"Hello" - Speech
"Hello" - Thoughts
[Hello] - System
Before we begin, I've been skulking around here for a few years now and this is my first ever attempt at any sort of story focused creative writing, if you have any tips or criticisms of my work, please tell me as I want to improve my own writing as much as possible. That being said, let's begin.
-o-o-o-o-o-
Well, this is strange, the last thing I seem to remember is dying. I know I checked both sides of the street before crossing but an out-of-control truck was really just something I could never see coming. Well now I'm here, by my guess it's some sort of void and I've been floating around for a bit now, I mean maybe its purgatory? I was Agnostic in life so maybe this is my punishment and if so, it's not terrible, no worries and no real feeling for anything just floating around endlessly could be worse, I guess.
With these thoughts it would be when a red screen would appear Infront of my eyes.
[Greetings Player!]
[I am your personalized Alternate Reality System! But you can just call me Ars.]
System? Let me guess I'm going to be reincarnated into a fictional world from my world? I mean I've read plenty of stories like this before, but I hope this wasn't me just hallucinating in the void.
[Thats correct Player! You'll be brought to a world you know. But first, character creation!]
You're rather peppy huh? While not exactly a 'voice' I could feel some form of emotion coming from the system.
[Yup! I'm now bound to your soul, so we have an empathic bond. Sorry if I'm a bit exited, it's just you are my first ever player so I'm a bit hyper, but now you'll have a starting budget of 50 System Points or SP so first well choose your race!]
[Human – 0 SP]
[Faunus (Subtypes Available) - 5 SP]
[Skills Unlocked – Night Vision (Unique), Enhanced Senses (Unique)]
[Grimm (Subtypes Available) - 10 SP]
[Skills Unlocked – Negativity Sense (Unique), Shadowed Evolution (Unique)]
Huh? Those are familiar, RWBY then. Not the worst possible world to be in if you ignore the man-eating monsters I suppose. But that did leave a question on my mind. Hey Ars, before I choose anything can you explain how exactly this whole system thing works? I know generally they tend to have similar features, but I want specifics.
[Sure, thing Player! To start, while most are shared across races, depending on your race you get access to different unique Perks, Perks are unique bonuses to your person that have all sorts of effects! Some of these perks give you access to Skills. Skills can be obtained from Perks or training and come in two categories, passive and active, with those each being further separated into Common, Rare, Legendary, and Unique Skills. Common Skills are always some sort of small bonus to an action such as attacking or resisting damage, they have ten ranks and grow stronger slightly as you train them and have a high chance of becoming a Rare Skill after max ranking them, Rares have five ranks and again grow in power as you train them, sometimes Rare Skills can be specific abilities that change as they rank up, or general percentage increases to certain actions, they also have a small chance to be able to evolve into a Legendary Skill after becoming max rank. Next, Legendary Skills have three ranks, each one being a major change to the previous and increasing in levels of power, Legendary's are always some sort of ability. Finally, Unique Skills hold 1 Rank and can only be obtained through Perks, these tend to be extremely powerful and versatile abilities or just skills that don't make sense to have ranks.]
Ok somewhat straight forward, but what about my own levels and stats? Systems tend to have those right?
[Of course, player, you have five stats Strength, Dexterity, Endurance, Intelligence, and Wisdom. Each of these is self-explanatory, Strength is your raw power, Dexterity is your speed, ability to react, and more, and both make up your Stamina Points. Endurance is your health points. Intelligence is a bit more complex, while it can increase your actual IQ it's more a gauge to your pool for magic and talent in it. Wisdom is the same except for your Aura abilities and Semblance. Furthermore, all these stats as well as your level cap out at 100, but every level in a stat is an exponential increase to the previous level and the jumps between every ten levels being even larger jumps in power, so a jump from 10 to 11 puts you on a different level. And while your stats can be trained up like your skills, every level you get three stat points and five system points to invest!]
Ok ok...exponential increases? Alright I can work with that let's get to making my new self. The race options would reappear in front of me. Ok, looking at this Grimm is an immediate out, I'd rather be on the good side of things and being one of those monsters is more likely to get me killed by a huntsman. So Human or Faunus? I'm honestly gravitating to the Faunus option, only five of my fifty points for some great bonuses, so I'll go with Faunus as my race Ars.
[Excellent choice Player! Now please choose your Faunus trait.]
[Ears: (Skill Gained – Exceptional Hearing (Unique)) - 1 SP]
[Eyes: (Skill Gained – Exceptional Sight (Unique)) - 1 SP]
[Tail: (Skill Gained – Exceptional Balance (Unique)) - 0 SP]
[Horns: (Skill Unlocked - Ram (Rare)) - 3 SP]
[Scales: (Skill Unlocked – Naturally Armored (Rare) - 5 SP]
Hm, well I'm already getting enhanced senses, so eyes nor ears really appeal to me, horns just seem like a bad idea, ramming headfirst into huge monsters? No thanks. Scales don't really make sense if I have Aura, because if that natural armor ever comes into play, I'm probably dead already. So that leaves the tail. Well, it can't be too bad, we see plenty of Faunus with workable tails in the series like Sun or Tyrian. Let's go with a tail Ars.
