《I Can Move Things With My Mind》


 Takayama

    "Come here, you demon!" Screamed a chubby boy, sweat dripping from his face as he ran down a dirt path between two of the school buildings.


    I turned around and saw that Kenji was starting to slow down, and when I looked forwards again I saw that I had almost made it to the main school building.


    However, although Kenji had started lagging behind, his two goons that followed him everywhere were unfortunately in much better shape.


    They quickly overtook Kenji, and in just a few more seconds they were upon me.


    "Got you, Yoikai!" shouted one of them.


    I felt the collar of my school uniform snag as he roughly pulled me backwards. The other boy was twice my size, and two years my senior. He threw me to the ground like I was a coin he was tossing into a fountain.


    I flew a few feet to the side and smashed my head onto a rock next to the path. My vision swam and I cried out in pain when I rolled over.


    Kenji had walked up to me now, and his two goons had dragged me up from the ground to face him.


    "My grandma told me that you were a devil. She says that anyone that looks like you is dangerous!" he explained, still huffing heavily from the short run.


    "He definitely runs like a devil." Snickered the boy who had thrown me.


    "We''re doing the community a service by putting you in your place." added the other boy.


    The boys all shared a little laugh at that.


    I tried to look Kenji in the eyes, but my left eye stung with blood from a cut in my forehead. All I could think of at this moment was my utter hatred for him.


    Suddenly, Kenji struck me in the gut with a pudgy fist. I felt all of the air rapidly leave my lungs as I collapsed into a heap on the ground, gasping for breath.


    ***


    I opened my eyes to the blinding light of the morning sun. Wincing, I turned over to the side in a futile attempt to stave off the brightness.


    ''I really need to get some blackout curtains.'' I thought to myself, cursing the light that ended my blissful sleep.


    I tried to sleep for another few minutes, but eventually decided it was pointless as I groaned and sat up.


    Looking around my new room, I saw the same unopened boxes with various labels scattered around in the same places they were yesterday.


    The room was a modest size, with my bed taking up a third of the space without even having the rest of my furniture unloaded.


    Having recently moved from the greater Tokyo prefecture to the much smaller town of Takayama in the Gifu prefecture, I had yet to fully unpack my boxes.


    To be completely honest, I had barely done much of anything yet.


    I of course managed to put up my several posters of American supermodels, as that took priority over anything else I owned. Waking up to the sight of several busty women in bikinis tended to make your morning better.


    "Kane! Get down here to eat!" shouted my father, apparently from the kitchen judging by the sound.


    ''He couldn''t even bother to come to my door.'' I chuckled to myself ruefully.


    I stood up from the bed and stretched out my limbs, yawning as I took a look in the small mirror on the wall.


    I was only 16, but in this past year alone I had grown at least 10 centimeters (4 inches). I now stood at an impressive 185 cm (6''1"), almost as tall as my father.


    After years of martial arts training, my muscles were honed to a state far beyond what you''d expect from the average teenager.


    My hair was white and curly, reaching down to just below my ears. My strange hair started whitening when I was just a boy, and has been the source of endless harassment my entire life.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    When I was younger I used to be embarrassed by my hair, but I had eventually grown to accept it. After all, I had never seen anyone else with pure white hair.


    Didn''t that make me special or something?


    I also leaned into the mirror a little closer once I started to see the tell-tale signs of a pimple forming on my pale skin.


    "Damn." I muttered, deciding to take a shower after I finished unpacking my clothes.


    Truthfully, I was also dreading the visits from our neighbors, who would undoubtedly be investigating the new family who had just moved into their small town.


    Takayama was several times smaller than Tokyo, and I''ve heard stories that the older folk here tend to be.. close minded to say the least.


    Although I appeared foreign, I was actually born and raised in Japan. My parents moved to the Kanto region because of a job opportunity my father had. Eventually, he was promoted to a higher position at his company and was moved to Tokyo.


    To put it frankly, since the recent economy has been falling straight to hell, he had gotten laid off.


    ''My pops spent 18 years at that company just to be thrown away like some trash.'' I thought to myself, clenching my teeth bitterly.


    My father never fully explained what he did for work, and whenever I asked he just said that there was too much yellow tape for him to go into details.


    I just knew that he was the assistant to some powerful bigshot, and that it paid the bills.


    Well it used to, I guess.


    I knew that there was nothing I could do about it though, and that I was now forced to live in some backwater prefecture with no opportunities.


    Sighing, I resolved myself to just start my morning workout routine after I had eaten.


    Opening my door, I went down the hallway to the kitchen.


    I found my father and my mother sitting at the dining room table. Looking at the table, I saw that my mom had made Tamagoyaki, one of my favorites.


    Yawning, I took a seat at my side of the table, grabbing my chopsticks and promptly digging into my food.


    For some reason the food tasted even better than it usually did. As I ate, I could feel my sore body almost rejuvenate. I had no idea cheesy eggs could taste so good!


    They always say that a mother''s cooking was the best thing in the world, but I could have sworn it wasn''t normally this delicious.


    My mother watched me eagerly, she always loved to watch me eat her food. She was Japanese through-and-through, and I had always wondered what my dad had done to end up with such a beautiful woman.


    Looking across the table, I saw that my father was seemingly lost in thought, not touching his food at all.


    He was much darker skinned than me with a broader build, but he was only a few centimeters or so taller than me now. That didn''t mean I would fool myself into thinking that I could beat him in a fight though.


    Although my father looked rather serious, he was actually a really good guy. He was also the main reason I had gotten into martial arts.


    When I was younger I used to get beat up all the time, and when my overworked father noticed he had immediately started teaching me how to fight.


    He used to say, ''Never run away. If you''re going to get the sh*t kicked out of you anyways, you might as well go down swinging.''


    I was halfway finished with my plate when I heard my father''s deep voice from across the table.


    "So it''s about time I tell you both about why we''re really here." he said.


    This confused me, "Didn''t you get fired from your job?" I asked bluntly.


    My father clicked his tongue in annoyance, "I didn''t get ''fired'', well, in a way I did. But that''s besides the point."


    He continued, "Do you remember my boss?"


    "You mean Mr. Tanaka?" asked my mother.


    My father nodded, "Me and that bastard had come to differences, and I decided to leave the company."


    My mom frowned, "How come you said you got laid off then?"


    I heard my father sigh, "Truthfully, I haven''t been telling you the truth about my job at all. Now that we''re in the clear, I think I should fill both of you in now."


    I had absolutely no clue what my father was going on about, but I said nothing. This was too interesting to interrupt with any jokes.


    "I told you that I worked for an accounting firm, but my company actually specialized in the procurement and containment of different artifacts and supernatural items."


    Now I couldn''t help myself, "What the hell does that mean? Is stuff like that even real?"


    My mother cleared her throat, "Kane! Watch your mouth!"


    Father shot me a dirty look as well, but I was far too invested in this conversation to care.


    I saw my mother turn to my father in consternation, "Explain this better to us, dear. I don''t understand what you''re saying."


    My father sighed, "I don''t even know where to start. If you weren''t aware, an average of 219 people disappear in Japan alone each day. This is not even taking into account the rest of the world."


    "The news would suggest that the majority of these are from suicide, or even gang abductions, but the truth is far more sinister. Many people stumble upon things they are not supposed to, and others are forcibly drawn into it."


    At this point I didn''t know if my father had gone crazy or not. I knew that he wasn''t the type of man to joke about such things though. Why would he tell us all of this if it wasn''t true?


    Father continued, "The gist of it is that my organization operated under strict rules of secrecy. They even have precedence over the government in some places."


    "The reason I didn''t tell you the truth of what I really did was because I figured even our home wouldn''t be safe from surveillance. Especially at the clearance level that I was at." he finished.


    I sucked in a deep breath, I had no idea that my dad had such a cool job. I was still a bit skeptical though, and he was clearly leaving out a lot of important details. However, this didn''t sound like something you could even make up.


    At this point I was unable to resist asking, "So, what led to you falling out with your boss?"


    Father looked at the two of us grimly, "In recent years, my ''company'' discovered an underground vault filled with some type of miraculous liquid. The higher ups were calling it the ''Fountain of Life'', or youth, or something like that."


    "This liquid was able to do wonders, it could bring the near-dead back to life, prevent aging, you get the gist. Before we knew it the organization was selling this liquid for hundreds of millions of dollars a dose."


