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Hello all, taking a short respite from modelling and turning some attention to writing. That being so, I've written up this fanfic/roleplay. Most of the character's used in this story are of my own creation, but some are not (not including the z fighters we all know and love.) When I make a post that contains a name or material that I didn't come up with it, I'll state it at the head of the post.
Well, that's about it. I hope you find this an enjoyable read. Any crits or comments are welcome.
-----------------------------------------------
1. Discovery of darkness
That morning, I'd never dreamed that I would die. In fact, death was the farthest thing on my mind. I was happy, rested, and for once, I didn't have to wake up with an empty stomach. I guess this is just an example proving that life, and death, can crop up at any time.
- Kerius Jarein
---------------------
There had been a time in my life I when I got the idea into my head that I could do anything. I had been young then, barely 4 years old, and my world had still been colored by what my parents did and did not shelter me from. Looking back know, I suppose that such beliefs were silly, even from a child's standpoint.
But when the time had come for me to let go of my childhood . . . I had still kept those perceptions.
Those same perceptions, that so differed from what every other person saw, had ultimately driven me to take up the martial arts and set my self against those who would bring harm to those I loved and the world I lived on. For years I had carried that knowledge of self within me, knowing in my own heart that I could do anything I tried hard enough to do, and that is what had made me possibly the best fighter on the planet Earth.
After almost twenty years, I was only now beginning to realize that perhaps I had been wrong . . .
I could barely stand now. My face felt flattened and battered, and the coppery taste of blood filled my mouth. My arms hung heavily at my side, weighed down by fatigue and injury. Clutched in one hand was my final defense against the creature I was facing. The sword Nilliu. Its tip lay rested on the ground, a slight gouge in the sand trailing out behind me to show where I had dragged the weapon. The blade seemed to shimmer in the scarlet-orange light of day's dying sun, reflecting momentary shards of light onto into the surrounding area. Such brilliance could not hold off the approach of night. Once the disk of the sun fell beyond the horizon, it would mark the end of my life and the beginning of a darkness that might never end.
My eyes locked back on to the short and muscled body of my opponent. I could barely see him. One of my eyes were swollen shut, and it was all I could do to keep the other open. It didn't help that alien stood silhoutted against the ever darkening skyline.
Kanlei. The name blossomed into my mind with little urging. It was one of the very few things that I could still remember. I couldn't even recall how or why I had come here to face this being who now held my life in his hands, I could barely even remember my own name.
Kerius . . . Kerius something . . . Kerius Jarein? Yes, that was it.
Why was I here?
The words seemed to drag themselves from a long way, slowly coming into existence in the darkness of my mind. I had to stop him, Kanlei. No matter what happened. The why however was something I could not remember, even with all of my mental facilities working towards it. I struggled within my own head to bring forth that which did not wish to come, forcing the memories of pain and shock to once again erupt. I gasped lightly when they finally did, my remaining eye fluttering closed for a moment as the half-remembered blows delivered against me ran played out in my mind's eye.
My recovered knowledge of the past, however, did not give me any insight into the future. Even with what I once again knew, I was no closer to coming upon a way to defeat Kanlei than I had been before.
The past few minutes of intense fighting played in my head as if in slow motion. The countless attacks I'd thrown against my foe, and his almost casual countering of every move I'd had made. Even the weapons formed of pure energy had had no effect on him. And now I had nothing left to give, nothing left to try.
My body was almost completely thrashed. The only reason I was still standing was through sheer force of will. When Kanlei next chose to attack me, and he would, it would certainly be his final time . . . and the end of mine.
No matter which way I looked at it, death was coming for me, and there wasn't anything I could do to forestall its arrival, not any longer.
I supposed that the end of my existence didn't frighten me, didn't even intimidate me. I had been prepared to die for a long time, years even, for the cause of defending my world, had expected that my life would end through fulfilling my service to mankind's protection . . . and here it appeared I would die. But my death would serve no purpose, I would be merely the first in an almost certainly long line of casualties.
I had put forth everything at my command to destroy Kanlei, all my training, all my experiences culminating into a spear head of force that would have destroyed any normal adversary, but then again, Kanlei could hardly be reffered to as normal. He was not even of this world.
Hopelessness flooded through me as Kanlei finally decided that I realized my end was imminent and began walking towards me, slowly, maximizing his intimidation.
I backed up half a step, my body protesting at the movement, but no more. There was no where I could go fast enough to avoid what was coming against me.
