Chapter 5: The Beginning After the End
The film-like life of mine was now in its conclusion. It was now facing its final chapter. This was what I have thought. However, when I opened my eyes, a dark tunnel with a dim light peeking from its end appeared.
Is this the phenomenon that people are talking about when you are about to ascend the heaven or descend to hell? But why can’t I see people who are related to me?
I forgot, I don’t know any relatives except my parents.
Why do I feel empty? It’s like my body is gradually becoming an empty bottle, or it’s like everything in my body is getting pulled out. If this is a way to a paradise, please, I hope I could find what happiness means there. This is crazy, what am I about talking about and whom am I talking to? What did I even do for the fifteen years that I had lived?
As I got to the end of the long dark tunnel, the light became bright until it consumed my whole sight. I couldn’t help but to close my eyes. I felt my body getting pulled out from the tunnel where I was descending. Is this hell? Wait, I don’t feel hot at all.
I heard cries coming from two babies.
“They are all boys Madame!” A Lady who was in maid’s dress was looking excited as she gazed me.
Eh? What is happening?
“Oh my…, what is this appearance?” She looked at me. Her green emerald-like eyes were dazzling as if she saw something amusing.
What made her look like that?
“That’s some odd hair color you have their, little one,” she said and smiled. “Look Madame! His hair color is amazing! It’s black and white!”
“Throw him away!”
The sound of the babies’ cries stopped after the woman who seemed my mother spoke. I looked up to gaze her direction. Her eyes were shaded in black. The light that was coming from the round odd-looking bulb that was hanging on the ceiling made it hard for me to see her face. I could only see the silhouette of her face. However, even death couldn’t remove my ability to read people.
This woman hates me.
“But why, Madame!?” The servant-like lady with emerald eyes was flustered.
“Just throw him away. He’s markless.”
The servant looked at me with a pity.
Makrless? What was that supposed to mean? Just what on earth is happening? This is just a dream, right? There’s no way I’ll get reborn, right? Wait… did I really get reborn? Then, I am in a baby’s body right now. But why the hell I can think and speak in my mind? Why do I have my past memories?
“Are you sure about this, Madame?
“Just throw him away, he’ll just become a shame and a burden to our house.”
“But he’s so cute! I am sure that he will become a fine man when he grows up.”
“I don’t need a markless fine man. What I need is someone who can give us pride.”
That rejection was supposed to be painful for me; however, it didn’t hurt me. I didn’t even cry. I already experienced the worst thing that could happen to a human being – death. That is why I won’t ever push myself again to the people who hate me. What’s the point of pleasing people who won’t even like you?
The servant carried me outside the room. I saw a large hall and on its ceiling was a stained glass with different colors that was creating an image of a sword. As we walked toward a small door that was leading to an entrance to a secret passage outside, she spoke.
“I’m sorry little one, it seems like your mother doesn’t want you.” She pouted. “But you rest assured; I’ve taken of liking you.”
What was that supposed to mean?
We entered the small door and a forest zoomed out as we walked to a dark passage. It was a peaceful place; a blue river was hiding behind the trees and harmonizing with them. I could even hear the sound of the twittering birds that sounded like a choir in harmony.
“Arnulfia,” she said.
A large white eagle-looking bird was descending from the sky with its wide wings that could embrace at least twenty people appeared. Its feathers were slowly falling after it landed before us. Its yellow gutsy eyebrows were evident on its face. Its long bill was large enough to swallow me – at least in my size now. His dark yellow eyes were emitting an intimidating aura that could pierce you with just a glare.
“What do you want, Master?”
“Take this child to a place where someone can protect him.”
“This baby….” The bird’s eyes widened.
What the hell!? It can speak!? Where exactly am I? What on earth…
“This baby is markless but I can sense something odd.”
“What do you mean, Arnulfia?”
“As a rare beast that has strong sense of magic, I could sense that he has something that is making me feel uneasy.”
“I get it! He didn’t even cry when he got out of her mother’s womb.”
“That is not that I meant!” The eagle’s face turned flat, its bill was having a straight line. “Look, ahh! Forget it!.” Its eyes rounded.
“What a weird rare beast. How can you talk to me that way? I am your master, right?”
“Master my foot! We never made a master-to-servant contract! What we did is an ‘equal contract’ and yet you still made me call you master.”
“Wha–” She hesitated. “You should go now. You should report where did you leave him afterwards, okay?”
“Okay.”
The Lady handed me to the bird. Its long sharp claws grabbed and surrounded my whole body. Good thing I am wearing a thick cloth. It started flapping its wide wings, the wind coming from its wings are making me close my eyes.
Woaah! The talons of this bird were sharp.
We started going higher as the bird flapped its wings.
“Hold on tight, little one.”
The bird looked at me with a death glare.
Wha–
We suddenly dashed through air, which made me close my eyes and mouth because of the wind caused by the bird’s speed. We got higher and entered a thick array of clouds that looked like a white land. What a splendid view.
While looking at the view of the land from the top, the bird’s eyes suddenly widened and its wings stopped flapping and closed. We started descending in a high-speed rate. I could feel my skin stretching because of the wind’s pressure.
