《Estrias》 Chapter 1: Introduction Alright first thing you''re probably gonna need to know; I¡¯m a loser. ¡°FuGuhuuuh,¡± after getting the wind knocked out of me for the seventeenth time, football practice finally ended. ¡°Jaxton, Get your ass off the ground!¡± That''s me ¡®Osiris Jaxton¡¯ eighteen year old senior and what I wanted to say was ¡®I would if I knew where the ground was asshole¡¯ but ¡°Yes Coach!¡± came out instead. Hey, it means the same thing depending on how you say it, alright? After a couple failed attempts to get my feet under me in a rush, I somehow manage to get over to everyone else and take a knee. Coach went on about something with the upcoming final game tomorrow with our rival team. It didn''t even matter because even if we beat them we wouldn''t take the league championship but they would after they beat us, which was a given. I was just looking forward to the rest of senior year in high school without football, after the final game this week. Don''t get me wrong I liked playing the game but with my skinny body and being less than fast on my feet I was kinda screwed to even get the chance to play. I liked the sport because I got to hit someone, and if I ever got to actually play during practice that''s exactly what I did. If I could catch someone that is. Either way, the point is I like hitting someone but I hate the other side of the coin. Getting hit by a guy two, almost three, times your size is gonna be a bitch no matter how you cut it. Anyways now that football was ending I can finally stop playing. I know what you''re wondering ¡®you just said you liked the sport, why are you happy to leave,¡¯ well I''ll tell you, you sweet intellectual. My Dad basically forced me to play ever since I was young, well ¡®forced¡¯ is a strong word. It''s more like he looked at me like I spoke another language if I talked about not playing. So after years of getting my ass beat in football, it grew on me because I got to meet some great guys along the way, and tackle the crap out of the guys who thought they were the shit. Yeah, being taken down by the skinniest guy on the team takes you down a peg. None of that really mattered now because I''m almost home-free and no longer have to deal with it anymore. I could finally focus on my hobbies and interests more. Oh and if you thought I was gonna be some dumb failure of a jock and that''s it, you couldn''t be more wrong. It gets much, much worse. I was the biggest nerd I''ve ever known, and I know a lot. I spent all my free team reading fantasy novels, playing D&D, binging on video games, and when I had the time, the occasional homework. Honestly it was a miracle I was in honor and advanced classes. None of it helped me socially that''s for sure, I barely knew a quarter of my classmates, and the guys I hung out with most of the time were the other weirdos who played football freshman year and quit afterwards.Any way you see it, I was a loser. After finally changing in the locker room, I walked out and headed straight home without a single word spoken to anyone. Everyone''s heads were elsewhere because they were thinking about the upcoming game. Me? I was thinking about which video game to play tonight. It was Thursday and the game was tomorrow so I could stay up till three and wake up at seven. Believe it or not that''s more than my average amount of sleep. But all that has to come after I take a shower. I Reek! ¡­ After getting home and taking my shower I take a look of today''s damage. I stood at just barely under six foot and with my very lightly tanned skin you could easily see the couple bruises on my arms, and a nice deep purple one on my left peck. Honestly I really was a pretty fit guy, being so skinny but working out so much takes out almost all the fat in your body. You could see my abs nicely displaying a decent six-pack and all my muscles were pretty clean cut, just not very big at all. After drying off and appreciating the abs that were my one proud achievement of my body, I shaved what little hair I grew on my face, more out of practice than reason. Can''t have any terrible sideburns messing up my mop of hair I never have to worry about fixing. Along with my dark brown hair I had a pair of light blue eyes, and an apparently clean cut jawline since everyone comments on it.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Everyone always asks why I don''t have a girlfriend. Oh wait that''s right, I''m completely antisocial while being a huge nerd and the only girls I ever have a shot with are weirder than me. If your saying ¡®yeah right all you need is good looks and need to be a jock to get a hot girlfriend in high school,¡¯ you couldn''t be any more wrong. Rarely getting out of the house other than for school and football I had very little to talk about with others especially those of the finer gender. When you sit with a nice girl and the conversation hits a low after only a minute you¡¯re basically screwed no matter what, and I never have any idea on what to talk about. Making my way to my room my Dad overhears me going down the hallway, ¡°Osiris how did practice go?¡± So close. ¡°Fine, Dad.¡± I poke my head out into the living room where I see my dad watching a football game. Knowing that he won''t let me go until he sees me I say, ¡°I got to go in for scout defense and played at middle linebacker, definitely still my most comfortable spot¡±. ¡°Good,¡± he said, ¡°maybe you¡¯ll get to play in the game tomorrow.