Taylor's eyes opened to see a world completely different from the bloodied asphalt his broken body was laying on only seconds ago. He was in the mouth of a cave, with a faint, purple light shining down from the sky and towards the boreal forest that he seemed to have been transported to. The pain in his body was no longer present, Taylor looking down to see his body completely healthy, as if nothing had happened. His Grocer's Supermarket uniform was still on, though when Taylor pinched at his vest, he noticed a floating HUD appearing in front of him. It faded the second Taylor brought his fingers away, spurring him to pinch the vest again, reading the HUD that it presented.
[ [-[ Apotheosis UI ]-] ]
Wageslave Garbs
Lv. 0
Defense Power - 1
Passive: Work and Work
Increases Stamina Regeneration and Movement Speed significantly while laboring
[ [-[ ver 0.008 ]-] ]
"...the hell?" Taylor let out, walking out from the cave and looking around at his surroundings. The forest itself looked fairly regular, outside of the strangely thin and tall trees, them being a species that Taylor had not seen before. As Taylor looked up along the trees, he noticed the dark color of the sky, with what appeared to be an aurora swirling around the mass in place of any clouds. Between this aurora was a large, black and purple star slowly swirling around in a vortex-like shape, Taylor narrowing his eyes while he looked up at the astronomical body. "Is this… s - some sort of fentanyl-induced hallucination?" Taylor thought, raising his eyebrows and stopping when he saw the dead body of a human laying across from him in the slightly snow powdered woods. The butchered and partially missing state of the corpse led Taylor to initially think it was devoured by some wild animal, but when Taylor stepped closer, he noticed the abnormality of the wounds. There appeared to be perfectly spherical chunks missing out of the body, Taylor kneeling down and tracing his fingers along the completely round gape that was once the body's stomach. "...just my luck. I get isekaid, and it's in some… weird fucked up alien planet." Taylor muttered, his pessimistic observation managing to successfully predict an alien being bolting out of the trees and stopping in front of him. Taylor raised his eyebrows at the sight of the bipedal, four-armed, purple-colored creature standing across from him, bits of dust trailing off of its lithoid body while its stony limbs loudly grinded against one another. In the midst of its purple and grey body, Taylor saw what looked like some sort of tiny black hole encapsulated in an orb of glass, this orb in place of where one would expect a torso, with its limbs hovering around the orb of cosmic energy. "H - Hey!" Taylor shouted, covering his face and diving away as the alien hurled a mass of black energy at him, Taylor looking up to see this energy colliding into a tree, imploding and cutting out a perfectly spherical mass from the tree, causing it to collapse. "Creature to bestiary added!" Was what a notification read in front of Taylor's face, his eyes wide while he began to sprint away from the alien, dedicating part of his attention to what the notification said while the alien chased after him.
[ [-[ Apotheosis UI ]-] ]
Bestiary Entry
Lesser Voidling
A weak Voidkin freshly birthed from a Void Star, large celestial bodies made for the Voidkin to reproduce in and spread their influence to systems they're in the process of consuming. While fragile and only capable of rudimentary gravity magic, they are extremely numerous, and make the bulk of any Voidkin attack.
They typically die in one attack, so utilizing skills with a wide Area of Effect or piercing is best when dealing with Lesser Voidling hordes.
[ [-[ ver 0.008 ]-] ]
"W - What the hell is a Voidkin?!" Taylor shouted, his breathing growing heavy as he dodged out the way of another projectile, this was striking the ground in front of him and creating a crater in his path. Taylor reacted too slowly to avoid the crater, his foot catching inside of it and causing him to trip forward, landing on his face. "Ah!" Taylor let out, flipping onto his back to see the Lesser Voidling pouncing towards him. The creature nearly struck him, but was stopped by a blast of yellow flames, Taylor flinching as the alien was shot off of him. His breathing slowed as he looked up to see his savior. A tall, muscular human-looking man wearing what appeared to be an armored long coat, his long blonde hair flowing down his back, with a couple strands going over the opening in his armor exposing some of his chest. He equipped what appeared to be a cannon built into a massive tower shield, the mechanical weapon whirring while he sheathed it along his back. "Sir! Are you alright?" The man asked, reaching his hand down and helping Taylor back up onto his feet. "I'm… I'm fine, but…" Taylor trailed off as he touched the man's hand, looking up to see a HUD displaying in front of him, reading out the man's status.
[ [-[ Apotheosis UI ]-] ]
Oswald Pictor
Home Planet: ERR
Prestige ★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆
Lv. 119 Barricade
Health: 13,000/13,000
Mana: 581/600
Attack Power: 750
Defense Power: 1,800
[ [-[ ver 0.008 ]-] ]
While Taylor read Oswald's status, Oswald did the same for Taylor, raising his eyebrows and stepping back from Taylor.
