Hello and good day dear reader and thank you for joining me on my first Quest. A quest with Magic, Elves, intrigue and (hopefully) a lot of fun. I hope you'll give me a chance to entertain and have some fun with you all!
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Introduction, background and character
- Location
- UK
Hello and good day dear reader and thank you for joining me on my first Quest. With that in mind, please excuse any mistakes I make in the course of playing.
The idea for this thread is basically to give me a chance to work with an original fantasy world I invented for an original work I plan to write at some point, see what works, what doesn't and so on. With that in mind, some background.
The world is Anima, inventive, I know, a world where Magic is common place, a wide variety of critters and all the usual things you'd expect from a Fantasy world. The Player Character is a Phantasm, basically a Human summoned by Anima in response to Mortal performing a Summoning Ritual so as to create a powerful protector, just in case the Summoning goes horribly wrong. Phantasm's are basically composed of pure Magic, making it incredibly easy for them to learn just about anything and granting them stupidly high Magical ability levels, along with certain...other advantages that will become clear in the first part of the story but I'll keep to myself for now so as to not spoil the surprise.
For now, thats all thats needed. I'll add to this as more things come up, details about the character, world and party. Yes, there will likely be characters tagging along. Should be interesting.
The idea for this thread is basically to give me a chance to work with an original fantasy world I invented for an original work I plan to write at some point, see what works, what doesn't and so on. With that in mind, some background.
The world is Anima, inventive, I know, a world where Magic is common place, a wide variety of critters and all the usual things you'd expect from a Fantasy world. The Player Character is a Phantasm, basically a Human summoned by Anima in response to Mortal performing a Summoning Ritual so as to create a powerful protector, just in case the Summoning goes horribly wrong. Phantasm's are basically composed of pure Magic, making it incredibly easy for them to learn just about anything and granting them stupidly high Magical ability levels, along with certain...other advantages that will become clear in the first part of the story but I'll keep to myself for now so as to not spoil the surprise.
For now, thats all thats needed. I'll add to this as more things come up, details about the character, world and party. Yes, there will likely be characters tagging along. Should be interesting.
Hellhound: A species of Elemental Beast that resemble enormous hounds and command both fire and shadows. Like most Elementals, Hellhounds are mostly solitary and avoid civilisation, preferring to dwell deep in the mountains. They are highly territorial and aggressive when disturbed and their terrifying Magical powers of fire and darkness, combined with their incredible strength, speed and durability make them almost impossible to defeat by any but the highest level Adventurers or powerful and prepared Mages. For most, encountering a Hellhound is a death sentence.
Simple clothing
199 Gold 75 silver
Mysterious crystal
simple leather armour
simple longsword
Elven Armour
Elven ring (poison resist)
199 Gold 75 silver
Mysterious crystal
simple leather armour
simple longsword
Elven Armour
Elven ring (poison resist)
Last edited:
First Steps Part 1
- Location
- UK
Right, I'm assuming that the likes were interest, so lets get started. I'm not entirely sure how I should set out the choices, so let me know if I should change it.
Waking up hurt. You aren't surprised by that considering your last memory was being struck by lightning. you groan as you sit up, struggling a little due to the pain from both your muscles and stomach. For some reason, you are hungry, more hungry than you'd ever been in your life. How long had you been unconscious for? You open my eyes and look around. Considering the amount of pain you are in, it takes you a couple of minutes to realize that there was something wrong with your surroundings.
You are in a clearing in a forest, but there is something...strange about it. The leaves and grass was a little too green, the flowers to vibrant and the air itself felt...strangely heavy. Not only that, but the sky was completely clear of clouds and you are naked. Considering how much pain you are in, that didn't register quite as much as it probably should have, but you really can't bring myself to care about a little nudity when your muscles felt like they were ripping themselves apart, your bones like they were about to explode and your stomach seems to be trying to digest itself.
You groan in pain as you slowly push yourself to your hands and knees and then your feet, using a nearby tree as a crutch. No matter how much your body hurt, you know you can't stay where you were. You have no idea where you are and something was clearly wrong with you, so you had to find a trail or something where you could be found by a passerby. And if you found something safe to eat before then, that would be nice as well.
You look around again, straining your ears and eyes through the pain. In the distance above the treeline, you can see a thin pillar of smoke, while off to the right is the sound of flowing water. The stream is clearly closer and will likely eventually lead to civilisation, while the smoke is a clear sign that someone is over in that direction, but is a lot further away. Either option would be good, certainly better than staying put. You hesitate for a moment, before making a decision.
Which way will you go?
Towards the smoke.
Towards the stream.
Waking up hurt. You aren't surprised by that considering your last memory was being struck by lightning. you groan as you sit up, struggling a little due to the pain from both your muscles and stomach. For some reason, you are hungry, more hungry than you'd ever been in your life. How long had you been unconscious for? You open my eyes and look around. Considering the amount of pain you are in, it takes you a couple of minutes to realize that there was something wrong with your surroundings.
You are in a clearing in a forest, but there is something...strange about it. The leaves and grass was a little too green, the flowers to vibrant and the air itself felt...strangely heavy. Not only that, but the sky was completely clear of clouds and you are naked. Considering how much pain you are in, that didn't register quite as much as it probably should have, but you really can't bring myself to care about a little nudity when your muscles felt like they were ripping themselves apart, your bones like they were about to explode and your stomach seems to be trying to digest itself.
You groan in pain as you slowly push yourself to your hands and knees and then your feet, using a nearby tree as a crutch. No matter how much your body hurt, you know you can't stay where you were. You have no idea where you are and something was clearly wrong with you, so you had to find a trail or something where you could be found by a passerby. And if you found something safe to eat before then, that would be nice as well.
You look around again, straining your ears and eyes through the pain. In the distance above the treeline, you can see a thin pillar of smoke, while off to the right is the sound of flowing water. The stream is clearly closer and will likely eventually lead to civilisation, while the smoke is a clear sign that someone is over in that direction, but is a lot further away. Either option would be good, certainly better than staying put. You hesitate for a moment, before making a decision.
Which way will you go?
Towards the smoke.
Towards the stream.
First Steps Part 2
- Location
- UK
Right, thats long enough. I guess we're heading to the smoke.
You quickly decide that the smoke is the better option as, although its further, there is more likely to be civilisation close by as opposed to the stream where you may have to walk for a while to find anything. You start moving, each step drawing lances of pain from your screaming body and nearly sending you crashing to the ground if you weren't holding tightly to the trees as much as you can.
You quickly loose track of time as you make your way through the trees, using a fallen branch as a crutch as best you can. You slow down as you continue as the pain increased, made even worse by the bizarre hunger that makes you more and more willing to do something stupid like chow down on some rather dangerous looking red mushrooms. Fortunately, you resisted the urge, but it was getting to the point where you'd be willing to eat one of the obviously poisonous mushrooms, just to get away from the pain you are in.
