"Get your ass up, slug!" A rough shove sent Tom sprawling, his forehead scraping against something coarse. Was it concrete? He couldn't tell. His breath hitched. The air was thick, causing him to choke on his own saliva as he tried to take in as much air into his lungs as he could, only to find that he couldn't. He coughed. Darkness pressed against his vision. He blinked hard, trying to activate his AUI. Nothing. Just black. Panic twisted in his gut. Another shove. Harder this time. His forehead dragged over the ground again, fresh pain blooming across his skin. A sliver of light cut through the dark. "Oh no, I think he's bleeding out. We have to get the heck out of here!”
A boot connected with his ribs, sending pain lancing through his side. Tom gasped, his body instinctively curling in on itself. The coarse ground beneath him felt unsteady, like gravel mixed with something wet. Was it mud, maybe? Blood? His? Someone else’s? Again, he couldn't tell.
His body rolled over to the side, his vision momentarily spinning before colliding with a rough wooden object, causing him to puke up a mouthful of blood as he gasped for air, pain flaring through his ribs like searing flames.
Screams… Though the voices themselves sounded distant.
“Someone called the ambulance! I think he’s dying!” a voice shrieked, barely audible over the pounding in Tom’s skull. Footsteps scuffled nearby, as a few hands grabbed him, dragging him aside as his vision blurred.
"Oh no!!! He’s bleeding!!" Another voice, this one closer said, "God, there’s so much. What do we do? He’s barely moving!”
Eventually, everything faded away into darkness. The sounds of countless people screaming overhead at him faded away into the back of his mind as his body took its last breath.
Was this… really the end?
I'm sorry, sis. It looks like I couldn't hold my promise to you guys after all. Please take care of Mom for me.
----------------------------------------
- break -
----------------------------------------
………..
…………….
………………….
“I gave you a second life… and please, for the love of all that is dear, don't waste it this time.”
"Haaaah"
“Frolven dex mig sarvo.”
Sounds……
They were weird... and definitely didn't sound like the English he was familiar with. He forced his eyes open, blinking rapidly against the harsh light that flooded his vision. For a brief moment, all he could see was a white haze, a blinding expanse that made his head throb before gradually the world around him sharpened into focus.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
"Ervani? Sih varlok?”
What he saw genuinely terrified him, as standing above him were two giant humanoids, their eyes staring down at him as they spoke in a language that he couldn't even recognize. He tried to move, but his body felt odd. His limbs weren’t responding the way they should, and a strange, unfamiliar sensation coursed through him. Panic surged in his chest as he looked down at himself.
'I AM A BABY!!!!’’
Two chubby, tiny-looking hands greeted him while the giantess of a woman effortlessly grabbed him as if he weighed nothing, pulling him close to her chest. Her eyes stared at him, scanning him with an expression that was a bit hard to read, though from the look of it, it was probably somewhere between unconditional love and curiosity. Tom's chest tightened, his breath coming in shallow gasps.
“She is your new mother, Teresia. Please treat her nicely. Don't be a dick to her like you were in your past life with your mother. Of course, you can't hear me now, but this message will find you later in the future when you need me.”
That voice… But before he could find the time to ponder what it meant, his mouth connected with something soft. When he realized what it was, his eyes widened, and embarrassment took full hold of him as he internally screamed in his mind.
----------------------------------------
- break -
----------------------------------------
“Darling, the food will be ready soon! Make sure to come back inside when it's done.” As the warm evening breeze drifted through the open window, the scent of sizzling spices and slow-cooked broth filled the air. The distant hum of cicadas blended with the occasional crackling of oil in the pan that his wife was most likely using to cook as Phaal turned around to look at his wife. “Got it! I'll be sure to be back by the time it's done. I'm just going to be outside.”
Phaal took a slow drag from his velvet cigarette, the ember flaring briefly before dimming, with a thin ribbon of smoke curling into the sky. He let the taste settle on his tongue before exhaling, watching the haze drift lazily toward the treetops.
He exhaled, leaning back in his worn wooden chair as he gazed out at the dense forest before him. His hands rested on the armrests of the chair, his fingers absently drumming against the rough grain of the wood. The afternoon sun bathed the treetops in a golden light, but he hardly noticed the beauty of it. His mind was elsewhere.
He just couldn't think. There was so much on his mind. So much had happened over just a couple of months, and sitting down, he still couldn't believe some of the events that had transpired.
As he took another drag, the cigarette burned down to the filter. "Crap," he said, and with a sigh, he flicked it away. The ember tumbled through the air before landing in the dirt, glowing faintly before winking out.
Checking in his pocket several times to make sure his watch was there, he fished out another velvet ember cigarette, rolling it between his fingers before placing it between his lips. “Tomorrow is going to be one hell of a day. I just hope those bastards stay true to their word and don’t try to play us false,” he said in his mind. He had his doubts, yes, but like all things, he had to keep them to himself. That's just how politics works.
But politics hardly mattered when there was a family to care for. He had a baby now, and he couldn't afford to make mistakes, not even little ones. Everything with Thalos felt like a risk. The last thing he wants is for his little boy to become a screw-up like him.
The weight of responsibility pressed heavy on Phaal's shoulders, a burden he bore without complaint but never without caution. He took a slow breath, the ember of his cigarette flickering in the dimming light.
“darling food is done! Come inside!”
..
…
….
----------------------------------------
- break -
----------------------------------------
Time: 6:58 a.m. Year: 430 A.D.E. Timeline: 5th century DCE.
> It took a while, but I finally became a… maybe a toddler? Of course, the embarrassment of having my own mess cleaned from my bottom was unimaginable, but it was way better than what happened during the incident, which never really left my mind. Overall, my life in this new world was pretty normal. My family ended up getting a new maidservant, and after the incident, she was the one who fed me. Also, it had become quite a habit of mine to talk to myself. After I finally gained enough strength in my hand to pick up things and hold them without much issue, I gained access to some paper that I could use to write.
The charcoal stick felt clumsy in Tom's small fingers as he hunched over the parchment, his tongue poking out in concentration. He glanced toward the door, making sure his ‘mother’ wasn't secretly watching him from the other side of the room.
> Of course, since this was a fantasy world with no knowledge of the English language, what I wrote down on the piece of paper I was given was regarded as babyish rubbish writing that was written by a child who didn't know what they were saying. However, it was notable enough to make my mother jump with joy at the prospect that her child would be learning how to speak soon, which is a plus. Too bad I wasn't her child, though.
Knock knock knock!
The sharp knock at the door startled Tom out of his musings. Turning to the door in annoyance, he sighed and placed the emberwood back on the table, its weight settling with a muted thud against the wooden furniture. The knocking came again, louder this time, and he ran a hand over his face before heading toward the door.
"Who could it be this time?" He wondered as he grabbed a nearby chair from one of the tables in the room, placing it down on the ground before climbing on top of it to reach for the latch.
"Oh, Young Master Thalos, I didn’t expect to find you up and about so soon.”
‘I don't know how I got here, but I'm going to make the best out of it.’