Chapter 02: Grey Mage

Cold - that's the first feeling I experienced. An unending cold. But then that feeling ceased - replaced by a comforting warmth. A warmth I wished to hold onto forever and never let go of. I managed to just about strain myself enough to lift my eyelids - a feat that felt close to impossible - and I was met with probably the single most calming image I'd ever be graced with in both of my lives. As the light filtered through my eyes, a woman popped into view.

If this was still my old life, I'd have considered her an almost unparalleled beauty. However, no such thoughts crossed my mind. Instead, she seemed less beautiful and more lovely in a sense. It's not that she wasn't beautiful, she definitely was and I recognized that. But, for whatever reason, I just couldn't bring myself to see her that way. The only word I could use to describe her is, once again, lovely.

Light cyan eyes shone down onto me, reflecting their peaceful aura onto everything and everyone around them. White hair cascaded down her back, only stopping at her fringe which parted in the middle and extended down slightly further just above each of her eyes - like bangs, except remove the middle. Her facial features were each soft in their own sense; eyebrows that curved at each angle, small soft lips and a nose so small it may as well have been completely unnoticeable. Judging by her face alone, I'd have to guess she was somewhere in her mid 20s. Although, the frail frame that hugged me begged to differ - this woman was insanely thin, so much so that without her face, I may have mistaken her for a teenager.

My arm involuntarily reached up, almost as if I was trying to grab her face and store it away for myself. I honestly couldn't blame my body, this was the type of face where so much as seeing it would cheer even the most cold-hearted person up on a low day. As my arm raised, her smile widened and she released a slight giggle. She then took my hand in hers and lightly caressed it, causing me to release a loud coo of amusement.

Wait... Why was I cooing? I'm an adult man, surely I should be able to form words. Not only was I an adult man, I was Ato Aywrath - the strongest Mage to ever live! Hmm... Wait a second, why am I so small?!

Finally, it hit me. All the memories from my final moments came flooding back to me. Yes. The spell must've worked and I was reincarnated. If so, then this woman must be my mother - which would explain why I felt no attraction towards her, despite her appearance.

So I was finally back, huh? Truthfully, I had no clue how long it had truly been since Ato Aywrath's last moments, which had felt like nothing more than a few minutes ago to me. As I said before, it could be the very next day, or it could be entire eons since then. Either way, I had one thing to check - my crest. In this infantile state, I couldn't muster the strength to lift my head - not that doing so could've aided me in checking my crest, as all crests appeared on a person's neck.

Although, I didn't have high hopes that I had achieved my dream of a Sword-Spell crest, as when checking my mother, I noticed that she had the Mage crest - and so, it may as well have been impossible. Sword-Spell crests only form on children who descend from a lineage where both of their parents sport the rare crest - the main reason as to why it was so very uncommon. Oh, well - I suppose I'll just have to live through a portion of this life, until I regain my strength and cast the reincarnation spell again. I didn't really expect to get it on the first try, either.

A creak reverberated through the tiny room, as the wooden door leading elsewhere swung open. A woman sporting doctor's attire (a single leather chest-plate with a faded red cross painted across it) confidently stepped into the room. She gave off an unmistakable aura of kindness. No, kindness wasn't the right word to describe it - it was more like friendliness. As if she was a normal person who was capable of anger, yet harbored the exact opposite of ill-intent towards my mother and I.

My mother looked over at her excitedly - almost as if she had been waiting for this very moment for years.

The doctor began a conversation, "Alright, Elena. It's been about 4 hours now, how are you feeling?"

"Oh, yes. I'm feeling exceptionally better. I don't know how I'll ever repay you for this, Zeda."

Not only did the doctor call my mother by first name, but my mother did the same for her, so I could only assume that this 'Zeda' was a friend of my mother. I could also only assume from the phrase 'I don't know how I'll ever repay you' that this Zeda person had offered to deliver me for free, and that perhaps my mother couldn't afford any other doctors, suggesting that we were poor, which I was not looking forward to.

"This makes the eighth time that I'm having to tell you not to mention it. Seriously, it was perfectly fine." Zeda replied to my mother, a slightly exasperated tone lacing her voice.

"Ah.. Yes, I'm sorry. I just truly do appreciate it."

"I know. Anyway, onto the formalities. As far as I can tell, there's just two more steps - let's start with the name. So, any ideas?"

My mother's eyes instantly lit up, exuding an almost childlike excitement. "I've been thinking about this for a while, and I've landed on three that I really like; Percy, Kane, and Rey. I just... I can't decide which of the three I like the most. Hmm..."

My mother went completely silent and Zeda rolled her eyes slightly, almost as if she was used to this indecisive behavior.

"Alright... Well, I don't like Percy as much as Kane and Rey, but I really can't choose between those two!" My mother started once again, a hesitant expression crossing her features.

"Well... You could use both. One could be his first name and the other could be a middle name. Although, the first name would be the one that he's known as more."

"Yes! Zeda, you're a genius! Alright. I've decided. This is my son - Kane Rey Limitia."

"Okay, then. Now we've just got the last part of the process - checking little Kane's crest." Zeda finished with a satisfied breath, writing down my new name on a notepad.

I have to admit, I was also extremely curious. I knew there was zero chance of it being the Sword-Spell crest, but if it was the Soldier crest, this life would probably be at least slightly more interesting, as it'd at least be a new experience.

Zeda picked me up out of my mother's hands, holding me gently, seemingly about to cast the incantation that revealed a newborn's crest. She continued conversation with my mother, "You still haven't told me who the kid's father is, but you did mention that he has the Soldier crest, right?"

