My breath curled up, white before my eyes on the back end of another sigh. Probably my fifteenth of the day despite it not even being noon yet. Probably not the last either. But, hey, I was depressed! Better long-drawn-out sighs than wallowing in self pity and getting nothing done, right?
My current problem? The weather. I know, I know... who gets depressed over the weather? A farmer maybe? No doubt the early onset of below freezing temperatures bummed them out too but I didn't know too much about farming to really know that with confidence. No, I was not a farmer. I wasn't an anything really. Nope, just Cindy the homeless lady. And early winter was a big problem for me.
Early winter meant that I had to get my financial shit together fast. During the rest of the year, I was fine with roughing it on the streets. It wasn't ideal but it meant more freedom than the shelters and I kind of liked sleeping outside to be honest. But that was a big "N.O." in the winter. Frost bite was for real, and it was just miserable all-round! So, I had to scrape together some cash, pronto. I'd have to get a hotel or motel room. Something at least.
I stuffed my stiff hands into my jeans pockets and resisted the urge to grind my teeth. At least I had a semi decent winter jacket this year. If there is a god than I'd thank him for volunteers and people kind enough to donate these things. I often wondered what it was like to be a "good" person. Personally, I didn't prescribe to the whole black and white notion of "good" and "bad". My world was full of greys, and I liked it that way.
That being said, my grey was most likely on the darker shade. I've done bad things. Some real bad ones too, in my short thirty-odd-years of living. If there was a heaven, I probably wouldn't be getting into it. Then again, I didn't think I deserved an eternity in Hell either. Sure, I was a short, red headed bitch with more than a few personality flaws and skeletons in my nonexistent closet... but did that really mean I should be sentenced to a life (after life?) of damnation? I didn't think so. But I'm sure my opinion didn't much count either way.
Great, now the cold was making me go off on philosophical tangents. I let out another sigh and continued my melancholy trudge down the broken sidewalk. This was a shit part of town. The houses were old and unkept down the side streets, the telephone poles had sneakers hanging off them in semi regular intervals, most of them looking as if the laces tying them there would probably give out soon. Might mean a free pair of shoes if I was lucky enough to be there when they gave out...
The shops I passed had rough exteriors, some with shitty graffiti and others with the good stuff- the cities attempt to make the downtown look maybe just a little less like a prime place to get mugged. The insides of the shops didn't look too bad though. Warm and inviting even if they were by no means fancy. The smell of pizza drifted out of Gazzi's Pizzeria as I passed, and my belly gave a slight rumble. The thing was too used to being empty to put in too much effort in complaining at this point. Still, I'd need to eat something soon. Preferably something warm.
I looked up at the grey clouds as I approached an intersection. Despite it being nearly noon, the traffic wasn't all that bad and the world around me was mostly quiet. For a city at least. I hated all the noise that was made in town but in town is where I needed to be. I had some survival skills, I had to with my life, or I would have died ages ago, but not enough to confidently say I could just get a tent and live my life as a hermit in the woods. Especially in the winter.
I lowered my eyes back down and just barely held in another sigh when I saw that the lights still hadn't changed. This was one of those crossings that always took forever... Across from me, facing the opposite cross walk, was a kid of about fifteen or sixteen. His high-end shoes told me he wasn't homeless just as well as his styled blonde hair did so I could only assume he was playing hooky. I didn't have a watch but if the schools had let out for lunch already than there would have been more kids and more cars about. There was a high school about ten minutes away and Main Street was always flooded with kids at lunch looking to spend Mommy and Daddy's money on a burger and fries.
The kid was tall, but besides that and his hair there wasn't much else I could make out about him. His Puffy Blue winter coat made it near impossible to make out any features and his face was scrunched down into the collar to stop the wind freezing his face any farther.
Still... I took a shifty look around myself. There was a couple holding gloved hands way down the street behind me and no one out on the opposite side of the four lane Main Street. As for beyond the kid, I t was a little harder to tell as his coat was very puffy. Maybe it was a down jacket? It didn't really matter. I shook my head to clear it than looked both ways to be sure I wasn't about to be hit by a car.
Nothing, good. And the kid wouldn't be suspicious either. Lots of people jay walked, especially at this light that took forever to change. No doubt, hiss wallet would either be in the jacket pocket or the jeans he wore. With any luck it was in the coat. Winter coats were so easy to get the good stuff out of. So long as the people wearing them didn't zip up the pockets. And they rarely did. So long as those gloved hands stayed out of the pockets than what ever was in them was as good as mine. I stepped off the curve and hurried toward the teen.
