Something had to be going wrong.

  The pressure suffocating me from all sides overwhelmed my senses. I thought my fat was melting, my muscles were tearing, and my bones were being crushed. The pain was indescribable, more intense than anything I had experienced before.

  My muscles seemed to tear and my bones creaked under an invisible force. The flesh of my body twisted with every movement, unable to protect me from the agony that enveloped me. I thought this must be what hell felt like.

  Instinctively, I wanted to scream to release some of my suffering. But something stopped me, a liquid threatened to flood my lungs.

  I understood that screaming would not only endanger my own life. With great effort, I held back the scream that was fighting to escape from my throat.

  Suddenly, I felt an unbearable pressure in my skull. It was as if they were crushing my head, extracting my brain through my nose and eyes. The pain was so intense that for a moment I considered wrapping the umbilical cord around my neck to end it all.

  It was then that I heard soft crying, it sounded like a woman. Wait, Cord? Crying? Only then did I realize my situation. I was being born, I was a baby.

  Curiously, the first thought that crossed my mind wasn't of panic or disbelief. Instead, I found myself reflecting: So the light at the end of the tunnel is actually the light coming through the vagina...

  I couldn't believe birth was so painful. Did all human beings have to go through this hell just to be born?

  It seemed incredible to me that humanity continued to reproduce in this way. The only reason I didn't give up was because of my mother.

  I could feel the pain of childbirth not only in my own moans but also in the contractions of the uterine walls surrounding me.

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  I wasn't alone in this struggle, my mother was with me. Through tears, the woman gathered strength and the pressure that threatened to crush me suddenly changed.

  At the decisive moment, I added my weak efforts to those of my mother, even if they were the weak efforts of a baby. When finally my skull escaped the clutches of the birth canal, I let out the scream I had been holding back.

  A sea of stars passed before my sight, transforming into a hazy symphony of colors, only to be abruptly replaced by a blinding light that forced me to close my eyes and I could cry for the first time.

  But gradually, the world around me began to clear.

  When I opened my eyes again, the first thing I felt was a dazzling light. I squinted, uncomfortable, trying to focus my blurry vision.

  I saw a small arm moving by itself in front of me. It took me a moment to realize that arm belonged to me, although I didn't yet feel it as mine.

  My body was out of my control, making only reflex movements in response to external stimuli. I remembered what modern science from my previous world said: this was due to the immature brain activity of a newborn. They were right, my brain hadn't fully matured yet.

  With effort, I directed my gaze toward the two figures watching me from above. My vision, still developing, only captured blurry shadows of their faces. My hearing wasn't much better either.

  I decided to analyze my surroundings, as it seemed to be the only thing I could do.

  Gradually, my eyes became accustomed to the brightness.

  It seemed I had been born from some satanic summoning ritual because this room was lit only by a couple of candles and we were on the floor on a bed of straw.

  Looking at me intently while holding me was an impressive woman. She had long, silky golden-red hair and impressive green eyes, bright as emeralds.

  She radiated a warmth I wasn't familiar with, something that simply drew you in without realizing it. Her naturally colored lips shone with the setting sun as luminescent rays spread across the small wooden room, the light made her look like an angel.

  I could almost see the halo above her head.

  I reached out my hands toward her, wanting to touch this divine being, and met another hand that slowly wrapped around mine as her pale face filled with love while her hand slowly caressed my cheek.

  Then my mother pulled down her shirt, exposing her bare breast, before gently placing my face next to it.

  I couldn't understand what she was saying, but I thought I understood the point.