rebirth

Jack's world was full of darkness, unending and ever-present.

His only companion was the thoughts racing through his mind.

Is this death?

If this was death then it's a lot different than Jack expected, where are the firey pits of hell, or the pearly white gates of heaven?

Was this all there was?

An ocean of darkness?

Jack's mind hopped from question to question until eventually, he realized that asking questions was pointless.

Time continued to pass, whether it had been minutes, days, or years he did not know.

He never grew hungry, never felt pain, and he never spoke.

And that's how things stayed for what seemed to be an eternity, until suddenly, and without warning a great force began to pull Jack from his sanctuary.

The pain was unbearable as if someone was crushing his head, the force applied continued to grow, and Jack felt as if it would kill him.

He cried loudly, fighting to stay in the safety of the abyss.

The force, however, was persistent in dragging him from the abyss and into a cold and dim environment.

Air filled his lungs for the first time in what felt like centuries, and a cold sensation circulated through his body causing him to shiver.

He felt a small painful cut or pull, causing his cries to grow louder.

His body was quickly covered in a warm blanket it was soft and fuzzy, and It had a texture like that of cotton or wool.

Jack began to feel what seemed to be hands drawing him closer.

But to what?

There was a wave of murmuring and whispering, there was also laughter and Joy,

However, it was all drawn out by Jack's cries.

He soon felt his body being rocked up and down slowly in a bouncing motion, as small comforting whispers began to fill the room.

The language was unknown, but the message was clear; he wasn't in danger.

Jack's cries grew silent, replaced by a curious gurgle.

As he lay in the warm embrace of those hands, he began to open his eyes slowly.

Everything was a messy blur, it seemed like random shapes surrounded Jack in a dimly lit room.

One thing quickly grabbed his attention however, there was a pair of illuminated eyes staring directly at him.

What the hell….

As Jack's vision grew clearer, he began to see the person that those eyes belonged to.

It was a strange woman.

She had a long face and soft features, like that of a European woman.

Her skin was pale as if she hadn't seen the sun for a millennia.

Her ears were shaped like a small cone that was cut vertically, from the base of the ear to the tip, the ear grew increasingly thinner.

Her hair was long and blonde, she had it wrapped in a messy bun.

Her most distinguishing feature, however, was her glowing golden eyes.

She was beautiful in every sense of the word, but that didn't hide the fact that she looked exhausted.

The woman wasn't alone though, as there were three other women in the room.

There was a small girl, around the age of six or seven.

She looked at Jack with great curiosity.

Her eyes were a vibrant purple.

Her hair was curly and white and her face matched closely to the woman with the golden eyes.

Her skin was pale and she wore black pants and a black shirt.

Her clothing was clean and proper.

The other two women were extremely similar in appearance, they both had luminous blue eyes and black hair.

One of the women had her hair pulled back in a ponytail, while the other had her hair in a pixie cut.

They both wore a long black apron, over a set of white clothing.

The woman stood at the end of what appeared to be a large bed.

They both had their hands behind their backs, and they stood proudly.

They both looked tired as if they'd been working for a while.

The woman with the golden eyes, who Jack assumed was his mother, began to speak.

Her words were fast and Jack couldn't understand them,

Her tone was soft and it was obvious she was exhausted.

She seemed to be talking to the woman with the ponytail, her weak words held no energy, but she smiled nonetheless.

The woman with the ponytail nodded at the words of his mother and exited the room.

His mother then turned her gaze towards the woman with the pixie cut.

She spoke in the same tone and manner.

The woman with the pixie cut nodded and headed toward a table in the corner of the room.

The woman began to gather tools and clothes, she began placing them into a bag, she then exited the room.

Jack shifted his gaze to the rest of the room.

The walls were covered in a blue wallpaper, there was one window on the left side of the room opposite the door.

The window was covered by long blue curtains, that appeared to be made of silk or a very expensive fabric.

He shifted his gaze upwards toward the ceiling, it was white, and a chandelier hung high, it encompassed the room in a dim light.

There were a few shelves full of books, and there were two wooden chairs and a small wooden table.

The room gave off a vibe from the early 20th century or the late 19th century.

Did I travel backward in time?

He continued to look around the room, noticing a few other small bits and bobs that screamed late 19th century.

Eventually, the woman with the ponytail returned.

In her company, she brought along three other people.

There was a woman dressed in an elegant red dress.

She had pale skin and the same weirdly shaped ears as everyone else.

Her hair was long and brown, and her eyes glowed bright green.

The woman had a mischievous look about her, she had a small grin with one of her brows raised.

She spoke, her tone full of jest, Jack's mother responded as she chuckled softly.

Two boys followed up behind the woman.

They had the same green eyes and brown hair, as the mischievous woman.

One of the boys was older than the other.

He had an air of confidence and Authority.

He wore a tailored suit, it was black and had a red trim.

He crossed his arms as he sighed heavily, his voice filled with dry sarcasm.

The other boy had the same mischievous expression as the woman.

He had a large grin and he wore a simple white button-down shirt and brown pants.

He gently punched the shoulder of the older boy, then with a laugh he gestured towards Jack with a finger point.

The older boy cracked a small smile, but he quickly regained his composure.

Suddenly Jack's attention was drawn away by the finger that had crossed over into his vision.

Instinctively Jack grabbed it.

The finger belonged to the young girl with the purple eyes.

The girl beamed as Jack took hold of her finger.

She spoke in an excited tone, shifting her gaze from Jack to his mother.

His mother nodded, she spoke in a soft tone and smiled.

Suddenly Jack heard loud footsteps approaching the room, every step was a hard thud and was followed by the sounds of metal clacking against each other.

The door slowly crept open, it revealed a man with the same purple eyes as the young girl.

He was adored in light armor that only covered his vitals, and he wore a helmet that had a black plume full of feathers.

On his back was a rifle, and on his hip was a sword.

Underneath his armor, he wore a black and blue uniform.

He stood at the door with a nervous expression.

He fumbled with his fingers as he directed his gaze towards me.

The young girl, whose finger Jack was holding, turned to the man and spoke.

Her voice was full of joy and laughter, she continued to point at Jack and then his mother.

The man nodded as the girl spoke, his gaze never lingered off from Jack.

Suddenly the girl paused, she spoke in a quizzical, yet soft voice.

The man shifted his gaze to face the young girl, he then chuckled nervously.

He spoke in a firm voice, and the entire room was filled with soft chuckles.

The man scratched behind his ear and looked down at his feet.

The mischievous Woman approached the man slowly and kissed him on the cheek.

She then whispered something into his ear, he nodded and began to approach him slowly.

As he reached the bed the young girl took a step back.

The man leaned forward and studied Jack closely.

He smelled of gunpowder and another strange scent, something otherworldly.

He took off one of his gloves and reached a finger towards Jack, he grabbed it.

The man smiled as he grew closer.

He then kissed Jack's forehead.

Ugh, what the hell man?

He grew fussy as released his finger.

The man grew concerned and picked Jack up without a second thought.

He began to bounce jack up and down, speaking in the same unique language as the others.

The man eventually grew into a rhythm, causing Jack to grow increasingly sleepy.

Jack's eyelids grew heavy, the sounds of the room grew increasingly distant and the sound of the man's humming filled his ears.

The man then approached the bed and handed Jack back to his mother.

As Jack nestled in her warm embrace, he felt exhaustion creeping up.

Jack took one last look at the crowd of strangers that surrounded him, their faces a mixture of compassion and affection, a familiar bond you'd feel with a family.

As he fell asleep, he began to wonder whether this was a dream, or if he had been granted a second chance at life.