Was I ashamed that I was thinking about- scratch that, planning on- swiping some kids wallet? Nope, not at all. There was a time when I was about this kids age that those kinds of thoughts plagued me. But that didn't last long. I needed that money and in the end that's what mattered. Did that make me a shitty bitch? Probably. Mostly likely.... Okay, yeah, it did. But I could live with that.
Just as I reached the other side of the street the light changed for the kid. Good, he would be distracted, and it would be that much easier to pick the pocket just coming into my reach... my hand began to snake out in a well practiced move. I was no expert, but it did work out seventy or eighty percent of the time at least.
Then everything stopped. I wasn't sure what clued me in at first. The wind no longer blowing? Or maybe the sound going from quiet to nonexistent? Either way, my well-trained Spidey senses screamed "Danger! Something is not right here!". I seemed the kid realized it about half a second after me as he froze with a foot off the curb and his head swiveling from side to side. Weather because I was behind him or because the silence was so disconcerting, he still hadn't noticed me directly behind him.
"Wha-" he began in a smooth voice, tinged with confusion.
But, before the kid could even finish his word, much less a full sentence something even freakier happened. A gust blasted us. But this gust seemed to be coming up from the concrete beneath our feet. Both I and the kid looked down at the same time and my eyes widened in shock. There, appearing before my eyes as if four or five invisible hands were drawing it simultaneously, was red, intricately patterned, circle. It was a luminous pale red and was quickly drawing itself around the kid. I, myself, was halfway in. my foot right behind the kid, my hand outstretched.
The thought "run" had just entered my head when the circle seemed to complete itself and a bright red light, blasted up into the grey clouds. At that exact moment I felt a searing, horrible, ungodly pain bisect my body from crotch to the tip of my head before all senses ceased.
I woke up slowly. My brain first registered that I was on something hard. The road? No. it wasn't cold. In fact, no part of me was cold... was I inside?
That thought snapped me to alertness. It was never good to find yourself not in the same place as when you fell asleep. Even someone with out vivid and horrible experience with that could figure that one out. As my eyes flew open and a vast night sky greeted my eyes my confusion only skyrocketed. I was outside, but it was a pleasant enough temperature, no wind, no smell... what the hell?
With a muted groan I struggled to a sitting position. The pain reminded me of another pain, and I shivered and gasped as I remember the light from the circle literally cutting me in half. Oh shit! Was I dead?
"Yes." Said a voice, making me jump and let out a rather embarrassing squeak of fear. I scrambled to get to my feet only for my eyes to register that the night sky from above was also below me, and a flash of vertigo had me stumbling back down. "Easy!" huffed the voice.
My head whipped toward the sound, and I was hit by another burst of confusion. A child stood over me. Not the boy from earlier. This one was younger. Maybe eleven or twelve? He was short but had that awkward gangliness that preteens seemed to get. Also, unlike the kid from before, this one had a mop of black hair. Like black. And his face was pale as snow with eyes as yellow as a topaz. He stood, crouched before me, with a pale, slender handheld out before me as if to offer me help. I ignored it and shifted myself to a seated, cross-legged position.
The kid was freaking me out, so my befuddled brain decided to take in my surroundings. Unfortunately, my surroundings were more night sky. An inky black-blue that went on for ever, filled with stars, blinking in and out all around. I gasped and was sure I was probably as pale as the kid. Nervously, I went to wipe my sweaty palms onto my jeans. It was then I realized that I wasn't wearing my jeans. In fact, I had none of my cloths on and was, instead dressed in a grey t shirt and a pair of baggy grey shorts.
Indignance overrode fear and I glared at the kid. "Did you change my cloths?" the reproach was clear in my voice, and I was very much aware that that was really the least of my concerns now. Still, I glared. Don't show fear, fear could get you killed.
The kid gave me a dirty, sideways, glare back. His pale arms folded against a black t shirt and his own legs covered by a pair of black slacks. If it weren't for his pale skin and the absence of stars on his cloths or in his hair, he would have looked like a kid shaped black hole in this endless night.
"Well, you are a rude one." Huffed the kid. His voice was a little deeper than one would expect to hear from a kid just entering puberty and it made the hair on my arms stand on end. "I will have you know that all this is created from your own mind, woman. I haven't laid a finger on you." He sighed and took his yellow gaze off me to look around. "pretty" he said wistfully. "But rather empty and lonely don't you think?"
Confused and feeling judged for some reason, I continued to glare. In my seated position he was less than a foot taller than me.
"Anyway," He aid, his eyes returning to mine. They looked old. Way to old to be in the face of a kid. Way too old to be in anyone really. I found myself unable to hold them and instead looked around myself again. "To answer your unasked question: Yes, you are dead."
