Adamagika: The Spirit Within - 5. Ch 05: Jacob's Story

CHAPTER 05: Jacob’s Story

My eyes wouldn’t open.

I was wet.

I was hungry.

And, I was confused.

Somehow I could see but I also knew without a doubt that my eyes were closed. I could feel them closed. They were struggling to open but stubbornly remained shut.

And yet, I could see. I tried to focus on what I was seeing.

I was looking up into a wooden ceiling lined with straw. Little bits of light would pierce through spots which weren’t covered or sealed properly.

I was lying down on something soft. I tried moving my arms but I couldn’t even feel them. It was as if they weren’t there. It was as if I wasn’t there. I didn’t understand any of it.

And it was confusing the heck out of me.

The fact that I was really hungry was not helping at all.

I heard a baby crying. It was wailing loudly almost as if it was sitting next to my ear. It was annoying me and starting to give me a headache.

I heard footsteps in the distance and a woman’s face came into view. I didn’t recognize her but I somehow knew she was a woman from the village. She had long, dark hair and a beautiful face. But, there was no mistaking it, she looked distinctly like someone born and raised in the village.

She smiled down at me and somehow I couldn’t repress the urge to smile back and the desire to give her a hug – that was until she started speaking.

“Awww… is my little baby hungry?” She said in that sing-song voice mothers reserved for their smallest children.

Baby?

She lifted me up. Well, I think she did. With my size, it would have been impossible. Yet, she somehow managed to lift me up, cradle me in her arms, and put me against her chest. She looked down on me and the look in her eyes was unmistakable. There was love there and it was directed to me. Somehow I felt love in return for this strange woman. I felt safe and protected in her arms.

“I guess it’s time for your feeding, little one.” She then proceeded to loosening her dress on the side where my face was resting on.

Holy crap...I tried to scream but no sound came out. Was she about to breastfeed me?!

She lowered her dress until her left breast became exposed.

Madame! I wanted to cry out. A bit of modesty please!

I mean, I’ve never seen a breast before. I’ve never even tried to imagine one but right then I had a reason NOT to imagine it ever, as in never ever.

“Come now, drink up.” She then proceeded to move my face towards her left breast.

I tried to stop it. I really did. But you know, despite my disgust, I also felt this need to be full. I was hungry after all. So while I was disgusted with the whole prospect of what was happening to me, I felt this anticipation at the same time.

So I went with it. I knew my mouth was on it as far as it would go because I could only see her skin. I wasn’t even sucking on it – at least I didn’t feel my mouth making any sucking motions. Yet, somehow I knew I was becoming full. My hunger was slowly being sated.

She continued to watch me throughout this whole ordeal. I was starting to wonder about this woman. What woman would breastfeed a sixteen year old boy?

She turned her head towards the door and smiled widely.

I felt my mouth release her and she settled me into a more comfortable position in her arms.

I saw a man come into view. He stood beside the woman and looked down on me. It almost looked like they were sandwiching me between them but that was impossible. There was no way my body could have fit comfortably between these two.

He looked into my eyes. He had pale blue eyes and a masculine built. He would have looked menacing if not for the smile that was plastered on his lips.

He stretched out his arm and tickled me. Damn, talk about awkward.

“How is my little baby Jacob?” He said to me in that same sing-song voice the woman used.

Wait a minute. Jacob? My name’s Adam!

“Have you been good to your mother?” He then proceeded to take me from the woman’s arms. He placed his hands under my arms and lifted me up. “Yes, you have. Oh, yes you have little baby Jacob.”

I am not Jacob. Put me down! My name is Adam. My name is… what the heck happened to my hands?!

There was no mistaking it. The hands that were clasped in front of me came out of my body or at least they should have given their position. But, they were baby hands.

Oh my god, I was reborn as Jacob…

So that must mean that these two in front of me were Jacob’s parents. Yes, it seemed so. There was no mistaking that these two shared something special given the way they behaved around each other and around me. I also knew that they loved me – well they loved Jacob who seemed to be me now.

