Struggling to open her eyes, Falean reached up and found her eyelids had been crusted over by some goop. Scraping it off painfully, she eventually was able to open her eyes. When she did so, she saw that she was kneeling in a long corridor filled with doors. Confusion settled in her mind as how she had come to be here, wherever here was. The corridor was lit by poor lighting and had a strange gothic atmosphere to it.

On the walls were carvings of various ways a person could die, and Falean was startled to see that the subject of each death resembled her. Going forward she found the carvings grew more grisly and disturbing. When she got to the doors they were out of place in this dark hallway. On each one of them was a chalk drawing as if a kid had drawn on the door. The first one she tried was of a brown field and a stick woman lying on the ground.

Pushing it open, she was confronted by a scene from her past, it was from when she was fourteen and undergoing harsh training her father had ordered her. She was slipping and struggling in the mud and everytime she had made a mistake the instructor smacked her with a large wooden rod. She shuddered and remembered lying in bed after that covered in welts and bruises. Closing the door to her past trauma, she continued onwards.

Trying another door that had a stick man wearing a crown on a black throne, she saw herself chained to the floor in front of her father's throne. Her brothers and sisters were also chained and looked as sick as she felt. A man was holding a vial and injecting a red liquid into each of them. She begged her father not to do this, but he looked down at her with his foul glowing eyes and said "I did not raise you to beg. Give her three times the amount."

Falean slammed the door shut and nearly broke down in tears as she recalled the hours of suffering she endured as the blood burned it's way through her veins. Then came the urges she could barely control, and it only grew worse as she got older. A pain flared in her chest pushed up forcing her memories through the fog in her mind of the past. She recalled going into some ruins with some people and then entering some sort of door and then she met someone. 

Who was it that she met? She struggled to recall but it felt as if she hit a wall in her mind and pain exploded within. As she walked down the corridor, she noticed the walls were starting to crack and break apart. Something told her that she needed to leave soon or she would be lost. The doors began to fall apart letting in horrible memories of her life and she found she was nearly drowning in pain and sorrow of her past.

Forcing herself forward she approached the end of the hallway and found herself standing at a door embossed with just a single word. Luxurian. She felt intense pressure coming from whatever lay behind the door. Looking back she saw that the corridor was collapsing, and she had no choice but to continue forward.

Grabbing the handle, she noted that the door felt wet under her hands and she pushed it open, only to find herself standing in a new hallway. It was illuminated in a hostile red light that made her feel naked, and looking down she was startled to find she was naked.

The walls of the tunnel looked like they were made of flesh, wet flesh. She could feel the disgusting moist squirming flesh under her feet as she stepped forward. The smell was nearly overwhelming, smelling of lustful sex and desires that made Falean sick to her stomach. Every step she took the walls pulsed as if they were alive.

Like the previous doors, the ones in this hallway had drawings on them. However, instead of chalk drawings it had changed to a strange style of drawing where the people had too large eyes. The first one she saw showed one that resembled her, but making a weird face sticking out her tongue. Opening it, she witnessed the time she lost her virginity. Her father had gotten four of his wife's eunuchs to visit her on the night of one her birthdays.

Closing the door she felt sick, and nearly retched. She remembered going to her father for solace afterwards and he ordered more eunuchs to visit her every night for a month afterwards in order for her in his words get used to being a bitch. Looking back at it now, she could see that he had wanted to break his children. Was it one of his perverse experiments, or did he perceive them as some threat to him.

Continuing forward she dared not open any more of the doors not wanting to remember the things she had done. She had just passed one picturing Snort, when she slipped on the increasingly slippery floor. Falean found herself face first in a puddle of liquid and was startled when several reached around and forced her down.

Struggling to break free, she heard whispers encouraging her just to drown in the pleasure. Drawing on some hidden strength within her she broke free and began to stumble forward. The walls began to move about as if they were contracting, and the doors burst open and more hands and things reached out inviting her to join them forever in the eternal gratification of the flesh.

