The test was not at all what Owen had originally expected when he had read the words, "Test of character." Rather than being made to make a list of choices or something similar, instead, more memories flooded his mind. Owen saw flashes of memories from when he had been a kid, as he felt like his brain was about to explode, he saw a himself as a teenager in high school.
Different scenarios where he had chosen to be passive and meek whenever someone even remotely confident took the lead. Shame. That was the only word Owen could use to describe how he felt watching through his younger moments. Most of his life he had been passive and tried to stick to himself, but he had had the issue of not being able to stand up for himself, because originally it didn't feel worth it. Kids would take it far, but not far enough for it ever to become a bother to him.
Once he had joined college, it had gotten even worse. He had ended up choosing a college that he wasn't going to be able to afford, because the group of friends he had made told him that he couldn't be the only one form their group that wasn't going to go to the same college. Owen kept expecting the memories to begin to show him differently, but they didn't. More than anything else, he had consistently been a pushover.
When it started showing him memories of his first relationship, Owen already remembered how bad it had been, but the flood of system reinforced memories didn't stop. His relationship had been a joke, he had been so preoccupied with the idea that he wasn't ever going to end up with another girl, that he had just done everything she had asked. He had wished he had been surprised when she had cheated on him, but he hadn't been. He felt a cold anger and intense shame when he saw himself telling her he could forgive her.
For the first time, Owen realized that he had hated and despised everything about his life up until the system. He hadn't done anything to actually try and take control of it or make it better. He had just let everything happen to him. The first time he had stood up for himself was when he had punched Jared. Owen had wished it wasn't the case, but as every memory had been refreshed by the system, he knew it was. As the memories began filtering into after the system had arrived, Owen expected them to get better, but they hadn't.
The main memory that stood out in his mind was Jared blaming him for Sara and Kyle's deaths. A part of him had known it wasn't his fault at the time, but he had still blamed himself. Everything about the situation replayed in his head, but Owen realized that he thought about it differently now than he had back then. Even though it hadn't been that long since his coworkers had died, Owen no longer blamed himself. In fact, he had mostly forgotten about it, though reliving the memories was probably the first time he had remembered it since it had happened.
As Owen relived the experience, he felt a number of things he knew he hadn't at the time. He felt a rush of anger at Jared for daring to blame him for something he couldn't have played a role in. He still felt shame for how he had acted, but he wasn't embarrassed that he had been sad, he was embarrassed that he had handled it so poorly and let it affect him for so long. He had also let things effect him during the first week of his training with Xerxes and felt embarrassed for it, but he was starting to see himself slowly change.
As more time passed, he watched as he became more certain of himself. He let himself take the lead, which he hadn't ever done before. As it got closer to modern day, Owen was surprised to be almost proud of who he had become in such a short time. He hated the fact that it had essentially taken the end of the world for him to change, but he no longer felt that sense of shame in the back of his head for his actions. As the flood of memories turned into a trickle, before eventually stopping, Owen just stared down at his hands.
His copy hadn't attack him at all during the test, though Owen realized that it was because everything had happened in a single moment. His copy was still frozen in the same attack that he had been in when the memories began. Owen stared for a moment, but when his copy was still unable to move, Owen looked back down at himself and thought. "I've changed a lot. But what is the point of this test? I know I have grown as a person, but how was that a test of character."
His hands, compared to most of the memories of himself, were callused and bruised. He had worked hard. One of the things he had learned about himself from the memories, more than anything else, was that he had become more independent. He wasn't doing everything himself and wasn't provided everything for himself, but he was making his own decisions. Even just thinking back to the past month. He had mostly followed Xerxes's training regimen, but when he had felt like it hadn't suited his needs at the time, he had changed it.
He felt like an energy was gathering around him, but rather than the strong coursing energies he was used to, this one felt faint and more a wisp of something already used. But as his thoughts continued, it began to grow in strength. Owen didn't notice the energies growing in power, until they began buffeting him from all sides. He wasn't sure of the cause, but as he became more resolute in what and who he wanted to be, the energies picked up even more. As they reached a crescendo, Owen was back to staring at himself, or at least the copy of himself.
"I don't want to be someone else's stepping stone. I don't want to be cowering in fear of retaliation or even confrontation. I want to be the best, I want people to use me as a guide for their own path. I want to be someone that my friends respect." His voice grew softer as he spoke. He wasn't sure why he was speaking it, but the energy seemed to sing as his voice filled the air.
"I want to stay standing on equal footing with the people around me, I need to be better, not just for myself, but for everyone else that surrounds me." His mind began to drift and the memories of his dad resurfaced. He felt tears come to his eyes as he felt all of the regrets from the past years come crashing down around him. "I don't want to live live with any regrets and I don't want to be a coward anymore."
Energy blasted through the hall and a system notification hovered in front of Owen's eyes, but he didn't read it. He still felt tears rolling down his face as he remembered everything he could have done for his dad, but hadn't. The last years of their relationship had been strained, but after the system had replayed all of his memories for him, Owen knew that it had truly been his fault.
Wiping his tears from his face, he looked back at his copy, that still struggled in place and smiled. "I don't want to be like you, while I appreciate your power, I don't ever want to be you." Owen said. He half expected that his copy would disperse into the air, but his copy just began cursing and promising to consume him. Owen looked at the system notification finally and smiled.
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*You have reached a resolution and have firmed your path. You have successfully passed the second test with the highest possible score.*
*You may now make alterations to the secondary class you have been awarded. What changes would you like to make.*
A separate panel appeared that listed out all of the benefits and everything changeable. Owen wanted to start making changes immediately, but before he did, he pointed at the copy of him. "System what is that copy of me and how do I get rid of it?" He fully expected to not hear a response, but the changeable class features didn't have alternative options listed, so he assumed he was supposed to ask for different things to be added or taken away. He hoped because of that, it would answer some questions.