As you draw closer to the smoke, the scent of the fire begins to reach your nostrils, accompanied by a strangely appetising coppery smell you cannot identify. You pause for a moment to rest, but before you can do more than lean against the nearest tree, the wind chances and carries four distinct yet delicious scents to your nose.
The first is off to the right, down a dark trail that leads towards a small hill and reminds you of the scent that comes from the damp earth after you flip over a rock, accompanied by a bittersweet smell that is simultaneously inviting and terrifying.
The second is off to your left, a smell of swampy water mixed with a faint smell you vaguely recognise from when you were a child and visited a farm park where they had kept horses.
The third is from just off to the side from the smoke you were heading towards and reminds you of the fresh scent of the air after a thunderstorm, mixed with the distinctive smell of ozone.
The final scent seems to be coming from the source of the smoke and, fittingly enough, is a hot, smokey smell, mixed with the bizarre smell of wet dog and brimstone of all things.
Despite the fact that any one of the smells would normally repulse you, you find yourself unable to resist and somehow know that any one of them will lead you to the most delicious meal you ever had in your life. The question is, which is the best choice?
First
Second
Third
Fourth
You quickly decide that the smoke is the better option as, although its further, there is more likely to be civilisation close by as opposed to the stream where you may have to walk for a while to find anything. You start moving, each step drawing lances of pain from your screaming body and nearly sending you crashing to the ground if you weren't holding tightly to the trees as much as you can.
You quickly loose track of time as you make your way through the trees, using a fallen branch as a crutch as best you can. You slow down as you continue as the pain increased, made even worse by the bizarre hunger that makes you more and more willing to do something stupid like chow down on some rather dangerous looking red mushrooms. Fortunately, you resisted the urge, but it was getting to the point where you'd be willing to eat one of the obviously poisonous mushrooms, just to get away from the pain you are in.
As you draw closer to the smoke, the scent of the fire begins to reach your nostrils, accompanied by a strangely appetising coppery smell you cannot identify. You pause for a moment to rest, but before you can do more than lean against the nearest tree, the wind chances and carries four distinct yet delicious scents to your nose.
The first is off to the right, down a dark trail that leads towards a small hill and reminds you of the scent that comes from the damp earth after you flip over a rock, accompanied by a bittersweet smell that is simultaneously inviting and terrifying.
The second is off to your left, a smell of swampy water mixed with a faint smell you vaguely recognise from when you were a child and visited a farm park where they had kept horses.
The third is from just off to the side from the smoke you were heading towards and reminds you of the fresh scent of the air after a thunderstorm, mixed with the distinctive smell of ozone.
The final scent seems to be coming from the source of the smoke and, fittingly enough, is a hot, smokey smell, mixed with the bizarre smell of wet dog and brimstone of all things.
Despite the fact that any one of the smells would normally repulse you, you find yourself unable to resist and somehow know that any one of them will lead you to the most delicious meal you ever had in your life. The question is, which is the best choice?
First
Second
Third
Fourth
First Steps Part 3
- Location
- UK
Thank you for the tiebreaker! Guess we're heading for the smoke. Oh, and if you're squeamish or like dogs you might want to brace yourself. This is where we discover what makes Phantasms so unique.
You continue through the woods towards the smoke, the small amount of reason left under the pure instinctive desire to eat indicating that the presence of smoke indicated Humans and safety, in addition to food. You quickly begin to move faster, all thoughts of the pain fading in favour of finding the source of that incredible scent.
Eventually, you burst from the trees and find yourself stood on the edge of a large clearing and slamming back to yourself in shock and horror as the true source of the smell became apparent. You have technically found Humans, but there aren't any left alive. Instead, it is a battlefield, inhabited by nothing but crows and other scavenges, all picking at the corpses of armoured men and women, all in various states of dismemberment or burnt to a crisp. A part of you notices that some of the bodies don't appear entirely Human and all were armed and armoured with equipment straight out a fantasy game, but most of you had quickly focused on the enormous body in the middle of the clearing, apparently the thing responsible for the massacre and the source of the smell that had lead you here.
It looked like a dog, but no dog you had ever seen looked quite like this one, nor were they the size of a garbage truck. It was quite clearly dead, but that did nothing to hide the sheer size and strength it clearly had in life, nor the fact it had teeth and claws the size of swords that looked capable of ripping through plate armour like paper, a fact backed up by a few of the knights that looked like they'd been used as chew toys. Its eyes were a blazing red, even in death, and the blood leaking from the many wounds that covered its pitch black hide were leaking glowing orange blood that looked more like larva than anything.
You jerk back as you suddenly realise that, without realising it, you had approached the great beast and placed a hand on its side. You yank your hand away and find it covered in warm, orange blood. For a moment, you stare down at your hand, before, without fully thinking, you lick a bit off.
It is like a bomb goes off in your mouth. You are unable to fully describe the flavour, but whatever reservations you might have had a moment ago were gone. Heedless of anything else, you rip into the corpse, its flesh literally melting in your mouth and filling it with the single most delicious thing you have ever tasted. Anything else pales in comparison and the entire world falls away as you gorge yourself past the point where you should have been full or choked to death on something inedible as you don't even stop for the bones, teeth or claws.
Finally, after what must have been hours, you swallow the last morsel of Hellhound and finally stop to catch your breath. Despite everything, you only feel pleasantly full, despite the fact you'd just consumed enough meat to feed a family of four for a month, assuming it was edible in the first place. You swallow a couple of times and stagger to your feet, your leg muscles throbbing slightly from the amount of time you'd spent kneeling, but before you can do much more than look around, the ignored pain abruptly slammed into your body with a vengeance and your vision vanishes in a flash of light.
It takes a moment for your sleep addled mind to properly register what was wrong with that statement, but when it does, you shoot upright and throw the covers aside to discover that you do indeed have a fluffy black tail emerging from the seat of your pants. Not only that, but your feet are covered in black fur and tipped with short but sharp claws, as have your hands, your ears had migrated to the top of your head and become pointed and furry and, when you catch sight of yourself in the mirror above the vanity across the room from you, your eyes have turned a fiery red, your teeth have lengthened into fangs and your hair has turned black and seems to be producing a faint, black haze.
You have two choices.
Scream and panic.
Try to remain calm and try to figure out what in the world is going on.
You continue through the woods towards the smoke, the small amount of reason left under the pure instinctive desire to eat indicating that the presence of smoke indicated Humans and safety, in addition to food. You quickly begin to move faster, all thoughts of the pain fading in favour of finding the source of that incredible scent.
Eventually, you burst from the trees and find yourself stood on the edge of a large clearing and slamming back to yourself in shock and horror as the true source of the smell became apparent. You have technically found Humans, but there aren't any left alive. Instead, it is a battlefield, inhabited by nothing but crows and other scavenges, all picking at the corpses of armoured men and women, all in various states of dismemberment or burnt to a crisp. A part of you notices that some of the bodies don't appear entirely Human and all were armed and armoured with equipment straight out a fantasy game, but most of you had quickly focused on the enormous body in the middle of the clearing, apparently the thing responsible for the massacre and the source of the smell that had lead you here.
