Reborn 10

Day 1: We are still inside the elvish kingdom. The group did not let me go outside of the carriage while we went from the home of the elder Lukas to the outside of the city. They told me people were afraid of humans. I don't blame them, apparently it was a lie that elves were split into groups called low, high, and then the normal elf. They all have the capacity to live for 4,000 years, and in special cases can reach 5,000. Though not many elves alive remembered the war with the humans, their parents told them stories and many had relatives die. The war was only two generations ago for them.

On the first night we made camp a bit of a ways from the capital. The great jungle really was a jungle, and it even covered the mountain that was on the map. This made it so that wherever we looked on the horizon, we could not see landmarks for where we were going.

I could use fly magic to get above the tree tops, but the problem with these trees was that they all look the same. I could tell that we had left the city by the way the jungle became more dense, but I wonder what kind of monsters could live here. Probably some man eating plants. Or giant insects. Uh, I hate both of those things.

I once took a quest to get a pendant from the bottom of a well. This was back 3,000 years ago in my adventuring days. I go to this village on the edge of a forest and I ask them, "yo, where is this well I need to travel down?" and some bombshell directs me to it. She was a smokin' 8/10, if only she wasn't covered in dirt.

Anyways, the quest was a high up one because of a monster living in the well and the fact that it was an active well, meaning the pendant my have been pushed down stream. I start to climb down this well right, and then I feel something biting my feet. I look down and see dozens of thorny vines extending towards where I was.

'Fuck this shit' I saw and I cast a Fire Cloak spell and jump straight into the well. Good thing I had the cloak on, because hundreds of these vines started to come at me. These plants were all over the walls of the underground river and the well, and they just wanted to tear me apart.

Luckily the pendant was eaten by one of the vine growing plants, so it was a quick retrieval, but those plants sucked to cut up. Something about water making them resistant to blades. I couldn't use spells either or the flame cloak would wear off and people would come for me.

In conclusion; I hate plants and I hate bugs.

Day 2: Still in the elven kingdom, and I think we will be here for a while. It should take about a year and a half to travel because of elder Lukas getting the VIP treatment everywhere we go, but inside the human empire it will take another year and a half to get to Vegiland, and that is assuming all the safe houses set up along the way are still standing.

I tried to make friend with the elves in the party as we travel north, but they don't seem to like me. It seems even they have a grudge because their grandparents were killed in the war. It is really amazing that nobody in the human empire knows about a war that happened for over a thousand years.

It could just be that the elves blew it out of proportion because of the language barrier, and how 1,000 years to an elf is not as long as it is to a human. In either case, I don't think the elves are to be trusted with what they say as fact. It would not be surprising if the humans did not attack for 50 years but the elves considered it part of the same war if they attacked again.

Day 3: It is official. There will be no flags being set with the elven girls in the party. Most of them are over 50 years old, and the ones that aren't don't know human language.

Day 17: It is said that elves learn fast. This is not true. Elves simply live a long time and lie about how old they are. I tried to teach some of the elven girls human language, but they did not understand any of it. Elder Lukas finally had to explain to me that they did not have magical brains, just more time to practice.

I've never taught someone a language before, but I've learned human language twice now, which is 2 times more than anyone else, so i'm like an expert or something.

Day 43: Trees! I hate trees! All there are is trees in fucking place! I get it, it's the great jungle, but not a single clearing in over a week! Is the sun still there? Some monsters are known to emit light at night to attract pray, so I know not to trust the lights at the top of the canopy as the exit to the outside world. I would just cast a spell and make sure it is safe, but elder Lukas keeps stopping me.

'To harm the great jungle is to harm the reason of life it'self.' Philosophy bullshit. They are just trees, no greater power is going to give a crap.

Day 156: A clearing! It is like nothing I have ever seen before, a patch of sun, surrounded my trees. It's about 2 square feet large, and I am certain I could fly above the trees now.

I tried to fly above the trees, but above the canopy is a world more dangerous than any I have ever seen before. The area near the capital was peaceful, but here in the wilderness, there are hundreds of birds and mysterious monsters jumping from leaf to leaf on the tops of the trees. It would be a death sentence for a normal man to travel to the tops of these trees, and for the sake of not destroying the covering and making the monsters fall inside the where the party is, I will not attack.

I went back to the party and told them what I saw, and they all seemed to know about it once Lorenz translated it for the ones who did not speak human.

