Arcturus drifted in the void of his mind, vaguely aware of his physical body being moved. It was not so much a sensation as it was an understanding, a comprehension of altered position that flitted across his mind in a mix of alarm and concern, before being relegated towards the recesses of his thoughts. His focus was claimed instead by the pulsing, steady beat of power that was welling up within his body; an essence of existence that demanded he lay claim to it, direct it, and guide it to wherever he needed it to go.

Some part of him understood on a conscious, but detached level that he was not actually awake — that he was deep in slumber, lost within the recesses of his mind. Every moment would be ruled by his own thoughts, his own projections, very much like it had been in The Highest. In fact his experience with that divine realm seemed to have given him some level of unconscious ability to control his dreams, to be at least partially able to dominate and dictate their contents.

His surroundings shifted as he considered that idea, placing him instead within the manufactured surrounds of his room, moving across the carpeted floor to the desk set against the wall near his bed and pulling out his chair. His eyes roamed the interior of his space as he sat, noting the faint scent of vanilla and pancakes in the air; hallmarks of his home during the holiday mornings when his mother and father would enjoy cooking together,working up delicious dishes for the three of them.

He closed his eyes and focused, wondering if it was just his imagination, or if he could hear the records playing the living room — and the joint laughter of his parents as they worked on the family breakfast, bringing in the new day with a warmth and love that had defined his life growing up. He sighed as he opened his eyes, the relaxation of being back home delivering a sense of peace that he hadn’t felt for… Well, he didn’t know how long. Despite not even existing, it felt as if he’d carried the tension with him through True Oblivion.

He suspected he’d only been non—existent for moments as reckoned by the material universe, and yet it felt like an eternity; one composed of crushing, endless, and ceaseless panic that had echoed through his soul even in the depths of the absence of anything. Arcturus looked down at his desk as he considered the notion of existing without existing, a wry smile taking its place on his lips at the sheer absurdity of the thought. Then again if someone had told him he’d manage to claw his way back from True Oblivion by sheer force of will, he’d have also called them utterly deluded.

Who’s to say you aren’t?

A sigh rolled from his lips as he focused instead on his desk, and the paper that was only then evident upon it. A clear outline, it seemed, that offered insight into his character. His ‘sheet’ in all of its shallow glory, relaying his essence as it was, broken down into basic mathematics that forced him to acknowledge how incredibly odd it was that his entire existence could be reduced to something so pedestrian.

INFORMATION PANEL

BASIC INFORMATION

NAME Arcturus Valoura CLASS Ȁ̶̩͉̝̤͘͝r̴̥̥͕̐̌͒͝ć̸̫͓̿ͅä̸̧́̐̀n̷̲̏̌̀͜͝ẹ̷̜͙̈́̏ ̷̙̥͐̄W̴̮̘͂̓̊͝a̴̢͑͆͋ŗ̷̬̫̋r̵̪̯̋̓̅̕i̷̛͖̬͍ō̵͍͉͜r̸̡̻̗̜̿͒ RACE Human(?) AGE 21 GENDER Male LEVEL 2 TITLE(S) N/A

CONDITION

ANIMA 10 HP 100 / 100 1.75 Health Per Minute (HPM) AETHER 10 MP 100 / 100 1.75 Mana Per Minute (MPM)

ATTRIBUTES

Strength

Agility

Intellect

Vitality

Perception

Arcana

Willpower

Charisma

Luck

19

11

14

13

14

18

21

12

??

CORE SKILLS

SKILL NAME

DETAILS

Aether Manipulation

(Passive, Infinite Scaling)

You are now able to make use of the mystical abilities tied to Aether manipulation, allowing you to cast and understand magic, in all of its many fantastical and myriad forms.

Inspect

(Passive, Infinite Scaling)

You have succeeded in achieving a basic mastery of the System, and unlocked the ability to view the details of items and individuals. Due to the low level of the initial skill, however, this ability will not function on most higher forms of life! Unlock further progress in the [Inspect] skill to enable higher levels of information access.

COMBAT SKILLS

SKILL NAME DETAILS

Unarmed Combat

(Passive, Level 1)

Your life’s worth of extensive combat training has borne fruit! Several styles of martial arts and close quarters combat training have blended together into something uniquely your own, allowing you to be lethal even while buck-naked! Go get ‘em, Arcturus!

MAGICAL SKILLS

SKILL NAME DETAILS

Psionicist

(Passive, Infinite Scaling)

Through a mix of your high Willpower and above average Arcana, you have unlocked the ability to manifest your will through the strength of your mind and aether. Your Psionicist level will scale with your highest Psionicist ability!

Telekinesis

(Active, Level 1)

Your application of Psionics has unlocked Telekinesis, allowing you to influence the physical world through manipulated force!

