It came without warning—a surge of light, searing through my mind like a strike of lightning. I stumbled, gasping for air as the bucket I was carrying slipped from my hands and crashed to the ground. My vision blurred. The walls of the narrow hallway in Faylindra House twisted as my knees buckled.
And then—everything changed.
I wasn't in the hallway anymore. I stood in the center of a vast, gleaming chamber, unlike anything I had ever seen in this world. Strange machinery hummed around me, their intricate workings flickering with energy. The scent of smoke and oil filled the air. Figures in long, flowing coats darted around, speaking in hurried tones in a language I couldn't understand but somehow knew intimately.
I knew this place. I had been here before.
This was my past.
The memory surged with terrifying clarity. I had been more than just an engineer. I had once been a master of invention in another world entirely. I had crafted devices that bent the laws of nature, technologies beyond anything this world could comprehend. I stood among those who shaped the future, creating wonders that moved mountains and reshaped cities.
A towering figure stood before me—someone I recognized instinctively, though the details of their face wavered, blurred by time. They held out a device, gleaming and intricate. My hands reached for it on instinct, closing around its cool surface. The device pulsed with life, responding as if it had been crafted for me and me alone.
I remembered everything now—the endless nights spent working, the accolades, the respect. I had built a world.
And then, it had all been torn away.
---
I collapsed onto the stone floor of the hallway in Faylindra House, gasping for air. My heart pounded in my chest, and the room spun as the vivid memory ebbed, leaving behind a raw, aching emptiness. My hands trembled, still feeling the phantom weight of that impossible device.
I wasn't who I thought I was. I had lived another life, a life beyond this one, where I had been powerful, brilliant, free.
The realization hit me like a blow to the chest. I had fallen from that life into this one—a slave, bound to menial tasks in a world that didn't even begin to understand what I could do. I had forgotten it all, buried beneath the weight of this life's struggle. But now… I remembered.
I remember.
I staggered to my feet, clutching the wall for support, my breath ragged. My heart raced, the weight of my past pressing down on me. But underneath the shock, there was something else stirring inside me.
A spark.
The knowledge was still there, buried deep within. The designs, the ideas, the power to create, to build, to change things. I had done it before in a world far beyond this one. And I could do it again.
---
That night, long after the rest of the house had fallen silent, I found myself in the dimly lit corner of the storage room. My hands moved instinctively, as if guided by something ancient, something far beyond this world. The materials before me were crude compared to what I once used, but that didn't matter.
My mind raced with ideas as fragments of memory flooded back. I began to tinker, assembling parts, testing mechanisms, my fingers flying over the pieces with practiced ease. It was as if a dam had broken inside me, and all the knowledge from my past life was flowing back, piece by piece.
This wasn't just about survival anymore. This was about creating again—about reclaiming the part of me that had been lost for so long.
The project I was working on was small, designed to improve the water pump. The overseers wouldn't suspect a thing, but it would make life easier for all of us. It was simple compared to the world-altering machines I had once created, but it was a start.
---
Hours passed in a blur as I worked, my mind focused, my hands steady. By the time the device was complete, dawn was creeping over the horizon, casting a soft light through the narrow window.
I stared down at my creation, breathless. It was rough, imperfect, but it worked. It would ease the burden of those hauling water day after day.
But more than that, it was a reminder that I could still do this. The knowledge, the power—it was all still there, waiting to be unlocked.
A name echoed in my mind, one I hadn't heard in this life—Katrina. That was who I had been, long before this world claimed me. And the little girl from the memory—the one with bright eyes and laughter—she had been my niece, the child of my older brother. A pang of loss rippled through me as the fragmented memories of my ancient family surfaced. We had been innovators, creators of wonders. But all of it was lost… until now.
---
I held the device in my hands, feeling the cool metal against my skin. This was just the first step. There was so much more I could do.
I had been an engineer in another world. And now, I was one again.