    My eyes widened in surprise. If father''s words were to be believed, such an item would be highly sought after by the world''s elite.


    Mother seemed to realize something, "Was this when you had gotten that promotion a few years ago?"


    My father nodded, "That''s right. With that increased level of power and influence the organization began to take a bigger stage in the world. As the organization grew, they gave me increasingly more dangerous and frankly ridiculous missions. Eventually, my boss assigned me a task that went against my moral compass."


    I wondered what the task was, and as I wasn''t one to mince words I said the first thing that came to my mind.


    "Did he ask you to kill someone?" I asked with wide eyes.


    A dark look passed over my father''s eyes, "Something even worse."


    "Either way, I told that a*shole to stuff it and handed him my resignation the next day."


    Now things were starting to make more sense, but I still had many questions.


    My mother asked one of them for me, "Why are we out in the middle of nowhere? Couldn''t you still find work in one of the neighboring prefectures?"


    Father chuckled bitterly, "My boss wasn''t the type of man to leave any loose ends. I know far too much for the organization to just let me leave. I figured I bought us some time by getting as far away as I could, and I pulled some strings to hide our trail."


    I could see that my father looked sad, it was as if he had already resigned himself to the inevitable.


    "All these measures only bought us temporary peace. It''s only a matter of time before the organization finds us." he eventually said after a long moment of silence.


    My mother said nothing, she was pale and seemed to have been struck speechless.


    ''Oh great, looks like I won''t even make it to seventeen. I''m going to get killed because my dad had a job too cool for his own good.'' I laughed inwardly to myself in bitter sarcasm.


    Suddenly, my father bent down below the table and retrieved a large black case.


    ''Where was he even hiding that thing?'' I wondered.


    The case was metallic in appearance, and it was closed off by several latches alongside the edges.


    "Luckily, I was able to snag myself a souvenir." said my father nonchalantly.

 Miracle Water

    As father sat the oversized metal case down, he caused a few plates to clatter as the weight of the box shook the table.


    "Honey, not on the table! We''re still eating!" mother shouted.


    My father just scratched his head with a wry smile, "Sorry, sorry." he said, reaching down to unlatch the case.


    I watched what he was doing intently though, I had never been so curious about what was inside of something in my entire life.


    With the clasps on the case undone, my father opened it up, filling the kitchen with cold vapor that escaped from within the box.


    Peering inside the case, I saw what looked to be a tiny vial in the middle of it enclosed by thick foam padding. There was also a small control panel on the side of the interior that showed numerous graphs and strange numbers.


    "Such a large box for such a small package." I said absentmindedly.


    Looking closer, the vial was filled with a bluish liquid that swirled around as if it had a mind of its own. It glimmered in the light of the kitchen, and it looked simply otherworldly.


    Father''s voice could be heard from across the table, "The liquid needs to be kept at a stable temperature at all times, hence the case."


    He continued, "I was able to get my hands on some of that miracle water I was telling you about. With this, we should be able to start a new life somewhere. I''ve always wanted to live in Europe." he said calmly, as if he wasn''t concerned about having such a valuable item on their kitchen table.


    I saw that my mother looked unamused, "Isn''t this thing dangerous? The company will surely come looking for it."


    My father was going to say something but she wasn''t having it, "It''s not too late to return this. Maybe they can let things slide if you just give it back."


    Father sighed, shaking his head, "You don''t understand. As soon as I parted ways with the company, it was always inevitable they would come after me. This is the only way I can ensure the safety of you two."


    In all honesty, I inwardly sided with my mother on this one. Something as ridiculous as this was bound to draw the wrong attention. Not to mention it would put us higher on the radar of such a massive organization.


    ''Maybe father has a plan, he''s not the type to do something without thinking it through.'' I thought to myself.


    I watched as my father closed the case, cutting off the cold vapor that was slowly filling the kitchen.


    "The only reason I''m telling you all this now is because I couldn''t stand to lie to my family any longer. If something were to happen to us, I at least want you to know what the reasons were." he said, his voice heavy.


    ''Well, at least he has the decency to tell us about what''s going on. I would hate to have died in my sleep and not even known why.'' I thought bitterly.


    I saw that my mother was now silently crying, but she reached out a tender hand to my father and rested it upon his.


    "I will always love you, and regardless of what happens I will stand by your side. I trust that you know what you''re doing." she said in a hushed tone.


    I suddenly stood up from the table, loudly scraping my chair on the floor.


    "Well, it seems like you have everything under control Dad. I''ll leave you to it." I said, turning to leave the kitchen.


    "Kane, wait!" my mother shouted out, but my father just grabbed her hand. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    "Let him go, love. He''ll need time to sort this out for himself." he said calmly.


    I snorted as I left the kitchen, heading to the front door. I slipped on my shoes and left without bothering to grab a jacket.


    It was January and literally snowing outside, but I didn''t care much for the extreme cold at the moment.


    "At least put on a coat!" my mother exclaimed, but I was already closing the door.


    I sighed deeply, watching my breath turn to mist in the winter air.


    I started walking down the street without any idea of where I was going. It was below freezing temperatures, but there was a strange heat welling up from within me preventing me from feeling the cold.


    I honestly had no idea what to think at the moment¡ªEverything that I had known about my father was basically a lie. If he was part of some type of shady shadow organization, how many other things was he lying to us about?


    As I walked I saw that no one was outside, and the streets were devoid of any evidence of life.


    Our neighborhood in Takayama was more like a ramshackle scattering of houses. The old-school wooden Japanese architecture truly came to life during the winter seasons though.


    The snow perched atop the roofs of the homes hid the century old decay, but these older buildings held up well against the test of time.


    I looked over to my side to see what looked like green eyes peering at me from beneath the porch of one of the homes. Looking closer, I discovered that it was a cat taking shelter from the winter chill.


    The cat was as black as midnight, and its green eyes distracted me long enough to get caught off guard by the two men who were suddenly standing in front of me on the street.


    The men were wearing immaculately tailored black suits, and they seemed unaffected by the cold. One of the men was wearing sunglasses, which looked ridiculous considering that the sun was hidden by thick grey clouds.


    I was able to see the other man''s eyes, though. They were firmly fixed on me, watching my every move.


    I immediately raised my guard, preparing for a fight. I had no clue who these two were, but my common sense instantly led me to connecting the dots.


    ''Come on, already?! It''s only been like five minutes since my Dad told me what was going on.'' I cursed inwardly.


    The man with the glasses calmly stepped forwards, "Kane Reeds, I take it?"


    ''Damn, they know who I am. There''s no way I can get out of this one.'' I realized.


    "What''s it to you?" I replied.


    "Do you know where the Serum is?" the strange man asked, watching me intently.


    ''The Serum? They must be talking about that miracle water Dad was showing us.''


    "Serum? What''s that, some kind of steroid?" I said, feigning ignorance.


    Suddenly, the man''s glasses flashed a bright light, blinding me for a moment.


    "He''s lying. Take him." he said, stepping back.


    "Wait!" I shouted out, instinctively throwing a punch towards the man in glasses.


    I had honed my punches through years of continuous training, and it flew true at alarming speed. I knew that I could catch the first one off guard, doubtlessly knocking him out in a single hit.


    This just meant that I had the last one to worry about.


    However, the man with the glasses stared at my fist calmly, and I belatedly noticed that my fist was standing still in the air.


    I strained to push my fist forwards with all of my might, but it wouldn''t move even an inch!


    My heart began to beat wildly as I looked to the side and saw that the other suited man had now walked up to me, and he was smiling at me with a wicked grin.


    Before I knew it, I was flying across the street at neck-breaking force, violently slamming into the road and skidding across the snow.


    I didn''t even get a moment to catch my breath or stabilize myself, because I instantly felt an intense pressure envelop my entire body. I was only able to hear the sound of my own bones crunching and twisting before darkness took hold of me.


    ***


    An unknown amount of time later I awoke with a start, panting heavily as I strained my neck to see where I was.


    I soon realized that I couldn''t actually move my head, or any part of my body at all for that matter. Whatever strange force had taken me out earlier was clearly still in play.


    "Oh, awake already? You''re a tough one aren''t you." said a familiar voice off to my side, I recognized it as the man with sunglasses who had initially approached me.