[Great choice player, now time to move on to your perk choices!]
As Ars says that thousands of choices appear in front of me, all ranging in price, but only showing things, I could afford with my 45 SP. Well let's get looking...Oh, that's interesting.
[Perk: Belmont Bloodline (15 SP)]
[Within you flows the blood of the Belmont clan, a powerful lineage of warriors dedicated to hunting Grimm to protect humanity. Your trained in all manners of weapons, are a formidable martial artist, an incredible acrobat, and an unrivaled scholar of all things Grimm. And, thanks to the Belnades side of your family tree, you also have incredible potential and talent in Aura. Finally, the light power coursing through your veins grants you resistance against most of the powers wielded by creatures of the Grimm.]
[Base STR, DEX, END, INT, & WIS 3]
[Base Aura Pool 25]
[50% Bonus EXP when defeating Evil aligned Creatures]
[25% Bonus growth in Aura & Combat Skills]
[Skills Unlocked – Beginner Weapon Proficiency (Common), Beginner Martial Arts (Common), Beginner Acrobat (Common), Darkness Resistance (Rare), Curse Resistance (Rare), Grimm Lore (Rare)]
This was...this was good, very good. Ok yeah defiantly taking that, and it's a clear Castlevania reference that's just cool. And a bonus for taking down 'evil' creatures that's like 99% of what a Huntsmen fights. Ok down to 30 SP better make them count... Oh that's an obvious choice right there.
[Perk: Aura Prodigy (5 SP)]
[You are a one in a hundred thousand genius when it comes to the manipulation and usage of Aura, alongside a naturally larger reserve you have the talent to become a once in a generation Huntsmen, but that will still take some time and training.]
[Base WIS 3]
[Base Aura Pool 25]
[25% Bonus growth to Aura Skills]
[Skills Unlocked – Aura Shaping (Rare), Aura Enhancement (Rare)]
Ok some good choices, but Ars I have a question after Perks what's next?
[Oh, that's the exciting part Player! You get to buy your semblance, customize your looks, and after that we're done, and you'll be sent to the world of Remnant. Of course, I'll still be there for you.]
Huh, ok then let me look at the Semblance choices if I get SP as I level, I can get a few more perks later or after I find a Semblance I like. And as I thought it the Perks would disappear and a new selection of a few hundred options would show up. Hmm, let's see here. Oh ho, this looks good.
[Perk (Semblance): Grimmafication (15 SP)]
[Grimm are thought to be monsters, and as has been said before, "Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster." Your own soul seems to have taken that to its essence. Firstly, your inner Grimm nature has increased the capabilities of your own body immensely to mirror the Grimms own physical capabilities past humanity, but that is not the main power you gain. You will gain access to three stages of your own Grimm form, Masked Grimm, Semi-Grimm, and Full Grimm. Each of these forms will vastly increase your physical status and because of a larger area for your Aura to fill in your soul, your Aura control is far greater per form. You also gain some additional powers to take advantage of that also grow with your forms, but as a drawback the more power you take the faster your Aura will be drained, the more you lose control of your own emotions and actions...]
[Base STR, DEX, & END 5]
[Skills Unlocked – Hollowfication (Unique), Cero (Legendary), Flash-step (Legendary)]
Ok yeah, that's not only cool but also sounds useful, if the three stages are just stat boosts, then it should help me close any sort of gap, can't hit what you can't track after all. The drawback is a bit of a Well, that leaves me with 10 points, Go back to Perks please Ars. And once again a few thousand options appear. Alright let's see here... How did I not see this earlier?
[Perk: Silver-Eyed Warrior (10 SP)]
[Silver-Eyed Warriors are an ancient lineage of legendary warriors who possess special abilities through the usage of their eyes. Their power destroys Grimm and originates from the God of Light. The powers are fueled by your own desire to protect life, exactly how the powers manifest is not known beyond the fact that blinding streams of light, almost resembling wings, or a radial flash of light can come from the wielder's eyes.]
[Skill Unlocked – The Silver Eyes (Legendary)]
Ok yeah, the main character of the show has this I literally can't pass it up. Well Ars that seems to be all my points, guess it's time to go yeah?
[Not just yet Player, I forgot to mention something earlier because I thought it would not come up until later, but some Perks have a hidden stat to fuse with other Perks to give you unique and free Fusion Perks! These are added onto your person for free and don't replace anything just add to your power. And it just so happens you got a few from your choices.]
Fusion Perks? Ok then guess I'll roll with it, tell me Ars what did I get?
[Just two for now, here they are!]
[Fusion Perk: (Belmont Bloodline & Silver Eyed Warrior) = Bane of Darkness]
[Your Silver Eyes have harmonized with the power of the Belmont bloodline, giving a small bonus due to their similar natures. You gain a natural ability to draw on and use Light magic, and your affinity Light magic has increased, allowing you to advance at a greater pace. Finally, all your Light magic is far more potent against any creature of darkness you fight.]
