Reincarnation

by Timothy McGowen

  Reincarnation:

  Last Born of Ki’Darth

  Book One

  Timothy McGowen

  Copyright 2020 by Timothy McGowen

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission request, email to timothy-mcgowen1@gmail.com.

  This is a work of fiction. All characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  First Edition: July 2020

  Please support me by leaving a review and visiting my website at https://timothy-mcgowen.com

  Dedication:

  To my wonderful kids and loving wife.

  Other Books by Timothy McGowen:

  Eldritch Knight: Haven Chronicles Book One

  Dead Man’s Bounty

  Coming Soon!

  The Hollow Warrior (A Fantasy Novella) Release Data: August 1st, 2020

  And more to come!

  Chapter One

  I awoke from a distant scream and was immediately upset. My claws dug into the blanket I lay on and I eyed my human sleeping not far away. Well, he didn’t seem concerned, so I definitely didn’t care. I stretched out and opened my jaw in a wide lazy yawn. It was late enough in the day that my favorite spot on the window was most likely bathed in the sun.

  Jumping off the bed with the grace only a cat could manage, I glided out of the dimly lit room and into the great expanse where my humans spend most of their time when awake. I noticed right away that something was wrong. The noisy small human was nowhere to be found. I usually had to dodge her attempts to take me captive, but I was able to reach my windowsill without any resistance.

  Odd.

  Laying out on the warm window’s ledge, the dry paint cracked as my claws pressed into it . My eyes flicked open at the sound of another scream, louder this time and familiar. Why was the smaller human making so much noise? She should know I enjoy my nap around this time, we’ve known each other our whole lives.

  Scanning the vast world beyond the window, I noted the golden fiery colored leaves and yawned again. The perfect time of year, lots of colors, and sunshine. Just as I was getting ready to slip back into my nap, something caught my eye. A dog! I hissed with a mix of annoyance and fear. I’d never seen this mutt before, but I already hated it. It had black hair with white spots and a wide face dragging trash through my humans’ yard.

  The trash screamed. My small human!

  Before I had time to consider what I was doing, I was sprinting and slipping towards the open doorway. What could I do? I wasn’t sure, but no one attacks MY humans! Especially not my small human, I’d raised her from just a little annoying sound-box.

  I slipped past the door and across the yard towards the beast that dared to attack my girl. The air pulled back my long clean fur as I ran, and I squashed a thought of how dirty this was making me. Launching myself into the air with claws out, I connected with the dog’s neck. My claws sunk deep, and it yelped in surprise.

  I lost all sense of self as the world blurred around me. The dog had turned its attention fully on me, and my small human was able to get up. Red blood dripping from her face, enraging me further, and I sunk my teeth into the dog’s neck just as it got its head around and did the same.

  Pain like I’d never felt slammed into me, and I forgot everything. Survival was my only goal, and I clawed out with reckless abandon.

  You won’t kill me, you dumb mutt! Was my last thought before I saw my larger human run out the door holding a long reflective stick. The stick came down on the dog, and it released me. The next few minutes were a mix of pain and crying out. I slipped in and out of consciousness.

  My humans tried to comfort me, but the pain and noise made it impossible.

  “She’ll be okay, Neak’o,” My large human said, “You saved her. I’m so sorry.” His eyes leaked water, and he held me close while keeping a hand on our small human. “I’m so sorry,” he repeated as the pain began to fade and darkness flickered through my vision.

  ***

  Darkness took over everything, and I felt all the pain wash away. As hard as I tried to look around and see where I was, I couldn’t. I yelled out for my human, but my meow made no sound. I realized then that I couldn’t even feel my body. In the distance, a tunnel of light stood out against the stark darkness.

  I became fixated by the light. It was more captivating than the most interesting bobble. As I stared into it, a warmth and joy filled me beyond anything I ever remembered feeling.

  I was dead.

  The sudden realization hit me as I floated through the void towards the pillar of light. My mind felt as if it was expanding, and I began to understand things in a way I had never before. My humans, their names were Jack and Karla. Karla had died giving birth to the smaller human, Izzy. I had thought they were my pets, but I was wrong. I was the pet. Little Izzy had loved me so dearly, would she be okay with me leaving?

  I had to get back. They need me! I can’t leave them. Is Izzy okay? Jack’s last words echoed in my mind, and I knew it must be true. She was okay, and I had saved her.

  While overcome with my new sense of self, I noted that I was no longer heading towards the light. I tried to correct the direction I was going but found I wasn’t in control of my movements. Then the pulling came.

  It felt like the times when Izzy had pulled on my tail, except much harder than anything even she had managed. A flare of golden light overtook the darkness, and I found myself sitting and Jack standing over me.

  Except it wasn’t Jack. He looked very similar, but the eyes were wrong. They glowed with a faint white light and held a depth beyond Jack’s understanding. He also wore very strange clothing. Long white robes with golden tassels arranged throughout. Despite the strangeness of the situation, I found that I had to fight down the urge to swipe at one of the swinging tassels.

  “Neak’o,” The voice said, it was deep and rich. A voice like none other I ever remembered hearing, “You did an amazing thing. I wouldn’t have thought your spirit capable.”

