Taubitha leaned back and relaxed beside the mysterious entity as she enjoyed the interdimensional spa that she'd entered via dimensional rift. The nonessential oil was intoxicating in her olfactory sensors, and indeed it was a most peaceful and relaxing thing. Soon enough, two sets of floating hands with distinct eyelashes - albeit no eyes - zoomed up to greet the two of them.
We are your nail file technicians, thought spoke the sets of hands in unison. We are here to give you the best manicures this side of reality, and that is to say, every side of reality.
"Sounds, like, fucking amazing," said Taubitha with a miasmic sigh and a huge grin. "I can't wait."
[I'm a little afraid.]
Taubitha gave the entity a sideways glance. "Like, oh my gods, what do you mean? A good pedicure is next to godsliness, they say!"
[Yea, well, it's just because in all of eternity - because to be honest I have genuinely been around for all eternity - I've never once trimmed my ethereal nails.]
The entity held up its long fingers. And then so it was that Taubitha grimaced as her eyes went wide and she realized that the strange, nearly feather-light, clawlike structures she'd been observing of the entity's were not indeed extremely long fingers. They were its nails.
"Oh my gods, ick!" said Taubitha with a dry heave as she stuck out her tongue. "That is, like, totally nasty, oh my gods. I almost can't believe it, but you're really fucking weird so honestly I buy it. Like, regardless, though, that shit is fucking crazy. Like, so fucking crazy. It's a good thing I brought you here, really. Can't believe you never thought of it, this was literally, like, the first thing I thought of when you told me all existent dimensions. But, like, whatever. Everyone has their own tastes and priorities. I just, like, totally agree with mine better."
The entity cringed as the floating hands worked intently on its extremely lengthy, partially translucent nails.
How long would you like these to be? thought asked one of the hands.
[Um. Keep most of the length, please.]
Taubitha sighed and rolled her eyes as floating hands filed her nails expertly. "Some people are just crazy!"
[Are you ready to talk about the class some more, now? Please?]
"Oh, absolutely!" said Taubitha with a relaxed smile. "So, how do I accept?"
[It's easy enough to accept a class, especially considering that it's more on me to bestow it upon you and your system. However, it's something that has to happen with both you and your parpairedied companion present. Which, distinctly, it's just you here in your dream. If you accept this class, then one thing you need to first understand is that Princess indeed too will receive the class. That is to say, it flows to both of your systems.]
"Like, really? Why's that?"
[It's the nature of classes and being paired. Had Princess already been part of an assigned class before you paired with her, well then, you'd have that class now, too. All that said, since you'd be the one receiving the class, it would automatically flow to her. Two paired entities to the same general system can only ever share a class. Of course, pairings are rare, and classes are even rarer, so indeed situations where paired companions get a class are some of the rarest of all. All that said, she's going to get her own set of class related attributes and powers to complement yours when - or if, indeed - you accept.]
Taubitha considered this and sighed as she enjoyed her manicure. "Alright, then. Well, that should be fun for her, although, like, it totally makes me worried that she'll try to use to it to end the world or something."
[That's generally why I want you to have this class, you understand that, right? Like, that I expect for you to become the paired companion of a world ending entity? Because that's, in truth, what you are?]
Taubitha just sighed and looked at her nails as the interdimensional floating hands started fanning out an array of different colors for her to choose from. She eventually - after a lot of consideration - decided to have most of her nails painted bubblegum pink, save for each pointer finger, which she indeed had painted the darkest red possible without breaching the concept of black itself.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
[Taubitha? Taubitha, do you remember my question?]
"Oh of course!" said Taubitha with a smile. "Look, I mean, I love the idea of having all the power. I think this [class] is really great. I mean, doesn't having it mean that I could come here to this spa dimension whenever I wanted?"
The entity was struggling to select a nail color from the myriad of options prepared by the floating hands. Eventually, it settled on neon purple.
[This isn't too garish a color, is it?]
"Like, not at all, bestie," said Taubitha as she admired her own nails. "All that said, let's focus a little more on this [class]. You said there were some limitations? Some... parameters, perhaps?"