Day 365: It's been a whole year and we are almost out of the Elven kingdom. I still don't know where we are at, but the jungle has become a regular forest now. The monsters have gotten more plentiful here at the edge, and according to elder Lukas it will get worse as we approach the border.

Day 370: I am a bad mother-fucker. Nothing can stop my spells. I am kind of regretting not going by myself now, and I think I would be able to destroy the while Vegivile if it came down to it.

No, that is probably not the way to be thinking now. I need by team just in case something happens that I can't deal with. I can cast my spells fairly fast, but defense against other mages is nonexistent. A single mage with a pre-called lightning spell might do serious damage to my family while I got them out of the city. I need to rely on the elves to find a way out for them.

Day 524: We did it, back into the human empire at last. Goodbye trees, hello fields. Eating from the forest was such a pain, I hope I can buy something here. I obviously don't have any coins, and the elven money is not usable in the human empire. Elves don't even show themselves in the human empire because of the followers of Ajoras. Being a human is great when inside the human empire.

Day 537: We had to camp in some trees because a safe house was shutdown. It was not a big deal, but some of us have to stay awake at night and we have to spend a little longer finding what direction we need to go. It will probably put us back a few days at most.

Day 538: I couldn't take it anymore and bought the first piece of bread I have eaten in years. I don't know what crazy food those Elves at everyday, and now that I think about it, I wonder what I was fed while I slept for over two years. I hope it wasn't ground bugs or something.

Day 1000: Something like 1,000 days have past, or almost 3 years. We entered Vegiland County, and I can tell because I remember some places from when I worked with the Monster Slaying Guild. I wonder if my membership has been revoked... Anyway, I am going to fly to Thornberry first thing in the morning to check on Beth and Claire.

The elves will continue to Vegivile and wait for me to find them. The elves will have Eva in a certain cafe every day waiting for me.

End of Journey Evaluation: I know the names of everyone in the party, and they know mine, but most of us cannot talk to each other. Lukas, Lorenz and Eva are the only ones who know human language. I am now 14 and a half years old, which should put Beth at 15 and Claire at 12. Dave should be 11 and Florianne should also be 14. Time to check on Beth first because I don't to get stuck with Claire while I check on Beth and her family.

Kyle used fly to get back to Thornberry, and he did not hide his appearance. He was apparently already know in the county for being a beast-kin sympathizer, and hoped that neither Beth nor Claire would think down on him.

Thornberry was very similar to how it was when he left, though he had never used Fly to move above the town. Below him on the ground, many people were talking about the man in the sky.

"Is that a person?"

"I think it is."

"But how are they flying?"

"Don't you know? Fly is a legendary spell from the olden times."

"Then he must be very powerful."

"Right. We shouldn't get in the way of him."

The people walked through the streets and when they saw Kyle in the air they moved to the sides of the street. Nobody had ever seen a person doing what he was doing, so they were all cautious of him.

Kyle made his way to the home of the Valhearts and walked up to the front door. Kyle was not worried about about Beth hating him, but he was a little worried about her family. If anything happened, he would be able to use status spells on them.

"Is anyone here?" Kyle asked as he knocked on the door.

"Yes, hello-" Sarah said as she opened the door and saw Kyle standing in front of her. Kyle was now a little over 5 years older than when she last saw him on his return from magic school.

"oh, it's you..." She finished, becoming disappointed.

"Yeah, is Beth home?" Kyle asked Beth's mother.

"Who is it mother?" A cheery voice asked from inside the house. It was a woman's, and Kyle did not recognize it.

'Has my Beth already developed into a woman?' Kyle asked himself as he tried to look inside the door. Inside the hall and up the stairs was not Beth, but someone he had never seen before, but she was gorgeous. She was probably 18 and had everything a man could dream for.

"Who is that?" The woman asked. It was not very often that young boys came to the house, and when they did it was because they were friends with Berry or Cory and did not come alone when Berry and Cory were not home.

"This is... um..." Sarah said, but was unable to say anything.

"Is that... Kyle?" The woman on the stairs asked.

"Hey I don't want to cause any problems, I just want to make sure that Beth is okay." Kyle said to the woman on the stairs, but it was too late for words.

"I'll kill you!" Said the red-head on the stairs as she drew a sword and jumped down. Kyle jumped into the yard and summoned a sword with earth magic. It was not particularly strong, but it would defend against the broadsword the woman took out.

