Chapter 2 – Reborn

Isabel ran down the street toward the temples district. She had been walking in the garden with her Ladyship Elizabeth the Bright, second wife to their lord Vorin Steelsoul. Then suddenly her Ladyship had grabbed her swollen stomach while crumpling to the ground crying in pain. Suddenly the ground of the garden had gotten extremely wet as her Ladyship’s water had broken. Isabel had noticed that the pre-birth was stained a cloudy and bloody red, which was highly unusual.

Isabel, being a healthy dwarven woman, was not a weakling like many of the other races women and she had quickly bent down and picked up her mistress with ease, for Elizabeth was only a human, and a small one at that. She might have weighted all of 110 lbs. in her pregnant state. Isabel had screamed for the other servants to run and get the Lord.

Isabel quickly settled Elizabeth into her own bed and set another servant to wait on her lady while she quickly rushed from the manor. Pumping her arms and legs for all they were worth she rushed toward the temple with the utmost haste praying at all times that both mother and child would be okay until she could get a priest or cleric to the home. Isabel entered the orderly temple street and made a beeline for the temple of the Brigid, goddess of healing and childbirth.

After the lord and lady had gotten married and before her Ladyship was even pregnant, Elizabeth had struck up a very friendly relationship with the high priestess of this temple. Not only was Priestess Breldra the high priestess of Brigid, she was also an elder of the council of rulership that was in charge of helping the king run the kingdom. Elizabeth treated the elderly Breldra as her own grandmother for all of Elizabeth’s family were dead.

“Priestess! Come quick.”, Isabel screams as she slams open the doors to the temple. “Mistress Elizabeth has gone into labor and there is blood and intense pain.”

 Breldra’s milky color eyes lift from her devotional prayers. “Calm yourself young one. I will gather my materials and we shall see about getting the child born and mother well. Your screaming does not help the fact. And furthermore, the next time you treat my doors like that and scream in this temple I will make you serve penance by holding a rotten egg in your mouth to keep you from moving that jaw so much.”  The high priestess stands and grabbing her cloak and cane to begin the walk to Steelsoul manor.

 As the high priest and Isabel get back to the manor, Lord Vorin and his first wife the Lady Katarina came riding up in their chariot puled by his giant war ram. Rushing inside, all of them hurried into the bedroom of the Lord and Lady of the house. The bedroom consists of a huge hand-hewn stone room. Rich carpets decorate the floor while beautiful wall hangings give the area a homey feeling. Elizabeth lay upon the bed screaming in pain as blood gushed onto the bed. Her azure purple eyes were widened in pain and tears dripped from the corners. Her delicate hands are holding her stomach that is bulging like an overfilled water skin. Everyone can make out the raised sections of her stomach and actually see the tiny fingers of the unborn child pressing on her interior. Below her breast 10 little bumps of baby toes can be seen digging into her diaphragm area from the inside out.  

Vorin rushes to his wife’s side grabbing her hand and starting to whisper sweet, calming words to her while praying that he can take this pain and burden onto himself. Isabel is terrified for both mother and child. She has seen hundreds of births without ever seeing one this bad. Mixed breed children were rare but not unheard of and dwarfen children were especially hard to birth by no dwarves. However, most of the time it is the mother that is a dwarf not vice versa such as is this case.Lady Katarina sat on her other side and quickly began wiping Elizabeth's head we a cooled rag.

Breldra quickly kneels between Elizabeth's legs. She reaches into her pouch she carries at all times and removes a shamrock which she places on the mother’s stomach. Next she washes her hands with apple cider vinegar while calling for the blessings of Brigid. Lastly, she removes a vialed stopper holding a buzzing bee. Opening the vial she presses the opening against the inner thigh of mother. With a buzz the bee stings the expectant mother, and suddenly Elizabeth screams in pain as the baby's head appears. The bee begins to slowly turn grey and die.

"Vorin hold your wife for I can not save her and and the baby. Which do you want me to save?"

Elizabeth hearing this pushes with all her might trys to force the baby out rapidly before Vorin can say anything. "Thoric, his name is Thoric!", she screams as she collapses and takes her last breath.

Breldra turns to the others in the room and snaps,” Vorin! Grab the towels and the blanket. Isabel quickly run to the garden and kitchen getting me a blooming flower, some milk, and lastly warm water. Now go!” As the others rush to do as commanded, Breldra turns back to Elizabeth. “Hear me Brigid. I beseech you to aid me. Guide her into your embrace.

Breldra quickly produces a knife and with a few deft cuts is quickly able to tell that the umbilical cord is wrapped tightly around the baby’s foot. She quickly cuts the baby loose and after a few moments the others return. Grabbing the flower Breldra crushes it into the milk while praying. The milk takes on a holy warm glow. She quickly dips the bloody child into the milk. As the glow vanishes the child starts taking on a much healthier color. It was going to a long few hours. She hoped she had the strength for the ritual to heal the baby of his air starvation, but she knew Brigid would make sure she did.