Instantly my eyes snapped back to the boy. A mix of shock, disbelief, and a sort of resigned disappointment settled into my heart. "I don't understand..." I croaked.
"I know." Sighed the kid sadly. He seemed to take a second to gather his thoughts. "I suppose I should take a second to introduce myself... I've gone by many names, but you may call me Kradiff." I wrinkled my nose at the name. who the heck names their kid that? And if he had many names than why choose that one. I heard the boy chuckle. Another sound that seemed too old for his small body. "It is the name most used for me in a certain place... though you may know me better by other names. Let's just say that I am the God that governs life and death and that watches over the paths that connect all worlds. It's the simplest explanation."
Simplest? Like hell that was!
"Hold up!" I said lifting my hands in a warding gesture. "You expect me to believe that?!" I squawked, feeling a little panicked to say the least.
"You are sitting on solid ground where there is none, floating in space, while speaking to a child... do you have better explanation?" he asked with a somewhat amused tone, one eye cocked as if to dare me to come up with a better answer.
"Sure." I snapped at the kid. "Drugs maybe? A sick joke! I don't know..." I was borderline hyper ventilating at this point. I liked to believe that I tended to stay cool under pressure and mostly I looked at the world with a cynical eye. But this was too much. I flinched again as the remembered pain of being burned in half washed over me.
The boy frowned. "I should apologize for that..." he said solemnly. "Its why I have come to speak to you. I truly am sorry. You were not supposed to die like that. A mistake, an oversight, on my part that truly can not be forgiven..." Eyes sad, the boy bowed low to me. I had to suppress a nervous giggle over the thought of a supposed god bowing to someone like me.
"What-"I asked, licking my lips nervously. "What happened?"
"I guess I should first explain some things to you. First and foremost is that there are other worlds besides your own. Many of them in fact."
"You mean, like, aliens?" I asked, head spinning. I was open to the being aliens. It made sense to me. Not sure if I believed in them coming to earth and abducting people though...,
"No- well I mean, yes, there are aliens... but that's not what I meant." He sighed and seemed to ponder for a second. "How should I put in a way you may understand? Ah, think of it as different dimensions? Or perhaps parallel universes? Hmm. Maybe its more of a middle ground between that two?"
"Your explanations leave something to be desired..." I reported dryly.
The kid harumph "I don't exactly find myself in the position of needing to explain myself all to often you know. Or really needing to talk at all."
"Okay, okay! Sorry. Please continue." This was all getting way to surreal to me. Just let the little guy explain then figure it out after. Priorities.
"Your world, Earth, is actually rather special." He spoke.
"Okay, special how?"
"Well, in all of these multitude of interconnected worlds, yours is one of the few that abandoned what you would call magic."
"Magic?" Was this kid serious? Magic. Come on now.
"Other worlds call it different things. Look, I am attempting to put this in terms you can grasp alright?" Snapped Kradiff, clearly not impressed with his current company. He sighed and straightened out his black shirt be for plowing on. "Magic is the -um- the life force of a world. The energy that keeps things moving and living and growing. But in your..." he seemed to search for the best word. "Dimension? The magic goes largely untouched. It sort of just sits there. Sure, it gets used for the typical things like keeping the world from imploding on itself or making use the rotation of souls is kept on track..."
He was starting to lose me, but I decided to nod along all the same. My attention span was short, and my patients wouldn't hold out with him trying to explain it all again.
Kradiff seemed to suspect he was losing me, however, as he narrowed those yellow eyes down on me and I tried to look innocent. "Anyway," He grumbled. "The point is that this energy is largely unused. No one on Earth is expelling their energies out to cast spells or what have you. This build up is aided by the fact that only humanity has flourished on your world."
"Oh god." I said, the cynical part of me rearing its head once again. "You are not about to tell me that there are, like, fairies or something are you?"
Again, the self-proclaimed God glared down at me. But I mean, really?
"There are worlds with fairies, yes. However, this race never existed in your world. In fact, many of the creatures your people associate with fiction exist in one place or another. The reason the live in your world in the form of stories and such is because some souls have brushed up against these other worlds and when they get reincarnated into your world once again, they retain a sense of what these other people are. That sense eventually made out as vivid imagination and put into stories and such in your world."
"Wow, I am not even sure what to make of that..."
" Well, in addition to your Earth being one of the very few worlds to turn away from the path of magic and there fore using more mundane and scientific means to get by, it is also a world that has almost non existent ties to the other worlds, or dimensions I guess."
"Wait, what do you mean by that?" I asked. It seemed like a very roundabout way of getting to the point he was trying to make here.
