Chapter 1: Exodus

Adam Hope's point of view:

–After falling unconscious I could feel how every muscle, nerve, cell and fiber of my being was rebuilt, putting fatigue aside. She felt as if she had taken a hot bath after a long time. And as soon as the fatigue was gone and I was able to open my eyes my body fell into what looked like a mound of sand – Where the hell am I? –I asked myself as I looked confused at the night sky in which two moons were posing–

—Answer: The User is in the Badlands –A woman's voice said, coldly and mechanically–

"Ok, let's recap. I have my arm and my leg again, there are two moons in the sky and a voice speaks to me directly from my head. I'm definitely dead," I said with a lost look.

-Negative. The User's vital signs are stable.

—Then how the hell are there two moons in the sky and I hear voices in my head if at the very least I haven't gone crazy? –I asked while frowning–

—Answer: The User sees two moons in the sky due to the change of celestial body occurred by superior forces. As for the voice in the User's head, it is the extra ability Machine Brain –He said as if he was supposed to understand what he was telling me–

—Slower, slower! Explain yourself in more detail –I demanded to the voice in my head–

-Understood. Explaining the User's situation in more detail. The User has been transported by an unknown goddess to the planet Exodus of the Solis system, more specifically to The Badlands. As for the Machine Brain skill, this is a complex magic circle implanted in the User's soul through the metamorphosis ritual. The ritual was also performed by the unknown goddess to heal the User's body and provide it with a magical core thanks to which she is able to interact with mana, and therefore with abilities.

—Let me see if I understand correctly. A goddess transported me to another planet using magic, altered my body to be able to use magic, I am talking to an AI made of magic and I was thrown into a desert that surely has magical animals eager to devour me. mistaken? –I said quite stressed while frowning–

-Affirmative. Apparently the goddess found the User by chance, and by chance she had enough mana to heal him and transport him as close to her as possible. Therefore it is advisable to seek shelter as soon as possible.

—As close to her as possible? I literally fell three feet into the ground. Does that mean she's on the other side of the world? What were the chances that she would find me and be able to transport me here?

-Calculated. The probabilities are

"No, I was complaining, it wasn't a real question," I said, cutting off the AI. "But anyway, where should I go now to avoid being eaten by some alien creature?"

—Answer: Atmospheric mana is less dense in the south direction, therefore alien creatures will be less dangerous the further south the User is.

"Well, in that case, let's get going," I said, jumping up and then scratching my head and wondering which way was south, to which the AI ​​would show me the way.

Let me see if I understand. Thanks to that metamorphosis ritual I now have a magical core next to my heart, and thanks to that I can now use mana to do magic –I asked curiously while walking aimlessly–

-Affirmative. An analysis of the User indicates that he is compatible with all forms of magic and has a magical pressure 10 times higher than average, therefore the User will be able to perform high-level magic once he is strengthened.

—So the core is like a type of muscle that gets stronger when you exercise it —I said thoughtfully with my hand on my chin—

—Answer: Partially correct. Continuous use of the magic core can help increase the amount of mana within it or break through to a new level, but the main way to strengthen a magic core and increase the amounts of mana is by absorbing other magic cores.

-Cannibalism?! Are there more people on this planet?! –I screamed scared–

—Answer: The existence of human and humanoid life forms on the planet Exodus is known, but at the moment there is no more information. It is recommended to collect information through contact. As for cannibalism, that is partially incorrect, all life forms on this planet that are capable of using mana have a magical core, so although it is possible to absorb human cores, that is not necessary.

