In a realm where no mortal will ever set a foot the gods reside. A world of its own, created by the power these celestial beings wield. Shaping their own space in the fabric of reality, unreachable for anybody that isn’t touched by the divine. The goddess of life, or simply called Life is making her way into a massive colosseum, the structure so big it pierces the sky. The beautiful goddess dressed only in flowing robes, white and pure like life itself. Entering through a gate she approaches a podium, hundreds and thousands of gods already presented on the seats of the Colosseum. Each of them presents a species, an elemental power, an idea, a concept. Everyone here was born from the power of the universe. Faith and concepts incarnated into a living being. As soon as Life entered all gods stopped talking, the oldest of them, the primordial god entering the stage. Because she was the first of many, she had the power to call such a meeting of the gods.
Standing behind the podium, a gentle smile on her face, she looked at the gods around her. “Brother and Sisters, we have gathered here today to discuss the reincarnation progress. We all know the demons are on the rise and their hordes grow with every second that passes in the mortal world. Each of you stands for something, the concept and faith of your existence.”
Slowly a sadistic smile formed on her face, her eyes taking on a hue of madness while she looked at the immortals around her. “So it’s time for some fun! I reincarnated some champions in this circle. Sadly most of them have already passed, poor mortals am I right?” She cackled madly. “Well, of course we picked some humans from the non-magical world to make it more entertaining. Everybody should have received a message with the footage.”
The gods started to grin or chuckle under their breath. Only some looked terrified. Some gods didn’t know this side of Life, the goddess usually doesn’t call meetings for the reincarnation progress. But Life continued like it was a simple game.
“For the first time we also reincarnated humans as beasts, it was rather entertaining to see those creatures struggle and die, mostly by the hands of other humans.” She laughed, the sound angelic but it left a bad taste after her last words, some gods even leaving instantly.
“It seems only one of the humans is still alive but he should soon perish, struggling with his new body. Well that just leaves possible candidates for the next circle, I gladly hear y-”
She stopped suddenly, a massive golden notification appearing the the view of the goddess, but not only hers. All the gods and every intelligent creature in the mortal world received it.
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Rejoice, mortals and gods!
After 10.000 years a new being descends on the mortal world!
Your lives are forfeit in the greatness of this creature.
Because after all this time, a harbinger appears in this universe!
He is destined to topple the gods from their pedestals and take over this world.
Make your peace mortals and gods, the Harbinger of the Eternal Swarm
will soon claim its rightful place in this reality.
This message was automatically sent to all intelligent beings that reside within the system.
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A certain spider during its evolution…
James woke up and the first thing he felt was a headache, he didn’t know what happened after killing the spider king but he certainly wasn’t buried in its body anymore. Pushing himself up from the ground he noticed the whole cavern was different, gone was the rough stone and the corpses of spiders and the two humans. But there was something in this cavern besides him. All his senses on high alert he approached the vibrations he could feel with his legs.
The cavern wasn’t large so he found himself on the other end quicker than expected, some big creature sitting on the ground, its whole body covered in a thick fur. When James approached it the creature slowly stood up, eight legs and eyes, two massive fangs and an abdomen that looked a lot like his. In front of him stood a very old looking spider. It turned his body towards James and he felt a presence digging into his brain, it felt like a mountain just got dropped on him. A deep baritone voice filling his mind.
“A young one? Hmm this hasn’t happened in a long..long time. Tell me young one, did you know what would happen when you finished that quest? Yes, I knew about your quests….of course I can read your mind but that’s not important right now. It’s time for you to choose….of course a class, well a race change and a class….yes I will explain now calm down.”
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
The old spiders settled back down, looking at his younger kin, James felt like the old spider was staring into his soul. He shuffled nervously, the silence stretching for a few minutes before he felt that pressure in his head again.
“So young one you have two options before you, embrace the gift I offer and become something greater, something not seen for a long time in the mortal realm. I offer you to become a Harbinger, a creature of incredible power if you live long enough to evolve or you can reject my gift and choose to embrace your own path, it will be a weaker one but your life will be easier. Choose now.”
A notification appeared in his vision like many times before. This time the text is gold instead of red.
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The Elder offered you the following choices, become a Harbinger or embrace your own path in this world. Will you become a harbinger? Y/N
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James didn’t know what this all means, he thought he just picked a class like in those video games but it was totally different. Still he thought about it, did he want to take a role that would lead to power or choose his own path? The Elder told him that there was the possibility of dying quickly. Still he wanted to embrace this path, he already took risks in his new life after all. He thought “Yes” and a new prompt appeared.
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You have three choices before you Harbinger. Pick wisely because this will affect you until the day you die.
Harbinger of Shadows - Your venom and the shadows of this world are your allies, you’re an assassin in the form of a beast. Nobody will see you coming or tell the tale of your existence. May your bite be strong and your foes clueless.
Harbinger of Hunger - Magic is your forte, your hunger is endless, nothing can sustain you long enough. You wield powerful magic, conjuring plagues and death onto your mortal foes. May your hunger claim everything.
Harbinger of The Eternal Swarm - You don’t want to stand alone in your fight. Turning solitary creatures into a swarm that is destined to claim everything. You don’t need magic or tricks to fight, under your guidance the kin will claim victory over this world. May the Swarm be endless and strong.
Make your choice now!
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James read everything carefully and multiple times. He thought back to his past life, his comrades that fought with him day and night. How they could manage everything together. In the end it was an easy choice, one he gladly made.
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Congratulations! Your race evolved in Harbinger of The Eternal Swarm. Following Skills got awarded.
Unlocked - [ Swarm Consciousness I ] You’re one and you’re many. Shift from your body to the swarm and guide them with your thoughts. You can’t move while using this skill.
Unlocked - [ Tactical Knowledge I ] You gained an understanding of tactics and how to employ them efficiently. Minions deal +10% damage when using tactics or ambushes
Unlocked - [ Eternal Offspring I ] Your abdomen gains a dimensional space, Allows your offspring to be produced and stored in a safe environment. Can easily leave through openings along your abdomen
Unlocked [ Eternal Lieutenant I ] A ruler is only as good as the people under his banner, Allows you to call lieutenants to your side with higher intelligence. Current Lieutenants possible : 0/2
- Broodmothers produce offspring and can serve as a commander for your forces.
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After his race change another prompt opened. James was a bit annoyed but still he read it, this time it was something he thought about for some time while killing the spider king, he was so weak on his own and James never wanted to die like the monster did. It seems the elder helped him with that.
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Congratulations! The Elder gifted you a special class, suitable for your path as a Harbinger!
Class Unlocked - [ Living Fortress ] Your body is a home to many, housing your kin to offer protection, your body turned into a impenetrable fortress that keeps you and your soldiers safe
Unlocked - [ Diamond Skin I ] Your skin is hard a diamond, most attacks can’t harm you as long as the enemy is of equal strength or lower
Unlocked - [ Call for War I ] What are soldiers without morale? Increases your soldiers morale and makes their spirit unbreakable for five(5) minutes after the buff is activated
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After the last prompt vanished James felt exhausted, he felt like he was moving in slow motion, his thoughts chaotic and fickle. He fell to the ground and slowly the world turned dark, barely registering the elder’s voice in his head.
“Go now young Harbinger, show the world that it should fear you, that nobody can stand at the pinnacle beside you.”