Rebirth

Jack's world was full of darkness.

Unending and ever-present.

His only companion were the thoughts racing through his mind.

Is this death?

If this was death, then it's a lot different than what Jack expected.

Where were the fiery pits of hell or the pearly white gates of heaven?

Was this all there was?

An ocean of eternal darkness?

His mind hopped from question to the next, until eventually he realized it was pointless.

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

He never grew hungry, felt pain, and 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 were crushing his head, the force applied continued to increase.

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 as a cold sensation circulated his body causing him to shiver.

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

His body was quickly covered with a warm blanket.

It was soft with a fuzzy texture like that of cotton or wool.

Jack then felt what seemed to be hands drawing him closer.

But to what?

There was a wave of murmuring and whispering along with 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 and random shapes surrounded Jack in a dimly lit room.

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

What the hell?

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

It was a strange woman.

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

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

Her ears were shaped like small cones that were cut vertically from the base of the ear to the tip, growing thinner.

Her hair was long and blonde, 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. 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 looked tired, as if they'd been working for hours.

The woman with the golden eyes began to speak.

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

Yet her tone was soft.

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 and exited the room.

She 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.

She began to gather tools and clothes, 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 blue wallpaper, and 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.

He shifted his gaze upwards toward the ceiling. It was high and white with a chandelier hanging high.

Encompassing the room in a dim light.

There were a few shelves full of books, along with 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 scanning the room until the woman with the ponytail returned.

In her company, she brought along three others.

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, 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.

The golden-eyed woman responded with a soft chuckle.

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 slightly older than the other.

He had an air of confidence and Authority.

He wore a tailored suit, which 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 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 a finger that had crossed into his vision.

Instinctively he 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 followed by the sounds of metal clacking.

Soon the door slowly crept open, revealing a man with the same purple eyes as the young girl.

He was adored in light armor that only covered his vitals, along with 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, fumbling with his fingers as he directed his gaze towards Jack.

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

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

The man nodded as the girl spoke, his gaze never lingering far from Jack.

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

The man shifted his gaze to face the young girl, 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, and he nodded and began to approach Jack 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, who grabbed it.

The man smiled as he grew closer.

He then kissed Jack's forehead.

Jack grew fussy as he released his finger.

Ugh, what the hell man?

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.

As his 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 the woman.

As Jack nestled in her warm embrace, he felt his 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 Jack fell asleep he began to wonder, was this was a dream, or if he had been granted a second chance at life?