[ [-[ Apotheosis UI ]-] ]
Taylor Montana
Home Planet: Earth
Prestige ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆
Lv. 1 Jobless
Health: 100/100
Mana: 25/25
Attack Power: 1
Defense Power: 2
[ [-[ ver 0.008 ]-] ]
"Wow… you're not from our realm, are you?" "Yeah, I'm… I - I'm not." Taylor replied, Oswald grinning and crossing his arms. "This is perfect! You're exactly what we need, Taylor! You…" Oswald placed a hand on Taylor's shoulder. "You need to come with me. I'll tell you everything you need to know." Taylor still felt somewhat confused, but chose to follow Oswald regardless, hoping the stranger would defend him from any more Voidkin that showed up. "You experienced death in your old world, didn't you?" Taylor nodded his head. "I did, yeah, I… I got hit by a truck." "Yes. But instead of passing away, your soul was brought here, Taylor. This can mean only one thing." Oswald brought his hand up to a device on his wrist, entering in a code and causing a beacon of light to shine up from him and towards the sky. "That our galaxy is in great turmoil, and that only you can save us. Come aboard my - no, our station, Taylor." "Huh? Wait, but… b - but what's happening, why - " "Your inquiries will be answered once we're back in Asgorath Empire territory, Taylor!" Oswald chirped, looking up to see a ship entering the orbit of the planet, letting down a tractor beam which Oswald stood in. Swallowing, Taylor chose to ignore his concerns, instead electing to try and be more positive. "I… I guess I really got isekaid into an epic fantasy world, then." Taylor smiled slightly, looking down at the planet's surface to see it rapidly shrinking away, soon replaced by the steel tile floor of a spaceship. "It seems kinda violent, but… whatever it is, it beats working at that fucking grocery store." Taylor thought, following behind Oswald and looking around at the ship's interior. Taylor initially thought this to simply be some sort of transport, but it appeared to be an entire station, with soldiers and workers alike marching throughout the futuristic interior. The intercom occasionally turned on to relay a message, Taylor listening to one that began to play shortly after he boarded. "Remember, the enemy does not only fight with weapons! They will use falsehoods and trickery to deceive us! If you see anyone engaging in discussions with the enemy, remember to report them to your nearest Peacekeeping Officer!" While Taylor walked, he looked out of the reinforced glass windows, watching the planet he was on fading away as the station swiftly drove towards another beacon. "Ah! Here we are, Taylor!" Oswald proclaimed, resting his hands on his sides and nodding towards a door with the label "Draconarius Briefing" above it. "Simply enter that room, and all of your questions will be answered! I'll be waiting outside once you're finished." "Alright. Thanks, Oswald." Taylor replied, Oswald smiling, giving Taylor a thumbs up. "Draconis Deus, friend!" "Huh? W - What deus?" Taylor repeated, Oswald chuckling. "Oh, it's the call of the Asgorath, Draconarius! Our war cry, our greeting, our farewell… Draconis Deus is our slogan, if you will." Taylor nodded his head, then stepped through the automatic armored door and inside of the room. "Haha, I thought he… said the High School DxD thing for a second." Taylor thought to himself.