  Did he expect me to answer? How do I tell him that I don’t know how to speak, I wonder? Then without meaning to, I spoke, “I can’t speak.”

  The tall, brown-haired man with glowing eyes just smiled and nodded his head for me to continue.

  “Oh,” I said, surprised at what or how I was doing what I was doing, “Well then there’s that. I had to save my child.” I paused, considering. “Well, not my child, but my friend, at least.”

  “What?” The man tilted his head, not unlike I had as a cat when confused by the actions of my humans, “Oh that! No, no, yes, that deed was great, but I speak of obtaining enlightenment. You expanded your mind in the mere moments you had before your soul was pushed to the next phase of life. But I am being rude, allow me introduce myself.” The well-groomed man pushed his robes aside and tilted himself down in a low sweeping bow. “My name is Hakarus, the god of Knowledge.”

  “Hakarus?” I echoed back. What did he mean when he said I’d reached enlightenment? I hadn’t tried to do anything of the sort.

  “Yes?” The same grin swept onto Hakarus’s face as he looked me up and down with searching eyes. “I would surmise that the act of heroism enabled you to expand your mind upon death, but still, it would take a great spirit to do it in the
time it takes to travel between planes of existence. And so, I have a proposal for you! I want you to be my champion!”

  Chapter Two

  “You have the wrong feline,” I said, standing. I was standing upright I realized and looked down to inspect myself, except there wasn’t much to see. I had the general form of a human, but instead of solid pink, brown, or any color in-between, I was golden wisps of smoke that constantly shifted about. How was I even able to speak, I was basically see-through.

  “This is a tremendous honor,” Hakarus said, seemingly not hearing me at all, “Let me explain a bit of the logistics to you and get you prepped for the next phase.” He continued, but I stopped listening.

  I tried to distract myself by examining the room and then the chair I must have been sitting on but was unable to find either. Just an endless expanse of white in all directions. I needed to find a way out of here, and standing around was gaining me nothing, so I began to walk.

  A throat clearing behind me made me jump, and my hairs stand on end, or at least they would have stood on end if I was anything more than a wispy light form. I turned to hiss at Hakarus, who, strangely, stood exactly the same distance away from me as when I began to walk away.

  “What are you doing?” Hakarus asked. I jumped backward, keeping my distance from the self-proclaimed god.

  “Leaving,” I said back and scanned the horizon again. There must be an exit somewhere. “I am not a champion or hero. I am a cat, and I am going back to my home, where I will find a warm window to sunbathe in and sleep the rest of my life away.”

  “You are no more a cat now than I am,” Hakarus said, his grin widening as he spoke. He obviously found my predicament entertaining. “I can’t force you, but If you leave here, the only place you will be heading is an unknown oblivion, but if you are into taking chances, be my guest cat, go travel into the light. Just remember, there is no returning. I can offer you a chance to live on, but it is up to you.”

  “Let’s say I don’t leave,” I began to say while pacing around the god, like a foe I was preparing to spring on top of, “What does it mean to be your champion?”

  “I don’t choose many champions,” Hakarus began, “In fact, I think I can count on one hand the ones I have picked, recently.” He held up a hand that had far more than the normal few digits Neak’o had seen on all humans. “So, when I say you will be my champion, you should feel honored.”

  “You haven’t answered my question,” I responded while stifling a yawn, my stance became more neutral as I studied the god man. He needed me for something, and that meant I had the leverage. I may not have the mind of a cat anymore, but I hadn’t lost any of the natural cunnings that came with being a cat.

  “Here’s the truth,” Hakarus said, his shoulders slumping. He turned and sat mid-air being held up by nothing. “I am already breaking the rules slightly. I am supposed to give you a boring speech about being special and then ask for a simple yes or no, but I need you.” He paused, and his glowing eyes dimmed, and I could swear that it was my Jack. The same Jack who had struggled to pull himself together and care for our little Izzy. He began to speak again and pulled me out of my memories. “I can’t tell you more, not yet at least.”

  “What can you tell me?” I asked. My annoyance melted away with the sight of Jack. Well, not Jack but someone who looked a lot like him.

  “Nothing more,” Hakarus began, “Unless you agree. Then I can share so much more with you!” Hakarus clamped his hands over his mouth. Apparently, he had said too much. I watched as he looked around the vast white expanse, clearly afraid that something was about to jump out at him. When nothing did, he visibly relaxed.

  “You win,” I sighed, “I agree to be your champion.” I know I am going to live to regret this.

  “Wonderful!” He exclaimed, “I’ve got quite a bit to tell you, so sit and relax.”

  “Great,” I said back, sitting mid-air just as he was.

  “You have been chosen for reincarnation. When you leave me, you will be given a choice of several species of humanoids to pick from. I cannot tell you which one to pick. For instance, I would get in trouble if I told you to pick the Ki’darthians. Or explain how their race is born the equivalent age of your former planet’s teenagers. And an extreme example of what I cannot tell you is how their physiology can adapt to extremes with ease and are long-lived. None of this can I tell you or suggest. Do you follow.” If Hakarus was actually sitting in a chair, he would have fallen out of it from how far forward he was leaning. He was nodding his head slowly and repeatedly winking, while occasionally glancing to the horizon.

