> Transcendence > by Tenebris Lucifer > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Transcendence: The Beginning > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6/27/23 10:37 pm I was on one of my “thinking walks” because walking helped clear my head. I had a test tomorrow and while I should be studying for it I just wanted some time to myself. It was a cool night in Houston, a perfect night to go for a walk. However, it was cut short when a car nearly ran me. “SHIT!” I screeched before barely scrambling out of the way. I saw the car fly past me and into a nearby tree. I sat there processing what almost happened to me until it finally clicked that the person in the car needs help. Scrambling back onto my feet and yank my phone out of my pocket and try to call 911 but no one answered. I tried calling multiple times to no avail. Quickly making up my mind I run to the now smoking car in an attempt to pull the person out if they're still alive, though at heart I knew that they had likely died on impact. When I got to the car I knew that I was right the man was half was out of the windshield and despite it being blurred by the thick black smoke I could swear that he was bisected at the waist. Stumbling back in horror I tried to call the emergency services again, this time someone picked up. “911 what's your emergency?” A young man answered with a slight waver in his voice. “I need you to send some paramedics down to 43975 Spring Ave. Someone crashed into a tree!” I yelled out somewhat hysterically, as my panic slowly crept up on me the seriousness of the situation dawning on me. “Another one?” the operator asked, a hint of confusion and despair creeping into his already shaking voice. “What do you mean another one?” I questioned as panic slowly gripped my already fraying mind. “We’ve had a number of calls about various car crashes, people dying in the middle of the sidewalks, stores, and so on.” “What's going on?” “I don't know, but whatever is going on it isn't any good.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Over the months more and more people were found dead, the death toll was in the billions and it was still increasing. Each day people would die and many others would deteriorate, governments from all over the world joined hands and attempted to work on a cure, They failed. They couldn't find the cause of the sickness. Eventually it became to much and they collapsed. All that was left after two years was just a handful of people, myself being one of them, we were not spared either. We grew weaken and weaker as the days ticked on a few of us died until eventually only I was left, dying on my cot. With my final second ticking near I fumbled for my phone, bringing up a picture of my family a lone tear streaked across my pale face. I wished I could’ve done more however, i knew that it was pointless as I couldn't have done anything. And with that final thought in my mind, I breathed my last and died. Or so I thought. End of prologue > Transendence: The Auction > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- I had died or at least I thought I had. After I “died’ I found myself in a void floating, with my body from before I had gained any of my scars. Floating there I wondered where I was, it felt like eternity but eventually the oppressive darkness gave way to light and soon after, noise much like that you'd hear in the hustle and bustle of a large city came to my ears all the voices drowning eachother out in a cacophony of noise. As my sight adjusted I found myself on a stage in full view of a bunch of “beings' ', I say that because most of them definitely did not look human. I stood there for not even five seconds when a very tall anglo man with two faces began to speak to the other beings “Welcome Gods and Goddesses to our final soul of the night, here we have the final survivor of the human race, who might I add survived two entire years on the planet's surface.” the two faced man announced. This was quickly followed by what I assumed was hushed murmuring. “Now then,” He continued “Let's start the bidding at 3 million Karma!” A being of red swirling sand and fire lifted something up. “We have 3.5 million from the God Set, anymore takers?” The salesman said. Another being that I could only describe as a desecrated corpse lifted something up. “And we have another bid for 4 million from Vecna! Anymore takers?” This went on for sometime eventually coming down to three beings. The first one was a young women wearing some weird dress with hair that seemed to glow with a gentle light her eyes a kind orange yellow that seemed to flicker like a campfire, the other was a beautiful women who had an assortment of large cats at her side liquid gold seemed to flow from her eyes as she would wipe the tears from her eyes every so often, and lastly there was a bird headed man in a stained lab coat various symbols seemed to float around him as he was vigorously scribbling things down on something. “And the final bid of 50.00001 million Karma goes to Freya!” the two headed man declared pointing at the women with a bunch of cats. As the now named Freya starts walking towards the stage, I see from the corner of my eye someone lift something else causing everyone present to stop and look at him, mouths agape and eyes the size of platters. “W- we have an unprecedented offer” the two headed man states nervously, “It seems that one of our patrons is putting up a new bid with an item worth two hundred fifty million Karma, that item being one of his hidden spells. Would anyone else like to put up a higher bid?” I didn't wait even a second before the bird man came up to the stage and grabbed my arm, looking around the room I saw the bird man smile when I heard something pop at my vision shift from the stage to some room I stood there dazed about what had just happened, and looking around at the room I expected it to be some weird grotesque place. Instead it was a normal, slightly messy, living room with a Tv, a couch, and a coffee table. The bird man sat on the couch and motioned for me to sit with him. “Who are you?” I asked a hint of my nervousness creeping into my voice. The bird man smiled at me before changing in front of my eyes, his bird head was replaced with that of the aged face of a tanned middle aged man wearing some sort of eye liner, his lab coat was replaced by a t-shirt with a stylized quill and ink pot on it as well as a pair of black sweatpants. “To answer your question, young one I was known as Thoth by your people.” he answered me in a kindly tone. My eyes widened slightly at his answer, “Thoth?” I asked. He nods. “The Egyptian god of knowledge?” “Indeed” he responds “Though I’m not only the god of knowledge, however that is irrelevant as of right now as I need to prepare you.” “Prepare me for what?” I questioned. “A death game of sorts, I believe the most appropriate term for your generation is a Battle Royal?” He briefly explained. My eyes widened in horror as my jaw hit the floor. “You want me to fight in a Battle Royal?” “Well I’m not going to send you in there unprepared, that would be a waste,” He stated matter of factly. “A waste of what?” “Potential of course after all I did pay a hefty amount for you.” “I don't understand.” He seemed to ponder this for a small while then started explaining it to me. “All beings have different strengths in the astral body or a soul as most call it, soul strength dictates many aspects of a creature's body and mind, humans such as Albert Einstein, Nikola Tesla, and Adolf Hitler are just a few examples of particularly strong souls. Yours however is quite possibly the strongest one to date.” “How would you know that?” I asked curiously. “Because you survived the mana injection for two years.” “Mana injection?” He nodded, “The various gods, including myself, injected a fraction of our power into your world so that we could find suitable candidates to fight for us.” “You caused this?” I asked as my rage began to build “Well not me specifically but I suppose that I did have a helping hand in a sense.” I lunged at him, not the smartest move but I was angry no, more than angry. However, I hit what felt like a soft cushion before falling back onto the