Sigma-48
A new being appears, though in many respects it would be more accurate to say 'I appear to a new being'. Human, male, alive, aware. hmm, more than most anyway.
'Hello.' I say, tone neutral in all respects. I have not been self-aware long enough to decide on a personality just yet. I'm leaning towards Jovial, male, type-b.
The being, a boy really, looks around us, then at me. There isn't much to see, this space is made by his mind, but so far, there is only white as far as his eyes can see. Most humans subconsciously fill this space with their fears and hopes, dreams and monsters. Curious.
As for myself, I am just a vague humanoid outline, no need for more than that. plus I have not yet decided on my features. Instead of Jovial, perhaps I should go with 'indecisive'.
"Hello, I'm Leon, what is going on?" The boy finally replies. Not 'who are you?' or 'where am I?' like most. Interesting. The 'I'm Leon' inclines me to also introduce myself, as well. Clever. I decide to use the new ability we are incorporating into the world. 'Inspect' I think at the boy.
Status
Name
Leon
Level
1
Health
110
Mana
160
Stamina
120
Nothing too special just yet. But his intelligence must be higher than average for the 60 point boost in mana at level one.
"What do you think is going on?" I find him interesting enough to ask.
The child looks around, taking his time, then answers my question. "Well, either I'm dead or I'm not. Either you're an Angel or not and either this is heaven or not. But I'm leaning towards you being a Celestial. it's 50/50 on the being dead though."
Smart, perceptive, but a dislike for definitive answers. "You are not dead by human standards. I am indeed a Celestial. I am currently being Sigma-48. This is your character creation, where you shall choose the path you will use to survive the change that has occurred to this world." I pause since this is usually where a flurry of questions are thrown my way, but he just looks at me with a purposely blank expression.
"Would you like me to continue or would you prefer to ask any questions?"
"Please." he gestures palm up for me to keep going.
"Very well. Beings from another universe have for all intents and purposes invade Earth. In time you might have been able to defend yourself. However, your most common weapon, the gun, has been neutralized, with sympathetic magic. The being that resides in this part of the universe can either destroy your world, which would mean rearranging this entire part of the galaxy to avoid damage to nearby systems or help you survive. It chose the latter."
"2400 celestial were created to help the beings of this world contain the incursion into our reality. We are a part of each other and a part of the being that created us, but that should change with time.I am currently being Sigma-48, tasked with preparing humans, in this part of the world, for their chance at survival."
"The method we think best to achieve that goal is to allow humanity the ability to use the energies now permeating the world. You may now think of these energies as magic. The method of access should be familiar to you. You may now think RPG. If you are willing then you shall have a chance to rebuild your world with sword and sorcery."
As I speak the space around us fills with images of many of the monsters that have appeared on Earth. Random images of knights, castles, games, and people also come and go. Though his face has not changed, he is obviously thinking about quite a bit.
"The being that resides in this part of the universe. Are you talking about God?" The boy squints at me.
"One of Many, but from your point of view, mostly yes."
Do you have any suggestions on how humanity should go about retaking our world?" he sighed. He thought my answer vague, most likely. However, the very concepts necessary to explain my creator and its place in the universe, are only in their infancy on this world.
"Just live, survive, rebuild. Eventually, a new equilibrium will be achieved. Despite all of this, not much as actually changed. You can access a new source of power but ultimately what you do with it, and your life is still up to you."
"Oh," he said laughing. "Same old game with brand new tools then?"
"Yes, " I reply. "But you will be starting from scratch. Your current technology has been effectively neutralized, everything you build from now on will be with the aid of these 'brand new tools'.
He sits for a moment thinking about everything I have said. Then looks up at me with determination in his eyes. "OK, show me what I need to know."
------
Leon
I tell the celestial to show me what I need to know and suddenly the space around us is filled with all manner of weapons, tools and glowing things.
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"The first thing you need to know is your relative place in the world," it begins. "You can do so by asking yourself. Do so now."
Then it just waits as if expecting me to know what the hell it's talking about. Fine, I'll think it through. 'Think RPG' the Celestial said earlier. As in a game? did they implement some sort of 'view the world as a game' system? makes sense from everything it said so far.
'It' is rude, I'll think of it as a male for now. Unless it indicates otherwise.
'My place in the world' I think to myself, and the third blue box of doom I've seen appears.