"You should just die!" The woman shouted.

"No Cindy!" Yelled Sarah. Cindy must have been the red-heads name.

"He did this to Beth!" Cindy shouted as she exchanged sword blows with Kyle. Kyle used to be a sword master, but after 14 years of not using them frequently, he had forgotten most of his techniques. He still knew enough to go head to head with Cindy though.

"What happened?" Kyle tried to ask as a slash was brought down from his left aimed at his neck. Cindy was constantly on the offensive, and while Kyle was fighting with her he was unable to aim a spell. He could probably defeat her if he tried, but he guessed she was Beth's older sister he had not seen before and did not want to hurt her.

"Heretic!" Cindy yelled as she quickly made a slash at the torso of Kyle. Kyle was unable to dodge it completely and got a small cut near his side.

"No Cindy, stop it!" Sarah yelled from the doorway as she watched the two in her yard dance around and swing their swords.

"How can you be so good with a sword, I thought you were a mage?" Cindy asked Kyle as she kept swinging.

"I'm good at more than just that, Wolf Fang Fist!" Kyle took a leap back and then said the name of his attack and leaped forward. It was customary to say the name of a hidden unarmed art before using it, only except in life threatening instances. With the power of his fist and the supremely powerful martial technique, Kyle hit Cindy's sword on the blade, but it did not hurt his hand. Instead, the blade shattered into a dozen pieces.

"That was no spell!" Shouted Cindy as she threw the blade-less handle on the ground.

"I need to see Beth." Kyle said as he stormed into the house, and at the same time he cast sleep on Sarah and Cindy. Beth's room was on the second floor and to the right, so it did not take long to get there. The sleep spell would last about 15 minutes.

"Beth, are you in here? It's me Kyle." Kyle said as he knocked on the door. Slowly some footsteps were heard inside the room the the door slowly opened. From the outside of the room, Kyle could see a very depressed person inside of it. Her hair was a mess and it did not look like she was taking care of herself very well. She was too thin to be healthy.

"Kyle..." Beth said as she started to cry and quickly opened the door the rest of the way and flung her arms around Kyle's neck. Beth too had gotten over 5 years older, and had a lot of changes, but unfortunately she was obviously neglecting her health. "Waa!" Beth cried as she held onto Kyle. Kyle could not do anything other than stand there.

'And I was worried about her having a boyfriend.' Kyle thought to himself as he felt reassured for some reason at the crying Beth.

"What were you doing being gone for so long?" Beth asked him.

"I was taken somewhere against my will, I would have never left you otherwise." Kyle said as he hugged Beth back. He was already falling into old habits.

"Why do you say stuff like that in this of all moments?" Beth asked as she tried to stop crying.

"I just can't help it, if what I say is how I truly feel." Kyle was certain was making good use of the erotic novels Mr. Reese had stocked the library with. He read them almost 10 years ago, but they were becoming more useful by the day.

Kyle suddenly felt like a sports player, because he finally got to first base. 'My flags! You came for me!' Kyle yelled in his heart as Beth kissed him. They were like that for a few seconds before Beth pulled away and was completely red faced. If she was a little healthier, she would be irresistible to 14 year old Kyle, especially after seeing Beth's sister Cindy.

"You're going to stay a long time now right?" Beth asked him.

"No, we are both going somewhere." Kyle said, looking down the hallway.

"Where are we going?" Beth asked him.

"Just tell me what you want to take with you and I will get it later. He have to go quickly before your sister wakes up." Kyle said, stepping inside the door.

"Alright, but what's that about my sister?" Beth asked Kyle as she started piling things onto the bed.

"She attacked me so I had to use my magic on her. She is fine, but she is asleep outside." Kyle said and took a quick glance into the hallway. Beth finished putting things on her bed and turned to Kyle.

"Okay, this is all I need." Beth said, and Kyle looked at the pile. It was mostly clothes, fitting for the daughter of a cloth designer.

"Then let's get out of here. I just have one other place I need to visit." Kyle said and he walked with Beth through the house. When they got outside and Beth saw her mother and sister asleep in the yard, she held Kyle's hand.

"Let's go." She said, and then they left.

About 20 minutes later, Kyle was surprised at what great speed his 14 year old body was able to accomplish compared to the 9 year old body. He and Beth were already at the Drought's home.

"We are going to see them?" Beth asked Kyle as she tugged on his arm. They joined arms about half was through the walk.

