Collision Course [+ Additional Levels]

Level Eighteen - Heavy Sleep

Then with a cold shock, he realized it was him, that he was quickly sinking. Fear rose in him as he wondered how he was going to get back up and out, or if at this rate if he even could. And yet, he also felt like this where he was supposed to be... This is where he was needed, right now. He looked down at the deep infinity beneath him, at the glowing purple numbers rising past him, and then back up again, which was also quickly becoming deep and starry above his head. Reluctantly drawing himself to a resolve, he breathed slowly through his nostrils, settling his nerves and quieting his fears inside. He felt his panic loosen it's tight grip from his chest.

Then he blinked, startled as it occurred to him: he was breathing. He didn't remember when he had stopped holding his breath since he had dove through the floor of the void. He opened his mouth and gulped in huge amounts of... well, he had no idea what he was breathing. He couldn't quite put his foot on it, but there was just something about this place that didn't seem like it would have any air. At least whatever he was breathing in wasn't killing him, so... he figured that was good. Yeah. He looked up again, now seeing no trace of the floor through the strands of hair floated over his eyes, the faint color of deep blue having completely faded away. He wasn't going to die down here. He didn't know how he knew that, but something in his gut told him so. So he believed it.

There was also something telling him that he was needed down here. What was up with that? He stared at the royal purple numbers floating around him for an answer. Then he remembered―Coily. His wrongdoing. He grit his teeth, disgusted by the thought. The Game Code had been altered purely for Coily's own selfish benefit.

Whoa... Was, was he...? Was this place....?

Suddenly he knew exactly what he was here for, and what he needed to do.

And how to do it.

He twisted around, his jacket wrapping around him and his hair swishing over his face from the movement (it was at this point that he was reminded that he needed a haircut), and his gaze shifted from number to number. He examined each that he could, and found that he wasn't quite where he needed to be. So he turned, angling himself, and leaned forward, shooting out his arms and bringing them to his sides as he kicked his legs. Repeating these simple movements got him ahead much quicker than he expected, so he slowed down with more controlled actions, so as to not pass his target by mistake. It felt odd to be swimming and not holding his breath at the same time. It caused him to move a little jerkily, to breath unsteadily. However, as time went on, he began to adapt to the peculiar situation, and became more coordinated.

It didn't take long before his gaze landed on what he had come for.

It formed a bit of what looked like a cloud, but in space. The glowing numbers in the region flickered instead of pulsed, jerking unpredictably instead of spinning smoothly. He swam closer. "Well, there's your problem," he whispered, watching the code misbehave. A strand of electricity instantly stretched from a number to another, snapping between them. This happened a couple more times during the next three seconds, seemingly with no rhyme or reason.

He inhaled and exhaled deeply, mentally readying himself. "Alright. Let's do this." His hand reached forward, and grabbed ahold of one of the numbers.

What occurred next, became what he would only be able to recall as a blur. He was fully aware of what was happening in the moment, but it happened so very quickly, that it became a hazy memory in hindsight. One moment, the digit sparked and spit, flashing and trying to wrench free of his grip; the next moment, he was grabbing other digits and trying to pull them together with his arms, keeping away some others with a leg. Electricity snapped by his ears and his face, zapping his side and his foot. The numbers glowed brightly in reaction to being touched, so he had to squint while he worked. They also were uncomfortably warm, which quickly turned into piping hot, burning him. So he moved as fast as he could, growling as he struggled to reign them in and realign them. It didn't help that the other code viewed him as a threat, so they bonded together and wrapped around his neck and spare leg like cords, curling around his waist with a vise-like grip. Screaming inside, his eyes watered as he tried to get free of the code and fought to fix what Coily had sent into disarray. Nearly at wits end, frustrated at getting burned and not being able to see, it came to him: