They were unusual. When he had been alive, he had never seen anything quite like the reptilian creatures, who stood before him now. Though they took on the characteristics of what a reptile would have - large eyes and scales - they took on the appearance of large cats instead. Their physique more closely resembled that of a cheetah. Thin and muscular, though much larger than one. Most of them wore what appeared to be a carapace helmet atop their heads. They had ears which were about half the length of their bodies and tails three times the length of that.

Rayne stared at them with wide eyes. They were… they were amazing and beautiful. He didn’t know there could be animals like these, out in the wide expanse of the universe. Full of wonder and awestruck, he could not take his eyes off them. It seemed however, they couldn’t take their eyes off him either.

“Yes! That’s your new name, Rayne!” the younger female stepped forward, out of the crowd.

Though she was a lot larger than him in comparison, she was still much smaller than the two who stood behind her. She had what appeared to be the beginnings of a carapace helm, but it was not yet fully grown.

He cocked his head. They were curious creatures indeed and he wanted to learn more about them. But when he opened his mouth, all that came out, was another squeak. He shook his head in annoyance. How could he learn more, if he couldn’t even talk? Would just observing them suffice?

“Calm… young one,” said his father. “Your ability to communicate will come, in time.”

His ability to communicate? What did he… ? For the first time, Rayne looked down at himself. The experience was strange and surreal. Like he was in a body that was not his own. It was unfamiliar to him in every way. No longer a human… he had four legs instead of two. Scales instead of skin. An extremely long tail and long ears to match. Yes. He was no longer a human, for Rayne had become something better.

Through the endless void, the vastness of that nothing plane, he had drifted. An eternity went by and still he remained in darkness, until finally something had changed. One miniscule orb of light. And then he was here.

Rain pattered the ground outside, sending little echoes of it into the cave. They rocochade off walls and ceilings, off the others in the room and back out, into that rainy night. Rayne raised his head to meet the eyes of his father. Kind and courageous, caring. This person was one of the pair who had birthed him and given him the chance to live again.

The strong male turned toward the rainy night. He looked back. “I will return,” he said and then leapt out into the darkness, with a curtain of rain falling back over the entrance, where he had exited.

He had only been in the world for a short time, but already he felt something that had been rare when he was a human. Something precious and that was impossible to destroy. Rayne felt loved. He also thought that maybe… just maybe he also loved his new family. It was clear to him, with them all crowded around as they were, they truly, truly cared.

“Hmph!” one of the older males stepped forward from the shadows. His eyes were cold like daggers. They looked over Rayne, judging his very existence.

Rayne didn’t know what else to do, or how to react to such a figure. His instincts took over. The hackles on the nape of his neck stood up. His ears went back and he lowered himself in his nest of glowing flora. Making himself smaller did seem like the right way to go. His eyes stared into the eyes of the other.

“Maybe they care,” he said. “Me? Not so much.” he wandered back into the mouth of the cavern within.

“Don’t be afraid,” the younger female said. “He may talk big, but he won’t do anything to you. At least, not while dad is around.” she approached calmly and lay right next to him, on the bed of flora. “I know you can’t speak yet. You might not even be able to understand me yet but… my name is Jay. Our father is Kho and our mother is Chida.”

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Still nervous, Rayne glanced toward the cavern mouth.

“That was our uncle, Jaydeth,” she said. “He’s… rough around the edges. I uh… I don’t even think he means half of what he says. He’s just angry.”

Rayne yawned and lay his head down. What does he have to be angry about? He thought. It was strange that all the others were standing around him like his own, personal protectors. They were smiling and happy. Love emanated from them and then there was his uncle. Someone who didn’t even seem to care.

Jay looked at him with a curiosity even most of the felines on earth couldn’t match. “N-nevermind,” she said. “Breaking out of that egg couldn’t have been easy. Just rest,” she said. “Father will be back soon and then you can eat.”

Resting sounded like an excellent idea. Rayne yawned again and closed his eyes. Thunder rolled, lightning flashed and the soft pitter patter continued. All around him he could hear the murmurs and whispers of those other fantastical creatures. Soothed by those sounds, he listened. Gradually they began to fade. Become quieter like the whispering wind. They disappeared and then it was just him in the deepest, most relaxing sleep he could have ever imagined.

His eyes popped open.

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It was sudden and unexpected, but once again he found himself in that white void, that blank canvas. What could have happened to bring me here? He asked himself. As far as he knew, he hadn’t even the chance yet to fulfill the thing those deities wanted him to do. So why had they brought him back here? Had he done something wrong?

“H-hello?” he called out. Nothing but echoes returned to him and… he could speak? Rayne looked down. Two legs. He looked to one side and then the other. Arms. He raised both hands, feeling his face. He was human again. But how?

“Because we willed it,” the female said.

“This is only a dream,” said the trombone.

“When you wake, you will once again be that creature.”

The three cloaked figures all looked at each other. They knew something he didn’t, something he should know and that they were going to tell him. The female stepped forward. “What did you think of that whole experience?”

Rayne stepped back. What did he think about being reincarnated as something other than human? He shook his head “I don’t know,” he said. “I guess… it was an interesting experience. Would I do that again or keep going…?” he shrugged. He truly didn’t know. He guessed that if it meant his own existence then he would keep living as whatever that thing was. Wouldn’t anyone else?

“Kaishin,” the voice of the trombone.

“That creature is called Kaishin,” the thin male said. “Will you keep living as it? Or shall we end your existence now?”

Rayne nodded. “I will keep living as it, of course,” he said. “Why did you bring me here? What is it you want me to do?”

There was an uncomfortably long pause before the female stepped up to him and raised a bony finger. “The time has not come for you to complete the task we have given. Live as the Kaishin for a bit longer.”

“We wanted to make sure your heart is in this task,” the thin male said. “And to give you advice.”

“Walk as one of them,” the female said.

“You are no longer a human,” said the trombone. “Become one of those creatures instead. Become a Kaishin. Only then can you complete the task we ask of you.”

The female pressed her finger upon his forehead and darkness once again, fell upon him. In his mind, he could hear her voice. “If you are the right fit? I don’t know. Time will tell.”

Rayne fell and in his descent, those sounds returned. The rain, the rolling thunder, murmurs and whispers. His eyes twitched and then one opened. They were still there. No longer standing in the darkness watching him, the Kaishin were all fast asleep. Rayne looked toward the ceiling to see it no longer sparkled. Everything was peaceful and quiet. Somehow they had brought him back. He smiled, content knowing that finally, he was home.