Drip. Drip. Drip. Drop. Drop. Drop.

The rain was... slow almost.

'It feels almost nice.'

'But that smell ruins it.'

It was a putrid smell. A smell akin to something that has been burnt but on an entirely different level. It burned one's nostrils. It was thick in the air and he began to struggle to breathe. Whoever he was.

Then there was the pain.

"AAAGH," A scream echoed through the air as his throat began to burn. It wasn't his scream. He knew it. It was a child's scream.

'But how could it?' His thoughts stopped as a sharp burning sensation flooded his body. His eyes opened involuntarily and at that moment he got a look at his surroundings.

It was light outside but the sky was dark and cloudy. A rainy day where the land was lit through the small slits of sunlight that escaped the cloud's hold. Though the sight of the sky was interrupted rudely by the cracked ceiling that was seemingly blasted away something that had left deep scorch marks throughout the room.

'I was struck by lightning' He thought through gritted teeth. The pain was becoming unbearable at this point. It had been building up to a level that would have made any child pass out by now. But was he truly a child? The answer was... inconclusive to say the least.

Though his willpower was stronger than his body's endurance he was coming to a close on what could be defined as consciousness. He was on the verge of passing out. The pain began to fade as his vision, in-kind, faded to black. The last thing he could hear before the darkness collected him was a scream.

"Young master! What was that screaming abou- YOUNG MASTER! Call the healers imm-" An older voice said through the haze of the thick cloud of darkness that was claiming him.

---

It was dark wherever he was. That was until a beam of light filled the ever expanse of darkness into a plane of endless white grids. They went into the horizon and he was sure that they would have gone past that seeing the endless nature of this place that he was in.

'Where am I?' His thought echoed through the surroundings and shook the tiles of the floors. His thoughts could be spoken here. It was a strange concept but he was seeing it in front of him.

In the distance, a dark shape was approaching at a speed that could be said to be terrifying.

After bracing his small form to accept what was flying towards him he was surprised to find that nothing had arrived, well at least violently.

He looked down to find a simple desk. It was small in stature and seemed strangely familiar to his mind though he couldn't wrap his mind around where it had come from.

It was made out of a darker wood, polished in a substance that made it shine with a bright luster. A simple chair seemed to welcome him to sit at the desk, posed in a manner that it was facing slightly towards him yet still somewhat at the desk.

'Why does it want me to sit here?' He asked himself before the endless expanse shook once more. It wasn't similar to an earthquake but a ripple that was spreading from him. It was slowly sending waves throughout the expanse and the expanse seemed to react.

The chair slowly moved through the air, picking it up seemingly magically, and scooped his small form up into it and sat him at the desk. In a blink, a simple piece of parchment appeared in front of him on the table and a small quill and inkwell came with it.

The quill slowly floated into the air and dipped itself lightly into the inkwell before beginning to write.

'You are in your mind'

"What?" He asked in the question.

'Your mind'

'You are in your... mindscape.'

As the words were written upon the paper the previous words seemed to disappear.

'Now. What do you need to know sir.' It asked simply as the light scratching sound of the quill against the paper echoed throughout his surroundings.

"I suppose... My name. What is it? I can't seem to recall what it is."

'I see,' It wrote before dabbing itself lightly in the ink well and continued 'Your name is Max. Maxwell Blacklock of the noble Blacklock family underneath the Lock family.'

The information seemed to crash into... Max strangely. He was sure that it wasn't his name but at the same time, he was certain that it was.

---

The questions had continued for a long period of time. It was a back and forth and though the mindscape around him was constantly rippling nothing had appeared since the desk. It called itself his memories and though that seemed strange and absurd it somehow... made sense.

He was... no no... Max was learning at an incredible rate what his life was before the blast. And to say the least it was calming.

Not calming in the typical manner, no I believe the better way to express this particular emotion was relief. Max was relieved that he was in the body he was in.

Max had expected much worse but in his opinion he had hit the jackpot. Something deep within him seemed to say that he should have been in the body of a nobody. An orphan or someone who was poor and under the control of those who mistreated him. Getting bullied perhaps? It didn't really matter now as Max began to finally understand what situation he was really in.

Max wasn't on earth anymore, he was in a place called Arcane, and as the name suggested it was a place of magic and myth. It was filled with different races of people and different branches of magic that could accomplish anything. That alone was a jackpot. Secondly... he was born into a noble family. Not noble in the matter of royalty but of prestige. The family had made a name for themselves and have etched themselves into the world with their bare hands in a matter that couldn't easily be removed.

And the main take away from this was that the Blacklock Family was particularly... loaded. They were the richest family and faction in the continent of Lockthar which said something coming as they were the most wealthy country in the world.

Though the Blacklocks were not the richest faction in the world they were pretty damn close to it.

So yes. Max or who ever was inhabiting his body had hit the jackpot.

---

Max awoke to the light chirping of birds and a soft wash of warm light upon his his skin. He was in a bed that felt almost like air as a feeling of floating overwhelmed him. To say that he was more comfortable in this moment than he had ever been before was not an understatement though Max didn't know for certain since he couldn't really recall his previous lives memories. Though the memories of the body that he was now in were still fresh in his mind.