¡± Now from what I said before you probably thought my dad was a jerk who would look down on me if I didn¡¯t start on the team. In reality, my dad was always pretty understanding, he knew I wasn¡¯t that large or fast but he didn¡¯t care because he knew that when I got onto the field I put everything I had on it, he just wanted me to play the sport because he thought it would make me strong and look back and have nice memories. He¡¯s always been someone I look up to, he¡¯s a police officer and has always had great views of people and society that I could easily understand and follow. He could always explain the world in a way that simplified things that were immensely complicated and also how to determine what should be truly important. He taught me everything I know about reality. ¡°Maybe, just maybe¡± I finally said. ¡°Hey fucker what¡¯s going on?¡± My older brothers said almost in unison while they walked through the front door. I could see they had a long day either working, drinking, or running around for their girlfriends. My brothers; James the oldest and Tyler the middle child, are guys I always look up to while also trying to constantly get out of their shadows. They were legends on the football team and were popular in school, basically everything I wasn¡¯t. Well except for the height difference between us, apparently I got all the genes for being tall because I overtook my two ¡®little¡¯, big brothers. James, was shorter but brawny with a bit of tub but always seemed strong. He was the trouble maker out of the three of us, but after a while he grew out of it and became one of the most honest guys I know and if he¡¯s gonna give you crap, he¡¯ll give it to you straight. He made mistakes in his life but he learned from what he did, regretted it, and seems to want to make himself better. Tyler being taller than James but still shorter than me was usually pretty fit and although not being as large as James you could still see he packed a punch. He on the other hand, was the smart one of the bunch but I was right next to him in that regard, he was perfect in multiple ways, the only thing he has going against him is his lack of motivation, I still love the guy though. If anyone can understand being lazy it¡¯s definitely me. With a shit eating grin I replied, ¡°not much shitheads,¡± like a civilized man, ¡°rough night huh?¡± ¡°You could say that again¡± and ¡°yup¡± were the instant replies. Of course I could ask, but I had games to play. ¡°Welp I¡¯m headed to my room to game, see you in the morning¡±. And with a pivot of my heels I left the room and headed to my door. As soon as I opened it I see my mom on my computer. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± I said in a nearly aggravated tone. ¡°The laptop broke and I needed to use your computer to finish some work. Don¡¯t worry I just finished.¡± My mom is a diligent worker as an accountant. She always worked hard and didn¡¯t take shit from anyone, and she did her job knowing she did it well. I looked up to her as much as I looked up to the rest of my family because of her self confidence and ability to always laugh. She is kind and very understanding, I always thought I could go to her with any problem. ¡°Awesome, time to game!¡± I sped over to my chair as she stood up. With a ruffle of my hair she said goodnight and reminded me to get some sleep. I begrudgingly reminded her I¡¯m not a kid in a mock pout as I fixed my hair and put on my headset. Let the action begin. Chapter 2 I woke up to gunshots ringing in my ears. ¡°Holy Shit!¡± I nearly screamed as I stood up and started to run anywhere with no idea where. Only to be stopped by my headset still on my head as it pulls my head back and into the floor. When the hell did I start playing shooters again?! Groaning I stumble up and realize I fell asleep at my desk while gaming. What time is it! Phew...still got an hour to get ready for school. In a now much more calm manner I took a brief shower, got dressed, had a breakfast consisting of oh so amazing coffee and cereal, and headed out the door while grabbing the rest of the football gear I¡¯ll need for the game today. While having a nice walk in the morning I enjoyed the cool breeze that chilled my skin and gave me an enjoyable shudder. The cold was always something I liked, there was something about it that made me feel calm, collected, and...deadly. Where did that thought come from?! I need to stop staying up so late, I¡¯m becoming an edge lord and it¡¯s freaking me out. Arriving at school I put on my game day jersey, and walked through the doors. Getting a few high-fives and words of encouragement that started as soon as I walked in and lasted the whole school day. Sure it was cool, it made me feel like I actually meant something important, but there was something nagging at me telling me that it was unsafe people were all aware of me. Man this feels weird, sure I¡¯m antisocial but I didn¡¯t think it would turn me into someone who can¡¯t even leave the house. The school day came to an end without much happening besides the announcement of the game and the pep talks my classmates gave me. I headed to the locker room to take a nap before the game started in a few hours. I think the lack of sleep is making me stressed out. I layed on one of the benches in the locker room and closed my eyes for a nice rejuvenating nap. ¡°You have been chosen. You will be a trailblazer for your people. Others of your blood will be with you on your journey. Fight for your survival, conquer for your safety, and create for the welcoming of others.