It looked like a dog, but no dog you had ever seen looked quite like this one, nor were they the size of a garbage truck. It was quite clearly dead, but that did nothing to hide the sheer size and strength it clearly had in life, nor the fact it had teeth and claws the size of swords that looked capable of ripping through plate armour like paper, a fact backed up by a few of the knights that looked like they'd been used as chew toys. Its eyes were a blazing red, even in death, and the blood leaking from the many wounds that covered its pitch black hide were leaking glowing orange blood that looked more like larva than anything.
You jerk back as you suddenly realise that, without realising it, you had approached the great beast and placed a hand on its side. You yank your hand away and find it covered in warm, orange blood. For a moment, you stare down at your hand, before, without fully thinking, you lick a bit off.
It is like a bomb goes off in your mouth. You are unable to fully describe the flavour, but whatever reservations you might have had a moment ago were gone. Heedless of anything else, you rip into the corpse, its flesh literally melting in your mouth and filling it with the single most delicious thing you have ever tasted. Anything else pales in comparison and the entire world falls away as you gorge yourself past the point where you should have been full or choked to death on something inedible as you don't even stop for the bones, teeth or claws.
Finally, after what must have been hours, you swallow the last morsel of Hellhound and finally stop to catch your breath. Despite everything, you only feel pleasantly full, despite the fact you'd just consumed enough meat to feed a family of four for a month, assuming it was edible in the first place. You swallow a couple of times and stagger to your feet, your leg muscles throbbing slightly from the amount of time you'd spent kneeling, but before you can do much more than look around, the ignored pain abruptly slammed into your body with a vengeance and your vision vanishes in a flash of light.
-------------------------------------------------
You awaken to a rather unusual sensation. The pain that had plagued you has mercifully vanished, along with the hunger. You are still hungry, but now its more normal than the gnawing emptiness it had been. Not only that, but you are warm, dry and comfortable. You sigh as you nuzzle deeper into the pillow. It appears that everything had just been a dream. You shift slightly so you aren't laying on your tail anymore and settle back down to go back to sleep.It takes a moment for your sleep addled mind to properly register what was wrong with that statement, but when it does, you shoot upright and throw the covers aside to discover that you do indeed have a fluffy black tail emerging from the seat of your pants. Not only that, but your feet are covered in black fur and tipped with short but sharp claws, as have your hands, your ears had migrated to the top of your head and become pointed and furry and, when you catch sight of yourself in the mirror above the vanity across the room from you, your eyes have turned a fiery red, your teeth have lengthened into fangs and your hair has turned black and seems to be producing a faint, black haze.
You have two choices.
Scream and panic.
Try to remain calm and try to figure out what in the world is going on.
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First Steps Part 4
- Location
- UK
Guess we're panicking. Fair enough.
Your reaction to discovering your new additions is rather predictable. After screaming your lungs out, you start to hyperventilate as everything hits you at once. Its abundantly clear from both the battlefield you'd found and the oversized mutt you'd somehow eaten that you aren't exactly in Kansas anymore, meaning that you are lost and alone in a world you know nothing about and undergoing changes you can't explain. You have no idea if you can even survive in this world, let alone get home, which only makes things worse for you.
Abruptly, your panic attack is cut off by someone throwing a bucket of water over you, the cold liquid shocking you out of your panic as you instinctively let out a yelp that fits your new canine additions rather well.
"Sorry about that, but you were about to set the linens on fire," says a voice from the door.
You turn, blinking water from your eyes, as the source of the voice and water enters the room fully. At first glance, she appears to be a normal Human girl, clad in a simple, but well made, pale blue dress, crisp, white apron, simple leather boots and what appears to be a headband made of twisted branches keeping her pale pink hair out of her eyes, with the only odd parts of her appearance being the short sword attached to her belt and the woody stems that twine around her arms. However, a closer look reveals that she is anything but Human. Her skin carries a greenish tint and her eyes are the colour of leaves. As in, the entire thing, white, iris and pupil. Not only that, but the stems around her arms and what you first took as a simple headband are actually a part of her, apparently growing from her body, while her hair is actually composed of thin vines, each covered in tiny pink flowers.
The clearing of a throat jolts you out of your shocked staring and you look away with a blush.
"Sorry," you say.
"Don't worry about it," say's the girl, "Frankly, I'm used to it. Dryads are rather uncommon and I'm not exactly a normal Dryad either."
She puts the bucket down by the door and disappears for a moment, before returning with a plate of food that, while simple fare, smells incredible to your newly sensitive nose and is more than enough to set your stomach growling. The girl giggles softly at the noise as she puts the tray on the dresser.
"Here, eat and then come downstairs," she say's, "The Guildmaster wants to talk to you."
She turns to leave, but you catch her wrist before she can. She glances back at you with a raised eyebrow as you try to decide what the most important question to ask is.
Where are you?
How did you get here?
Who is she?
What is happening to you?
I'm...not entirely pleased with this one, but I want to try and get one round out a day, assuming nothing goes horribly wrong. I'm also not to sure how best to do dialogue, especially regarding things like this, so I'm making things up as I go along. Please do let me know if I mess anything up. I'd also like some feedback on what you think of the world and characters as events unfold.
Your reaction to discovering your new additions is rather predictable. After screaming your lungs out, you start to hyperventilate as everything hits you at once. Its abundantly clear from both the battlefield you'd found and the oversized mutt you'd somehow eaten that you aren't exactly in Kansas anymore, meaning that you are lost and alone in a world you know nothing about and undergoing changes you can't explain. You have no idea if you can even survive in this world, let alone get home, which only makes things worse for you.
Abruptly, your panic attack is cut off by someone throwing a bucket of water over you, the cold liquid shocking you out of your panic as you instinctively let out a yelp that fits your new canine additions rather well.
"Sorry about that, but you were about to set the linens on fire," says a voice from the door.
You turn, blinking water from your eyes, as the source of the voice and water enters the room fully. At first glance, she appears to be a normal Human girl, clad in a simple, but well made, pale blue dress, crisp, white apron, simple leather boots and what appears to be a headband made of twisted branches keeping her pale pink hair out of her eyes, with the only odd parts of her appearance being the short sword attached to her belt and the woody stems that twine around her arms. However, a closer look reveals that she is anything but Human. Her skin carries a greenish tint and her eyes are the colour of leaves. As in, the entire thing, white, iris and pupil. Not only that, but the stems around her arms and what you first took as a simple headband are actually a part of her, apparently growing from her body, while her hair is actually composed of thin vines, each covered in tiny pink flowers.
The clearing of a throat jolts you out of your shocked staring and you look away with a blush.
"Sorry," you say.
"Don't worry about it," say's the girl, "Frankly, I'm used to it. Dryads are rather uncommon and I'm not exactly a normal Dryad either."
