《Always forward》


 chapter 1

    Main Laboratory of the DF Technologies


    A modern and secure white building with a huge tower is the DF Technologies¡¯ headquarters of which Marc is one of the lead researchers. He is a simple man in a plain black T-Shirt depicting Ace, a personage from his favourite anime and faded jeans with a somewhat handsome face, long black hair and blue expressive eyes providing quite a refined look.


    He was standing in a huge room with a lot of bizarre mechanisms displayed on all the 4 white walls, leaving the white floor of almost 200 square meters empty, except a machine 10 meters in diameter at the centre of the room. The whole room gave the feeling of desolation and sterility.


    Right now that face is wrinkled in concentration facing the huge metallic mechanism with a lot of spikes protruding from the spherical centre on the platform.


    Near him, a last generation laptop was displaying some electronic shames and circuits that looked more complicated that a lot of mazes.


    After almost 16 years of continuous research in both theoretical and practical fields he¡¯s at the final step. If the project is made public it would make a lot of people go wild, as it deals with one of the most basic aspect of the reality ¨C space manipulation, with lightning (for the lack of a better term describing it) used as the catalizator. A bold approach from his part.


    He couldn¡¯t handle the pressure of potential failure that he decided to leave the final component on the table on his left, neat his laptop and take out a cigarette from his pocket.


    Lighting the cigarette and inhaling a big smoke he started to recall his life till this very day.


    As an inventor, electrical engineer, material engineer, physicist and futurist at his 34 years, he started his studies and research from a stupid ¡®geekly¡¯ idea ¨C I want to control space.


    How he got this thought? Between his love for science and light novels read in his youth, it¡¯s hard to decide its root, maybe both of them are.


    He could finish 5 or even 8 years earlier if not the fact that he decided long ago to never forget to enjoy life and never spend more than 8 hours a day on his research.


    Coupled with the standard 8 hours of sleep, he was left with 8 hours to LIVE and not only exist. He spent most of it on manga and everything related, martial arts ¨C Niten Ichi-ryu and finally with his very few friends and irregular girlfriends.


    Irregular because he understood he doesn¡¯t want stability in everything and relations were made for enjoyment, so he wants to enjoy it and not hinder his dreams. He¡¯s still young and doesn¡¯t see the need of a family. Plus his life was written 10 years ahead, he made a lot of plans, and if successful, it will push forward human development in many fields for the centuries to come.


    His sword mastery also evolved during the last 18 years of daily practice. The muscles on his body were developed beautifully and his stances reached an instinctive feeling of harmony with the sword. This practice allows him to shut down all thoughts and immerse his mind in this amazing state.


    The two swords, a gift from his deceased father, became his companions and he took care of them before each practice. It was part of the mind cleansing.


    In 6 weeks the investors want a demonstration of their prototype, nobody is stupid enough to throw a ton of money on a project, even more if this ton of money is a small rock in comparison with the mountain of founds that this research required.


    Materials cost was impressive and to ensure the best results a lot of qualified people were needed.


    Failure was not an answer since he bet his entire career on this project.


    With all the ameliorations to be made, tomorrow is the last day the first trial can take place. But Marc won¡¯t wait, he was eager to see the results of his years of work. It was a mixed feeling between trepidation and unease.


    Since he was sure that till the trial was performed he can¡¯t get a better understanding of his theory and its practical application, he decided to extinguish his cigarette and get back to work.


    2 hours after, he finally was standing before the control panel of his creation, ready to launch the experiment. It was a big red button, his special design. Because for a job like this only such kind of button is adequate. What could go wrong?


    He took out his phone and dialled his friend and colleague Alex. On the screen appeared the image of Shishimaru, the Alex¡¯ anime personification. It¡¯s the impression Marc had on him ¨C lazy but with a phenomenal mind set.


    ¡®¡¯Hi there, guess what I¡¯m trying to do?¡¯¡¯ Asked Marc in a teasing tone. This info must be shared.


    ¡®¡¯Let me guess, trying to destroy the world with that money eating machine?¡¯¡¯ Alex sounded quite sleepy but was still able to try and joke around.


