A brief beaming from the space station transported Taylor and Oswald to the nearby planet of Levix. Taylor recognized this planet as the one he was brought to when he first awoke in this new realm, looking around to see the same boreal forest surrounding him while he walked throughout the more coldly temperatured planet. The "star" he saw earlier was a Void Star currently acting as the base of a local Voidkin invasion, with Levix on the very edge of this invasion, receiving some smaller patrols and scouting forces from the Voidkin. He found this planet a bit fitting for his awakening in his Frost Knight class, Taylor taking out the weapons his DICE had provided him. Like something straight out of the anime games he used to play, his weaponry and armor had an elaborate, white and blue ice theme to them, with snowflake engravings all around the mechanical parts of his sword and shield, as well as on the thicker armor he had on.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Icebrand
Lv. 0
Attack Power - 100
Passive: Frostbite
Drains a target's stamina upon dealing damage to them, scaling with the damage dealt
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Unlike Oswald's more revealing armor, Taylor's armor covered him entirely, including the helmet on his head which had a flippable visor.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Mail of Frost
Lv. 0
Defense Power - 125
Passive: Elemental Reinforcement
Defense Power effectiveness is increased by 25% against incoming attacks that are fire, water, earth, or air-based
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Despite the bulky nature of his armor, longsword, and shield, Taylor found no struggle in lifting or swinging them, the emblem of a Draconarius dangling from his chestplate while he moved. "Huh… how do they make this stuff so light?" Taylor asked, Oswald's head perking up, him looking back at Taylor as he answered. "Ah! No, your equipment is actually quite heavy, Draconarius! But…" Oswald clapped his hands together. "When your soul was transported to our realm, you were inducted into a new corporeal form. Your body now is different from the body in your original world." Taylor looked down, nodding his head as he patted his hand on his own armored side. "I guess that makes sense. So this body's a lot stronger than normal?" "Indeed! You have with you a superhuman strength, resilience, and conductivity of magic! Why, you could even give our level 200s a run for their money, even when you haven't leveled up a single time!" Oswald chirped, continuing to strut forward along the forest's pathway. "Speaking of leveling… you Draconarius do it much faster than us natives! It can take us centuries of training and fighting to reach level 200, but for a Draconarius, you can do it in mere months!" "Wow…" Taylor let out, him and Oswald stopping when a couple of Lesser Voidlings crossed their path, the creatures angrily grinding their stony mouths together while their claws readied to gather energy. "Ah! Enemies! Let us face them together, Taylor!" Oswald declared, Taylor nodding his head, readying his sword and shield while Oswald aimed the cannon on his shield at the enemies. "Draconis Deus!" Oswald let out as a war cry, looking back at Taylor expectantly. "Come then, Draconarius! Give us your best 'Draconis Deus'!" "Haha… u - uh…" Taylor cleared his throat. "Draconis Deus!" "Yes!" Oswald chimed. Squinting his eyes, Taylor drew in a deep breath, beginning to channel the only ability he had for his class so far.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Blizzard Edge
Consumes 20 Mana, then fires an icy slash which deals 250% Attack Power as damage. High chance to freeze enemies.
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By simply only willing the casting of the ability, Taylor watched as the blade of his weapon glowed with a blue light, before a vertical slash of icy magic fired out from it and towards the voidling. The projectile froze a chunk of one of the voidlings and sent them tumbling down to the ground, their body shattering apart and causing the orb in the center of their body to break apart and collapse in on itself. Taylor turned to the other Voidling, inhaling sharply and bringing his shield forward, managing to deflect the burst of gravity magic it launched at him. Dashing forward, Taylor then stabbed his blade through the glass orb of the alien, the implosion pulling him forward slightly as the voidling crumbled apart before him.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Level Up!