She puts the bucket down by the door and disappears for a moment, before returning with a plate of food that, while simple fare, smells incredible to your newly sensitive nose and is more than enough to set your stomach growling. The girl giggles softly at the noise as she puts the tray on the dresser.
"Here, eat and then come downstairs," she say's, "The Guildmaster wants to talk to you."
She turns to leave, but you catch her wrist before she can. She glances back at you with a raised eyebrow as you try to decide what the most important question to ask is.
Where are you?
How did you get here?
Who is she?
What is happening to you?
I'm...not entirely pleased with this one, but I want to try and get one round out a day, assuming nothing goes horribly wrong. I'm also not to sure how best to do dialogue, especially regarding things like this, so I'm making things up as I go along. Please do let me know if I mess anything up. I'd also like some feedback on what you think of the world and characters as events unfold.
First Steps Part 5
- Location
- UK
"Who are you?" you ask.
The girl eyes you for a moment, then smiles a little stiffly.
"I'm Maria Sinclair, the Barmaid," she said.
You jerk back in surprise and she takes advantage of the distraction to quickly leave. You stare after her, not entirely sure if you heard her correctly as you knew a Maria Sinclair from your...previous world. She had been the daughter of a local landowner and, to put it bluntly, a total bitch. She had been a shallow, self centred bitch who had thought nothing of using her Daddy's money and connections to deal with any obstacle and, if the rumours were to be believed, had even managed to get someone arrested for accidentally splashing her with their car. Having suffered through high school in the same class as her, you could confirm that at least half of that was true. You vaguely recall hearing that she had been killed in an accident at one of her Fathers plants, resulting in her body getting scorched beyond recognition and needed to be identified by dental records.
The idea that such a vapid, cruel little girl like that would ever be found in any place that had barmaids, let alone introduce herself as one, was one that you almost had a harder time believing than the fact you were apparently in a Fantasy world. However, despite the two years difference and the apparent change in species, you couldn't deny that the Maria here did resemble the girl you knew far to closely to be a coincidence and the look she gave was also rather telling. This warranted further investigation, but that could wait for now. First you had to figure out where you were and what was happening you you, before you unravelled any mysteries connected to bitches past.
Plus, you are hungry and the food Maria brought smells amazing.
You emerge on a balcony overlooking a large, crowded bar floor, furnished with heavy looking, well worn wooden furniture that was being given a tremendous workout by the clientele, an eclectic mix of men and women of all shapes, sizes, skin colours and extra features, clad in a smorgasbord of different attires straight out of a Fantasy RPG, from heavy plate armour to colourful, flowing robes, all laughing, eating, drinking and generally acting like rowdy patrons at a pub. At one end of the room, a long bar dominated the wall, being manned by a short, round woman with fiery red hair, twinkling eyes and a laugh that drowned out even the largest men in the room and a number of young women in the same uniform Maria had been wearing navigated the chaos with trays of food and drink, easily avoiding any grasping hands from particularly inebriated patrons and occasionally punching one who didn't take the hint, always to jeers and applause from the rest of the patrons. Among said barmaids, you can see Maria, easily moving through the chaos with a tray in each hand and another four perched on what appear to be branches that emerge from her back, each one covered in the same pink blooms as made up her hair, along with green leaves and what appear to be partly grown fruit. Another wall of the bar was dominated by an enormous board covered in flyers that had a large crowd gathered around it, members of which would occasionally take one and head to the bar, before leaving through the door that apparent lead out onto the street.
After taking a moment to take in the barely controlled chaos, you slowly make your way down the stairs and approach the bar, doing your best to ignore the curious looks you got from the patrons who noticed you. However, no one attempts to stop you and you quickly reach your destination. You open your mouth, but before you can say anything, the woman behind the bar notices you and bustles over, swiping the tray from your hands before you can react.
"You'll be the new kid then, eh?" she asks in a surprisingly deep, but very friendly voice, "Head on through and right to the end, the boss is expecting you."
She gestures to a door you hadn't noticed before off to the side of the bar and turns away to serve another patron before you can say anything. With no other option, you do as you are told and head through the door. The moment it closes behind you, the sound of the bar vanishes and you find yourself in a short corridor with a couple of doors leading off and another at the far end that has a large crest that consists of a red shield with a large, golden G in the centre. You steel yourself and approach the door to...
Knock and wait politely.
Open the door and walk inside.
The girl eyes you for a moment, then smiles a little stiffly.
"I'm Maria Sinclair, the Barmaid," she said.
You jerk back in surprise and she takes advantage of the distraction to quickly leave. You stare after her, not entirely sure if you heard her correctly as you knew a Maria Sinclair from your...previous world. She had been the daughter of a local landowner and, to put it bluntly, a total bitch. She had been a shallow, self centred bitch who had thought nothing of using her Daddy's money and connections to deal with any obstacle and, if the rumours were to be believed, had even managed to get someone arrested for accidentally splashing her with their car. Having suffered through high school in the same class as her, you could confirm that at least half of that was true. You vaguely recall hearing that she had been killed in an accident at one of her Fathers plants, resulting in her body getting scorched beyond recognition and needed to be identified by dental records.
The idea that such a vapid, cruel little girl like that would ever be found in any place that had barmaids, let alone introduce herself as one, was one that you almost had a harder time believing than the fact you were apparently in a Fantasy world. However, despite the two years difference and the apparent change in species, you couldn't deny that the Maria here did resemble the girl you knew far to closely to be a coincidence and the look she gave was also rather telling. This warranted further investigation, but that could wait for now. First you had to figure out where you were and what was happening you you, before you unravelled any mysteries connected to bitches past.
Plus, you are hungry and the food Maria brought smells amazing.
-----------------------------------------------
After finishing the meal, you pick up the tray and leave your room, finding yourself in a clean hallway lined with more doors and lit by odd glowing crystals and sunlight leaking through the large, bay window that was set at one end of the hallway above a flight of stairs that headed down. At the other end was another set of stairs that headed up, but you head downstairs for now.You emerge on a balcony overlooking a large, crowded bar floor, furnished with heavy looking, well worn wooden furniture that was being given a tremendous workout by the clientele, an eclectic mix of men and women of all shapes, sizes, skin colours and extra features, clad in a smorgasbord of different attires straight out of a Fantasy RPG, from heavy plate armour to colourful, flowing robes, all laughing, eating, drinking and generally acting like rowdy patrons at a pub. At one end of the room, a long bar dominated the wall, being manned by a short, round woman with fiery red hair, twinkling eyes and a laugh that drowned out even the largest men in the room and a number of young women in the same uniform Maria had been wearing navigated the chaos with trays of food and drink, easily avoiding any grasping hands from particularly inebriated patrons and occasionally punching one who didn't take the hint, always to jeers and applause from the rest of the patrons. Among said barmaids, you can see Maria, easily moving through the chaos with a tray in each hand and another four perched on what appear to be branches that emerge from her back, each one covered in the same pink blooms as made up her hair, along with green leaves and what appear to be partly grown fruit. Another wall of the bar was dominated by an enormous board covered in flyers that had a large crowd gathered around it, members of which would occasionally take one and head to the bar, before leaving through the door that apparent lead out onto the street.
