Shadowbound Ascension: The Necromancer's Journey

He rose the next morning with a sort of feeling he had not experienced in many years: direction, focus: mission. The dullness that always accompanied him when he woke after a night's rest was not there; everything looked new, fresh and crisp. As he yawned and rose from his bed, all events of the previous day came back to him including the system, the quests, and even the feeling he observed in his body and mind.

It was still possible to look at it as a dream and/or as part of a video game, which he has played in his childhood. But this wasn't a game. This was real. The system was real and made of steel and it was making him stronger. But as far as what could it get him? What was its scope and what was his?

And so, those thoughts crossed his mind, when a known message popped up in front of him with the amplitude of his vision.

[New Quest: Strength And Agility Training. Do strength and agility training exercises. Bonus: +3 To Strength And Agility, 200 Experience Points.

Aiden smiled to himself. This system was not going to see waste any time in taking him even father; into which it promptly encouraged him. It was however as if it understood what he wanted next, and all those quests were designed to progress from the other. A feeling of increased desire toward gaining more strength and nimbleness arose within him and set him anew on fire.

He wasted no time putting on his clothes and dashing out to the door prepared for the obstacle of the day. New Arcadia was abuzz when he left the building and walked towards the small park which was nestled in eyeshot of the sprawling metropolis. This place had in time become his testing ground, somewhere that he could flourish in without the scrutinization of others.

Aiden started off with basic strength exercise that included the push-ups, the pull-ups, and then the squats. He concentrated on his proper stance, and started to receive the strong signals of muscles' pain when he increased his practice level. Any changes which occurred in the system were minor, however its impact could not be ignored. Every movement became more fluid, more erect than before as if his body was getting accustomed to the feeling of a muscular flexible workout.

When he had moved to the section that involved exercises such as running, sidestepping, jogging and jumping from side to side he felt the same way. His body leap forward and moved with a speed and accuracy that he did not think was possible for him. He could plainly make out the contraction of muscles in his legs that seemed to be working like perfectly built machines that were now providing him with a surprising agility.

He was not able to take a long time to complete the workout and appeared to be panting yet at the same time full of energy. There was a ring, a sound, a beep in his head, or something he was so used to that he heard its sound in his mind.

[Quest Complete: Strength and Agility Training.

[Rewards: The centar comes again and gives the fighter three bonuses: +3 Strength, +3 Agility, 200 Experience Points.

Aiden decided to change the channel a little and look on his status screen, one of the new things which he had only heard about. It showcased him to me in terms of his present traits, talents, and efficiency in a manner that made feel more like another dimension of some video game RPGs he used to immerse himself in.

[Aiden Blackwood - Status]

Strength: 10 (+3)

Agility: 9 (+3)

Stamina: 8

Intelligence: 7

Wisdom: 7

It was a great feeling to see numbers go up and that feeling was quite difficult to articulate. It was a material indication of his advancement, something that he could cling on that would show him that he was headed somewhere better. But more than that it gave him hope, hope that one day he is going to become successful in achieving his dreams. All along he had been bogged down by his condition—he had no decent paying job, no means to even lift the family out of poverty. But this one time, for the first time probably in years he felt he was on his own and doing things on his own volition.

While walking back to his house, he began to ponder what other business of the system he was going to attend in the near future. The quests were obviously built to challenge him physically but there was also a bit of a mental element to them as well. That which meditation had made him realize the previous day concerning the mental strength was what he believed he would further discover was encompassed in the system.

He was shaken from these by yet another notification which was distinct from the previous ones.

[New Quest: Proverb of the Day: 'Knowledge is Power'. To learn about a skill, concentrate on a subject aft Learning Type: 1 hour related to your ability. Bonus: +2 Intelligence; +1 Wisdom; 150 Exp Points.

New quest brought a new thought to Aiden's mind therefore he started to ponder. Studying? He had not read a book after he left school and the very thought of searching for a seat and start a study felt odd after so many years of doing a physically demanding job. However, if the system desired it, then it was much more desirable to do so as well. Of course, knowledge could be as strong as one's brawn especially in a world which is fraught with dangers such as dungeons and monsters.

On his way back home, there was a small bookstore at which he entered and wandered around until he saw one of the sections which interested him – supernatural and the arcane. His eyes scanned the titles until one in particular caught his attention: They, in turn, titled their article 'The Art of Necromancy: A Forbidden Study'.

Use of the word "necromancy" made him cringe. He had been intrigued by the so called 'black magic' but it was also something that was considered taboo and sinister. The concept of resurrection and manipulation of such – it was authority, liberty and at the same time – a potential threat. But something within him arise and make him to grab the book. May be the system was pushing him here for a certain purpose.

He got the book and headed back to this apartment; he found himself a comfortable position in the small living room. It was an old book, the kind of book that was standing the test of time by displaying the yellowing pages, but still it was eye-catching. As he started to read, he was instantly absorbed into the mechanics of necromancy and the people and the knowledge involved within this prohibited art.

The more he read the more he saw the reasons why the system had assigned him this task to accomplish. Necromancy wasn't a question of lifting dead from graves; it was an attempt to comprehend what it means to live, comprehendwhat from lives needs to die; it was an effort to dominate the forces of life and death. This was a power that had the potential of destruction and creation; the kind of power that could be used for the benefit or detriment of mankind depending on the heart of the person controlling it.

The days went on as he begin to get swallowed up by the text, he got to learn so much out of it. He also got to know about the various types of necromancy, right from basic animation to crafting of high rank undead. The type of magic to be practiced, the chants and prayers, how to tap into the spirit of the deceased and the morality involved were topics that he learnt in his training.

Finally after one hour and fifteen minutes he raised his head from the book. The notification sound of the system sounded once more.

[Quest Complete: It's one thing to have knowledge on a particular topic and quite another to be ignorant on it.

[Rewards: : [ +2 to intelligence, +1 to Wisdom, 150 experience points ].

As soon as Aiden shut the book, his head was filled with many things he didn't know before. He sensed the system applying pressure that he could not ignore, the way it was pointing towards a bigger goal. It was forbidden, practiced towards the darkness, but it was also the key to becoming incredibly powerful and strong, to be able to defend himself and everyone he truly loved in a world that, in his experience, was very cruel.

However, assumption of power meant that they had to face the consequences. The more accumulated the information the man saw that it was not only giving him abilities – it is forging him into a new person. And with this power there were options. Would he use his new powers for the so called greater good to fight for justice to triumph? Or would he have one more glimpse of temptation through second, the power which delivers one in antagonist's hands and binds one with lethal sights of necromancy?

These were treats which in one way or another Aiden knew that he'd have to encounter in the future. But for the moment it was enough for him to stick to the system and to keep on getting stronger and more intelligent with every new day.

Thus, when Aiden put the book aside and set ready for the other mission, he had that lurking feeling of expectation. The future, unknown at best, was a sure shot calling for no excuses, no identities and no rationale for him and he knew what he wanted, something that the system wanted him for and that was the path that set him up to discover a new way of living.