Ascension Rebirth - My past and purpose

CHAPTER XVI

(Just a little heads up. The contents of this chapter happens a few years into the future from the current story's timeline. Personally I like to keep things chronological but I feel like if I don't write this now I'll forget. Consider this chapter a flash forward.) :P

PART ONE

[Eternum Calendar Year 499]

Do you believe in reincarnation?

That a person can be reborn and be given a second chance to finish off whatever they could not in their previous life.

Personally I do not think such miraculous events ever happen.

However, I often have dreams. Dreams of a life and past that were not mine.

I do not completely remember the contents of the life of that person but I am able to see small snippets in that person's experience.

The most recent dream I had involved the person's death. It was a most brutal end. As they died they regretted not being able to fulfil their given purpose in that life.

It is a feeling that I cannot even begin to understand.

Am I tormented by the dreams I have?

Honestly, I don't know. Sometimes those dreams are gentle, about a small family. However at other times those dreams involve many wars and deaths.

Oh, how rude of me to have not introduced myself sooner.

My name is Fionn.

But a humble country maiden of the Elven race.

I'm actually only supposed to be three years old this year but due to the dreams I've had ever since birth I've become more aware of myself.

I realized that my own mentality has developed way faster than it should normally have. My friend says that I act rather odd and sometimes distant.

Then again, they're also only three years old.

I live with my mother in a border village called [Amui Village] in west Ariadyne. My father was killed just before I was born so I do not know his face. Mother hardly talks about him so I've decided to keep it at that.

There is no use to drag out old wounds.

There are only few children here so I've only had the honor of making a single friend.

I also love my mother a great deal.

However at times I feel like I'm missing something. I feel like there is a purpose that I need to fulfill, that I need to be somewhere else and with another person.

It is an odd and cryptic feeling. Even if I decided to go along with my intuition I do not know where to even start.

I've had these thoughts ever since birth, and for three years I've kept it at bay but recently those urges grow stronger. It oft scares me.

Perhaps one day I will be completely taken in by those urges and disappear from this place.

Alas, for now I will continue hold back those desire and live peacefully with my mother and peers.

PART TWO

"Fionn! It's time to go~"

My childhood friend has arrived to pick me up.

Our family isn't exactly wealthy thus we must periodically draw water from the nearby spring. Though it is a hard and tedious task I must do it with a smile. Everyone in the village works hard so it would not be proper for me to become a burden.

My mother is also up, she usually starts to prepare breakfast and is usually done by the time I am back with the water.

"Fionn, be careful out there, I hear the monsters have been acting up recently."

"I understand mother, do not fret I will do my utmost to ensure my and Lara's safety."

Lara is the name of my childhood friend. She's the same age as me but is a little too childish if you ask me.

Mother gives me a soft smile to signify she has understood.

I must not worry her needlessly, those are my truest thoughts.

Upon leaving my house I am greeted by a small child. I say small but she is pretty much the same size as me.

She has blonde silky hair that reaches down to her waist and her eyes are a clear blue. Though she is childish, I do find her cute.

Compared to my plain brown hair and brown eyes I feel like I am at a loss.

"You're late. We were supposed to leave 10 minutes ago!"

"Sorry, I must have slept in."

Rather than sleeping in, the frequency the dreams occur has increased. In the past I had only happened once or twice per month but recently it has happened every night.

As for the content, they all involve a certain dark blue sword. I do not know what omen it brings, nor do I even understand what is about, all I can say is that it was ominous.

I try to avoid thinking about it as much as possible. It only distracts me from my work.

…

…

The spring that we draw water from is only a small distance from the village. Since it is not too deep in the forest it is not very dangerous, the only monsters that appear are harmless slimes.

"Oof!"

We drew two full buckets of water but it seems that it was a little too heavy for Lara's small stature.

I, on the other hand had never any problems with heavy things. In fact it was a little uncanny even for myself the amount of strength that I possess. Since it helps me with daily tasks like this I haven't really found a complaint for it.

"Here, let me carry it."

I offer help to Lara who is struggling but she shakes her head.

"No, I can do this much. I don't always want to be receiving help from you."