After taking a moment to take in the barely controlled chaos, you slowly make your way down the stairs and approach the bar, doing your best to ignore the curious looks you got from the patrons who noticed you. However, no one attempts to stop you and you quickly reach your destination. You open your mouth, but before you can say anything, the woman behind the bar notices you and bustles over, swiping the tray from your hands before you can react.
"You'll be the new kid then, eh?" she asks in a surprisingly deep, but very friendly voice, "Head on through and right to the end, the boss is expecting you."
She gestures to a door you hadn't noticed before off to the side of the bar and turns away to serve another patron before you can say anything. With no other option, you do as you are told and head through the door. The moment it closes behind you, the sound of the bar vanishes and you find yourself in a short corridor with a couple of doors leading off and another at the far end that has a large crest that consists of a red shield with a large, golden G in the centre. You steel yourself and approach the door to...
Knock and wait politely.
Open the door and walk inside.
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First Steps Part 6
- Location
- UK
Right, since we haven't got a tiebreaker, time for a coin flip. And the result is be polite. Heres hoping for a better response now that I'm actually getting into the 'exposition dump' part of the story.
You knock on the door and immediately receive an invitation to enter. Inside, you find yourself in a large, lavishly decorated office, with a number of bookshelves full of files and leather bound tomes, a couple of large windows, a coffee table surrounded by sofas and a large desk set directly in front of the window. Stood by one of the windows is a tall man with blonde hair and a single blue eye, the other a milky white and with a large, jagged scar running from his hairline down across his neck cutting across it. He is wearing gleaming plate armour with a blue tabard over the top bearing a rampant black griffon on the front and a longsword at his hip with a pommel carved into the shape of a bird's head. As you enter, he fixes you with a gaze that makes you feel rather like a butterfly pinned under a microscope, so you quickly look away.
Sat on one of the couches is an elderly looking man in white robes with a gnarled cane resting against the sofa beside him. His hair is long and almost pure white, pulled into a loose ponytail with a simple leather cord. His skin is pale, as are his eyes, but they are still as sharp as the curled, black ram horns that coil from his forehead.
Sat across from him is what can only be a dwarf, short and stocky, with strong features behind a neatly braided, flame red beard that is long enough to tuck into his wide belt. He is wearing leather armour and has a one handed battleaxe tucked into his belt and a lute sat against the cushion beside him on the sofa.
The final person in the room is sat behind the desk and appears, on the surface, to be a teenage girl wearing dark blue robes and what appears to be a stereotypical witch's hat, also dark blue with a bright orange ribbon around the brim with a jagged, mouth-like design in a contrasting black. Her hair is a blonde so pale its nearly white and her eyes are a rather striking shade of orange and, unless you're very much mistaken, her pupils are not shaped entirely normally, although you can't see exactly what shape they are from this distance. Leaning against the desk is a long, gnarled staff made of a slick, black wood you don't recognise and topped with an orange crystal that seems to be glowing with an odd, purple light that makes your skin crawl. Sat on the desk beside the girl is a black cat with bright orange eyes that are just as unnerving as its apparent master's.
"So, our sleeping beauty awakens," says the girl in an accent that, rather strangely, you tentatively identify as being from somewhere on the east cost of America, "How interesting."
You stumble back slightly as she is suddenly directly in front of you. Before you can react, she seizes your chin in her hand and forces you to look into her eyes that, now you are closer than you really want to be, allows you to see that her pupils are actually shaped like jack-o-lanterns, complete with eyes and jagged grins. You really don't want her this close to you and feel an intense heat build up in your gut as your muscles tense.
Jerk back out of her grip.
Strongly protest.
Stay put and let her do...whatever she wants to do.
Punch her in the face.
Let the rising heat out.
You knock on the door and immediately receive an invitation to enter. Inside, you find yourself in a large, lavishly decorated office, with a number of bookshelves full of files and leather bound tomes, a couple of large windows, a coffee table surrounded by sofas and a large desk set directly in front of the window. Stood by one of the windows is a tall man with blonde hair and a single blue eye, the other a milky white and with a large, jagged scar running from his hairline down across his neck cutting across it. He is wearing gleaming plate armour with a blue tabard over the top bearing a rampant black griffon on the front and a longsword at his hip with a pommel carved into the shape of a bird's head. As you enter, he fixes you with a gaze that makes you feel rather like a butterfly pinned under a microscope, so you quickly look away.
Sat on one of the couches is an elderly looking man in white robes with a gnarled cane resting against the sofa beside him. His hair is long and almost pure white, pulled into a loose ponytail with a simple leather cord. His skin is pale, as are his eyes, but they are still as sharp as the curled, black ram horns that coil from his forehead.
Sat across from him is what can only be a dwarf, short and stocky, with strong features behind a neatly braided, flame red beard that is long enough to tuck into his wide belt. He is wearing leather armour and has a one handed battleaxe tucked into his belt and a lute sat against the cushion beside him on the sofa.
The final person in the room is sat behind the desk and appears, on the surface, to be a teenage girl wearing dark blue robes and what appears to be a stereotypical witch's hat, also dark blue with a bright orange ribbon around the brim with a jagged, mouth-like design in a contrasting black. Her hair is a blonde so pale its nearly white and her eyes are a rather striking shade of orange and, unless you're very much mistaken, her pupils are not shaped entirely normally, although you can't see exactly what shape they are from this distance. Leaning against the desk is a long, gnarled staff made of a slick, black wood you don't recognise and topped with an orange crystal that seems to be glowing with an odd, purple light that makes your skin crawl. Sat on the desk beside the girl is a black cat with bright orange eyes that are just as unnerving as its apparent master's.
"So, our sleeping beauty awakens," says the girl in an accent that, rather strangely, you tentatively identify as being from somewhere on the east cost of America, "How interesting."
You stumble back slightly as she is suddenly directly in front of you. Before you can react, she seizes your chin in her hand and forces you to look into her eyes that, now you are closer than you really want to be, allows you to see that her pupils are actually shaped like jack-o-lanterns, complete with eyes and jagged grins. You really don't want her this close to you and feel an intense heat build up in your gut as your muscles tense.
Jerk back out of her grip.
Strongly protest.
Stay put and let her do...whatever she wants to do.
Punch her in the face.
Let the rising heat out.
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First Steps Part 7
- Location
- UK
Smart move staying put. Attacking the Guildmaster is never a good idea. She does hold that position for a reason after all.
Despite wanting nothing more than to get this creepy girl as far away from you as possible, a much larger part demands that you stay put, a part you are more than happy to obey. Something about this girl suggested that annoying her would be even more foolish than picking a fight with the entire population of the bar floor outside. After a few moments of staring into your eyes, the girl smirks and lets you go.