    ¡®¡¯Exactly smartass, because I found sponsors earlier than you doesn¡¯t mean that you must bitch around every time I call you. How¡¯s in Tokyo?¡¯¡¯ He chuckled and lighted another cigarette, the third for today, two more go.


    ¡®¡¯If your brain will ever adapt with the time differences you will understand that here it¡¯s still night and I was trying to sleep. ¡®¡¯ His friend tried to sound pitiful, still he continued ¡®¡¯So why the call?¡¯¡¯


    ¡®¡¯No particular reason, just the fact that I wanted to share with someone the fact that a historical event will take place in a couple of minutes and I find you the most appropriate person for this role. ¡¯¡¯ Marc tried to use the most neutral voice and sound nonchalant to hide his emotions.


    ¡®¡¯O thanks for the great honour, but I¡¯ll go back to sleep, send me the recordings so I can take a look in the morning. ¡®¡¯If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    A sleepy scientist is not the best talking partner, Marc told himself. But it still felt good. Alex¡¯s help was essential to put in practice some details that he couldn¡¯t solve. As a colleague researcher he has his share of the pie, but ridiculously little since this is not his main project.


    However during the work he was inspired and now his research has some tangencies with Marc¡¯s. They even become friends. Plus it was Marc who aquatinted Alex and his wife.


    ¡°Of course, and sorry for the call at this hour but I couldn¡¯t leave it till tomorrow. I know that you wanted to be informed about this¡¯¡¯


    Another smoke ring left his mouth with the parting words ¡®¡¯Have a good sleep and I look forward for your review of the results first thing tomorrow¡¯¡¯


    Alex, half snoring responded ¡®¡¯Good luck Marc, I hope that it will be fruitful, but I swear that I¡¯ll block your number if you continue to call me at this hour. I¡¯ll ring you back in 5 hours. PS don¡¯t screw up.¡¯¡¯ And just hung out.


    Finally putting the cigarette in the ashtray he was prepared.


    He checked for the last time all the recording sensors and with a ¡®Let it rock¡¯ pressed the button.


    This machine was supposed to separate the very fabric of reality. It was the first step in his theory that needed confirmation. It was the foundation of his future accomplishments. He was the only person there since it was a Sunday and his subordinates were in weekend. This was the second reason why he wanted to do the experiment today.


    ¡®Better safe than sorry, you never know¡¯ he thought to himself. Plus, a big red button was involved.


    Even with all his assurance that they took everything in account, there is still a little chance of error left. With this type of experiment nobody can know how exactly it will happen. That¡¯s the problem with theory.


    A massive influx of energy, perceptible even to the naked eye rushes from each spike into the rotating panels.


    During the next minutes the panels started to rotate faster and the energy emited by the spikes became massive lightning bolts. It put pressure on the mind and body even behind the protection glass panels.


    When the rotation and energy reached 98% percents he saw a little crack forming near one of the spikes. Mac didn¡¯t even have time to enjoy the moment or look at the results when everything went dark.


    <hr>


    Trying to figure out why his mind hurts, Marcus immediately remembered the experiment and how he had lost his conscience. The eyelids were too heavy, as if someone was trying to keep them closed, but he hardly opened his eyes and then closed them back.


    It was too bright for eye comfort, nor did it compare to the 1000lux lamps that illuminated the lab. And now that he thought about it, the floor of the surveillance room was not under him. Something smooth and warm had replaced it.


    Blinking a few times to get to the light and with some gloomy words he had risen in his elbows to see where he was. Everything around him was white. White in all directions. An immaculate white that lay on till the horizon. The lack of other landmarks had made Marc panic. On such white, everything else would have come in contrast and would attract attention, but after a few movements of his head he could not see other objects, or at least other colours.


    Standing up and shouting a few times, he had not produced any results. Trying to calm himself, he staggered down and began to think. Logic always wins if you give it a chance and do not act based on emotions or instincts. And now they cried out that he was dead or teleported somewhere.