Ignoring them, she dashed forward to the end, and she could feel the hallway behind her was collapsing. The door at the end had a name emblazoned in blue, Jack. Stepping through the door, she found herself in a different hallway altogether. 

This hallway was well lit and gave off a sense of security, which helped calm Falean down. The walls were strange, made from some sort of panels, and through the edges of the panels, blue light leaked out. Stepping forward she found she was wearing clothes once again, though it was clothes she had never seen before.

She was wearing a black skirt that went to her knees and a white button up top. On her feet were a pair of black heels, but more interesting she discovered herself wearing a pair of glasses. Walking forward with her heels clicking on the floor she went to the first door. On the door was no image, and opening it she found there was a black desk near a wall of windows.

There was a man standing next to the windows. He was wearing a bluish black suit and had his hands in his pockets looking out of the windows. He turned around when she opened the door and recognized him as being Jack, or at least resembling the being she knew as Jack. He didn't give off the same sense from the Jack she knew. He smiled and said "Glad you could make it here Falean, please take a seat."

Feeling a bit confused she stepped into the room and saw a black seat form in front of the desk. Going to it, she sat down and said "Are you Jack?"

"To be exact, I am part of his soul, the part that was once human." Jack said and sat down in a large chair.

"Where are we?" Falean asked.

"Your soul, or at least what will become your new soul." 

"What do you mean?"

"A parasite was placed in your eternal soul, and to get rid of it, you underwent a procedure to completely reshape your soul. As you can see by the hallway outside, you are nearly a blank slate right now."

"That's impossible, not only would that be incredibly painful, nothing can modify the soul to such an extent."

"With Jack's power it is possible. It is also incredibly painful. Right now, you are experiencing an intense pain unimaginable. But thanks to your direct connection to me, you are able to communicate with me right now without having to deal with the pain. I'm afraid it's going to still hurt when you return to consciousness, but it won't be as bad."

"What do you mean by connection?"

Jack looked at her and said "The parasite was killed and reformed as part of your new soul. Due to its nature being added to you, your soul needs a connection to sustain itself. In this manner here we are."

Falean suddenly found several memories rushing through her, she said "I remember now, I met a woman when I went through a door, and she did something to me."

"Was it her?" Jack said and took a black device from the desk and levelled it at a glass screen. A second later a picture of a woman tied up and muffled appeared on the screen. She was currently sitting on a wooden triangle frame that was forcing her legs open.

Taking a closer look at the woman's face. "Yeah, I think it was. Who is she?"

"That is the parasite currently attempting to attack my soul. It was formed from Luxurian's soul and caused Jack some deal of problems, but I've got it under control right now."

Falean nodded and hesitated before saying, "I also recall that I fought Jack. I was attempting to allow Luxurian to regain her powers. I'm sorry for that."

"It is alright, you weren't in your right mind. As one would expect, you're going to have to apologize again to Jack when you get out of here."

"Doesn't he know what's going on in here?"

"No. Jack has yet to get a handle on his soul, which is why the parasite gave him such a headache. Now that I am more active, let's hope that never happens again. But enough about me, let's talk about what's going to happen to you."

Staring at Jack, she said "It feels like you are going to demand something from me."

"Not at all. What I want to do is offer you an opportunity. I will help you become a User of Jacks."

"Why would you do that?"

Jack looked at her and said "Your entire life was laid open for me to look at when your soul was refolded. I know every secret of yours and what you wish to obtain. It just so happens that your wishes align with my wishes, and eventually Jack's wishes."

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"What do you want?"

"The Emperor, your father is in the way. He will be removed, either by Jack's hand or another. When that happens, the Empire will require a more reasonable person on the throne."

"You wish for me to take my father's place?"

"I do. As such I took the liberty of influencing several key aspects of your soul while it was being remade. I did not remove your memories of your past, but you are no longer tied down by them at the same time. Your path is yours to take once you awaken."

"As long as it coincides with your path." Falean said.

