As the pain from the moonshade-poisoned crystal seared through Alex's stomach, his vision flickered, the world around him a chaotic blur of screams and shattered glass. His knees buckled, and he crumpled to the polished floor of Starhaven Academy, his hands clutching the wound, warm blood seeping through his fingers.
The cold, mechanical chime of the system rang in his mind again, cutting through the haze of agony. A notification flashed across his vision, its red text stark against the darkening edges of his sight:
Alex gasped, his chest heaving as he tried to focus on the words. Hope flickered faintly in his chest, a fragile spark amidst the overwhelming pain. The system was trying to save him, maybe it could pull him back from the brink. His breath came in shallow, ragged bursts, each one a struggle as the poison burned through his veins, like liquid fire spreading from the wound.