Health increased by 10
Mana increased by 5
Attack Power increased by 3
Defense Power increased by 5
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"Oh… I leveled up! Cool!" Taylor chimed, Oswald grinning widely, clapping Taylor on the back while standing proudly beside him. "Yes! This is just the beginning of our journey together, Draconarius. Together, we shall save the galaxy and protect its people." Oswald said excitedly, Taylor smiling, looking up at Oswald as he spoke. While he stared, he noticed Oswald's status once again, it still reading an error message for his home planet. Taylor chose not to mind this for now. "Yeah, I'm glad I can fight by your side, Oswald. You seem like a really nice guy." "And you're one of the most valiant fighters I've ever seen, Draconarius. I am most honored to be - " Oswald was cut off when a small, high-velocity projectile shrieked through the air, Taylor raising his eyebrows as he saw a quadrupedal, turret-looking Voidkin creature aiming a purple guided laser at Oswald. "Look out!" Taylor shouted, shoving Oswald out of the way of the bullet. Gritting his teeth, Taylor turned to the creature, channeling another Blizzard Edge while his DICE read out the new bestiary entry.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Bestiary Entry
Astral Sentry
An artificial being created by Voidkin Astromancers to protect certain points of interest of the Voidkin. They are stationary and fragile, but are capable of manipulating earth magic to fire intense, highly damaging earth projectiles.
Having any form of cover or protection is recommended when dealing with Sentries. They cannot maneuver themselves, so if there are too many to deal with at once, then entrenchment and gradually destroying them is your best option.
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The Voidkin was easily destroyed by the ice magic, but the mention of it having a summoner warranted a bit of concern for Taylor. What was even more concerning was Oswald's state, Taylor turning to see the man completely catatonic, only lying still on the ground in an unresponsive stupor. "O - Oswald? Are you alright?" Taylor asked, kneeling down next to him, flinching and stepping back when Oswald's chest abruptly bursted open, as though he had been attacked by some unseen force. There was no visible viscera or bone, just a thin red liquid that wept from the wound. "Ah… T - Taylor… that Sentry… got me pretty bad…" Oswald muttered, Taylor narrowing his eyes, staring at Oswald in both desperation and confusion. "H - Huh?! But it didn't hit you, I - I - " "Taylor…" Oswald grunted, gripping his fingers around Taylor's wrist while he gruffly spoke. "Please… a - avenge me…" "N - No, Oswald, I can save you, I can - I can bring you back to the ship, or - " "Please… promise m - me…" Taylor inhaled, hesitating for a second before nodding his head. "Yes, I'll… I'll avenge you, Oswald. I'll fight on for you." Oswald smiled, the red liquid trickling down from his lip as his eyes shut, Taylor watching as Oswald's status screen slowly faded away. "Draconis Deus… Taylor…" Was Oswald's last words, Taylor sighing, slowly prying his eyes away from the body of his fallen comrade. "...what the hell happened..? Is there an… i - invisible Voidkin or something?" Taylor thought, turning over to see more Astral Sentries forming, with a taller, faintly humanoid Voidkin standing behind them, tendrils writhing out from its cloak while the energy-containing orb in place of its head fixed towards Taylor.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Bestiary Entry
Astromancer
A more advanced Voidkin, capable of manipulating earth and fashioning living Voidkin defenses out of it with its gravity magic. It will continue summoning Voidkin until its energy orb is destroyed. Younger Astromancers can only summon smaller, weaker Voidkin, but older Astromancers can bring forth entire armies if left unchecked.
Though Astromancers can summon powerful allies, they are weak by themselves. Isolating them from their summons can make quick work of both the Astromancer and its minions.
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While Taylor read the entry, the Astromancer began to summon floating, skull-like formations of rock, a purple energy leaving the summons as they hurtled towards Taylor. He narrowly leapt out of the way, turning and watching as they exploded violently into clouds of stardust.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Bestiary Entry
Skullnova
An artificial being created by Voidkin Astromancers to ward off aggressors. They are short-lived and exceptionally fragile, but move quickly and explode on contact, dealing massive damage.
Attacking them only wastes mana and energy. They are difficult targets, being both small as well as extremely evasive. Baiting out a charge and letting them destroy themselves is the most preferable strategy.