Kradiff waved a thin hand and in the air between us appeared what seemed to be a web of sorts. There were glowing balls of light of varying colors, all connected by thin strands of light. Some of the balls of light had many strands and others almost none. Also, it seemed like the strands of light themselves had varying degrees of clarity. Where some of the threads seemed very bright and clear, others looked pale and transparent. Kradiff extended a hand and pointed to a small, blue, light.
"This," he said. "Is Earth." What I Noticed first was that the blue ball was one of the brightest in the kid's web. It was hard to look directly at it. And then I saw the threads connected to it. There weren't many and all except one was pale to the point of not even existing. "It is so bright because it holds so much unused, built-up mana- magical energies. Most worlds use their mana at about the same speed it is created, and so balance is upheld. Some worlds have nearly burnt through that mana, and others have completely decimated their reserves." Kradiff pointed to a couple 40-watt light bulb like balls then moved his hand to indicate a light that was nearly as pale as the handful of threads that connected it. Lastly, he pointed to a place where there was nothing but two loose threads seemingly just floating on the breeze. "When the mana is gone the world is cut off from the flow..."
"And what does that mean fore the planet in question?" I asked, suddenly glad for Earth's bright vibrance. I would have been kind of cool to have fairies and elves running around or little blue dot but at least it seemed we wouldn't be going to the land of nothingness any time soon.
"No mana, no life." Kradiff stated bluntly. "It would be a dead world... there have been times when the mana was able, with immense amounts of time, to rekindle itself. But those times are insanely rare."
"Okay, so as interesting as this is I don't see what this has to do with how or why I died. Much less what makes me so special to be sitting here having a cat with a child god."
'I only look this way because of you!" snapped the boy. "I will have you know that most worlds see me as something far more fearsome. Even most religions on your own world see the god of death as something far more intimidating that a pubescent boy!"
"Sorry!" I spoke. "I can't say I ever even thought about it. Till now, if asked, I would have said that no god existed."
"Whatever." Grumped the god. Should gods really be using words like 'whatever'? "What this all has to do with you is this: Nothing."
Huh? He had to be shitting me. Nothing? Really?
Kradiff's sigh could have put my own to shame. "The truth is that your death was a complete accident. And completely my own fault... as I said I am very sorry."
"Sorry?" it was my turn to snap this time. "What do you mean sorry? Look," I said, glaring. "My life was admittedly shitty. But it was mine! And all you have to say is 'my bad!'. For real?!" to get myself back under control I clenched my fists and thought back on my death. "Wait. You said that Earth didn't use its magic? Or mana, whatever. So, what the hell was that red light that killed me? If that was some video game, anime, magic circle bull shit than I don't know what would be!"
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"Yes, that was magic. A summoning circle to be exact. But it was not performed by anyone in your world. It was not used to summon some one too your world. Rather it was used to summon someone from it."
"That- that boy?" I asked, my voice now small. Sure, I meant to rob the kid but who the hell would literally kidnap the boy? That was just nuts...
Kradiff nodded. "He and four other humans were called from here-"He pointed to another blue light, the only one that was connected to earth of Kradiff's map by a thread that's wasn't ghostly pale. "a world known as Harth."
"Why there? Why him?"
"Why him? No reason actually... he and four other random people in the near vicinity were chosen. There was no reason they were chosen specifically. They were just the five people the spell chose."
Wow, that was sick. So, five people were just minding their business when suddenly they get whisked off to another world? It really was like some messed up RPG plot line.
"Hang on. It was random? What the heck! What if a baby, or some old lady, were chosen?" I said, confused. If this really was following the plot of some game or manga, then the kid made sense, I guess. Its always some kid just living his life that got scooped up right? But in the games, they are supposed to be like, the chosen ones, or something. Great heroes called to defeat the demon lord, right? But Kradiff said it was just pure chance.
"It has happened..." Said Kradiff regretfully. "Luckily not often. Usually, the one who uses the spell words it in a way that it tends to call on young, but still adult, individuals that have a real chance of providing aid. Only incompetent summoners would haul over a baby or an elderly person. Though they sometimes forget to add in the 'adult' part and a small child gets dragged over."
"That's... that's sick!" I snapped. "Who does that? Who would think that the people taken would even be willing to help?! I don't think I would be. I'd tell them to go fight their own shit."
Kradiff nodded. "This time the spell was used to summon what could be seen as capable individuals, strong in mana, who could help the kingdom of Larasta combat the coming of the Demon King. I have no say in the spell. I just help the individuals make the crossing. That's my job."
I ran a hand down my face in exasperation. "A literal Demon King? To me this all sounds like a joke. All of it is too much to be real."
