Ch1: A New World

The sound of chirping birds awakens me. As I open my eyes, I find myself lying face down in the shade of a rather large tree. Sitting up, I'm immediately aware that I have no idea where I am. What's more, it seems I haven't awakened out of my stupor.

Me: Hello!

I call out but no one answers. In fact, my call seemingly scares nearby birds into flight. Sighing, I move to stand but notice almost instantaneously that my skin is different. What's more, I'm in a completely different set of clothing. How did I miss this when I awakened?

As I continue studying my appearance, a portion of my hair falls over my shoulders and enters my peripheral vision. Gasping, I run my fingers through it to confirm it's real.

Me: White hair...so does this mean...

My words trail off as I recall everything that has happened. Looking around frantically, I spot a nearby pond and rush over. As my reflection comes into view, I find my theory confirmed. Still, nothing prepares me for just how beautiful I am. Almost tumbling into the pond, I can only stare in disbelief at my facial features. I've had to throw my hair back to prevent it from getting wet but even then, its perfect white colour shines forth. As I continue admiring myself, I notice that my pupil looks drastically different. My eyes are purple, as I had asked, but my pupils, well...they are shaped like crosses or at the very least, that's what they look like.

As I continue staring at my reflection, I notice what I had before. My skin is remarkably white. In fact, in the sunlight, I almost seem like I am glowing. What's more, my skin is silky smooth and soft to the touch. My age seems somewhere around the two I had specified, 18 and 21 though I have no idea which of the two. In any case, I certainly look old enough to be categorized as an adult in my own world but young enough to be at most, 22.

Eventually, I manage to break out of my entranced state and take the time to take in my outfit. Even without a standing mirror, I can still make out that I have on two distinct pieces of clothing. The general theme seems to be white with gold trims. Rubbing the fabric through my fingers reveals that it's soft to the touch. Despite the overall set-up seemingly being to keep a low profile, what with the hood and all, I can tell I'll stand out wherever I go. If my natural features wouldn't attract attention, my clothing certainly will.

Sighing, I stand and run a quick scan of my surroundings. Apart from the pond, I am standing beside, there's nothing but trees and grass for miles. Not knowing what else to do, I select a direction to start walking in, hoping that at the very least I'll make it to a road or some sign of civilization. I've only taken a few steps, however, when a voice interrupts my thoughts.

????: Hello, Mistress.

Looking around, I find that I'm still very much alone. Thinking it was just my imagination, I begin walking once more but the voice returns, pointing out that it's down below. True to its instructions, looking down reveals a snake. Shrieking in terror, I'm about to flee when it speaks again.

????: That truly hurts my feelings, mistress. Is the mere sight of me truly that repulsive?

Caught off guard by the question, I stop mid-run and look back. Now that it mentions it, the snake does somewhat remind me of myself. Its deathly white scales and purple eyes are a direct replica of my own hair, skin and eyes. What's more, its voice vaguely resembles my own thus leading me to the conclusion that it's a female. Taking a closer look reveals, however, that its pupils, unlike mine, are normal or at least as normal as a snake's eyes can get.

Me: How can you talk?

Instead of answering me, she transforms into a rather beautiful female. To say it catches me by surprise would be an understatement as once she finishes, it's almost as though I m looking in a mirror. There are differences between us that immediately become obvious, but at a distance, one would be forgiven for thinking we were twins. Her hair is white like mine but unlike my skin, hers is deathly white. Her eyes, also, are different with their black pupils in contrast to my white (cross-shaped) ones. Still, that's pretty much where the differences all end. Her ears are slightly different from mine and so too is her clothing but otherwise, we are pretty much identical.

????: All monsters can talk, Mistress, but generally speaking only those of their own species can understand them.

Me: So does that mean you and I share the same species?

????: Goodness no. I could never claim to be the same species as you. You were able to hear me as a serpent because I was using telepathy and I am your guardian.

Me: Guardian?

????: Yes. The Three Divine Ones created me to assist you in adjusting to this world and per your desire to have a companion.

So it's not a dream then. Up to now, I had dismissed it as...what am I saying. Of course, this is a dream. I'm talking to a snake...girl...thing for goodness sake! Now that I think about it, what in the world is she? One minute ago she was most definitely a snake but now she looks about as humanlike as I do. Does that mean I am not human? In any case, that conversation can wait until after we make it out of this forest.

Me: So, if you're my guardian, do you know where we are?