    I tried to cough out a weak reply, but all that came out was blood. The blood splattered to the floor, but as it did I strained my eyes to look around me.


    They were the only thing that I could still move.


    At first glance it looked like I was in the back of some large van. From my peripheral vision I could also see a number of screens and monitors displaying various camera feeds.


    I immediately noticed that they were displaying footage or surveillance feeds from different angles outside of my house. One of the screens even seemed to be from the perspective of somebody, perhaps it was one of their agents wearing some type of body camera.


    The man in glasses spoke again, "Most of your bones should be broken. There''s no point in struggling." he said coldly.


    I ignored the man, listening to the sounds of an audio feed coming through the van''s speakers.


    "Ah, Mr. Reeds. It''s a pleasure to meet you again." said a man with a thick European accent.


    I could barely see the camera feed from this angle, but I thought that I saw my father and mother standing in the kitchen in front of the man.


    I heard my father spit off somewhere to the side, "I can''t say the same for you."


    Mother spoke up, "Who do you think you are? And where is my son?"


    The European man chuckled, "You don''t have to worry about him, he''s already been taken care of."


    My mother shrieked and I could see movement on the screen as my father held her back. For a brief moment I was able to see his stoic gaze that showed he was about to do something crazy.


    Before he could even move though, the man casually waved a hand. I watched as another man in a well-tailored suit promptly appeared from behind him.


    It looked like this man was wearing the same glasses as the man next to me in the van.


    My father and mother froze instantly, as if there was something holding them in place. I knew from my own experience that there actually was.


    "Richard, show Mr. Reeds what happens to people who defect from the organization." commanded the European man.


    I watched the camera feed with bated breath as I saw the man with glasses walk forwards.


    I choked as I saw my mother instantaneously fly through the air, smashing into the kitchen cabinets several feet away.


    Her neck snapped instantly as her body contorted into an unfathomable position, sagging down onto the floor.


    Me and my father screamed simultaneously, but blood filled my throat as I coughed, my eyes becoming blurry from tears.


    A torrent of anger and hatred filled me as I tried to thrash around, but my attacker still held a firm grasp over me with his strange power.


    "Mom! Noo!!" I sobbed, tears now streaming down my face as I shook with rage.

 Test Subect

    The European man''s voice came through the van''s speakers once again, "Now then Mr. Reed. We still have your son in custody, I suggest you tell us where the Serum is." he said calmly, as if he had not just had my mother murdered in cold blood.


    My father said nothing though, and he just eyed the man with a frosty gaze, his eyes burning with anger through his tears.


    The man behind the camera sighed, "Have it your way then. Richard, scan the house for residual traces." he said.


    The man in the glasses said nothing as he pulled out a silver pen-like object from his jacket pocket.


    A blue light began to flash from the pen, seemingly scanning the house as it covered it from top to bottom.


    The man frowned, "It''s picking up something¡­ in here."


    He walked towards the kitchen table, "There are large traces coming from this table, actually, wait a minute." he said, leaning down to point the pen closer to the table.


    "I''m picking up traces on this.. Tamagoyaki." he added.


    The European man was silent, before he seemed to realize something.


    "Good god, there''s no way you actually did something so moronic!" he exclaimed while looking at my father.


    The man then started to address the camera, perhaps talking to the headquarters.


    "Reeds has dosed these omelettes with the Serum. I have to presume that he''s already fed it to his entire family." he said.


    When I heard this, it shocked me out of my state of despair.


    ''What the f*ck! Dad drugged our food with the miracle water! Is that why mother''s food tasted so much different?'' I realized, my eyes still watery from tears.


    A muffled voice came from the other side of the camera feed, it was most likely the European man''s superior issuing him new orders.


    "We''ve already taken care of the wife, we''ll promptly dispose of the rest." the man replied, making my blood turn cold.


    The European man let out a sickening laugh, "Well then Mr. Reeds, it sounds like your time is up. I''m feeling generous today, so if you quietly hand over the rest of the serum I''ll give you and your son a painless death."


    My father chuckled darkly, "I can''t do anything with your enforcer holding me like this."


    The man sighed, "You think I''m dumb enough to release control of you? Just tell me where the Serum is."


    Father clicked his tongue, "It''s in the cabinet, right next to my wife." he said calmly.


    "I appreciate your cooperation." said the man, walking up towards the side of the kitchen where my mother''s mangled corpse lay.


    I forced myself to look away, for I couldn''t bear to see the sight of her corpse in such a disgraceful way.


    The man opened up the cabinet and saw the black case sitting within it. Satisfied, he radioed in to his command, "Target acquired. Bringing it back to base."


    The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    After the man opened the cabinet, a subtle beep could be heard from somewhere. I was unable to look away any longer, and turned my eyes back to the camera feed.


    I looked back just in time to see my father''s bone chilling smile.


    Suddenly, a flash of bright light overcame the camera feed as the sound of a deafening blast went off. The man''s camera cut off to static, and I could see my entire house explode into a fiery blaze from the other camera feeds in the van.


    The blast was so great that it rocked the vehicle from wherever it was sitting in the neighborhood.


    The suited man next to me frantically stood up, pressing a finger to his ear in an attempt to reach the agents who were in my home.


    "Charles! Charles, come in! Sh*t." he exclaimed, moving to pick up a phone-like device from the corner of the van.


    He pressed a series of buttons and put the device to his ear, "Central, come in. Charles and his enforcer have been taken out. Reeds must have planted the home with explosives."


    The man waited a few seconds as he listened to the response, "No, he wasn''t able to extract the Serum before the explosion. It was likely destroyed in the blast." he replied.


    Their headquarters must have told him something, for after they responded he turned to look at me.


    I couldn''t guess what he was thinking because of his thick-tinted glasses, but I could imagine that it was anything but good. I could do nothing but watch helplessly as the man reached into his pocket and grabbed what looked like a leather glove.


    Putting the glove on, the man reached towards my face. He paid no mind to my venomous gaze as his hands touched my temple.


    Without warning, my vision blacked out, sending me back into darkness.


    ***


    When I opened my eyes again, I could see that I was in an entirely different environment.


    I was in a room with white walls, but I couldn''t even move my head to look around. All I could see were the blinding white lights of the fluorescent bulbs above me.


    A man wearing what looked to be a surgeon''s gown suddenly appeared above me. Gaining a hold of my senses, I realized that I was completely naked.


    Judging by the position I was in, I also had to have been laying down on some type of bed. It didn''t take a genius to figure out what was going on here. I strained my eyes to the side and was able to catch a glimpse of a suited man standing in the corner of the room.


    ''He must be the one holding me in place.'' I figured, but I noticed that it wasn''t one of the men who had initially abducted me.


    The man above me in the surgeon''s attire spoke up, "It seems that the subject has awoken."


    I could hear another man''s voice off to my side, but I couldn''t see him at all.


    "Good. Go ahead and start the tests. We urgently need to synthesize the next batch of Serum. Our clients are growing restless." the man said.


    "I heard that he was dosed with a strain from the experimental batch, we haven''t even discovered how it fully interacts with human physiology." replied the doctor.


    "No matter, it must be done regardless. It would take us years to recreate the original batch with our current technology." said the man, his tone brokering no rebuttal.


    The doctor sighed, turning to look down at me.


    "As you command, sir. It will be done." he said.


    "Excellent." said the man, and I could hear his footsteps get lighter as he left the room.


    The door to the room opened with a whir and closed silently, presumably leaving me alone in the room with the scary doctor and the suited man.


    I had heard both my father and the man in the van call them, ''Enforcers'', perhaps that was the name they used for the people who could wield that strange power to control your body.


    The shock from finding myself in a new environment was too great, but I was starting to remember everything that had occurred.


    Anger flashed in my eyes as tears welled up, but I couldn''t even hurl out curses like I wanted to. It seems like this time the control of my body even extended to my mouth.


    The doctor seemed to have sensed my emotions, for he laughed, "Do not get so worked up so soon, my boy. We have a lot of work to do."


    I could hear him pick up some metallic object from a nearby tray, and a few moments later I felt a sharp pain in my abdomen, and I could feel it slowly creeping up towards my chest.


    The pain quickly became unbearable, and it felt like my body was being torn open.


    I realized belatedly, that it actually was!


