1 REBIRTH

…Falling, falling, darkness trapped in darkness unable to move my limbs I was shocked but without a voice, I could not scream, without eyes I could not see around me I could feel time flow but that was it, trapped with my thoughts.

The darkness was without heat or cold, only loneliness and excruciating despair were my allies. Tortured, I dug deep into my mind.

I reflected only to have vague images of life before,

"It seems I was a scientist before.."

I thought, as flashes of days spent working endless formulas and theories floated in my thoughts.

Time flowed, and eventually, with a spark I could feel my tiny arms barely able to twitch. the darkness that was pitch black became blood red.

I had already figured out that I was inside of a woman's womb between the rhythmic thumping that never stops and the chord that keeps trying to wrap around my neck and all the congratulations I hear from the other side I could easily guess.

I was bored out of my mind with nothing to do but listen to random sounds and conversations. The language was luckily English, albeit an extremely archaic version. It took only the first three months to comprehend fully.

During my fourth month in the womb, I had overheard something interesting.

"Just breath… and focus, ….."

"focus on what?"

"the energy flowing, inside yo-…. It expands your…. It's like feeling another bloodstream with your body refined it by sweeping away the impurities and…. it works your body to be more flexible".

It was a pieced together assumption and conversation, but I have heard many references to magic and magical animals while being strapped in this womb. It was too much of a coincidence to not be true, with nothing better to do I tried the breathing technique.

At first, I felt nothing, apart from the insatiable sleepiness that tormented me it took over a week of trial and determination to finally be able to feel the flow of energy within my own body; it was as though my body had twice as many veins and arteries than I was originally led to believe.

The sensation of a light spark running through my body made a pale image of this secondary circulatory system in my head. The extra circulatory system flowed to a point beyond my chest resting lightly to a focal point behind my heart; it was a condensed mass of energy forming a disk that extended around the heart; it was a deep dark purple flow of energy that jumped from time to time.

After a few weeks of pushing and pulling with this unknown energy, I became able to focus it on my limbs and make them move more freely. The energy ran around my body as I played with it within the womb until it became a circle rotating close to the outer edges of my body.

After another month of playing and over listening to the outside world my faint circle split into two both rotating and running around my body, I now had twice the fun playing, sometimes I would let these energies play tag along my body while other times they would crash and other times they would run together.

The more I manipulate these energies to pass the time the sleeper I would get, however strangely enough they allowed me to see beyond the darkness. I could see the other bodies of circulatory energies around me, there was one, in particular, that was extremely bright surrounded by nine circles which violently rotated as he came closer.

After a few more months my two circles that at first only sparked had turned into three bright rings and constantly playing with them to pass the time had given me absolute control. The first circle filled me with more energy while the second allowed me to sense other persons nearby; however the third seemed to only amplify the first two and nothing particularly was gained from possessing it.

I was in a deep sleep when I felt my world crumbling and contractions forcing my body to turn where I had not let it. It was hours of endless screaming before I felt two giant hands grab my head and another before I was fully pulled, in my blurred vision I could see my mother her brown hair and ponytail was disheveled from the ordeal her face filled with adornment towards me despite the blood and embryonic fluid that covered me, then Slap! The hands that pulled me firmly slapped me on my buttocks; the pain was strong but I held in nonetheless then 'slap!' she struck again, it took my entire will, not to blurt into tears.

In revenge I emptied my bladder in her direction, a slight grin appeared on my face and she noticed.

"It appears he is healthy and a feisty one at that" she replied in a calm voice as a glow came from her finger and touched my forehead. I felt as though all my tiredness had lifted and my body was rejuvenated beyond its limit.

"oh... A thirsty one I see" she remarked as she casted healing magic while handing me over to my mother "his name is Alric… 'Alric Dimachaerus" her faint voice was even more soothing than he had heard before while in the womb.

Before he could get comfortable the door of this large room was burst into by two grown men and a tiny girl.

"Let me see him!"

The oldest looking one said while he grabbed me and held me up

"Aah see he's definitely a fighter, not a tear to be shed!" his voice reverberated and his beard split as his smile appeared on his face.

"'There is no need for fighters anymore in these peaceful times I'm sure he'll make an exceptional scholar" the voice of the slightly younger man beside him rhetoric in a slightly irritated voice, the young lady to the right tipped as she tried to reach the baby in her father's hand…

"brother?" she barely seemed to be three years of age with her eyes still bright and beady.