I wished with all my might that I was stronger, that I was more powerful, that I had the energy left to defeat this alien freak pitted against me. But my wishes might have been made to the wind, for nothing happened . . .
Forcing my abused muscles into action, I lifted the Nilliu up into guard position, my arms trembling from the strain of holding it in place. Normally weilding the weapon was child's play. The sword had been made by a masterful blacksmith, and was perfectly balanced. When held, it was as light as air and quick as lightning if used correctly. Now though, it took all I had to keep it upright.
And for all the good it did. I could barely keep hold of it, let alone swing it. When Kanlei attacked, I would be able to hold off an attack for maybe a second extra, and then it would be over, and I would be gone.
Slowly, acceptance of my pointless demise filtered through my body, and my mind began to drift. I guess what people said of death was correct. Ones life does flash through before their eyes at the approach of death.
From the earliest moments of my life, to everything leading up to this moment, every single second popped into existence before my eyes in random order. First fight, first kiss, first injury . . .
Then my eyes widened as the moment I'd received the Nilliu appeared, and everything else seemed to fade from existence as I remembered the words that had been given to me from its protector.
Kerius, we give this weapon to you for you have proved yourself beyond doubt that you are pure of heart and soul and wish to make a difference in the fight against evil. But be warned, the powers within the Nilliu are unlike anything ever tapped by a mere mortal, even one as strong as you. This weapon has the power to change the very fabric of space and time around us, to warp it into something other than what it is, and beyond that, it can amplify your own power far beyond what you'd consider possible. Master it, and even the limits of your perceptions could stretch and twist to your bidding. Because of this, weild it with care, for misusing the magic of the sword can destroy not only yourself, but all around you . . .
Those words given to me more than a decade ago hadn't really meant much to me at the time, after all, I had been in my mid-teens at the time. But now their importance was undeniable.
Time seemd to stretch out as the impact of this fully hit me. Over the years, some amazing things had happen to me. During battles, I had been able to perform acts that pushed the limit of possibility, defeated opponents whose strength was greater than my own many times over . . . and it was all due to the Nilliu. Only now did I realize just how limited my understanding of the weapon was. All those acts had been accidental, brought upon by immense stress, anger, and desperation. If I had taken the time to truly master this weapon, the power at my command would have been phenomenal, and perhaps things would be different at this very moment.
I had taken to heart my benefactors warnings of course, and had treated the weapon with a respect and care that would have been well received by any person. In retrospect I now also realized that perhaps it was this unwillingness to risk anything that had contributed to my not learning anything else about the weapon I commanded. But not anymore. There was no time for care, no time for caution any longer.
Time resumed its normal flow, and with what remained of my dying strength assumed a ready stance, my feet shifting to move from a guard position to one of attack. I let my arms fall slightly, and brought the tip of the Nilliu down until it was level with my chin. The small spot of ki that rested at the center of my body began to pulse slightly as I called upon it, letting the warmth flow down my arms, and into the blade of my instrument, something I had never done before, and something that would have vaporized any other sword.
The weapon began to give off a faint glow as my energy mixed with its magic, and a low humming filled the air around me.
I remained totally focused on what I was doing, completely ignoring the powerful figure marching towards me. This required total concentration. If I made an error in my task, then I would truly die for no reason.
The Kai's had said that the Nilliu could amplify my own energy to a point beyond what I was normally capable of. But I had used up all I had to fight with already, and it wouldn't be enough. That being so, the only power left for me to draw on was that force which kept me alive.
A faint sheen of sweat broke out on my forehead as life drained out of my body, and fatigue began to pull at the corners of my mind, urging me to give into the eternal sleep that was death, by I refused it and retained my focus.
Though I couldn't see it, my skin slow drained of its color, and my hair began to lose it's dark brown hue. I was commited to this course of action now, there was no way to turn back. But this was what it would take, so I walked willingly into the embrace of death with a smile on my face, and all the while, the energy within the Nilliu began to build up, crackling up and down the length of the now saffire blade and cooking the air with its intensity.
Kanlei stopped a few feet in front of me, confusion obvious on his face. No doubt he'd never seen anything like what he was witnessing now, which wouldn't have been surprising. After all, how many warriors were willing to sacrifice themselves for their world? How many were willing to use their very life force to destroy an enemy? Not many was the answer.
After a moment however, the alien shrugged off his wordless question and smirked. "I do not know why you are attempting another energy attack," he rumbled deeply, "I was certain I proved to you before that it was futile."
