The Beginning

It was a sunny day with a warm breeze, Ethan had just woken up and still had bed hair. Amy, Ethan's friend from middle school, had invited him to go to the park. The park was situated on a hill and one could see the city clearly from there.

Ethan and Amy met at the entrance of the park, they walked through the gardens and fountains, talked about school, friends, how they were doing among other things, it almost seemed like a date. They talked for a long time and when it was starting to get late, they decided to go up the path into the top of the mountain.

Amy looked at Ethan and said.

'We should come here again'

Ethan looked at her and nodded, then said while smiling.

'Yeah, we should come with more people next time, it'll be even more fun!'

They walked for a bit longer and when they were about to reach the top of the mountain a loud RUMBLE was heard. Ethan was looking at the sky before he could even think about it, Amy was screaming in the background.

'ETHAN!!'

Ethan could not hear the other things Amy screamed as his consciousness started to fade away, his vision turned pitch black and couldn't feel anything anymore, but before he lost consciousness, Ethan could hear Amy scream and cry.

'ETHAN! HELP, SOMEONE CALL 911!'

When Ethan woke up he found himself in a room white as snow, and saw a kid that was about 12 years old. The kid was pale and had golden hair, he was also wearing a weird robe. It looked like a chiton the greeks used in the past. The kid was staring at Ethan, waiting for something.

Ethan got up from the floor and looked back at the kid, confused he then said

'Where am I-'

But he was cut off by the kid.

'Live or Die?'

Said the kid looking at Ethan with a smile. Ethan was very confused now, he was in that weird room and a kid in weird clothes asked him if he wanted to live or die. Ethan looked at the kid with a confused face and asked.

'What?'

The kid was starting to look annoyed.

'Live or Die? simple as that, answer'

He didn't really understand what he meant, but Ethan said that he wanted to live.

The kid looked pleased, he started to walk towards Ethan and stopped right in front of him.

'Good choice'

Said the kid while grinning as he congratulated Ethan for making the right choice, he also started saying that he finally found 'him'.

'Him?'

said Ethan confused.

'Yes, I finally found one! A loyal dog.'

He grinned again for a second and turned his back to Ethan.

'Hey, do you want to help me?'

'Help you?'

'Yes, help me. If you help me I'll let you live'

He looked back at Ethan.

'But you know? You're still too weak to help me, luckily I know how to make you stronger.'

'How?'

'Well, there are these two skills that those lowly humans think are trash, but are actually really strong, so…'

The kid looked over its shoulder and turned around to look at Ethan while smiling.

'So you'll give them to me?'

'Bingo! Oh, you're so smart!'

The kid laughed and walked close to Ethan.

'I'm sure you'll understand their worth'

It looked like he was having fun.

'They're called Gluttony and Shadow Necromancer, as powerful as they might seem, they still have setbacks you know? Gluttony will absorb the soul of the monsters you killed and ate, but just like its name, you'll become a glutton. If you don't eat enough souls as you become stronger you'll go on a rampage, eating anything in sight until you're satisfied. Then there's Shadow Necromancer. It'll use the souls you obtain by eating and transform them into your loyal soldiers, they will continue to regenerate as long as you have mana, since they are only shadows.'

'But... If you can grant me those skills, why do you need my help?'

Ethan said while looking at the kid.

'Well, I'm a god. But gods can't interfere with humans so I can only watch those pests have fun'

He looked annoyed for a second and then sighed.

'A god?'

Ethan was surprised, but not for long, as he remembered that he was in a completely empty white space right after falling off a cliff after all.

'Yes, a god. My name is Tyvnas, the god of creation'

Tyvnas grinned at Ethan.

'You look quite young'

'Well, you wouldn't want to look like a grandpa forever, would you?'

'Yeah'

'Either way, you're gonna need a new name'

'A new name? Why?'

'Well, you're going to have a new body, and it needs a name'

'New body? And why does it need a name? I already have one'

'It'll be a sign of your loyalty to me'

Tyvnas started to get happy at the idea of a loyal dog, and wanted to name it. It was just like a kid getting a new pet.

'Your new name shall be…..'

He thought for a while, he wanted the perfect name for his new pet.

'Archer'

He said happily, with eyes glowing. Although Ethan was a bit hesitant about it.

'It fits your new body'

Ethan smiled awkwardly, he didn't know what his new body looked like, and that name didn't give him any good ideas.

'Now'

continued Tyvnas.

'I'll place you in your new body, and when you get stronger I'll tell you your mission. Remember, you can't refuse, or you'll die.'

He gave Ethan a last smile before everything turned black again.

Archer woke up with a bit of a headache, lying down on a rock hard floor. He got up and sat on the floor. While he looked around he discovered that he was in a run-down temple. The floor was made of rocks and was surrounded by water, ahead he found a broken stone path crossing the water and ending in front of a statue. The statue was a bit dirty, it resembled an angel and had no cracks or broken parts, which was a bit weird. He looked around more and saw that the walls were also made of rocks, but they were almost completely destroyed, it could barely hold the roof.

Archer didn't want a roof to crush him and die again, so he got up, but as he got up he felt something fluffy, like fur, touch him. He turned his head around and saw a black tail coming out of his back.

'Eh?!'

Archer was very surprised, he touched and then grabbed the tail to make sure it was real and when he did he could feel it as if it were a part of his own body. He then looked all over his body to see if he had anything else, when he reached for his head he felt a pair of ears. The only word he could think of calling his new body was that it was that of a beastmen, or at least that's what they called them in his old world.

'Is this what Tyvnas meant by dog?'

Archer didn't give it much thought as he could think about it later, but now, he needed a refuge. He walked out of the run-down temple stopping right outside, he thought of where to go now, since he didn't know anything about this world. In front of him was a forest as far as he could see, with big trees that had leaves as green as they could be. He decided to venture inside and see where he would end at. He walked for a while and turned back to look at the temple, but he couldn't see it anymore, as the trees were covering it, so Archer just continued his path.