Did my magic somehow screw up our lives? Did we change bodies or something when he killed me? He must have killed me right? What else would have caused this? But even if we did change bodies, how come I was a baby again and I still had all my memories as Adam?

I had so many questions. And, I wanted to hit this guy’s face if he didn’t stop talking to me in that sing-song voice.

“You’re so cute. And so stroooong.” He then looked at me as though with pride. “I’m sure, you will grow up big one day and become the best weapon smith in the whole world because you are destined for greatness. Yes, you are. Yes, you aaare.” He then proceeded to tickle me again. God, I never realized it was this annoying on the receiving end.

“Margaret.”

My parents, well Jacob’s parents, turned towards the doorway.

A large, burly man came through. He was wearing what looked like several layers of clothing. For the lack of a better word, he looked like a rather large lump.

“Margaret,” the newcomer spoke again, “I am leaving for a few weeks. I have business to attend to.”

“But you’ve only been here for a few days,” my mother, well Jacob’s mother, replied. “I hardly ever get to see you anymore, brother. It would be nice if you stayed in our home. I’m sure the elders will have no problems accepting a relative of mine into the community. I’m sure Jacob would be happy to grow up with an uncle.”

He looked at her for a moment then walked towards me. My father, or rather Jacob’s father if I can just remember that this was not my real family, was cradling me in his arms. Their eyes met for a moment with unspoken tension. I could not be certain but I felt that these two men did not trust one another.

The newcomer, Jacob’s uncle, looked down on me and our eyes met. A feeling of unease came over me. His eyes were not kind or loving. I’ve been around enough powerful mages, both young and old, to recognize that look. They had the look of greed.

“No, I need to leave for awhile,” he said to my mother without breaking eye contact with me. “I have business to attend to. Some things cannot wait.”

He turned his head towards her.

“I shall return in time,” he said.

He turned towards the door and left just like that. Somehow, I knew he would never come back.

“I don’t trust your brother,” Jacob’s father said to Margaret, “he’s changed since all those years ago.”

“You just don’t trust him because he wears all those clothes now,” she chuckled lightly. “He is still my brother even if he is a bit strange nowadays.”

She lifted a basket that was on a table and headed outside.

Jacob’s father looked down into my eyes. “You be careful, Jacob. There are some people out there that will use you. You can’t trust everyone.”

I looked back at him in confusion. Did he really expect a baby to understand what he was saying? Or maybe, it wasn’t Jacob that was meant to understand. Perhaps it was me?

I suddenly felt dizzy and the world went out of focus. I tried to close my eyes and then realized that they haven’t opened yet. They were still closed and I was seeing all of this by some mysterious disembodied pair of eyes that happened to be in to Jacob’s body. Everything kept turning until it became all bright.

My surroundings came into focus and I was kneeling next to a boy. He looked young. Maybe six or seven years old.

He had a stick in his hand and he was using it to poke an odd looking insect that was on its back on the ground.

“Do you think it’s dead, Jacob?” he asked me.

“It doesn’t look dead.” I responded. My voice didn’t sound like mine. It sounded very young and the intonations were awkward as if I was still learning the basics of the language.

I also seemed to have no control over what I was saying.

“I think it’s asleep.” I said with not much conviction.

“Maybe it got lost on its way home and now it’s taking a nappy,” the other boy said as though he approved of my sleeping theory. “We should bring it over there to the trees. It probably lives over there.”

“I dunno,” I said uncertainly, or rather Jacob did. “Maybe we should just leave it alone.”

“Aww don’t be such a wuss. It’s just a bug.”

I looked at him and felt hurt. I felt like crying. I knew I shouldn’t be feeling this way over something as little as being called a wuss but somehow I needed to be liked by this boy. I needed to have his approval. Him calling me a wuss was not approval.

He looked over at me and seems to understand the look on my face.

“Hey Jacob, I’m sorry,” he began. “I didn’t mean to call you a wuss.”