"No, you could refuse my offer and simply go about your business. But we both recognize what your father really intends for you."

She naturally hesitated and said "How do you know?"

"The corruption is getting stronger in him. You can see it. It's only a matter of time before he is fully consumed by it. The only reason he is able to last so long, is because of the hidden hand behind him."

"The what?" Falean said "My father would not tolerate being ordered about."

"By all means he would, you know how devoted he is to this Kingdom of Sevaris. The seven Archmages still exist, you obtained proof of that with the parasite in your soul. Your father is likely being controlled by one of the Seven Archmages. Which one, I do not know, but it is likely."

"Even if that is the case, there is no reason for him to do what you are suggesting."

"You have seen all the hints Falean. You know he has been preparing you to give birth to something. He's planning you to host a new body for one of the Archmages. They can't access their old power, so what do you think they will do? Seek a new means to power. Which means requiring a new form. But they can't just take any old body, they would just destroy it."

Falean could no longer deny it, she had come to the same conclusion years ago, though she had not suspected it would be these archmages. She had thought it was one of the corrupted gods. "What do you expect me to do?"

"All I desire for you to do is sign a contract with Jack and then follow him. I will be working on your soul while you are working for him."

She frowned and said "What will you be doing to my soul?"

Jack said "Follow me." He stood up and walked out of the room. Following him, they went to the next door over. "Each of these rooms is special to your soul." He opened it, and they stepped inside revealing what could only be described as a laboratory.

"Jack is dedicated to his Users, but has not achieved the full potential of his contract with his Users. I wish to aid him to do so. You will be that experiment." Jack said and reached to a machine and flicked it on.

"Unfortunately Jack is limited in his knowledge both from his past and his limitations as a system. I don't have the same limitations, but I am lacking in power. So I can only do minimal modifications for now. As you get stronger, however, I can borrow more power and make bigger changes."

"What modifications can you do?"

"I have to research each one, but the one I am interested in at the moment, is adjusting your natural energy."

"Are you talking about my elemental affinity in magic?" Falean said.

"Think more broadly. There are eight main types of energy in the Multiverse, Magical, Natural, Divine, Ki or Life force, Dragon, Soul and Creation."

"That's only seven."

"You don't need to know about the eighth. It's too dangerous to spread information about, as it might draw one of them to this world if you know too much about them. Jack is nowhere near enough prepared to deal with one of them. It wouldn't be so bad if one of the good ones came, but it would be disastrous if one of the insane ones came. If that happened I can only hope Maya would return and aid us."

"Got it, so what energy did you want to adjust me to?"

"Soul actually."

"Can I ask why?"

Jack played with another machine and then said "System Energy is actually a variant of Soul Energy. It's how Jack can add skills so easily to his Users. He directly dumps the information into their souls and boom they learn how to cast fireballs with ease."

"His followers did seem unnaturally strong."

"I need to know more about this System Energy. To do so I will need to experiment."

"So you wish to use my soul to experiment on?" Falean said. "That sounds unpleasant and not really worth agreeing to subject myself too."

"It is a tough sell, I know. I will always ask your permission before I attempt an experiment if you are worried that I would be experimenting willy nilly. In return, I can assure you that you will gain enough strength to confront your father."

Falean sank into thought and ultimately said. "Very well, I agree to your proposal. I sought information to save my Empire, both from the past and from my father, how can I refuse the opportunity to do so now."

"Good." Jack said and walked over to her. "Since we are currently in your soul, this will sting a bit." He reached out and touched her head.

A sharp pain went through her like a hot rod being driven into her skull, and she found herself staring at a blue screen in front of her vision.

Princess Falean Montage, the System Jack asks you to become his User. In accepting this, your soul will be the subject of experimentation. Each experiment will gain your approval first. In addition you will continue to serve Jack and aid him to fulfill his goals. In return for the above, Jack will grant you the power to challenge your father and succeed the throne of the Empire. In addition, you may issue any request to transform your soul for free. Do you agree? Yes/No.