couch. “I suggest that you don't do that, you might accidentally hurt yourself,” He told me to no avail as I kept trying to attack him, eventually resorting to throwing the various things in the room. All of it bounced off of the shield he had around him. Eventually I my rage dimmed and I fell onto the floor, crying. I cried until my eyes were puffy, I screamed until my throat was raw, and then I sat there, dejected, broken. I sat there for what seemed like hours until Thoth came up next to me and started speaking. “I apologize about what happened to your planet, but you must move on if you wish to survive,” Thoth consoled me. “Don’t talk like you know what im going through,” I spat back at Thoth with a much venom as I could manage. I saw his face fall as he continued looking at me, “I know i have no right to tell you to move on, nor do i know the full extent of your sorrow.” He paused briefly, “However I do want you to win, so I ask that you tolerate me for a time so i can teach you the necessary skills to live.” I processed this for a while before making up my mind, “Fine, but I want you to give me every opportunity to get stronger.” He flashed me a smile, “Of course, After all I want you to win as well.” End of Chapter 1 > Transcendence: The System > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thoth had been explaining the rules of the Battle royal to me, they were fairly standard. Last one alive won and so on. However, the “System" was new to me. “So, the system is like an RPG?” I asked again. “Kinda, you see right now you’re in your Astral form, now normally we gods attach the system to our avatar as soon as possible as a soul is delicate when it lacks a physical body. The System rebuilds a body most suited for the user allowing the soul to flourish. However, since your soul is powerful enough to remain clear and cohesive, I've abstained from doing so.” He paused briefly to let me try and wrap my head around it again. “Ok I think I understand but, will it hurt?” I questioned. “I don't know,” he told me. “Alright lay it on me” I say, bracing myself for any pain. I felt a hand being placed upon my shoulder before a burst of brief pain racked throughout my body quickly followed by a cold feeling that spread throughout my body. Opening my eyes, I see what looked like some sort of digital screen in front of me, kind of like one you'd see in vr. “So, this is the system you told me about?” I asked curiously. “Yes, it was fashioned after those video games you humans love so much,” He replied. I looked at the top of the screen, “Character creation?” “Yes, your old body would be unable to withstand the amount of power you'll be receiving, so a new body infused with divine power is created via the system,” He explained briefly. Scrolling through the “character” options I see various things besides humans such as dragons, demons, lycanthropes, and so on. “So, what are you going to choose?” Thoth asked me. “Probably just a human,” I replied. “Really?” “It would be weird to try and learn how to use wings or how to run with a vastly different leg structure,” “That's fair.” My eyes look over the various options, but nothing truly stands out to me, going back to the human option I pick. This leads me to a customization screen where I can choose my skin tone as well as my eye and hair color. For my skin tone I just went with tanned, for my eye color I chose my original eye color that being gray, and finally for my hair I chose dirty blonde. After I clicked confirm, I was prompted to put in my name. “Shouldn't the system already know my name?” I asked. “Don't be silly,” Thoth said, “It isn't alive.” Shrugging, I put down my name, Alexander Hamilton Kane. Once I clicked confirm, again, a pale gray glow enveloped me and a couple of notifications clouded my vision. System Message: The user has chosen their race as “Human” the following buff(s) shall take effect. Since the beginning humans have always strived to innovate and adapt Karma gain permanently increased by 25% You have an additional resistance to fluctuating temperatures. When creating something new the chance of success is doubled System Message: The user has discovered a hidden buff. The Greeks believed that those with gray eyes were blessed by Athena, Goddess of wisdom [list*] Karma gain permanently increased by 25% System Message: The user's patron has been registered as Thoth the following buffs shall take effect Thoth, also known as Djehuty, was worshiped as the god of knowledge, writing, and every so often the god of the moon or magic Karma gained permanently increased by 50% User will automatically know the advanced encryption/decryption skill Users innate magic potential shall be increased by one level User has an increased potential for time magic System Message: Users soul strength has been measured at mid-high transcendent rank, the following shall be made available: 3 transcendent innate skill slots will be given. The skill “astral form” will automatically be given. A skill store coupon will be given System Message: The user's patron has been detected as Thoth the innate skill “Knowledge of the ages” is available to be chosen. “Are you finished?” Thoth asked. “I think so.” i replied as I continued looking at my interface. “Good, then let's move onto skills, oh and what kind of skill slots did you get?” “Three Transcendent innate skill slots,” I replied. Thoth's eyes widened, “Three?” “Yep” “That's unheard of.” “Well, that's what it said.” I told him. He slowly nodded, “Well anyways in the interface there should be a tab that says “Store” click it and purchase the skills.” “What do I buy them with?” I questioned. “I'll be paying for the skills so don't worry about it.” “Alright then.” Carefully looking through the variety of skills up for grabs I recall that I had gained a coupon for the store, going back to my inventory I clicked on the coupon. Skill store coupon: A rare item given to the last one to perish on their planet, it grants the owner the authority to purchase one skill from any category for free. Going back to the skills I select the transcendent category, and carefully scroll through the numerous skills, some of them such as time magic and absolute luck catch my eye. However, I do eventually find the three transcendent skills that I want. System Message: The innate skill “Knowledge of the Ages” has been selected and applied to a transcendent skill slot, the following will be applied. Transcendent effect: Karma gain permanently increased by 300% Legend effect: when a skill reaches max level it will have a higher chance of evolving into a skill of a higher form. Hero effect: The chance to gain “enlightenment” is increased when training. Soldier effect: language comprehension skill (lvl max) added. Civilian effect: you gain a photographic memory as well as heightened mental functions. System Message: The innate skill “Creation” has been purchased and applied to a transcendent slot; The following will be applied. Transcendent effect: Ultimate crafting knowledge unlocked. Legend effect: Cutting edge crafting knowledge unlocked. Hero effect: High end crafting knowledge unlocked. Soldier effect: advanced crafting knowledge unlocked. Civilian effect: basic crafting knowledge unlocked System Message: The innate skill “innate combat potential” has been purchased and applied to a transcendent slot, The following will be applied.  