However, to his disappointment, he didn't get a response. Pushing his copy out of mind, he turned back to his unique class screen and read out the page fully this time.
*Unique Class - No Name
Bonus stats awarded every five levels: 50
Please choose how stats will be allocated.
One passive class perk of choice.*
Looking down at the list of changeable options he shrugged, the options seemed okay, but nothing to write home about.
*Changeable Options:
10% damage bonus with all weapon.
10% increase to HP and MP
Adds Bonus Stat - Intelligence*
Owen stared at the changeable options and tried to decided if they were good enough. Just as the thought entered his head, his own voice echoed in his mind. He needed to strive for more than good enough. He wanted to live life without regrets. "I would like to change the first option from a 10% damage bonus, to a 10% stat bonus." He paused for several second waiting for a system response, but instead a system prompt appeared.
*Choose a stat to give a ten percent bonus.*
Owen nodded, but instead of choosing a stat, he moved the window to the side. "Is it possible to combine any of my stats?" he had talked about this before with Xerxes, but he hadn't gotten a definitive answer. Apparently, it wasn't uncommon to try and combine your two bonus stats, but there weren't often any actually bonuses to it. Owen was more interested in finding out if it was even possible. Another new system message appeared and Owen grinned as he read it.
*Which stats would you like to combine?*
It once again didn't give him a list he could actually combine, but he nodded in satisfaction. The last thing he had wanted to double check was to see if it was possible to upgrade one of his stats, but he was now more than ever positive it would be possible. But before he made any choices, he thought back to how Xerxes had described a secondary class.
It was supposed to be a representation of himself and what he wanted to be like. It was the class that would help define his path and eventually help other people find their own path using his. He wasn't sure how someone was supposed to know what their path would be this early on, but he wanted to create something that he thought best represented who he wanted to be.
As he looked at the options he considered his fighting style from the first test. He had managed to keep up with both a copy of himself that was stronger than him, but also a replica of himself that was supposed to be as strong as he was. He wasn't sure how best to define it, but as he looked down at the changeable options, he considered. He didn't really feel ready to assign his stat points or his abilities and somehow the chamber he was in, seemed to resonate with that decision.
The world around him began to warp and shift around, he felt less nauseous than he had the first time, but he still had to fight the urge to throw up and he appeared sitting on the ground of the courtyard in a meditative position. He had only been sitting there for a moment, before he heard Xerxes voice echo through the courtyard. "I'm impressed you waited to form your class," Xerxes said. Owen nodded and opened his eyes and getting up to his feet. "It didn't feel right to try and rush anything. I need to consider everything and what I want my path to look like, before I make any lasting decisions."
Xerxes nodded and went to turn away, but Owen stopped him. "I still have a couple questions though," Xerxes gave him a warm smile and gestured to the table he had been walking towards, "First tell me about your experience, then ask your questions." Owen didn't spend too long describing the events that had taken place inside of the testing area. Xerxes nodded along with everything Owen had said to describe the hall until he had mentioned the door. Xerxes's eyes had opened wide when he had went on to describe the alternative version of himself that had fought him.
By the time Owen had finished recounting everything up until he had come back, both of them had troubled looks on their faces. Owen was troubled, because Xerxes looked like something was very wrong. Xerxes was troubled, because what had happened shouldn't be possible. "This office as you described it, the papers had your skills?" Xerxes asked, looking troubled. Owen nodded and silence filled the air. Owen was getting ready to get up an excuse himself, but Xerxes gestured for him to stay.
"I am not sure how a copy of you ended up in your secondary class test. I've never heard of anything like that happening to anyone else, but I do recognize the path that this other version of you followed." Owen leaned forward in his seat a little more with anticipation. "It is a true devourers path. You mentioned to me that you had gotten this offered as one of your classes, but I am unsure as to how a version of you with what sounds like that class ended up inside the testing area."
Owen wasn't sure what to think, but asked what he thought was more important. "Is it possible for me to remove or kill it?" "Not with how you described the interaction, especially not knowing how it was able to reside inside of a room adjacent to the testing area." Xerxes answered looking even more troubled. "I have also never heard of a room being adjacent to the testing center," Xerxes said, more to himself than to Owen.
Xerxes then had Owen describe and redescribed everything that had happened inside of both the office and when dueling against his copy. He listened and by the end sighed and shooed Owen away. "I should let you go consider how you are going to design your class. I need to go confer with some others." Owen was immediately interested in the type of people Xerxes would go to get answers from, but didn't say anything, as he excused himself and sat down in his room to think about how he wanted to change his secondary class.
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Xerxes paced back and forth waiting for anyone of his other associates to respond to his message. Eventually, he heard a voice answer and he fought back a groan as he heard rat's voice. "How are you taking so long to create your array, I can only wait so long." Xerxes pushed aside his annoyance and ignored her words. "Someone I am sponsoring, took their secondary class test."
Before he could finish, Rat's voice cut through, her sounding angrier than he had heard her in a long time. "So what if some brat is taking a class test, this is about me becoming a god or if you are going to stop me."
Her words cut him hard, but he still ignored it as he continued. "While he was taking his test, there was a room adjacent to the testing hall and it had an office that listed his skills on papers and there was a version of him from if he had pursued another path. It constantly interrupted his testing and was trying to kill him, until the system froze it in place."
Rat stayed quiet for a moment and Xerxes was worried she had decided to leave, but he still felt the connection through his mana, so he continued to wait. "This is bad." Xerxes barely heard it, but Rat said it again, much louder this time. "This is really bad."