    A few good hours after awakening and a few panic attacks he was ready to cry. In all his lifetime he didn¡¯t feel so lost and scared. He never really needed a cigarette.


    Trying to find a border of this bizarre space, he started to walk in the direction he was looking at. Unfortunately nothing new on the horizon, literally nothing.


    The problem of moving without benchmarks is that at some point you deviate and revert where you started. Without wishing your body returns to point zero. Being right-handed and favouring his right foot, Marc was sure that his walk made a curve sloping to the right.


    When he remembered his father''s stories about the people lost in the woods, he was making a step toward the left at every 200 steps ahead to ensure that he¡¯ll advance straight. That did not help. Always the same landscape or its lack.


    Seeing his first plan doesn¡¯t work, another idea had come to his head. If he really is dead, he should not have blood, being a purely ¡®soul body¡¯, for the lack of a better term. The fact that he counted till 1354875 Mississippi and his breath was calm helped to confirm it.


    Without nails, the teeth came into action. With the confirmed lack of blood, instead of relaxation, a much greater panic overwhelmed his thoughts.


    ''Fuck, so you say this is purgatory, and my punishment is to lose my mind here alone, in this hospital / psychiatric environment. It''s too white for my mental comfort, you could be original and paint everything in pink, it could be even worse." he screamed to the sky, or at the too high white ceiling, he just had no idea what it really was, again.


    Having nothing else to do, he groaned and began to think of existential questions. Death was too sudden for him, to think about it seriously until now. Fragments and memories of what he had read and heard had gone through his head. What is death?


    The afterlife, as Marc knew, is the concept of a realm, or a realm itself in which an essential part of an individual¡¯s identity or consciousness that continues to exist after the death of the body. But what it represents?


    This question is more than a mind-bender. For thousands of years, certain people have claimed to have actually visited the place that, ¡°no eye has seen ¡­ and no human mind has conceived,¡± and their stories very often follow the same narrative arc.


    A skeptic, a rogue or an innocent suffers hardship or injury: he is hit on the head, he suffers a stroke, he sustains damage in a car crash or on the operating table. A feeling of disconnection comes over him, a sense of being ¡°outside¡± himself. Perhaps he encounters an opening: a gate, a door, a tunnel. And then, all at once, he is being guided through other worlds that look and feel to him more ¡°real¡± than the world in which he once existed. These realms are both familiar and strange, containing music that doesn¡¯t sound like music and light brighter than any light, and creatures that may or may not be angels, and the familiar faces of loved ones lost as well as figures from history and sometimes¡ªdepending on the narrator¡ªeven Jesus himself.


    Tales like these are thrilling in part because their tellers hold the passionate conviction of religious converts: I saw it, so it must be true.


    That was the Christian version of death. Marc in the state he was preferred to believe in reincarnation, a more favourable ending in his opinion.


    It¡¯s the concept that an aspect of a living being starts a newl ife in a different physical bodyor form after each biological death.It is a central tenet of all major Asian religions and maybe the novels that he read influenced a little.


    Still reflecting about all this, he feel himself being pulled away somewhere. The world blurred around a panicking Marcus as he was pulled to another place far away.


    The belief of oblivion after death is scarier, and now he was sure that that is his near future.


    ¡®What¡¯s the purpose of the white space than?¡¯ he asked himself.


    He was flying (and panicking) for an unknown period of time, still trying to gather his thoughts when a black hole appeared somewhere in the distance, disturbing his thoughts.


    It was difficult to concentrate the mind on only one thing. It¡¯s like a huge hangover mixed with brilliant ideas and understandings put in a blender and then inserted in his soul form, or how else to call this metaphysical effect?


    Still trying to perceive what happened and what was this sensation that he was filling and even understanding he approached the black hole.


    Marc bet everything that his continued existence will take place in a spiritual realm and this is just a teleport. The alternative of being reincarnated in an animal was still ok, but the death of the mind still inspired dread.


    At some moment the phenomenon started to pulse, resonating with his own conscience and drifting him towards its core.