As the door shut behind him, Taylor looked around the dark expanse, seeing only a lightless void surrounding him. Taylor hesitated for a moment, before taking a step forward, feeling his foot fall upon a grated metal platform. "Huh..?" Taylor hummed, slowly reaching his hand around the darkness in an attempt to gather where he was. "Hello?" He called out. As he spoke, a flash of white light suddenly enveloped the room, blinding Taylor for a moment and causing him to wince and kneel down slightly. "Hello, Draconarius Taylor!" A high-pitched, feminine voice called out, Taylor peeling his eyes open to see the figure standing across from him. The sight of this woman left Taylor shocked for a moment, his eyes wide while he took in her visage. She appeared to be some perfected combination of all of his favorite women from the anime he watched. Her full, curvaceous body was like that of Esdeath's, her soft, cute face and faintly canine features were like that of Sunaookami Shiroko's, all complete with white hair, blue eyes, and what appeared to be a cheery and supportive personality. "Uh… h - hey, uhm… who are you?" Taylor asked, the woman smiling, resting her hands behind her back while she answered. "I'm Okami, your loyal assistant! I'm here to introduce you to the super fun and glorious journey that is becoming a Draconarius!" Okami chirped, Taylor nodding his head, looking around the room to see several holographic screens beginning to form around him. "First, let me introduce you to where you are…" Okami began, walking over to the rightmost screen and waving her hand towards it, causing a display of a star system to appear on its screen. "You're currently in the expanding territory of the Asgorath Empire, a democratic and utopian group of people just like you and me! We're seeking to spread our freedom all across the galaxy, but," Okami frowned, shaking her head as she walked towards the next screen, tapping her finger on it and causing three images to appear on it. The first was a horde of Voidkin biological ships invading and devouring a planet, the second was a horde of frenzied, cybernetic soldiers consuming drugs and attacking Asgorath Empire vehicles, but the third stuck out to Taylor slightly. He stepped closer to the third picture to see what looked like a woman in militaristic armor, wearing a mechanical eyepatch over her scarred face. On the other side of her face was a single demonic horn growing out from her forehead, nearly touching the canine ears on her black, tied-back hair and highlighting the elongated, jagged fangs in her mouth, as well as the symbol of a Leviathan Cross on the middle of her neck. "These are all the threats our galaxy faces, Taylor. But you're a Draconarius, and together, we can stop all of these bad guys!" "Who are these people, though?" Taylor asked, Okami grinning, drawing in a deep breath and materializing a pair of glasses onto her face. "Okay… so the first ones you see are the Voidkin. They're a group of planet-eating aliens who chose us as their next snack!" Okami proclaimed, the screens changing to show various specimens of Voidkin, as well as their biopunk-styled ships. "We've been fighting them for a while now, but every time we beat them, they just eat some planets and come back!" "Yeah, I… I think I got attacked by one of those when I spawned here." Taylor said, Okami nodding her head. "Then you know how super-dangerous they are! Next…" Okami snapped her fingers, causing the screens to shift, displaying berserking cyborgs, militarized robots, and more advanced-looking ships. "Our other opponent is the evil, drugged up robot empire known as the Coalition of the Unimate! They're a bunch of criminal borgs with illegal cybernetics, who fight with evil robots to hurt the people of the Asgorath Empire!" "They kinda look like cyberpsychos." Taylor commented, Okami chuckling and nodding her head. "That's because that's what they are! A bunch of psychos obsessed with tech and drugs, all at the expense of our freedom!" Okami declared, drawing in a deep breath before going to the last opponent, the screens darkening slightly as they showed the same horned, canine woman from earlier, her surrounded by demonic, monstrous beings while standing atop a pile of Asgorath Empire soldiers, with a few winged, imp-like creatures overriding the Asgorath Empire equipment they presumably looted. This angle showed more of this woman's features, including the thin, scaled tail with a spade tip coming out of her back, and the demonic scales growing along her neck, arms, and legs towards her clawed hands and digitigrade lower legs. "The awful and ruthless Hellhound. She was once one of us, an officer of the Asgorath Empire… but she made a pact with a god of death, sacrificing all of her comrades so she could get demonic power." Taylor raised his eyebrows, looking over at Okami. "Why would she do that?" "Because she's an evil, power-hungry tyrant! If we want to ensure the freedom of our galaxy, we must free it from her clutches!" Okami giggled, grinning as she stepped closer to Taylor. "Who knows, though? You're quite a charmer, Draconarius, maybe you could sway her back to our side." Okami cooed, Taylor laughing slightly, shaking his head while rubbing at the back of his neck. "Aww, you're so shy, Taylor! It's super cute!" Okami proclaimed excitedly, jumping up and down while holding her hands together. Taylor looked at her to see her excessive, slightly unrealistic curves bouncing in a forcefully exaggerated motion from her cheering, his eyes widening and a shade of red coloring his cheeks as his eyes were set on the thin layer of latex wrapped tightly around Okami's endowed chest. "Haha… th - thanks, I guess…" Taylor muttered, Okami giggling, holding Taylor by his shoulder and guiding him over to the middle screen. "So… now you know who we're fighting against, Taylor! About the evil people who wanna take away our freedom! Normally we'd be in danger, but you, Taylor…" Okami smiled, stepping back and clapping her hands together, causing black and orange confetti to fall around Taylor, complete with cheers echoing out from the speakers. "You're a Draconarius! A legendary warrior from another realm, who will carry the emblem of the Dragon into battle, and bring safety to our galaxy!" The screens changed to show various other Draconarii in elaborate, flashy futuristic armor, marching throughout the streets of an Asgorath Empire city to see citizens all lining up, with cheers, salutes, and thrown flowers all coming from the ecstatic people. One kitsune woman lifted her shirt and flashed one of the Draconarii, earning some laughter and whoops from the otherworldly soldiers. Taylor looked around at the screens, then at Okami standing across from him, his heartbeat speeding up as he fully realized the situation he was in. "I… I used to just be some depressed loser, some… some nobody… but here…" Taylor smiled, his thoughts turning more positive as he clenched his hands into fists. "Here I can be someone. I can save people, I can make a difference, I… I can be worth something." Taylor looked back up at Okami, seeing a cheery smile remaining on her face. "I'm ready, Okami. Let's save the galaxy." "Yay!" Okami cheered, her tail wagging happily behind her as she pointed her finger into the center screen, revealing a massive menu containing a hexagon-chambered list of tens, if not hundreds of classes. "Go ahead and make your choice, Draconarius! And don't worry, you can change your class at any time!" Okami chimed, Taylor breathing deeply, taking a moment to go through the classes. The first icon that caught his eye was a shield with a green orb in the middle of it, Taylor pressing his finger on the icon to see the class' description.