¡± I widened my eyes seeing a football game playing out in front of me. What was that voice? What did it mean? ¡°Jaxton get out there¡±. I stuttered¡­ how the hell did I get out here?! How do I already have my pads on?! ¡°Jaxton I said get out there!¡±Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! That shot me into focus. I ran not the field peeking over to the scoreboard. It¡¯s the last quarter with barely more than a minute left! And we¡¯re only down by a point! I can¡¯t stop thinking about all the questions I have until I hear a loud scream and feel my legs go from under me and over my head and get crushed by a guy definitely three times my size...lineman. Along with a loud whistle, I staggered to my feet and walk jog over to our side of the ball. Who the fuck cares how I got here?! All I know is that we have a chance, we barely have any time left, and I¡¯m pissed as hell. I drop into my position look to my coach as he gives us the defensive play. He wants me to stay back on what will most likely be my last game of football ever played? Fuck that! I look to the ball and at the huge center lineman who¡¯s shit eating grin looks oddly familiar. I wait as it looks like time stands still... and then instantly it all collides together. The ball moves, I sprint as fast as I can to the lineman. He starts rising up after hiking the ball preparing to collide with me only to hit air. With a force unknown I jump into the air and flip over the center with a grace I know I don¡¯t have, landing in front of the quarterback about to hand off the ball to his running back. I can make it! I run towards the quarterback with my eyes on the ball and his on his incoming running back. We collide with me grappling the ball and spinning off as he lands into the dirt tripping his teammate. I have the ball. I Have The Ball! I run knowing I don¡¯t have time to question what happened. I run as fast as I can feeling my legs aching and my lungs burning as I sprint faster than ever not even looking back behind me. Then I¡¯m there, only a foot away from a touchdown. How did I do this?! When could I do something like that?! Have I always been able to do this?! All of these thoughts start swirling through my head. But then, like magic, I take a step. And the world shoots into focus, the crowd errupts into cheers, people start running onto the field. I feel amazing, like anything is possible as I get ready to be treated by my teammates and family to congratulate me. I see everyone running, but then I realize they keep running. Everyone is running away. What¡¯s going on?! Then I notice it. I¡¯m glowing, a light emanating from me and pointing into the sky. But I¡¯m not the only one. There are multiple but none of them look the same. Most are all a white light beaming into the sky at different intensities of brightness, but some are blue, others red or purple, green, even pink. I realize mine is the only one that is a pure onyx black that flies into the sky, piercing it. Then I notice a bright green light that looks like a tree canopy, along with a red light that gives off a hazy look of blood flying through the air coming towards me. I squint as the images come into view. They¡¯re my brothers, Jason¡¯s the blood red and Tyler¡¯s the rough green. Along with my parents running with them. ¡°What¡¯s happening?!¡± I demand. Everyone looks at me with eyes of surprise and confusion and a lot of fear. ¡°Nobody knows. We have to get out of¡ª¡± my dad was cut off as I start to rise into the air, along with my two brothers. Our parents call out our names as we start ascending into the skies. ¡°Tyler! Jason!¡± I scream as I reach out to them. We all reach out to each other flailing around until we all finally lock onto each other¡¯s arms. Then, as if going off to sleep, my eyes come to a close. Chapter 3 I instantly sit up. When was I laying down? ¡°What The Fu¡ª¡± were my words as I woke up until my lips refused to move. ¡°None of that¡± I heard a melodic and soft voice say. Whipping my head around in a speed surprising me I didn¡¯t get whiplash. I see a woman with light brown straight hair, hazelnut eyes, and gorgeous tan skin wearing tight jeans and a comfortable tank top that gives a good view of her lean stomach. She continues, ¡°I¡¯m Veronica, the one who will be introducing you to this new world. I will give you a basic knowledge of the area in which you will spawn, some starting gear, the chance to adjust your anatomy, and an explanation of your affinities and ability options within them. Any questions?¡± I stare daggers into the woman as she stares back undisturbed. This goes on for a long while until she starts shifting her balance from foot to foot. Another few minutes later and I¡¯m still at it while she starts looking away and bringing her eyes to glance at me every once in a while. ¡°What do you want?! Don¡¯t you know it¡¯s impolite to stare?! I know I¡¯m not like the other tutorial guide women that are perfect with flawless light skin and beautiful hair wearing a generic Greek robe! What do you want from me?!