Fin had always found the concept of birth philosophically fascinating, that moment when a being transitions from non-existence into existence, when consciousness first ignites. But he had never expected to experience it firsthand, let alone remember it with such clarity.
The transition from the cosmic void of Kailos's realm into physical reality was not the instantaneous shift he had anticipated. Instead, it felt like descending through layers of consciousness, each one more material than the last. The ethereal starlight dimmed gradually, replaced by sensations both muffled and intense, the steady rhythm of a heartbeat not his own, the pressure of confinement, the chemical soup of hormones and nutrients sustaining his developing form.
Then came the contractions.
His new body responded instinctively to the pressure, to the biological imperative to move, to emerge. But Fin's adult consciousness observed the process with detached fascination even as his infant form participated in it. The compression, the movement through the birth canal, the sudden explosion of sensory input as he emerged into the world, it was simultaneously overwhelming and distant, as though he were both participant and observer.
The first breath was the most profound. After months of oxygen filtered through another's blood, the sudden rush of air into undeveloped lungs felt like fire and ice and life itself. His newborn body screamed in protest and relief, tiny limbs flailing against the shocking chill of existence outside the womb.
"It's a boy!" announced a voice, firm, female, professional. "Strong lungs on this one, my lord."
"Another son." A man's voice, deep and pleased. "The gods favor us, Cahira."
Fin's eyes couldn't focus properly, newborn vision being the blurry, limited thing it was, but he could make out shapes, light and shadow. A large figure hovering nearby must be his new father, Donovan Aodh. A smaller figure, reclining on what appeared to be a bed, would be his mother.
His mother. The concept was strange. Fin had had a mother before, on Earth, a kind woman with graying hair and a passion for literature who had supported his scientific endeavors even when she didn't understand them. And now he had another, a stranger who had just endured tremendous pain to bring his new form into existence.
"Let me hold him," came a tired but determined voice. Fin felt himself being transferred, wrapped in something soft, then cradled against warmth. His unfocused eyes tried to make out the features of the woman who would be his mother in this world.
"He's so alert," she said, a note of surprise in her voice. "Look at his eyes, Donovan. He's not crying anymore. It's like he's... studying us."
Because I am, Fin thought, the words locked in a brain and vocal system not yet developed enough to express them. He was indeed studying them, these strangers who would raise him, whose blood ran through his new body's veins.
"A good sign," his father replied. "Kilian was the same way. The midwife said it shows intelligence."
The midwife made an affirmative noise. "True enough, especially with those eyes. Blue as lightning. Unusual in your family line, isn't it?"
"My grandfather had eyes that color," Donovan said. "They say he could call storms with a whistle. Never saw it myself, but the old stories claim he had some affinity for weather magic."
Fin felt a momentary surge of excitement. Blue eyes like lightning. Kailos had promised him a strong connection to the element that had ended his previous life. Perhaps there was some physical manifestation of that connection already.
His mother's finger traced his cheek gently. "What shall we name him? We had thought Aldric if it was a boy, after your father, but..."
"But he doesn't look like an Aldric," Donovan finished. "No, I see what you mean."
Fin tried to focus on his father's face as the man leaned closer to inspect him. He caught impressions of a strong jaw, close-cropped brown hair, and eyes that seemed to evaluate and measure.
"Fin," his father declared suddenly. "We'll call him Fin."
Fin's consciousness jolted with surprise. The same name? Was this Kailos's doing, some cosmic joke or attempt at continuity?
"Fin?" His mother tested the name. "It's uncommon in the Eastern Reaches. Any particular reason?"
Donovan seemed to consider this. "I encountered it in an old text once, a hero's name from before the Founding. It means 'appointed one' or 'chosen.' And there's something... predetermined about him. Don't you feel it?"
If only you knew, Fin thought.
"Fin Aodh," his mother said softly. "Yes, I think it suits him."
A strange sensation washed over Fin then, not physical, but something deeper. It felt almost like the cosmic contract he'd agreed to with Kailos was being finalized, his identity in this world cementing itself with the official naming.
"My lord," the midwife interrupted, "the lady should rest now. And the young master will need feeding soon."
Fin was reluctantly surrendered by his mother to the midwife's experienced hands. As he was carried across the room, he caught glimpses of his surroundings, a spacious chamber with stone walls partially covered by tapestries, a large hearth with a crackling fire, furniture that appeared solid and well-crafted but not ostentatiously ornate. The home of nobility, certainly, but not the highest echelons of wealth.