    The distance was shrinking and a sudden pain attacked him when he touched the core.

 chapter 2

    And I was back in this black hole where no light can exist. Frankly speaking I wasn''t fond of waiting. I wasn¡¯t even sure that the light will reaper. Maybe the first time was only a fluke in the universe¡¯s circuit caused by the fact that I saved the little girl. Karma and other cosmic laws that no living being could understand. But even if it will appear, knowing that this would happen no sooner than I would be questioning my sanity was making me sick.


    So I tried to remember everything that I gathered about death from my last life, every piece of knowledge. After all I spent a huge part of my life preparing for this only moment. Even with all the information that was accumulated during this civilization¡¯s history, nothing resembled what I was experiencing at that moment.  Throughout history there have been many different theories from a wide array of people, including scientists, religious leaders and everyone in between.


    Many of these theories involved some type of afterlife. Stories of heaven realms or some existence after this one were meant to comfort people because death is terrifying to most of us. Such fears mainly stem from the fear of the unknown. People want to know what¡¯s in the great abyss that will consume them and everyone they love.


    Can you blame them?


    With advancements in computers, magic and physics, there have been some new mind blowing theories about what reality and consciousness really are, however. Taking that new information, philosophers have been coming up with new ideas as to what will happen when we take to the big sleep¡­ but there are only basic theories, that were present even in my first life, and reincarnation was the most appropriate one. Still, no information was found about the process itself without taking the holy crap.


    Not that I had access to a lot of information, only public one, so my time was spent in vain.


    I tried different approaches hopping to trigger some reaction. Screaming in my head or consciousness...as expected it didn¡¯t help. Same result with moving around or meditating. I couldn¡¯t feel any mana particles either. I feel helpless here.


    ¡®¡¯13836937 Mississippi, 13836938 Mississippi, o the light appeared¡¯¡¯


    So a fixed period of time is required for this transition to happen. My desperate counting helped, this time I went quite far without making mistakes, I guess I¡¯m getting better.  The equivalent of tens (or thousands) of years passed until this very moment, the one that will free me from the abyss.


    Hipped about the fact that my next life is one hand away I start moving slowly. Maybe I will be born in a wealthy family with a stronger body and good potential in magic (supposing that mana will exist in this new world).


    The light started pulsating when I was not that far away, resonating with my consciousness and drifting towards my new body. Being my second time here, fear was losing to curiosity. After all I still have my sanity intact, of at least I hope I do.


    I passed out only to be waked up by the same acute pain that I now can classify as being born. Trying not to scream (I¡¯m a man after all, I¡¯ll kill myself if my gender switches. It¡¯s easier to wait an eternity in the abyss than dealing with the menstruation) I slowly blink, allowing my eyes to inspect the surroundings. At least this time the lights are not that powerful, or it¡¯s simply night time.


    The person that¡¯s holding me was a beautiful woman in its 40s, with a lot of success at men during the youth, I¡¯m sure. I can still see the sparks in the deep blue eyes that can charm almost everybody, combined with the blond hair and a graceful face, she was giving the impression of someone almost divine.


    The biggest shock are her ears, long pointy ones just like the elves from the fictions in my first life. She is wearing light blue robe with some golden ornaments near the neck and shoulders. Ok, this time I hit the jackpot, it¡¯s a world with different magical races.


    She looks relieved but sad at the same time. Why sad? Did something happen to my mother? No; i can hear some heavy breathing from my back so she must be ok. Exhausted but safe.


    I have some mutations from birth? I never even considered the possibility of being born with some physical problems. Sorry for that but my plans include a lot of moving and fighting so let''s hope that it¡¯s nothing to restraining.


    ¡®¡¯ Dheirv ruev rif¡¯¡¯ She spoke to someone from behind, it must be my mother.


    Trying to turn my neck, I finally remember that a newborn muscles are pointless. The woman tries to give me to someone, my mother I suppose, I didn¡¯t hear or see my father in the room. It allows me to take a glance to the person that gave birth to me and the one that will be my mother, the one that I should thank for pulling me out from the everlasting darkness.