He then placed one arm over me and gave me half a hug.

“It’s ok,” I replied. “I’m always scared. I’m not brave like you.” I started crying in earnest.

“Hey,” the other boy said “don’t cry. Look,” he bent over and picked up the insect.

“Thomas, no!” I cried out but it was too late. The insect was lying on its back squarely in his open palm. It also started squirming a little.

He turned to me. “See, there’s nothing to be scared off. Here, why don’t you bring him back to the trees so he can go home? I’m sure his momma misses him bad by now.”

He opened my hand with his other hand. At first, I wanted to pull my hand back, afraid that the bug would bite me if he placed it there. But, I didn’t want to look scared in front of this boy so I kept it there opened before him.

He gently laid the insect down on my palm where it squirmed a little and seemed to find a comfortable position to lie down on his back.

I looked down on it and now that it was in my open hand, it seemed more fascinating. I looked over at the other boy Thomas. His face was apprehensive as though he was trying to gauge my reaction. I smiled at him and he seemed to relax. He smiled back.

“Come on,” he said, “let’s bring him home.”

We stood up and headed towards the nearest tree which was a good distance away. We both knelt down at the base of the tree. I placed the bug by the roots, this time on its belly rather than back.

“Go home, little bug,” I said to it. “Go home to your bug family.”

The little insect scurried away into the forest.

I looked back at Thomas and we smiled at each other.

“See, Jacob, there’s nothing to be afraid of. And if anything ever scares you, I’ll always be there to scare it away, okay?”

“You promise?” I asked him. I felt like my whole world depended on that one question.

“Of course, I promise. I’ll always protect you and take care of you, Jacob.” He smiled his biggest smile at me.

“Boys, come back now,” I heard a woman calling. It was Margaret.

We ran to her and stood before her. She seemed to give us appraising looks. “So Thomas, what have you and your little brother been up to?”

Little brother?

“Jacob rescued a bug,” Thomas began. “It was on its back and couldn’t make it on its way home. He brought it back to the forest so it could go back to its family.” He looked over at me with a wide grin. “He was really brave, momma.”

I beamed at him.

“I’m sure he was,” Margaret said with a smile. “Now, why don’t you two wash up? We’re going to have supper soon.”

As soon as she said that, I became dizzy again and the world seemed to swirl before me. Helplessly, I tried to focus my disembodied eyes but it didn’t help any. I just had to wait for it to end.

Memories, I thought. I’m going through Jacob’s memories. I could see what he saw. I could feel what he felt. But, I couldn’t change any of them. I was an observer in his life.

The world slowly came into focus again and this time I was with Jacob’s entire family. We were inside a wooden house and it was dark outside. The place looked larger than it did when I saw the world through Jacob’s baby eyes. I was thinking they must have moved.

We were seated around a table eating.

Jacob’s parents looked the same but Thomas seemed older by a year or two.

I wasn’t eating though. I was just watching my family eat. I had this weird feeling in my stomach. It didn’t ache but it felt like something was tugging inside trying to get my attention.

Every now and then I’d turn my head in a different direction as though I was trying to look for something or someone.

“Jacob, why aren’t you eating, son?” asked Jacob’s father.

“I’m not feeling too well, poppa.”

“Does anything hurt, dear?” Margaret, Jacob’s mom, asked. She then placed the back of her hand on my forehead and then on my neck.

“Not really hurts, but I have this funny feeling in my stomach.”

“I told you not to eat that last worm,” Thomas chuckled at me. This earned him a dirty look from their mother. “That last worm looked eeeeevil.”

I giggled at him. Jacob’s dad chuckled lightly.

Thomas continued with a wide smile. “It’s probably in there still squiggling.” He then made worm-squiggling impressions with his finger.

“There will be no talk of worms in this table, young man.” Her voice was stern but there was a hint of a smile trying to break through her lips.

“Momma…”

She looked over at me. “Yes, Jacob, dear. What is it?”

