A New World
Story by SkyWing on SoFurry
The first chapter of yet another series that has popped into my head after reading way too many other stories and the like.
“Hello Marcus, sorry to call you in such a sudden manner. I hope you will still hear me out despite that."
The fox blinks as he found himself sitting on a large pillow, set in front of only a short table in a sea of white, literally nothing and no one as far as the eye could see, except for a grey ball of light floating on the other side of the table. He scratched behind his ear as he looked around, trying to figure where he was and what had happened before he spoke up, his head tilted slight as he stared at the ball.
“Um… where are we? And, are you a soul or something?"
The ball bounced in the air, appearing to glow a little before the fox as it floated around the table to draw closer to him.
“Well, yes, I am a soul, and so are you. My name is Archie and I summoned your soul here after you had died because I wanted to see if you were interested in an offer I was going to provide to you."
“Wha-!… but how!?"
Marcus blinked again at that… he was dead, that was what the bal-… what Archie had said. He didn't know how or why he would have died, he was in great shape and had not done anything dangerous that could have resulted in that. Heck, he remembered just going to bed and laying down-
“You died in your sleep. Well, more accurately, you had a… heart defect… I think that is what the people helping you said. That was about two days ago in your world."
A heart defect? He had something like that, he couldn't recall ever hearing that from any of the physicals he had gotten before he turned 20, and he had already been dead for two days on Earth. The black fox just stared down at his white-furred paws for a few seconds, letting it all sink in before he shook his head and turned back to the ball of light, still looking a little confused.
“You said 'your world' just now, so are you some god of another world or something? And does that have something to do with that offer of yours?"
“Oh, no. No no no no no, not at all," the ball said, laughing in such a way the fox could be certain now from the tone he had to be the soul of an old man. “While I am from another world as you said, I am not a god. No, I am merely a sorcerer from a world called Veritate, although I have met with two of the gods of my world, and my offer does involve my world. You see, me and my comrades-in-arms spent decades perfecting our crafts and skills, gathering all of this knowledge in our fields, and we realized that we had once we died it would all disappear because of how our societies are and making all high-level techniques a secret for only the nobles to know. We couldn't stand that, so one by one, we pooled our knowledge, power, and skills as we died, and as the last, I wanted to find our successor to inherit it all.
“I've floated in this spiritual world between dimensions for centuries, observing the souls of billions across my world, yours, and two others for someone compatible… and the one I finally found was you. So my offer is this, with the last bit of magic my soul contains, I would reincarnate into a body, a homunculus we left in our base that contains all of our powers in it. We had no other desires besides passing our knowledge on that the society at large would see fit never see the light of day to someone, someone that would use it for everyone where we reclusive hermits could not at the time."
Marcus sat in silence as he listened to Archie speak about his past and the world he was from, thinking about what the offered intel for him. He's not asking for anything really, he and his group just don't want all their work to be for naught or covered up by the noble class. He did say 'at the time' and he's been searching for a long time, so it could be that people have changed in that time… or not, who knows? It honestly isn't a bad deal since even the homunculus body would be even stronger and healthier than my normal body was, plus it sounds like the world could be fun and it would be better than just being another dead spirit in the afterlife.
“Alright, I don't see why I wouldn't take this offer and who knows what I'd be dealing with in the afterlife. This way, I get a head start and get some extra perks from it as well."
“Oh, thank you Marcus. You have my utmost gratitude and I wish you well in your second life…"
Archie's voice echoed into the distance as Marcus felt himself getting sleepy, drowsiness overtaking him as his body began to fall…
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
“Urgh, well, that was a trip."
The fox groaned as he woke up, leaning up from the bed he found himself on and stretching, working out the stiffness he felt in his shoulders and neck before he stood up. Marcus still remembered what Archie had said, and even without thinking too hard, he was starting to understand some of the new world he had woken up in. He turned and walked to the window near the bed, pushing it open and letting the light shine in, illuminating the space as he took a look at the outside. He gazed over the forest he was in, seeing several birds off in the distance flying around.
“Hmm, so they were in a forest huh? I suppose that makes sense if they were trying to do everything away from the eyes of nobles."
He mused about the idea as he turned back and looked around the room, and walked over to a mirror upon seeing it, to take a look at himself. Wow, this homunculus body shaped itself to fit my looks, but my eyes are grey now and it seems to have made me a little younger in the process. I don't like more than 16 or 17 like this… what the-, he thought to himself as he stared at his face in the reflection, but as he looked down, he realized he was completely naked. However, it wasn't his nakedness that bothered him, being a nudist and all, what bothered him was the face that his new body apparently was not only a younger and smaller version of his old one, but apparently ridiculously endowed. He stared incredulously at the massive balls between his legs that looked like they were the size of grapefruits, much bigger than what he had had before.