    I was impressed to see that she was crying and while still in bed, she waived her hand in protest. She had the same elven ears like the other woman. My mother is not that beautiful as the priest/healer that is holding me, but she has some charmy features. Her hair was cut short, its color being something between golden and bright yellow.  Big brown eyes were looking at me with fear and disgust. She was broken, the feeling of despair was so acute that I wanted to look right away but I can¡¯t turn my head right now.


    She doesn¡¯t want me.


    Near her bed, a couple was holding hands while trying to figure out what happened. Clearly the woman was about to cry and the man was trying to consulate her. Both of them had the same elven ears. The man was in his 40s and had a beautiful white hair that he kept short. His eyes were brown and he had some similar facial features with my mother. He must be my uncle or my grandfather. With elves there is this small problem, you can¡¯t guess the age just judging by appearances alone.


    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.He was dressed in green leather pants, a beautiful green shirt of unknown fabric. 2 dryads were decorating his chest. The woman hugged my mother and both started sobbing. She was a bit younger than the others in the room. She had an athletic build. Black raven eyes and hair. She had white skin that looked to pale to be exposed under the sun. If the healer was beautiful like a chrysanthemum, she, on the other hand was elegant and noble like a lotus.


    No other words were exchanged. The man finally was aproching us.


    ¡®aurein feiv fit androsis. Leduin maniur veros¡¯ he said and looked back towards the two women. His voice had an angry tone and looking in his eyes I could understand that my future wasn¡¯t bright.


    Why not? What¡¯s wrong with me? It¡¯s that bad that even my mother won¡¯t recognize me as her son (or daughter)? I think it will be a short life, way too short. It''s a pity. I¡¯m still not ready to return to the abyss. One more time and I¡¯ll go insane. Spending a lot of time all by myself puts quite a big burden on the mind.


    ¡®¡¯Fiev fit pugnku¡¯¡¯ The woman that was holding me stared walking to the door with me after saying something to my mother, goodbye I hope and not the fact that she¡¯ll kill me now.  No, no fucking way, the elves that I know are always noble and pure creatures, they won¡¯t kill a newborn regardless of the circumstances. Of course not, I was exaggerating, it must be something else. Stupid little baby brain.


    My mother didn¡¯t even bother to respond. Something happened in her life and now she refused to acknowledge my very existence.


    The door we were walking to, was made of wood, with an iron lock and a medieval style. Having a panic attack, I forgot to inspect the room. It was a fairly large bedchamber lit by some candles, with some rustic furniture. A simple but comfortable bulky bed, some chairs that don¡¯t look that bad, being meticulously carved, and some shelves with books (at least they got books) on the left of a large window.


    The tall walls were made from some reddish stone brick that had been polished almost to perfection. I presume there were some other pieces of interior but I saw only half of the room.  Still the conclusion that my mother¡¯s family had some status in this society was certain. Not that I could enjoy this.


    I¡¯m screwed, shell kill me for sure. My darkest fears became reality. I suddenly remembered the Spartans, one of the best warrior nations that had a nasty tradition of killing the small and frail children deeming them unworthy for living. I started to cry just after the healer closed the door after us. What other options do I have? Of course a person who lived 130 years can¡¯t really fake a baby cry but it actually worked.


    ¡®¡¯ Durv eifuar. Misan reol¡¯¡¯


    She caressed my hair and gave me a warm tired smile. Filling relived, and the adrenaline rush dissipating, I fell asleep instantly (newborn body, what else can I say). I hope that when I¡¯ll wake up this woman will still be here by my side.


    I had a ton of questions and zero answers. Why my mother was crying? Where was my father? What¡¯s wrong with my body? These questions are only the tip of the iceberg.


    I dreamt about ocean. A beautiful sunset on a faraway beach. One of my best memories from my second life. I was 17 that time and went together with my family to celebrate my admission at the best university in town. It was the best weekend that I had with my family, one filled with joy and peacefulness. But in my tranquil dream I heard a cry. A somber, intense cry from the bedroom that was located on the second floor. I put the glass of wine on the desk and went there to find out what¡¯s wrong. I opened the door and saw the same woman, my new mother that was crying like a madman. This time she was alone. I froze.


