The rest Ran desired didn’t exactly come, each tug of bamboo sending a surge of pain through him. But the removal felt good too, a foreign object removed and his body, no matter how damaged, returned to a more natural state.

He kept his eyes closed, enjoying the pain, knowing he was more himself.

“Ran,” Clara said softly, hand gently touching his chest, as if waking him a late morning after a night of passion, rather than waking him from this living nightmare. “Ran, we need to go.”

He opened his eyes and gave her a small smile. “I know.”