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Chapter 5: Swept Away

Ryan emerged from the wrecked Ferrari, shattered glass crunching under his Italian leather shoes. Wincing, he leaned against the mangled door frame and peered cautiously over the edge. In the dim glow of his cell phone light, he could make out the steep rocky cliff face disappearing into darkness below.

"How far down does this go?" he murmured. Inching forward, Ryan swept the phone's beam across the precarious descent.

Loose pebbles skittered down into the void with each subtle movement. Gripping protruding tree roots, he tentatively lowered himself over the edge. The tenuous holds groaned under his weight. Jagged rocks cut into his palms, but he continued his painstaking upward crawl. Suddenly, the root he grasped ripped free from the crumbling earth. Ryan's polished wingtip shoe scrambled for purchase on the shifting stones.

The vast chasm below pulled at him, promising oblivion. He pressed his face against the cold unyielding rock. His labored breaths echoed, like the sides of a deep well. With a desperate prayer, Ryan slid his foot along the cliff, seeking firm footing. If he lost his tenuous grip, the hungry abyss awaited.

Fortunately, the Ferrari's rear wheel had snagged on a thick root, leaving the car precariously suspended rather than plummeting fully into the ravine.

"This is the end for me," Ryan thought, heart hammering as he clung to the gnarled root.

Slowly, painfully, he continued scaling the cliff-side. Each tiny foothold felt treacherous as he hoisted himself up the sheer rock face. His muscles burned with exertion.

Pausing to catch his breath, Ryan tilted his head back, yearning for the sky. "Almost there...just a little further," he urged himself between gasps.

The ascent was agonizing. Jagged edges cut into his palms as he pulled his weight up by sheer upper body strength. He squeezed his eyes shut, focusing only on the next grip, the next toehold drawing him closer to salvation. Ryan attempted to extricate himself and get free, but as he moved, the car shifted on the precarious boulder. With a gut-wrenching screech of metal, the wreck lurched and began rolling down the ravine.

He was thrown clear, his limb snagging on a twisted tree branch, leaves slapping his face. He dangled helplessly as the ruined car tumbled end over end into the abyss.

Clutching the branch, Ryan struggled to pull himself up. But with a sharp crack, it splintered in his hands. Now untethered, he began sliding down the sheer trunk. Ryan's stomach dropped as he plunged into open air. This was it - the end. Closing his eyes, he surrendered himself to gravity's merciless embrace.

"It's up to you now, Lord..." he whispered as the roaring wind whipped past him.

He thought of his unfulfilled dreams, regrets, all that could have been. As the rocky ground rushed up to meet him, Ryan felt only profound sorrow that it had to end this way. A tremendous splash erupted as Ryan's limp body struck the churning river. He was swept away in the merciless currents, tossed helplessly amidst the roiling black water.

Struggling to keep his head above the rapids, Ryan flailed desperately for anything to grasp. But there was nothing but torrential darkness. He fought against the powerful currents that dragged him inexorably downstream. Jagged rocks battered his legs as he was hurled through narrow channels. The freezing water sapped his waning strength. Still Ryan thrashed, driven by sheer survival instinct and adrenaline.

But the river showed no mercy. He was pulled under again and again, the crushing pressure threatening to squeeze the last wisps of air from his burning lungs. It was all Ryan could do to gasp shallow, fleeting breaths whenever his face briefly breached the surface. The relentless currents carried him deeper into their frigid domain. In the distance, Ryan heard the growing roar of massive cascading water. The river accelerated, propelling him helplessly toward the deafening din.

With dawning horror, he realized what lay ahead. The falls. Ryan's cry of despair was lost in the angry churning currents as he was forced nearer the precipice with each passing second.

This was surely the end now. Not even his stubborn will to live could save him from the abyss that awaited below. As the lip of the immense falls appeared through the mist, Ryan closed his eyes, surrendering himself to the void's fatal embrace.

At the last moment after the merciless falls, a stray current pulled Ryan toward the riverbank. He was cast onto the muddy shore, his head grazing against rock. Ryan moaned, coughing up water. Slowly, agonizingly, he began crawling away from the menacing currents. His shredded palms sank into the moist earth as he painstakingly dragged his depleted body inch by inch. Finally collapsing from exhaustion on higher ground, Ryan lay gasping raggedly. His vision faded in and out of focus. Strange voices seemed to echo from far away, though no one was there.

Each shallow breath was a struggle now. Ryan's waterlogged clothes clung to him heavily. He attempted rolling onto his back but even that small motion sapped what little strength remained. His cheek pressed against the cold soil, Ryan's eyes fluttered, too heavy to keep open. A profound tiredness seeped through his bones. Perhaps if he just rested here a moment, it would pass...

As his tenuous grip on consciousness ebbed, Ryan surrendered to the beckoning darkness. The hard earth beneath him faded away. His ravaged body went limp, sinking into the depths of oblivion. With a barely audible sigh, Ryan's eyes finally closed.

Lilia jerked awake, heart pounding and sheets tangled around her legs. She grasped at her throat, gasping for air. The nightmare had felt so vivid - a man being swept mercilessly in a churning river, crying out desperately. Pressing a hand to her chest, Lilia tried to slow her frantic breathing. Moonlight filtered through the curtains, casting a silver glow across her darkened bedroom. As her pulse steadied, she shook her head, willing the disturbing images from her mind.

"It was only a nightmare," she murmured to herself. "Get a grip, Lilia."

She thought back to the churning river and thrashing man from her dream. It had seemed so vivid, so real. But dreams were just random neurons firing in the brain - nothing more.

It was only a dream, she told herself. Still, a lingering sense of unease permeated her thoughts. Lilia glanced at the clock - 3 AM. With a sigh, she leaned back into her pillow, hoping to reclaim sleep.

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