“{I am Command, an intrinsic part of any System. Be they newly created, or as old as our universe is young,}” replied the monotonous voice, but he could detect a hint of emotion coming from this unknown person. Perhaps this newness enticed the being with an opportunity to shine, or perhaps it had an ulterior motive.
Regardless, “I am not supposed to be a part of any System,” growled Karastak, slowly becoming infuriated at being lied to.
“{This is true, but as you've summoned up your first Status Screen, you had developed your own System. One which is not a part of any present Systems.}
“{The current Systems available are Azzarathean Pantheon and Little Sister. Would you wish to submit a request to formally link to one of these?}”
“No,” he sighed slowly, sliding against the tower's old doors as he leaned his head back, “I don't want to be a part of anyone's 'System', Command. So just keep me away from there.”
“{Command acknowledged.}”
For a moment, he sat there on top of the sand with Little Mother nestling into his robes whilst looking up at him with eyes begging for attention. Smirking softly, he obliged as a thought skimmed through his mind, “Command, what else can you do, and can you explain why that black bolt of lightning ate away the goblin and sand instead of blowing them apart?”
“{Acknowledged. Your
“{What I can do is provide you with the basic package of information and commands to aid you as you grow.}”
“Such as?”
“{Such as a basic understanding of the layout of the world, spells, abilities, and other informations which would be prudent to your survival.}”
“So I am now in a System, but not someone else's, correct?”
“{Correct.}”
“What is to stop others from pulling me into their own System?”
“{Physically forcing you into their system will be the best option they could attain. You will not appear upon any of their radars both spiritually or magickally, though you may be a brief blip upon their divine magicks. I suggest not allowing this to occur, if you are to retain your freedom.}”
Karastak sighed once again, just as Little Mother released one herself, but in a pleasurable tone. After which he asked, “What can you tell me about where we are, and can you create a mini map in the bottom right hand corner of my peripheral vision? I would like to see where everything is rather than wait for something to pounce upon my person in ambush.”
Once asked, a soft ping resounded within his ears, as a placard appeared in front of his eyes once more stating:
Congratulations!
Level 1 Minimap has been created!
Radius: 15m
(Friendlies will be highlighted in green, Enemies in red, and Neutrals in grey)
Within the bottom right corner of his peripheral came a small circle with three rings to denote five metres each. Inside the outer ring, however, a dozen red dots lit up and he turned in such a direction with the intent of scanning the area. Unfortunately, he didn't find anything with his cursory glance, and immediately switched to his other sight. One that caused the world around him to explode with colour, but instead of marveling at the sight, he focused upon the direction where his map showed hostiles.
Hidden behind a few broken ramparts were a dozen squat figures milling about. From where he sat, and from the sight his eyes could see, it didn't appear as though they would be coming for him just yet. Or perhaps they just arrived and didn't know he was there just yet. Regardless, the Goliath's eyes became their normal pinpricks in an ocean of white as he turned towards his Little Mother with, “Are you still hungry, Little Mother?”
She turned to look upon himself with a curious squeak, her tiny head tilting to one side, “I've found a few more creatures for you to devour, unless you'd rather I just stroke your body?” A small, but but adorable sound escaped her throat as she wiggled under his hand before squeaking in demand of attention from his hand.
“As you wish,” he chuckled, resuming the attention she was given. He would deal with them later, if they were still around.
“Command.”
“{Awaiting Command,}” came the voice of the disembodied Command.
“Command, you did not explain what is within this area.”
“{Apologies. I was compiling the information. Do you wish to hear the information found?}” at a nod from the pale giant, it continued with, “{Very well. The Tower you lie your back upon used to be a Beacon. One which allowed others to travel to the fabled Library of Azzarath-}”
“A library?” he puzzled with a scratch of his head.
“{No. The Library of Azzarath. Where one could read up the histories of not only the world, but each individual who ever lived. For every life lived upon the land, and currently living, is a story within the Library. Therefore, one could read them and understand the hardships, love gained/lost, and many more.}”
“Is it possible to use this Beacon to get there?” Karastak turned to stare up at the double doors which led into the tower with a great and painful longing. For his desire to be within another library was far greater than his need for blood or energy as his Vampiric race demanded.
Unfortunately, he was met with only disappointment as Command continued with, “{No. This Beacon has been destroyed utterly, blocking any and all from venturing further.}”
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
“Oh... That's a pity, but are there others?”
“{Yes. There are.}”
“And where are they?” his voice threw out a sigh with the inquiry, one full of concealed frustration.
“{Within three territories of this continent, one in the southern most, and one upon the north eastern island. I cannot locate them, so you must find them in order to gain access to the Library.}”
Quest alert!
“Find The Lost Beacons of Azzarath” has been added to your Quest Log!
Status: 1/6 found
The Goliath released a guttural sigh as he shook himself free of the Placard which appeared before his eyes. This time it was a quest alert, which confused him as he frowned, “Quest Log?”