    ''That bastard is cutting me open!'' I thought to myself, unable to do more than clench my teeth as my vision swam. The pain was so great it made me wish for death, but I couldn''t even scream.


    For many long minutes I could feel myself slowly dying under this man''s blade, but I was unable to lose consciousness. I wished more than anything for darkness to take me, to free me from this agony.


    No matter how much I cried and prayed though, the pain didn''t stop.


    "Goodness! Your body''s healing factor is absolutely incredible. All of my earlier incisions have already closed up." The doctor said to himself, knowing that I couldn''t respond.


    I was unable to even comprehend what the man was saying though, for my entire mind was blinded by the intense pain covering nearly every inch of my body.


    I couldn''t even scream as his blades sliced me open a dozen times, a hundred times even.


    Minutes turned to hours, and hours turned to days as I lost track of time. Every moment became a blur only distinguishable from the brief moments of peace where I imagined the doctor went home to sleep.


    Occasionally, in the rare few times I was able to sleep myself, I had vivid dreams of a beautiful woman looking down at my bed. I wished that I saw more of those, for it was the only thing that I experienced besides pain and agony.


    There was always a man in a suit standing in a corner of the room, sometimes it was the same man, sometimes it was a different one. I could hardly even tell their faces apart anymore.


    Eventually, even my short moments of painless bliss were taken away as they brought in more scientists to perform tests on me around the clock.


    They drained the blood entirely from my body at one point, taking notes and timing each attempt at my life to see how long it took my body to return to its normal state.


    I didn''t know when I had fallen asleep, but I had only figured out I was dreaming when I saw the familiar face of the beautiful woman who would visit me in my slumber.


    Her skin seemed to be glowing with a subtle white light. When I looked at her eyes, I saw that they were a golden yellow that pierced through my very soul. However, those eyes looked unfathomably sad.


    "W-who are you?" I muttered, surprised to hear my own voice.


    I had actually been unable to speak for what had probably been weeks, so it shocked me that I could still talk, even if this was just a dream.


    The mysterious woman didn''t answer my question though, and instead asked a question of her own.


    "Do you wish for me to free you from this world?" she asked.

 Celeste

    When I heard the ethereal woman''s words, I pondered what they might mean for a moment.


    However, whatever they were offering me couldn''t possibly be worse than what I had already been experiencing.


    "If by, ''release me from this world'' you mean kill me, please do. I crave nothing but death." I replied without emotion.


    The beautiful woman leaned closer to me, resting a delicate hand upon my cheek. The warmth reminded me of my mother, and I could no longer hold back my tears as the memories of her death replayed through my mind.


    "Oh my poor child, I could never kill you. You are a part of me now, just as I am a part of you." She said, her voice soothing my quaking heart.


    I had no idea what this beautiful ghost was going on about, but I wished they would hurry up and get on with it.


    "Please be patient with me, for it has been a while since I have done this." she said as if reading my mind.


    "This will hurt for a bit, but do not fret as it will be over quickly." she added.


    Without warning, I could feel my entire body become engulfed in searing flames. The flames were golden in appearance, and they burned my body with an intensity that made me scream.


    It wasn''t unbearable though, for the many weeks of torture I had undergone had long since numbed my sense of pain to the state it was now.


    Nonetheless, it was still indeed painful. The flames seemed to burn my very essence, but before I could even sort out what was happening I could feel myself floating upwards.


    I was much smaller than I should have been though, and when I looked at my arms I saw that my entire body had turned white and translucent.


    It was as if I had become a ghost!


    When I looked down I became speechless, for I could see my own body laying down on the medical bed from a third person perspective.


    Even more concerning was the fact that my entire body was engulfed in brilliant flames, slowly charring it black from the heat.


    I looked over to the side of the room to see the enforcer who was watching me frantically run over in shock.


    He evidently didn''t know what to do, and quickly fled the room to get help.


    The ethereal woman looked at me, beckoning me to follow her. I didn''t know how, but I floated towards her as if by instinct.


    "I have freed your soul from your body, allowing you to traverse freely. It is a shame you must lose this body so young in your life, but bodies are merely temporary." she said, confusing me even further.


    I decided to speak up, "I know that you''re trying to help me, and I don''t want to sound ungrateful, but can you please explain what the hell is going on?" If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    The woman smiled, "I will explain everything in time."


    I watched as the woman, or maybe it was more correct to call them an entity, opened what seemed to be a portal out of thin air above my now charred corpse.


    The portal shimmered with a phantasmal appearance. I could see nothing but whiteness past its depths, and I wondered what was behind it.


    "Stay close, my child. These dimensional passages are volatile." she said.


    Not knowing what to say to that, I floated behind the woman as I followed her through the strange portal.


    As we entered I could feel my senses overcome with thousands of new sensations. I saw colors that I didn''t know existed, and I could swear that I was even able to taste sounds for a brief moment.


    Eventually, my vision stabilized and I could see that I was now floating in some type of strange realm.


    It looked almost like I was in space, with millions of bright stars surrounding me. There were vibrant colors flashing past us at the speed of light, and I couldn''t tell if we were moving or if the space around us was moving.


    "Where even are we?" I asked, completely blown away by what I was seeing.


    The beautiful figure smiled, "We are in a dimensional passageway. Passages like these connect the various worlds scattered throughout the cosmos."


    She looked back at me, "Forgive me for not introducing myself, you can call me Celeste."


    ''Celeste'' then made a motion towards the stars that were rapidly flying past us.


    "Everything you see here is part of my domain. I have avatars stationed on all of my major worlds, yours being one of the few exceptions."


    This made little sense to me, "Avatars? Do you mean like other bodies?" I asked.


    "In a sense." she replied.


    Celeste seemed melancholic, falling into a short silence before continuing.


    "The world that you resided on was one of my first ones, and I was just learning how to control my powers. Many thousands of years ago, I walked among men and granted them boons and blessings that served to elevate your entire species."


    She continued, "Every man, woman, and child was blessed with eternal youth, and the power of never-death."


    My eyes widened, "So everyone on Earth basically had superpowers at some point?"


    Celeste laughed lightly, her laugh sounded like heavenly bells.


    "I suppose you could put it that way. However, I quickly discovered that humans were greedy, more so than any other race I have watched over."


    I smiled wryly, not surprised one bit to hear that.


    "Some humans wanted to horde over my power for themselves, and did not wish to share it with the rest of humanity. They devised a scheme to trap me, you see. I am unable to make harmful actions against those who I have given blessings to. With this knowledge in hand, they were able to successfully kill my avatar." she said, great sadness apparent in her tone.


    "Damn, those ungrateful bastards!" I exclaimed. It really was typical of humans to ruin something good for everyone just to benefit a few.


    Celeste merely sighed, "Indeed. Following my avatar''s death, the humans seized my corpse, partaking of my flesh and blood to give themselves immense power. Since my avatar was also no longer present in your world, my blessings also disappeared from every other human."


    Celeste''s story was starting to make sense now, and it explained why the average human was completely unaware such powers even existed.


    I eventually made the connection between the fountain of life, and Celeste''s corpse.


    "So, after you died, those greedy pigs must have turned your body into that fountain of life."


    Celeste nodded, "That''s right. Just drinking my essence is enough to prolong one''s life by hundreds of years. Fortunately, I can still control the blessings bestowed upon those who take in my essence to some degree."


    She continued "I''ve prevented humans from gaining true immortality, but the powers they are still able to receive are enough for their goals."


    "True immortality, huh? That sounds pretty neat." I said.


    "That''s actually the blessing that I had given you. You are the first person who has taken in my essence in two thousand years that I have deemed worthy of it." Celeste said absentmindedly.


    That actually made a lot of sense. The only people who could afford to get their hands on that miracle water were likely morally corrupt billionaires.


    "So, what now? Since I''m now a ghost, is there some type of afterlife that I''m supposed to go to?" I asked, wondering what we were even doing in this ''dimensional passage.''


    "In your world, you humans have a term called ''reincarnation.'' That is more-or-less what happens to your soul after your body perishes. You are actually not dead at all, and you''re already in the process of reincarnating now." Celeste replied


    Reincarnation, right. I remembered seeing stories about that in various light novels and anime, the main character would normally die in some horrific way and then wake up in a different world as a baby.


    Is that what was going to happen to me? However, when I thought back to my now dead parents, I couldn''t bring myself to start my life again in an entirely different world.


