Roy opened his eyes to witness a clear, red sky stretching before him. He blinked once, then twice, before letting out a groan. It took him a while to register his body being his own, feeling all too stiff and uncomfortable on what seemed to be a hard rock surface he was laying on. Sitting himself up unsteadily, he witnessed his surroundings for the first time; an endless stretch of red stone and canyons, occasionally broken up by tall, lean trees and what appeared to be massive craters. The horizon was devoid of any landmarks save for what appeared to be a mountain rising in the far distance, only a speck breaking up the otherwise flat skyline. Scanning the sky itself revealed no sun, moon, stars, or any other source of the red glow that seemed to permeate the entire region, but that might just be his eyes playing tricks in the haze of the perpetual heat scoring down on his skin.

Roy was glad that he seemed to have clothes this time, although they were the plainest and most boring pair of grey shirt and pants that chaffed as he moved to stand up, balancing himself precariously as he adjusted to his new, weakened physique.

He spent some time walking about, frustrated at having been left barefoot as if to spite him, forcing him to endure the heated rocks. He stretched and jogged, and even threw out a couple of punches in the air, feeling awfully sluggish. After assessing the state of his body, Roy moved on to examine his surroundings, scanning for any signs of life amidst the barren wasteland. He looked down the nearby craters and canyons, but upon finding each and every one of them in his vicinity deserted, he could not help but exclaim his thoughts aloud.

"Well, fuck." he grumbled, kicking a nearby rock with his barefoot and instantly regretting it. "Have eternal life, she said. Save worlds, she said. But let's dump him in the worst possible places and see how long I can last."

Roy felt anger swelling up inside him at having once more lost everything he had worked so hard for to only be rewarded with more of the same. An endless cycle of being left stranded in a place brimming with monsters or other dangers, and either surviving and thriving or dying and restarting. It never got easier either, as each new restart was a whole new world with its own rules, and to top it off, the average strength of the inhabitants seemed to go up each time.

"I know you can hear me!" Roy began shouting to the heavens, his voice echoing. "Screw you and your sick game. Admit this isn't about saving any world anymore. Stop pretending to be some divine Goddess when you can't even give shoes to your supposed chosen hero! Or is that too much for your powers to handle? Was this shirt all you could afford? Are you the Goddess of being broke, or the Goddess of spite, because that is all I have been getting!"

Roy trudged further away from where he woke up, on the lookout for a stream of water down one of the canyons. He considered heading toward one of the trees first, but they looked too tall to be of any use so he chose the distant mountain range as his general destination. It was incredibly uncomfortable stepping on the heated rocks, having to take quick steps to not burn himself. There were practically no shadows to be found anywhere as the entire sky seemed to act as a giant sun so there was no way for him to tell how much time he spent traversing the desolate planes. He was growing increasingly exhausted, sweating buckets, and his exposed skin felt like it was burning. He knew that if he did not find a source of water, food, and shelter soon, he would have no hope of surviving before reaching that distant mountain. What felt like hours later, with a parched throat, sore feet, and scorched skin, he finally found a canyon with a stream flowing down the bottom of it. Now, looking down the cliff before him, he knew he had another problem to solve of how exactly he was going to get down there.

"The hell do I do now?"

As he asked that out of frustration, an unexpected answer popped up in front of him in the form of a holographic text window.

Primary Goal: ???

Reward: ???

Secondary Goal: Survive until you reach the mountain in the distance.

Reward: 10 Karmic Points

Sub Goal: Reach Tier 1

Reward: 4 Karmic Points

Bonus Goal: ???

Reward: The Fruits of your Labor

"What is this?"

Gaia's Blessing: World Guide

An interface system that displays to you information about the world.

"Another Gaia? If you are a guide, what else can you tell me?"

As a response, three more windows popped up in front of him, one a blank map showing a trail where he had trekked, another was an empty list marked as contacts, and lastly, a screen that appeared to be all about him.

Overview

Name: Roy Hunt

Race: Pseudo Human

Tier: 0

Conditions: Soul Tether, Dehydration, Exhaustion, Sunburn

Karmic Points: 0

Stats

Strength: Level 1 (0/10 EXP)

Speed: Level 1 (0/10 EXP)

Endurance: Level 1 (0/10 EXP)

Stamina: Level 1 (0/10 EXP)

Cognition: Level 1 (0/10 EXP)

Mana: Level 1 (0/10 EXP)

Skills

Gaia's Blessing: World Guide

An interface system that displays to you information about the world.

Gaia's Gift: Trick Shot

When you fire off a projectile, you may imbue it with one of the following effects:

Ethereal shot

Allows the projectile to pass through a solid object with no resistance for a slight mana cost.

Rebounding Shot

Allows the projectile to redirect itself after striking a surface for a slight mana cost.

Split Shot

Allows the projectile to split itself into two identical copies for a slight mana cost.

Homing Shot

Allows the projectile to adjust its course toward a predetermined target for a slight mana cost.

Delay Shot

Allows the projectile to suspend itself mid-flight, losing no moment once released for a slight mana cost.

Gaia's Favor: Remembrance (10 Karmic Points)

Grants you a connection to Gaia, allowing you to use the following abilities you possessed in a previous life:

Lightning Tether

Create a link of electric-infused mana between you and an object you touch. Has a low ongoing mana cost, scaling with distance.

Discharge

Forcefully accumulate and release all of your mana as an electric shock. Warning: Using this will adversely affect your body.

Shockstep

Instantaneously travel as lightning to a destination within a short range. Has a moderate mana cost. Warning: Using this will adversely affect your body.