Convinced that this is indeed nothing more than a dream, I turn my full attention to the female before me. She notices and seemingly blushes under my intense gaze though I don't notice how hard I am staring until an awkward silence takes over the forest.

????: To answer your question, Mistress, I know the layout of the immediate landscape but only because I did some scouting while waiting for you to awaken.

Choosing to ignore the fact that I slept under the gaze of a snake, I ask her to point me in the direction of the nearest sign of life and she responds quickly, stating in clear terms that there are no signs of life within the first few miles in any direction. Feeling a sense of hopelessness at that, I decide to try asking something else, picking the topic of the world at large as a subject matter.

To my delight, she's able to tell me some details about this new world but only some. For starters, the world has magic as I suspected when I saw her talking as a snake. There are also many species capable of communication and sentience on this planet, unlike Earth. These apparently range from demons to humans to dragons to the dead. When she brought up dragons, I was surprised but the dead surprised me even more. She also mentioned that there were various nations in the world vying for power but couldn't provide more information on said nations other than the fact that the strongest of them were seemingly the Elves, the Humans and the Dwarves with the Demon Realm currently engaged in total war preventing them from really rising in strength.

Me: So what's your name?

????: I don't have one, Mistress.

Hmm. That's going to prove inconvenient in the long term. I haven't had to call her by a name directly as yet but as it stands, I'd have to resort to the names Guardian or Snake and this can prove rather ineffective on a noisy battlefield.

Me: Zuri. That's your name from now on.

Zuri: Really mistress? Are you sure?

Me: You don't like it?

Zuri: I love it!

Me: Then Zuri it is.

I find myself smiling as she continues to throw praise my way. It's remarkable how quickly I've gotten accustomed to her, especially since I'm certain that I hated the idea of snakes in my previous life. Though I suppose this has something to do with the fact that she's now a human but even then, I've never been particularly open to conversing with strangers. There's just something about her though. It feels as though I've known her for ages.

... Name confirmed. Zuri. Family name unassigned. Assigning: Lorei. Species: Echidna (Mother of All Serpents).

Stopping, I look around for the source of the voice but much like before with Zuri, there's nothing there. I look down to see if it's another snake or other animal but much to my surprise, there's still nothing there.

Me: Did you hear that just now?

Zuri: Oh, I forgot to explain. My bad, mistress.

Zuri begins explaining as we begin walking once more. From what she explains, I find out that this world is apparently one of the many worlds that the three beings created. In this world, in particular, they've created a system-like functionality that allows almost all life to have and use skills which in turn enables the use of magic and powerful buffs. This same system announces major changes such as levelling up, gaining a new skill or evolving to the affected person. It's from this information that Zuri theorizes that I was able to hear a portion of her announcement through the telepathic link between us.

Me: I see. Does that mean I might hear this system's voice in the future as well?

Zuri: Well, that's unlikely. You were created outside the system to match your specifications. As such, you're more of a deity here and are too powerful for the system to calculate any perceivable amount of data to begin...

Me: A deity?

Zuri: Oh. I keep forgetting that you didn't receive the debriefing. Essentially, you and I are the only ones who know that this world is governed by a system. As such, we must keep this truth to ourselves.

Me: I'm guessing this was explained some time between when I blacked out and woke up, correct.

Zuri: Indeed. Though you were already unconscious when I was created.

Zuri continues, explaining that to aid with keeping up false pretences, I'm to refer to myself as a goddess if anyone asks what I am. The reason for this, she further explains, is that the system has been alerted to show "Goddess" whenever someone tries to use an appraisal skill on me.

Me: What is an appraisal skill, exactly?

Zuri: A skill that gives you information about a targeted object, monster, plant or person including their species, stats and skills. Results will vary based on the level of the skill and the target's own skills and level. It should be pointed out though that in your case, any appraisals would simply be blocked.

So it really is just like a video game then. This should make traversing this world easy once I learn to use my own skills. Wait, do I even have skills? I remember her saying that this world is governed by a system that has been instructed to ignore me...

Me: Can I use skills?

Zuri: From what I was told, the answer is a bit complicated. You can't use any of the skills within the system but...you can create your own. That being said, it won't really be a skill. Instead, it'd simply be you manipulating the energy within you or the forces outside you to do your bidding.