“What the heck is going on wi-… Oh, this must have been Vendart's doing since he was the alchemist. From what I gather from Archie's memories, he was a raccoon dog, so I bet he did this to leave a mark on his creation if it wasn't a raccoon dog that got the body, not that I'm complaining. Now let's see, if I remember right… Status."
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Nameless
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Homunculus
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Age : 2
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Status Condition : Excellent
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Great Sage
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Lv : 35
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Title : Ultimate Mage
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Magic : All Attributes
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Skills : Archive
Ars Magic
Chant Annulment
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Extra Effect : Protection of the Ancient One
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At his command, a screen appeared in front of him and caught him off guard, showing information that he did not really understand at first, but after looking over it a bit more with his memories of Archie he was able to figure out everything.
“Wow, this is really just like a game. Looks like this body was only two years old before Archie used his time magic to freeze everything when he died. My job is Great Sage huh? That must be because this body contains all of their skills and powers, although that job does not seem to be in Archie's memories… perhaps it's a unique one created from their efforts? Who knows, the title is similar and the skills…"
His voice trailed off as he tapped on that portion of the screen, urged onto it by the thoughts left behind by Archie. As he did, the screen changed into a list of his skill. His eye widened in shock as he looked at the massive list and went through it, realizing that there were all sorts inside him from this group: academic, business, magical, martial arts, and…
“Unique Skills. Archive, the collection of knowledge granted by predecessors. Ars Magia, the ability to use all forms of magic and magical skills. Limit Breaker, the ability to exceed the normal level cap and make skill acquisition easier. Interesting…"
He shrugged as he finished reading all of the skills and their effect, then went back to the original screen, staring at the top where it was saying Nameless. It likely says Nameless because the body is a homunculus and they left the option for their heir to use that one skill to give retain their original name. But…, he thought, thinking how this would be a very unique opportunity. He continued to ponder on an idea forming in his mind as he lifted up the clothes that he found next to the bed, staring at them and shaking his head.
Remodel
He was quick to use the skill after reading the description, changing the old fashion clothes before him into something he was more familiar with. Once he was down, he pulled on the dark grey v-neck shirt, then slipped the new black jockstrap up his legs, although he had to use the skill again to adjust its size after forgetting he was much bigger than before. He then slipped his legs into the white trousers that he fashioned to look like the hakama he had seen in Japanese shows before he wrapped the light blue sash around his waist, some of it hanging by his right hip. Looking at himself in the mirror again, he gave a nod of approval before he turned back to the screen, holding his paw up to it.
Going by what has happened, I'm a great sage, a king among the magic users. A king that has fallen to this world with powers that could look like those of a god to the people here… Yeah, I have a good name in mind.
“Name Order. Rex Godfall. And then I need to hide this power, so I don't stand out of someone scans me. Creation Magic Conceal Status."
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Rex
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Beast (Fox)
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Age : 17
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Status Condition : Excellent
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Magic Warrior
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Lv : 35
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Title : None
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Magic : Barrier
Dark
Fire
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Skills : Ground Shrink
Magic Talent
Martial Arts Talent
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Extra Effect : Divine Protection of the God of War
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He smiled as he stared over his edited screen, thinking that it would be harder for people to notice his abnormal power from just a glance.
“Awesome. Now, let's see what else is around this place."
After about two hours of looking around the different floors in the tower and reading up more on his skills, Rex stepped out of the bottom of the tower, now dressed in a long black cloak and pair of sandals as well. He smiled as he looked up into the sky, staring at the passing clouds for a second before he turned to look back at the large tower.
“A magic tower is an interesting thing, that's for sure. Under Archie, it was able to ward off time inside for centuries and now its mine. I wonder just how I'll be able to use this thing. Store."
Using the word he learned from Archie's memories, he watched as the towered glowed brightly and start to shrink before his eyes. He stepped forward a bit and picked at the shrunk base, now no bigger than, and looking exactly like a rook chess piece. The fox held it up in front of the crystal bracelet and watched again as the small tower dissolved into pixel-like particles and flow into the bracelet.