Transcendent effect: gene limiter removed. Legend effect: all combat related skills are 50% easier to obtain. Hero effect: all weapons gain a unique effect when used. Soldier effect: the stats of all weapons are increased by 50% when used by the user. Civilian effect: combat awareness, and flexibility increased I felt my senses expand; every little detail seemed to pop out at me. A piercing headache assaulted my mind as I felt my perception change, my mind quickly reorganizing itself as every memory seemed to slot into place much like books on a shelf and with just a thought, I could remember anything with nearly perfect accuracy. My headache eventually subsided and after briefly looking around I spotted Thoth. “How long until I'm put into the Battle Royal?” I questioned. “A week,” Thoth replied. “Teach me how to use my skills effectively then.” “With pleasure.” End of Chapter 2 > Transcendence: The First Mission Part One > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- During my week with Thoth, he taught me as much magic as he could, mainly survival spells such as, create/destroy water, create fire, basic transfiguration, and the magic missile spell. Thoth also bought me all of the crafting knowledge up to High-end and by the time the week was over I had a pretty good handle on the stuff he taught me. Now was the time for the first quest to start, with a wave of goodbye to Thoth I was transported to an open field with grass that reached my chest, in the distance I could see a thicket of tall trees. I slowly made my way to the trees making sure to watch each step I took, after all I didn't know if there were any snakes or traps. Thankfully I didn't encounter anything on my way, and after making camp I opened up my interface and read the quests description. System Message: The quest “Prove Thyself” has been activated. Quest Objective(s): Survive 28 days (time remaining 27h 40m 37s) Completion reward: end of the tutorial Failure penalty: Death Bonus Mission (repeatable): Kill the field boss(s) Bonus reward(s): ??? ‘Seems simple enough,’ I thought to myself while I set up camp. I lit a small fire pit and built a sturdy lean-to. I also set up a couple of snare traps in the hopes of a small game, but I didn't count on it. With the last couple hours of daylight, I gathered whatever I thought was useful, such as some fibrous plants, a couple of rocks I found, a decently long stick, and a good chunk of flint from a nearby stream. Using my magic I get rid of the moisture in the fibers and fashioned a decent twine, using a flattish rock I knapped some of the flint into a spear head, afterwards I used the pieces that came off to debark and straighten the wood as best as I can, I also condensed my create flame spell to carefully burn out a slit for the spear head, finally I affixed the spear head to the shaft with the twine I made as well as  some tree sap I had gathered nearby. I looked over my creation and despite not having any modern tools I think I did quite well with what I had. System Message: The Hero grade item “Barbarian spear” has been created Barbarian Spear stats: Attack: 20 Speed: 30 Special effect(s): Rage: once a day the user can go into a rage quadrupling all physical abilities for 30 seconds (requires mana to activate) Piercing: weapon ignores 25% of the opponents armor Bleed: each strike has a 20% chance to cause the target to gain the bleed effect ‘Seems pretty good,’ I thought to myself briefly. Putting it next to the lit fire I gradually fell asleep as the sun set. That was my first mistake. Howling, that's all I heard when I woke up. Fortunately, the fire was still going strong, unfortunately the fire destroyed any night vision I might’ve had. I closed my eyes and focused solely on my hearing, I could hear the gentle chirps of crickets, the various field mice scurrying through the underbrush, but below all of that there was the sound of something approaching from behind, barely discernible from the rest of the natural sounds in the forest, I slowly picked up my spear and waited for it to get closer, it stopped after getting to the edge of the firelight and waited. It felt like forever, but I could hear its muscles creak as they tensed and it eventually leapt into the air, whirling around. I tried to stab it, only to watch it disappear for a second and reappear farther away. ‘Short range teleportation?’ I thought to myself. Looking over the beast I now saw that it was some sort of large black cat, much like a puma, except it had two tails. I widened my stance and prepared for it to lunge at me and watched it as it circled me. I racked my brain for anything that could help me as I knew that this beast would easily overpower me in physical combat. ‘create/destroy water!’ I thought, ‘Blood is composed of a majority of water meaning if i destroy the blood in its brain it'll suffer near immediate death.’ With this thought in my mind, I started preparing the spell in the back of my mind while I focused on the teleporting cat. We stood there staring at each other for a little before it disappeared again, swinging my spear around like a bat, I heard a crack and what I assumed was the cat scampered away into the bushes. I stayed alert to make sure that it didn't feign fear. I slowly relaxed after a while, putting some more wood on the fire. I cast the alarm spell so that I wouldn't be caught off guard again.  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A couple hours later I woke up, the sun golden had just risen over the mountains in the distance shining light over the fields and trees, and though it felt warm upon my skin I still felt cold deep within my bones. I checked my traps to see if I had trapped any small game, to my delight I had captured a small rabbit. I hesitated, I loved animals, but I had to survive. Putting the small blade up to it neck and closed my eyes as I quickly slit its throat, I felt it try and struggle to get out of my hands but, I only tightened my grip as I felt its movements slow down and eventually all I felt was twitching, skinning it carefully I took any meat i could easily cut off and cooked it after rekindling the fire, and after drying the hide I poked some holes on the edges and slid some twine in them making a small bag. I didn't have the capacity to make it into a void pouch, but some additional storage is better than none. I put up my camp and started exploring my surroundings more thoroughly.  I did find a few more useful plants and what could possibly be the tracks of the teleporting cat. Though I did also find some tracks of a hooved animal, however I don't trust that it's a moose or some other herbivore considering the teleporting cat, but I didn't have much of a choice as I needed armor if I wanted to face any of the bosses or at the very least get rid of the cat so I could (hopefully) sleep peacefully.  It had been a couple of hours since I started following the tracks and I had confirmed one of two things. It was either injured as I had seen a thin trail of dried blood or it had killed something and was carrying it in its mouth, and that it was most likely walking on two not four hooves. It wasn't very long until I was hit with the smell of decay, a pungent smell that threatened to overwhelm my senses, I felt bile rise in my throat, the smell threatening to overtake me. ‘Definitely not a moose’ I thought to myself as I covered my nose in an attempt to block out the smell. I heard something snap from my left. As I slowly turned towards the sound, I saw one of the most horrific creatures I had ever laid my eyes on, it had a lanky emancipated body, long claws extended from its hands, and instead of a head there sat a large deer skull with two glowing sickly green orbs, where its eyes would have sat. We stared at each other for an instant before both of us moved, it lunged towards me, its claws extended, I lunged into its guard and stabbed at its chest. I barely scratched it, I tried to jump back but its claws scored deeply across my chest. The force flinging me into a nearby tree. *crack* I heard it before I felt it but I knew something was broken. I screamed in agony, as I felt myself start to slip, when a single thought wormed into my head. ‘THE SPEARS EFFECT!’ The thought struck me like a lightning bolt, unfortunately the spear was a ways away and that thing was approaching me slowly. I called up whatever little bit of strength that was left within me and started crawling towards the spear, I watched that thing pause for a second before it continued to stalk me. I was sure it thought I was trying to flee but I would have the last laugh, hopefully. I eventually made it to my spear with the beast nearly on top of me. ‘Rage,’ I thought, activating the skill, I felt strength surge throughout my body and the pain within my back diminished greatly. If I focused on it, I could feel a twinge of pain, but that didn't matter right now. I charged the monster with my spear, it attempted to swat me away once again as one would do to a pesky fly, however I stood my ground and while it was painful, I kept going and started desperately stabbing it as many times as I could in the chest. After about 20 seconds of me repeatedly stabbing it in the chest, it finally collapsed into a heap. Using my last few seconds of strength, I mangled its arms and legs just in case it was playing dead. I collapsed in a heap as I felt the buff's effect end and the agony in my bones made itself known. It took hours to mend them, constant cycling between using the various healing spells and waiting each agonizing hour as my mana regenerated. I had gotten a notification about something, but my focus was on fixing myself. After hours of mending them little by little I was eventually able to stand with little to no difficulty, so using my magic I started the slow trek back to camp with the dead monster in tow. > Transcendence: The First Mission Part Two > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- I trudged back to camp with the beast in tow, the sun had set long ago with only a small magic flame to light my way, the cherry red flames flickering in its entrancing, yet chaotic dance as the shadows lapped at the edges as I let its light guide my steps back home. After several more hours I finally made it back to camp with the beast in tow, and after scrounging up some wood to start another fire I opened up the interface. Defeat field boss(es) (repeatable): E rank boss “Windigo” killed Reward(s): Book of Bifrost magic, lesser shard of gluttony (x3), and 8000 karma will be given to the player shortly. (Karma gained has been adjusted due to current buffs) Achievement(s): Monster Mash: You are the first to hunt a boss, you have been gifted 20000 Karma (Karma gained has been adjusted due to current buffs) Solo leveling: You have fought and defeated a boss one grade higher than you by yourself the active skills “limit break” and “final stand” have been gained E: you are the first to hunt an E grade boss, you have been gifted 20000 karma (Karma gained has been adjusted due to current buffs) System Alert: You have obtained at least 1000 karma, would you like to unlock the “stats” panel? ‘Stats?’ I questioned to myself before clicking yes, ‘If it's anything like video games this is about to become fun.’ The user has unlocked the stat panel Hidden achievement “stat man” found Stat man: you are the first to unlock the stat panel you have earned 4000 Karma (Karma gained has been adjusted due to current buffs) Stat Panel Name: Alexander H. Kane Species: human Class: N/A Subclass:N/A HP: 200 Mana: 400 Str: 15 (+) Dex: 15 (+) Con: 20 (+) Int: 40 (+) Wis: 20 (+) Cha: 20 (+) Lck: 40 (+) Active Skill(s): Limit Break lvl 1 (+) You have overcome the limits of your frail body and can do so again, temporarily. Effect: all stats are quadrupled for 30 seconds Cooldown: (2 days) Astral form lvl 1 (+) The monks of old believed that one could untether their soul from their body and achieve enlightenment, they were right to an extent Effect: Through meditation you are able to temporarily exit you physical body, during this time your body become vulnerable, and you risk attracting unwanted entities however, you also increase your chances of reaching enlightenment Fire magic lvl 2 (+) Fire is both a giver of life as well as the taker of it use it wisely lest you burn yourself You are able to use novice fire magic Water magic lvl 2 (+) Water is the lifeblood of all things without it nothing exists You are able to use novice water magic Earth magic lvl 2 (+) Tough as steel, but malleable like gold You are able to use novice earth magic Wind magic lvl 2 (+) Strike as swift as the wind, and as heavily as a hurricane You are able to use novice wind magic Passive skill(s): Last Stand lvl 1 (+) You are the first to stand and the last to fall, as you weather adversity. Effect: When you are below 50% health your armor is increased by 50% when below 15% health your armor is increased by 100% Advanced encryption lvl 1 (+) Ignorance is bliss, or in this case sorrow Effect: You are able to encrypt documents you write with an advanced cipher.  (Encrypting 1 sentence takes 1 minute the higher the skills level the faster it is, familiarity with the chosen cipher also affects speed of encryption) Advanced decryption lvl 1 (+) Knowledge is power Effect: You are able to decrypt advanced ciphers (decrypting 1 sentence takes 1 minute, the high the skills level the less time it will take, familiarity with the cipher you are trying to crack also affect how long it takes) Language comprehension lvl max Effective communication is the foundation of trust You are able to quickly learn, understand, and speak any language after studying or listening to it for a little while Spearmanship lvl 1 (+) Primitive pointy technology Effect: 10% damage increase when using a spear Craftsmanship lvl 5 (+) From the dawn of time humanity has always strived to improve. Effects: You are able to make moderately complex tools, weapons, and armors Innate Skill(s) Knowledge of the Ages lvl max Transcendent effect: Karma gain permanently increased by 300% Legend effect: when a skill reaches max level it will have a higher chance of evolving into a skill of a higher form Hero effect: The chance to gain “enlightenment” is increased when training Soldier effect: language comprehension skill (lvl max) added Civilian effect: you gain a photographic memory as well as heightened mental functions Creation lvl max Transcendent effect: Ultimate crafting knowledge unlocked Legend effect: Cutting edge crafting knowledge unlocked Hero effect: High end crafting knowledge unlocked Soldier effect: advanced crafting knowledge unlocked Civilian effect: basic crafting knowledge unlocked Innate combat potential lvl max Transcendent effect: gene limiter removed Legend effect: all combat related skills are 50% easier to obtain Hero effect: all weapons gain a unique effect when used Soldier effect: the stats of all weapons are increased by 50% when used by the user Civilian effect: combat awareness, and flexibility increased ‘So that's all of my stats and skills?’ I questioned, ‘but what's with all the plus’s? I don't see an exp bar of any sort.’  I clicked on the plus next to the skill Novice spearmanship and saw a little prompt pop up Would you like to level up the skill “Spearmanship” to level 2? This will cost 10000 Karma. Yes—————— No ‘So that's how you level up stuff? By spending Karma? Seems a bit pay to win but alright.’  After thinking about it for a bit I clicked yes, my available Karma instantly shot down to 41000 and my skill showed that it was now level two with a 20% increase to damage when wielding a spear. I still had 41000 Karma so after a bit more thought I put 40000 karma into my craftsmanship skill bringing it up to level 9 leaving myself with 1000 Karma. With nothing else to buy I started dissecting the Wendigo as best as I could, a lot of its hide was damaged but there was enough to make a cloak and some gloves, the head could be used as a mask after being cleaned, and the bones and tendons could be used to upgrade my spear and maybe make a bow with some arrows. While I was still dissecting the Wendigo, an ice blue book that shined like a rainbow, and three small purple beads. When I picked up the book another prompt came up asking me if I wanted to learn Bifrost magic. I, of course, clicked yes and felt a wave of knowledge crash into my mind as I gradually soaked it up like a sponge. After a little while It was all neatly organized in my mind and ready to be practiced with. Next, I picked up the small purple beads and looked at them carefully, the system said that they were lesser shards of gluttony though their effect was unknown. This made them potentially dangerous however the name struck a chord with me. If there are gods there are also demons and from my knowledge of anime, and the admittance that the gods fashioned the system after RPG’s so it's not too far-fetched to think that I would gain some sort of ability. I spent a while thinking about it weighing the pros and cons. Eventually, I decided to take the risk, I cautiously picked up and examined the pills one last time before swallowing them all at once, not the smartest move but I thought it would improve my chance of