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Taylor held his shield up and steadily marched towards the Astromancer, managing to defend himself against the barrage of projectiles sent his way from the Astral Sentries. He felt his stamina begin to wane from all the blocking he was doing, but he felt his energy surge as he became in range of the Astromancer. Dashing forward, Taylor managed to slice his blade through the tentacles of the Astromancer, it shrieking out in pain as it dove away. Taylor grunted as the Astral Sentries fired into his sides, running between the defenses and destroying them. "Uh oh, you got dinged up pretty bad, Taylor! Don't worry!" Okami's voice chimed in Taylor's head, Taylor raising his eyebrows, failing to question why he could hear her in his mind before a strange object appeared in his hand. "While you're on duty, you can fall back and get a Health Stim! Just poke it anywhere in your body, and you'll start healing up!" "Uh… o - okay." Taylor muttered, popping the top off of the green syringe and poking it into his arm. The pain from his wounds faded as he felt his health return and his wounds close, now accompanied by a sudden sense of vigor and adrenaline. His vision blurred slightly as Taylor felt a new strength in his body, him dropping the emptied syringe to the ground as he charged forward towards the Astromancer. "This…" Taylor began, holding his blade up over the creature. "This is for Oswald!" Taylor shouted, crashing his blade down onto the creature's head, causing the orb to shatter apart. The Astromancer fell to the ground as a rapidly dissolving mass of stardust, Taylor stepping back and waving the dust away from his face. "Mission completed! Calling you back to base now!" Okami chimed, Taylor nodding his head, letting out a sigh as he sheathed his weapons. "Y - Yeah… but…" Taylor sighed, looking up to see a tractor beam beginning to form over him. "Oswald didn't make it." "Aww. I know, Taylor, I saw it happen. It was super sad, you two were such good friends." Taylor tilted his head, narrowing an eye while he felt his body get pulled up into the space station. "Yeah…" Taylor softly said, looking up to see the entrance to the station opening. He found Oswald to be a nice person, though he also only knew the man for not even an entire day.
The moment Taylor stepped into the station's entrance, he was overwhelmed by the sounds of cheering and clapping, opening his eyes to see dozens of crew members and Empire soldiers all facing him and applauding. Though it shocked him at first, Taylor couldn't help but feel a bit of pride at seeing so many people coming to congratulate him. It had been so long since he received any kind of praise, and even if it did feel a little forced, Taylor couldn't help but relish in it. "Our loyal Draconarius has returned safely from his successful mission!" A newscaster proclaimed, a wide grin on her face while she walked over towards Taylor. He looked down to see her feline features, her cat-like ears standing proudly from her head while her long, pink-colored tail slowly swished around behind her.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Bestiary Entry
Myani
A race of feline humanoids that originate from the planet Yorrika. Unlike the more territorial and fierce alien species on Yorrika, the Myani have a far more laidback and carefree culture, originating from the island portions of the planet where they had no natural predators or competition for food.
Myani were among the first alien species that the Empire had discovered upon reaching its spacefaring technology level. Though the other species of Yorrika were violent in their first contact, the Myani were far more welcoming to the Empire's influence, and freely joined our ranks.
Myani are agile and typically have more lithe bodies than most other species. They generally only fight in self-defense, and tend to have less combative roles in the Empire. Rarely do Myani have high levels, so if one is being anti-democratic, restraining them should be fairly easy.
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"Draconarius! Tell us about how you destroyed those foul voidkin!" Taylor stammered for a second, looking down at the microphone that the myani was sticking at his face. "Uh… y - yeah, I… I killed something called an Astromancer, and - " "Wait, another Draconarius just finished their mission! Hurry, let's go! The channel needs at least 3 hours of footage for tomorrow!" The newscaster ordered, turning and running over to another entrance into the station, her camera crew following close behind her. Taylor felt too confused to react to what just happened for a moment, walking past the dispersing crowd and into the corridors of the space station. "Ooh, you just got your assigned room, Draconarius! Come over to the east wing, I'll meet you there and show you where it is!" Okami chirped in Taylor's mind, him nodding as he went to follow her instruction.