Storage item, a classic of the game worlds. I love this Lacrima Ring already! And it had everything that belonged to everyone inside of it… though it was strange that Fenvul's halberd didn't have a name, but considering almost all the other unique items were just named after the person who owned it…
Rex sighed and shook his head, putting the thought aside as he started walking into the forest. The fox whistled softly to himself as he walked through the sea of trees around him, enjoying the light breeze blowing around him and the colorful leaves swaying in the wind. If he had been back on Earth, he would have thought the various shades of brown, green and yellow were an indication of autumn, but he knew better. Blue, pink, white, and many other colors were also present on different trees, so his normal knowledge of leave colors went completely out the window.
This really is a different world; never thought I'd see a tree with white leaves and flowers on it.
He chuckled as he continued to walk for about half an hour before several Kikikii! cry suddenly echoed all around him. The fox flinched at the loud noise before he looked up, spotting nearly a dozen large red monkeys and an even larger ape sitting on some of the branches in a few trees surrounding him. At first, he would have thought they were just ordinary animals, but then he saw tentacles wiggling from behind him, it was then he was certain.
Monsters… my first monsters in this world are monkeys huh?
Rex shifted his gaze from one group to another, looking at them to make sure that they didn't do anything immediately as he used his Analyze skill to gather information on the primates.
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Fire Monkey
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Age : 7
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Lv : 23
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Status Condition : Normal
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Magic : Fire
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Skills : Bite
Immitation
Monkey Whistle
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Extra Effect : None
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Greater Fire Monkey
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Age : 12
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Lv : 47
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Status Condition : Normal
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Magic : Earth
Fire
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Skills : Bite
Flash Fist
Power
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Extra Effect : None
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Even the ape is a monkey? Very interesting, the bigger one must be that rare-type mentioned in the monster manual.
The fox smirked as he thought about how different the two monsters looked, yet they were still related as one was just an evolution of the other. He didn't get much time think about it as three of the monkeys to his left jumps from the branches they were standing on and towards him, sharp fangs and maws spread as they screeched at him. Rex narrowed his eyes at that as he turned to face them, before jumping forward as well as he swept his right arm in front of them.
Schlikt!
He passed by the trio as their bodies split in half at their waists, blood and guts splattering across the forest floor as they fell. The fox landed a little away from them, a halberd twirling around in his fingers now as he spun to face the greater fire monkey with a smirk.
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Shugetsu (Hunter Moon)
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Rank: A
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An ornate halberd made from the ore of a meteorite and mythril that possesses exceptional keenness and durability.
Special Features : Magic Conduit, User Restriction, Weight Reduction
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The weapon had been nameless under Fenvul, but using the Name Order skill, Rex was able to give it a name just as he did his new body. He grinned as he stopped spinning and pointed the end of the halberd at the next group of monkeys, the crescent axe, spearhead, and pike glowing softly as he channeled his magic through the weapon.
“Wind Edge!"
As he shouted the spell's name, a wide blade of compressed air flew forward from Shugetsu and ripped through the four monkeys he was aiming at along with the trees behind them. He couldn't help but stare a little in awe at that after seeing the wind blade flying in front of him, before excitement flooded through him at the joy of really being able to use magic. The fox grinned widely as he saw the rest of the monkeys and the rare-species one jump at him, thanking Archie in his head about being brought into such a fun new world.
Hours later, Rex was sitting next to a river looking at the list of monsters he had run into while wandering through the forest. Monkeys, spiders, slugs, and bear were among the normal monsters he had met, then there were the trademark fantasy monsters like goblins and a couple orcs he had run across. He also found out that his Analyze and Limit Breaker skills also allowed him to take a couple skills from the monsters he fought with. The fox was smiling to himself as he looked over everything he had stored in the Lacrima Ring, wondering how he would be able to use all of the broken up parts of each monster when another loud screech echoed in the distance.
SKRAAA!
HISSSS!
Instantly, Rex was on his paws again, Shugetsu brought out from the storage space as had started to become a habit as he looked around, not seeing anything at first before a cloud of dust rose up behind the wall of trees on the other side of the river.
“So, it isn't another monster attacking me? Must be two monsters fighting each other. Let's go have a look then."
He kept his halberd out as jumped across the river, easily passing over the teen foot wide gap with the leap, before jogging through the trees as quietly as he can while heading towards the source of the sound. As he got closer, he could feel the ground shaking under his sandals, and the air was getting warmer as the smell of flames filled the air, and the reason for all of it became clear as came up to a small clearing.
“Whooooa…"
He stared in awe as the large frames of a burning orange bird and violet snake with wing were squaring off, both screeching and hissing at each other as they stared at each other. The knowledge of one species was at the forefront of his mind from first glance, while the second came up only a second later.
“A phoenix… and jaculus."