Indeed he had, but instead of answering, I flashed him a grin. Just wait a little longer, and we'll both find out if this is futile.
My body began to pale further and I trembled as I grew weaker with each passing second. My skin, hair, even my eyes, now just a shade above total white, and the hum that had filled the air was now a penetrating whine. I was almost ready.
"Fool, you waste you last moments trying to hurt me when they would be better spent making final peace with your gods. No matter, the choice was yours to make, a pity it was the wrong one. You will die now."
"I agree." My grin faded as I finished my task and the death I had called to me finally arrived to spirit me away.
With the last of strength, I pointed the Nilliu towards the ground and shoved the shining blade down as far as I could.
And then the energy I had amplified was unleashed, and everything in my vision vanished in a flash of white.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Years before . . .
"Push . . . Push!" The nurse shouted. Terriz Zarin pushed as hard as she could, fighting to get her baby, her son into the world.
Just hours ago, (oh, god how it felt like eons!), she had been lying down for a nap when her water broke. At the time, her husband, Kale, hadn't been home, and she'd been forced to call an ambulance for herself.
She could have just flown to the hospital, but for a woman in her condition, the possibility of falling from the sky and harming her baby had been to great to risk it. And besides that, the doctors and nurses might just think it a bit strange to see a flying pregnant woman enter their offices.
She'd begun to fear that she might have to deliver the baby right there in her own living room without any help, but thankfully the ambulance had arrived and whisked her away to Pepper Town Medical Center. She'd entered labor shortly after arriving and had been in it for the past 7 hours.
Child birth was quite possibly the most painful experience she'd ever endured, (and back in the day she'd been through some of the most intense battles in the universe).
The woman let out another scream and pushed harder. Her son was going to be born now!
***
From above the table, a man floated, completely invisible even to the senses of the saiyajin lying beneath him. He watched this woman as she screamed once again, and the battle between mother and son intensified.
The man's name was Kerius, a human who had lived over 4,000 years before. During that period in galatic evolution he had been one of the strongest protectors of all that was good and right in the universe, fighting evil and injustice on many worlds in dozens of galaxies.
But his time as an active protector had long since passed. He had died in a battle against the darkness countless eons ago and had been in other world quietly monitoring the universe, trying to determine just what destiny had in store for it. That had proved impossible, after all, the sentients that brought about change were hardly logical or predictable in their actions. Ultimately it didn't matter. Since the time of the great warriors like Goku and Vegeta the evil in the universe had been strigently repressed, hidden from sight and out of mind. Until recently.
Two years ago he'd come upon a startling revelation. The return of evil was close at hand.
It had been the belief of him, and even some of the higher level gods that Goku had put a hole in evil that would never be sealed after Buu had been defeated. But like him, like goodness, evil was meant to exist forever. And the approaching storm was greater than anything that he previously fought or even imagined, so great even that it required immediate action.
And so, for the past 48 months he had spent every second of time searching for a person, a host that was powerful, someone who was innocent and would be completely free of evil at birth. There had been billions of candidates across the millions of worlds scatter around the universe, but only one of them had proved to be perfect.
This child who was about to be born, right here, right now.
He knew the boy's name by heart. He had long since memorized it, after all, it was written in the Book of Time (an ever continuing story that records the events taking place in the universe now and in the future). This boy was special. Out of all of them, he would be the Avatar, the one who would turn right from wrong, and the one who would bring hope where there was none.
This child, Rael Zarin, would be the greatest of champions for good.
"I can see the head!" A nurse shouted.
Kerius made a smile as Rael's head emerged from his mother's womb. It was almost time for the story to begin.
The rest of his body became visible only a moment after that, soft, dripping fluids. The nurse took the boy up in her arms and wrapped him in a blanket. She turned him over and patted his rear lightly, clearing his lungs and letting him take in the first breath of his life. It only took a second for him to begin wailing like only babies do.
The nurse turned him back over and handed the screaming child over to his mother. The father entered a second later, a broad, proud grin on his face as he stared down at his baby boy.
Then Rael opened his eyes and looked up, stopping his crying as he did so, as if he could sense the presence of something. His eyes didn't rove the room as they searched for the source of this strange feeling, they locked straight onto Kerius as if he were no more transparent than a brick.
Kerius returned the child's gaze and favored him with a smile again. This boy was definitely the one. The ancient spirit floated downwards and entered the body of the baby, and instantly all of the spirit energy that had previously been available to him became nothing. It was to be expected however. He would have to wait until the boy became strong enough to allow for him to communicate subconsciously. Until then, Rael would grow up an ordinary child. But on his sixth birthday, everything would be destined to change . . .