getting an ability. A cold feeling spread throughout my body, before it exploded into pain, I was screaming before the pain even registered my bones cracked and tore through my skin while my muscles spasmed and contracted all at once, and I felt something warm leak out of my skin, despite all this I felt as though I was freezing. I briefly considered jumping into the fire because i was so cold, but I held on and waited for what seemed like eternity. I don't know when the cold stopped but I started to feel the heat of the fire again as the pain in my body subsided. Quickly looking over myself I found that my body did not go through any immediate physical change. However, it was a different story once I opened the interface. System alert! The user has consumed a lesser shard of gluttony the following shall take effect You have permanently gained 2 constitution and 1 strength System alert! The user has consumed a lesser shard of gluttony the following shall take effect You have permanently gained 2 dexterity and 1 intelligence System alert! The user has consumed a lesser shard of gluttony the following shall take effect You have permanently gained 2 intelligence and 1 wisdom System alert! A random mutation related to gluttony shall be gained Calculating… The skill “Hunger” has been gained Hunger lvl 1 Feeling peckish? When eating a creature that you have killed you have a 5% chance of gaining an increase in a  random stat proportionate to 10% of the stat they had rounded down (minimum of 1) and a 1% chance of gaining a random skill they had, the skills level proportionate to 10% of the skills level rounded down (minimum of 1) A hidden achievement has been found! Hellboy: you are the first to gain a sin related skill! All sin related skills will receive a permeate 100% boost in their effects! Hellish: you have received your first sin skill; you will receive one sin fragment of the appropriate type ‘Well that's pretty cool’ I thought to myself, I didn't know what the sin fragment did, but I bet that it would be useful later on. The thought of the chance to gain skills and stat points from eating the stuff I kill was also pretty cool. I quickly looked over to the butchered wendigos corpse with only one thought. How do I cook it? > Transcendence: The First Mission Part Three > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- I don't know what I expected when I tasted the wendigos flesh, but I didn't expect it to be delicious, like fresh veal cooked and seasoned to perfection. maybe it tasted so good because it almost killed me? I don’t know but after I devoured all of the flesh and materials too damaged to use in crafting. A notification alerted me that my strength had increased by 10 bringing it up to 25. However, I unfortunately did not gain a skill though I did expect that I wouldn’t consider it was a 2 percent chance. What did surprise me though was the next notification that I got System Alert! The user has devoured a lesser demon of gluttony the skill “Hunger” will level up by one ‘Now that’s interesting’ I thought to myself. I pushed that thought out of my mind however, as I was unlikely to encounter any more gluttony demons. So instead of thinking about that I prepped all of the materials for crafting, I tanned the hide, and shaped the bones. I took out my barbarian spear and slowly started to replace the materials in it, the handle was replaced with a shaped femur and the blade was replaced with a serrated blade made of the windigos claws, I made a basic cloak and some gloves from the windigos hide, and after cleaning and sanitizing the skull I fashioned it into a helmet, Finally Using the rest of the materials I fashioned a crude bow with a dozen arrows. System Alert! The following legend and heroic item(s) have been crafted: Wendigos claw (Legend grade) Attack: 35 Speed: 45 Special effect(s): Decaying strike: when an opponent is struck with this weapon a stack of decay will be applied to them for a maximum of 5 stacks, lasting for five seconds however the time will reset on each successful strike. Each stack causes -15% regen, -10% speed, and -5% armor Piercing: hits ignore 25% armor Bleeding: each strike has a 30% chance to cause the bleed effect Causes the holder to suffer from the decay status when held Winters hunger (Heroic grade) Physical armor: 50 Magic resistance: 75 Special effect(s): Winter's wrath: ice magic cost 25% less mana and does 30% more damage Hunters mark: you are able to mark you prey and can sense their general location so long as they are within a mile of you Night sight: you are able to see perfectly in complete darkness Winters bane: you take 40% more damage from fire (does not stack) Cloak of Frost (Heroic grade) Physical armor: 20 Magic resistance: 40 Special effect(s): Predator's grace: your movements are nigh-silent Winter's embrace: you are immune to the freezing status effect Winters bane: you take 40% more damage from fire (does not stack) Winters hand (heroic grade) Grave’s touch: you are immune to the decay status effect Cold blooded: you cannot be seen with heat based detection Winters bane: you take 40% more damage from fire (does not stack) Wendigos howl (heroic grade) Icicle shot: every shot will apply one stack of the freeze effect for a maximum of 5 stacks, lasting 45 seconds, each new stack resets the time: freezing deals 1 health of damage per second Heavy hitter: weapon does 25% more damage to armored targets Freezing touch: the user suffers from the freezing status effect Frost shot(s) x12 (heroic grade) Damage: 50 Special effects: Durable: Arrows are 50% less likely to break when being  fired and hitting a target Cold shot: applies one stack of the freezing effect for a maximum of 5 stacks, lasting 45 seconds, each new stack resets the time: freezing deals 1 health of damage per second Icy aura: damages any non ice based weapon it is fired from My eyes widened ever so slightly at the sight of their stats, quickly putting them on I felt an immediate change. My footsteps were lighter, and my arms felt stronger. I could see everything as well, as the once lengthy and dark shadows of the forest all but disappeared. I was slowly getting my bearings again when another notification popped up, this one notifying me that I unlocked the set bonus predator which allowed me to eat raw meat with no drawbacks.  It was off putting to say the least, but considering I did eat the wendigos flesh I wasn't completely put off by the idea of eating raw meat. I slowly gathered everything I needed and went hunting. ~~~~~~~~~~Sometime later~~~~~~~~~~ It was terrifyingly easy to hunt normal animals, deer, rabbits, raccoons all of them died easily and all of my previous apprehension toward killing them quickly disappeared as a strange bloodlust overtook me as I continued to devour their corpses for the small chance to get a stat or even a skill. I don't know when I came to but when I did I was surrounded by the gore of various animals mauled and mutilated beyond recognition, blood covered my form. “What happened?” I asked aloud in confusion. I sat there horrified for a good while, until I noticed the notifications on the interface. System alert! The user has succumbed to the influence of the windigo armor! The user will lose all higher thought and go on a rampage for x days! Rewards for killing any bosses during rampage will be withheld Gluttony related skills will have double the chance of triggering their effects System alert! The user has been on a rampage for 5 days,  the user has begun to meld with the wendigos spirit the following shall take effect: All stats and effects of windigo related items shall increase by 50% from base stats The level of the skill “hunger has increased by 2 System alert! The user has been on a rampage for 10 days,  the user has further melded with the wendigos spirit the following shall take effect: All stats and effects of windigo related items shall increase by 50% from base stats The level of the skill “hunger has increased by 2 System alert! The user has killed the E rank boss “Lesser Troll King” The reward(s) Book of helms and hearts, Lesser Troll Kings tunic, and 8000 karma shall be gifted at the end of the rampage System alert! The user has devoured the The lesser troll king The user has gained 5 wisdom The user has gained the level 2 skill “rapid regeneration” The user has devoured a gluttonous creature the level of the skill “hunger” shall increase by 1 System alert!  