Within the darkness, blustering winds were tugging at Ramsey's fading consciousness. The strong and comforting winds seemed to rush at him from all directions, swirling around him.
He couldn't see anything, but it felt amazing. It was refreshing and energizing.
Soon, a few wisps of swirling air showed traces of white light as they danced around one another. More appeared in purple, then blue, mixing and weaving together.
Ramsey watched as the weave took shape, surprisingly forming into the shape of a hand, then extending to an arm. The ethereal appendage swirled with radiant color.
Ramsey tried to reach for it, only to watch it mimic his intended movement. He reflexively tried to look at his hand and it responded the same.
The swirling wisps of color began to weave beneath him. It was then that Ramsey realized his body wasn't hidden in the darkness there. Looking down, he saw only the coalescing cosmic light forming a body where none was before.
Ramsey examined the glowing arms, extending them outward as rushing air currents carried the remaining traces of light to complete his figure. As the last wisp arrived, everything became completely still and devoid of sound.
— VHOOM —
A burst of blinding light and concussing wind rippled out from Ramsey, tearing through the darkness and continuing off into the distance.
The cosmic form was gone. In its place, dimly lit by the dispersing light, a naked young man remained suspended within the void.
***
'Is this.. real?'
[System Reset - Step 1 Complete - Avatar returned to Prime State]
"What?" Ramsey quickly investigated his body. It was definitely him, the old him. His skin was smooth, it was free of lines and wrinkles. He was toned… and naked.
[System Reset - Step 2 Complete - Setting: Elorr]
In a blink, Ramsey was looking down upon an unfamiliar planet, he seemed to be floating just beyond its atmosphere.
"Holy shit," was all he could mutter at such a breathtaking sight.
Unlike Earth, the surface seemed to be mostly land. It was a mix of dark green, tan and reddish brown. There were no vast oceans, instead only smaller scattered bodies of water. As Ramsey gazed at streaks of white clouds curling around the curved horizon, the system continued.
[System Reset - Step 3 - Adjust Attributes]
[Available Attribute points 8]
[Intelligence: 1]
[Wisdom: 1]
[Strength: 1]
[Dexterity: 1]
[Charm: 1]
[Mana: 0]
[Nature: 0]
[Spirit: 0]
[*Distribute Attribute points / Continue]
Ramsey could barely see the black text atop the spectacular view of Elorr.
'Wait, wasn't Text listed in the menu?'
Ramsey had been so happy to be free of the system that he never dared to call it back before now. Thinking about the two menu screens was all it took to navigate there. After being burdened by the text all this time, there it was, an option to turn it off.
[Response]
[*Text] [*Black | White | Auto | Off]
[Voice]
However, as much as he wanted to be free of the text before, it's not what he needed now. With a sigh, Ramsey decided to change it to Auto and quit the menu. He was instantly relieved. The color of the Attributes text would shift between black and white depending on his line of sight, always showing the contrasting color. It had a bit of a strobe effect if he looked around too quickly, but it was a welcomed change.
Ramsey studied the Attributes.
'It's… like a game.
I have 1 point for everything except Mana, Nature and Spirit. I guess these are the attributes of someone from Earth. It's the minimum number for everything... kind of sad.
So, I have 8 points to distribute or I can just continue, which would mean going down there as an Earthling. God, that sounds weird. To be like them, Elorrlings - they probably don't call themselves that - I need to increase the last three attributes.'
"What is Nature and Spirit, though?"
Having gotten used to the system not answering questions about other settings, Ramsey intended for his question to be rhetorical. He was rather surprised when the system replied.
[Nature is one's understanding of the elements]
[Spirit is one's understanding of the soul]
Taking this newfound assistance for granted, Ramsey continued, "What is Mana?"
[Mana is harnessed arcane energy]
"Yes! I knew it!"
"Oh… can I get some clothes?"
[Avatar essentials are provided upon completion of System Reset.]
"Hey, System... actually, I'm not sure what to call you... Why's this happening to me? What's my purpose here?"
The silence that followed Ramsey's questions was disappointing. As amazing as all of this was, Ramsey still had more questions than answers. In fact, he had at least a dozen more questions on the tip of his tongue, but being ignored was harder than internalizing his curiosity.