Well, that's about it. I hope you find this an enjoyable read. Any crits or comments are welcome.
-----------------------------------------------
1. Discovery of darkness
That morning, I'd never dreamed that I would die. In fact, death was the farthest thing on my mind. I was happy, rested, and for once, I didn't have to wake up with an empty stomach. I guess this is just an example proving that life, and death, can crop up at any time.
- Kerius Jarein
---------------------
There had been a time in my life I when I got the idea into my head that I could do anything. I had been young then, barely 4 years old, and my world had still been colored by what my parents did and did not shelter me from. Looking back know, I suppose that such beliefs were silly, even from a child's standpoint.
But when the time had come for me to let go of my childhood . . . I had still kept those perceptions.
Those same perceptions, that so differed from what every other person saw, had ultimately driven me to take up the martial arts and set my self against those who would bring harm to those I loved and the world I lived on. For years I had carried that knowledge of self within me, knowing in my own heart that I could do anything I tried hard enough to do, and that is what had made me possibly the best fighter on the planet Earth.
After almost twenty years, I was only now beginning to realize that perhaps I had been wrong . . .
I could barely stand now. My face felt flattened and battered, and the coppery taste of blood filled my mouth. My arms hung heavily at my side, weighed down by fatigue and injury. Clutched in one hand was my final defense against the creature I was facing. The sword Nilliu. Its tip lay rested on the ground, a slight gouge in the sand trailing out behind me to show where I had dragged the weapon. The blade seemed to shimmer in the scarlet-orange light of day's dying sun, reflecting momentary shards of light onto into the surrounding area. Such brilliance could not hold off the approach of night. Once the disk of the sun fell beyond the horizon, it would mark the end of my life and the beginning of a darkness that might never end.
My eyes locked back on to the short and muscled body of my opponent. I could barely see him. One of my eyes were swollen shut, and it was all I could do to keep the other open. It didn't help that alien stood silhoutted against the ever darkening skyline.
Kanlei. The name blossomed into my mind with little urging. It was one of the very few things that I could still remember. I couldn't even recall how or why I had come here to face this being who now held my life in his hands, I could barely even remember my own name.
Kerius . . . Kerius something . . . Kerius Jarein? Yes, that was it.
Why was I here?
The words seemed to drag themselves from a long way, slowly coming into existence in the darkness of my mind. I had to stop him, Kanlei. No matter what happened. The why however was something I could not remember, even with all of my mental facilities working towards it. I struggled within my own head to bring forth that which did not wish to come, forcing the memories of pain and shock to once again erupt. I gasped lightly when they finally did, my remaining eye fluttering closed for a moment as the half-remembered blows delivered against me ran played out in my mind's eye.
My recovered knowledge of the past, however, did not give me any insight into the future. Even with what I once again knew, I was no closer to coming upon a way to defeat Kanlei than I had been before.
The past few minutes of intense fighting played in my head as if in slow motion. The countless attacks I'd thrown against my foe, and his almost casual countering of every move I'd had made. Even the weapons formed of pure energy had had no effect on him. And now I had nothing left to give, nothing left to try.
My body was almost completely thrashed. The only reason I was still standing was through sheer force of will. When Kanlei next chose to attack me, and he would, it would certainly be his final time . . . and the end of mine.
No matter which way I looked at it, death was coming for me, and there wasn't anything I could do to forestall its arrival, not any longer.
I supposed that the end of my existence didn't frighten me, didn't even intimidate me. I had been prepared to die for a long time, years even, for the cause of defending my world, had expected that my life would end through fulfilling my service to mankind's protection . . . and here it appeared I would die. But my death would serve no purpose, I would be merely the first in an almost certainly long line of casualties.
I had put forth everything at my command to destroy Kanlei, all my training, all my experiences culminating into a spear head of force that would have destroyed any normal adversary, but then again, Kanlei could hardly be reffered to as normal. He was not even of this world.
Hopelessness flooded through me as Kanlei finally decided that I realized my end was imminent and began walking towards me, slowly, maximizing his intimidation.
I backed up half a step, my body protesting at the movement, but no more. There was no where I could go fast enough to avoid what was coming against me.
I wished with all my might that I was stronger, that I was more powerful, that I had the energy left to defeat this alien freak pitted against me. But my wishes might have been made to the wind, for nothing happened . . .
