First Steps

Being flung through the portal, I was greeted with a truly bizarre sight. All around me was a sea of stars and galaxies swirling through space, occasionally dimming and brightening.

"Woah."

I've seen stars before, but these were different. There were no words to describe them other than breathtaking. I watched as the fiery orbs continued roaming through space, like rivulets of sweat on the face of the universe.

Brining my attention back to myself, I noticed that I was still going extremely fast.

"Shit!"

Swinging my hands around in a panic, I desperately tried to stop myself from accelerating, but it was futile. My speed continued to increase every second I flew through the sky. My surroundings soon became narrower and narrower until I could only see a singular dot in front of me.

Closing my eyes, I hoped for the best. I didn't have to wait long however, as a planet entered my view. My eyes widened in terror and before I could vocalize it, my body froze in place outside the planet's atmosphere.

I breathed out a sigh of relief and put my hand over my heart.

"Damn, that was a close one. Wouldn't want to die a second time, now would I?"

{System Activation Sequence Beginning...}

Suddenly, a loading bar appeared in my head.

"Is this? Could it be?"

{9%}

{26%}

{49%}

{69%}

A small grin appeared on my face as I saw the number, 'Nice.'

{87%}

{99%}

{100%}

{Installation complete. Please read settings for more information.}

'Hopefully this isn't going to be a sentient system. I don't think I'd be able to stand having another person in my head all the time.'

'System.' I called out in my head, trying to open it.

{The Astral System}

Name: Jason Astra

Race: Human+

Gender: Male

Age: 17

Class: None+

{Stats}+

Body - 10+

Energy - 10+

Soul - 10+

{Skills}

None.

{Perks}

Star of Conquest - ???

Star of Conquest: Sub-Perk - Contract

Star of Conquest: Sub-Perk - Dominate

{Skill Shop}

[Balance: 0 SP]

[Skills]

Skink Character Card - A: 50 SP

Saurus Character Card - A: 50 SP

Slann Character Card - A: 50 SP

{Quests}

[Tutorial - Mandatory Quest]

You were given a second chance, don't blow it.

Mission: read through all of the extra information in the system by selecting any "+" symbols that you see.

Reward: 50 SP

~~~~~~

"Sigh, sure let's do it."

Going back to the top of the list, I selected the Race button.

{Race: Human}

For now you are human, but be warned. Using character cards and skills may not directly change your race, but if you use enough of them, you may find yourself changing. Whether that change is for the better or the worse, though is up to you.

~~~~~~

'Hmm... that's okay. As long as I don't combine with anything truly evil or hideous, I should be fine.'

'Next is Class then.'

{Class: None}

In order to obtain a class, you must use a character card. Classes are not active decisions and will be automatically unlocked as the user collects more character cards. When the user obtains a class, they will unlock skills pertaining to that class in the Skill Shop.

~~~~~~

'Ohhkay? I'm not quite sure what that means, but it should make sense once I obtain a class.'

'Then Stats.'

{Stats}

Stats represent the numerical estimation of the user's base power. For a better picture of how to rate stats, 10 is the average of human adults and 15 is the peak that humans can reach.

Body - 10

The body stat represents the physical prowess that you currently wield. This stat affects one's physical strength, speed, dexterity, durability and regenerative capabilities. This stat will eventually cap out depending on the user's race and skills.

Energy - 10

The energy stat represents the magic power stored in the user. This stat governs how many spells the user can use without growing tired and the scale of spells that the user can use. This stat will eventually cap out depending on the user's race and skills.

Soul - 10

The soul stat represents the spiritual strength of the user and the power of their soul. This stat governs the power of spiritual attacks and the resistance that the user has against such attacks. This stat also represents the power of any divinities or concepts that the user may acquire.

~~~~~~

'So body is all things physical, energy is all things magic and soul is just my soul. Simple enough.'

'Okay, onto the Star of Conquest and its sub-perks.'

{Perks}

Star of Conquest - ???

During your rebirth, you were infused with the essence of stars, changing your very soul. This perk allows the user to bring a star under their command, giving them complete control of all energy within that solar system and unlocking new abilities based on planets in that system. When entering a new solar system for the first time, you may choose whether to contract or dominate a star as both have benefits and drawbacks.

Star of Conquest: Sub-Perk - Contract

Make a deal with a star to help fulfill a destiny on one of its planets and it will cede itself to you. There are no requirements to use this ability and once the contract is fulfilled, you will gain an EX-Tier Character Card in the skill shop.

