It hurts!
Am I going to die?!
The pain in Arthur Brightwell's gut is sharp and overwhelming, it takes over his mind completely, spreading across his brain like his blood spreads across the floor. Arthur tries to gather his thoughts.
Was I- ow!
Calm down, just think, I- ahh!
Okay, okay, just be calm.
Arthur is briefly able to overcome the pain, it's replaced with confusion. He remembers the pain of the knife, but now it seems foreign.
Arthur's hand rushes off of the sign of the bed, it rapidly searches his body, he pulls up his shirt, looking for the wound, and sees nothing but modest muscle.
Arthur tries to gather his thoughts and figure out what happens. He thinks back.
He was walking home from work, his feet dragging along the path as the lines of his face comtort with worry, he thinks,
Shit, shit, shit! I missed the train, I'm gonna be home late. Dad might hit Mom if I come back late…
Then, he sees a mugger grabbing a woman's purse, violently tugging, trying to rip the bag from her, the straps still on the woman's arm force her to move in the direction he pulls.
Arthur acts on instinct, not even thinking while he rushes up to help the woman. He grabs the mugger's arm and shouts, "Hey! Stop that, you-!"
The pain overwhelms Arthur, he is in shock until he realizes that he was stabbed.
The first thing he feels is his legs give in, his life pours out of his wound along with the blood as he collapses to the floor, unable to move. The woman screams, the mugger panics.
"I didn't- I didn't mean to! He grabbed me, I was scared!"
Arthur tries to stand, but his legs shake too much to get up. The woman tries to call an ambulance while the mugger screams, "I… I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I can't go to jail!"
He knocks the phone onto the floor, the woman frantically picks it up and sees it shattered on the ground, she looks around, whirling her head left and right, then tries to comfort Arthur.
"Hey, hey! It'll be okay! I'll find someone, just… just hang on!"
She runs off to search for help while blood pours out onto the floor, leaving Arthur all alone as his breath slows. Arthur feels a sudden sense of cold, then he finds it hard to open his eyes, he closes them, just to rest for a minute…
—
That's what happened…
The memories don't end there. Entirely new scenes appear, an entirely new life. Two kind faces, looking onto him with love, praying before seven statues, a man making fire obey his will.
He tries to think calmly,
Is this… me? It can't be, can it?… I have all these memories… they feel natural, but this isn't how I grew up… these people don't feel like my real parents. They seem better than my real parents… no, what am I thinking?!
With conscious and excruciating effort, Arthur stands up. One foot plants itself against the floor, then the other. Arthur forcefully pushes against the smooth, wooden surface until he's standing. He makes his choice.
I'm going to figure this out. Reincarnation… it's like something out of a fantasy story. But I don't want to go back to my world… What is it really that makes me Arthur Brightwell and not Howard Atlas? Howard Atlas is who I want to be, who I will be. That's my choice!
Arthur— no, Howard walks downstairs and sees a beautiful woman, her silky black hair flowing like ink.
That woman is Eleanor Atlas, Howard's mother. She sees him and her face lights up like a field of sunflowers facing the rising sun.
"Oh, honey, you're up! Your father left for work already, but I made you breakfast!" Eleanor chirps.
Howard freezes for a moment. He thinks of another woman, she was supposed to take care of him, but she left him to a miserable life, she was too afraid to leave and seek a better life, and she dragged her son down with her. That woman was never a mother at all.
Howard freezes for a moment, hands shaking, knees trembling, neck slick with sweat, he finally smiles and responds.
"Thanks, Mom!"
He eats. The breakfast is nothing special, modest ingredients prepared by a modest cook, but just as the most terrible book becomes a masterpiece when viewed with love, and the most terrible man becomes a hero, the food tastes divine.
"Now, you've got to go, the ceremony's today. It's a big day so you need to be early! I still remember my Awakening ceremony, I wonder what you'll be able to do!"
Eleanor pushes Howard out the door, he leaves towards the town square.
The town is quiet. Small houses, one floor, two at most, made from wood, no windows, no decorations on the doors, nothing to distinguish one from another.
The sun rises against his back while he walks past the market district, stalls of men selling produce and meat, each one trying to shout above the others and make their voices heard, to whichever passerby will become the first customer of the day.
"Apples! Get your apples here!"
"Eggs! Can't have breakfast without eggs!"
"Melons! Melons from the Platus Mountains, essential for any man with a refined taste!"
At the town square, a beautiful woman is standing on a stage, wearing white robes that completely cover her body, her hands clasped, as if in prayer and her eyes glazed over in boredom. After an hour, every single child in the town who turned fifteen in the previous year arrives.
The excitement is clear, it can be seen in the looks on each and every face, heard in the excited whispers in the crowd, felt in how each person in the crowd tries to push to the front, bumping against each other.
"Attention, children! Today, you will awaken your magic Blessing, you'll be able to use them freely, so long as you don't break any of the laws of our kingdom. However! Once you turn twenty, you will be expected to give up your powers to our glorious king Victor Malica, the protector of our kingdom, bane of the Shadow and Emperor of all Mages!"
She then flashes a sweet smile and speaks,
"Of course, you won't be forced to give up your powers, but the king doesn't want to waste his time and Blessings on selfish people who don't contribute, so you won't be protected by the kingdom if you don't give up your powers. It's only fair for everyone to pull their weight."
She continues, "Now, before you awaken your Blessings, you'll get to see something special, a fight between two powerful and dangerous sorcerers. When a criminal on death row wants to save their life, they have the chance to fight a Blessed Knight, a knight who gets to keep their magic to serve the kingdom. If they win, they go free, but if course, criminal won't lose to our mighty soldiers!" Her face curves up in a sadistic smile, but her eyes remain glazed over.
She finishes. "If they lose, they'll lose their chance to be selfish, and their power will be pulled from their corpse and go to our great king so he can use it to protect our country. The criminal that our brave soldier will face now is a terrible degenerate, who spits in the face of every value out country holds dear! Commander Colin, will you please get on stage?"
The woman gestures, a handsome man in a military uniform with black ash staining the sleeves of his coat jumps off his horse and in a long stride, walks until he stands before everyone. At the same time, a mousy man in chains is brought out, very thin to the point where you can see the bones, and his clothes are ragged. The man looks terrified, like a caged animal. When the the chains are cut, he immediately lashes out, there are no thoughts in his mind, just pure instinct as he attacks!-