[Oh my, yes. Of course, some of them won't be altogether apparent until you truly awaken from your dream state and enter into the prompting sequence with Princess - your system will do altogether a better job of explaining it than me. However, what I can do is tell you exactly what it is that I know from my experience you'll come up against with this class, as well as some of the attributes you can expect to gain. Really, there aren't a lot of drawbacks other in that you won't get the opportunity to choose a class again if you select this one. All that said, as I mentioned earlier, classes are exceedingly rare... With that in consideration, at least from my perspective, it would be quite prudent indeed for you to at the very least highly consider accepting this class. Part of me wants to say it's a no brainer, however at the same time the only person whom I'd think would not at the very least consider this would indeed have to be quite brainless, so I even feel pause so as to say that much. Regardless, really, you should give it some thought. Hell, give it as much thought as you want.]
Taubitha sighed as she relaxed while the floating hands heated her nails with an ethereal heating [skill] that felt quite soothing indeed. After that was resolved, she leaned over to address the entity directly.
"I'm, like, totally in," she said with full conviction.
The entity nodded slowly as it pulled up its long, purple fingernails - which were indeed, inexplicably, still somewhat translucent - and looked at Taubitha with its piercing slit eyes.
[Sweet. With that, if you're ready, I'm going to wake you up now.]
"Do I have to?" Taubitha asked sadly.
[I mean, you have to wake up eventually. At least, you do, unless I warp all of reality to remove the existence of waking states among all tauman consciousness. And that would be, among other things, a bit of an overreaction I feel... Not to say anything of the fact that it would consume so much of my energy that I might not exist at the implementation's conclusion were I to enact it as such. All that said, yes. You have to wake up. Indeed, it's the only way to functionally grant you your class outside of pulling Princess into your dream state - which doesn't seem to be possible, as she isn't asleep.]
"What?" Taubitha asked incredulously. "Princess isn't asleep? But didn't she lay right beside me on the straw bed beside my cot?"
[Yes, but she has been completely awake the entire time you've been asleep. In fact, from what I can tell - and while I am not all-knowing, I can indeed see an awful lot - from what I can tell, she hasn't slept in, well, I don't if Princess has ever slept, Taubitha. Part of me wonders whether she can sleep. As such, it's going to be easier for me to grant you your class when you awaken.]
"Wait, Princess can't sleep?" Taubitha frowned. "That... seems ridiculous. Everyone has to sleep!"
[Not Princess, apparently. Which is funny, because even I sleep. Regardless, well, I can't really gain any sort of perception around her sleeping. Ever. In a myriad of realities, too - and indeed I can't ascertain a reality wherein she sleeps. It's the damndest thing.]
"Like, oh my gods, that's crazy," said Taubitha with a sigh. "Well, anyway, am I going to see you when I wake up?"
[Negative, although I will always be somewhat watching over you, as is my power and right as the kind of thing that I am until I one day gain for myself a true corporeal form.]
"Which, like, is what exactly, again?" asked Taubitha.
[What?]
"What is the thing you are again, exactly?" Taubitha pressed.
[None of your business, Taubitha. Regardless, the answer is no. I will not be visible to you, and I will not interact with you when you awaken. You will simply open your eyes, gain a waking conscious state, and then promptly be sent by your system into the dialogues that allow you to build out your class alongside Princess. You'll both receive enough XP to level up, and you will gain new attributes tailored to the class of Dimensional Wizard.]
Taubitha admired her nails as the hands finished off their heating work and gestured to her feet.
Would you like us to perform a pedicure, Taubitha? asked the hands in thought speech.
"No, I'm afraid it's about time for us to leave," said Taubitha with a sigh. She turned to the entity. "Will I be able to come back to this place?"
[Eventually, yes. However, I am not certain what all you will gain when you receive your class - it is more up to your system and your personal build. I have had a long time to level up my abilities. It may take you a while to return to a place such as this one.]
"Oh," said Taubitha with a sigh. Then, she had a thought. A spark of inspiration. "What if I destroy Kahli?"
[That... most likely would change things. She is, as I have duly noted, incredibly powerful at this moment beyond just a number in her character sheet due to her own class and attributes. Destroying her would indeed constitute an extreme amount of XP. Probably, I assume, enough to level your class attributes and any applicable skills up to the point that you could come here whenever you like.]
Taubitha smiled wide and wickedly. "Perfect." She nodded and admired her nails one last time. "Alright, then. Wake me up."