[25% Bonus EXP in Light Magic]
[25% Damage to Grimm when dealing Light Damage]
[25 Base Magic Points]
[Skills Unlocked – Light Magic (Legendary)]
[Fusion Perk: (Grimmafication & Silver Eyed Warrior) = Forbidden Hybrid]
[Your inner natures should not exist beside one another, yet they do. You are an epitome and mirror of Salems work into hybrid human and Grimm creations, something even she has failed to create. A Humanoid Grimm with the Silver Eyes. As such your abilities have synchronized and given you more power. Your Grimm form is now no longer affected by its weakness to the God of Lights power this by proxy increases its potency and ease of control. You stand as an apex against the laws of the world, Good Luck.]
[Skills Unlocked – Perfect Hybrid Grimm (Unique)]
Ok then, that second one is a bit worrying, but I made my bed ill lie in it. Well, that seems to be it, I'm ready to go Ars.
[Alright Player, during your selection and building I have already made a customized look based on your preferences, just close your eyes now and well set off after I fully finalize your status screen.]
I attempt to close my eyes and before I know it instead of nothingness I can feel grass against my skin, I open my eyes and see the blue sky and sun in the distance. I sit up easily and take in my surroundings, a forest as far as I can see. Well, I stand and dust off the new clothes I appear to have gotten, let's figure out where we are shall we?
Name: Marn Belmont
Race: Faunus (Tail)
Level: 1 (100 EXP to Next Level)
Title: None
HP: (180/180) (100, 5 per END 1-10, 10 per END 11-20) (Regen END/4 per minute)
SP: (230/230) (100, 5 per STR & DEX 1-20) (Regen (STR & DEX)/2 per minute)
AP: (230/230) (1002525, 5 per WIS 1-10, 10 per WIS 11-20) (Regen WIS/2 per minute)
MP: (165/165) (10025, 5 per INT 1-10) (Regen INT/2 per minute)
Strength: 13
Dexterity: 13
Endurance: 13
Intelligence: 8
Wisdom: 11
Unspent Stat Points: 3
Semblance: Grimmafication
Perks: Belmont Bloodline, Aura Prodigy, Silver-Eyed Warrior
Fusion Perks: Bane of Darkness, Forbidden Hybrid
Talents:
Night Vision (Unique): You can see in low light conditions.
Enhanced Senses (Unique): You have better hearing and sight
Enhanced Balance (Unique): You can never lose your balance unless on purpose and are harder to knock over.
Beginner Weapon Proficiency (Common) (1/10): Knowledge of how to wield a wide variety of weapons. All weapon damage increased by 5%.
Beginner Martial Arts (Common) (1/10): Knowledge of basic hand-to-hand combat. All unarmed damage increased by 5%.
Beginner Acrobat (Common) (1/10): Knowledge of basic acrobatics and parkour.
Darkness Resistance (Rare) (1/5): 10% Resistance to Dark Damage.
Curse Resistance (Rare) (1/5): 15% greater chance to resist Curses.
Grimm Lore (Rare) (1/5): You have encyclopedic knowledge on Grimm and their types.
Aura Shaping (Rare) (1/5): You can shape your aura into simple constructs, these cannot exist beyond your own grip. (Costs 5 AP per Minute)
Aura Enhancement (Rare) (1/5): Channel your aura into a physical stat and increase it by 1. (Cost 5 AP per Minute)
Hollowfication (Unique): Your semblance. Increase all physical stats by 5/10/20 per form. (Cost 10/20/30 AP per Minute based on form)
Cero (Legendary) (1/3): An extension of your semblances power, condense aura into a destructive beam for massive damage. (Damage = (WIS x 5)) (Cost 15 AP)
Flash-Step (Legendary) (1/3): A short-range high speed movement ability due to your Grimm nature. (Move = DEX in Feet) (Cost 10 AP)
The Silver Eyes (Unique): When you feel a strong desire to protect life you will emit a large radius of silver light or a condensed beam, every Grimm in the area going from closest to farthest will have their HP put up to your (HP x 5), if it is lower, they turn to stone. That amount of HP will be taken off the effective use of The Silver Eyes and move on to the next Grimm. (Cost N/A)
Light Magic (Legendary) (1/3): Allows for the manipulation of light in basic uses, can be fired off in small blasts of infused into your weapons for a short time. (Damage = (INT Cost 5/10))
Perfect Hybrid Grimm (Unique): When in any Grimm form double your stat bonus and weaknesses to Light damage negated.
Misc Bonuses:
[50% Bonus EXP when defeating Evil aligned Creatures]
[25% Bonus Growth in Combat Skills]
[50% Bonus Growth to Aura Skills]
[25% Bonus Growth in Light Magic]
[25% Damage to Grimm when dealing Light Damage]