Forcing my abused muscles into action, I lifted the Nilliu up into guard position, my arms trembling from the strain of holding it in place. Normally weilding the weapon was child's play. The sword had been made by a masterful blacksmith, and was perfectly balanced. When held, it was as light as air and quick as lightning if used correctly. Now though, it took all I had to keep it upright.
And for all the good it did. I could barely keep hold of it, let alone swing it. When Kanlei attacked, I would be able to hold off an attack for maybe a second extra, and then it would be over, and I would be gone.
Slowly, acceptance of my pointless demise filtered through my body, and my mind began to drift. I guess what people said of death was correct. Ones life does flash through before their eyes at the approach of death.
From the earliest moments of my life, to everything leading up to this moment, every single second popped into existence before my eyes in random order. First fight, first kiss, first injury . . .
Then my eyes widened as the moment I'd received the Nilliu appeared, and everything else seemed to fade from existence as I remembered the words that had been given to me from its protector.
Kerius, we give this weapon to you for you have proved yourself beyond doubt that you are pure of heart and soul and wish to make a difference in the fight against evil. But be warned, the powers within the Nilliu are unlike anything ever tapped by a mere mortal, even one as strong as you. This weapon has the power to change the very fabric of space and time around us, to warp it into something other than what it is, and beyond that, it can amplify your own power far beyond what you'd consider possible. Master it, and even the limits of your perceptions could stretch and twist to your bidding. Because of this, weild it with care, for misusing the magic of the sword can destroy not only yourself, but all around you . . .
Those words given to me more than a decade ago hadn't really meant much to me at the time, after all, I had been in my mid-teens at the time. But now their importance was undeniable.
Time seemd to stretch out as the impact of this fully hit me. Over the years, some amazing things had happen to me. During battles, I had been able to perform acts that pushed the limit of possibility, defeated opponents whose strength was greater than my own many times over . . . and it was all due to the Nilliu. Only now did I realize just how limited my understanding of the weapon was. All those acts had been accidental, brought upon by immense stress, anger, and desperation. If I had taken the time to truly master this weapon, the power at my command would have been phenomenal, and perhaps things would be different at this very moment.
I had taken to heart my benefactors warnings of course, and had treated the weapon with a respect and care that would have been well received by any person. In retrospect I now also realized that perhaps it was this unwillingness to risk anything that had contributed to my not learning anything else about the weapon I commanded. But not anymore. There was no time for care, no time for caution any longer.
Time resumed its normal flow, and with what remained of my dying strength assumed a ready stance, my feet shifting to move from a guard position to one of attack. I let my arms fall slightly, and brought the tip of the Nilliu down until it was level with my chin. The small spot of ki that rested at the center of my body began to pulse slightly as I called upon it, letting the warmth flow down my arms, and into the blade of my instrument, something I had never done before, and something that would have vaporized any other sword.
The weapon began to give off a faint glow as my energy mixed with its magic, and a low humming filled the air around me.
I remained totally focused on what I was doing, completely ignoring the powerful figure marching towards me. This required total concentration. If I made an error in my task, then I would truly die for no reason.
The Kai's had said that the Nilliu could amplify my own energy to a point beyond what I was normally capable of. But I had used up all I had to fight with already, and it wouldn't be enough. That being so, the only power left for me to draw on was that force which kept me alive.
A faint sheen of sweat broke out on my forehead as life drained out of my body, and fatigue began to pull at the corners of my mind, urging me to give into the eternal sleep that was death, by I refused it and retained my focus.
Though I couldn't see it, my skin slow drained of its color, and my hair began to lose it's dark brown hue. I was commited to this course of action now, there was no way to turn back. But this was what it would take, so I walked willingly into the embrace of death with a smile on my face, and all the while, the energy within the Nilliu began to build up, crackling up and down the length of the now saffire blade and cooking the air with its intensity.
Kanlei stopped a few feet in front of me, confusion obvious on his face. No doubt he'd never seen anything like what he was witnessing now, which wouldn't have been surprising. After all, how many warriors were willing to sacrifice themselves for their world? How many were willing to use their very life force to destroy an enemy? Not many was the answer.
After a moment however, the alien shrugged off his wordless question and smirked. "I do not know why you are attempting another energy attack," he rumbled deeply, "I was certain I proved to you before that it was futile."
Indeed he had, but instead of answering, I flashed him a grin. Just wait a little longer, and we'll both find out if this is futile.
