The next day Mark woke up bright and early.
He finally figured out why he had no ability to speak but had the ability to understand.
he had two languages
tyrant speech (totally not ominous) and common.
He had a condition called newborn. Which inflicted him with a -7 to all his physical attributes and intelligence.
intelligence the chief necessary attribute to be able to form words with your mouth.
“I guess the brain patterns for speech never got formed”, Mark mused.
His domination attribute had taken a while to fully apply itself. Now after a long nights rest he felt this, energy, threatening and dark flowing through his veins. He tensed and his veins bulged like mad as if he had been lifting while juicing hard.
He stopped.
He didn’t know much about the anatomy of a high kin but he didn’t care to test what such supernatural strength would do to his tiny body.
Small doses no more. The words of Artis: “most effective way to master”, resounded in his mind. As much as it all felt natural to him he still had to practice.
Using that supernatural strength surging through him felt, unnatural, to be completely honest it made his skin crawl but it was his highest attribute, he was effectively shoehorned into using it.
After a while he had managed to climb out of his crib and fell face down onto the hard floorboards.
“FUCK! That HURTS!” Which came out as: “Bwuaaah!! Dido NAH!”
He sighs. Having only 3 dexterity with a whopping -4 modifier made it difficult for him to stand without wobble and he fell and stumbled many times until he came to the door and realized he couldn’t reach the god damn doorknob.
He tried to channel some more energy into his legs and smashed his head straight into the doorknob when he jumped. “Bwuaaah!! Dido NAH! Bwuaaah!! Dido NAH!”
He had to calm down and leaned against the door with his small little hand and it creaked open. He almost activated rage. Almost.
A few baby expletives later, with a new nemesis, the stairs. he wobbled into what he believed to be the kitchen.
He pushed a chair towards a firewood stove to get himself better access. he rummaged around, as all 3 year olds do and he had to admit that after a while he felt more confident in his deftness.
pling!
keep moving little one! You just gained your very first attribute! +1 dexterity. You grow up so fast!
the voice in his head had sounded suspiciously like that of a younger Nirvana? was this a thing? Babies get status updates?
He had finally found what he was looking for. The pantry and one chair shove later he opened it.
pling!
Awwww you are so strong! You just gained your second attribute! +1 strength. You grow up so fast!
this is going kinda fast… like how fast do kids grow up in this world? It sounded like one of those automated messages in computer games for achieving something in the tutorial.
he pilfered the pantry and almost found what he was looking for, butter, eggs and a sausage.
He was hoping for bacon but eggs and sausage sounded great. He felt intense hunger, “no wonder little kids screamed for food”, mark mused, it actually hurt him and made him wana crush the skulls of his enemies and hear the lamentations of their women.
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“get out of my head Sadanis”, he murmured, which came out as: “peopoo numu da~”.
“fuck … that sounded cute”. Again that stupid echo of Sadanis cackling.
pling!
Awwww you are so adorable and have so much to say! You just gained your third attribute! +1 inteligence. You are so smart!
”not helping Nirvana ~ “ which came out as: “brrleeuuh helvpffg dadana~”
“wait a fucking minute that almost made sense”!
“Wapf a fuplss miasaa thaaaaamt mabla seuuyihh”!
Mark then ensued to have a political discussion with himself, about the pro’s and con’s between the two political parties of the USA. It felt like it went on forever and it made his little brain hurt. And to his frustration no more notifications.
He sighed and tried to get the fire started on the stove but couldn’t find anything to light the fire. He wobbled to the side of the stove looking around for anything that could be used, he overestimated his finesse at acrobatics and flopped face first toward the cold and unforgiving floor. For the second time today.
“Bwuaaah!! Dido NAH”! He roared.
pling!
Awwww you got a booboo, go on run to mommy! quickly now! just gained your fourth attribute! +1 constitution. You are mommy’s little fighter aren’t you!
“Mother fucker! MADA DAKKA!”
pling!
You keep using your head to solve a problem! Good job!You just gained your 5th attribute! +1 inteligence. You grow up so fast!
Now it’s SADANIS!? Whose sick idea of a joke, was that!?
Mark lost it and activated his rage and holy hell did it feel like he went full super saiyan. Before he knew what was happening a knife was in his hands and he decided it was the stupid chair’s fault.