An herbal smell was wafting through the room and seemed to fill it with a citrus undertone. A light humming began to echo throughout the space in which Max occupied as a woman voice echoed a small nursery rhyme.

"Limbs and Bones may Break and Flail,

But Miss Stones tincture will always prevail!"

Though not clever it brought warmth to Max's heart as he remembered the song from his childhood.

'My childhood? I suppose it is now...' Max thought to himself as a feeling of guilt filled his mind.

Opening his eyes, Max could see the room he was put in to recover and boy was it enchanting.

He was laying flat on a floating matress that was made out of the lightest feathers. The room he was in was a warm orange that was not too distracting on the eyes but still gave a sense of being at home in ones soul. A lady in the later stages of her life was gently standing over a small floating metal tray that was filled with a gentle tea pot and a simple metal/glass bottle that was incredibly small.

The older lady was fairly thin and frail and looked as though she would fall over in a seconds notice yet had a strange amount of vitality as she waved her hands through the air and sang her song. With a shock of browns and greys the simple clothes that adorned her seemed to rustle almost as if being blown in the wind and the red cotton jacket that she wore over her clothes moved in a much more pronounced manner.

"Madam Stone? What are you doing here? Were you not supposed to be away on a trip to The Brokenlands?" Max asked, his voice echoing out in the room in a childlike manner.

Madam Stone seemed to stop in place as her song and magical movements ceased in seconds.

"Maxwell! you are finally awake." Madam Stone said in a voice filled with youth and energy not fitting for a woman of her age.

"One moment!" She said in a hurry before muttering words that quickly became lost in the radiating warmth that was coming from her hands. A light orange glow radiated through the room seemingly warming it to a cozy temperature and before Max knew it she placed her hands gently on the Tea Pot and it awoke with a brilliant shining radiance. A whistle slowly rose from within it and steam gently rose from the spout.

But after a mere moment the act of mystifying magic was over and Max was at a loss. The curiosity and intrigue that had filled him moments before grew more intense by the moment.

'She was chanting something... I seldom see adults cast magic. They treat it as something beneath them since they could do the same without exhausting themselves and by using technology.' Max pondered.

Madam Stone gently picked up the tea pot and gently poured its contents into the metal/glass bottle. Its contents being obscured by the white glass and shining silver metal that it was made out of.

"Now, now child please drink this elixir that I hand made. It... should be good for your health. It is a recipe I learned from a shaman in The Brokenlands."

'Oh no! Not one of her dreaded elixirs!' Max thought in alarm as he shrugged off the light sheets that had entrapped him moments before with warmth and comfort without a second thought and quickly stood up.

"N-No Need Madam Stone. I am all better." Max said and as he stood up, he did in fact feel at the peak of his health.

Though a slight discomfort came from his height it was nothing medically to be concerned of. He just simply felt short in this small body but other than that he felt at home in his new... vessle.

"No No No mister. You won't be getting out of this one." Madam stone said with a glint of curiosity in her eyes.

Max shivered slightly as her eyes scanned him like a scientist scanning a lab rat.

"I am of perfect health Madam! I assure you I am fine." Max said hurriedly as he backed away from the thin old lady.

"Drink it young master." She said sternly as she passed the bottle over to max.

Max gulped and looked down at the potion in front of him.

'Elixirs, also known as potions and concoctions, are magical amalgamations made from the mixture of different materials throughout the magical world in a matter of utmost care and attention. They could cause miraculous things if made properly but could cause horrific side effects if made wrongly.' Max refreshed himself on the information of what was before him before hesitantly downing it.

As the liquid entered his mouth he noticed one peculiar thing. There was no taste. Instead what came was heat. Similar to warm water it drained down his throat and filled his body with a heat slowly. A tingling sensation followed as he slowly turned a shade redder than his normal complection.

He looked down at his found and finally noticed the clothes he was wearing. It was a gentle white robe of sorts that seemed to be made out of the same comfortable material as the bed he was resting in moments before.

His hands were glowing slightly with a red luster and the tingling sensation was akin to pins and needles.

'...What is that?' Max thought as something inside of him began to bubble and boil with energy. Almost as if boiling over, the energy inside of him seemed to grow turbulent and dangerous.

A light spark came from the end of his finger tips that were glowing red.

"Now now, lightning wasn't apart of the intended potion ingredients." Madam Stone tutted as she snapped her fingers and the changes inside of Max quieted down.

"What was it supposed to do Madam Stone? It felt like I was about to explode!" Max said with a voice filled with apprehension.

"Just a simple recovery potion child. Be still and let me examine you closer..." Madam stone said before walking closer with an inense look in her eyes.

'No way I'm letting her get her hands on me again!' Max thought to himself before trying to think of away out of this situation.

'I can't do much since I'm a three year old but at least I can try!'

He looked at his hands that were no longer glowing red and remembered the lightning that was just about to spill out of them.

He raised them in defense and expected whatever magic that was in his body to get him out of here but was surprised when nothing happened and he was in the clutches of Madam Stone once more.