<div style="text-align: justify;">Marissa had not expected to be allowed a few seconds as herself by the other one. She wasn’t sure whether or not it had been a conscious decision, though. It might just be that the other one has lost control of her for that brief moment. But there would be no time to think about this. Shortly after the other one relinquished control, Mari lost consciousness, right there where she was, wounded and bleeding.<br/><br/>As she finally drifted completely out of the conscient world, Mari felt like she had drifted into a different plan of existence. <br/><br/>With her eyes closed, she felt as though she was floating. But it wasn’t as pleasant as it could have been. There was still pain, and confusion, and some feeling that things could go wrong. And at the same time, there was a sense of helplessness. A battle raging inside her to the point where she couldn’t tell the outcome.<br/><br/>On the outside of her mind, her body was struggling to stay alive. Her heart was beating faster than it ever had. Her temperature was higher than it should have been. Soft moans of pain escaped the girl’s lips. She felt thirsty, and her blond hair was drenched in sweat. It was clear that the outcome could be either for now. She could push through and survive as herself. Her body could push through, but be ruled by the second personality. Or she could simply not make it.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">In her mind, Mari was standing in the crossroads. It was clear she had a choice. One seemed easy. Beauty, peace and warmth. The other one seemed a lot more complicated, stranger, with a whole lot of stimuli to her senses. Whatever it was that made her choose - curiosity, or whatever else - made Marissa choose the path where all that stimuli was available. <br/><br/>But Mari being who she was, it wasn’t that simple. Having two beings inside her psyche, there was still the issue of which one would emerge from that long and restless sleep. Having made the choice of a path, Marissa could see both her parts standing side by side. They both stared at each other. It was a silent challenge. Whoever reached the end of the path first would be the one to stay alive.<br/><br/>It wasn’t simply a race, though. It was a struggle for victory. As they raced for the end of the path that would lead them out of that dream state, both parts of Marissa tried to push the other of off the path, cause the other one to trip and fall, or delay the other one’s progress in any way they possibly could. It was a long struggle, but they eventually managed to reach one inch from the end of the path. And then, one pushed the other back and finally reached the end.</span><br/><br/>Outside her mind, Marissa sat up with a gasp. It sounded as though someone who had been drowning and had just managed to get their head out of the water. Panting, she looked around her, trying to figure out where she was, and whether or not she was alone. It was all she could manage to think of now, as her head was pounding and her body still felt too weak for anything.</div>