    "What if I don''t want to reincarnate?" I asked abruptly.


    Celeste seemed shocked to hear that, she had undoubtedly never heard anyone say that before.


    "This is not something that I can control, your soul will be whisked away to some other body whether you wish it to or not. The only thing that I can control is where your soul will end up." she replied.


    Well, when she put it like that, I figured that I would rather be reincarnated by this goddess'' own hands than end up in the body of some grasshopper.


    "I actually have a request for you, but you are free to deny it if you so choose to." Celeste suddenly said.


    "A request? What could a god possibly want from me?" I asked, chuckling ruefully.

 Reincarnated

    "Do not speak so lightly of yourself, my child. What I need is something that you are perfectly suited to do. You see, one of my avatars is in danger, and the people living on that world are preparing to do the same thing that was done to your own."


    Well that certainly sounded bad, but I didn''t understand what it had to do with me.


    "Not to sound selfish, but what do I stand to gain from getting involved with that? I don''t know if you realized but I''ve gone through a lot in the past few weeks. I''ll be happy to just reincarnate into some new body and put all of this in the past." I said, my tone firm.


    Celeste sighed, "I had a feeling you might think that way. What I can offer you though is the chance to keep your memories, and I will bless your new body with a boon to guarantee you a long and fruitful life."


    Their offer piqued my interest, "So you''ll also let me be immortal in my next life?"


    Living with immortality did sound like it would be fun, and I didn''t get to experience any of the benefits of it during my last life due to the unfortunate circumstances.


    Celeste shook her head, "Immortality is a blessing I no longer give out to my children, I learned that lesson a long time ago. In your case I had merely made a temporary exception, this was just to ensure your soul stayed in place long enough for me to reach you."


    This put a damper on my mood, but it didn''t make me outright reject their offer just yet. After all, I would likely never again get the chance to be blessed by a being that rules over the cosmos.


    "Ok, so no immortality. What other powers will you give me? I reckon I''ll need something strong if I''m going to be able to defeat something that can kill your avatar." I said, trying to gauge what I could ask for.


    "Do not worry, I will give you power so great that it will be nigh impossible for you to die from normal means." Celeste said, giving no further information.


    I sighed, ''It seems like I won''t be able to do much negotiating in this position.'' I thought to myself, making up my mind.


    "Alright then, Ms. Goddess. I''ll take you up on your offer." I said.


    Celeste showed me a brilliant smile when she heard that, her smile was so stunning that I had forgotten what I had even said just a moment ago.


    "Wonderful! Well then, there''s no time to waste. I have already made the necessary preparations." she said.


    ''Isn''t this goddess forgetting something important?'' I thought inwardly.


    "Wait! You didn''t even tell me what the task is! What am I supposed to do after I reincarnate?" I asked.


    Celeste merely waved a hand, "It will all become clear to you in time. Just live out your life until then, Kane Reeds."


    The flow of time seemed to halt as the stars flying past us came to an abrupt stop. When I looked down, I saw what appeared to be a planet floating in space beneath us.


    I had read stories of what astronauts experienced when they saw the Earth from space, and the way it messed with your mind. However, experiencing it yourself was something indescribable.


    The planet''s horizon stretched far beyond what my eyes could see.


    The planet also appeared to be very similar to Earth, with vast oceans covering much of its surface. The main difference though was that these oceans were a vibrant purple instead of the blue that I was used to.


    ''Well that''s definitely an alien planet.'' I thought to myself, not knowing if I should be excited or scared.


    "It shouldn''t be too bad for you to adjust, my children here are remarkably similar to humans. A few extra organs here and there, but nothing too drastic." Celeste said, not easing my hesitation in the slightest. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Celeste suddenly held out her hand, and I was unable to move as I was seemingly shrunk down to the size of a baseball and brought over to her palm.


    "Now, don''t you move! This needs to be done accurately, it''ll cause a huge hassle if you end up in the wrong body." she said, not explaining herself at all.


    I still had several important questions to ask, but I was unable to ask a single one as I saw Celeste was now winding up her arm like a professional pitcher.


    Before I knew it, I was plummeting down towards the planet faster than a rocket.


    The planet''s terrain got larger and larger as I approached its surface, and I could see mountain ranges get closer in the distance as I flew downwards.


    "F*ck! What the f*ck! I''m going to die!" I screamed, unsure of how to slow my descent.


    As I flew through the atmosphere I noticed that the continent I was flying towards held an absolutely monumental skyscraper. It seemed to reach past the mountains and into the clouds, and it had to have been wider than an entire city.


    It was too far away for me to make out many details, but this strange tower stood out like a sore thumb even from the lower atmosphere.


    When I looked down I could see what appeared to be a large city slowly getting closer to me, and I began to wonder if I was going to die before I even had a chance to properly reincarnate into my new body.


    Before I realized it, I had flown over the city and was still travelling past its outskirts.


    I was beginning to worry that I would never stop falling, but I soon spotted a lone house in the middle of a vast, empty field.


    Getting closer I realized that the house was actually rather large, and was more akin to what one would call a manor.


    Unfortunately, I seemed to have been flying straight towards that manor, and before I knew it the walls were already in front of me.


    My terrified shout was cut off by darkness, and then a strange sensation of warmth.


    Moving around my arms, I could feel that they were different somehow. I noted that even my legs weren''t moving the way they were supposed to.


    This was not to mention that I felt almost wet and slimy.


    However, I quickly noticed that I was moving. It was almost as if I was being pushed through something.


    I quickly realized what was happening as my eyes were suddenly blinded by an intense light all around me.


    ''No way. Am I being born?'' I wondered to myself.


    ''There''s no way right? I was just flying through the sky a moment ago.'' I thought, wondering if everything I had just experienced was an illusion.


    I could hear a woman heaving out labored breaths, panting as they groaned and yelled in pain.


    ''That must be my new mother.'' I realized.


    I heard a man shouting as well. I had no clue what the man was saying, but his tone seemed to convey a mixture of excitement and worry.


    ''And that must be my new father.'' I thought to myself.


    I could feel that I had now been lifted into the air, and I strained my little eyelids as I forced them open. I wanted to see if I could catch a glimpse of anything.


    I somehow managed to peel open my eyelids, which must''ve been a strange sight for my new father to see.


    I locked eyes with the man in front of me, noticing that his ears looked much longer than they should have.


    ''Is my father¡­ an elf?'' I wondered, thinking back to the fantasy stories of my previous world.


    He did have the telltale high cheekbones and long pointy ears one would expect from an elf.


    I saw that his hair was long and braided, and its golden hues stood out against the dim lighting of the room.


    ''Don''t tell me I''m going to look like that!'' I thought in horror.


    My father was by no means ugly, so that''s not why I was concerned. If anything, he was too handsome¡­ almost pretty if I had to put a finger on it.


    I shuddered at the thought of being reincarnated as a trap.


    "Kane." I heard him say suddenly.


    I wondered if I heard him correctly, was he saying my name? Maybe Celeste was responsible for him giving me the same name that I had in my previous life.


    It also must''ve been quite eerie to see your newborn baby quietly staring back at you, mere moments after they were squeezed out.


    I knew I was probably acting strange for an infant, and I didn''t know if I should start fake crying or not.


    My new father was evidently thinking the same thing, and I saw him staring at me with a dumbfounded expression.


    I don''t know what came over me, but I decided to play a prank on him. I just thought it would be really funny to wink at him, so I did.


    Seeing this, my father abruptly shouted and threw me up in the air.


    Half a second later he seemed to have realized his tragic blunder and dove forwards to catch me. I looked onwards in horror as I could feel myself plummeting towards the ground.


    ''I''m going to fall!'' I screamed inwardly.


    ''I''m falling! I''m going to get brain damage as a baby!'' I thought in terror, seeing that my father wasn''t going to catch me in time.


    I instinctively tried to put my legs underneath me, even though I knew they were nothing but nubs at this point.


    Closing my eyes, I resolved myself to reincarnate a second time.


    Surely she''s planned for this, right? I figured Celeste would still be nearby to give me another try.


    However, even after several seconds had passed, I had still not broken my skull open.


    Opening my eyes, I saw something that left me stupefied.


    There could be no mistake, for I was clearly floating in the air!


    ''This must be the blessing that Celeste bestowed upon me.. I can float!'' I thought, not yet comprehending the true complexity of these powers.


