I can't see or feel anything. My muscles won't respond.
Since the moment I began to see, a dense darkness surrounds me and seems to chase me for no apparent reason.
Powerlessness takes over me. I feel empty, as if I carry something inside me that I can't explain. Something that goes beyond my inner self, overflowing into the outside. It's a feeling of loss and frustration. What I lack seems to have been ripped from me, an essential part of my being.
Maybe that something defined me as my true self.
I don't know who I am. Not even what I am.
Time passes slowly, or maybe it doesn't exist. It's impossible to distinguish what is happening to me right now.
Loneliness adds to the cold emptiness, making this place even darker.
Here, it's lonely.
Lately, a growing despair tightens my chest. It arrives full of anguish, loneliness, and anxiety, settling in like a painful needle. And it hurts. It hurts a lot.
But recently, something started to change. A warm touch and a fraternal love began to warm me and light up my surroundings.
I thought I was going insane.
My thoughts overflowed. This warmth is insufficient.
I asked myself many questions:
'Where am I?... Who am I?'
'Who put me here?'
'Why me?'
My mind was collapsing, on the brink of madness. I don't know why or what necessity led me to this psychological torture. But one thing I know: if nothing happens in the next moments, I will lose my sanity. Maybe the newfound warmth is my salvation.
My doubts echo in my head. My sanity is hanging by a thread, but the desire for answers grows, keeping me lucid.
Then, a bright white light shone on me, dispelling the darkness around me. I felt my existence being sucked and absorbed by something, until I disappeared completely within the light.
A feminine, eloquent, and seductive voice called me:
— Well, well... You didn't survive the previous challenge and now you're in a deplorable state. Luckily, or rather, by your luck, you have me, dear.
The angelic and captivating voice appeared before me, accompanied by a charming smile and seductive lips.
'Who are you? Are you here to take me out of here?'
The questions rushed through my mind. I felt a stir in my emotions.
Before me, I saw a completely white feminine silhouette, floating through the rainy space. Her elegant outline exuded femininity, like a detailed sketch of a beautiful drawing.
The white silhouette might be censoring its true appearance.
She approached and enveloped me in a hug. Her body was warm and soft.
Her form shone intensely.
All the questions I had faded in an instant.
— Fufu... What bad luck for you. You're in such a sorry state that you don't even recognize me, hm?
She crossed her arms, turned her face to the side, and pouted, clearly disappointed.
— Dear, if you don't remember anything, then I won't tell you anything about what you need to do. Well, I wish you luck, because you will need it in the new world you're about to be born into. — Her indifferent tone emphasized her frustration. — I'll be waiting for your return. And when you come back, I hope you remember everything and come find me to fulfill your part of the deal.
'New world?'
'Born?'
'Deal?'
None of what she said made sense. When my consciousness returned from the shock, the questions came back.
— Your memories have been affected and will continue to be. However, if you recover your powers, you will get everything back. But in your current state, only you can help yourself.
She concluded with a quick prayer.
Then, she held my cheeks and brought her lips to mine.
— Alright. Amidst the doubts, I'll give you two hints to motivate you.
I stared at her, incredulous at her actions.
She raised her index finger.
— First hint: to survive in your new world, you will need to become as strong as anyone else.
Be strong? What a ridiculous joke. It feels like I'm being forced into these situations. I'm furious.
She raised her middle finger along with the index, forming a "V."
— Second hint: it's better to be careful and hurry to strengthen yourself. For you, it's a race against time. — She closed her hand. — As for me, I'll get what I want one way or another.
She smiled menacingly.
'Those aren't hints. Those are warnings!'
She blew a kiss in the air and began to disappear.
— …See you later, dear.
And she vanished completely.
My consciousness became an empty void again. But it lasted for only a short time.
A light shone once more. It reflected before me, blinding my weak eyes. I felt as if I were walking slowly down a tunnel, searching for the light at the end. Waiting for something good. Good news.
My heart raced as I neared the light. Or maybe it was coming to me.
That being might have been right. I should take her seriously. I can't take risks. But I don't know what awaits me.
The darkness began to dissipate.
The warmth returned. I felt a sense of fraternity. Even without memories, I'm not stupid.
I was able to gather information from the woman who came to me. From her words, I am reincarnating. But there is more to it.
Maybe this isn't my first reincarnation. So many hypotheses.