"Good boy," she says, patting you on the cheek.
She returns to the desk, leaving you rubbing your cheeks and feeling uncomfortably like a dog who'd been given a treat for pulling off a trick. Your tail brushing against your hand really makes you wish you'd come up with a different metaphor.
"Well, now that thats out of the way, I suppose introductions are in order," says the girl, "I am Abigail Williams, the Guildmaster, and this is Proctor."
She rubs the cat between his ears, earning a loud hiss and a swipe of its claws, which she ignores.
"The gallant knight by the window is the Captain of the Watch, Stephan Rivers, the old priest is William Kidd, the keeper of the records at the Temple of the Phantasm and the Dwarf is Carnex the Bard," she continues, indicating to each of the men in turn, who either nodded or smile.
"Its, ah, nice to meet you all?" you say, inwardly cringing at the lack of conviction in your tone, "My name is Alex. Um..."
Where am I?
What happened to me?
What was that all about?
Despite wanting nothing more than to get this creepy girl as far away from you as possible, a much larger part demands that you stay put, a part you are more than happy to obey. Something about this girl suggested that annoying her would be even more foolish than picking a fight with the entire population of the bar floor outside. After a few moments of staring into your eyes, the girl smirks and lets you go.
"Good boy," she says, patting you on the cheek.
She returns to the desk, leaving you rubbing your cheeks and feeling uncomfortably like a dog who'd been given a treat for pulling off a trick. Your tail brushing against your hand really makes you wish you'd come up with a different metaphor.
"Well, now that thats out of the way, I suppose introductions are in order," says the girl, "I am Abigail Williams, the Guildmaster, and this is Proctor."
She rubs the cat between his ears, earning a loud hiss and a swipe of its claws, which she ignores.
"The gallant knight by the window is the Captain of the Watch, Stephan Rivers, the old priest is William Kidd, the keeper of the records at the Temple of the Phantasm and the Dwarf is Carnex the Bard," she continues, indicating to each of the men in turn, who either nodded or smile.
"Its, ah, nice to meet you all?" you say, inwardly cringing at the lack of conviction in your tone, "My name is Alex. Um..."
Where am I?
What happened to me?
What was that all about?
First Steps Part 8
- Location
- UK
Here we go again. At least this time I don't need to worry about deadlocks. Onwards!
"What was that all about?" you ask.
Abigail raises an eyebrow and fixes you with a flat look.
"I was interested," she says, "Phantasms are rare, Noble Phantasms are even rarer. I was curious as to what sort of power you are hiding under those fluffy ears of yours."
Said ears twitch slightly as you frown.
"Whats a Phantasm?" you ask.
"Phantasm is the term given to those summoned by the spirit of Anima," says William, "A Noble Phantasm is a Phantasm who has consumed a Monster above A rank."
"Perhaps we should start at the beginning," says Carnex, apparently noticing how confused you are.
"Probably for the best," says William.
He gestures to the sofa across from him.
"Come, sit," he says, "This will likely take a while."
You do as you are told.
"Now, as you probably have noticed, you are no longer in your Homeworld," says William, "This world is called Anima, a place of Magic and where Gods still walk among Humans. As you can probably imagine, not everyone uses Magic responsibly and some attempt to summon entities from other worlds. Sometimes, nothing much happens, but others, the beings summoned are incredibly destructive. In response, Anima summons Humans from other worlds in the form of Phantasms. Because of their nature, these beings posses vast potential for Magic and can learn skills incredibly quickly."
"So what, I'm supposed to be some kind of Hero?" you ask.
William shakes his head.
"No," he says, "Anima summons Phantasms in response to any and all Summonings that call beings from another Plane of Existence, regardless of how powerful they are. Truly dangerous Summonings are, fortunately, very rare as most Summoners know what they are doing."
You frown.
"If thats the case, how come there aren't more...Phantasms?" you asked.
"Because most of them die," says Abigail, "Think about it, you appeared in the middle of nowhere, naked and alone. Most die from exposure or at the hands of Monsters, bandits or just ordinary wildlife and those who don't simply disperse."
You swallow. That doesn't sound good.
"Disperse?" you ask, not sure if you actually want an answer.
"Well, theres no easy way to say this, so I'll just come out and say it," says Carnex, "Phantasms are summoned as Spirits, leaving their physical bodies behind. Thing is, Spirits can't last for long without something to bind them to the world, especially not if they lack Magical power. You were in incredible pain until you ate the Hellhound, right?"
You nod.
"Well, that was your body essentially breaking down into Mana," he continues, "Within 12 hours from your arrival time, you'd have simply faded away."
"Um, I'm not going to disappear now, am I?" you ask, "I feel fine now."
Carnex lets out a bark of laughter.
"No, you'll be fine," he says, "All you needed to do was consume something that would grant your Spirit an anchor to this world. Most Phantasms end up eating something relatively simple, catching a wild animal or eating some fruit. You got lucky."
"How so?" you ask.
"Kid, whatever you eat becomes the bases for a new body," said Carnex, "That body will take on characteristics of what its based on. Hellhounds are A class Monsters, powerful enough that they can obliterate entire companies of Soldiers, as you saw in the forest, so your power level will be immense, not to mention you will be able to use abilities that normal Mages wouldn't touch with a barge pole for risk of them backfiring."
"I...see," you say as you turn that information over in your mind.
You have many questions of course, and will likely get the answers in time, but the most burning question of all is:
More information on Magic and your powers.
More information about Anima.
"What was that all about?" you ask.
Abigail raises an eyebrow and fixes you with a flat look.
"I was interested," she says, "Phantasms are rare, Noble Phantasms are even rarer. I was curious as to what sort of power you are hiding under those fluffy ears of yours."
Said ears twitch slightly as you frown.
"Whats a Phantasm?" you ask.
"Phantasm is the term given to those summoned by the spirit of Anima," says William, "A Noble Phantasm is a Phantasm who has consumed a Monster above A rank."
"Perhaps we should start at the beginning," says Carnex, apparently noticing how confused you are.
"Probably for the best," says William.
He gestures to the sofa across from him.
"Come, sit," he says, "This will likely take a while."
You do as you are told.
"Now, as you probably have noticed, you are no longer in your Homeworld," says William, "This world is called Anima, a place of Magic and where Gods still walk among Humans. As you can probably imagine, not everyone uses Magic responsibly and some attempt to summon entities from other worlds. Sometimes, nothing much happens, but others, the beings summoned are incredibly destructive. In response, Anima summons Humans from other worlds in the form of Phantasms. Because of their nature, these beings posses vast potential for Magic and can learn skills incredibly quickly."
"So what, I'm supposed to be some kind of Hero?" you ask.
William shakes his head.