My mother's face turned slightly paler. "Ah... Yes, he has the Solider crest."

"Oh, sorry, Elena. I... didn't mean to bring up any memories. I just meant that since you have the Mage crest and he has the Soldier crest, little Kane could have either of them."

She finally finished the spell, it taking an unreasonably long time, probably due to her interrupting her focus with the conversation. I felt a slight burning sensation on my neck, the feeling every baby gets when they receive their crest. And finally, the feeling dissipated, suggesting that my crest was now fully formed.

Zeda glanced down, before her eyes widened in shock. My mother seemed confused and attempted to look over at it herself. Her eyes also widened - albeit not nearly as much as Zeda's.

"Woah... I've never seen that crest before. It's definitely not the Mage crest, but it doesn't look like the Soldier crest either. What is that?"

No way... It couldn't be...

"It looks like some sort of black star with..." My mother strained her eyes. "With what looks like two swords sticking through it diagonally, and four balls of magic spewing from each end vertically and horizontally."

Ha... There's absolutely no way. What she just described... It's the appearance of the-

"Sword-Spell crest. Kane has the Sword-Spell crest." Zeda told my mother, in a worried tone.

instantly, my mother's features contorted into shock. "You mean... that Sword-Spell crest?"

Zeda nodded.

I didn't understand. Yes, the Sword-Spell crest was powerful, but it didn't require this much of a reaction... right? Or perhaps the percentage of Sword-Spell crests has simply decreased so much that seeing one is considered a one in a billion occurrence? Or maybe they were simply so shocked because a Sword-Spell crest was born to non-Sword-Spell crest parents. To be honest, it made sense for them to react this way in that case. After all, something like this has never happened before.

"Yes... The weakest crest of all - the Sword-Spell crest." Zeda responded to my mother in a tone of pity.

Wait... What? The weakest crest?

"Why?..." My mother began, eyes filling with tears. "I've never wished for anything much. I've lived a life full of pain and regret, all because I wanted to save my prayers for my children - all because I wanted to be able to provide them with an easier life than I. And yet... My Kane was born with the mark that guarantees him a place at the bottom of society. Just... Why?"

What are they talking about? 'Guarantees him a place at the bottom of society'? No way. The Sword-Spell crest is meant to be the strongest.

Zeda's face contorted into one of disgust.

"Get out." She ordered, staring at the two of us with a look of pure sickening superiority.

"Wh- What?" My mother questioned, stunned into confusion.

"I said, GET THE FUCK OUT! RIGHT NOW! You and that goddamn grey need to leave." She shouted at the two of us.

I didn't know what the term 'grey' meant, but judging from it's placement, I could only assume it was a slur against people with Sword-Spell crests. This all felt so foreign - not just the Sword-Spell crest being thought of as the weakest, but the entire crest ranking system. In my old era, it was common knowledge that the strongest crest was the Sword-Spell crest, but the Mage and Soldier crests were both thought of as harboring equal potential. And so, discriminating against a person for having the 'weakest crest' was a concept completely unfamiliar to me.

"Zeda... Please, why- why are you-"

"ISN'T IT OBVIOUS? If anyone finds out that one of the children I delivered is a grey, my reputation as a trustworthy doctor will plummet. So... FUCKING LEAVE!"

My mother hid her tears, instead finding any strength in her body to stand, picking me up, and walking out of the building. I could tell from the look in her eyes that she didn't really know what to do. I assumed that she had some kind of house to return to, as if she didn't, she'd probably be in a state of pure panic. But it did seem like she had been relying on Zeda for a lot, so this would definitely have a rather large impact.

As we walked, she held me to her chest, lightly stroking the back of my head. She probably found it odd that I wasn't crying after all that transpired, but I doubt that she was complaining. If anything, she was probably relieved that it seemed that I wasn't a fussy child.

We walked for around ten minutes, before I assumed we arrived at our destination. I pulled my head up with all my strength, looking to see where I'd be residing for a little while - In front of us was a tall, but slim building with around 5 floors. It looked extremely rundown, maybe even abandoned. I wasn't exactly looking forward to it, but I didn't have much choice. I'd just have to wait it out.

The splintering door very nearly flew off it's hinges at the slight push that my mother gave it to open. It was completely dark on the inside, but from what I could make out, the only furniture was a single table in the corner and two sleeping bags on the floor. These conditions truly were awful. Although, if my mother had been living in these conditions for however long, I wouldn't complain at having to live in them for the first portion of my life.

There was one thing that made me slightly nervous - if my family was already this poor before I was born, how bad would their treatment get after a so-called 'grey' was born into their family?

I didn't really want to consider that right now. My mother walked with me over to one of the sleeping bags in the corner, before sitting down and sitting me on her lap. I looked back at her, and she looked down at me, forcing a smile. She held that façade for as long as she could, but within five seconds, cracks started showing - the main one being the tears that began streaming down her face.

"I'm sorry, Kane. I'm so sorry. I'm sorry that you don't have your father, I'm sorry that you have to grow up in this area, but most of all, I'm sorry that I gave you such a flawed crest. I'm so sorry."

I couldn't explain why, but I felt an insatiable urge to dry her tears with my hand, and tell her that it's not her fault, tell her the crest wasn't as bad as she thought, but I couldn't. That's not something that a baby could realistically accomplish. Plus, I still couldn't actually speak, just coo. And so, I'd just have to deal with it for now.

Well, that's what I thought. My arm once again moved on instinct, wiping away her tears. She looked down at me, before her pout fell and a slight smile appeared on her face.

"Thank you, Kane. Thank you."