[Telekinetic Push] unlocked! [Telekinetic Pull] unlocked! [Telekinetic Grip] unlocked! [Telekinetic Shield] unlocked! [Telekinetic Crush] unlocked!

EXPERIENCE 146 / 100 Level Up In Progress

His scarlet eyes roamed over the given information, taking in each numerical value and then glancing to the left of the page, where a shimmering white bar had appeared, outlined in abyssal black.

The bar was filled, shining with ethereal energy that called him to use it.

His attention returned to his sheet and Arcturus instinctively knew he had to use that power, had to distribute that essence, lest it eventually consume and destroy him. He could have let it distribute itself of its own accord, but he also understood that such an action would waste a chance for him to alter the very fabric of his being in a manner that would be outrageously beneficial when compounded.

“Alright, well, first things first.” He said determinedly, looking to where his Anima and Aether numbers were. He reached out with his forefinger and tapped each one, increasing both by a factor of one.

Anima increased by 1 point!

Health increased by 10%!

Aether increased by 1 point!

Health increased by 10%

Nodding at the changes, he glanced to the blazing bar on the left of the page, smiling as he saw it had dropped to the exact position that he knew to be eighty percent capacity, though it still blazed and awaited use. One ‘point’ was ten percent of the bar, then. It was as he’d suspected, though he wouldn’t have minded if each point had taken less. It made sense though; multiples of ten were an age—old common—sense system of measurement for humanity, and it was very likely that was simply how his subconscious best understood the distribution of power. No doubt he’d be able to change that distribution at a later date, once he was more… comfortable with everything.

“Alright, then I suppose the next step would be this…” Arcturus moved his finger to his primary attributes, increasing his Agility by 2 points, his Vitality by 2 points, and his Charisma by 2 points. He’d thought to increase his Strength, Intellect, Arcana, or Willpower — but there would invariably be more level—ups through which to do so, and it seemed prudent to pay attention to the attributes that were most suffering. Greater Agility meant greater reaction time, speed, dexterity, and flexibility; all things that could save his life. Greater Vitality meant a faster recovery time, a greater chance to resist debilitating injuries, and a greater constitution with which to handle tests of endurance.

Greater Charisma was a logical one, given that his new appearance and potential side effects of it — especially somewhere like Earth, which he hoped he’d returned to — needed to be shifted to his advantage as much as was plausible. He already knew he was better looking, which no doubt would play into his Charisma score, but that wasn’t enough by itself. Natural charm, magnetism, the ability to smooth—talk… He had played enough roleplaying games to know that a high Charisma score could sometimes be the difference between a fight for your life and a sudden new ally.

Agility increased by 2 points!

Vitality increased by 2 points!

Charisma increased by 2 points!

Arcturus glanced at the bar to his left, marking the drop to the bottom twenty percent, before turning back to his sheet. His eyes roamed over it, moving between his Unarmed Combat and Telekinesis abilities. On one hand his Unarmed skill could prove incredibly useful in surviving, especially once he actually woke up from whatever induced unconsciousness the sudden surge of essence had given him.

On the other hand, having a higher level in Telekinesis — potentially two more levels — could unlock abilities or uses he could find very useful. If Telekinetic abilities were also invisible to the naked eye, as he suspected they were, then the options for self—defense were considerable.

After a moment of indecision, he threw caution to the wind, pressing his finger twice to his Telekinesis score. “Nothing ventured…” He muttered.

Telekinesis increased by 2 points!

Telekinesis is now Level 3!

Your skill in Telekinesis is now ‘Competent’!

Your ‘Competent’ skill in Telekinesis has eliminated the need for specific castings! Your Telekinesis can now be used solely in whatever capacity your mind imagines. Be careful though, Arcturus! While now unlimited in application, the Aether cost of your abilities will be directly affected by any relevant physical, magical, mental, or enchantment resistances active on your targets! Distance and complexity of casting will also need to be considered, lest you accidentally drain your Aether instantly!

Unlimited potential using only his imagination seemed… incredibly useful. He could already picture several different uses, including everything from blades of force small enough to draw little energy and sharp enough to cut easily through flesh, to massive spears of telekinetic power that could punch through even modern body armour without overt issue. Of course, he had a feeling that there were specific forms of use favoured by Psionicists, something he’d likely need to research, unless the knowledge was somehow inherent thanks to his warping of his essence to rapidly grow his Telekinetic strength.

A moment’s thought was all it took, before a wave of information streamed through his mind’s eye.

Insight Gained: Telekinetic Forms! By using logical deduction, you have successfully accessed an inherent repository detailing the most efficient ways in which to use your Telekinetic abilities, and how to harness your spells in a way to almost completely mitigate unexpected Aether drain! You have learned Telekinetic Lance, Telekinetic Blade, Telekinetic Wave, Telekinetic Hammer, Telekinetic Fortification, Telekinetic Arrow!

Level Up Complete!