“Do you hear that?”

“Hear what, dear?”

“That voice.”

Everyone stopped eating immediately. They all turned to me. They seemed to be looking at me quite strangely.

“What voice, son?” Jacob’s dad asked.

“The woman. Can’t you hear her?” I asked. “She’s talking right now.”

“What… What is this voice telling you Jacob?” my mom asked me. Her voice seemed odd, almost uncertain. I looked over at Thomas and he had this blank expression on his face. It made me feel uncomfortable. I think Thomas never looked at Jacob like that before.

I was feeling some apprehension or at least Jacob was.

“Tell me son,” Jacob’s dad said me. This time he placed his hand gently on my hand which was resting on the table holding my unused fork. “You can tell us anything. What is the voice telling you?”

I looked into his eyes and felt at peace. I felt I could trust this man.

“She says we need to go. We need to leave the village now.” I looked from my dad to my mom. “They’re coming for me.”

Margaret and Jacob’s dad exchanged uneasy looks. They were silent for awhile. Thomas was still looking at me blankly.

A sudden pain surged through my ears. I held both hands over them as though to block out the pain but it was no use. If anything, it got stronger.

Margaret hurried over to me and grabbed my arms with her hands as though prying them from my head. “Jacob, baby, what’s wrong?”

“They’re here, momma! We need to go, now!”

She looked over at Jacob’s father and an understanding seemed to pass between them. They nodded at each other.

Jacob’s father turned towards his eldest son. “Thomas. Thomas!”

Thomas looked blankly at him.

“Do you know some place outside the village where you can hide?”

Thomas didn’t seem to be listening because he just looked blankly at his father.

“Thomas, listen to me. Can you hear me, son?” He shook Thomas and that seemed to shake him out of his trance because he finally nodded his response. “Do you know some place outside the village where you can hide? Where it will be safe?”

Thomas nodded again.

“Where is it?”

“There is a cave near the falls in the southeast,” he responded flatly.

“Tartan Falls?”

“Yes, poppa.”

“Good, I know that place. I want you to leave with Jacob now. Stay there until I come for you. Do not leave that place. I will come for you. Do you understand?”

Thomas nodded again.

“Take care of him, Thomas. Promise me that you’ll take care of your little brother. Do you promise me?” He asked his eldest son.

Thomas looked over at me for the briefest moment and our eyes met. His eyes were unreadable. He looked over again to Jacob’s dad and replied. “Yes poppa,” Thomas replied shakily, “I promise.”

“Good boy. Now go, leave at once. And remember, I will come for you.”

Jacob’s father grabbed Thomas with one arm and me with the other. He hugged us to him. My mother joined us in our hug. She was crying by this time. I realized that I was too.

“Now go, be good to each other. Be good to your older brother, Jacob. Do whatever he tells you, okay?”

“Yes, poppa,” I sniffed.

He ushered us towards the door and said goodbye again with promises to find us the next day – a promise I felt he would not be able to keep.

As we ran away from the village with Thomas holding my hand, I looked back towards our home. My father and mother were silhouetted in the twilight that existed between the bright lights of the house and the darkness of the world outside. I could barely see their concerned faces in the shadow. But I felt, no I knew, that it was the last image of them I would ever see.

They will not live through the night.

The world swirled again and everything went out of focus. By this time, I expected the dizziness to not affect me that much but it was as disorienting as always. I tried to focus my sight but I knew it was useless. I just needed to wait for it to stop.

And, it did.

This time, it was no longer dark. The day was bright and I was in the middle of a small village. It looked familiar to me.

“Buoy, do yu want to geet beaten? Waaat ar yu doing just standeeng der?”

“Sorry, Elder Scroul” I replied. My voice, or rather Jacob’s voice, was deeper, almost at the edge of puberty. “I’ll get back to work now.”

The elder harrumphed then sat back again on his chair. He was smoking grass. The lazy bastard!

