Kya felt the warm blanket before anything else. Sitting bolt upright, and then clutching her head and groaning at the sudden movement, she looked around in utter confusion.
In addition to her head, she felt a terrible itching pain overcome her left arm. It was as if a molten steel bracelet had been placed just below her elbow. She scratched at it furiously for several seconds before it subsided to a more manageable, albeit uncomfortably warm pressure.
Still clutching at her arm, she minimized the notifications obscuring her vision. She would sort those out later.
She took in her surroundings next, noting immediately the sleeping figure of an absolutely beast of a woman. She was at least six and a half feet tall, probably more. It was hard to tell with her leaning back in a chair next to Kya’s bed. She had ruddy red hair, like rust on an old piece of metal, pulled into a braid that went to the small of her back. She was wearing black greaves around her shins, and large black boots. Otherwise, she appeared to be unarmored, wearing simple pants of dark brown, and a voluminous shirt of deep gray.
The room was overall, pretty nice. It was a simple square, with a dark wooden door at one end, and a window just behind her. The walls were a clean light gray stone, with a bright white glow stone hanging down from the center of the ceiling. A small wooden table sat next to her, where she saw her familiar spatial bag, looking full to the bursting.
Seeing her boots neatly next to the bed gave her a sense of relief and took a weight off her shoulders she wasn’t even aware she was carrying. She had hated that forest profoundly, but for those boots? It had almost all been worth it.
As the woman continued to sleep, slumped sideways on the armrest of her plush chair, Kya decided to go through her notifications. She had a vague idea of what all had gone on, but wanted to piece it together more concretely.
- - - - -
- You have defeated Reaping Tiger - 1-Star - Rare
- Progress on Climbing the Ladder updated:
- Kill 10 monsters above common rarity, 10/10
- - - - -
- QUEST COMPLETED!
You have successfully killed ten powerful beasts while being entirely ordinary yourself. It nearly cost you your life more times than it probably should have, but hey, it is genuinely something in which to take pride. Have your rewards then, yah crazy.
- Reward: Gloves of the Spatial Mage - 1-Star - Uncommon
- Bonus Reward: Necklace of the Reaping Tiger - 1-Star - Rare
- - - - -
The memories of the final moments of the fight were… hazy in Kya’s mind. She knew it had bitten down on her arm though. She looked at the limb and wondered at its presence still on her body. She had seen that monster bite through not only her staff, but stones from the temple itself. Her arm should have been gone, and she knew that.
She continued on, holding her questions until she got through everything. Then she would wake the woman beside her.
- - - - -
- QUEST COMPLETED!
You have successfully survived the trial put forth ahead of you and made it to safety against all odds. As you have proven yourself more than capable and more than deserving, you shall have your reward.
- Reward: Class selection
- - - - -
- You have been granted {Class Selection}
- Normal Restrictions do not apply to your {Class Selection}
- You may initiate your {Class Selection} whenever you so choose.
- Initiate? (Yes) (No)
- - - - -
She wanted to say yes immediately. This was the prize she had been working towards, and she achingly wanted to know what the hell this was all about. Besides, what sane person wouldn’t leap at the chance to have literal magic powers bestowed upon them.
But she also knew this would likely be a no take back situation. Once she made her decision, she would be set on a path irrevocably, and this wasn’t something to rush headlong into.
Before moving on to the inevitable Q & A session that would undoubtedly follow from waking up the towering figure snoring away at her side, Kya decided to look at her spatial bag. She wanted to take inventory of not only what she had, and what she’d received from her fight with the tiger and from her quest but check to see if anything was missing.
Peering inside, and receiving back the familiar image of the warehouse overflowing with goods, she arrested most of her doubts. Not all, but most. At least she still had a good deal of the loot she’d found from the forest.
Her enormous stack of potions was still there, having grown immensely after looting most of the spiders from the nest.
She still had several temple stones but realized with a pang of sadness she’d left a good number of them behind in the caves, never having retraced her steps to collect them.
Speaking of, she still had the crystals she’d taken from below the shattered crater where she’d fought the tiger.
Seeing that nothing egregious was missing, she then looked at the quest rewards. She pulled them out, as well as one notable addition that hadn’t been stated on a notification.
- - - - -
- Item: Gloves of the Spatial Mage
- Rarity: 1-Star - Uncommon
- Description: Durable gloves made of quality material. Though they look relatively plain in appearance, they will keep the wearer's hands safe in all but the most extreme conditions. Additionally, they can enhance any spatial abilities used by the wearer.
