Chapter Seven -- Bright Lights

--Lewis--

My mind awakened long before any part of my physical body did. As my senses returned I started to feel the world around me. It was a calm warm, not unpleasant, replaced irregularly by a cool breeze. I was laying on the ground, and beneath me sat a soft bed of slightly damp leaves. I tried to move around but received no feedback from any of my limbs, and my eyes were still dark. My sense of smell started to return slowly but steadily, until it resurfaced completely; filling itself with the scent of a damp, dark area; yet it felt warm illuminated by the sun. My vision brightened and my fingers twitched, it wasn't much but it was impossible to miss.

'Complete'. A voice sang from within my mind. I'm not quite sure if it had something to do with the strange state my body was in or some other influence, but I didn't care. I was alive, somehow. I only then realized just how scared I was, just how much death frightened me. It was strange -- disturbing even -- my whole life had been surrounded by death, sending countless towards it. Yet I was ignorant, oblivious to the concept of it.

*Flash*

A burst of sudden light filled my vision, overloading my senses and blinding me as colours surged through my eyes.

Tall trees with thick leaves and long branches dominated the forest I found myself in; dark green and black grass littered the forest floor while leaf piles huddled together sporadically. Even with this dense coverage, the forest was lit up as the sun's rays danced through the leaves above, reflecting off the dew that covered everything and illuminated the area. I felt more… alive than I ever had before. Had my senses heightened? I attempted to stand, but proceeded to fall backwards, the soft leaf pile shielding my descent. The lightness of my body had surprised me, and it seemed like my control over my limbs was equal to that of a young child. I attempted to stand once again and managed to stumble upwards, staying on my feet. I breathed in again, taking in the scent of it all, and then an idea presented itself. Without any hesitation I enacted upon it, drawing in the sweet air… "ROT IN HELL CASTINE, I'M GOING TO FIND YOU AND YOU'LL FUCKING PAY FOR EVERY LIFE YOU MADE ME TAKE!" I felt invigorated, like a new power had been unlocked and was coursing through my blood. Was this what true freedom was like?

I turned my attention back to this body, it looked like mine, but it was… different. Lighter, faster, more perceptive. It was as if there were no impurities within it. I would hesitate no longer. I was given a second chance, another life, another body, though the reason was left unknown. Was I the only one? Or does everyone get a second chance? No, something told me not. I was here for a reason, to do something. Except that something was a mystery to me. I pressed my foot against the trunk of a nearby tree and blasted upwards, jumping from branch to branch with an accelerated agility that was leagues above my previous body. It felt good, the cool wind rushing around me as I ascended the tree like a bird. I paused, having reached the uppermost branch. It wasn't the largest tree around, but it was tall. The forest stretched out for ages, far beyond my vision. I tried to channel Light-Vin into my eye, but none came. The realization dawned on me like a moon eclipsing the sun, I couldn't feel the warm campfire-like feeling of Light-Vin anymore. I mentally searched my body, nothing. No Light-Vin, no traces of any Renvin. My attitude dropped like a falcon sky-diving onto prey. I tried to manipulate anything, nothing. I tried to accelerate the healing of scratches I had from climbing the tree, nothing.

"Oh please don't tell me there's no magic in this place."

'Search deeper, search for something new and let it spark alight a fire within your soul'

The voice instructed. Again that artificial calm swept through me.

'Who are you? Why am I here?' I asked back, but the mental message just bounced around aimlessly, a response nowhere to be seen.

'Tick...'

I climbed down the tree back to the dark forest that now burned orange, the setting sun giving the forest a tender vibe.

It was still quite warm, I'd be fine spending the night upon that leaf pile that had embraced my entrance to this place.

I lay down, the pile surprisingly as comfortable as some rustly bed, and began to sort through my questions.

There were too many, way too many, and the answers seemed to be hidden away completely, like a black thread in a dark room.

'Rest. The second one's time has come.'

It was as if I was injected with a sleeping drug – my body froze and I drifted away into the darkness of my subconscious.

'Hey- wait- Who's the second one? Who the hell are you?'

--Aeryn--

The feeling of something… soft, many individual pieces of them all rested on top of each other was the first thing I could sense, then a damp, but relaxing smell invaded my nostrils.

'What the hell..? What happened?' I said, but the words only seemed to echo through my mind, my mouth unresponsive. Why couldn't I see? Why couldn't I move?

A single word then echoed through my mind.

'Complete'...