¡± I slowly bring up my hand and then point to my lips, THAT ARE STILL STUCK TOGETHER!! Veronica promptly slams her palm into her face twirls her finger in the air and gives a quick and quite ¡°sorry.¡± I finally open my mouth and start stretching my jaw and moving my lips. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, everyone makes mistakes,¡± I say with a smile. A tad red the woman replied,¡°I would¡¯ve expected you to be much more angry or confused or scared like everyone else I¡¯ve dealt with, how can you smile right now? You were just plucked from your home world.¡± ¡°Haha. Well I thought the situation was funny, especially with your small outburst. After that I¡¯m pretty confident you aren¡¯t meant to harm me and after all the shit that just went down, I¡¯m pretty sure any control in all this is definitely out of my hands considering how I FLEW INTO THE FUCKING SKY!¡± I add with a smile again. I swear¡­ I¡¯m going insane. I¡¯m gonna wake up from my nap in the locker room and everything will be fi¡ª. ¡°Ah hah there¡¯s at least a little bit of anger there, and sorry but everything that¡¯s happening is definitely real, sorry to burst your bubble.¡± Veronica says in a matter of fact tone. Did she ju¡ª. ¡°Yes I just read you mind, it¡¯s one of my abilities as a tutorial guide¡± she answers before I even ask myself. You know what? Screw it, if you can¡¯t beat them, join them. Let¡¯s go into loony town boys and girls. ¡°Alright assuming everything you said is true¡­ you really wanna say one of things you do is ¡®adjust your anatomy¡¯ haha...priceless¡± I go into hysterics and wipe tears from my eyes. Given Veronica¡¯s non amused expression I quickly sober and change the subject ¡°what is this new ¡®world¡¯ you¡¯re talking about that I¡¯m entering?¡± With a little bit of excitement and what looks like pride Veronica goes on to say ¡°Oh your coming into a new world called Estrias, created by God. He plans to move more of your kind here including the rest of your family, you are just the first to prepare for everyone else. You¡¯re old world is dying so he decided this would be the next best place for some of your people.¡± That is a bit of a relief, but she said the rest of my family, I guess James and Tyler were brought here with me when we flew into the sky. ¡°He understands how hard this transition must be and so in this new world, those coming from the old one will have the ability to come back to life when they die and the only way for your people to truly die is of old age, but even that can be disabled if you¡¯d like it to be. There are also other creatures and forms of intelligent life including but not limited to Humans, elves, dwarves, beast-people, orcs, goblins, gnomes, and many more. There are already a large sum of these life forms within the world that have been born and raised here however they won¡¯t have a lot of the power your people will.¡± All the books and video games are quickly coming into mind as I think I have to be dreaming because this is too crazy to be true. ¡°It¡¯s like a real life MMORPG! I¡¯ll live forever?! Where will I spawn? You said level, are you telling me there¡¯s a stat point allocation level up system in this world? Is there a race change option? What are the racial bonuses if there are? Will there be a noob spawn area all the people from my world will spawn in? What do¡ª-¡± my lips refused to move. Honestly I can¡¯t blame her, I got a little excited there. ¡°How about we go in order?¡± With a quick nod of my head Veronica continues, ¡°Forever is a strong word, it¡¯s more like you¡¯ll live until you are ready to move on to the next life. However you¡¯re kind can still kill each other permanently if you go through a dual in which both parties accept the terms.¡± Nodding that I understand she continues ¡°You will spawn in a random currently low-level secluded area near some sort of community of a random race that may or may not be your own however they will be passive with those of your race...at least to the extent that they won¡¯t kill you on sight. The major kingdoms are ruled by humans, elves, and orcs with the other races either living within their kingdoms as well or within smaller settlements not currently considered a major force in the world.¡± She quickly brings up a map that appears like a floating hologram with amazing graphics and details depicting a large land mass with many different terrains. ¡°Such as the beastmen tribes to the south who have a large portion of land between them however they are separated into major tribes and since not united as one are weaker than the other kingdoms however they are left alone for the most part by others except for races who love the violence of war; such as the orc kingdom named Grazdra, which lies to the west and share a border with multiple beastmen tribes and have constant skirmishes.¡± Got it, don¡¯t be an Orc, who would be stupid enough to want to be on everyone''s shit list? ¡°The Humans are to the East in the kingdom of Highsol, and the Elves are to the north in Seraste, also sharing a long border with the orcs. Even though the orc kingdom is at war with almost every race on the continent it is still possible to see them among other races kingdom, often as refugees, simply because there are so many of them. They are often treated terribly if not killed on sight however. This information only covers this continent and will be all the information I give you about the area, you must dive deeper yourself or explore to other continents or ask others if you wish to know more about the world.