[ [-[ Apotheosis UI ]-] ]
Shield Savior
Attack Power: ★☆☆☆☆
Defense Power: ★★★★★
Support Power: ★★★★☆
Range: ★★☆☆☆
Mobility: ★★☆☆☆
Weapon Type: Shield
Description: A highly defensive class which can easily take the aggro of dozens of enemies. Not only can the user buff and heal themselves, but they can support their allies as well, making them both the front line and team anchor in any fight.
[ [-[ ver 0.008 ]-] ]
"...okay, I guess that's a Shield Hero reference. What about this next one?" Taylor thought, pressing his finger down on an icon depicting a scythe being wrapped in rose thorns.
[ [-[ Apotheosis UI ]-] ]
Rose Reaper
Attack Power: ★★★★☆
Defense Power: ★☆☆☆☆
Support Power: ★☆☆☆☆
Range: ★★★★☆
Mobility: ★★★★★
Weapon Type: Sniper-Scythe
Description: This class excels in both ranged and melee combat, utilizing high-powered burst attacks with its weapon that can switch between a scythe and high-caliber rifle. While fragile, this class is capable of immaterializing into rose petals for almost unparalleled mobility and evasion.
[ [-[ ver 0.008 ]-] ]
Taylor cocked his head. "Are all of these classes anime references?" Taylor thought, bringing his hand to an icon depicting a katana with afterimages following it.
[ [-[ Apotheosis UI ]-] ]
Judicator
Attack Power: ★★★★★
Defense Power: ☆☆☆☆☆
Support Power: ☆☆☆☆☆
Range: ★★★☆☆
Mobility: ★★★★★
Weapon Type: Katana
Description: An incredibly offense-orientated class capable of teleportation and utilizing slips in space to create dimensions of slashes at a range, as well as creating floating, magical duplicates of its blade to fire at enemies.
[ [-[ ver 0.008 ]-] ]
"All of these classes seem kinda complicated. Is there one that's, uh… a little more beginner-friendly?" Taylor asked, Okami nodding her head, walking over to the screen and pressing her finger down on an icon depicting a shield with a snowflake in the center of it. "Yeah! I know it's super overwhelming, but there's plenty of easy classes for you to start with!" Okami chirped, Taylor turning back to the screen and reading it.
[ [-[ Apotheosis UI ]-] ]
Frost Knight
Attack Power: ★★★☆☆
Defense Power: ★★★★☆
Support Power: ★★☆☆☆
Range: ★★☆☆☆
Mobility: ★★☆☆☆
Weapon Type: Sword and Shield
Description: A well-rounded class which utilizes frost magic with its sword and shield abilities. Capable of switching between offensive sword skills, to defensive shield skills, to crowd-controlling ice skills, this class can be used in a number of ways.