Falean selected Yes, and a massive energy flowed through her and she stumbled under the new knowledge flooding through her. She recovered her breath, and then looked up to find Jack looking at her. "Thank You Falean. I won't let you down. Are you prepared for the Energy Change?"

"I am."

He walked to a bench and pulled out a blue orb and said "This is going to be painful, once I do this, you won't be able to cast spells like you in the past did."

She nodded and said "It's alright. It's time for the Empire to break away from the fascination of magic and make our own path in the world."

Jack placed the orb on her chest and forced it into her. She felt as if she was being torn apart and the walls of the room shuddered and she collapsed gasping on the floor for several minutes as the pain roared through her soul, until she found it reached an equilibrium.

Standing back up, she found the room had taken on a whole new look. Instead of the clean laboratory from before, it looked more used and frankly more lived in. It felt as if it was always meant to be like this way to her. "It's looking good. Why don't you pull up your status to take a look?"

Doing so, she saw a blue screen appear in front of her.

User Name

Falean Montage

Race

Human (Soul-Modified)

Bloodline

Child of a Changed one

Age 23 (1)

Level 1

HP 10/10

MP 10/10

Feats

Adjustable Soul

Choose A new Feat

Background

Royal Princess / Experimental Soul

Class

Choose A Class

Sub Class

Locked

Title

Exp 0/100

Attributes

Strength 1

Constitution 1

Dexterity 1

Intelligence 1

Wisdom 1

Charisma 1

Luck 1

Availiable points 90

Skills

Soulforge

LV. 1 0/100

Guide

LV. 1 0/100

"Why are my attributes all at one?"

"Two reasons, one because of the potion you drank, when it wore off, it seized everything from you. It also changed your body in several ways which make me think it was intentional from your father. The second reason is I am trying out a point buying system. I even included some bonus points for you to try out."

Focusing on the attributes, she thought for a moment and added ten to each of them leaving her with thirty points. She then put ten into Intelligence and ten into wisdom, then two into the rest of them. At that time she returned her focus on choosing a class. She looked at Jack who was observing her and asked "Is there a particular class you desire me to take?"

"No, you can choose whatever, though since your energy is now different, mage will be altogether different for you."

Looking at the classes, she discovered one that caught her eye.

Artificer - A Device focused User, able to build intricate weapons to fight enemies. They are able to build anything they can imagine and figure out how it works. As you wield soul energy this class will be focused on building soul devices, though you can figure out how other devices that run on other energy work as well. +1 Wisdom, +1 Constitution per Level up.

Deciding it was for her, she selected it, and a flash of knowledge once again descended into her soul, and she saw another screen pop up.

Congratulations Felean on being the First Artificer of the system. As a reward for this achievement you have - ERROR - Sorry I decided the initial title wouldn't accommodate the changes I made to you so I made an adjustment. - ERROR - You have gained the Title SoulMaker. After selecting your class, you now have access to the system store. You have also gained a class skill Blueprint Designer.

"Great decision. To help you out, I went through your memories of magical devices and adjusted them a bit to run on soul energy and put them into your blueprints. As to be expected, you still need to figure out how to construct them." Jack said.

"Thank you."

"Before you choose a feat, please wait for yourself to level up. I can support you to choose a more significant feat then."

"Alright."

"Good, I will be researching some experiments, so you can wake up now."

"Okay. So how will I get in contact with you?"

"I will visit you in your dreams at night. It's more straightforward to carry out experiments on your soul when you're asleep. Though if you need to contact me, just send a message to Jack asking for me to meet you. Since I am part of him, I will get your message."

"How do I awaken?"

Jack said "Simple." He reached and flicked her forehead, and she found herself falling backwards and found herself sitting in a chair and a woman above her saying "There I have finished the fusion, she is as good as she will get with my aid. The rest is up to her."

Blinking she looked around and saw Jack looking a bit confused at her, and the room was a total mess, black goo was plastering the walls, and Jack said "How did you become one of my Users?"