior. Unworthy of being in their presence. He just wanted to crawl into a hole and hide there forever.
A revelation then hit him and his tears stopped; now he knew how the Phantom always felt. How horrible it must be for that man! To live like that your whole life! But... now he had to live the rest of his life disfigured as well. And... it had been that horrid Phantom who had caused the fire which had burned his face so unjustly in the first place.
He looked up and saw that the doctor and fire workers had left him. He made a fist with his unbandaged hand and banged it down on the carriage bench. This meant...
"Revenge," Raoul said coldly with slitted eyes. "I know you're out there somewhere, Phantom. Out there with Christine. And when I find you..." He began laughing to himself quietly. Then his laughter began to rise and before he knew it, he was laughing maniacally like there was no tomorrow.
"The Phantom of the Opera will pay! For taking my face away!"