Max felt her arm being stabbed by a huge needle, heard Fang calling her name, Angel screaming, and things started to fade....

She opened her eyes to see an empty field surrounding her. A skeletal tree stood, sick and alone, a few feet away. The world appeared gray, the image grainy. She rubbed her eyes. It did no good. A crow flew overhead, letting out an eerie call.

She wasn't sure where she was, so she started to walk. She didn't know what she'd find, but it was better than just standing there.

Max wandered the barren land for quite some time, when she realized that she saw the same tree she'd first seen when she woke up. It was in its same position, leaning slightly to the right. She rubbed her eyes; no, it was a different tree. It had to be.

An eerie screech startled her, and she looked up to see a crow flying overhead.

No, it was just a coincidence; the crow had followed her, maybe. But it still scared her, so she started to run, in no particular direction. The strange world passed her by in chunks, as if someone had pressed the fast forward button.

She stopped at the tree, exactly five feet away from it, as she'd been the past two times.

The crow flew over her, letting out a mocking caw.

Max panicked, and started to run again. She didn't know how many times she passed the skeletal tree, or heard the call of the crow. She kept running, only to be met with the same fate. She didn't know how to do anything else but run.

"Max!"

Max's eyes opened wide, to be met with Fang's anxious face. She moaned and tried to sit up.

"No, stay. They stuck you with something weird. We don't want you getting up just yet."

Max sighed and looked around. The sky was cloudy. A few feet away, a sick tree stood. Overhead, a crow called out in mourning.