¡± Taking in the large sum of information I understood how it was only about the continent I will spawn on and can understand wanting to push others to seek out information themselves but there¡¯s still something I want to confirm. I raise my hand and Veronica let¡¯s my lips free. ¡°So other people from my world may be on different continent I don¡¯t know about?¡± I asked, worrying about the location of my brothers. ¡°Correct. But don¡¯t worry about your brothers. You three are going to spawn in the same area together for multiple reasons.¡± Veronica said like it was a small detail. Thank God I won¡¯t have to wander the world looking for them like a generic questline. ¡°Wait...why?¡± What could they gain by having us start together? Will other groups start together? ¡°Oh, well we put people in groups from the other world to spawn together that knew each other in the past world and would make the base of a good team because we want you to succeed, but also want to give you a challenge, there are also others from your past world you know who will be spawning in an area near you. It also has to do with you three linking arms on your travel here, since you three are in direct contact with each other even if we wanted to separate you we wouldn¡¯t be able to make it a very far distance. However, you guys cannot communicate before you finish the tutorial.¡± Well that makes sense¡­ I guess. Alright might as well go into the rest of this introduction. ¡°So you said I could change my body?¡± Almost too quickly Veronica says, ¡°Yes you will be allowed to change your race if you wish and alter your physical appearance. Each race has a racial bonus of 5 attribute points in two attributes from level one and gain two points in those same attributes per level onward in addition to three attribute points you can freely distribute yourself per level¡± ¡°Wait what is this about attribution points, I mean I think I know where you¡¯re going with this. A leveling attribution distribution system, but what attributes are there?¡± I ask knowing all the MMORPG¡¯s I played all had a different take on the attribution system. Victoria calmed her excitement a bit and explained,¡°Well the attributes include Strength, Constitution, Agility, Dexterity, Endurance, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma. Strength defines how powerful your attacks are and how much you can carry. Constitution determines how much health you have, every point in the attribute adds 10 to your total health, and affects stamina regeneration. Agility affects how quickly you can move your body, your ability to maneuver without being detected, and dodge attacks made against you. Dexterity determines speed and precision of attacks, and in some cases takes the place of strength and determines damage of attacks you make, depending on the weapon used such as ranged weapons or some shorter bladed weapons, however in terms of the bladed weapons, Strength, still holds significant merit in the damage done as well. Endurance defines your stamina, every point in the attribute adds 10 to your total stamina, and also determines your ability to ignore ill effects. Intelligence determines your maximum amount of mana, every point in the attribute adds 10 to you total man capacity, increases base intellect, and also determines potency of spells. Wisdom affects your mana regeneration rate, mental fortitude, magical resistance, and perception . Lastly Charisma determines your ability to understand and take part in social acts and how people view you. Some say it also influences your luck.¡± She says like she¡¯s had to say it over a hundred time. Which for some reason wouldn¡¯t surprise me. ¡°For level one, ten points in an attribute is the average. You can view your current attribute levels which have been determined by your life in the other world by willing for your status screen to appear.¡± I HAVE A STATUS SCREEN! I close my eyes and think of a status screen I¡¯ve seen in my games to appear before me. The next time I open them I see a black screen with white wording appear a comfortable distance from my face that is oddly transparent. IT WORKED! Level 1, Osiris Jaxton Undecided race Affinity: Death Age: 18 Titles: None Exp to next level: 0% Health: 90 Mana: 110 Stamina: 100 Armor: 0 Strength: 9 Constitution: 9 Agility: 11 Dexterity: 12 Endurance:10 Intelligence:11 Wisdom: 10 Charisma: 9 Abilities: None Skills: None Spells: None I want to argue, but I know that the level of my Constitution and Strength are probably true. At least I have high dexterity, gotta love the hand eye coordination from my video games. ¡°What does Affinity mean?¡± I¡¯ve never seen something like that in a game. ¡°We¡¯ll get to that after you choose your race. Any other questions?¡± Veronica answered. ¡°Alright¡± my interest is now piqued ¡°and here about skills and abilities, I¡¯m guessing skills are things you can learn on your own or are taught to you but you¡¯re either born with abilities or are given them?