The user has broken free of the wendigos influence after 15 days, further melding shall halt I started panicking the more I read through the notifications. How the hell did I go on a rampage, and what the hell does melding mean? I quickly started to look over my body for any changes, my skin on my arms had become stone gray only stopping a little bit after my shoulder blades. My body had also noticeably thinned, and when I tried to take off my gloves it felt like I was trying to tear off my skin. I calmed down slightly when my cloak and helmet came off easily. I sat down and started to take some more deep breaths, after a while I reopened the interface and navigated over to stats. Stat panel Name: Alexander H. Kane Species: Human wendigo hybrid (Majority human) Class: N/A Subclass: N/A HP: 220 Mana 420 Str 25 (+) Dex 18 (+) Con 22 (+) Int 42 (+) Wis 25 (+) Cha 20 (+) Lck 40 (+) Active Skill(s): Limit Break lvl 1 (+) You have overcome the limits of your frail body and can do so again, temporarily. Effect: all stats are quadrupled for 30 seconds Cooldown: (2 days) Astral form lvl 1 The monks of old believed that one could untether their soul from their body and achieve enlightenment, they were right to an extent Effect: Through meditation you are able to temporarily exit you physical body, during this time your body become vulnerable, and you risk attracting unwanted entities however, you also increase your chances of reaching enlightenment Fire magic lvl 2 Fire is both a giver of life as well as the taker of it use it wisely lest you burn yourself You are able to use novice fire magic Water magic lvl 2 Water is the lifeblood of all things without it nothing exists You are able to use novice water magic Bifrost magic lvl 1 The power of bifrost is said to bring eternal winter You are able to use novice bifrost magic Earth magic lvl 2 Tough as steel, but malleable like gold You are able to use novice earth magic Wind magic lvl 2 Strike as swift as the wind, and as heavily as a hurricane You are able to use novice wind magic Passive skill(s): Hunger lvl 7 Feeling peckish? When eating a creature that you have killed you have a 22% chance of gaining an increase in a  random stat proportionate to 20% of the stat they had rounded down (minimum of 1) and a 8% chance of gaining a random skill they had, the skills level proportionate to 10% of the skills level rounded down (minimum of 2) Last Stand lvl 1 You are the first to stand and the last to fall, as you weather adversity. Effect: When you are below 50% health your armor is increased by 50% when below 15% health your armor is increased by 100% Advanced encryption lvl 1 Ignorance is bliss, or in this case sorrow Effect: You are able to encrypt documents you write with an advanced cipher.  (Encrypting 1 sentence takes 1 minute the higher the skills level the faster it is, familiarity with the chosen cipher also affects speed of encryption) Advanced decryption lvl 1 Knowledge is power Effect: You are able to decrypt advanced ciphers (decrypting 1 sentence takes 1 minute, the high the skills level the less time it will take, familiarity with the cipher you are trying to crack also affect how long it takes) Language comprehension lvl max Effective communication is the foundation of trust You are able to quickly learn, understand, and speak any language after studying or listening to it for a little while Spearmanship lvl 2 Primitive pointy technology Effect: 12% damage increase when using a spear Craftsmanship lvl 9 From the dawn of time humanity has always strived to improve. Effects: You are able to make moderately complex tools, weapons, and armors Innate Skill(s) Knowledge of the Ages lvl max Transcendent effect: Karma gain permanently increased by 300% Legend effect: when a skill reaches max level it will have a higher chance of evolving into a skill of a higher form Hero effect: The chance to gain “enlightenment” is increased when training Soldier effect: language comprehension skill (lvl max) added Civilian effect: you gain a photographic memory as well as heightened mental functions Creation lvl max Transcendent effect: Ultimate crafting knowledge unlocked Legend effect: Cutting edge crafting knowledge unlocked Hero effect: High end crafting knowledge unlocked Soldier effect: advanced crafting knowledge unlocked Civilian effect: basic crafting knowledge unlocked Innate combat potential lvl max Transcendent effect: gene limiter removed Legend effect: all combat related skills are 50% easier to obtain Hero effect: all weapons gain a unique effect when used Soldier effect: the stats of all weapons are increased by 50% when used by the user Civilian effect: combat awareness, and flexibility increased I stared at my various skills and decided to dumb the rest of my karma points into intelligence, increasing it to over 50, hopefully that would help me against that hidden check. There were no more notifications after that so I closed the interface and gingerly put my armor back on. As soon as I did I was bombarded by a splitting headache however it passed just as suddenly as it came. I then quickly made my way outside the forest, the interface said that I had about 6 days left and I planned to make the most of it. I traversed throughout the various terrains of the tutorial area, encountering many beasts of varying strengths, I devoured each and every one I encountered earning me a plethora of stats, and even a couple of skills here and there. My first stop was the mountain where I encountered the Yeti with its great strength and resistance to ice damage, I had a difficult time restricting it, however with time and patience I was able to fell the beast and devour its flesh, unfortunately i did not gain any stats or skills though its loot was more than worth it. Afterwards I made my way to the peak of the mountain where I encountered a dragon boss. This fight was so much more difficult than the Yeti solely because it could fly, using the spell create/destroy water I destroyed the blood within the dragon's head instantaneously killing it, I don’t know why I didn't just use that spell for the yeti or even the wendigo, but I digress. I found out when I killed it, I found out that it wasn't a dragon, just a Wyrm. And after devouring it I gained 20 Dex and the skill fire resistance at level 2 so that was nice. Finally, there was the ocean boss, and I’ll tell you now that it was a walk in the park just freezing the water in it a boom! I did have to drag it out of the water to eat it but that was more tedious than hard, and once again I didn't gain neither stats or skills, but I did get an achievement so that's something. System Alert! The user has achieved the impossible! The user has defeated all of the bosses of the tutorial area! A total of 100000 karma will be rewarded! (Adjusted due to current buffs) The user has single handedly defeated five bosses of a higher grade than them the achievement “The bigger they are” and the unique class “Monster Hunter” has been unlocked Achievement(s) The Bigger They Are Grants one hero grade innate skill slot and unlocks the ability to purchase the lion heart innate skill “Amazing,” I whispered to myself, I thought that you couldn't get anymore innate talent slots, opening the store I went to the innate skills tab and looked up Lion heart Lion heart The bigger they are the easier they are to strike That was all that the description gave, my thoughts wondered what it specifically did though from the description it probably made taking down stronger monsters easierIt was 20000 karma though I could easily buy it, it was still a big investment. But after some more thought about it I decided to make the investment. Lionheart lvl 3 Transcendent effect: ??? Legend effect: ??? Heroic effect: you deal 30% more damage to enemies above your grade and your attacks ignore 10% of their armor Soldier effect: you deal 20% more damage to enemies above your grade Civilian effect: you deal 10% more damage to enemies above your grade I