I lifted some wood from the ground and brought it over to where some adults were cutting wood and hammering them into place. I looked up to what they were building and recognized it immediately. They were building the black obelisks and covering them with wood and straw.

One of the workers turned to another and asked “What are we building these for? What do these blasted things do anyway?”

The other replied “I don’t know. The elders say that the Derviks want them built and that they are some kind of weapon to use against mages.” He looked up to the half-finished obelisk. “Personally, I don’t like this at all. It doesn’t look like any kind of technology I have ever seen. It looks almost unnatural.” He paused as though thinking. “Like it was something mages would make.”

The other worker nodded his agreement. “I be agreeable to that. This thing isn’t something we created.”

They looked at each other with somewhat worried expressions. It was then that one of them noticed me. “Ah Jacob, thanks for helping, boy.”

“I wanted to sir,” I replied. “I’m almost a man now and I think it’s about time I start learning the ways of killing mages.” I felt a sudden surge of anger course through Jacob’s body.

The older man looked uneasily towards me. “Jacob, I know how much you hate mages after, uhh, what happened to your family.” He paused as if waiting for me to say something. “But you have to know that in order to become a good warrior, you must have your emotions under control. It is not enough to simply be angry at our enemies. Often, that is how we end up dead, when we think with our hearts and not with our heads.”

I felt some of the anger deflate at his words of caution.

He continued. “Someday, Jacob, you will get a chance to kill your first mage. With your quick speed, I wouldn’t be surprised if you’re soon brought into the fold. You may have been born in a clan of weapon smiths but there is no doubt that you have the heart of a warrior. You are destined for great things, Jacob. I am as certain of it as the sun rises in the west.”

“But the sun rises in the east, sir,” I replied.

“Hah!” he gave a hearty laugh, “See, smarter than me already.”

He smiled down at me and patted my back. I smiled at him. I felt though that despite his words of advice, the anger in me would not be quenched until every mage was lying dead at my feet.

I looked up once more into the black obelisks being built in this village and felt a sense of foreboding. Something was definitely wrong with those things.

The world swirled around me again, this time much quicker than the rest.

I found myself in a forest. I was very still and I was stalking prey. It was a boy in the distance. I felt anger and at the same time awe towards him. I was also feeling excitement – something that felt like excitement for my first kill.

I moved with him matching his pace as he ran clumsily through the forest.

I accidentally stepped on a fallen branch and it snapped in half. I stood still and the boy hid behind a tree.

It was then that I got a good look at him.

I recognized that boy.

It was me! I was in Jacob’s body chasing after myself in the forest!

We both stood there very still until I saw my real body move forward again.

I followed myself in Jacob’s body. I moved closer and closer. Eventually Jacob was just meters away and I was entirely clueless the whole time! I mentally hit myself on the head for not noticing Jacob get so close.

I was just standing there yelling something into the woods. I couldn’t quite remember what it was and it seemed that perhaps Jacob wasn’t paying any attention to my words. He seemed to be observing my body, how each muscle from my legs or arms would twitch. His eyes flickered with every movement that my body gave.

I knew what he was doing. He was watching his prey, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

I saw my real body’s shoulders relax and slump forward and I felt Jacob’s body move swiftly but silently forward.

As my real body turned, Jacob’s body lunged out of the darkness catching me by surprise.

Jacob raised a knife and prepared to lunge it downwards towards my real body.

My real body turned sideward and toppled Jacob over. We struggled on the forest floor and I watched myself being beaten by Jacob’s closed fists.

From this point of view, it did not look like I put up much of a fight. In fact, it looked like I was just letting it all happen to me.

Eventually, I saw myself being hit on the head. Jacob’s body moved to the side and I knew he was reaching for his knife.

Jacob lowered his knife to my neck. My face looked dazed and confused. I came face-to-face with myself. Yes, it felt very weird.

“Die, magi” I whispered hoarsely to the real me. I knew what was coming next.

But this time, it didn’t happen. Another voice spoke from the darkness.

Now, I am one!

My eyes finally opened.