Atlantis Book 1 Chapter 3

I lost myself in disbelief and wonder as I internalized the historical information about my racial heritage. I felt excitement and embarrassment when I realized the gift I had been given. The history that had been shared and how I was connected to an actual God. 

Claiming my new race, embracing the knowledge and instincts ingrained in each race. Information and enhancements that were momentous. The claiming of my own identity. Each managed to heal a crack in my ravaged soul, the pain and endurance of my life as a slave finally beginning to heal.

I was surprised to find the field had changed. The meadow and stream were still there, but a gazebo had been added. And I had been placed in the center of that gazebo. Trellises had been created that framed three openings. Each opening was fitted with a mirror.

The mirrors were held in place by carvings of leaves and vines. That motif carried over onto the mirrors themselves. The mirrors reflected an image, and a woman, outfitted in different items, was slowly rotating. The reflections, leaves, and vines that tied the mirrors in place gave the illusion of different cards you might find in a tarot deck.

I had put off the existential crisis I had been straining to escape since I found myself back in my bedroom. Finding myself back in my bedroom as a teenager once more made me embrace the flight or fight instincts I had been forced to ignore as a slave. But now that I had changed the course of my life, that the [System Administrator] had spoken the truth, I allowed myself to relax, to take time to think. 

I allowed myself to wonder if this was a confluence of luck or if fate and destiny had been in play. And if so, how was I supposed to fit into this new life of Gods and reborn Atlantians? 

The weight of knowing that my life would unfold in a drastically different manner than the last System integration had filled me with relief so immense that if the System had allowed it, I would have lay on the gazebo floor and slept for a week.

The spiraling emotions. The out-of-control adrenaline as events unfolded. A dangerous loss of focus as I had moved from one event to another. The memory of the pain from being bound and whipped. The surprise at finding myself in the bedroom from her past. The re-initiation of the System integration. Everything had happened so quickly.

The release of tension and fear that I had been living with for decades, the release of emotions that I had been forced to suppress, was euphoric. I allowed my teeth to unclench and my mouth to relax. As more of the tension drained away, I felt shoulder and neck muscles relaxing for the first time in so long that I couldn’t remember the last time I had been at ease. 

The ability to relax, if even for a second, for the first time in decades, almost brought me to tears. I savored these small changes as I recognized them, the release of the wariness I had been forced to learn to survive. That moment of freedom was cathartic.  For the first time since I could remember, I could let myself be in the moment. 

That moment to absorb and process what I was experiencing couldn’t last. Not with a [System Administrator] still standing in the field watching, waiting to intervene, hiding behind the shape and form of a matronly caring woman. It had already proven it was willing to take action, to force a choice on me by interfering with the selection process and forcing me to move on to the next step in this new life.

I was relieved that the [Administrator’s] action had ended well, but I had no illusion that the being had not cared one way or another what the result of its interference might be. The [Administrator] didn’t have the same cultural, emotional experience, or understanding to care. It was the embodiment of the System, which was all things logical and orderly. 

Finally, looking at the System announcement blinking in my periphery, I focused on the new prompt.

[Select Class…

It was the prompt I’d expected, but the choices offered were beyond anything I’d hoped for. There were pages of classes to choose from. The standard Class trope that anyone would expect in a newly integrated world: Warrior, Mage, Thief, Healer. And each of those classes expanded into specialized versions: Guardian, Warlock, Assassin, Druid. 

But I wasn’t interested in any of the standard classes or branching classes that might be available as subcategories for those standard Classes. I intended to take advantage of the inherent bonuses that came with my race, from both races. 

There were enough rare and esoteric Classes, Classes that no one on Earth would have ever heard of, to choose from. There had to be some that were a better fit for the hybrid class I had selected. I was positive. I would find something unique. Something strong enough to ensure that I would never be enslaved again.

And the System was intuitive enough to respond to my criteria. I began sorting, adding keywords to the search field to refine the choices available.

Psion.

Pet.

Technology.

Range.

Illusion.

Each term allowed me to filter the choices offered. Each word repopulated the screen before me, narrowing the choice of class offered until only three classes remained.

Three classes translated into the mirrors that had been reflecting a woman. Three classes morphed to take on my features outfitted in the gear appropriate for that class.

[Psibernetic… (Cybernetic)

[Psi Seelie… 

[PsiPher… (Cypher)

[Psibernetic (Hybrid Class) - The Psibernetic class allows individuals to maximize Psionic abilities and control mechanical hardware and artificial intelligence more easily. The individual is adept at creating and piloting drones and can implant chip technology into animals and beasts to tame and control. This Class excels in both Melee and Range attacks.  Unlocks the Nano Tech Stat and Will.  +2 to Nano Tech +1 to Int per level +1 to Will per level.] 

[Psi Seelie (Pet Class) - The Psi Seelie class allows the individual to create a psychic network that may be augmented by either nature magic, telepathic skills, or/and an artificial neural link. This network allows the Psi Seelie to accept other individuals, animals, and beasts into a group, party, guild, bureaucracy, and raid settings where the many can coordinate and act under the direction of the one who formed the group. Excels at Range, support, and crowd control. Unlocks the Charm and Nano Tech Stat. +3 to Charm +2 to Int per level +1 to Nano Tech per level.]

[PsiPher (Mentalist) - The PsiPher class allows individuals to control illusions and enter dreams. They are adept at stealth, invisibility, and forming psi constructs. They have the ability to implant memories and emotions in targeted individuals. This ability allows them to overwhelm the defenses of and control, for a limited time, weaker individuals, animals, and beasts. This Class excels with Melee and Psionic abilities. Unlocks the Will and Charm Stat. +3 to Will +2 to Int +1 to Charm per level.]