"That's a relief," I said, letting out a sigh. It's not that he was necessarily against killing people. To survive I had to do what was necessary, but I didn't want to become stronger at the expense of other people's lives, that would make me equal or worse than the greedy people who destroyed my home to get more power– So how do I do magic? –I asked expectantly–

—Answer: The use of magic occurs through the accumulation of mana in certain parts of the body or outside the body depending on the type of spell, and then giving it form through a mental image. This process can be demanding on the brain, so you may choose to use chants with spell characteristics to lighten the mental load or speed up the process. Since the User has never used mana before, he will proceed to make it flow with greater intensity to help with his perception –He said when I instantly began to feel a strong tingling throughout my body–

—It feels strange —It was a sensation similar to having goosebumps, but I decided where and when it would be— Since it's night, some light wouldn't be bad. I just have to imagine that the mana takes the form of light –I said while trying to shape the spell without any success–

—Tip: To facilitate the formation of spells you can imagine their non-magical equivalent. For example: When wanting to create a small fireball the User can imagine himself hitting two rocks on a torch to light it.

—Oh, that makes things clearer to me —I said with a new idea in mind— I once read that photographers used to burn magnesium powder to make the flashes for their cameras. That is the image that I will give to the spell – I said as the mana swirled over the palm of my hand and then gave a great and strong flash of light that ended up blinding me – Agh! The spell worked, but I think I need to practice – I said, rubbing my eyes that were still burning – Anyway, I will continue practicing while we walk, after all I have nothing else to do.

–After a few hours of walking I had already gotten the hang of magic. If she could form a clear picture of what she wanted to do the rest was easy. Besides, the clearer the image was, the less mana it would spend. Thanks to that I was able to visualize the oxygen and hydrogen in the air coming together to form water without hardly exhausting myself – Mom, thank you for having forced me to read so many books – I said with a tear when I remembered how tortuous your teaching was – Ahh, the landscape It doesn't change, how much do you think...? –Boom! A loud crash was heard that shattered the place where he was standing an instant ago, but from which he had jumped just in time–

—Warning: A rock golem has been detected. Analyzing. The magical beast is estimated to be 1,000 times stronger than the User. It is recommended to flee.

-A thousand times?! –I asked, bewildered– How am I supposed to escape from that thing?! –I shouted, running as fast as I could while watching the golem raise both fists high and then hit the ground hard, causing hundreds of giant stone stakes to emerge in my direction –Shit!–

—Extreme danger has been detected. Activating survival functions. Decreased reaction time, bones reinforced with mana, threads of mana spread throughout blood vessels to repair any possible wounds.

-What did you do?! –I asked as I saw how the large, sharp rocks emerging from the ground became slower and slower, making it easy for me to avoid them by jumping and rolling from one side to the other. "Their speed was reduced by half, that was very useful, but I would have appreciated if you had done it sooner. And besides, that thing is still there –I said pointing to the golem that began to walk in my direction with slow and rough steps– At least it's very slow –I said relieved–

-Negative. Given the size of the golem, despite taking slow steps, it is faster than the User –When I finished processing what she had told me, the golem was already a few meters away from me with just 5 steps–

—Damn! –I screamed and kept running– Isn't there some way to kill him? I mean I can't run from that thing forever, and at some point I'll get tired of running – I said jumping to the side to avoid one of his blows –

—Analyzing countermeasures. Countermeasure found. Developing resonant spell. The User's fists will be imbued with resonant magic. When you hit the golem it will be destroyed by the frequency of the hit

—Do you want me to go up to that thing and hit it?! –I said, interrupting her–

-Affirmative. But the appropriate frequency to make the golem resonate and destroy it is unknown, therefore the User must come into contact with the golem to find an effective frequency.

—So not only do I have to go hit it, but first I have to touch it without it crushing me -I said frustrated- Ahh, well, it's not like there's much difference between a walking piece of stone measuring 10 meters and a piece of scrap metal measuring several meters. tons. If one couldn't crush me, why could this one? –I said, gathering courage and running in the direction of the golem.

-Warning. The stone golem's attack pattern has been learned. The trajectory of the blows will be marked to facilitate their evasion.