"Whether you believe it to be real or not doesn't change the facts. Earth is often used for these spells. They are dangerous and difficult to preform. Many times, the caster dies or worse. Usually, they are used by the desperate. I assume Larasta feels it was in that sort of situation. At the very least I am sure that they would have had to pay some sort of blood sacrifice. You can't just summon a soul from one world to another in a permanent way and not pay a price."
"So, these people will never be able to go home...?"
"No. not unless someone on Earth devised a smell to summon specific people from Harth to Earth in their lifetimes..."
"And Earth doesn't use magic." I sighed. Man, that poor kid... "Okay, where dose that leave me? I assume I wasn't one of these chosen Summoned ones."
"No. when I directed the spell to Earth it should have taken people as instructed yet you stepped into the circle in the split second between its initiation and when such a thing would have been prevented... it has literally never happened before."
"Sounds like the kind of shitty turn my life would take." I said, shifting to stand. Why would my legs fall asleep if I was dead? So dumb.
"Normally, when someone from Earth dies their soul, as it were, would be put back into the flow of mana to be reborn at some point. Its how it works on most worlds. However, your circumstances are different." He [pointed to the bright thread connecting Earth and Harth. "This tread is normally as dull as the others you see. Its what a normal summoning to Harth is impossible. For instance, those on Harth can summon and form contracts with fairies, spirits, and even demons. All come from other worlds." He pointed to the other bright lines shooting off the blue light that represented Harth. "The mana lines are strong enough between these worlds to make that possible. Earth However, has no natural mana connections.
Kradiff gave me a sad look. "You were not fully in the circle and so the magic, literally, cut you in half, killing you. But you were in enough that your soul did get pulled over. There is no way to send your soul back I am afraid. I can not reincarnate you on earth..."
"So, what now then?" I asked, worn out by it all.
"Well, I have a couple options. I can destroy your soul." My eyes snapped to his in a panic. That sound bad. He waved a hand. "I'd rather no do that of course. The other option is to send you into the reincarnation cycle of Harth."
"So, I would eventually just be reborn in Harth?"
"Yes..." A mischievous glint entered those golden eyes suddenly. "But as this was a great injustice to you, I could reincarnate you right away. However, all the babies being born are spoken for the next 100 years or so."
"Um, okay? I feel like I am missing the punch line."
"Let me explain reincarnation to you then. Its more rudimentary on your world. Just a rolodex of souls in a line getting reborn into human babies. On Harth however, its more complicated. There are many races that live and prosper there. Humans, beast men, elves of various types, beast with intelligence enough that a human soul would be compatible... and many more besides. Souls are allocated based on many factors, most way too complicated to get into. And since all souls are accounted for the next century, I purpose I send you to Harth in a full grown, magically crafted body."
"Wait, hang on." I said waving my own hand while clutching my head with the other. Should dead people really get head aches? Seems unfair. "You can just do that?"
"With a normal, Harthian soul? Nope, not at all. But you are not from Harth. You are from Earth. And the souls of earth have ages worth of stored up mana. Much more than an average Harthian would have. Enough that I could use it to make you a body. Enough that you could choose what you would like to be even. So long as that race is compatible with your soul that is."
"O-kay? Compatible?"
"Its not like your path in life is set in stone but each soul does have it own characteristics and habits then tend to fall into..."
Okay, I saw where this was going now. "Are you saying that my soul is predisposed to being a failure of a human being, destined to continually be reborn to a life of poverty and general waste of space?' I asked dryly, feeling very discouraged.
"No... each life is how that person makes it. But the soul does have a tendency towards repeating itself. Would you be destined to be homeless? No. but your soul is of a more cynical type, predisposed to living on the outskirts of society. That sort of thing. But that doesn't mean that life would not throw a wrench into those predispositions. For instance, one of your former lives was, indeed a thief and a murderer. But due to actions taken in that life and the influence of other souls around yours your soul ended up turning their life around and became someone of fame and heroism. Nothing is set in stone Cindy. "He said and I realized that he used my name despite the fact that I was sure I hadn't told him. Then again, he was supposedly a god right.
"So, you're saying that you can bring me back to life in Harth as a full-grown woman? Would I still have all my memories, or would I appear there as an empty shell?"
"I hadn't thought of that, but yes, I could make it so that you could retain your memories from the life you just lost. Though there is no way for me to completely restore the memories of any life you've had before."
"Well, I would like to keep my memories if possible. Amnesia doesn't look good on me."
The god child snorted. So many things in that sentence did not belong together. "That's fine. It would cost more or your mana, but it is doable. Your soul dose contain much more than an average Harthian. Even amongst the non-human races known for their mana."
"So, how do we go about this then?"