"Ta-da!" Okami cheered, smiling widely as she presented the interior of Taylor's quarters to him. It was a surprisingly expansive dormitory room, complete with a cushioned, lavish bed, desk, couch, and entertainment center. Upon the desk was a radio system to allow contact to other parts of the ship. "We here at the Asgorath Empire try to model these rooms after your Earth ones, y'know, try and make it a little more homely." "It's… it's nice. A lot better than my old room." Taylor replied, Okami smiling, walking over to the bed and patting on the end of it. "I'm so glad you like it! Now, let's get some shut eye, we've got Voidkin to take care of tomorrow!" Okami declared, Taylor nodding his head, walking over and sitting on the edge of the bed, beginning to strip himself. "Oh, you don't have to do all of that, silly!" Okami interrupted, Taylor raising an eyebrow, stopping when Okami leaned forward and pressed on the back of his neck. This caused a new HUD to display in front of him, Taylor looking forward to see a fully in-depth customization screen in front of him, complete with armor and clothing changing, as well as a complete color editor, allowing him to even recolor parts of his body. "Huh… that's… convenient." Taylor commented, reaching his hand forward and changing his outfit, switching from his Asgorath Empire uniform and to a set of thin bedclothes. "Hehe… can I sleep with you tonight, Draconarius?" Okami requested, Taylor looking at her wide-eyed, stuck in a bit of disbelief for a moment before answering. "Uh… s - sure, I guess." "Yay!" Okami chimed, plopping down on the bed beside Taylor. Without waiting for permission, Okami brought her arms around Taylor, holding his head against her chest while the two went under the blankets. "Sleep well, Draconarius." She cooed, Taylor's face lighting up from the contact. His body went stiff at first, but he soon elected to relish in the comfortable feeling of the hold, his eyes slowly shutting while he felt Okami's soft tail brush against him. As he looked up, he saw a status HUD appear in front of Okami, his eyes opening back up as he read Okami's details.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Okami
Home Planet: ERR
Prestige ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆
Lv. 1 Concubine
Health: 100/100
Mana: 75/75
Attack Power: 0
Defense Power: 1
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"...how come some people are getting that error message for their home planet?" Taylor thought to himself. Deciding not to worry about such a thing right now, Taylor shut his eyes, snuggling deeper into Okami's hold and eventually falling asleep.
After a lavish breakfast within the surprisingly luxurious treatment of the Asgorath Empire space station, Taylor was sent on his next mission. Due to his loss of his companion Oswald, Taylor was sent on this mission with three of his fellow Draconarii, walking over to the transport shuttle and taking a seat alongside the others. The one he sat next to, a taller, thin man covered in more dexterous, skin-tight armor and a helmet, didn't seem particularly interesting, wielding only a heavy sniper rifle and what appeared to be a gun-wielding drone holstered on his back. At the other side of the shuttle was a larger, less armored man wielding what Taylor recognized as a gravity hammer from Halo, this nearly taking his attention, if not for the smaller, scrawny woman wielding twin gauntlets next to him, her rambling while jumping up and down in her seat. The jacket she wore over her top and shorts blew up in the wind with her movements, occasionally revealing the Sailor Moon tattoo she had on her back. "Health Stim! Health Stim! Need that health stim, gonna get that health stim, gonna…" She winded down when the man sat next to her scooted away, her rocking back and forth in her seat while her wild, crazed eyes darted around the shuttle. "Hey! Pilot! Can I get my health stim now?" She requested, a voice booming over the intercom in response. "You know the rules, Jess. No stims until we're landed." "Come on! Please, I - I need it! It's been so long since I've had a stim, please, just one!" Taylor raised his eyebrows as he watched Jess plead for her fix, him looking over at the sniper next to him, the latter turning to meet Taylor's gaze. "...see that, rookie?" The sniper began, speaking in a hushed whisper as he continued. "Only use your stims if death's the only alternative." "I…" Taylor cleared his throat and nodded his head. "I will."