    Opening my eyes I understood that it was only a nightmare. Even with a lot of knowledge from my previous lives I still had the body of an infant, and it''s complicated to control all the emotions. During the puberty period, when hormones hit your head you become a beast in heat even without realizing this fact. A lot of mistakes were made in my second life because of this. I almost got married during one of those. Yes, I had a funny time at school. I regret nothing.


    Ok, let¡¯s check where the hell am I. The news that the woman left me alive is already a feast.


    It¡¯s dark, plus I can¡¯t see the sky, so I¡¯m indoors. A huge plus for survival. The bed I was laying in was pretty spiky but it wormed my body. Its length was about 80 cm, just right for my new body. I guess it could be worse. It must be a medieval world just like in the fictions that I read. It¡¯s a shame but the sanitation level must be pretty low. Same with the laws about child care.


    Still I had no idea where the woman brought me. Even if my surroundings are painted in the darkness of the night I can hear some snoring. I was not alone in the room. Judging by the number of different noises there must be at least another dozen of people here.


    For the time being I must check my body and try not to make too much noise. I closed my eyes and tried meditating to see if I can sense the mana particles. They were here. A lot of mana particles flied all around me. Their concentration was at least 2 times more dense that on my previous planet. Ok, now let¡¯s try to absorb some mana to create a little light to inspect the roof. With this body it''s the limit of what I¡¯m capable of. After 30 minutes of trying to absorb the mana I passed out.  Something is wrong with the way mana reacts here. During my previous life you had to gather it in your  body (in your magical field), then absorb it with all your body and with some complex formulas shape the mana into a spell.


    Apparently it¡¯ll become my new hobby to find out the way to use magic in this new for me world, I was a researcher not (only) for pretty eyes. At least I am an elf now, so I have a very long life ahead to search for answers.

 chapter 3

    It has been three months since I was born in this world. After some great troubles, I can somewhat control my body to some extent. Even though I can¡¯t walk or crawl, I can move my head and eyes to observe my surroundings.


    I never realized how boring being a baby is even if it was my third time. After I got taken away by the woman, I was left in the care of some kind of orphanage that looked better that some of them from my previous worlds. The problem is that except for one old woman no one interacts with me. I¡¯ve been here for not so long and I¡¯m already depressed because of all the boredom.


    As I firstly suspected I share the room with 14 boys aged between 2 and 9 years. Apparently there is a division based on gender here and the other part of the building is the girls¡¯ dorms. The orphanage has quite a huge garden with trees, bushes beautiful wild flowers. I saw it during my feedings. Nothing special but it allows the youngsters to spend some of their energy outdoor without breaking the peace of the establishment.


    The language is still out of reach because the maximum I can hear are some small talks between kids and I can¡¯t even see them. It¡¯s a myth that intelligent people are better at learning languages. Language learning involves a lot of uncertainty. People will encounter new vocabulary daily, and for each grammar rule there will be a dialectic exception or irregular verb. Until native-like fluency is achieved, there will always be some level of ambiguity. I would like to quit out of sheer frustration. Luckily I don¡¯t have the need to understand everything for now. Even if I¡¯m curious to find out what¡¯s wrong with me and why my magic isn¡¯t working.


    Yes, about the last one, I¡¯m still working on it. For instance I had a little help from one of the aged people here. It was an old bald man and he was showing some magic tricks to the boys in the room. Sadly he sat with his back to me but it was enough to inspect the mana particles around him. Apparently to being able to use mana in this world you need to firstly absorb the mana, refine it with your body and the release it in form of a spell. It was a popular version of mana manipulation that I discovered during my readings in my first life. Sadly, I wrongly assumed that since physical laws like gravity or Einstein¡¯s theories were the same for each realm, the same principle was applied for magic.


