The year is two thousand and eight and Kris has just hit twenty. The world seems to be becoming more and more complicated. The internet, once a novelty, is quickly becoming more common for entertainment and even work and will likely become a necessity soon. Watching content created by regular people using online streaming sites has started becoming a big thing. The creation of the search engine has quickly led the world into a new age of information.
And yet, with all this advancement, Kris felt more lost than ever. All this information now so easily accessible, and yet Kris couldn't answer the biggest question in their life. Why did they feel so different? Born as a woman, Kris never felt feminine. Nor did Kris feel masculine. Kris simply… was. However, unfortunately for Kris, they lived in a time before being non binary was properly understood by modern people and the term hadn't even become common knowledge yet. Kris always felt a little out of place, like they didn't belong.
Kris came from a somewhat religious family, one that was not exactly understanding of people that were not straight or cis gendered. They never really had a chance to explore their true self and discover who they were even if the term had been commonplace. What's worse is when Kris finally confessed their feelings toward their gender identity to a sibling, that sibling ratted them out to their parents. They would not accept having a gay or trans child and went on about “traditional Christian values" before quickly sending Kris to a “correction camp”.
Now I don't know about you, but when I hear the word “camp” I think of sleeping in a tent outdoors with a sleeping bag, having a bonfire, and making s'mores. Unfortunately to everyone sent to a correction or conversion camps, there are no s'mores to be had. They are usually closer to a boot camp, where the counselors try to “fix” the campers by drilling the queer right out of them. Many such camps have been under fire for using cruel and unusual methods, going to extreme ls that border if not enter psycological or even physical torture.
In a world where Catholic schools were banned from beating the left-handedness out of kids using rulers, it's a surprise these camps haven't been shut down or at least put under stronger oversight and supervision. Kris was miserable, the counselors were relentless, but regardless of the effort Kris refused to be something they weren't.
Constantly being bombarded by someone telling them they needed to be fixed, like something was wrong with them. That somehow Kris was broken, unnatural. If the world could not accept them for what they were, Kris decided they would rather die than force themselves to masquerade as something they are not for the rest of their life. One night, when they had finally had enough of the torment and torture trying to fix them, they took their life into their own hands.
As Kris lay in their cabin, bleeding out, alone in the room. They gave a final smile. For the first time in years, they would finally be able to sleep peacefully. Everything went black, but after a while in darkness they opened their eyes again in confusion.
Kris was no longer in the cabin, but some sort of cave. Specifically they were inside a gigantic geode with exit and entrance caverns that left what must have been a mountain or something. “What the… where an…” Kris looks at their hands only to notice their hands were toddler sized hands made of a purplish red crystal. “What am I?” A red crystal person with masculine figure looked over Kris with his featureless face. “This one is talking right away. That has not happened in my memory.”
An androgynous purple crystal person then leans over as well. “This one is different. Hello little one. Do you have memories from before now?” Kris nodded. “I remember… I didn't like my life. I was punished for being what I was. If I couldn't be myself I felt I was better off not being alive.” The two looked at one another, then at Kris. They then spoke in unison. “Reborn.” The masculine one then took the lead. “In my memory we have not had a splinterkin Reborn before. In fact in my memory there has never been a non-human Reborn.”
Kris blinked a few times, then asked “So who are you?” The purple one responded “In this new life, we are your parents. I am Amethyst, this is Koal. Since you have full understanding, do you already have a name you wish to use?” Kris nodded. “In my old life I was named Kristal but preferred Kris.” Koal nodded. “A wonderful name for them. Krys’tal” Krys felt a strange sensation. “No that… you know what, never mind. I like it. I am Krys’tal, and I don't identify as either gender.”
Amethyst nods “That is the norm for us. Though some use gendered pronouns we don't physically or socially have gender.” Krys glows a bit, feeling happy for the first time in a long time. “I can get used to this.” The three hugged and all three glowed brighter. A happy family.
Fourteen years later, and Krys has trained in the art of the bow and arrow and become an adventurer. Using the work to help her people. Krys needed money to buy the land her family made into a home. They had to inorder to prevent some noble from finding the cave and mining it out. Doing so would destroy her people as they need the mines to propagate.
Moving throughout the country of Ran, eventually Krys found themselves at the City of Flowers. Tired from their latest adventure they simply turned in the quest for the reward and asked for the rate for a room for the night at local inns. Everything here was so much more expensive than in smaller towns. What they needed was a group to go after bigger jobs with. Bigger jobs didn't just give bigger rewards but often the locations had bigger loot.