We are gonna get burned!
***
After the long journey descending the sky, we finally landed on land. There was a forest that full of trees with red leaves and grasses. What is this forest? I have never seen a forest like this before even in my past life. The bird lied me down on a large rock.
“A beast has appeared!” a man suddenly shouted from a distance, hiding behind trees.
“Don’t get near! That’s a high beast, I can sense an intimidating mana coming from her!” another guy with husky voice spoke.
Her?
What I see was only the dark figures of them.
“It appears that there’s a beastman who has vast knowledge about my race. Reveal yourself, respected being.” The bird laid me on a boulder or rock.
People started revealing themselves and surrounded us. What’s with their appearance? They look so pale. Their skin color isn’t humane, it was a pale color of grey, it was as if they have no blood that is circulating to their veins.
“Is there something you need to us?”
The man with husky voice who seemed to be their leader spoke. He was wearing red cloth with ripped sleeves, revealing his thick biceps. The sturdiness of his body was evident. His hair was black, harmonizing with his red menacing eyes. His appearance reminded me of a crow. He’s quite well-built.
“I need someone who can adopt this markless little one.”
“M-Markless!?” He flustered. “Then won’t he be able to use magic when he grows up?”
“I can’t say it for now. But I sense something odd from him.”
“Something odd, what do you mean?”
“I don’t know. I still can’t understand why I feel uneasy.”
“But what would be the exchange if I take care of this little one?”
“Nothing. You can just abandon him there if you want to.”
‘A-Abandon? What are you talking about?”
“I should be going now.”
“Huh!? You can’t just leave a child here!”
The bird suddenly looked at the guy with a deadly glare. Even I could feel the pressure that is making the atmosphere heavy. People couldn’t help but to kneel down due to the pressure that they are feeling. But the guy who argued with this so-called high beast managed to stand it.
“You can’t just leave a child there.” His eyes glared the bird.
The pressure that I was feeling became even more intense and heavy. If I were standing right there, I would have kneeled down already. What is this world? How could people emit such heavy killing intent with just a glare?
“I see. You are near to becoming a high beast too.”
What was that supposed to mean? The tension suddenly disappeared.
“Yeah.”
“Why don’t you show me your true form then?”
“I can’t at this moment.”
“And I thought I could fight someone who has the same bloodline as me.” The bird’s reaction turned disappointed. Its bill and eyes were having a straight line.
Is she pouting or what?
“Anyway, I should be going now.”
“What about this little one?”
“I don’t know. I told you, you could just leave him here or what. His parents threw him away because he’s markless. He’ll be pretty much useless for them.”
“What a bunch of bastards.”
“If you are a high beast, you will be able to sense what I am sensing right now if you touch him.”
“Apparently, I can’t use my full ability right now because my master is too distant from me.”
“I see. Your contract isn’t equal. But as my master ordered me, I should abandon this little one somewhere. Maybe I should just drop him near to the beast cave.”
“What are you talking about?”
The tension on the atmosphere is getting intense again.
“Stop using your King’s Presence. It won’t affect me no matter how hard you try. You are weak in that form.”
“Tsk.”
While the two alien creatures were having an intense conversation, other people with the similar skin as the man who was talking to the giant bird started surrounding us more. Suddenly, loud noises that are similar to the roars of the wild beasts were coming from a distance.
“You can sense it, right?”
“Damn it! Everyone, go back to the hideout!” he shouted.
The bird suddenly flapped her wide wings and ascended the sky in a high speed. The man looked pissed to the point where his aura was emitting thick bloodlust. Everyone dashed and gone to one direction, maybe it’s the way to their hideout.
“That damned bird. Why would she leave a baby in the middle of a bloody forest?” He sighed.
He looked at me full of curiosity and sad eyes.
Seriously, I don’t feel bad about my situation right now. I already died once.
He walked towards my direction as the loud noises that were hiding behind the trees were getting near. And in a split second, a huge zombie-looking black tiger with red eyes dashed from the forest and almost pierced its fangs to the man’s torso who was slowly approaching me. But the man managed to dodge it as if he saw it coming.
What’s with this man’s reaction? Did he purposely walk slowly towards my direction to lure the zombie-looking tiger?
“That’s some scary eyes you have their, common beast.”
Common beast? Is that the term they are using for ‘zombies’?
The beast’s eyes turned dark red and emitted killing intent. Its fangs with thick slimy-looking saliva were revealing and it suddenly started attacking again. It dashed to my direction and tried to reach me, but a sudden earsplitting sound that is similar to a crow’s voice made the zombie-like tiger’s body tear into pieces before it even touches me.
What the… did I just see sound waves? What was that?
That attack reminded me of the simulations of sound waves when they were travelling through air. It was the man who did that amazing and supernatural ability. Just what on earth is happening? I know I have asked this many times already but I still can’t believe what is happening to me. Is this a dream, or did my soul just wandered off somewhere while my body is in coma?
In any case, I feel like I am inside an anime or a shounen manga.
“Tsk. A bunch of beasts is still surrounding us. I already killed their leader. Why?” he said. His eyes were having pissed aura. “I should finish this now.”