    Nothing new here, I already had this idea (it¡¯s not for nothing that I read all the novels in my first life) but when I tried nothing happened. This lead to two possible conclusions. Firstly, I don¡¯t have the capacity to use magic because my body is somehow ¡®defect¡¯. It can be quite true, especially if you take in consideration how I was born and the reaction of my mother and every adult in the orphanage. The second possible explanation is that my body is not used to absorb mana, thus I need more practice. Being optimistic (because what else remains?) I started to absorb mana every minute that I was conscious.


    I also plan in the future days to reshape my mana absorbing technique to the new variables in the formula (like entry points of mana and the path towards the mana core if I¡¯m correct) so that my body can still process the mana even during my sleep. I got this information from the same old man during the long observations.


    It will prove to be a huge bonus if you count the amount of time that a newborn spends sleeping.


    One more month passed I was quite proud of myself. I started feeling the mana circulating my body. It is the strangest thing I have ever experienced. Imagine having a lot of ants crawling under your skin and digging tiny little tunnels in your flesh and internal organs. It¡¯s not even painful, but still disturbing. The good part is that after the tunnels (which I called mana veins for practicity) are formed, the mana flows freely without hindering the body.


    Another good news is that I readjusted the formation for mana absorption. After some trial tests I found out that I can use only 80% of its efficiency but still the result was more than pleasing. The down part is that it disturbs my sleep. I wake up several times per night due to the vein forming. But then again, I¡¯m a baby, the time spent to fall back asleep doesn¡¯t exceed 30 seconds.


    If I had to predict how much time is needed to reach the place in my abdomen, a little lower than my heart, where my core will be located ¡­. At least 2 years were necessary to perform this task. Of course I did this assumption based on the speed of my veins that were formed. I was still unsure if reaching some parts of my body the process would slow down or on the contrary, speed up.


    The last part in return was not that pleasing. I finally found (or at least hope) why my mother abandoned me and why everybody is wary when the glance in my direction. Being able to move my limbs more freely now I started to inspect myself. When I moved my hand forward so that I can inspect it I was shocked to see that my skin is not pink/white but instead had a metallic silver color. To be frank it looks cool and quite badass. Also even if I am only 4 months old my nails are harder than steel and sharper than razors. Yes, they were also black. I hope that when the time comes I¡¯ll have normal, ¡®standard¡¯ teeth and not some sharp blades instead.


    Jokes apart, now I must find out if this is some sort of mutation like albinism or if it¡¯s much worse and it will crap my future social life.


    So many things to find out, but I move forward, hoping that with time everything will be clearer and easier. For now, I will concentrate on creating all my veins and adapting my body to mana. On second thought, I¡¯ll take a nap.


    Katal Phina¡¯s POV


    When Uriyra, one of the city midwifes and my friend, bought the new boy covered with a blanket in the middle of the night to the doors of the orphanage I was surprised. There were no children that required our shelter for already two years since the last war with de demons finished. Still, I got up from bed and pulling something on myself I forced my body to descend to meet her. The body of a 587 years old lady is not meant for such actions during the night.


    ¡®¡®Good night Usiya, what pour soul you brought me this time? Since I last checked there were no newborns without parents from the last war a few years ago. I hope no woman died during birth this night¡¯¡¯


    If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡®¡®Hello Phina and sorry for bumping into you at this hour but this child needs a roof and I couldn¡¯t think of a better place for him than here. Especially with his circumstances.¡¯¡¯  She replied with a sorrowful face while removing the blanket from the baby.


    What I saw was a baby elf, no different from others, except for his skin color that was somehow silver, like the armors made from the same material, it gave a metallic light. He was sleeping while holding Usiya¡¯s cloth.


    ¡®¡¯I presume you¡¯ll fill me with details about this young elf before entrusting him in my care.¡¯¡¯ I asked curiously. At my age there is little to no chance to be surprised by something new.


    Usiya¡¯s head looked down and I could feel discomfort and a slight hint of fear in her eyes. ¡®¡¯To be frank even I know almost nothing in regards of this baby. All the information that this boy¡¯s mother told me is that during the war she was kept prisoner by the demon army. She lost the memories of that time and no one knows if it was caused by magic or by the fact that it was a burden to big for her mind to carry.¡¯¡¯ She finished her line while looking directly into my eyes.