"No," he says, "Anima summons Phantasms in response to any and all Summonings that call beings from another Plane of Existence, regardless of how powerful they are. Truly dangerous Summonings are, fortunately, very rare as most Summoners know what they are doing."
You frown.
"If thats the case, how come there aren't more...Phantasms?" you asked.
"Because most of them die," says Abigail, "Think about it, you appeared in the middle of nowhere, naked and alone. Most die from exposure or at the hands of Monsters, bandits or just ordinary wildlife and those who don't simply disperse."
You swallow. That doesn't sound good.
"Disperse?" you ask, not sure if you actually want an answer.
"Well, theres no easy way to say this, so I'll just come out and say it," says Carnex, "Phantasms are summoned as Spirits, leaving their physical bodies behind. Thing is, Spirits can't last for long without something to bind them to the world, especially not if they lack Magical power. You were in incredible pain until you ate the Hellhound, right?"
You nod.
"Well, that was your body essentially breaking down into Mana," he continues, "Within 12 hours from your arrival time, you'd have simply faded away."
"Um, I'm not going to disappear now, am I?" you ask, "I feel fine now."
Carnex lets out a bark of laughter.
"No, you'll be fine," he says, "All you needed to do was consume something that would grant your Spirit an anchor to this world. Most Phantasms end up eating something relatively simple, catching a wild animal or eating some fruit. You got lucky."
"How so?" you ask.
"Kid, whatever you eat becomes the bases for a new body," said Carnex, "That body will take on characteristics of what its based on. Hellhounds are A class Monsters, powerful enough that they can obliterate entire companies of Soldiers, as you saw in the forest, so your power level will be immense, not to mention you will be able to use abilities that normal Mages wouldn't touch with a barge pole for risk of them backfiring."
"I...see," you say as you turn that information over in your mind.
You have many questions of course, and will likely get the answers in time, but the most burning question of all is:
More information on Magic and your powers.
More information about Anima.
First Steps Part 9
- Location
- UK
Magic! Lets hope I can explain this well enough.
"What kind of abilities?" you ask.
"Magic is an intrinsic part of this world," says Carnex, "Every living thing and most non-living things are seeped in it, even if its only a minuscule amount. Monsters are identified as such because they can use the Magic that flows through them, even if its only to enhance their bodies. Many Monsters, especially the more powerful ones, are capable of performing feats that Mages simply cannot achieve."
"Like what?" you ask.
"Well, in your case, Hellhounds can use Hellfire, which is almost uncontrollable to all but the most powerful and strong willed," said Carnex, "Other examples include Kelpie, which can create fresh water from raw Mana, Sand Wyrms, which can convert sand and rock into valuable Mana ore and Spirit Dragons, which can, supposedly, see in the future. The only beings that could hope to achieve anything similar would be Phantasms with their nature and their descendent, but considering how rare and powerful they are, thats a tad unlikely to ever appear."
"I...see," you say, "Um, can you tell me more about Magic?"
Carnex smiled and opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, Abigail claps her hands.
"You'll have to do that outside," she says, "I have work to do and I'm sure that William and Stefan have things to do as well. Speaking of which..."
She turns to the still silent knight.
"Are you satisfied?"
"I am," he says, "Thank you for your time."
He bows slightly and leaves.
"What was that all about?" you ask.
"Best not to think about it," says Carnex, patting you on the shoulder.
"I should go as well," said William, getting to his feet with the help of his cane, "It was a pleasure to meet you Alex. Do look me up at the Temple next time your in the Temple District. I believe there will be something for you to see."
He bows and follows Stefan.
"Here," says Abigail, tossing a bag of coins to you, which you barely catch, "Its standard practice to give new Phantasms 200 gold to get them started. It should be enough to last you for about six months if your careful. That should be more than long enough for you to find work."
"Um, thank you," you say.
"Its my pleasuer," says Abigail with a slightly evil smirk, "I'm just looking forwards to seeing what kind of chaos you make. Until next time."
She waves a hand and reality seems to melt and invert, before you find yourself standing alongside Carnex in the hall outside.
"Tch, damn brat, still as rude as ever," he says, "Well, whatever. Come on kid, I'll treat you to a drink and we can talk.
You follow the Dwarf back into the main hall, which is now a lot quieter, and finds a table in an isolated corner. You sit down while Carnex heads to the bar and quickly follows you with a pair of foaming tankards in hand, one of which he sets in front of you.
"Alright, Magic," he says after taking a deep gulp of the beverage, "I suppose I should start at the beginning. Magic can broadly be split into two categories, Physical Arts and Mind Arts. Physical Arts are what are used by Warriors, Rogues, Rangers and the likes, primarily enhancements for weapons and the body to grant the user increased strength, defence, dexterity, etc, while the Mind Arts are the more...Magical aspects and the fields of Mages and Sorcerers of various kinds and are generally what people mean when they say Magic. There is also a third art, the Faith Arts used by Clerics, but that technically isn't Magic and not really relevant."
He pauses to take another gulp.
"Magic is a...complex subject to discuss. Most people have a basic grasp of Magic and can cast simple spells to create fire, light and occasionally a minor healing spell, along with a few spells that are useful in day to day life. Learning Magic isn't difficult, at its most basic its a simple matter of visualisation and learning how to channel ones Mana, but more powerful and complex spells require the memorisation of formula in order to use, which most people don't have time for. Truly skilled Mages are capable of building new spells on the fly, which makes them a real pain in the arse to fight. On the other hand, they are largely limited by their Mana reserves and are usually fairly weak up close."
He pauses for breath and another drink.
"That brings us onto the second type of Magic user and the one most relevant to you," he says, "While Mages rely on memorised spells and an internal source of Mana, Sorcerers do neither. They are born, not taught, and have a natural talent that allows them to use Mana in their surroundings to pull off incredible feats without needing to learn any actual spells. As a general rule, they will have incredible skill and talent in one specific field, in which they can achieve things that no Mage would possibly be able to match, but are unable to learn any other form of Magic. In short, they have incredible power, but are very limited, while Mages are capable of a much wider arsenal, but are weaker and have less power to work with."
"Alright, so what does that have to do with me?" you ask.
"I was getting there," says Carnex, "Phantasms are somewhere between the two. You can use Magic in the same way as Sorcerers, but are capable of learning how to use almost any type of Magic you can think of. True, you will be better at skills tied to your base, in your case Fire and Darkness Magic, and Water and Light will likely give you a lot of trouble, but you can theoretically learn them."
He finishes off his drink and slams the tankard into the table.
"Thats the basics of what Magic is," he says, "However, if you wish to learn any you will have to ask someone else. I am a Bard, not a Mage."
He gets to his feet.
"I'm sure you have a lot to think about, so I will take my leave," he says, "If you need any advice or directions, ask one of the girls here. Best of luck in whatever you decide."
He pats you on the back and leaves, whistling a jaunty tune. You remain where you are, staring into the golden liquid still filling your tankard as you consider what to do.
"Copper for your thoughts?"
