After a time that was difficult to determine, Jake gradually regained consciousness. He was unable to tell how long he had been unconscious and the pitch blackness around him was not helping. He couldn't feel his body and couldn't breathe. Being deprived of all his senses made him doubt his own existence and it was an extremely disturbing feeling.
After a while his last memories came back to him and he couldn't help but whisper with a real surprise:
"Did I survive? Or did I die during the Ordeal?"
Of course, only silence answered him. There was no air where he was. Without air to vibrate, there could be no sound. He was reassured, however, when he heard Xi's mental voice.
[You were repatriated at the last minute. It was a close call, but you survived.] The soft female voice told him what had happened.
"That means..."
[Congratulations. You've indeed passed your first Ordeal.] Xi confirmed with a tone that seemed... relieved? Excited? Or perhaps a combination of both.