    ¡®¡®Anyway, as you can see the child was born 2 years after the war which is strange since the pregnancy for elven race lasts for 36 months. Plus the woman wasn¡¯t engaged in sexual relations since her release from the demon camp.¡¯¡¯


    Yes, this was definitely interesting but very very sad for the mother and the child. Growing up with different color will surely be a challenge for the boy, even if our race is quite peaceful, children can be cruel sometimes in their teasing. And who knows if this is his only demon trait.


    ¡®¡®So he¡¯s a mixed race. ¡®¡¯I finally said after some moments of silence. ¡®¡¯It¡¯s common knowledge that such incidents are extremely rare, the chance of getting pregnant from another race individual is one to one million, if not even slimmer for the elven and demon race. Those two races have the weakest birth rate compared with others¡¯¡¯


    Usiya gave me a sad tired smile ¡®¡¯yes, I know. It¡¯s my field of practice after all. Yet here we are, and the child is proof that chances are not everything.¡¯¡¯ She started caressing the boy¡¯s black hair.


    ¡®¡¯So, could you take care of him for the time being? His mother didn¡¯t really abandon him. It¡¯s just too much for her. She needs time to munch the idea that her son has demon blood in him. Maybe after some time she will come here to pick him up, at least I hope her to come. He¡¯s just been born so a few months or even a year here won¡¯t cause any problem¡¯


    Just as she finished talking she gave me the baby and I took him.


    ¡®¡¯Ok, we will take care of him and I really look forward to see him mother coming for him.¡¯¡¯ I said this still looking at the child. Except for his skin there were no other visible demon traits.


    ¡®¡¯Now if you will excuse me, my age doesn¡¯t allow me that much and I start to get tired. Good night Usiya. I expect you to come see the boy. And without another newborn to entrust us will be the best.¡¯¡¯ I said while grinning. ¡®¡¯The orphanage will shelter anybody in need, but I¡¯m sure that a child needs his family.¡¯¡¯


    ¡®¡®You are certainly right. And I wish I could come to visit him but I must go in Nytathrius.¡¯¡¯ The woman responded with the same sad look on her face.


    ¡®¡¯My daughter¡¯s husband was slain by a beast in the great forest of Serin. She needs my support. Actually I depart tomorrow evening.¡¯¡¯ I could see a small smile. ¡®¡¯This boy is my last child in this town and I sure will remember him.¡¯¡¯


    She reached her hand and once more caressed the boy¡¯s hair.


    ¡®¡®Good night Phina. And sorry for the trouble.¡¯¡¯ She turned and slowly walked bad into the alley.


    Ok little boy, the first thing after we¡¯ll feed you is finding some comfing place to sleep.


    I directed myself towards the boys¡¯ dorm. The kitchen was free at this hour and I hoped we got some milk left.


    I was still looking after the boy even after 4 months. The other personnel are quite afraid and wary of this child.


    Surprisingly taking care of him is pretty much easy since he never cries. For the beginning I was afraid that he is deaf, but sometimes before his ¡®physical needs¡¯ he tries to call for me using some noises. Maybe this calm is another blood trait inherited from the demons? I have no idea how demon children behave themselves during childhood. Not that he¡¯s the first quite child I raised.


    I explained the other stuff about the child¡¯s circumstances. I lied to them that it¡¯s a very rare mutation and it¡¯s nothing to worry.  They, on their part let children know that the boy is just like them and the skin color was a blessing from the gods. They fell ashamed for ignoring and even fearing a little boy.


    Like this the child will grow up without being teased and feared (not more than any other child). Normal circumstances are important, and since last week other instructors started feeding and taking care of him.


    Just like me, they were overwhelmed by the boy¡¯s eyes. Deep black eyes that shone with intelligence. Sometimes I had the impression that this child understands everything I told him.


    Of course it was just imagination, every time someone talked with him trying to speak to him the boy was lost in thoughts. Still, no one doubted that his gaze emanated wisdom. I look forward to see the boy grow up.