    I had to have been at least a few meters above the floor, and when I looked around I saw that neither of my parents were near me.


    They were actually both staring at me in shock and horror.


    "What?" I asked, trying to play it off.


    "Bah?" was what I actually said.


    When I looked back towards my father I saw that his eyes had glazed over from terror, and I watched helplessly as he fell to the ground with a thud.


    ''Is that guy really my new dad?'' I wondered, not impressed.


    Looking towards my mother I saw that tears were now overflowing from her eyes, but to my confusion those eyes held fear and worry.


    I could now see that my new mom was actually a peerless beauty, perhaps not as gorgeous as my real mother, but a close second.


    She shared the same golden hair and long ears as my father, and had similar elegant and defined facial features.


    I watched my new mother and noted that although she looked sad, she was smiling at me gently. She beckoned me towards her with a hand, it was as if she was telling me to float closer.


    ''They want me to come? How do I even do that?'' I contemplated, not noticing that I was already subconsciously floating in her direction.


    My new mother grabbed me in her arms, enveloping me in her warmth as she wrapped me up with a blanket.


    ''Oh?'' I thought to myself, suddenly feeling my age.


    It took less than a minute for me to fall asleep, a sleep so deep that I didn''t dream of anything.

 Infant

    The next time I awoke I was blessed with the sight of two enormous breasts in my face.


    For a moment I had assumed I was still dreaming. However, I quickly remembered that, no¡ªI did actually reincarnate into this baby''s body. It was quite the strange sensation to be surrounded by breasts that were larger than you entirely.


    I wasn''t going to complain though!


    The only thing I could even complain about was the lack of food being given to me. I felt like I hadn''t eaten my entire life.


    Actually, I supposed in this life I hadn''t eaten anything yet.


    "Goo goo ga ga!" I said, trying to get my mother''s attention.


    Looking up, I could see that she had fallen asleep. I also couldn''t exactly see where I was from this position.


    My little neck muscles hadn''t developed yet, so I couldn''t even turn my head.


    At this point I was used to being unable to move, but I also couldn''t wait until my body developed enough for me to finally regain my freedom. It looked like my earlier outburst had gotten my new mother''s attention though, and she must''ve known what I wanted.


    I watched with wide eyes as she grabbed an enormous breast with one hand and brought me closer to it with the other. Seeing the tender looking nipple in front of me was too much to resist, and before I knew it I had popped it into my mouth.


    ''I could get used to this.'' I thought, closing my eyes as I drank from the milk.


    After I finished I burped and fell asleep again. I must''ve only been awake for five minutes.


    It was to be expected though, after all I was just a baby.


    ***


    A few days passed before I saw more of my father.


    He didn''t exactly leave a better impression on me this time either. Him and my mother were clearly arguing about something, and I was guessing that something was me.


    I still didn''t understand my parent''s language, but it was obvious because of all of the heated hand motions my father was making towards me. If I had to guess, maybe he was saying, ''He''s a freak of nature!'' or maybe, ''We need to get rid of him!''


    Truthfully, I didn''t know much about this world at all. But if it was anything like Earth, having a floating baby would be, concerning.


    My new mother wasn''t having any of it though, and I watched as she roughly slapped my father over the cheek.


    ''Ouch!'' I winced.


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    I didn''t mind watching all of this unfold, this was like a mini-drama for me. It was awfully boring being a baby, so this was a pleasant break from the daily monotony of eating, pooping and sleeping.


    It became clear their argument was over as I watched my father storm out of the door. Closing and locking the door behind him, I saw my mother look back towards me in my cradle.


    She leaned over me and picked me up in the air, popping out a soft breast for me.


    ''Oh, lunch time already?'' I thought happily.


    After I had drunk my fill I spent my few remaining waking hours pondering what my next steps in this world were.


    First and foremost, I knew that I had to learn the local language. I had only been here for a few days, but I figured that the sooner I could understand what people said the sooner I could start learning about the world.


    The best way to learn things was to read, but I unfortunately hadn''t seen even a single book since I was born.


    From what I could tell our house was fairly spacious, and there seemed to be many rooms I hadn''t seen the interior of. I couldn''t move on my own yet though, so I unfortunately had no way to investigate the house to see if it held a library.


    The house also seemed empty and devoid of life, and when my mother would carry me to different rooms I never saw anyone else. I was also worried about the issue with my new father. I had hardly seen him at all since I was born, and the few times I''ve seen him he had been looking at me like I was a devil.


    ''It''s like how those kids used to treat me in my past life.'' I thought wryly, thinking back to the pudgy Kenji who used to torment me every day.


    I decided at that moment that in this life I would never let anyone disrespect me or my family again. In my past life I was too weak to protect what was important to me, but this time things would be different.


    ''If that man comes back here speaking to my mother like that again, I''ll have to teach him a lesson.'' I resolved, shaking my little baby head.


    I looked up to see my mother was staring at me with a gentle expression in her eyes. I knew from how she treated me that she truly loved me.


    My mother said something to me softly that I couldn''t understand, but it sounded reassuring to my tiny ears.


    She was standing a few feet away from me, and I could see tears begin to form under her eyes. I couldn''t bear to see them like this, and I really just wanted to give them a hug.


    Before I knew it, I was holding their head in my baby hands.


    Looking down, I nearly choked when I realized that I was floating again!


    ''How am I even doing that?'' I wondered. I had already tried to re-activate my powers a few times when my mother wasn''t looking, but to no avail.


    My mother seemed just as shocked as me, and she quickly pulled me down into her arms and made scolding gestures towards me. It was as if she was telling me not to do that anymore.


    I tilted my head, seeing the genuine fear and panic in her eyes.


    Was it really that bad to use these powers? I remembered that the last time I floated my ''father'' literally passed out. That time wasn''t even my fault, since I was about to die, but I still don''t know how I did it.


    Thinking back to the sensations I felt, there wasn''t anything that particularly stood out either.


    Suddenly, my eyes widened as an idea crossed my mind.


    Each time I floated, it was because I strongly wanted to do something. In the first case I didn''t want to smash my head on the ground, and this time I wanted to give my mother a hug.


    Perhaps that was the key to using this power at will. I resolved to test this out more in the next few days whenever I had the chance.


    I watched as my mother set me back down in my cradle, making vehement hand motions telling me to stay put.


    I didn''t speak her language, but I could read the room.


    Although I still couldn''t understand full sentences, I was slowly picking up on certain words and phrases. For example, I knew what the words ''eat'', and ''stop'' meant. Thanks to my new parents'' earlier argument, I also thought I now understood a few curse words.


    I laughed aloud, which came out as more of a giggle. This prompted a smile from my mother.


    She kissed me on the forehead and stood up. I watched as she moved to the corner of the room and grabbed what looked to be a basket of laundry.


    She pulled out several clothes from the basket and put them into a large ball. Just as I was wondering what they could possibly be doing, a vibrant green light began to surround the clothes. My mouth hung open as I watched my mother raise her other hand, causing more green light to coalesce around it.


    Water droplets began to appear out of thin air as they flew towards her hand. Soon, the water had accumulated into a rather large sphere.


    I watched as my mother put the ball of clothes into the sphere of water. The water sphere looked almost solid, but it absorbed the clothes with a plop and closed back seamlessly.


    ''I-is that magic?!'' I thought in shock.


    More green light appeared from my mother''s hand, and the clothes within the sphere of water began to shake and churn. I watched this process for a few more minutes before I saw the green light flash again.


    This time, hot steam began to emulate from her hands, rapidly evaporating the sphere of water. The room began to fill with steam, heating it up by several degrees.


    When she had finished, the clothes in her hands looked completely dry.


    While I was thinking about this strange magical power that my mother possessed, I noticed that she was now grabbing a second batch of clothes to wash.


    ''This is quite the involved process.'' I thought wryly.


    Truthfully though, I was quite impressed. The powers that I was using were unable to do such precise things, but maybe I just needed to develop them further. There was also no green light whenever I floated, it was as if the magic my mother was using was different from my own. I had no way of knowing though, so I simply sat in my cradle as I watched my mother finish the laundry.


    Half an hour later I found myself drifting back to sleep.

 The Book

    When I had awoken the entire room was dark.


    The first thing I noticed was that I was hungry. I wasn''t surprised though, for I basically got hungry every few hours.