grinned from ear to ear at the sight of lionhearts effects, it was a huge boon and will definitely help at later levels so all in all I was happy with it. Closing the store interface I checked the time on the quest. System Message: The quest “Prove Thyself” has been activated. Quest Objective(s): Survive 28 days (time remaining 2h 28m 7s) Completion reward: end of the tutorial Failure penalty: Death Bonus Mission (completed): Kill the field boss(s) Bonus reward(s): ??? As the final hours went by, I gathered my items, and prepared myself for what is to come. Later on, I would realize that this was a turning point for everyone. For better or for worse I've yet to know. > Transcendence: We Call this a Difficulty tweak > --------------------------------------------------------------------------  “Attention Players!” A deep guttural voice boomed from above, “For those of you that have passed the tutorial congratulations, however for those of you who haven't, well…” The voice chuckled darkly. “You aren't here to hear me anyways, now then let's get you all out of that dreadful world.” As soon as the voice finished I found myself in a room with hundreds of other people. I was slightly disoriented from the sudden shift, but sobered up when the voice started speaking again "Now then since you are all settled i would like to once again congratulate you all for surviving, out of the 2.8 billion that survived the mana injection a total of 1.12 billion have survived, an amazing amount I assure you. However, let's get on with the rest of it." The voice cleared their throat, “first off none of you will be returning to earth for a good while.”  A large ruckus erupted as people were talking over each other, some of them even broke down further, perhaps realizing that this wasn't just a bad dream, however soon after there was nothing but silence, people were still trying to talk and scream but no sound came out.  “Better” The voice muttered in annoyance, “Now then before we let you loose there are two things you should know. One, you will all start on a variety of planets, some easier than others but all difficult in their own right.” The voice explained carefully, “And two you must all choose a difficulty mode, this will determine what world you will be sent to. Keep in mind that the higher the difficulty the higher the rewards you will be allowed one earth hour to discuss this with your handler.” And with that little tidbit I found myself back in Thoth's flat. “Thoth!” I yelled out. He popped out of a nearby doorway in his human form grinning ear to ear and proceeded to crush me in a massive bear hug, “I knew that you would survive Alex but to kill every single boss in the tutorial zone? Amazing!” Thoth exclaimed jovially. I just stood there quietly waiting for him to let go of me. Thankfully I didn't have to wait for too long, “Um Sorry?” He apologized sheepishly, “I was just excited, this is the first time any player killed all of the tutorial bosses.” I silently looked at him. “Come let us discuss what's next.” Thoth gestured over to the couch. Following him I sat down on the couch and watched as he sat across from me. “First off, what difficulty do you want to do?” He asked hesitantly. I didn't respond for several minutes as I considered my answer. “The hardest difficulty there is,” I said to Thoth. He nodded gravely, “I thought you would say that, so here.” He reached over and pressed his hand to my chest. A cold feeling permeated throughout my body as I felt something change within myself. “What did you do to me?” I questioned, fear gripping my ever so slightly. “I noticed that you gained a demon skill, so I went around and collected some favors from a couple acquaintances of mine and got some powerful sin fragments.” He told me. My fear slowly faded, “Is that even allowed?” I questioned. Thoth chuckled, “technically no but I guarantee that the others are doing something similar as well, and you need not worry too much about losing control to the sins as I made a deal with another god that would let you receive a skill to improve your mental strength.” “What sort of deal?” I asked. “In exchange for him giving you the unbreakable will skill you need to sign a patron contract with him.” He explained. I looked very closely into Those eyes , the look in his eyes made him look beyond tired, switching my focus to the rest of him he looked frazzled, hair out of place, shaking hands, and bags beneath his eyes. I sighed, “What would this entail?” He perked up at this, “Well you would get some of his exclusive skills and in exchange you would need to spread his stories, as well as mine of course.” I raised an eyebrow, “Spread his stories?” He nodded in a half hearted way, “He, unfortunately, did not owe me a favor like the others so I had to make a deal, I had no way to contact you to ask your opinion so I could only guess.” I sighed again, “It's alright Thoth you know that I want to become more powerful so I’m good with it.” A relieved grin flashed across his face, “I thought you would be mad.” “Wouldn't change anything even if I was,” I replied with a shrug. “That's fair,” he said. “So how am I supposed to sign a contract with him?” Thoth pulled out a piece of parchment and a pen, “Just sign this.” I took the contract and pen from Thoth and slowly read through it. There were a couple of strange clauses but nothing that would be detrimental for myself, in fact it looked too good to be true. However the last cause made me raise an eyebrow. “Thoth?” “Yes” “This last clause states that I must, and I quote get revenge upon the gods for myself and my siblings, any reason for this?” Oh, well, um… You see, originally the gods of the apocalypse wished to be the ones to bring the end to humanity as foretold, however many of the other gods voted on the outcome you are currently experiencing,” Thoth finished nervously. “Did they participate in what happened to me?” Thoth shook his head, “No they refused to participate after the other gods decided to use humans as toys.” I nodded and signed the contract, “So long as they did not participate in the mana injection I'm fine with working with them.” I finished saying as I handed the contract to Thoth. He took the contract and nodded mutely “Is something wrong Thoth?” I asked curiously. He slowly nodded, “Do you resent me?” I chuckled, “yes, I may be willing to work with you and chat with you but I do resent you,” I smiled “I resent all of the gods that caused me pain.” “I see,” He replied sadly. “So then who is this other god I had to contract with?” He paused for a second, as if considering his answer, “He is known as Narinder, one of the horsemen of death, you should get all of the new skills when you are sent to your spawn area so to speak” “Alright then, anything else?” “No.” “Bye then,” opening my interface a selection screen popped up asking me what difficulty I wanted. And after briefly second guessing myself I selected the hardest difficulty. Once I selected the difficulty I felt myself being swept away. ‘Whatever may come’ I thought to myself, ‘I’ll be ready’ I wasn't ready > Transcendence: A Whole New World > --------------------------------------------------------------------------  I found myself in the middle of nowhere, cracked brown earth laid beneath my feet, gnarled and twisted trees scattered around, with yellowed grass sparsely dotting the barren landscape. With a quick look around and a shrug I chose a direction and started making my way that way. As I slowly made my way through the desolate desert a notification popped up on my interface and after opening up, I was bombarded by alerts and notifications. System alert! The user has chosen the difficulty Very Hard difficulty The users home planet is Equus The user shall return to their home planet after cooperative mission are completed System Alert! The user has contracted with The One Who Waits The innate skill Unbreakable Will is available for purchase System Alert! The users Patron The One Who Waits has gifted the player the following The innate skill “Unbreakable Will” A legend grade innate skill slot The Legend grade weapon “Reaper's Blade” The Legend grade Book of death magic Note System Alert! The players patron Thoth has