- Enchantments: Basic Spatial Affinity, Basic Defense
- Requirements: Spatial Affinity
- - - - -
- Item: Necklace of the Reaping Tiger
- Rarity: Rare
- Description: Braided fur taken from the Reaping Tiger, the center piece is a fragment of its very fangs. Grants the wearer enhanced resistance to mental attacks, and gives a small passive bonus to aura strength. May only be worn by one who has slain a Reaping Tiger.
- Enchantments: Basic Mental Defense, Basic Aura Enhancement
- Requirements: Slayer of the Reaping Tiger
- - - - -
These two were known to her. Though the necklace was a welcome addition, she had more or less anticipated it. After all, she’d gotten her first dagger as a bonus reward for killing an uncommon monster. So it made sense to her that she got a bonus for killing her first rare one as well.
The next item, however, was a surprise to her.
- - - - -
- Item: Eye of the Reaping Tiger
- Rarity: Rare
- Description: The preserved eye from a Reaping Tiger. When used in a ritual of ascension, grants the {Death} class.
Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.
- Enchantments: Class Awakening {Death}
- Requirements: Less than two Classes.
- You meet the requirements for use of {Eye of the Reaping Tiger}
- Initiate Class Awakening by consuming {Eye of the Reaping Tiger}? (Yes) (No)
- - - - -
Kya firmly said no to this one. She was already being granted a class without needing to use some disemboweled eye. Plus, she had a solid suspicion this would be quite valuable to the right person.
Besides, she wasn’t sure a death class was really what she wanted in this world. Perhaps it would be different than she assumed, but that didn’t strike her as one of the most friendly classes one could have.
Contemplating her options for a long time, she decided to get dressed before talking to…
“Holy fuck, I’m in clean clothes.” Kya said out loud. A simple gray linen gown, but still… It was clean! She then noticed for the first time since waking up that she was clean.
Oh sweet heaven, she had missed this. Again, being covered in muck and grime had long since stopped bothering her. She could survive without a shower, and without soap. But that first feeling of cleanliness after a long period without was exceptional.
She lavished the feeling of how clean she was, her hair was, everything. There wasn’t any dirt under her fingernails or anything, this was truly… well, magical.
She laughed softly, before reaching out to gently wake the woman in the chair. Only to see she was already awake and watching Kya with a bemused expression. Like on the one hand she found it confusing what exactly Kya was doing by hugging herself and feeling her hair and the blankets, while on the other hand finding it hilarious she was doing so.
In a steady voice, the woman said “I’m glad to see you’re awake. We weren’t sure what was wrong, but figured you must simply be out from exhaustion.”
It’s hard to describe the feeling that Kya had when facing the woman. It reminded her almost of facing the tiger. It was different, of course. She didn’t feel as scared, more just… aware. Like when looking at a police officer with a gun on their hip, she got the feeling that not only was this person something of an authority, she was also unquestionably dangerous.
Nodding to the yellow crystal eye in Kya’s hand, she said “That’s a rare find. Was that why you went out in the forest? Trying to get yourself a class?”
Finally, Kya responded by not answering her question and instead asking a simple one of her own.
“Who are you? Also, where are we?”
Nodding like these were not only entirely expected, but also good answers to her questions, the woman responded “I’m Julia Wade, a 1-Star soldier down from Loterre. And we are currently in one of the clinics in Lyra.”
Seeing that the names and explanation clearly meant nothing to Kya, she continued “We’ve all been extremely curious to know what exactly happened out there. Can you tell me about yourself and-”
She stopped short as a man slid open the door, apparently it was a sliding door, and walked in closing it behind him. He was average height, with shaggy light brown hair that covered his forehead and ears, going down to his shoulders.
“Oh, you're awake!” he said, with a practiced smile. “You can call me Rory, I’m with the Church of Life, and I’ve been looking after you the last couple of days.”
Color visibly drained from Kya’s face at that, and both Rory and Julia noticed immediately. Shooting the man a disapproving look, she said “Thank you Rory, I was getting to that.”
Turning back to face Kya, she smiled apologetically “Look, it's been about two nights and three days since your fight. Rory here” She said, jabbing a thumb at the man “Has been working to keep you stable, and I” she turned her thumb to herself “have kept the locals from prying into you by claiming you were recovering from battle. As a disciple of war, I am given this privilege. But their patience is almost at an end, and we need to know a lot more than we do, a lot more quickly than we’d like.”
She now turned both her hands up in a gesture of helplessness and said “I’m only a 1-Star. And even with the backing of my church, that means I can be pretty easily walked over.” Turning to look at the befuddled healer, she said “Truthfully, your city lord is… I mean whew”
“Don’t I know it” mumbled Rory under his breath, producing a stool out of thin air and sitting down with a huff.
“So I’m sorry we can’t do this more gently, truly I am, but we need to know what’s going on, and how you fit into all of this.” She finished, again, with an apologetic but firm tone.