"I'll send word to your brother," he heard his father telling his mother. "And we should have Kilian come home from his training to meet his new brother."
"Kilian will be thrilled," his mother replied, her voice already edged with exhaustion. "He's been asking for a sibling to teach and protect."
The midwife handed Fin to another woman, a wet nurse, he realized with a mixture of embarrassment and resignation. Part of having an adult mind trapped in an infant body would be enduring the humiliating necessities of early childhood development all over again.
As he was carried to a smaller adjoining room, arranged as a nursery with a cradle and changing table, Fin tried to make sense of his situation. He was now Fin Aodh, second son of a frontier noble family in the Eastern Reaches of what appeared to be a feudal-type society. He had an older brother named Kilian, currently away for some kind of training. And according to Kailos, he had been born with triple the normal capacity for mana, whatever that might feel like.
Speaking of which...
Fin turned his attention inward, trying to sense what might be different about his new body compared to his old one. At first, there was nothing obvious, just the uncomfortable limitations of underdeveloped muscles, poor visual acuity, and complete dependence. But as he focused, he became aware of something subtle, a kind of background hum or vibration that hadn't been present in his Earth body.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.
Was this mana? The magical energy Kailos had described? It felt like a current running through him, not entirely unlike the moment before the lightning had struck him in Boston Common, but gentler, more diffuse. And beyond that, he could sense... something... in the environment around him. Faint concentrations of energy that seemed to correspond to different elements. The fire in the hearth gave off one distinct signature. The stone walls emanated another. The air itself carried yet another type.
This was fascinating. According to Kailos, most children couldn't sense mana until they were much older, usually around six or seven years of age. His enhanced capacity must have accelerated this ability.
The wet nurse settled into a chair, cradling him efficiently. "There now, young master," she murmured. "Let's get some nutrition into you so you can grow strong like your father."
As his infant body responded to the biological imperative to feed, Fin's mind continued to race with observations and plans. He would need to map out the development of his physical and magical capabilities, learn everything he could about this world's systems and societies, and prepare for the long journey toward recovering his full memories and knowledge.
Most importantly, he would need patience. Years of it. His adult mind might be intact, but his infant body would take time to develop the neural pathways capable of supporting complex thought and action. Simple motor skills like walking would take months at minimum. Speech would be limited by the development of his vocal apparatus. And attempting to demonstrate adult-level intelligence too early would raise dangerous questions.
For now, he would need to play the role of a normal, if unusually alert, infant, while secretly laying the groundwork for his future. If Kailos was right about the tier system and the power progression possible in this world, Fin had a rare opportunity not just to regain what he had lost, but to transcend the limitations he had known in his previous life.
After feeding, the wet nurse carried him back to the main chamber, where his father stood by the window, looking out at what appeared to be early evening. His mother had fallen asleep, her face peaceful despite the ordeal she had just endured.
"Would you like to hold your son again, my lord?" the wet nurse asked. "He's very calm now."
Donovan turned, hesitated just briefly, then nodded, accepting Fin into his arms with a careful competence that suggested this wasn't his first time holding a newborn. Fin looked up at the man's face, able to make out a bit more detail now that they were closer, strong features, a neatly trimmed beard, and eyes that were thoughtful and evaluating.
"Fin Aodh," his father said quietly, carrying him to the window. "Welcome to the world, my son. Welcome to Aetherys."
He held Fin up to the glass, and though Fin's vision wasn't clear enough to make out details, he could see that night was falling, and with it came the first stars. But more importantly, on the distant horizon, illuminating the silhouettes of what must be mountains, flashed forks of lightning, brilliant, branching, beautiful.
In that moment, Fin felt a resonance, a connection to the energy arcing through the clouds. The faint hum within him seemed to strengthen, responding to the distant electrical display. And with that resonance came certainty, this was where he was meant to be. This was his element. This was his path.
His first day in Aetherys had only just begun, but already Fin Aodh felt the pull of destiny, or perhaps just the effects of a cosmic bureaucrat's guilty compensation package. Either way, a new life stretched before him, full of possibilities his Earth existence had never offered.
A life where the lightning that had once destroyed him might become the power through which he would transcend ordinary limits. A life where science and magic might merge into something greater than either alone.
The first breath had been taken. The journey had begun.
And in the distance, the lightning continued to dance, calling to something deep within him, promising power for those who understood its true nature.

Over the next few days, Fin quickly established himself as an unusual infant, much to the confusion of his caretakers. Where most newborns slept up to twenty hours a day, Fin remained alert for long stretches, his unnaturally focused blue eyes following movement and studying faces with an intensity that made some of the household staff uncomfortable.