You look up and see Maria stood across the table from you with a tray of empty tankards balanced in one hand.
"Just wondering what I should do now," you say.
Maria hums as she take Carnex empty tankard.
"If you want my advice, I suggest that you join the Guild," she says, "It'll give you a good source of income and information while you find your feet. Its what I did when I first arrived and it taught me a lot. I also suggest that you talk to William if you get the chance. Hes a veritable font of wisdom regarding Phantasms."
You nod absently as you consider your options. Really, joining the Guild is the only reasonable one as you doubt that any of the skills you currently have will be much use in this world, even with the speed you can apparently learn at now. The question was, how best to go about it? You look up at Maria and, coming to a decision, ask her:
The location of a blacksmith.
A place to learn Magic.
How to get to the Temple district.
There we go, a nice long one for tonight. I really hope my explanation of how Magic in this world works makes sense. I didn't want anything to complicated, but I also didn't really want anything to handwavy. I hope I managed to strike a good balance.
"What kind of abilities?" you ask.
"Magic is an intrinsic part of this world," says Carnex, "Every living thing and most non-living things are seeped in it, even if its only a minuscule amount. Monsters are identified as such because they can use the Magic that flows through them, even if its only to enhance their bodies. Many Monsters, especially the more powerful ones, are capable of performing feats that Mages simply cannot achieve."
"Like what?" you ask.
"Well, in your case, Hellhounds can use Hellfire, which is almost uncontrollable to all but the most powerful and strong willed," said Carnex, "Other examples include Kelpie, which can create fresh water from raw Mana, Sand Wyrms, which can convert sand and rock into valuable Mana ore and Spirit Dragons, which can, supposedly, see in the future. The only beings that could hope to achieve anything similar would be Phantasms with their nature and their descendent, but considering how rare and powerful they are, thats a tad unlikely to ever appear."
"I...see," you say, "Um, can you tell me more about Magic?"
Carnex smiled and opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, Abigail claps her hands.
"You'll have to do that outside," she says, "I have work to do and I'm sure that William and Stefan have things to do as well. Speaking of which..."
She turns to the still silent knight.
"Are you satisfied?"
"I am," he says, "Thank you for your time."
He bows slightly and leaves.
"What was that all about?" you ask.
"Best not to think about it," says Carnex, patting you on the shoulder.
"I should go as well," said William, getting to his feet with the help of his cane, "It was a pleasure to meet you Alex. Do look me up at the Temple next time your in the Temple District. I believe there will be something for you to see."
He bows and follows Stefan.
"Here," says Abigail, tossing a bag of coins to you, which you barely catch, "Its standard practice to give new Phantasms 200 gold to get them started. It should be enough to last you for about six months if your careful. That should be more than long enough for you to find work."
"Um, thank you," you say.
"Its my pleasuer," says Abigail with a slightly evil smirk, "I'm just looking forwards to seeing what kind of chaos you make. Until next time."
She waves a hand and reality seems to melt and invert, before you find yourself standing alongside Carnex in the hall outside.
"Tch, damn brat, still as rude as ever," he says, "Well, whatever. Come on kid, I'll treat you to a drink and we can talk.
You follow the Dwarf back into the main hall, which is now a lot quieter, and finds a table in an isolated corner. You sit down while Carnex heads to the bar and quickly follows you with a pair of foaming tankards in hand, one of which he sets in front of you.
"Alright, Magic," he says after taking a deep gulp of the beverage, "I suppose I should start at the beginning. Magic can broadly be split into two categories, Physical Arts and Mind Arts. Physical Arts are what are used by Warriors, Rogues, Rangers and the likes, primarily enhancements for weapons and the body to grant the user increased strength, defence, dexterity, etc, while the Mind Arts are the more...Magical aspects and the fields of Mages and Sorcerers of various kinds and are generally what people mean when they say Magic. There is also a third art, the Faith Arts used by Clerics, but that technically isn't Magic and not really relevant."
He pauses to take another gulp.
"Magic is a...complex subject to discuss. Most people have a basic grasp of Magic and can cast simple spells to create fire, light and occasionally a minor healing spell, along with a few spells that are useful in day to day life. Learning Magic isn't difficult, at its most basic its a simple matter of visualisation and learning how to channel ones Mana, but more powerful and complex spells require the memorisation of formula in order to use, which most people don't have time for. Truly skilled Mages are capable of building new spells on the fly, which makes them a real pain in the arse to fight. On the other hand, they are largely limited by their Mana reserves and are usually fairly weak up close."
He pauses for breath and another drink.
"That brings us onto the second type of Magic user and the one most relevant to you," he says, "While Mages rely on memorised spells and an internal source of Mana, Sorcerers do neither. They are born, not taught, and have a natural talent that allows them to use Mana in their surroundings to pull off incredible feats without needing to learn any actual spells. As a general rule, they will have incredible skill and talent in one specific field, in which they can achieve things that no Mage would possibly be able to match, but are unable to learn any other form of Magic. In short, they have incredible power, but are very limited, while Mages are capable of a much wider arsenal, but are weaker and have less power to work with."
"Alright, so what does that have to do with me?" you ask.
"I was getting there," says Carnex, "Phantasms are somewhere between the two. You can use Magic in the same way as Sorcerers, but are capable of learning how to use almost any type of Magic you can think of. True, you will be better at skills tied to your base, in your case Fire and Darkness Magic, and Water and Light will likely give you a lot of trouble, but you can theoretically learn them."
He finishes off his drink and slams the tankard into the table.
"Thats the basics of what Magic is," he says, "However, if you wish to learn any you will have to ask someone else. I am a Bard, not a Mage."
He gets to his feet.
"I'm sure you have a lot to think about, so I will take my leave," he says, "If you need any advice or directions, ask one of the girls here. Best of luck in whatever you decide."
He pats you on the back and leaves, whistling a jaunty tune. You remain where you are, staring into the golden liquid still filling your tankard as you consider what to do.
"Copper for your thoughts?"
You look up and see Maria stood across the table from you with a tray of empty tankards balanced in one hand.
"Just wondering what I should do now," you say.
Maria hums as she take Carnex empty tankard.
"If you want my advice, I suggest that you join the Guild," she says, "It'll give you a good source of income and information while you find your feet. Its what I did when I first arrived and it taught me a lot. I also suggest that you talk to William if you get the chance. Hes a veritable font of wisdom regarding Phantasms."
You nod absently as you consider your options. Really, joining the Guild is the only reasonable one as you doubt that any of the skills you currently have will be much use in this world, even with the speed you can apparently learn at now. The question was, how best to go about it? You look up at Maria and, coming to a decision, ask her:
The location of a blacksmith.
A place to learn Magic.
How to get to the Temple district.
There we go, a nice long one for tonight. I really hope my explanation of how Magic in this world works makes sense. I didn't want anything to complicated, but I also didn't really want anything to handwavy. I hope I managed to strike a good balance.