¡± I ask, my mind thinking of the games I¡¯ve played in the past.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. ¡°Correct¡± was the only response. ¡°Now time to move on to choosing a race.¡± As a screen appears listing off names of what I can only assume are all the races of the world. How can I choose?! There must be hundreds! Why would someone decide to just be human if they can be an entirely different fantasy race?! Veronica being her nosy self answers the question to myself ¡°Oh many become human because they get to assign which attributes get their five bonus attribute points. They also have a passive ability exp gain of 5 percent.¡± Well that answers that. When I thought about it, if this is gonna be my new world I¡¯m gonna need to specialize to be a cut above the rest, so human is probably the best option because of the multiple options it offers. I think I¡¯ll gaze through the other options until I make my choice though. After spending who knows how long looking through the other races I can¡¯t find anything that brings as much possibility and long run gain then human. Sure there are races who gain innate spells, or a interesting ability, but nothing that gives as much options. Eventually after hating myself for using my head in terms of the long game I begrudgingly selected human. Then something interesting and unexpected happened. Human Racial Abilities: Ambitious: 5% experience bonus when gaining exp. ¡ªPassive Diplomacy: Relationship gains have a +5% bonus. ¡ªPassive Attribute points: +5 to two attributes of your choosing. +2 to previously chosen attributes per level. ¡ªSELECTED¡ª Do you wish to select a sub-race? Yes or No A subrace?! This could change everything. Maybe I can keep the passive ability and my freedom of allocation while getting more benefits. ¡°What happens if I choose a subrace as a human?¡± ¡°Your appearance would look physically different but for the most part still be human. You would only get one free choice of the bonus attribution points while the other choice is dependent on your subrace. You will also keep your ambitious ability but it may decrease in power, but you will lose your diplomacy ability and you may not get all the abilities of your subrace. Others in the world may treat you differently as well.¡± Veronica replied while cleaning her nails with a bored expression. I¡¯m not really worried about losing the Diplomacy ability, but it kinda sucks I would lose part of the Ambitious ability as well, I still think I could get a better deal than plain human though if I play my cards right. Alright time to figure out what attribute fits me best then and see if the race that has it also has cool racial abilities I could get. Well actually apparently I already figured that out...or...erm¡­God did. Agility and Dexterity do both kind of resonate with me, but Agility even more so because like I said, I hate getting hit. ¡°What race would make my bonus attribute points go into agility?¡± Maybe this could work. ¡°The catfolk of the beast people would, there are also quite a lot of half beast people as well so you would be treated less discriminately. They also have some useful abilities.¡± Veronica replies, knowing my thought process, as she brings up a screen that shows a picture of a anthropomorphic black cat the size of an adult human clad in leather armor and holding a long spear. Huh pretty cool, not gonna lie. I wonder what I¡¯d look like and what abilities I¡¯d gain. Let¡¯s select it and find out. After selecting the option I felt a tingling on my head and lower back, but my thoughts are interrupted by a prompt appearing. Half-Catfolk Racial Abilities: Human: Ambitious - 4% experience bonus when gaining exp. Catfolk: Cats Grace - Like a cat you are much more flexible and have greater maneuverability and control of your whole body. You can even manipulate yourself while in the air to a greater extent. Catfolk: Cats Senses - You have the sight and hearing of a cat. You can see in dark as if it¡¯s in dim light and you can see in dim light as if it¡¯s in bright light. Attribute points: +5 to one attribute of your choosing. +2 to previously chosen attribute per level. +5 to Agility. +2 to Agility per level. Now that is pretty cool. The 1% decrease in my bonus for experience gain kinda sucks but I can just imagine myself flipping over people or falling from crazy heights only to land gracefully. It seems so awesome. What would I look like though? As soon as I thought that, a large mirror appeared in front of me. ¡°You can use this to adjust how you look as well by willing it.¡± I hear with a yawn from behind it. Looking into the mirror I notice some major things; I now have cat ears pointing out of my head, a long cat-like tail sticking out my back, my nails come to a sharp point, and my light blue eyes seemed to slightly glow as my pupils elongated vertically, just barely enough to notice. Dropping my jaw at the interesting change I notice my canines are now visibly larger than before. Trying to flex and move my tail I realize it¡¯s not that hard, it feels like another leg or arm, I also find out I can partially shift my ears, changing my hearing range and direction. Then I realize I¡¯m now standing there naked. ¡°Oh calm down, I¡¯m behind the mirror. I can read minds, I don¡¯t have x-ray vision¡± said Veronica in an tone that seemed almost disappointed. ¡°Figure out what you want to change, and let me tell you, bigger is not always better.