It was still not full registration that I had died. Much less that I had died due to some magic spell that got all screwy and I was about to get plopped down into another world where 'mana' was an actual thing and not just a popular term in games. But I was adaptable. And as an added plus, I didn't really have anything holding me to my previous shitty life either. No kids or husband, and the one brother I did have was and even worse person than me serving a ten year stretch for manslaughter. Dad was dead and mom was as good as. I had no money, no one id call a real friend and no romantic interest. I'm sure the poor bastards who were meant to be summoned had a lot more to lose than I did. This could turn out well for me.
Kradiff made a scooping motion with his left hand, as if her was trying to hold water, and a small table rose from nothingness. It was silvery and round with one leg, like a table at a diner. Surprised I took a step back just as two stools of the same mercury-like metal appeared at opposite ends of the table. "Have a seat." He spoke. I hesitated for only a second before doing as I was told. Kradiff took the stool opposite. Again, he waved his hand, this time over the table, and a couple dozen blobs of colored metal appeared.
"Let's start with figuring out what race you would like to come back as. Many options are already lost to you as they are not compatible with your soul. But we should narrow it down farther. Any suggestions?"
"Oh." I said, not having expected to be asked my opinion in the matter. "Well, I guess id like to keep a humanoid like body..."
Kradiff nodded and a wave of his hand had over two thirds of the metal marbles disappear. "How about this: why not pick the type of life you would like to have?"
"A good one?" I suggested with a roll of the eyes.
Kradiff laughed, the sound deeper than his child like body suggested. "I'm afraid that's solely up to you. No, I meant something like what kind of profession. For instance, if we were speaking of Earth I would like to know if you were hoping to be a tradesman, scholar, medical professional? That sort of thing. Its something you can change when ever you like, unlike your race which is permanent till your death. But an idea of what you would like to do in this new life may help to narrow down a race. Some races are better with mana and others are better with physical attributes... that sort of thing."
"Ummm, okay. Well, I have no clue what kind of professions there are on Harth. The only frame of reference I have would be my limited knowledge things I had read or played. Some sound like what you have explained so far."
He looked contemplative for a moment before speaking again. "Honestly, those things, in a broad sense at least, are a good frame of reference. There are people who go the route of Healers who also branch off as those who use magic, medicine, or a combination of both. Those who seek combat with mana or sword... its rather a wide set of options. As you are keeping your current personality you should probably look at what your current self likes. Are you a fighter? A merchant? Do you like singing?"
"Ugh... I'm not very good at anything to be honest. I steal stuff to live or get part time, cash under the table, sort of jobs. I have a shitty personality and what most would call a warped sense of morality..."
'Kradiff smirked. Just a slight twitching of the lips but I'd take it as a smile. "Well, you didn't have the option in your old life, and you have an abundance of mana for your new life, so I'd suggest something that makes use of that mana. Some variety of mage perhaps? There are many types of those and in many different races."
I thought about it. Using magic would be the best really. I mean who wouldn't want to if given the chance? Using my pre-stated game reference, I tried to think of what I could be. I some how couldn't picture myself in a robe and witches hat using a wand to cast spells. Plus, I would guess that being a mage in real life would involve a lot of studying, and I was not good with school. I would call my self a fast learner but the thought of sitting at a desk pouring over books was like torture. I liked animals though. Didn't a lot of games have magic users who could get like a pet and use it to fight and stuff?
"I like animals." I said simply.
"Well, the main path I could put you down for that would perhaps be a summoner. There are those who specialize in summoning from three separate worlds. There are those who can summon from the Lands of the fairies. This is the most common and the creatures from there are many and varied. The least common summoner would be those who specialize in summoning spirits."
"Like ghosts?" I asked. I wasn't afraid of ghosts. Admittedly I didn't believe they were real till about an hour or so ago so maybe real ones were scary.
Nodding, Kradiff said "That's one type. A specialized summoner known as a necromancer. Not many go that route these days as it's a bit taboo as I'm sure you can imagine. But there is another type of spirit summoner: those who summon elemental spirits from the land of spirits. Those are much stronger, but they are very hard to control so not many risk going down that route."
"Alright." I said trying to rub out the headache that was surely coming on. "So, what's the last type of summoner then?"
"Demon summoners." That sounded bad but I waited for Kradiff to explain before saying anything. "These are more common than the spirit summoners but as you can imagine it comes with some big risks of its own. This one requires a strong heart and a knack for making contracts. Normally a new Demon summoner would train for years with a master before ever attempting to summon a demon. So, I would no suggest it to you now."
I nodded. "To be honest I don't feel very comfortable with the whole summoner thing anyway. My current predicament has made me acutely aware that it is essentially kid napping. I'm not into that."