"Don't be stubborn, we need to help each other at times like this. Next time when I need help you can help me."

She thinks for a bit before she concedes.

"Okay."

So with me carrying three buckets of water and Lara carrying only one we decided to head back to the village.

However on the way back I've noticed something a little odd coming from the direction of the village.

Or rather, above the town was a strange object.

It was a gigantic yellow crystal.

It was the first time I've seen such a thing. It was rather beautiful and awe-inspiring.

Was there something going on the village?

"What's that?"

Lara asks me but I have no idea either.

"Let's go check it out."

PART THREE

Upon arrival it was nothing like what we imagined.

The entire town was under attack!

Immediately we dropped the buckets of water we carrying. They were the least of our problems.

The village was under attack but not by monsters or anything else. We were attacked by our own inhabitants, or more specifically, some of the villagers had strange yellow crystals mutating them.

They were driven berserk and attacked anyone on sight. It was a stark contrast from the beautiful yellow crystal.

Upon witnessing such a scene Lara instantly lost consciousness.

"Mother!"

I suddenly remembered and ran to my house while carrying Lara on my back.

Upon returning what entered my sight was despair.

Mother was waiting for me but it was not the mother I knew.

She too had a yellow crystal growing out of her back. Her eyes were now filled with black and looked extremely terrifying.

When my mother saw me she jumped straight at me without even a moment's hesitation.

I managed to avoid her attacks even with an unconscious Lara on my back.

As much as it pained me I think it would be best to leave this place.

I dashed out of the house without trying to look back.

Tears flowed from my eyes. My family was now gone too.

Just to make sure I also visited Lara's home but the same scene awaited me there. Her parents were also mutated from the strange crystals.

The best course of action for now was to run away and hide in the nearby forest until help arrives, however the problem was when and if help will ever arrive.

We could very well just be locking ourselves up in the forest and starve to death.

Upon my hesitation to make a choice we were now surrounded.

Surrounded by familiar faces of our village, my own mother was in the mix.

Was this the end?

"Awaken child."

Before I knew it a strange voice entered my head. The voice was that of an old man's, it was a nostalgic voice but at the same time it was an unfamiliar one.

Awaken? Awaken to what?

"To survive you must awaken."

Even if you tell me that how am I supposed to do that?

While I pondered that for a moment I lost consciousness. However that period of me losing my consciousness felt like an eternity.

"Call out to the sword."

The sword?

The sword that was in my dreams?

Even if I wanted to do that, how am I to call out to a sword of which the name I know not?

"You must call out to the cursed sword. Muramasa."

I wasn't sure who was giving me these instructions but I suppose I had no choice.

The villagers were drawing closer and I had no other choice.

"T, then I'll call out to you! Answer me! Muramasa!"

After speaking its name there was a huge burst of energy from within me.

It knocked away the approaching villagers and covered Lara and I in a protective blue light.

From the sky, slow descending, was a blue and black sword. It had a curved structure, the likes of which I have never seen in this land.

Gently it fell down and onto my hands.

It was longer than my height but with my unnatural strength I should be able to wield it as a two handed sword…

As I touched the sword my mind went blank.

Memories flooded in.

Memories of a life I've never had.

The experiences of a certain individual and their greatest regrets.

I see, it all made sense now.

Reincarnation. I've never truly believed such a thing. Even now I don't fully believe it but the evidence was undeniable.

My unnatural self-awareness and strength. The memories and regret.

I've remembered what I needed to do.

I must find the young master.

Death here would be unfavourable.

I placed Lara down gently on the floor and held Muramasa in my hands.

The villagers started running towards me. It was a hard choice but one I needed to make.

With a single swing I managed to behead one of the villagers.

With another swing I severed their torsos from their bodies.

One by one the villagers fell.

However to my surprise the villagers did not die. The dragged their severed bodies and continued to attack.

They did not possess any sort of regenerative properties but the way they were so adamant about ending my life was a little uncanny.

I fought them off for what seemed like several hours but they showed no signs of stopping.

At this rate I could not continue on and will succumb to their attacks.

Fortunately for me it was at that moment reinforcements arrived.