Kya was thinking fast. This was… a lot. In fact, this was nearly too much. Not only had she been unconscious for days, but she was now being forced to confront a large number of facts with even larger and crazier implications.
She felt an odd sense of vertigo trying to keep everything straight in her mind.
Trying to buy herself time, Kya asked simply and maybe too bluntly “What can I do to buy you more time. So that we can do this in a better way?”
She didn’t really expect anything to come from it, she just wanted them, either of them, to talk more. The more information she could glean, the better she could plan to somehow get out of this mess.
Sharing a look, the healer shrugged and said “You’re holding it, actually.”
Then, after a moment “Why do all healers have to be so uninformative, geez” said Julia “He means if you accept a class. There's a ritual room down the hall we can use. I assume you can do it?” Directing the last part at Rory.
“Oh yes” he said simply “One of the most straightforward rituals we can do, actually.”
“I know death isn’t a lot of peoples first picks for a class, but giving you a star would immediately change the tone of these people yammering for explanations. A random zero won’t be treated overly well, but a 1-Star is given at least some respect. Especially in this town.” Finished Wade, clearly hoping she would accept.
In a snap judgment, Kya decided not only did she like this woman, but she trusted her to some extent. Maybe foolish and definitely impulsive, but she was feeling impulsive at the moment.
Trying to fish a little bit more, Kya asked, “Can I trade this to get another class? How does class selection even work?”
This was apparently a common question, as Rory responded with a sigh, saying “No you can’t trade, at least not in the short term. Class selection items like that are pretty rare, and pretty expensive. The better one’s will grant you a wider selection of classes to choose from, but that one will only grant you the one. It would definitely sell at the auction house, but finding another one would take at least a couple days without an intense stroke of luck.”
“But if I had a class, things would be better for me?”
“Yes” they both responded at once, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
Nodding, Kya asked one final question. "Is there a bad class?"
Puzzled at the change in topic, they again shared a look before Julia explained "Politically, there can be some unwelcome ones. Certain countries only want people of a specific magic in their cities, or will shun and turn away some of a different type, but practically, no. They each work in their own way to grant power and strength to the user. They can all be good or bad depending on your imagination and how you use them."
With that, Kya mentally called up the prompt for class selection, and said “Alright then, let's do it.”
Everything around her immediately froze. The color bled from around her until she was living in a world of pure black and white, before a window popped up in front of her.
- - - - -
- You have been granted {Class Selection}
- Available Selections: {Water}, {Fire}, {Earth}, {Air}, {Time}, {Space}, {Life}, {Death}, {Knowledge}, {Emotion}, {War}, and {Peace}
- - - - -
This was Kya’s first look at what exactly lay out there waiting for her. She knew, at least now, that this woman across from her had chosen the path of war. The healer had probably chosen the path of life.
There were a thousand thoughts running through her head, about possibilities and powers she could get. If she chose air, could she fly? If she chose time, could she control time itself? What would powers of emotion and peace even be?
She likely could have talked it out more. She could have figured out more and come to a better, more reasoned conclusion on which path to take. But truly, from the first moment she laid eyes on it, she knew which one she’d pick.
In her world, since childhood, she’d always loved using telescopes to gaze up at the stars. To read about other plants and see pictures of galaxies swirling about. Now, here in her defining moment, she had the option to choose magical powers that were directly tied to space itself? Not even mentioning the gear shed found so far, and the powers she’d used via her staff to survive the forest? No, she knew what path to pick. The only one that really felt right to her.
- - - - -
- You have selected {Space}
- You have unlocked {Character screen}
- You have unlocked {Class Abilities}
- You have unlocked {Class Benefits}
- You have undergone a fundamental shift from a mundane to a magical being.
- Status changed from {Human} to {Human - 1-Star}
- - - - -
*You Have Unlocked Class Ability {Push and Pull}*
- Ability {Push and Pull} 1-Star - 0%
- Description: Through your experience and understanding of space, you are able to moderately affect any object, directing it towards or away from your center of mass.
- - - - -
As the color returned to the world, Kya felt three points of terrible pain. The simplest was from her hand, which felt as though it were being branded with a hot iron.
This, however, failed to even draw her attention as her eyes currently felt like they were being removed, and replaced with venomous, molten soup.
It lasted for only a moment, blessedly, before she slumped forward heaving for breath.
Rory rushed forward, and Wade was halfway out of her seat before they both stopped in shock.
Blinking away tears of pain, Kya looked at them both, as their jaws hung down, slack.
They had stopped because they both sensed the unmistakable aura of a 1-Star begin weakly pulsing out. Their jaws hung slack, however, because they both now saw the radiant pink iris’s blinking away tears and looking at them in pride and defiance.