You are now 23% of the way to Level 3!

Smiling to himself in satisfaction, Arcturus looked to this status sheet again.

INFORMATION PANEL

BASIC INFORMATION

NAME Arcturus Valoura CLASS Ȁ̶̩͉̝̤͘͝r̴̥̥͕̐̌͒͝ć̸̫͓̿ͅä̸̧́̐̀n̷̲̏̌̀͜͝ẹ̷̜͙̈́̏ ̷̙̥͐̄W̴̮̘͂̓̊͝a̴̢͑͆͋ŗ̷̬̫̋r̵̪̯̋̓̅̕i̷̛͖̬͍ō̵͍͉͜r̸̡̻̗̜̿͒ RACE Human(?) AGE 21 GENDER Male LEVEL 2 TITLE(S) N/A

CONDITION

ANIMA 11 HP 110 / 110 2.00 Health Per Minute (HPM) AETHER 11 MP 110 / 110 2.00 Mana Per Minute (MPM)

ATTRIBUTES

Strength

Agility

Intellect

Vitality

Perception

Arcana

Willpower

Charisma

Luck

19

13

14

15

14

18

21

14

??

CORE SKILLS

SKILL NAME

DETAILS

Aether Manipulation

(Passive, Infinite Scaling)

You are now able to make use of the mystical abilities tied to Aether manipulation, allowing you to cast and understand magic, in all of its many fantastical and myriad forms.

Inspect

(Passive, Infinite Scaling)

You have succeeded in achieving a basic mastery of the System, and unlocked the ability to view the details of items and individuals. Due to the low level of the initial skill, however, this ability will not function on most higher forms of life! Unlock further progress in the [Inspect] skill to enable higher levels of information access.

COMBAT SKILLS

SKILL NAME DETAILS

Unarmed Combat

(Passive, Level 1)

Your life’s worth of extensive combat training has borne fruit! Several styles of martial arts and close quarters combat training have blended together into something uniquely your own, allowing you to be lethal even while buck-naked! Go get ‘em, Arcturus!

MAGICAL SKILLS

SKILL NAME DETAILS

Psionicist

(Passive, Infinite Scaling)

Through a mix of your high Willpower and above average Arcana, you have unlocked the ability to manifest your will through the strength of your mind and aether. Your Psionicist level will scale with your highest Psionicist ability!

Telekinesis

(Active, Level 3)

Your ‘Competent’ skill in Telekinesis has eliminated the need for specific castings! Your Telekinesis can now be used solely in whatever capacity your mind imagines. Be careful though, Arcturus! While now unlimited in application, the Mana cost of your abilities will be directly affected by any relevant physical, magical, mental, or enchantment resistances active on your targets! Distance and complexity of casting will also need to be considered, lest you accidentally drain your Mana instantly!

EXPERIENCE 46 / 200 23% Progress to Level 3

Satisfied with the results of his distributions, he yawned and pushed himself up from his desk, stepping away and surprising himself with another yawn. Suddenly, he felt incredibly tired. It was strange given he was in a dreamscape, yet he didn’t think to question it. Instead, he made his way to his bed, collapsing into it and placing his head on the pillow.

He smiled as he smelled vanilla and pancakes, allowing memories of home take him away..

…only to snap awake a second later, blinking rapidly. He was in his bed… No, wait, that was wrong. He hadn’t truly been at home, he’d been dreaming, which meant that he no longer was. He’d gone through the process of levelling up, and a quick test told him he could very much feel the changes in his body. After a moment of flexing and wiggling, and assessing the newfound strength in himself, he abruptly remembered the forest. The Dire Wolf. His injuries!

A hand rose to touch the back of his right shoulder in search of the wound he could no longer feel, and he found bandages over seamless flesh. Bewildered at that revelation, Arcturus reached for his other shoulder and found only the same. It was as if his body had healed over the wounds as if they were no longer there. Even a check of his Anima showed him very much the same idea.

Health at 110/110.

Mana at 110/110. You are regenerating 2 Mana per 5 seconds!

Arcturus furrowed his eyebrows at the unmistakable reality of what had happened. It wasn’t possible to just heal, not without scars, and not in the span of… He froze when he realised he had no idea how long he’d been unconscious, or why he was in a bed, or why he was bandaged. In fact if his senses weren’t lying to him, he was also wearing a very comfortable pair of soft cotton briefs! He had been naked and wounded, and then he had been hit by his level up alert, there had been a release of energy…

Arcturus cursed even as the alert popped into his mind.

Insight Gained: Given the nature of your unnatural rebirth, the process of reconstituting your essence is far more extreme than that of anyone else! Each time you level up, your body is reconstructed at the molecular level. Anything you do not hold as a core part of your identity is erased in favour of a strong, unbroken mortal shell fully ready to enjoy all the new benefits your levelling up will provide it! Isn’t that just wonderful?