'Okay, I'd really like to put some clothes on, so let's do this.'
Ramsey put 1 point into each of the empty attributes. 'That should be the bare minimum to be considered normal here. Now I have 5 left…'
He added 1 more point to Wisdom and Dexterity. 'I don't know what's going to happen, but I need to be creative enough to solve problems or fast enough to get away. Hopefully this helps.'
[Available Attribute points: 3]
[Intelligence: 1]
[Wisdom: 2]
[Strength: 1]
[Dexterity: 2]
[Charm: 1]
[Mana: 1]
[Nature: 1]
[Spirit: 1]
Let's save a few until I figure out what's important.'
Ramsey reviewed his choices, nodded and selected Continue. Only one prompt showed next.
[Foundation: select [Moon, Unseen, Sun, Elorr]
"What's Foundation?"
[Foundation is one's primary arcane domain. Each domain yields proficiency in unique specializations.]
'Moon?' Ramsey looked back at the planet and cocked his head, he didn't see a moon. That is, until he turned around, it was so close its presence was terrifying. He felt he could almost reach out and touch it. Like the planet, it was vastly different from the moon he knew. It was very dark, nearly black, and he could see glimmers of ice in its many craters.
He turned to see the Sun, which was surprisingly similar. The size, color, everything was the same. Ramsey always found space interesting. While he didn't study it in school, he watched many videos about it. He knew that to sustain life, a planet needed to reside in a habitable zone away from its sun, just as Earth did. Elorr seemed no different in this regard.
He understood all the domain names but one. "What is Unseen?"
[Unseen is an arcane foundation which yields specializations specific to its domain]
"Well that's… helpful." Ramsey groaned, not caring that his sarcasm was lost on the System.
He contemplated what magic abilities could come from each of the domains. However, with very little information - and the System not helping - he could only go with what felt right.
"Well, when in Rome," Ramsey said as he selected Elorr and continued.
[System Reset - Step 3 Complete - Attributes adjusted]
'Last step.'
Right on cue was the pleasant voice.
[System Reset - Step 4 - Choose Path]
[Foundation: Elorr]
[Path: select [Terra, Growth, Gravity]
'Path affects how my attributes evolve, right? So these are the choices for my domain.
Terra probably affects land, Growth for plants maybe, but Gravity… sounds a little OP, doesn't it?'
Ramsey selected Gravity, hesitated, but continued. OP or not, it sounded pretty cool, which was good enough for him.
[System Reset - Step 4 Complete - Path: Gravity]
[System Reset complete]
[Spawning Avatar in secure area]
"Wait! I still need-" Ramsey's voice was cut off as he disappeared.
***
Beneath a canopy of red and yellow leaves, a small circular clearing was surrounded by towering trees. A light breeze carried fallen leaves of the same color across the forest floor. It was, in a word, serene.
"-clothes!" Ramsey yelled as he appeared in the clearing. A few previously hidden woodland creatures scattered in a panic.
"Huh", Ramsey looked around and down to see himself fully clothed. His clothes were… different. The shirt was not exactly a shirt. It was about 10 inches longer than normal, dark gray with brown laces at the collar. He had a rather wide brown leather belt around his midsection, and the shirt split at the sides beneath the belt.
His pants were a lighter gray color and fit nicely. Everything appeared to be a light woolen material. He wore lace-up mid-calf leather boots that matched his belt.
"Jesus Christ, I'm wearing a tunic. This cosplay better be how people dress here."
Ramsey looked around again, but didn't see anything but trees.
'I guess I need to pick a direction. But first…' Ramsey thought about the Avatar information.
[Name: Ramsey Garrett]
[Age: 22]
[Setting: Elorr, Birth of Mana, Year 1164]
[Attributes]
[Intelligence: 1]
[Wisdom: 2]
[Strength: 1]
[Dexterity: 2]
[Charm: 1]
[Mana: 1]
[Nature: 1]
[Spirit: 1]
[Foundation: Elorr]
[Path: Gravity]
"Amazing"
He stared up at the towering trees and smiled, 'Yesterday I was in a hospital gown on Earth, today I'm in a tunic on Elorr. I couldn't make this up if I tried.'