Creatures that were unfamiliar to me were surrounding us, amidst a weird bloody-forest setting, while my body is lying on a rock, and I am being protected by a guy with a crow-like appearance, who could use magic spells. Where am I, and what am I doing in this world?
“Sound, imitating waves,” he said.
He opened his mouth widely and screamed with a voice of a tiger.
It’s the same voice of the zombie-like black tiger that he fought, the sound was too loud but it didn’t affect me and the chaotic mixed roars of wild animals are now gone. What just happened?
“All right, it’s done now,” he said with a serious voice.
Eh?
“Now, let me see your face, kid!”
He walked towards me and looked at my eyes. I could only manage to see his silhouette because of the light that is coming from the sun. But his eyes were glowing red and beautifully menacing, it was emitting a scary aura but I’m not scared at all. He suddenly lifted me up, and laid me down on his thick arms. His face and suddenly touched my face. I could feel the soft surface of his skin as it touched me.
“What a pity. Why would they throw a baby that will surely become a man when he grows up?” he said with and coldly smiled as he looked at me.
Tears started running from my eyes down to my ears. I didn’t know the reason but I felt a narrowing in my chest and it hurts. When I saw his kind eyes and expression, I realized, I never felt this sensation before.
“Pa…pa…”
This word was the only word I could say after seeing his face.
“Pa? Huh!?” he flustered. “Can you say it again!?”
I don’t want to. I ignored him and turned my head left to avoid him.
“D-D-Did you just c-call me ‘papa!?” he stuttered. “Please repeat it again!”
I don’t want to. And I don’t know the reason why I said that either. Maybe I was just looking for someone who could treat me good. I admit, you’re a good guy, but I won’t trust anyone again.
“What an annoying brat.”
“What are you mumbling about, Satsujuno?” A voice coming from the right side appeared, walking towards us.
A rat?
“Why are you here, Nezumi?” He covered my face.
The rat that who was walking towards us suddenly transformed into a slender man wearing a black shirt with a long sleeve on his right arm and with his left arm being sleeveless. He has three lines in the both side of his small nose that resembled a rat. His eyes were glowing red with a menacing aura.
“Nothing. Just heard ya voice. I wondered if ya fightin’ with someone.”
This guy surely loves cutting words.
“Yeah. I was just fighting a common beast a while ago.”
“I see,” he said. “Then, what’s that thing ya hidin’ there?”
“Oh!” He flustered. “It’s a baby.”
Now that I think of it. I could really understand their language, then what about the characters that they are using in written texts? Will I be able read them too?
“He’s a baby that a rare beast left on my hands.”
“Why’d ya accept it?”
“That’s…”
“Well, I couldn’t care less. You can do as you please as long as you are protecting our hideout.”
“Yes. Thank you, Nezumi.”
Nezumi moved right to my direction and took a glance to my face. He removed the cloth that is covering my head, and a mixture of terror and amusement appeared on his face.
“He somehow reminds me of the enemy you fought,” he said with a grin.
“What do you mean?”
“Take a look to his odd hair color.”
“Odd…,” his eyes widened. “H-Half black and half white? Is this even possible for a human child?”
“Ya sure he’s a normal human?”
“P-Pretty much. The rare beast said he’s markless.”
“Heh..., well you already accepted him. There’s no turning back now.”
After that conversation, Satsujuno, the man that reminded me of a crow brought me to a small house made of wood with a ceiling and roof made of dried leaves. It somehow reminda me of the traditional houses from my past life.
“You might resemble that devil, but I’ll make sure to raise you without a single trace of him. So you can sleep now after drinking this milk.”
He made me drink a milk-like liquid that is coming from a small container that somehow resembles the container that mothers are using when they can’t give their child a breast milk.
***
The night passed, and I found myself lying on a cramped bed with Satsujuno sleeping next to me. Maybe it’s five o’clock in the morning. In my past life, I would always wake up exactly five o’clock in the morning even if I sleep late.
“You woke up early. You really are strange for a child.”
I looked at him.
“It’s good that you wake up early but you should sleep again. It’s still too early for you to wake up,” he said. He was looking at me with a smiley face.
He stood up from the bed and walked to the direction of the small table that was residing at the middle of the house and drank a glass of water. The dim light was peeking from the mountain that you could see through the window near the door.
“I’ll be going now. I need to hunt for us to survive,” he said after getting his backpack under the bed. “So go back to sleep, okay?” He patted my head.
Somehow, the urge to sleep came to me again and my eyes closed itself on its own. Maybe babies don’t have a full control of their body.
***
Five years passed with peace. I have learned everything I should know about this world through books that Satsujuno gave me. First, this world was not the usual world that I had lived my past life. Second, people here are could use magic and they call themselves “marked.” Marked are beings who were born with mark, this mark is a symbol that they could use magic. Mark has six attribute; Earth, Water, Air, Fire, Sword, and Light. Third, there are four common races; Dwarves, Beastmen, Encantos, and Humans. And right now, I am living in the territory of Beastmen. Lastly, I was born markless in this world, which means I won’t be able to use any type of attribute at all. What a pitiful life.
J.Denver Creator