Darkness. Complete and absolute. I floated in a black void, my consciousness adrift, until a sphere of light punctured the nothingness.

Am I dead?

The memory hit me like a physical blow—the cold bite of steel through my back, the sword piercing my heart. Levin's betrayal. That bastard.

The void shifted, dissolved, transformed. A ceiling materialized above me, and suddenly I was staring up at wooden beams. Wait. Am I... reborn? With my memories intact?

"It's a boy," a woman's voice announced, warm and tired.

"Yeah." A man's response, accompanied by a proud grin.

I focused my new eyes on the woman—my mother now, I supposed. Black hair framed a beautiful face, her amber eyes bright despite her exhaustion. Another woman spoke up: "Sir, can I go now?"

"Yes, you can," the man—my father—replied. He had the build of a swordsman, all lean muscle and careful posture. Blue eyes, auburn hair. 'Well, Mother, I can see why you married him.'

My eyelids grew heavy, an infant's body demanding sleep. 'Wait. Aren't newborns supposed to cry? Shit. They're going to think something's wrong with me—'

Darkness claimed me before I could finish the thought.

I awoke to my mother's face hovering above me. "Good morning, my dear Cape!"

"Bwaah," I managed, frustrated by my inability to form words despite understanding everything they said.

"Dear! He spoke!" Mother's excitement was palpable.

Father appeared beside her. "Say 'papa!' Come on, papa!"

'You can't be serious.'

"He was just born, you know," Mother chided, but her voice held laughter.

Father chuckled. "Yeah, I know. Just joking."

The room, though modest and wooden, spoke of comfortable living. Not nobility, but certainly not poverty either. My assessment was interrupted by a rather embarrassing biological necessity, and I finally gave them the crying they'd been expecting. "Bwwaaa! Bwwaaa!"

"Time to change Calpe," Mother said, moving to attend to my needs.

Sleep claimed me again, and I found myself back in the void. But this time, something was different.

A woman's voice, soft as silk but powerful as thunder, filled the darkness. "So your name is Capell? The pretty name you got there, you know."

"Who are you?" I demanded. "Where am I? Did I die again? What is this place?"

"So many questions," the voice replied, amused. "I am what you might call a god, or deity—whatever term you prefer. I brought you to this world, one quite different from your own. Here, magic and aura exist, unlike your previous world with its fighting spirit and ki."

The void blazed with white light. "You're very much alive," she continued. "This is merely your consciousness."

"Why me? What do you want?"

"This realm is threatened by other gods who seek to control it. Some have already manifested on a distant continent. I need your help."

I scoffed. "How can a mere human fight gods?"

"I and five other gods tried to stop them. We failed. I alone survived, though not for long." Her voice grew urgent. "I will grant you my power, though you cannot use it until you prove worthy. When the time comes, you'll understand more. I've left something else for you as well. Grow stronger than you were in your previous life, Nova."

The name—my old name—sent a shiver through me. "Thank you for this second chance. I won't repeat my past mistakes. I can't promise to save the world, but I'll protect those dear to me and do what I can to stop these gods. That much, I swear."

"Thank you, child," she whispered, her voice fading with the void.

My new life had begun, and this time, I had a purpose beyond mere survival. This time, I had a destiny.