    I looked over to my mother and saw that she was laying alone in the bed. I wanted to wake her up to eat, but I knew that this was the perfect opportunity to try to practice my powers.


    Looking around at my cradle, it had walls that would be perfect to save me if I fell in my attempts.


    I started by trying to visualize myself floating like I had done in the past. I made a mental picture of lifting myself up into the air in every way I could think of, but nothing happened.


    Frowning, I thought back to the idea I had before I fell asleep.


    I definitely wanted to float, but maybe I wasn''t thinking about it the right way.


    Whenever I had used my powers I wasn''t consciously telling my body to do anything, it was subconscious.


    This line of thinking gave me another idea. Instead of picturing myself floating in the air, I imagined escaping my cradle to get the other side.


    To my surprise, this worked!


    I was elated as I felt myself lift up into the air and over the walls of the cradle.


    Before I knew it, I had long since escaped my cradle and was now floating in the air several meters off to the side.


    ''Woah! This is actually kind of scary.'' I thought to myself, seeing the long drop to the floor below.


    ''Now, how do I get back over there?'' I wondered, looking down at my cradle next to the bed. I tried to force my body to move towards it, but it didn''t budge.


    However, when I thought with the intent to go back inside the cradle, I felt my body subconsciously floating towards it!


    Perhaps I was trying too hard to control these powers, and this realization led me to trying one last test.


    ''Maybe I should think about this power as an extension of my own body. It''s like walking or talking, you don''t tell your legs to move when you want to go somewhere, your brain just makes it happen automatically.'' I thought, mentally feeling all of my limbs.


    My legs were far too undeveloped to walk on their own, and all I could do is kick them around. However, I can clearly float just fine. Whatever part of my brain is controlling this power is the key to using it at will.


    With this in mind, I could feel something in my brain making me float towards the bed.


    As soon as I became conscious of this feeling though, I abruptly stopped moving and plummeted the remaining few feet into the cradle.


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    ''That''s it! Just like when you think about breathing and it stops being automatic, it''s the same with my levitation powers.'' I realized, rolling over in the cradle.


    With this newfound realization, I was able to lift myself out of the cradle with ease.


    All I had to do was flex the part of my brain that was controlling this power, just like you would a muscle.


    I laughed aloud as I began to do laps around my cradle. I was too busy exploring my new powers to notice my mother who had just woken up from her slumber.


    She scratched her eyes groggily before they focused on her baby, who to her dismay was now giggling as they flew around in circles next to the bed.


    I heard my mother begin to shout at me, which shocked me out of my trance.


    I looked back at her like I had seen a ghost, quickly shooting back down towards my cradle.


    My mother wasn''t having it though, and she got out of bed to walk over to me.


    Although I didn''t know what she was saying, they were the same words she had told me the last time I was floating.


    ''I really need to be more careful.'' I chastised myself, these powers were clearly bad in some way. If they weren''t, my mother wouldn''t be making such a fuss about it.


    There was still much to this world that I didn''t understand, and maybe I would be seen as some type of witch or something. This world evidently had magic already, so I really didn''t know what could possibly be so bad about my own powers.


    Now that I was able to control my levitation though, my mobility problem had been solved.


    ''The next chance I get I''m going to try to find a library, if I can just get my hands on some books I could probably teach myself how to read.'' I thought, setting my new plan into motion.


    However, during the next few days I found no opportunities to leave my mother''s sight.


    It was as if she was watching me even closer following my stunt that one night. She always took me with her when she left the bedroom, and they never set me down anywhere.


    I was beginning to think that my mother was a helicopter parent.


    The days continued to pass without event, until one morning I saw my father show his face again.


    My mother would talk to me frequently, and at this point I had been hearing her speak for weeks. So when my father started talking to my mother, I understood a lot more than the last time.


    From what I could tell he had been looking for something, and he even seemed apologetic for how he had been acting when he last came.


    I couldn''t help but wonder what he could have possibly been doing since my birth. It was quite ridiculous to leave your wife alone with a newborn baby without even a wet-nurse in sight.


    ''My family must be rich to have such a large house. Why haven''t they hired any maids or servants?'' I wondered.


    My running theory was that my new family had fallen on hard times. This would also explain the seemingly barren state of the household.


    I figured there was no point in speculating, and I looked back to my parents to see that my father was now leaving again


    ''Oh, there he goes again.'' I inwardly remarked with a smirk.


    It looked like he had left my mother a book. The book didn''t look ordinary though. It was rather thick with a worn leather cover, and it appeared to be quite old.


    If you were to ask me, a book was hardly a good enough present to excuse being absent so frequently. My mother seemed quite interested in the book though, and I saw her sit down in a chair with the book in hand.


    My father eventually left, but I saw him give me a glance before he closed the room''s door. I noticed that his eyes looked sad, almost as if he was depressed to see me.


    My mother however paid no mind to me for what must''ve been an hour, clearly absorbed by the contents of the book.


    Evidently, she remembered that she had a baby. Looking back towards me, she smiled as she got up from her seat and lifted me out of my cradle.


    I watched as she set the book down atop a nightstand, mentally marking its position down for later.


    My mother fed me her milk, and after she finished burping me I watched her leave the room. They must have forgotten to bring me with them, or perhaps they were just leaving for a short while.


    Either way, this was the first time I had been left alone since I was born.


    I had no idea where she was going, or how much time I had, but I looked towards the strange book in the corner of the room.


    This was the first time I had seen a book since coming to this world, and I didn''t know when I would get another chance to read one.


    As I stared at the book, I pondered how I could possibly retrieve it from the nightstand.


    Even if I could float over towards the book, my little arms were far too weak to pick it up. From what I could tell, the book was nearly the size of my entire body.


    I thought for a long few minutes what my options were, but I eventually grew frustrated as I came up with nothing.


    ''Damnit! It''s so close yet so far away! If only I could just bring that damn book here.'' I thought to myself, clenching my tiny baby hands.


    Suddenly, a strange tingling sensation flashed through my brain, and I stared onwards in absolute shock.


    This was because the leather book was now slowly floating upwards!


    My mouth hung agape as I watched the book float in the air. It was almost like it had a mind of its own.


    However, I knew from experience that I was the one doing this. I just had no clue how.


    In only a few more seconds the book had gingerly floated over to my position in the cradle, hovering right above my head.


    It would be quite tragic if it fell like this, as I didn''t think my undeveloped head could take the impact of such a huge book.


    Shuddering, I somehow got the book to slowly lower itself into the cradle by my feet.


    This power seemed to follow the same principles as when I floated my own body, and I could flex my ''levitation muscle'' to make it do what I wanted.


    I couldn''t help it as I started laughing in my cradle, overcome with joy and excitement.


    ''I really can move things with my mind!'' I inwardly remarked, imagining all of the possibilities this strange power held.

 Veilborn

    When I looked at the massive book that was now sitting next to me, I remarked that it was even larger up close, and it was more apt to call it a ''tome.''


    This strange tome reminded me of the bibles from the previous world, but I knew this book was definitely not ordinary.


    I strained to sit up in my cradle, which took me longer than I wanted to admit.


    Being a baby was tough work, for your body never did what you wanted it to.


    It took me a full minute to simply open the book''s cover, as I couldn''t seem to get my chubby hands to grip the rough leather surrounding it.


    I eventually succeeded, but when I opened it up I realized I had no idea where to even start.


    The words in the book were made up of strange symbols and lines. I noticed that they looked remarkably similar to the Japanese from my previous world. They were undeniably different though, and I couldn''t understand anything within its pages.


    Sighing, I began to flip through the book. I was looking for anything that stood out to me.


    As I turned one of the pages, I stopped when I saw what looked to be a drawing.


    I held my breath, for there was no doubt what I was seeing.


    There could be no mistake, because this entire page was filled with a drawing of Celeste!


    The beautiful figure looked a little different, but I somehow knew that it was them.


    Celeste was floating in the air above dozens of smaller figures. Looking closer, those figures seemed to be elves like my parents.


    Interestingly, they were all prostrating on the ground, bowing towards Celeste.


    What drew my attention the most was that the drawing seemed to be moving!


    The elves in this drawing were bowing up and down, and Celeste had a caring smile on her face as she reached out a hand to them.


    ''Do the people of this world worship Celeste?'' I wondered, taking in the different details of the drawing.