Though I say reinforcements it was only two people. A woman and a child.

The woman had platinum white hair and crimson eyes. A single scare running down past her left eye revealed her battlefield history.

She blew away the villagers with fire based magic. Because even the corpses were disintegrated they did not have a chance to revive.

The child accompanying her was a little older than me. She had silky black hair that reached passed her waist and the same blood red eyes as the woman. She was about 7 years old.

The woman was fully armoured but oddly enough she used magic to blast away the villagers.

"Are you okay?"

The young child came up to ensure we were safe.

"Y, yes. Do you know what happened to the villagers?"

If it were them, they may know of what was happening to this village.

"I'll explain it later, for now come with us."

"I understand."

Muramasa disappeared from my hands. Since I knew its name I was able to summon it later if the time comes.

I picked up Lara's unconscious body and decided to go with my rescuers.

PART FOUR

The white haired woman was able to use various forms of magic. One such magic involved infusing us with [lightning] magic to allow us to move faster.

Thanks to that we were able to escape the hell that was unleashed on the village.

"We should be safe here Soumee."

After coming to a small open area we stopped. It was a good thing too since I was feeling the effects of continued fighting.

"Then I shall go destroy the crystal."

"Yes, please do."

Without even resting for a second the white haired woman whose name was 'Soumee' ran back in the direction of the village.

"You're quite impressive that you managed to last so long in such a place."

As she says that she looks at me with intense concentration. I don't know what she saw but she has a surprised look on her face.

"Hmm? Level 39?"

She whispers something under her breath.

"Thank you for rescuing us."

"Ah, no it's no problem. It's my job after all."

"Job?"

"That's right, I'm part of a special forces group that deals with phenomenon relating to those crystals."

"Special forces? Do you mean like the [Praetorian knights]?"

"Ah, erm. Something like that."

This girl was considerably young but she had an amazing position. Even though I haven't seen her fight I feel a formidable air from around her.

"How about you? You managed to hold up for so long, where did you learn to fight like that?"

"…"

Indeed, where did I learn it?

The answer was simple, I learnt it in my previous life, on the battlefield.

In my previous life I was a soldier named [Sebastian] who lived for nothing but battle. In the end I became a butler to a small noble family but due to my weakness they had all perished.

All except a single person.

The young master [Morgant Fallon]. He is a person that I must go to.

All of those urges that I had in my dreams were all pointing me in that direction.

However the problem was I knew not where he was.

"I learnt it from my father."

I lied, but forgive me, it would be much more troublesome to speak the truth.

"I see, your father must have been a great warrior."

My father. The father of [Sebastian] was of a demon race. It is likely he is alive even to this day, perhaps he is serving as a general to the demon lord, who knows.

It was half true that I learnt the sword from him.

"What do you plan on doing now? If you have nowhere to go you can always come with me."

The girl asked me and offered a place to stay, truly a nice girl. Alas it was vital for me to locate the young master.

"I appreciate the offer but there is someone I must find. However my friend no longer has a home or family to return to, if you do not mind please look after her."

"I see. I will arrange for that, but are you sure? For someone so young to go off alone. I know that you're strong but still-"

"Lady Liliana, I've returned. I was unable to locate the [Red Knight's acolyte] that was responsible for this event."

"[Red knights]?"

I subconsciously let out.

A familiar name. Or rather such characteristics are memorable from the moment of my death.

"Do you know of them?"

The young girl, named Liliana asked. She had a serious expression on her face.

"I do not know of them but they are an enemy that I must defeat."

"…? What do you mean?"

"It is a personal matter. Simply put, it is vengeance. If you are fighting them then please let me join. Perhaps with your help I may also be able to find the one I am looking for. I know this is a selfish request but I will lend you my sword in exchange."

I bowed to them. If it was the sake of finding the young master and avenging the Fallons then I will do anything. Even with this small body of mine.

"I see, someone of your skills will be truly appreciated. We will help you in every way we can and in exchange you will fight with us."

"You have my gratitude."

My purpose in life.

I have failed to fulfil it in my previous existence but I was given another chance to accomplish what I needed to do.

Please wait for me young master. I will come to you soon.