Status
Name
Leon
Level
1
Health
110
Mana
160
Stamina
120
Strength
11
Intelligence
16
Dexterity
8
Agility
12
N/A
0
N/A
0
N/A
0
N/A
0
Like any game, the status screen is fairly straightforward. Health, mana, stamina I understand are the culmination of the base stats Intelligence, Strength, Agility and Dexterity. I briefly wonder about the calculations. while interesting though, it's less than important. Basically big number good, bigger number gooder. Though it obviously depends on the build one is striving for.
A front line Knight of the Camelot persuasion might want to center their stats around strength and stamina. A wannabe Ninja would spec around Agility, maybe with some Int thrown in for some Ninpo tricks. But the speculation isn't really necessary. From the moment I understand what the new paradigm is going to be, my choice was made for me.
No way in hell I'm going to swing a sword when motherfucking magic was just introduced to the world. Win, lose or draw, I'm about to seriously sling some sorcery.
I touch the word health in the status box, and a new window pops up with additional but not really necessary info.
Health
Your physical condition. Should your [HP] reach a value of Zero, you will die.
HP regen 1.1/m
Interesting. Mana and stamina yield similar information with my [MP] regen at 1.6 and my [STA]
regen at 1.2 per minute.
Mana
Your magic power. [MP] is used for all spells and much more.
MP regen 1.6/m
"Four of the attributes say not available, what's with that?" I ask while continuing to poke about the status box.
Sigma is quick to answer. "Everyone starts with the same four attributes, the other four are for you to choose from the many available. Some you can choose now when you pick a class and some will become available as you live your life. You should choose carefully. While they aren't impossible to change, impossible is still a relative term."
"Additionally, none of these attributes determine who you are, only what additional energy is being applied to your Aura. You see the Intelligence attribute as little to do with how smart you are and everything to do with how much mana you will be able to safely handle. Agility changes the way your aura takes in information allowing you to move in ways you wouldn't think to before. And so on and so forth. The attribute affects you less and the energy surrounding you more. Understand?"
"That explanation was a bit unwieldy, but I get it," I say. "So what about classes?"
"That took some time to work out, but we decided to go with the same strategy as with attributes. If you were to choose the [Swordsman] class, you would deal additional damage when using a sword, however, there is nothing to stop you from picking up a bow or tossing fireballs. You simply wouldn't get the bonuses that an [Archer] or [Mage] would get. Though there are basic bonuses you would earn by becoming proficient with the use of a new tool or weapon."
It was all sounding pretty straightforward to me. obviously, there was a lot of background information worth discovering, but there always is. plus I was becoming pretty impatient to pick my class.
"OK Sigma, I've got the basics, show me the classes," I say confidently.
The humanoid outline tilts its head, the first movement it's...he's made yet. "I am currently being Sigma-48," he says. "One of one hundred within the Sigma series of Celestials. I can assure you, you would not live through the experience of getting the attention from all 100 of me."
So in other words, use his full name, got it. "No problem Bob, now about those classes?" What can I say, prima donnas annoy me.
Sigma-48 decides to ignore me though and continue with the lesson.
"Look around, all the objects here are icons representing a class, you may choose one now and should you reach level 100 with it, you will gain a secondary class that gives your aura the full bonuses of another class. Most classes come with a recommended attribute that will fill up one of your 8 slots, but you don't have to take it. That, however, would be a less than wise decision."
"Cool," I say. "Can you filter out primarily non-magic classes, please?"
The various swords, maces, spears, coins, hammers, and bows all disappear leaving behind images of glowing orbs, wands, symbols and demons. There is a glowing paper icon that turns out to be for the enchanter class. That intrigues me for a moment. I ask Bob to filter out the non-combat classes and it disappears along with a few other icons.
The Summoner looks like fun but I have no interest in the type of attention a personal army would bring. I filter out the healers since other people aren't high on my list of preferences. With that in mind, I remove the buffer classes as well. No bards or dancer for me, thank you.
In the end, I'm left with 3 choices. The [Mage] which starts with basic spells of all four elements and the [Wisdom] attribute. The [Sorcerer] which seems like some sort of half elemental being and comes with the [Willpower] attribute. and the [Wizard] who seems like the magical jack of all trades between the [Illusionist] [Arcanist] and [Artificer]. It comes with the [Luck] attribute.
In the end, I find myself choosing...