"There's something uncanny about the young master," he overheard one maid whispering to another. "The way he watches everything. Not natural for a babe of three days."
"Hush," the other replied. "It's a blessing, not a curse. Lady Cahira says he hardly fusses at all, except when he's hungry or needs changing. What mother wouldn't want such an easy child?"
Easy perhaps, but increasingly frustrated by his limitations. Fin had forgotten how absolutely helpless infants were, unable to support their own heads, let alone communicate or move independently. His adult mind chafed against the constraints of his undeveloped body, but he forced himself to be patient. Rushing his development too obviously would raise suspicions he couldn't afford.
On the fifth day after his birth, he met his brother.
Kilian Aodh burst into the nursery with the contained energy of a young adolescent trying very hard to appear mature and dignified. At fourteen, he was already tall for his age, with their father's broad shoulders and their mother's darker coloring. He wore what appeared to be a training uniform, sturdy fabric in the Aodh colors of red and gold, with a stylized phoenix embroidered on the breast.
"So this is my little brother," Kilian said, peering into the cradle where Fin lay. "He's smaller than I expected."
Their mother laughed softly from her chair nearby. "You were exactly that size when you were born, despite your claims otherwise."
Kilian reached down hesitantly, and Fin felt a finger gently prod his cheek. "His eyes are open. And so blue. Mine are brown like yours, Mother."
"He takes after your father's side in that respect," Lady Cahira said. "Would you like to hold him?"
Kilian straightened, squaring his shoulders importantly. "Yes. I should start getting to know him now, since I'll be responsible for teaching him everything important."
Fin was carefully lifted and placed in his brother's arms, with their mother providing guidance on how to support the infant's head. Kilian held him with exaggerated care, as though afraid he might break his new sibling with a wrong move.
"Hello, Fin," Kilian said formally. "I'm your older brother, Kilian. I'm currently at Tier One in Fire cultivation, but Father says I might reach Tier Two before I'm sixteen if I keep working hard. When you're old enough, I'll teach you sword forms and how to ride a horse and all about the elemental affinities."
Fin stared up at his brother with genuine interest. Here was his first direct contact with another cultivator, someone already on the path of power progression. From his brief mention, Fin gathered that reaching Tier One at fourteen was considered good progress, and that Tier Two by sixteen would be impressive.
"He's really looking at me," Kilian said with surprise. "Most babies just stare at nothing, don't they?"
"Fin is unusually aware," their mother replied. "The midwife says it's a sign of intelligence and strong spiritual essence."
"Do you think he'll have Fire affinity like Father and me?" Kilian asked, a hint of competitive concern in his voice.
Their mother reached over to smooth Fin's wispy hair. "It's too early to tell. He might take after my Water affinity or develop something entirely different. We won't know until his affinity testing when he's older."
Lightning, Fin thought, remembering the surge of connection he'd felt when seeing the electrical storm from the window. That was his element, not just assigned by the circumstances of his death and Kailos's compensation, but something that resonated with his very essence. He had always been fascinated by electromagnetic phenomena in his Earth life; now that interest would become his power.
"Well, whatever his affinity, I'll help him develop it," Kilian declared, with all the confidence of youth. "That's what big brothers are for."
Fin felt an unexpected warmth at his brother's words. He had been an only child in his previous life; the concept of having a sibling was novel, especially one who already seemed protective and invested in his development. Perhaps there would be advantages to this second childhood beyond just the opportunity to develop magical abilities.
As Kilian continued to hold him, speaking of all the things they would do together when Fin was older, Fin made a private resolution. He would not view this family as merely a means to an end, as steppingstones on his path to power. They were real people who would love him, care for him, and shape his development in this world. He would honor that connection, even as he pursued his own goals.
"Look, Mother," Kilian said suddenly. "He's reaching for me!"
Indeed, Fin had unthinkingly raised a tiny hand toward his brother's face, driven by a desire to connect more directly. His body acted on instinct where his mind could not yet command it.
"He likes you," their mother said, smiling.
Yes, Fin thought. I believe I do.
Outside, distant thunder rolled across the mountains of the Eastern Reaches. Fin felt that faint resonance again, the subtle vibration of elemental energy responding to his awareness. In time, he would understand it fully. He would master it. He would use it to forge his own path in this world of cultivation and power.
But for now, held in his brother's arms, surrounded by a family that already cherished him, Fin Aodh took another breath, not his first in this world, but perhaps one of his most significant, and simply allowed himself to be present in this moment of connection.