"Understandable." Agreed Kradiff, running a pale hand through his dark messy locks. "Well, there is another type of mage that works closely with beasts and animals of all kinds. They are the Tamers. But that is a mostly abandoned art at this time in Harth."
"Why?" I asked with a tilt of the head. Was there something bad about them?
"No major reason really. Its just that, for the most part, Summoning is much easier than taming."
"It is? How? I assume taming means forming some kind of bond with an animal, right?"
"Yes. A tamer makes a contract with a beast, monster, animal, or what ever the find and then those who are tamed become the tamers partners. But unlike summoning, which calls your partner on an as needed basis, taming means you need to find a place for your tame to live, make sure its not running wild and killing the village folk and such. So those who wish to be truly prolific tamers need the money to provide land for their monsters. Also, when summoning you have the possibility to get a partner many times stronger than your self in a relatively fast manner. Tamers tend to have to start small and work their way up."
"So, in other words there is just a lot less leg work in summoning versus Taming?"
"Yes. Both have their pluses and minuses magically speaking. Summoning requires a constant stream of mana while your partner is summoned but the trade off is that they are strong, obedient, independent partners. Once the summoning is ended the drain on mana stops, the creature goes back to wherever it was before you summoned it, and you don't have to think of it again till you have need of it. Taming requires a chunk of mana at the initial forming of the contract, and the stronger the tame the greater the mana cost. But after that there is no cost, unless you use tamer specific spells like those used to summon your tame to you or spells to enhance your tame. But as I said before, you must find a place on Harth to house you tames and you also have to train them and train with them. It's a labor of love I guess."
I thought it over for a moment longer. "Still," I said. "I don't like the idea of summoning. But there are things about the taming route that appeal to me. If I stick to smaller tames at first, I can just keep them with me. At least until I make enough money to buy land. It may take time, but I do kind of like the idea of it."
"We will go with that then. As I said before you can always decide something else later once you get a feal for the land. Its just a way to narrow down your race options for now." He turned his eyes back to the balls on the table and several more of the marbles vanished. There were only a few left now. "Okay, these are the ones I suggest." And a flick of his finger had the balls changing again. They still looked like little balls of metal but now they had things that looked like tails or ears in some cases. He picked up the first ball that had no distinguishing features. "Humans." He said, placing it before me. "An obvious choice perhaps. Humans are versatile in this world, but they have less magical potential than others. But you have a great deal of mana and that can off set the deficit. The summoned Humans slotted to be heroes would be like that. Compared to a normal human you would be seen as a super one. Faster, stronger, and able to surpass the usual limits set on the race. It is why the others were summoned in the first place.
The next race would be the beast men." He said and this time picked up a ball that had a pair of cats like ears and a tail before putting it next to the human sphere. "They are not particularly strong in magic and what magic they do use is geared toward physical enhancement. They are many times stronger than humans in the physical sense. And predictably, they have better hearing, sight and much else. There are a few races more powerful but not many, especially in the races left here, that can compare in adaptability. They come in many varied types too. Some look like walking talking animals while others merely have beast like attributes. Normally they would not be ideal as tamers but with your mana stores you could make it work."
"Okay, what's this one then?" I asked, pointing to one with pointed ears. The obvious would-be elves.
He pushed the orb forward. "Dark elves. You do not have the predisposition for wood elves, nor for the high elves. Dark elves are as they sound in some senses. They are a race of elves that split off from wood elves a millennium back. In that sense they are a relatively new race. They are more powerful in magic than most races, gaining power in exchange for abandoning the more 'lighter' sides of magic. They tend to keep to their forests much like the wood elves do, or the high elves to their mountain tops. They would make a great choice for going into taming or many other magic oriented paths.
"Then there is the final one here. Kind of an out of the box pick really..."
"Why do you say that?" I asked, though I thought I knew. The ball sported an impressive set of horns, bat like wings, and a long whip like tail.
"Demons. They have massive magical capabilities both in power and capacity. And, they have physical strength far above that of a human. Even the weakest demon could snap the arm of the strongest human. There may be some hero class humans that come from Earth that could best the weaker demons in a fist fight... but still it's a stretch."
"Don't demons have their own world though?" I asked, confused.
"Yes, they do. But demons are an odd race in that they can manifest in just about any world so long as the mana lines are strong enough. But your power would be less than if you were on their own world. If ever you wanted to Leave Harth and go to the demon world, you could. It would take some effort on your part, but it isn't impossible."
"I can assume what the down sides are but why don't you tell me anyways, just in case."