However, they may have been allowed to be a member of the guild and take on quests, few humans wanted to join up with non humans. Krys grumbled a bit since most non humans already had groups. Despite this they started looking at group jobs. Then she heard a male voice. “Looking at group jobs? I've seen you here a few times but never with a group.” Krys turned around to see a man in silver armor with gold filigree. “I'm not in a group. Yet. It's hard to find a proper group that'll actually accept me.”
The man smiled. “I think I know some people. Come on, follow me.” The man started leading them someplace but Krys was suspicious. This man was dressed kinda like a paladin. The man led her to a table with a demonblood cleric, and two humans. One a male dressed in a purple robes, the other a female in what looked like a black Victorian dress. Almost gothic. He gestured for Krys to sit. “This one is also looking for a party. I have a hunch about this one.” Then he left.
Krys sat down with them. “My name is Krys’tal, but you can call me Krys. I go by they or them.” The wizard nodded. “Makes sense. Wouldn't be my first time meeting a non binary either.” Krys and the one in the black dress both asked “non-binary?” the wizard gave a confused face. “You know… when someone doesn't identify as either male or female. Is that… not a term here.” He groans. “I really have to get better at that.”
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Krys was confused by the exchange. “I think I missed something.” The wizard sighed. “The three of us, we are all Reborn.” Krys nodded “Make that four.” The girl in black then adds “Five. There's one more person I want to add to this group who's a Reborn as well. The Black Knight of Riverside, Racknar. He's a beast-kin.” Krys lets out a chuckle. “My parents in this world had never heard of a non-human Reborn and here we have three.” The girl in black corrects “All five of us.” She points at the ring on her finger.
Krys listens to each of the people introduce themselves with their true race included. Krys nods. “This may be a strange question, but since myself and the goth didn't know the word non-binary, what year did all of you die?” The others looked at one another, none of them thought to ask. Marionette shifted a few times. “Nineteen forty, I was seven when I died and I've been here for almost five years now.” Ariagoria was shocked by this. “I died in twenty sixteen, and I've been here almost fifteen years.” the wizard then said “twenty eighteen, less than a year.”
Krys put their hand on their chin. “Two double O eight. Going on fifteen years here. There doesn't seem to be a solid pattern.” Marionette then chuckles. “You think that's crazy, apparently Da Vinci lives right here in Flowers. He's almost twenty.” Krys would look shocked if they had a face. Instead there's a certain glow to them for a second. They recompose themselves then ask: “So this Racknar you guys also want to recruit for a party of five, what's he like and how's that going to work? Are we going to wherever he is or…?”
Marionette tapped the table. “Charity and I did a quest with him once. Despite his being large and muscular, he seems extremely clever and intuitive. People being of another race, even an exotic one doesn't bother him. He's strong, fast, and definitely not afraid to share his thoughts about something. He's an exotic beast-kin in this life, requiring him to take precautions. He was kind and considerate of myself and Charity, even knowing what I am.” Ariagoria pitched in. “He also didn't out her when he found out. I checked with the guild and it seems he's taken on an escort quest of sorts. It'll take about a month for him to reach here, during that time his birthday will have passed making him fifteen in this life. The quest takes him straight here.”
Krys nodded in understanding. “Five is a solid number for a group, and it's always good to have a heavy hitter. If two of you think it's a good idea then I don't object. Besides, a month should definitely be enough to get to know you all.” Davy then asked the question “So why exactly were you looking for a group anyway?” Krys looked at Davy and explained “I need a lot of money so I can file a land claim on the area where my village is in order to prevent it from being mined out.” The rest of the group nodded, seeming to understand what it would mean to mine out a shatterkin geode.
Krys continued “Bigger jobs don't just provide better pay, but better loot during the quest itself. I was extremely unhappy in my old life and now… I'd do almost anything to protect this new one and my new family. Here I'm able to be myself for once.” Davy nodded “I imagine it was difficult, being non-binary back in the early two thousands. Hell, I'm not even sure if the word was in common use yet let alone understood by most. Even in my time the struggle is real in many places for people that deviate from what was once the established social norms.”
Krys sighed “It's crazy to think about just how different things can be in just a decade. I couldn't imagine a world where I was accepted but just ten years after my death and things were probably worlds better. Here I am in a world that's way behind on the larger scale but does contain pockets of stuff that far outpaces my old one. It's strange to think how far apart our deaths were yet how close our arrival here was. There is no pattern or consistency.”
