My blood ran cold.
"How. W-why?" Why was I chained to a stillborn. Why was I…
Perplexity intensified my confusion. Even though I could feel my emotions dying down as I attempted to instinctually rationalize the situation, the reality of everything was slowly seeping into the cracks of the turtle shell that housed my emotions. Stillness was all I could think of.
How could a thing like this be natural? Even though I was raised in a world like this…why was this anguish so uncommon to me? Why was the grief these people felt…why did it feel so natural. As if it was a universal language?! Why did I feel bad…for these people who slaughtered my own!
The chains rattled as I stepped back from the stillborn.
Not a word was uttered for a dozen minutes.
The world around me felt soundless.
Before it was broken by a slight hic.
A language unrecognizable to me rang out in the room. It was clearly a gesture of surprise.
The figures rushed towards the fetus. It hicced again.
The initially hesitant demi-human wolf picked up the baby and patted it's back. Gently, he began to rock the baby. Panic seemed to fill his eyes. Along with a sense of…relief. The baby seemed to choke slightly, and snot soon rushed out his nose violently.
A loud cry exploded out towards the room.
I felt relieved. I felt…familiarity. Sympathy.
This experience alone had taught me much more than anything I had seen before. It felt like humanity. Even if these figures were different, even if they're anatomies and they're customs were different…the way they handled things was painfully similar to…my own!
Love.
Grief.
Panic.
Relief.
All these emotions.
They existed. These people felt them…I felt them. I clenched my hand and unclenched it. It was real. All of it was real. No matter how much I escaped this reality…it would never let me leave.
They helped me envision how it was to feel it. The love they felt, the grief…the panic. All of it. Slightly influenced me and now…
She had won!
I couldn't help but want to cheer in happiness. The baby was alive.
The wooden door slammed open as a more pleasantly dressed figure rushed in. He had what I could only describe as an old world's doctors' clothing on. It was apparent he was as surprised as everyone was to see the baby alive. The anguished look I had seen…it was gone.
Replaced by hope.
Then everything became still.
As if time had stopped.
Before I could panic. Before I could process anything. A loud rumble emanated from my surroundings…and I blinked twice.
The first blink saw the doctor approaching the baby, a sense of urgency and hope apparent in his eyes. The werewolf holding the baby crying in relief. The still body of the woman with a victorious smile on her face…
The second saw…
The light of day.
A bright blue sky stretched far above me.
"This again?" I sighed. The chains rattled. Clouds hung in the sky, and the sun moved. I was not back in the forest. Instead I was laying on what seemed to be a…lawn? A deep sense of melancholy filled me. This…it reminded me of the memory of the Ophanim I had seen. That whole experience, even if impactful, was ultimately hard to understand.
I stood up.
The wind blew. Grass tilted from side to side. The slightly overgrown lawn was pleasing to the eye. I looked towards the sun. It was similar to the one on Earth…but there were 2.
Brightness filled the world. It was hard to orient myself when shadows were strangely blurry, and double edged. I looked away from the heavenly spheres. The chain rattled again. I hesitated before walking towards its links.
The city of the demi-humans was gone. Replaced by a simple…house? It was hard to tell but easy to understand. The housing was not too small. "They made it big after the birth of the child?" I walked towards the chain link that led to the inside of the humble home.
The home was not shaped like housing on Earth, but instead a strange geometry befitting of whatever the world's standards were. The house was black and white purely, not exactly colorful. It was a deep contrast to the grassy field it was situated on.
A well was not too far from what seemed like the back of the house. The well seemed well taken care of, and was covered with a lid. A small building that looked like a stable was there as well. It was hard to tell what exactly was in it, but I was sure that if I wandered too far off the chain would draw tight.
The wall now lay in front of me. I slightly touched it, only for my fingers to phase through. I walked through the wall, disoriented by the sudden change in light. Nausea would be affecting me if I wasn't having an out of body experience. The room I had walked into was a bedroom. "Beds are universal huh? Well can't blame them for enjoying the great thing that is sleep." I looked at the bed in amusement. The person who slept in it was clearly an organized one.
It was so neatly made that I couldn't help but admire it.
I had never had a real bed, so temptation filled me. The chain rattled again, so I continued to move towards it. Another wall was phased through. A bathroom. Another wall. A bedroom. Another wall.
An altar.
A single picture of a wolf-like face was framed on it. It was a strangely high-quality image. If cameras existed…why are their lives so primitive? I leaned towards the altar. The slightly recognizable face of the woman who had died while giving birth was seen on it. Slightly recognizeable because it was hard to distinguish her when she didn't have a river of blood around her.
I sighed.
The altar had an offering on it, candles were lit neatly. It was well kept. I bowed towards it, a gesture in strange taste…not that anyone cared. This woman was strong. Even if I never met her…it was just apparent.
Another wall.
This time I was in a…dining room? The chain was loose now. Two figures sat on the table in the middle of the small dining room. One was significantly smaller than the other. I recognized the larger demi-human to be the man that had held the baby when it was choking on it's snot.
They were talking in a language I was finding hard to understand.
The smaller figure was coated in red fur. It was not right to assume…but I could infer that this was the child that had been born from the womb of the lady honored on the altar. His frame was small. It wasn't too noticeable other than the slightly protruding ears that seemed to stand up naturally.
A strange sense filled me.
"I…wanna pet him."
I could infer that these two were father and son. I looked at them in a bit of awe. I had never met my parents, except for my mother handing me to the Faded that raised me. It was a bit strange to consider the fact that this is…
It could've been this way.
They were lively, the small wolf was being quite loud, and the father laughed and talked with him as well. No food remained on their plates…yet they continued talking.
It was a sweet experience to watch.
I felt my heart clench. Longing. I missed the solace of home. The comfort.
It was a good feeling to have. Yet I didn't want to let it take over me. I jolted. The conversation had stopped. Instead of any speaking, all I heard was the chain slightly rattle. I looked towards the father and son.
The father had gotten up and left the room.
The child however…
He stared at me with…
"W-with."
Eyes…amber eyes! All the longing. All the relief. The emotion that had been given to me.
It had vanished.
A baleful emotion rose from within me…replacing all else.
The amber eyes. They were the same as the ones as…
The chasm of a certain familiar robe entered my mind.