  “I think I understand,” I said sarcastically while mimicking his nodding and winking. For the god of knowledge, he really lacked polished social skills. I motioned for him to continue, worried I’d be stuck here for the next hundred years while he nodded and winked at me.

  “Good,” Hakarus said, “As long as we understand each other. I can tell you; I will be sending you a boon to help you on your journey. I am also to command you to seek out strength, wisdom, and knowledge. Not necessarily in that order.”

  “So, you are telling me that I am going to get to pick what species I am?” I asked, “Does that mean I picked to be a cat?”

  “No,” Hakarus said, he paused and leaned forward. His eyes flashed, and his grin reappeared on his face, “You are a first-generation spirit, intriguing. This will be your first reincarnation.”

  “Anything else I should know,” I said, doing my best to keep my annoyance at the situation out of my voice, “I mean, after I find some strength, wisdom, and knowledge.” I mimicked his voice but failed to achieve his level of haughtiness.

  “There is much more,” Hakarus said. If he noticed my attempt at making fun of him, he showed no sign. “You won’t remember any of this after being reborn, so I am trying to keep it simple. That way, maybe it’ll seep deeper into your mind.”

  “If I won’t remember, then why can’t you tell me everything?” I asked what seemed like an obvious question.

  Hakarus’s face seemed to consider this, but he just shrugged. “You shouldn’t remember, but what if something seeps through, and then one of the higher gods decide to remove you from the game?” Hakarus froze mid-arm wave, and his hand clasped tightly over his mouth again. “Whoops,” He finally said beneath his hands.

  “High gods? Game? Are you telling me that this is all just som—” I wasn’t able to get the words out before the world of white light shifted, and Hakarus faded away into nothingness. Like sand shifting in an endless desert, the white morphed to golden orange then to a sapphire blue, before finely solidifying into a vast expanse of black.

  Had I just messed up? I wasn’t exactly ecstatic to become some god’s puppet but floating in endless darkness wasn’t my idea of a great time either. Sunbathing and napping, now that would be a good day.

  Suddenly the world shifted again, and I felt my feet, or the wispy appendages I used for feet, press down on something solid. I looked down and was surprised to see a dimly lit stone floor below me. A surprisingly dirty floor, I lifted one leg in a vain attempt not to dirty more of myself before laughing. I was a vaguely humanoid wispy cloud; I couldn’t even get dirty.

  “You have been chosen for reincarnation,” A voice echoed above me said, “I cannot answer your questions regarding this matter. Please pick a race and begin your journey. I can give you simple information to help you make this decision. Choose now!”

  Chapter Three

  I watched as thousands upon thousands of strange humanoid shapes faded into existence all around. As far as the eye could see; feet, tails, oddly shaped heads, and various sized eyes all looked in my direction.

  A faint memory of a documentary my human, Jack, had watched flashed through my mind. At the time, it was no more than noise and flashing images, but my new mind formed it as a show about Chinese history. These
different races, all arrayed in lines, reminded me of the Terracotta Armies that old Emperors of China had built to guard them in the afterlife.

  I walked up to the closest one to me. Long legs with a small waist, broad chest and a too-large head looked down at me. The eyes were large dark pools of black. If I still had hairs, they would be standing on edge, looking at the thing. Instead of skin like humans, it had large oversized scales that overlapped each other. The hands came to a point like a tentacle.

  “Species 5921,” The voice spoke echoing in the room, “They call themselves Ikatoian. They live on a planet of vast endless oceans and spend the majority of their time in a saltwater mixture. Do you wish to be reincarnated as a champion to the Ikatoians?”

  I felt and sensed more than saw that this decision would be permanent. It was almost as if a menu had popped up in my subconscious, and I could reach out and pick yes or no. I focused on my desired answer, and sure enough, the voice spoke again.

  “You have chosen not to be born as an Ikatoian. Please choose another species.”

  “Show me the,” I paused, trying to recall the name that Hakarus had given me. I was trying so hard to be aloof that I had barely been listening. “Show me the species known as Ki’darthians.”

  Nothing happened at first. Even the voice remained silent until finally, it echoed forth.

  “Very well.”

  Like smoke being blown away, the army of creatures evaporated. Then a far-off singular form came rushing towards me. I had to pat myself on the back after not jumping when noticing the fast-moving body.

  “This is a Ki’darthian,” The voice said, “They reside on the planet Ki’darth, fourth in the binary system of the Ruezel cluster. One of a dozen in the system that supports intelligent life.”

  I stepped forward to examine the body. Although obviously alien, this body was far less strange than the one I had examined before. A small loincloth hung around its waist, but otherwise, it stood naked. The skin was devoid of any hair and colored a smooth ivory white with patches of darkened ivory on the shoulder, elbows, knees, and a section of the chest. A faint sapphire blue could be seen in the creases of the rough-looking patches of skin. I walked around the body and noticed several rough patches on the back, feet, and head.