My body began to pale further and I trembled as I grew weaker with each passing second. My skin, hair, even my eyes, now just a shade above total white, and the hum that had filled the air was now a penetrating whine. I was almost ready.
"Fool, you waste you last moments trying to hurt me when they would be better spent making final peace with your gods. No matter, the choice was yours to make, a pity it was the wrong one. You will die now."
"I agree." My grin faded as I finished my task and the death I had called to me finally arrived to spirit me away.
With the last of strength, I pointed the Nilliu towards the ground and shoved the shining blade down as far as I could.
And then the energy I had amplified was unleashed, and everything in my vision vanished in a flash of white.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Years before . . .
"Push . . . Push!" The nurse shouted. Terriz Zarin pushed as hard as she could, fighting to get her baby, her son into the world.
Just hours ago, (oh, god how it felt like eons!), she had been lying down for a nap when her water broke. At the time, her husband, Kale, hadn't been home, and she'd been forced to call an ambulance for herself.
She could have just flown to the hospital, but for a woman in her condition, the possibility of falling from the sky and harming her baby had been to great to risk it. And besides that, the doctors and nurses might just think it a bit strange to see a flying pregnant woman enter their offices.
She'd begun to fear that she might have to deliver the baby right there in her own living room without any help, but thankfully the ambulance had arrived and whisked her away to Pepper Town Medical Center. She'd entered labor shortly after arriving and had been in it for the past 7 hours.
Child birth was quite possibly the most painful experience she'd ever endured, (and back in the day she'd been through some of the most intense battles in the universe).
The woman let out another scream and pushed harder. Her son was going to be born now!
***
From above the table, a man floated, completely invisible even to the senses of the saiyajin lying beneath him. He watched this woman as she screamed once again, and the battle between mother and son intensified.
The man's name was Kerius, a human who had lived over 4,000 years before. During that period in galatic evolution he had been one of the strongest protectors of all that was good and right in the universe, fighting evil and injustice on many worlds in dozens of galaxies.
But his time as an active protector had long since passed. He had died in a battle against the darkness countless eons ago and had been in other world quietly monitoring the universe, trying to determine just what destiny had in store for it. That had proved impossible, after all, the sentients that brought about change were hardly logical or predictable in their actions. Ultimately it didn't matter. Since the time of the great warriors like Goku and Vegeta the evil in the universe had been strigently repressed, hidden from sight and out of mind. Until recently.
Two years ago he'd come upon a startling revelation. The return of evil was close at hand.
It had been the belief of him, and even some of the higher level gods that Goku had put a hole in evil that would never be sealed after Buu had been defeated. But like him, like goodness, evil was meant to exist forever. And the approaching storm was greater than anything that he previously fought or even imagined, so great even that it required immediate action.
And so, for the past 48 months he had spent every second of time searching for a person, a host that was powerful, someone who was innocent and would be completely free of evil at birth. There had been billions of candidates across the millions of worlds scatter around the universe, but only one of them had proved to be perfect.
This child who was about to be born, right here, right now.
He knew the boy's name by heart. He had long since memorized it, after all, it was written in the Book of Time (an ever continuing story that records the events taking place in the universe now and in the future). This boy was special. Out of all of them, he would be the Avatar, the one who would turn right from wrong, and the one who would bring hope where there was none.
This child, Rael Zarin, would be the greatest of champions for good.
"I can see the head!" A nurse shouted.
Kerius made a smile as Rael's head emerged from his mother's womb. It was almost time for the story to begin.
The rest of his body became visible only a moment after that, soft, dripping fluids. The nurse took the boy up in her arms and wrapped him in a blanket. She turned him over and patted his rear lightly, clearing his lungs and letting him take in the first breath of his life. It only took a second for him to begin wailing like only babies do.
The nurse turned him back over and handed the screaming child over to his mother. The father entered a second later, a broad, proud grin on his face as he stared down at his baby boy.
Then Rael opened his eyes and looked up, stopping his crying as he did so, as if he could sense the presence of something. His eyes didn't rove the room as they searched for the source of this strange feeling, they locked straight onto Kerius as if he were no more transparent than a brick.
Kerius returned the child's gaze and favored him with a smile again. This boy was definitely the one. The ancient spirit floated downwards and entered the body of the baby, and instantly all of the spirit energy that had previously been available to him became nothing. It was to be expected however. He would have to wait until the boy became strong enough to allow for him to communicate subconsciously. Until then, Rael would grow up an ordinary child. But on his sixth birthday, everything would be destined to change . . .