I see. So basically, because I'm not under the care of the system I'm free to do whatever I want. That's awesome but also terrifying at the same time. If it were a predefined skill, I could just use it like in a game (I think) but if it's up to what I create, there's no telling where my limits lie.

Wait...didn't I say I wanted to be all-powerful? Maybe they really did grant my request which would mean I am only limited by my own imagination. In which case, I should probably limit myself. There's no reason to cause mass destruction right now. I'm certain that much like in my world, the humans here are busy fighting amongst themselves but would quickly band together if they deem something a threat to their own survival and I have no intention of fighting the world right from the get-go. I'd much prefer to explore a bit first.

Now that I think about it, what exactly would my objective be here? Sure, I want to live a happy life and I want to be able to protect myself but what else? Do I want to create a nation of my own or simply live as a normal citizen? I guess I could also become an adventurer as well or a noble perhaps. I could even join the military of one of the neighbouring countries or simply live as a hermit. The possibilities are endless really. In any case, however, the first order of business has to be finding a way out of this god-forsaken forest.

As the thought leaves my mind, I find my vision expanded beyond what it was capable of before and before long, my eyesight finally settles on a road. Along this road, there's a caravan and it is seemingly under attack. As I continue focusing on the scene, I notice that I can hear what's happening as though I was right there.

Bandit#1: Remember! We're being paid to ensure not one of them escape alive! Kill them all!

Bandit#2: What of the loot boss?

Bandit#1: Free for the taking. The client only wants them dead and cares not for their treasures.

????: Please! Spare my wife and child!

I watch in horror as the one who I assume is the boss of their group cuts the man down without hesitation before beginning to make his way towards a woman who's holding a child. She screams as he gets closer and I feel the urge to help them. Grabbing Zuri's hand, I start heading in their direction. I'm in such a panic that I don't even recognize that the world around us becomes a blur until I find myself suddenly standing in between the man and the mother.

There's silence as everyone seemingly stops to try and process what just happened. I'm confused because I certainly shouldn't be here this quickly. The attackers are confused because I assume I practically appeared out of thin air with Zuri in tow. Zuri is confused because she didn't see what I saw and had no idea of my plan. Still, it's the mother who recovers first.

????: Please! Help us!

Before I can answer, Zuri seemingly recognizes what's happening and what my wishes are and springs into action. I watch in utter amazement as she flits around the battlefield, mowing down all the attackers with a sword she took from a fallen guard. The remaining guards can only stand back and watch as she systematically removes their opponents before vanishing and reappearing at her next target.

In truth, she's not teleporting. At first, I thought that was what she was doing but as I continued to focus on her movements, I quickly noticed that all she was doing was moving quickly. With this speed, it's not long before only their "boss" remains. He'd been stuck, frozen in shock, before me but now he's regained his senses and begins making his way directly towards me.

I find myself frozen in fear as his axe comes down towards me. Zuri tries to intervene but one of the men she cut down earlier grabs ahold of her foot, temporarily drawing her attention away from me for just a second and that's all the time he needs.

The axe comes down on my shoulder. There's silence and for a moment, I think I can hear the sound of galloping horses in the distance. The silence doesn't last long, however, and soon it's replaced by the sound of metal shattering. I watch as his eyes widen in horror before an explosion obscures my vision. When the dust finally clears, I find Zuri with the mother, child and father all safely some distance away. One of the guards is pouring a green looking liquid into the father's mouth and as the last drop leaves the bottle, his wounds glow before being healed completely.

Seeing this reminds me that I myself had just gotten chopped by an axe and I quickly scan myself for damage but find that not even my clothing has been torn. In fact, despite the dust, my clothes are perfectly clean. What's more, it seems I am the one in the centre of the crater formed by the explosion.

Before I can process the scene any further, the father sits up just as the horses I had heard earlier make it onto the scene, carrying soldiers on their backs. They quickly surround me causing Zuri to rush to my side but before they can advance further, the mother of the child shouts at them to stop, making it clear that we were the ones who saved them. This shocks the newcomers at first but as they look around it becomes clear from our dressing that we aren't with those that lie dead all around.

????: Might I know your names, strangers?

Turning to face him properly, I notice he's now back to normal except for his torn clothing. He has the presence of a leader but even it can't outshine the smile he's shining in our direction. Smiling back, I take the initiative, deciding that it can't hurt to introduce ourselves though I refrain from giving my full name, something Zuri notices immediately but doesn't comment on.

Me: My name is Rael and this is Zuri.