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As the warm liquid that he had been living in for the last however long, drained from around Vincent, he was finding it difficult to breathe. Something was constricting his ankle and leg, causing intense pain there, plus it prevented him from moving forward. Vincent thrashed and clawed trying his best to escape. Grabbing the walls with his tiny hands he attempted to tear his way out only to find he lacked the strength. Fight he told himself. The velvety walls of his confinement slowly squeezed him from his feet to his head undulating and pushing him toward the light of an opening. However, whatever was constricting his ankle prevented him from going anywhere. He knew he was being born but was worried he was going to die before that could happen.

 At different intervals multiple colors of light, would flash surrounding him. With each flash the rips and tears of the walls that he had made sealed. Suddenly Vincent’s entire being was surrounded by golden light and he thought he heard singing. Whatever was holding his leg unwound freeing him from confinement. With the freedom of his leg the continued undulating walls pushed him rapidly toward the light of the opening. Then, pain surrounds his whole body and not just his leg like before. It felt like he was going to be crushed by some otherworldly beast. Then just as suddenly it ceased.

Sounds, and bright lights assaulted him. The very air seemed to steal his breath with its chill compared to where he was before. It was so cold to him that his diaphragm couldn’t constrict to give him a breath.Suddenly he felt himself once again surround in something warm that was all tingly and he felt himself drift off. From out of nowhere a loud voice booms incomprehensible to him, then suddenly followed by a loud smack as intense pain erupted from his rear. This caused the unlocking of his frozen diaphragm letting him take a deep breath rapidly followed by a scream at the top of his lungs from the pain radiating from his ass. What the hell is going on he thinks to himself. I know I was just born did they have to beat me the first thing. As the pain in his posterior begins to subside he quiets and feels himself being rubbed with something that was extremely abrasive much like sandpaper he thought or perhaps the skin of a new born was just really sensitive.

After Vincent was cleaned or should he say scrubbed within an inch of his life, he felt something incomprehensively soft surround him. As the warmth reentered his body, his stomach started to growl. Well he didn't know how long it had been since he had eaten even though he still remembered his last meal of dry wheat toast, scrambled egg white, a donut, and sweet iced tea for breakfast. The thought of craving tacos entered his brain and just as quickly fled. Oh well, that was neither here nor there. All he knew now was he was getting very hungry and he wanted food.

 He felt himself being lifted and the shifting blurs coming from his new eyes told him he was being moved. He did feel a different set of hands hold him and cuddle him. He could make out of pink blur but not much else. A warm and fleshy knob touched his lips so he opened his mouth to take it in. He reflexively sucked on it and a warm sweet liquid in his mouth. Swallowing Vincent finds that the liquid, which now that he thought about it must have been milk from his mother's breast, was perhaps one of the most wonderful things. As his belly neared full he yawned.

He remembered he was a baby after all so why not get one last drink and take a nap. He thought to himself let this last drink be a big one to tide me over until I wake again. He suckled for all he was worth wanting to drink as much as possible when suddenly, he felt his whole-body tingle like it had went to sleep all over. The tingling just as quickly vanished, and sleep claimed him.

After hours of praying by Breldra, all the light from the milk bath had faded. Breldra straightens up from her crouched position holding a child no longer than 8 to 9 inches long. She quickly turns the child on its stomach and slaps its ass. A wail erupts from the child's throat as it begins to breathe. The child was male and had vibrant red hair framing a beautiful face set with eyes the color of the sun. 

Breldra takes the remaining milk, dipping a clean rag in it she proceeds to scrub the child thoroughly to get remaining blood and mucus off of him. She then wraps the child in the blanket where upon she hands him to Katarina. Katarina looks on at the child and swears. "I am your mother in all ways that matter's little one. My blood sister may have birth you but you will always be mine."

Breldra stands to the side with a smile on her exhausted face. She can see the little one tiring himself off when she sees the mana torches dim for a split second. No one else seems to notice this and she would have as well except she felt some of her mana pulled toward the little child. Just as suddenly it cuts off. She turns to the parents and says,” Well Lord Steelsoul and Lady Katarina you have a baby boy. What do you want me to record in the annuals of birth as this young ones name?”

Katarina looks down and sees her son’s golden eyes begin to close. “His mother named him Thoric Steelsoul and so he shall be.” She gentle runs her hands over her son’s head and breaths in his scent.

Breldra stands and says, “Now that spell took all I had and now I need to rest. Spend time with each other and your son. A twinkle comes into her eye as she turns to limp from the room. As she exits, “Remember Katarina, this can happen to anyone that isn't a dwarf. I am sorry for you loss Vorin but enjoy your little one. I have a funny feeling you are in for one hell of a ride with this little one.”

”Thank you grandmother. When you record his name can you officially record all his titles but also loved great son of Breldra.”

Breldra’s voice is heard as she exits the door, “I will gladly claim him as my great son and I thank you for giving me a family again.”

Vorin with tears leaking from his eye's arranges for Elizabeth to be removed and cremated. A day of both happiness and intense sadness ended.