¡± That¡¯s right, I can change my body. What would I want to change? Sure I¡¯m skinny but in all honesty it¡¯s not like I disliked my body, and changing it seems kinda wrong to me if I didn¡¯t put effort into it. Hmm, when I thought about it I remembered I did always want to dye my hair silver. With that thought, the hair on the top of my head, my new cat ears, and tail all turned silver. With a quick check I found the rest of the hair on my body did as well, and it looks pretty damn cool. ¡°I think I¡¯m done. Should I decide my other bonus attribute now?¡± I called out to Veronica. ¡°You may want to wait until I explain your affinity for that. Yours is quite interesting.¡± She said while biting her lip and peeking out the side of the mirror, her eyes lingering. ¡°Wow, you¡¯re packing and you didn¡¯t even change it.¡± She says, as her eyebrows shoot up her forehead. Quickly using my hands to cover my twig and berries, coughing and feeling heat rush to my cheeks, ¡°you were saying about my affinity.¡± ¡°Ughh, fine, but I want a prize after this.¡± She said, her eyes still lingering. ¡°Your affinity has to do with the color you glowed when you came into the world. Some signify a warrior, others a mage, druids, monks, rogues, the list goes on. There are also non fighting affinities like merchant, farmer, or scholar. Think of it as a class, basically. Sure anyone can learn any skill or go into any profession but your affinity is just what you¡¯re predominately good at doing. Like a recommendation guide.¡± ¡°Alright and what does death mean? And why do you say it¡¯s interesting?¡± I ask still confused about what could be special about it. It sounds like it would be some sort of rogue or assassin class in a game. I really hope I don¡¯t become some sort of edgelord. ¡°Well you aren¡¯t far off from thinking it¡¯s similar to a rogue or assassin affinity. However, those classes have limits. They are capable of dealing out high damage but only against single targets and they are limited to stealth and surprise tactics to do high damage. The Death affinity however is described as, well let me show you.¡± Quickly bringing up another screen and moving it towards me. Death: You are a harbinger of death. A rare sight to see and live to tell about. Fighting is an art to you, as you do a deadly dance across any battlefield. Like death you are inescapable, and are nearly impossible to stop or directly attack. Because of your desire to be above the rest, you crave combat, confrontation, and conflict of any kind. You were breed to bring destruction. Yep, I¡¯m an edgelord. ¡°The description flowers it up, but your affinity is basically a high maneuverability killing machine, it¡¯s quite rare. You don¡¯t need stealth to do your high damage, however your affinity does work incredibly well along with it as well. Now and every ten levels you¡¯ll have the chance to learn an ability from your affinity, when you reach the level to gain a new ability, you may choose one you left from your previous choice or a one of two new ones that appear. These are your current choices.¡± Veronica says bringing up another screen Harbinger: For every kill you make while in combat your agility and dexterity increase temporarily and remain until combat has ceased. The amount of the bonus is dependent on the agility and dexterity levels of the combatant you¡¯ve slain. ¡ªPassive Death''s step: You gain the ability to teleport up to 30ft in any direction. However you cannot go through walls or any surface completely blocking your path. ¡ªCost: 50 mana. No cooldown. Wow, those seem overpowered. I have to think though, that if I already get these powerful abilities at level one, there must be others who do as well. I should play this smart. Death step immediately screams out to me, I see it as a ¡®get out of any mess¡¯ free card. It also seems like it would be really useful in combat, even if the mana cost is kinda high. Harbinger definitely seems powerful but it seems kinda vague. What determines whether combat is over exactly, and the bonus being dependent on the attribute scores of those I kill is vague as well. I will probably come back and choose harbinger after making level ten simply because it¡¯s a passive ability. I select Death¡¯s Step and continue, ¡°alright should I choose my attribute bonus now?¡± ¡°Yes and after that I¡¯ll give you your starter gear¡± Alright, well now that I have Death Step it might be a good ideas to put my bonus into Intelligence for the mana. Putting all my eggs into one basket seems like a bad idea though. I should probably put my bonus into dexterity and then put in most of my three attribute points I get per level into intelligence and wisdom. That would definitely make me hard to hit but as soon as I do my health will take a serious hit. I¡¯m wasting too much time thinking about all this. Allocating my bonus points to go into Dexterity I move on before I overthink anymore. ¡°Alright starter gear. How is that decided?¡± ¡°Oh it¡¯s already been decided for you once you finished everything else.