Within a moment, another placard appeared before Karastak, revealing only one available, which was what had just popped up in front of him. After pushing this away from his face as well, he released yet another sigh as he pulled up his status and frowned. For before himself was:
Karastak
{Race: N/A}
{Age: 25}
{Level: 1} {STR: 10; DEX: 10; CON: 10; INT:10; WIS: 10; CHA: 10}
{Health: 100/100} {Mana: 100/100}
{Class: N/A} {Subclass: N/A}
{Skills:
{Passive Skills: N/A}
{Titles: Soul Bound}
{Titles Equipped: Soul Bound}
“Command,” he growled slowly, his body temperature rising as he felt his race begin to beat faster whilst the pigments of his skin became that of a light tan. His eyes and hair, on the other hand, remained the same, but his robe and staff vanished soon afterwards as he spoke through clenched teeth, “Why did my status page reset?”
“{Acknowledged... Due to the creation of your System, it is with regret that you must be reset so that you may choose what Race, Class, and Subclass you are to have. All who create their Systems must go through this, and as you are the Creator, you have the option of becoming the System's first God.}”
Attention!
You have been given the right to be called a God! This will change both your Race and Class to God.
Do you accept this change?
Y/N
“No,” he frowned deeply, “I will not become one. Do you have any idea how difficult it was to not become a monster? I had to die and meet Charon before my stats became more manageable, less outrageous, and now you want me to become a God? Thank you, but no thank you.” With arms folded, his lips became a frown, not at all amused with what was given as his Race, Class, or what have you.
“{As the Creator,}” Command continued with a hint of disappointment, but caused it to vanish as it continued, “{you have access to two others, Demon Lord and Hero-}”
“I'm not going to become a Hero, either,” the raceless giant grumbled as Little Mother squeaked with confusion, finally noticing that something was definitely wrong with her master, and proceeded to crawl upon his shoulder in order to nuzzle against his neck, “so skip that one and give me the details of the former, Command.” A hand reached up and gently stroked the back of his bat, and paid little heed as she wiggled her body with some happiness before crawling under his hair.
“{Acknowledged. A Demon Lord is a Race that one acquires after being cursed by a God or Goddess of a world. They are tasked with fulfilling the role of destroying the world before a summoned Hero comes upon them in order to slay them. If the latter occurs, then the world will be given a grace period of one century before the another Demon Lord is chosen and cursed. If, however, the former occurs, and the world is destroyed, then the world in question will reset as the old Gods and Goddesses are killed off so that new ones can take their place to begin the cycle again.}”
Silence permeated the world around Karastak, as he digested the new information given. For it appeared to himself that a Demon Lord was an existence he did not wish to have, and would have told Command thusly if it didn't resume with, “{However, there is another option for all Demon Lords. If they were to gain enough strength and follow the correct Evolutionary Path, then they could become a Devil King.}”
“What's a 'Devil King'?” the tanned giant of a man asked with great curiosity. If he had a tail, it would have been waving at that time.
“{A Devil King is the final evolution of a Demon Lord. As they gain strength, paths open up to them, and choosing the correct path will allow them to transcend their mortal coils and step onto the path of Godhood. Do you wish to step onto this path?}”
Attention!
You have been chosen to become your System's first Demon Lord! Doing so will alert the denizens of the world under your control they have someone new to fear!
Warning!
There will be a grace period of 1 Year before a Hero is summoned to the world to slay you!
Do you accept this change?
Y/N
“Tell me about the Evolutionary Paths a Demon Lord has access to before I touch anything, Command,” Karastak looked down upon the placard as he spoke, his frown growing deeper as he held up a single digit.
“{Acknowledged. The Evolutionary Paths granted come every 25 Levels with three choices presented. After which their levels and stats are reset, but are given an allotted set of Status Points to allocate within their STR, DEX, CON, INT, WIS, and CHA. You have a total of 171 Ability Points available to you.}
“{The Ability Points are for that which will determine how strong you are in the world. Once you have chosen where everything will lie, you will be able to choose a package which will be your Class regardless of what type of Demon Lord you turn out to be.}”
“Okay?” he stretched out the word as he scratched his chin, staring at the placard which floated in front of him. After a moment, an idea struck a light within his mind, “Command, do you have access to an Enchanter package? One which is similar to the Class I had before you decided to reset my stats? I would prefer that one due to my familiarity with its structure, rather than picking a new one after allocating my points.”
“{Acknowledged... There is a package for Enchanters similar to your abilities before your creation of a new System. It uses, primarily, the CHA Ability Stat to cast their spells. This is due to the need to befuddle the minds whilst using Crowd Controlling methods. Do you wish to choose this as your Class once you have chosen a Race?}”
“Yes, please,” he grinned, rubbing his hands together with anticipation. However, just as he was about to press the Y, he asked, “What are the modifiers for a Demon Lord when they level?”
“{For each Level gained, a Demon Lord gains 20 Ability Points to allocate.}”
Karastak guffawed at the answer given, “Why so much?”
“{A Hero is given a set of 20 Ability Points per Level. Therefore, a Demon Lord is given the same number so that one is not greater than the other.}”
He felt as though the unknown voice had also shrugged when giving the answer, which led to him just sighing, “Command, just don't unleash the announcement that there is a new Demon Lord, okay? There's only you, me, and Little Mother in our System after all.”
Upon so saying, he pressed the Y on the placard, and was enveloped in a flash of light which stretched itself to the heavens. Thus heralding the coming of a new Demon Lord, but without the announcement which was want to follow.