And what does she want? Whether I do something or not, it seems irrelevant to her. But all of this feels so surreal...
THUD
My consciousness faded.
Suddenly, the light disappeared, and my vision was replaced by blurry images of people and objects.
— The baby is a boy, Mrs. Zy. And he looks quite healthy, visibly, for these cruel times we're in.
(NT: '*' means he doesn't understand what's being said.)
The blur of my vision began to slowly fit together, giving me an increasingly clearer and more vivid view of things.
Even at my birth, my thoughts about my time in the afterlife still haunt me.
An elderly woman, dressed in a long white robe, is the first person I see. Her face full of age marks and her long ears highlight her dark brown eyes. She is likely the one who helped my mother during my birth.
Her quick yawn shows her fatigue.
'Who the hell is this old woman, and what is she saying!?'
I opened my mouth in a failed attempt to speak. A crying yell came out instead, as a reflex. I can't control it.
— He seems very lively, huh.
The old woman spoke again. And I still couldn't understand a word.
The clarity of the details around me made me shut up, perhaps the reflex act of the sense of realism that descended on me.
— Mrs. Zy, would you like to hold him?
The old woman spoke again.
'Hold me? Who?'
'My mother, maybe?'
— Y-yes, please. The old woman walked a few steps on the creaky wooden floor. And a new face appeared in my limited peripheral vision as a newborn. — His name will be Ryoumi. Ryoumi Zyu.
I'm in her arms. She pokes my little face with her index finger.
— Hello, mommy's little boy.
She whispered with a calm and loving smile.
There's no doubt, my new family is right here, in this world.
— Mrs. Neses, could you call my husband now?
The old woman remained silent, nodding. After a few more steps, she reached a wooden door and turned the handle, opening it.
A man and a boy passed through the door and came to where I am.
By the situation, the man is probably my father, and the boy is my brother.
My father warmly embraces my mother, and with a joyful smile, he carefully takes me into his arms. Then, he started crying, mucus coming from his nose as he sniffled. He kissed her on the lips and then on the forehead.
He crouched down to show me to my brother. The child is a boy with black hair like my father's, his eyes have a brown tint, which doesn't seem to resemble either of our parents.
— Excuse me, but could you hand him to me for a moment again? The old woman said, approaching. — I'll clean him up and check his health; see if he has any kind of illness or defect in his body.
The old woman extended her hand.
'Is she going to give me a bath?'
— Curatio.
She said calmly, and touched a wooden wand, which had mysteriously appeared in her hand, to me.
— Verificationis!
My new family looks at me in pure ecstasy.
A green light shines intensely and leaves the wand.
'What's—'
The light from the wand goes to my stomach, then spreads through my body, glowing in a light green. It travels through every cell of my body.
She places her finger on her chin and looks at me.
— After the verification, he seems completely healthy. Nothing abnormal.
— That's great. It's wonderful to hear.
Said my mother.
The old woman huffed and raised her wand again, pointing it at me.
— Clean! — She shouted.
— Now, he's all clean.
Then the old woman said other words, but I couldn't hear them. She changed clothes instantly.
— Your son is a cutie.
The feeling of that light was strong and intense, it engulfed me. I want to understand what that is and how to do it myself.
In the end, my curiosity about the things of this world is only growing.
The old woman walked toward the door, grabbed the handle, and turned it. She pulled the door open, and it creaked loudly, the rusty hinges and the door's wood ready to be replaced.
— Wait, Mrs. Neses. Stay here. There's a storm outside. My father said, trying to persuade her to stay.
— There's no need to worry about me. I can leave without any problem.
The old woman's new clothes had a cloak. The cloak swayed as she turned to look at my father. And at that moment, thunder struck from the sky.
And the old woman passed through the door and left. My brother went out to accompany her to the house's exit, and then went to bed.
They're gone.
My mother and father turned their attention to me.
— He's such a cute and adorable baby, isn't he? I mean, look at him, with those cheeks you just want to squeeze and stretch.
Sweet, kind, gentle, and pleasant, that's my mother.
Despite the fatigue in her ears from the labor, her stunning beauty still shines.
My mother kisses my forehead.
My vision started to blur. And I begin to yawn.
My vision darkens, and I fall asleep, comfortably next to my beloved mother. Then, I drift off into the darkness that hits me again.
Nightmares torment me in my sleep, but I never remember them.