¡± She says waving her hand in the air. Then a table appears between us and on it I can see one sword that looks too short to be an actual sword but too long to be a dagger, along with its sheath that looks like it¡¯s supposed to go over my back like a bandolier and has two daggers sitting in sheaths where it looks like would lie comfortably on my chest. There also appears to be some plain cloth clothing and worn leather apparel consisting of a chest piece, leggings, gloves, and boots. Then there¡¯s what looks like a raggedy black cloak. ¡°You can focus on the items to see their description.¡± At those words I focus on each item individually, and am happy to see a couple screens pop up. Worn Leather Armor Consisting of a chest piece, greaves, gloves and boots; It definitely doesn¡¯t look like much, but it should do for a quick scruffle. +10 armor Durability:20/20 Cloth Clothing Consisting of pants, a shirt, briefs, and socks it may not be the softest of clothing, but it¡¯s better than being nude. +1 armor Durability:10/10 Crude Iron Shortsword Sure it¡¯s got more rust than iron on it but hey, maybe the monster who takes it after killing you can pick their teeth with it. Base Damage: 6-8 Durability: 15/15 Crude Iron Dagger If the person you stab doesn¡¯t die from the attack, maybe they¡¯ll die from tetanus. Base Damage: 4-6 Durability: 15/15 Leather Bandolier Capable of sheathing a sword to the back and a pair of daggers to one''s chest, this also offers some defense. +2 armor Durability: 15/15 -Takes the place of the belt slot in equipment. Ragged Cloak Did you make this from your mother''s tablecloth? Offering little protection it can cover your body, head, and keep your face shielded. +1 armor Durability: 10/10 Small Pack Small duffle bag barely capable of holding any contents. Available space: 5 slots Apart from the smart remarks in the descriptions, I couldn¡¯t help but smile at getting some items. ¡°Once you are wearing the item they are considered equipped and you can see them in your equipment screen. Any other items in your possession but not equipped will appear in your inventory screen¡± Veronica snaps me into focus. Once I¡¯m completely clothed in all the gear it feels like it fits perfectly, there¡¯s even a hole for my tail to fit through. I also think of both of my equipment and inventory screens and see that my inventory is completely blank with five slots. but my current equipment is appearing over a diagram of a generic humanoid shape filling certain slots where I¡¯m wearing them. There are still blank slots over the fingers except for the thumbs and the neck. Veronica now appearing a little disappointed now that I have clothes on gives a mock pout and continues, ¡°how about you look at your status screen now?¡± I figured that would probably be a good Idea, and with a thought it appears in front of me. Level 1, Osiris Jaxton Half-Catfolk Affinity: Death Age: 18 Titles: None Exp to next level: 0% Health: 90 Mana: 110 Stamina: 100 Armor: 14 Strength: 9 Constitution: 9 Agility: 16 Dexterity: 17 Endurance:10 Intelligence:11 Wisdom: 10 Charisma: 9 Abilities: Affinity: Death''s Step: You gain the ability to teleport up to 20ft in any direction. However you cannot go through walls or any surface completely blocking your path. ¡ªCost: 50 mana. No cooldown Racial: Human: Ambitious: 4% experience bonus when gaining exp. ¡ªPassive Catfolk: Cat''s Grace: Like a cat you are much more flexible and have greater maneuverability and control of your whole body. You can even manipulate yourself while in the air to a greater extent compared to your human relatives. ¡ªPassive Cats Senses: You have the sight and hearing of a cat. You can see in dark as if it¡¯s in dim light and you can see in dim light as if it¡¯s in bright light. ¡ªPassive Skills: None Spells: None This seems like a pretty cool character layout, even if I am only level 1, and it can only get better. ¡°Alright where do we go from here?¡± ¡°Well now you are free to go into the world.¡± She says as a wooden door appears out of the floor. ¡°Just head on through. Oh and by the way be careful showing off your affinity, you might make yourself a target with a rare one like yours.¡± The warning throws me off a bit but thinking of the adventures awaiting and the fact that my brothers are probably there make me head towards the door, only stopping a step away. ¡°Hey Veronica, thank you. I¡¯m sure your job isn¡¯t easy but I¡¯m glad you were here to help me out. You were the first person I met in this new world I guess, I hope I get to see you again.¡± I look back at her, and I completely meant it. I was glad somebody at least tried to explain something to me, and honestly she was pretty fun to be around for a little bit. Her eyes wide and cheeks red she closes her eyes and turns to a serious expression on her face. Opening them a second later with a devilish grin she walks towards me and grabs me by the collar. Next thing I know her lips are on mine and I¡¯m in bliss. She tastes exactly like cinnamon. She breaks away after a while and takes a breath, her face an inch from mine. ¡°I told you I¡¯d get a prize.¡± She said with a glimmer in her eyes, ¡°You¡¯ll be seeing me every ten levels to choose your next affinity ability, and I¡¯m gonna get more than a kiss next time.¡± Next thing I know the door is flung open, I¡¯m pushed through the doorway and I land in a heap with my cloak covering my face as I hear a loud thud when the door closes.