Star of Conquest: Sub-Perk - Dominate

Exert your power on a star to force it to fall under your banner. In order to use this ability, you must already control at least two stars of the same rank as the star you're trying to dominate. Once this ability is used, you gain an A-Tier Character Card in the skill shop.

~~~~~~

Interesting, so I'm supposed to use this skill to conquer solar systems and gain high-ranked skills. It seems like this skill might be broken, if only a little bit.

{Quest Complete}

[Tutorial - Mandatory Quest]

You were given a second chance, don't blow it.

Mission: read through all of the extra information in the system by selecting any "+" symbols that you see.

Reward: 50 SP

~~~~~~

{New Quest}

[Bye Bye SP! - Mandatory Quest]

You're about to go to an unknown planet with no way to protect yourself and no knowledge of the local area. Maybe you should consider buying a pre-set character card from the shop first.

Mission: buy a character card from the shop.

Reward: a skill voucher usable only for the character card you purchased.

~~~~~~

"I was just about to do that though," I muttered with a small smile.

'Open Skill Shop.'

{Skill Shop}

[Balance: 50 SP]

[Skills]

Skink Character Card - A: 50 SP

Saurus Character Card - A: 50 SP

Slann Character Card - A: 50 SP

~~~~~~

'If these names are from what I think they are, I've struck the jackpot.'

With zero hesitation, I purchased the Slann Character Card.

{Notification}

Perk Acquired: Slann

Skills Acquired: Arcane Bolt, Mystic Shield

New Skills Available: Foresight, Summon Seraphon, Slann Commander, Master of Order, Slann Starmaster

Energy + 15

Soul + 5

~~~~~~

{New Quest}

[Who Wants to Play, SPEND THAT VOUCHER! - Mandatory Quest]

You heard me boy, spend that voucher, now.

Mission: spend the voucher on a Slann skill.

Reward: a nice feeling.

~~~~~~

"Fine, just stop with the mandatory quests already."

'System, show me all available skills and a description for each.'

{Skill Shop}

[Balance: 50 SP]

[Skills]

Skink Character Card - A: 50 SP

Saurus Character Card - A: 50 SP

[Slann Skills:]

Foresight: 25 SP

The Starmaster casts his mind into the future, reading the threads of destiny as easily as a mortal would read a map.

Summon Seraphon: 25 SP

The slann leaders of the Starborne can call forth armies of Seraphon from their temple- ships in the blink of an eye.

Slann Commander: 25 SP

After being alive for millennia, the slann have picked up a few tricks to help win battles with fewer casualties.

Master of Order: 50 SP

The slann are among the greatest wizards in existence, and they shape the very stars with their magic.

Slann Starmaster: 100 SP

Ancient beings created to serve the Old Ones, the Starmasters are amongst the greatest wizards in all the realms. The powers of the heavens are theirs to command, the energies of the stars wielded to annihilate their enemies.

~~~~~~

'Well shit... that's not very descriptive.'

'Hmm, well first of all, foresight's out. I need better protection right now, it's just not the right time for it. Slann Commander is out next, why should I invest in leadership when I have no one to lead? Although Master of Order and Slann Starmaster sound good, I need some guarantee that my throat won't be slit while I sleep. Plus, I've always been the kind to level up my Conjuration perk tree in Skyrim.'

'System, buy Summon Seraphon.'

{Notification}

Skill Acquired: Summon Basic Skinks

New Skills Available: Summon II

~~~~~~

'So, I can only summon skinks at first. I can work with that.' I thought while a feral grin appeared on my face.

'System, open up the main menu.'

{The Astral System}

Name: Jason Astra

Race: Human

Gender: Male

Age: 17

Class: None

{Stats}

Body - 10

Energy - 25

Soul - 15

{Skills}

Arcane Bolt - E

Mystic Shield - E

Summon Basic Skinks - D

{Perks}

Star of Conquest - ???

- Star of Conquest: Sub-Perk - Contract

- Star of Conquest: Sub-Perk - Dominate

Slann - A

{Skill Shop}

[Balance: 0 SP]

[Skills]

Skink Character Card - A: 50 SP

Saurus Character Card - A: 50 SP

[Slann Skills:]

Foresight: 25 SP

Slann Commander: 25 SP

Summon II: 50 SP

Master of Order: 50 SP

Slann Starmaster: 100 SP

~~~~~~

{New Quest}

[Trial by Fire - Mandatory]

It's time for you to leave the relative safety of the planet's orbit and get down there to complete some quests! Aren't you excited? No? Too bad! Now get down there and do something with your life.

Mission: don't die, that's it.

Reward: 20 SP

~~~~~~

"Sigh, I guess I gotta get going. And they didn't even give me a proper explanation."

{Notification}

Transportation in 5

4

3

2

1

0

Transporting..

~~~~~~

"Bring it on world! I'm ready for anything!"