Marionette added “no pattern we have noticed at least.” the others nod. Ariagoria shifts in her chair “Too bad my memory of my old life isn't fully intact. If I could clearly remember more maybe we'd find something. After all, despite being told the Yggdrasil pulled souls from many worlds, we all seemingly came from the same one.” Davy perks up. “Seemingly. Maybe that's the key. Mari said that her father told her the tree pulls in people who have died recently. Yet that doesn't seem to be the case for us. But what if it was? The solution is simple, we aren't from the same world exactly. Rather, different versions of the same world. Multiverse theory.”
Everyone but Mari recognized the term. “I'm going to assume this theory is about there being more than one universe.” Krys nodded. “I'm only vaguely familiar with the idea, but basically it's like… whenever we make a choice there's infinite possibilities and for every single one a new universe is created where we made that choice.” The group let the idea sink in for a bit before Ariagoria days “Not that it matters if that's how it worked. We have no way home even if we wanted to go. Especially considering we all died anyway.”
Krys nodded. “At least here I have a chance to live happily. Once I have ensured the safety of my people I'll be able to have a long happy and peaceful life. I imagine all of us had something we desired that our new life grants us the ability to achieve.” After thinking about it for a bit Mari spoke up “Now that I think about it… I had an incurable illness and then died before it could kill me because of a war. Now in this new life I have a body that'll never get ill or even age.”
Davy chuckled. “I was a degenerate pervert who's last wish was to be reborn as a tentacle monster. One hell of a joke you ask me.” Ariagoria let out a single laugh “I was a nun in my past life who devoted myself to God. Now look at me.” Krys found it funny how all of them got something they wanted in a twisted way except seemingly Charity who got the opposite. You'd think she'd be reborn as an angel or something but nope, demonblood.
Then something hit Krys like a truck. They started laughing. Davy had to ask: “What's so funny?” Krys then explained “If my assumption about Davy is correct, we all died virgins. One reason or another. Hell, Mari here probably doesn't even know what sex is despite being nearly twelve. That's around when most kids start getting the talk but because of her body I don't even know if she has to worry about that.”
Marionette’s illusory face had its eyes widened in shock. “I never really thought about that. I've started developing interest in boys but I never thought ahead to what I'd even do if I got a boyfriend. I mean the moment I get a kiss they'll know I'm not really human. My father didn't exactly think that far ahead either as I'm like a doll down there. Even if it wasn't, it's not like I can have kids.”
Krys chuckled “I wear clothes for the comfort of others. I couldn't have a traditional human relationship even if I wanted to.” Marionette crosses her arms. “Do you want a traditional relationship?” Krys shook her head. “I've never really been interested in romantic or sexual relationships.” Davy puts out his hand in an almost frustrated gesture “oh so not only are they non-binary, apparently they're ace too. Since two of you don't know the term asexual and aromantic are used for when someone has no interest in those things. People started using Ace for shorthand.”
Both Mari and Krys give an “oh, there's a word for that. Neat.” Ariagoria nodded “I'm effectively asexual too since I swore an oath of chastity in my past life and intend to keep it in this life.” Davy grumbled lightly “Awesome, in a party with two girls and an N-by and the only one interested in men is literally a child.” His remark came off as somewhat sarcastic. “Good thing I have a rule about dating within a party. Always gets messy.”
Krys chuckled “A solid rule, I'd follow it myself if I was romantically inclined.” Mari then states “What if I didn't want to follow that rule? I mean our party might change and who knows who'll join.” Ariagoria smiled “Well that would be between you and this hypothetical new member. It's not something we'll enforce on you.” Everyone then nods. Marionette then adds her own nod.
Marionette then asks Ariagoria “So I get the vow thing, but if you didn't take it what would you be going for?” Ariagoria kinda just shrugged. “It doesn't really matter since I'll likely never act in it, but I guess technically speaking I go both ways.” Marionette nodded. Krys then starts tapping at the table. “Since we have a month, maybe we should take a quick quest to pass the time.”
The group then goes together to look over group quests that are nearby so they can easily return in time for Racknar to arrive at the city. After looking over several quests they find that a lot of the ones nearby are ones they don't really want to do. Then Krys'tal grabs one and shows it to the group. The quest was to clear out an old mine that had become infested with rats, giant spiders, and possibly undead. It was likely the local government was looking to either reopen or repurpose the mines.
Ariagoria nodded “Seems straightforward enough and it doesn't involve goblins so it should be fine.” Marionette however seemed a bit uneasy. “Yeah but what about the giant spiders?” Davy looked over the quest “As long as they aren't black iron spiders we should be fine. Odds are these are just garden variety.” So the group puts in to take the quest and head out.
Without a horse it would take several days just to reach the mines but it shouldn't take longer than a day to clear it out. At most the quest should take no more than two and a half weeks. They'll still have plenty of time before Racknar gets to Flowers as part of his escort quest.