"That's perfect," I said, dodging a fine stroke of mana where just a few moments later the golem dealt a strong blow. "I feel like I'm going to be crushed at any moment, but I'm almost there," I said, rolling to one side and then jumping up his right foot and hold on to it – Ready! Now what?!

—Scanning rock composition. Estimated time: 10 seconds –She said as I felt my stomach sink and my heart squeeze–

—How the hell do you want me to stay attached to this thing for 10 seconds without it crushing me?! –I screamed furiously as I used his foot to propel myself towards his left arm and avoid the right hand that almost made me mincemeat–

—Scanning progress: 30%.

—Damn! –I screamed, doing a somersault in the air to land on his chest and almost avoiding another right hand from him, causing him to hit himself and stagger a little–

—Scanning progress: 60%.

-Almost! –I said, seeing how both fists were dangerously approaching towards me, to which I desperately extended my arm upwards and shouted "Flash", the name I had decided to give to the light spell, thus momentarily blinding the golem to hinder it from climbing up to its head. –

—Scan progress: 100%. Frequency successfully found. Imbuing the User's arms with resonant magic.

-It was time! –I said, holding on to the golem's head with my legs and then bringing my fists together at the top and giving it a strong blow that made its head explode and part of its torso crack. And once he collapsed I no longer had anywhere to lean on, so I fell painfully on the pile of rocks. "Ugh, my arms," I said, feeling intense pain as I watched my arms tremble. "

—Notice: Chips have been detected in the right humerus and radius, and a fracture in the left ulna. Proceeding to heal by stitching –As soon as he said that the pain intensified and I felt as if hundreds of needles were cooking my body from the inside, but after a few seconds all the pain disappeared–

—Ugh! What was that?

—Answer: The threads of mana spread through the User's blood vessels were used to repair and reconnect the bones.

—That's pretty useful, otherwise I would have had to wear a makeshift cast for 7 weeks.

—Notice: Mana threads are not capable of healing mortal wounds. It is recommended not to put yourself in danger.

—And the one who told me to approach the golem tells me this—I said, frowning and clenching my right fist with the intention of hitting her, until I remembered that it was intangible—Anyway, isn't that thing supposed to have a magical core? Can I absorb it?

-Affirmative. The User is able to absorb the stone golem's magical core. However, the great difference in power makes complete absorption impossible, therefore much of the mana will be lost.

—And there is no way to take advantage of that lost mana? –I said vaguely thinking about something like using earth magic to make some quality weapon or molding a vase and filling it with water–

—Analyzing magic core. Calculating surplus. Disagreeing ways to take advantage of the surplus. Success. The surplus will be used to carve more abilities into the User's soul.

—More skills? Wait, can I have more than one skill? –I asked, bewildered–

-Affirmative. The User already has 5 skills.

-Oh really?! That is incredible. If with you alone I could already avoid being killed by a giant monster, what can I do with 4 more skills? In fact, how will I create more skills with the surplus mana?

—Note: Not all skills are focused on combat or combat support. For example: The "Machine Brain" skill is focused on logistical support, but the User has found a way to use it in combat.

Answer: The Machine Brain skill will be responsible for managing the excess mana so that the User's subconscious can create the new skills.

—Combat-focused or not, I'm sure they will be useful, but it's a shame that they are created based on my subconscious since I would like to decide what kind of ability to obtain -I said feeling exhausted and with blurred vision- Why I am getting tired? –I asked, leaning awkwardly on the golem's destroyed foot–

—Answer: Mana has begun to be absorbed and new skills manufactured. This process is highly exhausting for the User's body and mind. Therefore, it is highly likely that you will faint.

"Damn, you should warn me before doing these things," I said with the last of my strength before falling unconscious to the cold ground.

Author's words:

Hello, I hope you liked this chapter and that it didn't feel so heavy. But since it is a completely new world, it is necessary to give as much information as possible to place the reader in the story and understand how it works. Without more I say goodbye.

Best regards, Don_Miseria.