[ [-[ ver 0.008 ]-] ]
Taylor looked over the Frost Knight class, rubbing at his chin while he looked over its description one more time. "Well… I can change my class later, right?" Taylor asked, Okami giving him a nod, smiling while she explained. "You can! In fact, most people change classes pretty often! Once you level up 20 times with a class, you get a Prestige in that class, which lets you use its passives and abilities with other classes!" "Oh. Then…" Taylor pointed at the select button on the class. "I choose this Frost Knight one, then." "Nice choice, Taylor! Hey, watch this!" Okami grinned, squeezing her hands along her chest and dancing lecherously in front of Taylor, distracting him for long enough for a metallic appendage to stretch out from the roof and stab Taylor in the back of his neck, implanting a small device inside of him. As this device wired into his body, Taylor felt his body go numb for a moment, with flashes of images with combat and magic training suddenly entering his mind, bestowing him with a newfound mastery of utilizing a sword and shield in combat. "H - Hey, what the hell was that?" "It's your DICE management system, silly! Your Draconic Information, Class, and Equipment are all done through that little thing in your neck!" "Oh. Well…" Taylor sighed. "Maybe… w - warn me before stabbing me with stuff?" "Aww! I'm sorry, Draconarius! But it's worth it, I promise! Not only does it let you use your class' stuff, but it automatically gives you all the training you need!" Okami declared, reaching forward and taking Taylor into a hug. Inhaling, Taylor returned the hug, feeling the softness of Okami's hair and the smoothness of her skin. "Hehe. Now then, you got your class, you got your DICE system, you know who to use 'em on… think it's time for you to go on your first mission!" Taylor raised his eyebrows. "W - Wait, already? I'm still, uh… k - kinda recovering, though, and," "Oh, it'll be a super easy mission! Besides, Oswald is gonna come with you, show you the ropes and all that." Taylor inhaled, nodding his head as he walked out of the room with Okami. "I'll see you once you're back, okay? Then I can show you your room and stuff!" Okami chirped, grinning as she stepped closer to Taylor, holding a hand on his arm. "Hehe… and maybe we could have a little fun in there, Draconarius." "Uh… I - I…" Taylor stammered for a moment while Okami laughed out, releasing Taylor and turning away. "Okay! See ya later, Taylor!" "Y - Yeah, see you." Taylor replied, parting ways with Okami and beginning to walk down the hallway of the space station. As he walked, he looked around to see custodian robots cleaning up and maintaining the hallways, with an occasional engineer going between them and inspecting them. Taylor stopped when he came across a taller, lean-built man standing across from him in the hallway, dorning a black and orange service uniform adorned with some mechanical armor, with a radio-filtered gas mask on his face beneath his similarly colored peaked cap. "Ah… a newly made Draconarius I see. It is my pleasure to meet you." The man calmly greeted, extending his hand forward. Taylor hesitated for a moment, raising an eyebrow as he felt his bestiary notification go off.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Bestiary Entry
Human
The most common race of the citizens of the Asgorath Empire, a galaxy-spanning government ruled by a caste of Dragonborn. Like the Dragonborn, humans originate from the planet of Toril, the capital of the Asgorath Empire.
Humans and Dragonborn have always had a loyal, mutual relationship to one another, and when the Dragonborn were blessed by the dragon gods to liberate their world from evil and sail to the stars, the humans were always by their side.
Humans are very versatile and adaptable, and are capable of using most forms of weaponry and magic. Their weakness is that they are ultimately a jack of all trades, and have no real natural speciality in any field.
[--- ver 1.602.801 ---]
"Uh…" Taylor exchanged a handshake with him, looking over to see a HUD with the man's information displayed in front of him.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Caius Lucullus
Home Planet: Praelis
Prestige ★★★★★★★★★★
Lv. 250 Commander
Health: 45,000/45,000
Mana: 10,000/10,000
Attack Power: 3,500
Defense Power: 750
[--- ver 1.602.801 ---]
"Wow… level 250?" Taylor asked, Caius chuckling and nodding his head, looking over to see Taylor's new status display on his HUD.
[--- DRACONIC SYSTEMS ---]
Taylor Montana
Home Planet: Earth
Prestige ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆
Lv. 1 Frost Knight
Health: 300/300
Mana: 50/50
Attack Power: 100
Defense Power: 125
[--- ver 1.602.801 ---]
"Indeed. 250 is the highest level achievable for us humans." "You must be really strong, then." Taylor said, Caius shrugging his shoulders. While the two spoke, a few crewmen walked by, them briskly marching past Caius and trying to avoid being in his eyesight. "Hmm. You flatter me, Draconarius Montana." Caius cooed, his voice slightly garbled from the radio filter on his mask, but otherwise emitting a somewhat menacing aura of authority to Taylor. "My strength comes only from my loyalty to the Empire. If you serve well, then you will be as powerful as I one day. Now then," Caius patted his hand on Taylor's shoulder. "You have work to do. Let me distract you no longer." "Oh… r - right, uh… I'll get on that." Taylor replied, Caius nodding his head. "Mhm. Draconis Deus, Draconarius Montana." "Y - Yeah, Draconis Deus." Caius kept his hands held together behind his back while he watched Taylor walk over to the ship's tractor beam. "...why did it take so long for humans to get added to my bestiary?" Taylor thought, bringing his hand up and feeling his fingers along the slight square indentation beneath his flesh. "I guess maybe my thing's bugged. The background did change a little bit when they installed that new UI into it." Taylor looked around the interior of the station, seeing an engineer walking past him and towards a janitorial droid repeatedly bumping against the wall. "...is there anyone I can even report a bug to?" Taylor thought, then shook his head, deciding such a thing wasn't worth any more attention at the moment.