"Even though demons do not go to earth, those there have their own bad tales about the race. To be honest they are not unfounded. They have a somewhat twisted morality, a thirst for violence, and in general take a fierce joy in inciting fear and panic. Free roaming Demons are not a common sight on Harth and those that do try to live there are usually, at best, shunned. More commonly they are feared and hated. Being reincarnated as a demon would benefit your mana and goals quite well, but you may be condemning yourself to a life without companions. Perhaps even a life without a real permanent home even. It is not legal to just randomly attack or otherwise harm demons with out cause on most of Harth but that doesn't mean it is not still done."
I nodded and began to mull over my options. It seemed that the logical choice would be to just be a human. It was the life I knew well, and I could, conceivably, be on the top within that race. But if I was honest with myself, I would admit that the thought didn't hold much draw for me. I was sick of humanity. As for the beast men... well it was amusing to think of myself being a badass wolf chick, but the magical limitations made me shy away from that path. If my big advantage in this world was to be my massive stores of mana than I should make use of that advantage.
That left the last two. It seemed fitting that my soul would be compatible with a race called a Dark Elf, and that of Demons. Id been called a demon often enough. Really, in the grand scheme of things, I didn't see any reason to discredit the Dark Elves. But for some reason my eyes kept being drawn toward the little demon ball next to my right hand. It may make me a pariah in my new life, but as Kradiff pointed out, I could always take my tailed ass to demon land if shit hit the fan in Harth.
"I know I am no expert in these things, but being a tamer doesn't seem to vide with the demon way of life..."
Kradiff chuckled. "I can't say I ever heard of one." He admitted. "But they have all the magical power to be an amazing one to be honest. Not much could compete with a demon's magical capacity. Add it to your own vast stores and its really would be a terrifying amount of mana. Though just because you have a ton of mana wont necessarily mean you will be any good at using it. It'll take time and practice. So much mana on hand would me that you could tame some truly monstrous creatures. If you worked at it and set your mind to it, maybe you would be the most prolific tamer ever. Perhaps you could even be one of the few tamers in all of Hearth's history to tame dragons."
I blinked in surprise. Dragons? That hadn't even occurred to me but... Hell yeah, I wanted to tame freaking dragons! Bad ass demon chick with a flock of dragons on her side? Wait, would a group of dragons be a flock? I doubted it. Seemed like to lame of a description for that. Still, it would be amazing if I could. And who needed friends with a bunch of fire breathing monsters on your side. Not that I had any idea how I would provide for a bunch of dragons...
"So? Made your choice?" Kradiff asked. He didn't sound impatient, and I had no clue if there was a time limit on this decision. Still, I was an impulsive person I didn't really feel the need to change either. It would probably get me in trouble in the future. It had in the past anyway.
"I think I will just dive in headfirst and hope it works out he way I want it to." I said, feeling a little nervous. "Please, make me a demon."
I watched as Kradiff smiled and got to his feet. I figured I should fallow his lead and did the same. He waved a hand downward and the stools, table, and little figures, melted away. With out the furniture as appoint to focus on I felt a little woozy as it seemed I was just hovering in mid air again. Kradiff's pale hand stretched out toward me, and I sucked in a breath.
"Is this going to hurt?" I asked, fists clenched.
"Not at all. You will simply awake as your new self. No pain whatsoever. I'll be sure to have a pack near you with some cloths and rudimentary supplies. In fact," He flipped his hand palm up and a leather-bound book appeared there. It looked old and the leather was dark. "I am not really supposed to do this, but it's a rather unique situation. Besides, the spell may not have been initiated by me, but it was I who directed it and there for I feel somewhat responsible for your situation. There fore I gift you this. It is a grimoire. Books used to hold magical knowledge and spells. This one is a Tamers grimoire. They are very rare and valuable, and I will tie it to your soul. This way so one will be able to take it from you nor will they be able to read it."
I reached out and gently took the book. It was lighter than it looked and about the size of a small sketch pad. I fingered the leather and saw that it had writing on it, but I couldn't read it. It made me think...
"Thank you. But a question. Do the people of this world speak English? Or am I going in needing to learn the language?"
"Yet another thing I didn't think of. You are right. You would not be able to speak the language so I will be sure to cast a type of translation magic on your new body so that you will be able to understand both the spoken and written words."
I sighed gratefully. "Thanks that should really help."
He nodded and stretched his arm out once again. "Alright Cindy-"a smirk twitched his lips and I actually caught a glimpse of pearly white fangs. "Just a suggestion, but you may want to investigate a name change. New name new life, that sort of deal. Not that Cindy is an awful name, but it sort of detracts from your newfound bad ass demon image." Without another word or so much as a goodbye the boy who was a god snapped his fingers and the world went dark.