[1] Hatching

All the man saw around him was fire. A kingdom burning, a thousand screams of agony, endless lives lost. His own blood spilled onto the ground, pouring from him like a fountain. He refused to buckle to the pain even as a blade stabbed through him, slicing into his entrails from behind. He spoke the words of power not to save himself, but to save those that cried out for a savior. Before the spell was cast, it turned dark. 

Death.

The first sensation was warmth, then breath, then darkness as his eyes rolled open. Everything was muted, all sensations felt odd. That was when he noticed that he was confined in a small area. Everything in him told him he needed to move. He had to get out. He pushed at the walls with his arms and legs as hard as he could. Then with his tail… Wait tail?

“What is going on? Someone help.” He wanted to speak but he found he could not talk.

His mind raced as he processed an appendage he shouldn’t have, or at least he thought he shouldn’t. He didn’t know who he was, he didn’t know why he was in this box… or was it a box? It was more an ovoid than cuboid. The walls of his prison were not stone, or wood or steel, or at least he thought so. He wasn’t even sure how he knew what those words meant, only that what he was in was not that.

He thought to himself as he continued to struggle. “What am I, where am I? Why is it so hard to breathe all of a sudden? Wait, am I about to die?”

Panic set in as he struggled to release himself as another sensation took hold. This one was more pressing and primal. Suffocation. If he did not get out he would die. He continued to kick and scratch and bite at the walls of his ovoid jail which would soon be his crypt. That was when he felt it. A crack in the prison, a means of escape. It was so small he nearly missed it. He pushed all his might into that one point until the crack widened and he saw light.

“You will not be killing me today,” he thought to himself in triumph.

He pressed his mouth against the crack and breathed. The air felt nice but his lungs burned as if it was their first time taking in the crisp substance. After taking in a few more breaths, he continued to claw at the crack until there was an opening barely large enough for him to see through. Despite not getting much done he was tired, his body wanting to rest and his muscles aching. Something in him told him he could not rest, he needed to get out. So he struggled to widen the hole until it was large enough for him to get his head and shoulders through. 

“Finally I can get out of here,” he thought as he pushed his way into the light.

Triumph in freedom was short lived as the exhaustion finally took him, and he lay down still half inside his prison. Now at least he could see what he was trapped in. 

To his surprise it was an egg, and from it came a long, slimy and scaly body. It didn’t seem right, but was that his body? He was sure his body was different; somehow the scales seemed new.  He wondered how he could turn his head so far around, so he looked down to see his neck was long and serpentine.

“Am I a lizard? I thought I was something else. I think I was just born, but how do I know that if I am a lizard? Shouldn’t I be all instinct and no thought? True Dragons are smart. Am I a True Dragon?” He looked back at his body, his long neck allowing him to examine what had so far escaped the egg. “No wings, no dragon.” 

He finally turned to look at his surroundings. He was on a circular platform a few inches off the ground in the middle of a bedroom. It was about four feet in diameter, and had arcane carvings arranged in a geometric shape all over it. His egg was placed in the center of the platform. The room itself was nothing special; just two beds, a study area and dressers. The floors were hardwood, and the walls were painted a baby blue. His spot seemed to be the most interesting out of everything he could see. 

“How do I know what walls, hardwood floors or beds are?” he thought to himself. “Wasn’t I just born? Is it weird to know that? I mean I am the only newborn I know, and I know it, so I guess it is normal.”

A new voice said abruptly, “Hello, sir. It would appear everything was a success.”

The lizard looked around for the source of the voice. He tried to speak but all that came from him were squawks and chirps. He tried again but no luck. The only sounds he could make were all unflattering squawks and chirps.

“I do not believe you will be able to speak in that form, Sir. Don’t worry though; I am speaking directly into your mind and I can hear your thoughts,” the voice responded. 

“Where are you? Who are you?” the lizard thought, mainly to see if the person could indeed hear it.

“I am the Reincarnation System you created before your untimely demise. You named me Failsafe. You have my deepest sympathies on your death, Sir.”

“Reincarnation?” the lizard asked mentally.

“Your rebirth failsafe. Hee-hee, I just realized why you must have named me Failsafe. I believe you may be experiencing memory loss due to these unforeseen developments. You were supposed to reincarnate into a sentient humanoid race.”

“Wait, Failsafe, who am I?” the lizard asked. “What am I?”

“I am unsure, Sir.” Failsafe responded. “My main function is to restore your reincarnated mind and spirit back to how it was, but the amount of magic you possess in your current form is limiting my capabilities and memories as well. It must be another unforeseen happenstance due to the fact you are now a uh… baby long neck lizard thing, and not a human or some such race. I will run a diagnostic; please wait.” Failsafe was only gone for a moment before he spoke again. “Ah, I see. In your current form you are wayyy less magically apt than you were at time of death.”

The lizard cut him off. “What does that mean for me and my memory?”

“You need to gain magical strength equivalent to your previous self for me to access your memories and share them with you. I will develop a system that will aid in displaying your progress to that state. We can even set milestones for certain levels of strength,” Failsafe said, sounding excited at the prospect. “I will need to get more information on your current capabilities first. So we can add to it as we go.” 

“Uhuh… So what do you need?” the lizard asked.

“Right now nothing, Sir. You are exhausted from being born, so I will see how long it takes you to recover,” Failsafe said.

“Do you really not know anything about who I was or how I died?” the lizard questioned.

“All I know is that you were human before, and my creator,” Failsafe admitted. “I am not even sure what you looked like, but you were powerful. That I know for sure.”

“Well that doesn’t help much,” the lizard said. “Maybe the best thing to do is just look around. Let’s see if I can get used to these limbs.” 

Despite what he said, he ended up not being able to move. His strength had all but left him. The most he could do was kick at the shell that still covered half his body, freeing the last of his form. He found his body to be more dog-like than that of a lizard, aside from his neck, which was long and snake-like. His front arms, or legs, whatever they’re called anatomically, had dexterous fingers. Not as adept as human hands, but they were capable of some manipulation. His hind legs, all lean muscle, looked powerful. His tail was longer than his entire body, making him look almost like a snake. 

If not for the long neck he would assume he was some type of drake. He wasn’t a dragon nor was he a normal lizard. With his current memory he didn’t recognize what he was. Failsafe didn’t know either, so there was no point in questioning it. He pushed himself back into his egg, which seemed safer than just laying on the table. Drained of all of his strength, he laid his head back down and closed his eyes.

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