Tale of Discovery

Chapter 4: Path

What should I do from here on out? I have no idea where to start. How do I even get stronger? Work out? Wait, no that's not what I should be contemplating right now. Think about what transpired in the past few hours. I observed some chap riding a dragon and battling with winged humans. He summoned flames out of thin air and slaughtered everyone. Was that even real?

"Do you have any additional questions?", a voice in my head interrupts my thought process.

I have so many questions, that I don't even know which one I should go ahead and ask. She did mention that the imprint she left on me will go away, limiting the number of questions I can ask...

"I wish I could just interact with her whenever I want to...", I murmur almost inaudibly.

"It's possible.", came an unexpected reply.

Great! Am I finally going to have all the confusion built up within me cleared up?

"You simply have to establish a spiritual connection with me. Once that's done, it would be possible for you to speak with me telepathically. Sharing your sight and senses with me should also be possible.", she explains.

"So, how do we establish this connection that you speak of?" , I inquire.

"It's simple. Leave the Rift, and get into contact with my spiritual body. I will take care of the rest from there.", she replies.

"What's the Rift, and how do I leave it?" , I ask her back.

"The Rift is... There isn't much time for me to explain it to you right now. You only need to chant '' in your mind.", she replies a little hurriedly.

Ok, let's do this - . (= something like 'leave' in Greek.)

The next moment, my vision blacks out, as I feel my strength wash away from my body. I find myself in the infinitely-extending white space I found my "guardian angel" at, the first time.

There she goes again, materializing in front of me.

"Let's get this done quickly, as your body in the Rift is unconscious right now.", she says.

Wait, why didn't she warn me about it earlier if that's the case? I would've moved my body to somewhere comfy so that it would seem like I'm sleeping. I've already worried the silver-haired girl enough for today. Back to the topic at hand...

"Are you Juno?" , I ask her.

"Yes.", she affirms.

The guy, what was his name again? Ah, Janus, had mentioned it in the 'message' he had left me.

"So, what do we do now?" , I ask her curiously.

Juno moves towards me and stops about one foot away. She then proceeds to turn around and sit on her knees, and then says with her back to me,

"Do what I did, and put your back to mine."

I do as she told me to and sit behind her. A few seconds after I've done that, I feel some sort of connection being established. I assume it's the spiritual connection that she spoke of. It feels very weird. It's like I can feel what she feels, and think what she thinks. I can feel my emotions through her. This is a lot more bizarre than what I was expecting.

"Now that the connection has been established, I suggest that you return to the Rift as soon as possible. Getting familiar with your physical body and getting stronger should be your top priorities right now.", she informs.

"To return to the Rift, you should make contact with your physical brain over there. Simply put, you have to think of returning to your body.", she continues.

I do what she says, and imagine making contact with the body that should be unconsciously lying down on the ground right now.

Then next instant, I find myself back in my body, lying on the ground on my back. I get up from the ground and get on my feet.

I take a look at the window and realize that it's already dark outside. Surely, I must have been unconscious for a while.

I take a look at the girl that is still sleeping by the bed. After hesitating a little, I move closer to her and reach out to her face. Stroking her cheek, I feel its softness through the tip of my fingers.

She visibly flinches a little. A few seconds later, she slowly opens her eyes. She seems to be a little dazed in the beginning, but suddenly, as if remembering something, she gets up abruptly and looks at the bed.

Seeing the empty bed, she panics and turns around, making eye contact with me.

With tears building up in the corner of her eyes, she jumps into my chest and starts weeping silently.

"Don't leave too. Don't be like dad and mom and leave me as well. Idiot!", she exclaims softly as tears roll down her cheeks.

I don't know the reason, but I suddenly have a feeling of loss building up within me. Almost instinctively, I embrace her back. Are these the emotions of my current body? Must be. The affection held for the fragile girl is by no means small. I can practically feel a surge of emotions flowing within me... Sorrow, grief, and many others that I've never felt before in my previous life.

This girl... the death of her parents must've taken a toll on her mentality. Thinking about it, what am I to her? I assumed she was my girlfriend earlier, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Sister? Most likely.

I hold her tightly, and let her cry to her heart's content.

After a few minutes, she stops and backs away from me as I loosen my arms. She looks into my eyes for a few seconds, then proceeds to turn around and leave the room.

I wasn't prepared for this...

------

After a few minutes of deliberation, I leave the room and explore the house I'm in. A strange feeling of familiarity hits me as I examine the rural-looking house. It's quite a cozy house if I must say.

After moving a few more steps, I smell something being cooked. I make my way to the source of the scent and find the girl, presumably my sister, cooking in an apron.

She wears a white one-piece dress with frills on the arms and back. The black apron she has on top suits her attire really well, especially the pair of black ribbons that are tied to her hair.

Seemingly just noticing my arrival, she looks my way for a few seconds, before going back to cooking.

I move towards a table made of plain brown wood and take a seat on one of the two chairs. After a few minutes, dinner is ready. She places the food on the table and takes a seat on the chair opposite mine.

We eat our meal silently, and once we're done, I leave the house to check out the surroundings, while she makes her way to the room I was in before.

After taking a good look outside, I get a general idea of where we are. The countryside. I had always seen it on TV but, never been in one personally. The moonlight lights up the darkness, and the sound of cicadas can be heard. So peaceful...

Several minutes later, I head back into the house, locking the door as I head inside. There, I find my sister waiting for me.

"Sleep with me tonight.", she says while holding the black stuffed rabbit I had seen earlier.

I guess she is still feeling unwell. It's my fault, so I have no say in it. I nod and move towards the room.

I lie down on the bed, waiting for her to do the same. It takes her a little while, but in the end, she gets on the bed and lies down beside me. She closes her eyes and continues to do so without a single word or anything for that matter.

After a good while, I look at her petite body. Her breathing is rhythmic right now, indicating that she is asleep. Unable to hold myself back, I slowly and carefully pull her towards myself. I hold her close to myself as I slowly drift off to sleep.

------

I open my eyes and notice that it's the morning. Feeling the softness within my arms, I realize that I'm still holding her tightly. My twin sister, Sora.

I remember now. Not my previous life, no, I remember the past of my current body. And I must say, WHAT THE F-.

What is this?! The tragedy! Ok, enough drama, but seriously, what the hell is this. What is this past? Locked lips with my little sister when we were just kids, then I was r**ed by my childhood friend a few years later. We moved away from here, and the next thing we know, our parents passed away. Having nowhere else to go, we move to our grandparent's house; the house we're in at the moment.

I take a deep breath and look at Sora's face. I reach out my left hand and begin stroking her left cheek. The affections I currently hold for her have grown by a huge amount, now that I have the memories.

What am I supposed to do from now on? Do we have sufficient wealth to sustain ourselves as well as our education? I need to find a way to make some quick cash. No, before that, I need to do as Juno told me, and get accustomed to my body.

With that, I get up from the bed and get outside the house.

Time to work out. I am rather curious about my strength and stamina...

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