"Yes. I just have to make sure they are fine." Kyle said as he went to the door. There was not a courtyard like Beth's family's house, but Kyle did not have to worry about siblings being hostile at him.

"Hello?" Kyle said after knocking on the door. A few minutes later, someone came to the door and opened it.

"Kyle..-" The woman said and the closed the door. She continued to cry on the other side.

"Kathy, what is wrong?" Kyle said, opening the door which Kathy did not lock.

"Kyle, you're much too late..." Kathy said while crying. The house had curtains drawn so it was not visible from the outside, but the windows were boarded up. It was a very dark building.

"I know I have been gone for a while, but what is wrong? And where is Claire?" Kyle asked. He was not certain what Claire would be doing this time of year, but Beth should have just graduated from the Vegivile Mage School so it was normal for her to be home.

"Claire is... dead!"

"..." Kyle was shocked. Kathy began to cry uncontrollably and ran into her room.

'What happened to her?' Kyle thought back, and Claire was very healthy. Besides a small incident at birth, she was always a happy and smiling child.

'Did I cause this?' Kyle could not help but ask himself. He was gone for over 5 years, so Claire would have been sad, but not enough to die. 'She would not have died from loneliness, unless she...'

Kyle did not want to think about how Claire died and assumed it was best to just forget. Beth acted like she knew about Claire all along, even though it looked like she never left the house.

"She died waiting for you to come back!" Kathy said from beyond the door to her room. "You suddenly didn't come home one night and she tried to help the guards find you, but nothing worked. Claire just sat in front of the door every day waiting for you to come back, and 3 years ago..."

Kathy stopped talking and Kyle reflected on what Kathy said. 'Kathy has grieved for 3 years...' Kyle though. He knew Kathy was an emotional person, and she never tried to have another child after complications with the first one, and she was now in her early 30's. She was getting past the age of having healthy children.

"Where is the grave?" Kyle asked. There was still something he could do.

"We made a small shrine in the house." Kathy said behind the door.

'A shrine, that means...' Kyle thought about the condition of the body.

"She was cremated?" Kyle asked. He might have enough power.

"Yes." Kathy said.

Kyle went into Claire's room of the house and it was devoted to a small shrine in the corner. The bed and the rest of the furnishings were gone, and there was just a small candle lit on the shrine.

"Beth, I need for you to stay outside of this door and not come in, no matter what happens." Kyle said as he went to close the door to Claire's room as he entered it.

"I... I can do it." Beth said as she stuck out her underdeveloped chest.

"That's great Beth. It shouldn't take me more than a few hours." Kyle closed the door on Beth's look of disappointment when she heard hours, but Kyle would not be able to make it faster.

Kyle looked at the shrine and saw a bronze urn. Kyle cast light and looked into the urn and it contained ashes.

'I have the magic. I can rebuild her.' Kyle said as he got to work.

Kyle used a type of magic he had not used since being reborn, his forbidden summoning magic. Kyle could use it to create the body of Claire again, but he would need her soul place inside of it. Summoning magic could be used by taking a random soul from the atmosphere, but for this purpose he specifically wanted Claire's soul.

Though summoning magic could create bodies, they were not regular bodies. These were the bodies of magical beast, and so once Claire's soul would be put into the body, she would have strength many times stronger than before.

The soul searching effort was not difficult. Soul's tend to stay near where the body died, or travel with the body. In any case, Claire died in the same place her body was, so searching for it would not be a problem. It would just take time.

It took about 2 hours to form the perfect body. It would grow with Claire, and it was modeled after one of the older girls in the magic school for the general size of things. Claire should have been about 12 years old, and even though summoning magic could get the body she died with, it would be 5 years too young. This age difference would not really have any effect on Claire's new body and her old soul, because with the magical beast body she would probably live to be 150 years old, or maybe even 200.

Finding the soul only took an hour, but grafting it to the body took 3 hours. A soul would naturally cling to a body it was compatible with, so a summoned creature would most of the time use a soul from a similar creature. However, human and magical beast are very different. Maybe not in shape or size, but in power. At the end of an additional 4 hours, Claire's soul was inside the magical beast body.

Claire 2.0: Can run faster than a horse, can lift a carriage by herself, Claire 2.0 is strong. Claire cannot use magic now though, and that is the unfortunate limitation to summoned creature's abilities. Being a magical beast does not give her magical powers. More importantly, Claire 2.0 is alive.