“Shit.” He cursed under his breath. That meant each time he levelled up, his body was effectively reconstructed using the same powers his echo had manipulated to restore him from True Oblivion. Unless he found a way to deal with the pain, or at least delay it until he could put himself somewhere that passing out for unknown periods of time was safe, it was going to prove extremely troublesome for his immediate future. Which once again brought him back to his present situation.

Forgot about that for a moment there, did you?

Careful not to make too much noise, Arcturus pulled the woollen sheets he’d been covered with off of his body, properly checking his surroundings for the first time. He was in a modestly sized rectangular room, perhaps 4 metres by 7 metres, with his bed position with its bottom facing the single oaken door that led into the room. The material on the walls appeared to be plaster, likely covering timber or stone from what he could assess, and there was sunlight streaming in from the window above and behind his bed. The room’s fixtures were limited, with smooth floorboards covered in a large rug just shy of filling the entire floor.

A lacquered wooden chair and writing desk were nearby, as well as a bookcase and fireplace. At a conservative guess, he assumed he was in an inn or bed and breakfast — likely a countryside building, given the lack of noise from outside his window. Turning to place his feet on the rug and stand, Arcturus moved with cautiously quiet steps towards the front of the bed and smiled when he saw the folded clothes on a small table previously hidden from his field of view. He had suspected, given the briefs, that there’d be some sort of clothes left for him. It made him slightly less worried, which essentially lowered his alarm level from extreme to merely high, but it was something.

Agility Check successful!

Congratulations! [Stealth] (Active, Level 1) Unlocked! With your enhanced Agility, you have just barely managed to move with something approaching respectable levels of stealth! Practice and dedication to Stealth will only serve to better enhance your ability to move undetected. There’s absolutely no way you’d think to abuse the ability to avoid detection by others, right? Happy Sneaking, you dastardly rogue!

A snort was given in response to the mental prompt as he lifted the folded fabric on the top of the pile, holding it and unfurling it. He suppressed his surprise at finding a nicely made cotton shirt that paradoxically appeared designed for fashion that had found its end near the late sixteenth century. Bemused but not intending on walking around naked, Arcturus removed his bandages and dressed as quickly and quietly as he could.

The white shirt went on first, followed by a pair of charcoal pants — breeches, in truth — that were almost too snug for comfort. He tucked the shirt into the pants, and looped on a belt after he did, relieved that he didn’t need to poke an extra hole to make it tight.

Over the shirt went a decently appealing overcoat with sleeves perfectly measured to just over his wrists and dyed the same charcoal colour as his breeches, parted over his chest. He decided against using the silver buttons along its right side to do it up, leaving it open to show the white shirt beneath. The back of the coat, he noted with some amusement, had two triangular tails at the end like some sort of Victorian gothic re-enactment.

The very thought of it brought a sardonic smile to his face as he spied the very last items left for him, on the floor in front of the little table; a pair of calf-high lacing boots in black leather, and what appeared to be comfortably made polyester socks.

Sitting down on the edge of the bed after collecting both, Arcturus took the time to put first the socks and then the boots on, surprised at how well both fit his feet. He was likely even larger now, based on the boots themselves, than the original size 14 he’d worn; and yet the boots were a perfect fit.

He laced them up quickly, aided by his ever-so-slightly more dexterous fingers, and noted the steel caps on the toes and the firmness of the soles. When he stood and put weight on the shoes, he was stunned by how soft they were on his feet, and how light they were to wear.

Had it not been for the fact that he could see the boots on his feet, he’d have sworn he was wearing socks and slippers. Even fully laced, they were surprisingly flexible, allowing him to bend and twist his ankle enough to be comfortable, but not enough to hurt himself; a curious flexibility that he was interested in learning the origins of. It would be, he reasoned, incredibly useful to be able to replicate the process when he eventually found proper clothes to wear.

After a moment's thought, he paused an looked at his clothes — and then used his [Inspect] ability. Immediately a screen popped up next to the sleeve of his overcoat.

INFORMATION PANEL

BASIC INFORMATION

NAME Nobleman's Spare Clothing SLOT(S) Chest (Multiple), Arms, Legs (Multiple), Feet (Multiple) TYPE(S) Mundane RARITY Uncommon CLASSIFICATION(S) Attire STATISTIC(S) +2 to Charisma MODIFICATION(S) N/A DESCRIPTION A set of clothing left behind by an absent-minded Noble, held in-case of need for a future guest. Though of a decent quality, no one would mistake the wearer for anyone of significant means or wealth. SOULBOND(S) N/A DURABILITY 75 / 75

"Could be worse, I suppose." He muttered to himself. "Could be a dress."

Now that would be a statement.

Fully dressed and feeling markedly less exposed thanks to it, Arcturus headed for the door with the same emphasis on quiet movement as before.

[Stealth] engaged!