given the user the following skills Rage Indolence Jealousy Ego Avarice Desire Starvation System Alert! The skill Hunger has advanced into the skill Starvation! System Alert! The user has gained one of each sin skill, the achievement Sinner Man has been unlocked Achievement(s): Sinner man: you are the first to gain all sin related skills! All sin related skills will receive an additional permanent 100% boost in their effects! An avalanche of pain overtook my body as I felt my entire body structure shift, bones breaking and snapping into place, tendons twisting and pulling, blood and pus oozed from every pore and gash in and on my body. I forced myself to stay awake throughout the entire ordeal. Soon I felt everything within my body settle as I finally collapsed into a heap. After lying there for what felt like hours I gathered the strength to pick myself back up, I checked the interface one last time to assign my new innate talent to the legend slot  New Innate skill Unbreakable will Transcendent: ??? Legend: the skill Absolute Focus gained Hero: Cannot be melded unwillingly Soldier: Mind alternating effects have no effect Civilian:  Every 10% of health lost increases damage by 10% Skill gained Absolute focus Focus brings enlightenment When maintaining a spell, it will stay active until the user willingly dispels it ‘Well that's broken’ I briefly thought to myself, ‘But useful.’ After picking up the Reaper's blade I began to follow the now setting sun in hopes of finding some form of civilization though I knew that I was unlikely to come across one in these wastes. Days passed by with neither food nor water in sight forcing me to rely upon the create water and good berry spells. When I finally saw a town in the distance energy coursed through my body, however the closer I got the less energetic I became, as what laid before me was no longer a town but the still smoldering remains of one corpses of various horses as well as what looked like unicorns and pegasi, it was disappointing considering I was looking forward to a nice warm bed, at least there's plenty of food around here. However, I did find it mildly strange that the bandits left their pack animals behind to die, but beggars can't be choosers. After skinning a couple of the strangely colored horses and cooking their surprisingly succulent flesh I went about scavenging the ruins of the various houses for anything of potential worth. As I went about my scavenging I found more and more corpses of horses, some of which were even wearing some sort of clothes, though it only donned upon me when I found a baby swaddled in a blanket still held in their mother's grasp. Horror coursed throughout my body as I realized that these animals were sapient. However despite my horror I could still taste the lingering sweetness of their flesh on the tip of my tongue, I was stuck in a dilemma should I continue with my macabre feast or should I start using the good berry spell to sustain myself instead, I sat down and thought about it for a good long time various reasons as to why I shouldn't popped into my mind however there were two simple reasons that shot every other reason down first and foremost they are delicious plain and simple and secondly they weren't human. I felt with a great amount of certainty that they were sapient in some way but why should I care? I wasn't here for pleasure; I was here to get stronger and if I needed to eat these horses then so be it. System Alert! The user has unlocked the achievement heartless due to actively choosing to continue consuming the flesh of another sapient No karma will be awarded  All gluttony skills will gain 5 levels if none are present then the user will automatically gain one The user is partially melded with a windigo melding shall increase by another 20 percent  System Alert! The user melding with [Wendigo] has surpassed 50% causing the following to occur (effects adjusted due to innate skill unbreakable will) All gluttony related skills gain 5 levels The active skill voice mimicry (level max) is gained The passive skill disturbing presence (level max) is gained Your biology has further shifted Voice mimicry lvl max (active skill) Never follow the voices, unless of course you are the voice After listening to another speak you can mimic their voice, the longer you listen to them the more accurate the voice is. Disturbing presence lvl max (passive skill) Every being possesses a fear response, few are able to exploit this you are one of these few Those near you naturally feel perturbed and will naturally want to leave your presence, however some may instead wish to get closer to you. Unlike last time there was little pain possibly due to me already partially being a wendigo. I continued collecting what items I could from the ruins of this town and reluctantly butchered the former inhabitants for jerky after which I would bury their bones. It wasn't much but I suppose it was better than leaving their bones out in the open. Soon after I had finished burying another batch of bones, I heard gentle crying behind me. There sat a light pink child. Kid? No no um foal! That's right! There sat a young foal crying as she looked at one particular corpse perhaps it was a sibling or parent. I sat down next to her or at least I believed they were she due to their hair being in curls. I sat there in silence as she continued weeping, eventually I hesitantly placed my clawed hand upon her head and started to pet her on the head. The crying suddenly stopped as she shivered ever so slightly as I continued to gently pet her. “Who were they?” I asked the young girl. She sniffled a little bit longer before answering me, “He- he was my Papa.” “I see.” “Are you gonna eat me too?” she asked, looking up at me. “No,” I responded simply. “Why not?” “Because... -I paused for a brief moment- Because you are still alive.” “Ok,” she responded mutely. “Would you like me to bury him?” “Why?” she questioned. “Why do I want to bury him?” She shook her head “No, why are you being so nice to me?” I shrugged, “Cause I wanna.” Her eyes scrunched up as she looked at me, “Really?” I slowly took off my helmet and looked her straight in the eyes, “Do I need to have any other reason?” “I- I guess not,” she finally relented. Placing the helmet back upon my head I got to work building a grave for her father. It didn't take very long and soon he was buried. A small primitive head stone adorned his grave. “What was his name?” I asked her. “Glowing Embers.” “Ok,” walking up to the makeshift head stone I used my magic to carve his name into it. “How does that look?” “It's… nice.” “That's what I was hoping for, now then I'll be continuing what I was previously doing,” I stated to her. “You mean you're gonna keep tearing them apart?” She numbly said in horror. “Yep.” “Isn't that hypo… -she paused for a second to try and think of the word- Hypocritical?” she questioned. “Hmm well I suppose if you want to you can point out any friends and other family of yours so I can also bury them although the others I will be harvesting them.” “Oh, well umm… I guess.” I gently patted the ground next to me for her to sit, and after a bit she came over. She was very withdrawn, and I could often see tears streaming down her face, but she told me which of the remaining corpses were her friends, whom I would go and bury. Soon enough there was a small graveyard and as I buried the last one, I looked at my surroundings to confirm that it was the last body. After confirming there were none left, I walked up to the young girl. Her tears had long since dried, the light in her eyes having long since died. I bent down on one knee as I looked down at her, “That's the last one.” “Ok.’ “I'm leaving now.” “Ok.” “Do you want to come with me?” She looked up with her eyes wide, “Really?” “I won't force you to go with me, but I think we both know you won't survive out here for very long,” She thought about it for a moment before nodding and slowly getting up, “Can I- Can I ride on your back?” “Sure,” I slowly picked her up and put her on my shoulder much like how I used to do with my sisters when they were younger. “Thanks,” “No problem kid, -I thought about it for a moment- So what's your name? “Cozy Glow.”