    As I continued to flip through the book, I saw a number of different illustrations depicting Celeste.


    Each drawing had the same video-like effect, but it felt more correct to describe them as ''slideshows.''


    One of them showed Celeste smiting what appeared to be an army of green, humanoid creatures with sharp teeth. Flames escaped from her hands as she floated in the air, engulfing the sea of green below.


    Many of the creatures had fear on their faces as they screamed and ran from the terrifying being above them.


    It was quite surreal, and it felt like I was really there on the battlefield.


    I turned to another page, and I saw Celeste floating in front of a monumental stone tower.


    Thinking back to when I was flying over the planet, it looked remarkably similar to that skyscraper I had noticed on the other side of the continent.


    Just as I was about to flip to the next page, I heard the door to the room open.


    Looking up, I saw my mother holding a stack of various books.


    When my mother saw me in the cradle with the mysterious book, she put the stack down on the bed and rushed over to me.


    She looked unamused as she addressed me.


    It sounded like she was asking me, "Did you do this?"


    In response I merely rolled over in my cradle, feigning innocence.


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    My mother sighed as she reached down to retrieve the book, placing it next to the stack of books on the bed.


    She grabbed a book from the pile and brought it over to me, it was as if she was saying, ''Here, play with this one.''


    The book she placed into my cradle was much thinner than the leather tome, and it didn''t look nearly as important.


    I couldn''t resist the temptation though, so I reached over in my cradle and opened it.


    When I looked at its contents I saw that the book was clearly intended for children. It was filled with pictures that had words next to them.


    ''She must have gotten this for me.'' I realized, pleasantly surprised that my mother had thought about me.


    There''s no way they thought I could actually read the book, so they were likely just giving it to me to avoid me taking their books.


    Regardless, I intended to take full advantage of this opportunity.


    I spent the next hour studying this book, taking in every ounce of knowledge it held.


    It was mostly filled with things like fruits and objects, but it was all useful information for me. The only problem was that I had no idea how to pronounce the words I was seeing.


    I would have to worry about that next step later, and instead spent my remaining energy memorizing everything I could.


    After a while I started to feel a headache coming on. I figured my undeveloped brain could only take in so much information at one time, so I resolved to finish memorizing the book at a later date.


    As I drifted to sleep, I saw my mother was still engulfed in her own books.


    ''I wonder what she''s looking for.'' I thought, closing my eyes.


    ***


    Over the next few days I continued to read the book my mother had given me. Since it was the only form of entertainment I had, I managed to memorize it entirely.


    My mother also seemed to notice my strange attachment to the book. During the nights she would read to me from it, further deepening my understanding of the language.


    Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months as I continued to live my life as a baby.


    After only two months I could almost fully understand the language, and after the fourth month my vocal cords had developed enough to say certain words.


    One day my mother was venting her frustrations to me, clearly not expecting me to understand what she was saying.


    "Your father is pissing me off! He keeps saying he wants to bring us to the church to have your condition examined, but that''s such a moronic idea! Once the priest discovers you''re a ''veilborn'', you''ll certainly be taken away from us."


    I had no idea what a ''veilborn'' is, for it was the first time I had heard such a term.


    Nonetheless, my mother was clearly stressing greatly about what to do with me.


    Seeing the frantic look in her eyes, I just wanted to calm her down and reassure her.


    "Ish okay!" I suddenly babbled out, surprising even myself.


    My mother looked at me as if she had seen a ghost.


    "What did you say?" she asked, probably thinking she misheard me.


    I immediately realized my blunder. A four month old baby should definitely not be speaking so soon.


    "Kane? Can you understand me?" she asked again.


    I figured it was too soon to tell my mother that I knew everything she was saying, so I merely tilted my head innocently.


    Seeing the innocent look in my eyes, my mother sighed to herself.


    "I must be going crazy. There''s no way you know what I''m saying." she said, chuckling to herself bitterly.


    I heaved a sigh of relief, ''I need to be more careful. If my mother knew I could understand her, she would likely stop telling me so many things.'' I thought.


    My mother rubbed her temples in consternation, "I really don''t know what to do with you, Kane." she muttered to herself.


    Suddenly, a green light flashed in my mother''s eyes, snapping her out of her dejection.


    "Someone''s triggered my wards!" she exclaimed, turning away to quickly throw on some more presentable clothes.


    "Who could be at our door at such a late hour?" She mumbled to herself, leaving the room in a hurry.


    She was gone for a long few minutes, causing me to worry.


    However, she eventually returned back to the room. To my confusion, when she returned there were two figures following her.


    One of the figures was my deadbeat father, who I hadn''t seen in literal months. The other person was unfamiliar though.


    Judging by his clothes, he seemed to be a priest of some sort. He wore plain, white robes, and his long ears were hidden by a hood.


    "Rolim! What is the meaning of this?" My mother asked, fear apparent in her features.


    ''Rolim? Is that my father''s name?'' I wondered.


    ''Rolim'' said nothing though, and the strange priest stepped forward to stand in front of my cradle.


    "Is this the babe? You said that it was veilborn." The priest said, his dark grey eyes staring towards me, gauging me.


    My father stepped forward with an awkward smile on his lips, "Y-yes, your holiness! The moment that he was born he had fallen, but miraculously, he started floating!"


    My eye twitched hearing this, ''That bastard. Didn''t you drop me?!''


    Mother stepped forward when she heard this, "You must have been mistaken, Rolim. You''ve been acting so strange since you left." she said, acting coy.


    I picked up on the mood immediately.


    The priest scratched his long, grey beard.


    "Hmm.. the historical records do describe pre-puberty powers as a characteristic of a veilborn." he said, leaning closer to get a good look at me.


    He moved some of my hair, looking at my forehead.


    "He doesn''t bear the mark though, just this strange white hair." they said, turning back to my father.


    "Rolim, what proof do you have to back your claims?" he asked him.


    Rolim laughed nervously, "The proof? The proof is the child himself." he said, walking up to my cradle and reaching down for me.


    I wanted to punch him in the face as I felt him grab me, lifting me up into the air.


    "What in the goddesses name are you doing?!" exclaimed my mother, angrily rushing towards me.


    "Just watch, your holiness. The baby can float!" Rolim exclaimed, abruptly letting go of me.


    I was a few feet in the air at this point, and I figured that the drop from that height would do little more than jostle my bones.


    I plopped back down in the cradle with a thud, and to add to the effect I started crying loudly.


    "Waaah!" I shrieked, thrashing my limbs around wildly.


    "It can float, you say?" the priest asked, clearly unamused.


    While this unfolded, I saw my mom still had a worried expression on her face, and that she was looking towards the bed off to the side.


    Following her gaze, I noticed that she was looking at a stack of books. I recognized the book on top as the one with the drawings of Celeste in it. She was evidently worried the priest would see these.


    I hadn''t had a chance to read the book myself since I had learned how to read, but I knew that it was somehow important.


    Sensing that I had little time to act, I quickly flexed my mental muscle.


    I could feel my brain tingling as I lifted a single book to the top of the pile, blocking the one that was there from the priest''s sight.


    When my mother saw this she looked at me in surprise, clearly seeing what I had done.


    "J-just let me try again, I swear that I''m not lying!" Rolim exclaimed, pleading with the priest.


    The priest merely shook his head, "I''ve seen enough. Stop this insolence at once! Rolim Dorran, I understand that your family has fallen upon dire straits, but to mislead the church is a serious offence." he said.


    "You are mistaken! The boy is definitely not ordinary, just look at him." said Rolim.


    The priest was growing angry now, "I''ll be taking my leave. Thank the Celestial Goddess that I am not pursuing this further." he said, turning to walk out the door.


    He took a glance at the bed, noting the stack of books sitting here. However, when he saw the children''s book sitting atop the pile he paid it no mind.


    Promptly exiting the room, the priest walked down the hallway without turning back.


    "Your holiness, wait! Let me show you out!" Rolim shouted, rushing after the priest.


    Before he left he turned towards my mother, "Ialantha, I''ll be back to have words with you." he said, his tone scalding.


    My mother rolled her eyes as he slammed the door shut. She then turned back to face me.


    I watched as she walked up to the cradle with a suspicious look in her eyes.


    "Kane, you have some explaining to do." she said, her hands on her hips.