He took a stance, the big knife practically a longsword, “Die stupid chair”! And he swung.
suddenly he got Janked into the air by big strong hands. Knife gone from his hands.
stern eyes drilling into him.
“ow… hi dad”.
“Wa…hah da”.
He took some effort to sheathe his rage and he almost passed out from the drop in energy, his whole world spun.
“Well aren’t you one big continued slew of surprises? Not only do you have rage as an innate capacity but you have enough control to put the flame back in the bottle”?
Bradford, placed the little one on the kitchen counter and took a long look. White light enveloped Bradfords hands and he laid them onto Mark who felt all the pain and bruises dissipate.
the act and what it meant who Bradford was, wasn’t lost on mark, he felt his heart rate increase, Bradford was a holy person.
“ow fuck he’s a holy person! Is he a zealous nutjob? Am i going to get burned at the stake at a tender age of 3(40)”?
Bradford looked at the eggs, butter sausage and eggs. “Well if i had any doubts left, about whether you are a Distant traveler, this more or less settles it”. “A child like you shouldn’t have that sort of knowledge, no matter how mundane”.
Mark slumped his shoulders, it was over.
Mark realized how dumb it was. He should have just gnawed the sausage, broke some eggs to make it look like he was an inquisitive little boy but no his god damn stomach betrayed him. Sausage and eggs made his mouth water.
”so what am i to do with our little Tyrant? This ominous little overlord”?
Mark felt his face pale, this was it wasn’t it? His new life going to get cut short. It had been a bit too good to be true. He felt that inevitable resignation to death.
“O little one, what did you suffer through”?Bradford lunged forward and locked him in a bone crushing hug, and simply choked the life out of Mark for a while.
After a while when mark started going towards the bright white light, he feels his body gasp for air. he gets put back on the counter. And Bradford levels his face with Mark face. gazing into Mark’s eyes.
“Must have been some life, if you actually thought i would kill you. The thought alone revolts me”.
“I feel i should explain something to you. Distant travelers all seem to think they need to keep this fact a secret but nothing could be further from, the truth. It is well known many have been selected by one or more of our deities, to be given a second chance at life”.
”Know this”.
“You are a Distant traveler, you will have to go through childhood again. You attacking the chair? Kiddie tantrum. I know it’s hard to swallow but although your soul is old, your memories are old, your body and mind are new”.
“How do i know this? Ive travelled with a few distant travelers in the past and their accounts of their childhoods in this world were very similar, they always struggled with the emotional outbursts”.
“Do me a favor little one, grasp this second chance with both hands yea? Me and your mother will be there every step of the way”.
Mark was dumbfounded his life was in fact this good?
“this better not be one big giant red flag or some shit”.
“dhi bedde nob b ne bih jja wweed ffffpff oo ssood shit”.
“your first word is shit. Really? I will pretend i didn’t hear that and it’s going to be mama got it? And you better make it cute as fuck”.
Mark nodded, his dad cussing in front of him oooo he was gonna have fun with this old man.
Bradford done with his lecture, started baking sausage and eggs for Mark. He unleashed some sick egg flipping skills as if he was a master chef, herbs and spices were tossed in and the aroma was unreal.
Mark got up and started shoving the chair back. And before he knew it, he was lifted into a kiddy chair and a napkin got tied firmly around his neck. Mark rolled his eyes and gave Bradford a look, “Really”? ”Bfffoolly”?
”Yea don’t need to be fluent in kid speak to know what you just said”, Bradford grinned, letting mark know full well he was going to be a complete troll dad.
”I mean what would your mother say”? Bradford didn’t even hide the gleeful smugness in his grin.
”I see that smirk dad~ ayana bada dadda~”
Bradford loaded Mark’s plate with sausages and eggs and Mark launched a full scale invasion. He was famished, moaning in delight!
Bradford observed the little man devour his plate and felt his fears ease up. As much fun it had been seeing him fall on his ass and tumble down the stairs, He had showed remarkable restraint, not once did he cry, he kept going. From the accounts many of the distant travelers he had interrogated or talked to, they all had expressed how frustrating it had been to have zero emotional control. How it had infuriated them.
His little distant traveler had done a lot. In one morning he Had started walking and very obviously got a couple of those early day “notifications” most travelers called it.
He felt a strange sense of pride that his boy, his little tyrant, showed such resilience and restraint, right until he attacked the chair with murderous intent, he chuckled, he was going to have so much fun drilling some REAL discipline into this boy.