Death's Favorite Child

5. Introspection

The Captain sat down and started meditating. He needed to get stronger quickly. He was not delusional as to believe that the confrontation with the boy's uncle was over. The boy's body was still weak.

The sanitarium was at the capital outskirts. The trip to the family territory would take 7 days with a good horse. There would be obstacles. Some of them would be put there by his uncle. Once at the territory, he expected resistance. Nobody relinquishes power voluntarily.

But strength was right there for him to grasp. Last week the boy realized the meaning of the God of Death's words:

I'll send you to a new world, reborn, but with powers, you never dreamed of!

While the Captain was training this new body, he realized it possessed strange powers. Mystic powers that were in the realm of mythology back on Earth. He didn't uncover all the potential yet and he was now meditating to solidify his progress.

This body could extrude a mist-like substance and instantly create a black foggy domain around him. Inside his domain, he could move freely and instantaneously like teleporting and he could sense the location and actions of every living creature. Within this domain, he couldn't be harmed by swords or physical weapons and he could manipulate most of the natural laws -- light, wind, temperature, even gravity could be manipulated. He was like a God. However, his domain now only had a 10 meters radius around him. He knew that with hard training he could extend to cover a larger area.

Another power he possessed was the ability to create daggers and spears made of darkness out of his hands. He could freely change their shape and size with a single thought and make them appear or disappear at will. These weapons couldn't touch the physical world but would attack the soul itself. A simple nick from one of the dark weapons would cause the creature's soul to be sucked into their void. Letting go of the weapons would make them disappear, so throwing moves were removed from his arsenal.

Finally, he could 'will' wings to extend from his back. However, these wings seemed useless. They were ugly and naked, like a plucked chicken, and could not be used for flying or fighting. Maybe in the future he would find the reason behind this pathetic appearance.

There was also another thing...

'Hey Captain, is now a good time to talk?', the familiar voice in his mind asked bringing him out of his meditation.

"Can't you see I'm meditating, Jon?", the Captain responded irritated.

'But you told me not to talk to you when we are near people. So, now is the most convenient time!'

"Yes, because talking to you makes me look crazy in front of people", the Captain added.

'Hey Cap, sorry to break it to you. But you are a 20-something man in the body of a 10-year old boy talking to a ghost in your mind that died on another planet and that you somehow dragged through the reincarnation/transmigration process with you. Oh, you apparently met the God of Death and the Goddess of Life... The crazy ship sailed long ago...'

"Mmmm", grumbled the boy, only to make the voice in his mind giggle.

Apparently, the voice in his mind traveled with him through the reincarnation process. This voice was Jon, a genius engineer in Captain's old team back on Earth. When his team was betrayed by the organization he served all his life and they were set to be slaughtered, only the Captain managed to survive. When he woke up after his team was annihilated, he could somehow hear Jon's voice in his head and they have been together ever since. In the beginning, the Captain thought he was crazy. Obviously, the injuries he received and the shock of losing his entire team - his only family - made him lose his mind.

However, he quickly realized that this consciousness inside him had knowledge he himself couldn't possibly possess. Engineering concepts and computer skills that the technology-illiterate Captain never acquired. Also, there were memories about Jon's life and family that he had never shared with anyone. The Captain soon accepted that Jon's consciousness somehow piggybacked on his soul after death.

Back on Earth, they had planned and executed the destruction of the organization together. Using their combined abilities, they had spent months dissecting the organization alive. They had stolen and redirected financial assets, assassinated political supporters, sabotaged missions to make the organization look weak, released secrets to the organization's enemies at critical points, and finally moved into direct conflict leading up to the final assault on the Paris headquarters. They were together until the end -- and, as it seems, beyond.

'So, when are we picking up the sister?', asked Jon.

They both knew that the boy's sister was a weakness, a liability that could be exploited in the upcoming confrontation. They needed to secure her.

"We'll leave for the capital tomorrow. After we secure some money, we will find her at the boarding school. We'll talk to her and explain what is happening. She needs to make up her mind and decide on her own.", Captain responded.

'Hey Cap. Do you think my sister back on Earth is still alive?', Jon asked with a shaking voice.

"We never found her after...", the Captain added with his voice breaking up as well.

'We need... We can't fail... Not again...'

"I know, Jon. We will not fail. Not this time," the Captain said swiftly before returning to his meditation.

They both discussed the option of abandoning the whole nobility and succession problem and making a fresh start. They didn't have any connection to the boy's family or to the Barony. Why should they fight to earn the obligation of managing a territory and be responsible for other people? Also, there were the politics, court, scheming... too much trouble. They could easily make a living as mercenaries or adventurers and live free of all obligations.

But, there was the sister, Helena... The only living blood family of this boy except for the uncle. If the boy disappeared, she would probably spend all her life wondering where her brother was and if he was alive. Her future life prospects would also be grim with her Uncle as the Baron...

Apparently, she sent letters to the boy every month. Even though she knew that nobody would read them. She talked about being alone but hopeful. About how their Uncle paid only for the tuition fees but no stipend, so she had to get a job as a waitress at an inn. This would blemish her reputation as a noble girl for the rest of her life. She talked about the bullying she received from the other kids for being a poor orphan.

The Captain could see how her letters changed month to month. Hard life lessons she learned would sip through her writing style. The rose glasses she wore shuttered and all the shards pierced her heart. She was 9 years old, only a year younger than the boy. Also, the same age as Jon's sister would have been...

Finally, there was not much of a decision to make.