He drifted off on the surface of the sea, his body felt heavy yet it stayed afloat as his arms were spread wide.
His face and eyes twitched, and he slowly opened his eyes.
Upon doing so, a pulse from underneath his body spread, affecting the sea, spreading fast and wide.
Veritas finally noticed he was staying afloat with the night sky everywhere he could see.
Right above, like a sun, was a black orb hovering and pulsing with red and white lines.
Veritas narrowed his eyes on the orb pulsing with red and white lines as he stood up.
Taking a step, the world once again pulsed lively, the red and white lines spreading from both the black orb and his feet.
'Am I somewhere inside my body…?'
His mind churned, he remembered seeing the red System before passing out once again.
In fact, he was confused and suspicious. Systems from what he heard weren't coloured red… it was supposed to be blue.
He surprisingly arrived at a single conclusion, both nerve-wrecking and… exciting.
'I survived that Agent's attack. I also… got a System.'
Veritas, with a heart beating loud and fast, looked down to the surface of the sea reflecting a hazy image.
"... System."
***
[Name]: [Veritas]
[Core]: [Black]
[Sub-Core]: [Pawn]
[Artifacts]: —
[Paths]: [Agent of #####]
[Lines]: [Consume]
The red hologram popped up, showing the lines of information that stirred fire within his body.
A smile cracked his face, and he punched the air.
"HELL YEA—H!!!"
Veritas bellowed, roaring out his excitement in the still silent area.
As if acknowledging his happiness, the whole area came to live, pulsing with red and white lines.
Veritas' eyes widened in amazement, seeing the sea reflecting those lights and the dome-like area humming.
This— this truly was one of the best moments of his life, and he would make sure to always remember this.
Now, while he was curious how he survived the corruption of an Agent, and why he still got a System, he was too happy to think much of it.
But then, as if to interrupt him from his excitement, a warm sensation spread from his hair and ran down his face.
Touching his face and hair, he didn't feel anything wet… if so, why did it feel warm?
Realizing that he was inside his body spiritually — he hypothesized — he tried to wake up.
The sea blurred before vanishing into darkness, and the darkness embraced him once again.
Slowly, light stirred through as his vision recovered, feeling a warmth stream of liquid painting his face, Veritas frowned.
The smell struck, and Veritas' face cringed before looking to see a golden coloured fur with its hind leg raised up.
'Wha-'
He was getting pissed on, and not in a metaphorical way.
Veritas coughed, startling the dog as it whimpered before skipping away from the spot, hurriedly getting away.
"Oh god."
Veritas felt like he wanted to puke, but held himself from doing that, he could feel the way his stomach was empty.
He wouldn't want to puke and feel even more weak than how he was feeling right now.
Veritas growled before looking at the perpetrator.
It was a golden retriever. He remembered seeing one of those back on the main city. He was living in the suburban side so imagine his surprise upon seeing a golden retriever, a species that wasn't supposed to be here.
But, upon looking the way its fur was dirty, and it looked skinnier than the ones he saw, Veritas instantly realized.
The dog was lost. For how many days, he didn't know.
Moreover...
"Hey, how long did I pass out?"
He said idiotically, to a dog.
Remembering that he was talking to a dog, who looked at him with a deadpan and a stare as if to say 'I'm a damn dog', Veritas' eye twitch.
He sighed before slowly standing up.
He could feel that his body had changed, he felt... stronger. As if he could run and see the world blur.
Well, that was his feeling anyway. Not that he would know if it was possible.
But he would definitely try... after this issue.
A rumble escaped from his stomach, and Veritas let out a grunt.
Looking at the dog who stared at him warily, Veritas suddenly thought of something.
"... Hey, wanna come with me?"
Veritas weakly knelt down before reaching out with a single hand, but he kept his distance away, not touching the dog.
The dog flinched upon seeing his hand, but slowly walked towards his outstretched hand and sniffed it.
It licked it... and then bit it.
"Owch!"
He looked at the dog who seemed smug before letting go and barking at him.
"Gee... you bit and now you're barking at me? You animal!"
Sighing, Veritas stood up before seeing the black tattered cloak on the ground.
'If I remember correctly... that belonged to the Agent.'
Taking the cloak, Veritas fold it on his arm before slowly walking out of the alleyway.
Hearing the small steps behind him, Veritas' face turned to a smile as he looked behind to see the golden dog following behind him.
'... I survived an attack from an Agent... got a System and a dog. Well, the dog part is yet to be confirmed. But I hope he would like to be my... friend.'
He still couldn't believe it, it was as if all the good deeds in his life was finally being rewarded. Thought it did feel too good to be true...
This time, he called upon the System in the real world as he spoke in his head.
'System.'
***
[Name]: [Veritas]
[Core]: [Black]
[Sub-Core]: [Pawn]
[Artifacts]: —
[Paths]: [Agent of #####]
[Lines]: [Consume]
It appeared... so it was real. It was genuinely real.
But then, the reality of the situation finally dawned upon him... his System was different, and his Path? It was called 'Agent of #####'.
Was he an Agent? Was he still human? Or was he a hybrid?
Paths were simple, they showed you the title of your main ability. It was a lifetime ability that would be with you throughout your whole life.
Guardians, people who had Systems, were only given one ability in their lives. If they were lucky, they would get two, but that was the maximum.
Then came the Lines, they were the abilities derived from the Paths. If it would be explained in a simple game term, Paths would be the ultimate, it could be passive or active. While Lines would be the skills.
Thereupon lie the problem, his Path was that of an Agent of #####...
Would he be considered an Agent by the Guardians...? If so, he needed to keep this System and Path a secret... but then, would anything be different now from his life before he got the System if he couldn't even use his Path?
His System?
Generally, once someone got the System, they could apply for the Academy. If they got accepted, congratulations, they were basically set for life.
If not, then they would either be sent to the military, which from what he heard, was a bad thing.
It wasn't exactly a bad thing, just that his life would be uncomfortable if he were to join the military.
Veritas sighed before suddenly noticing that he was already standing in front of the apartment.
Walking inside, Veritas walked towards the elevator and noticed the dog still following him obediently.
Was it dumb? Did it not think that maybe, just maybe, he was a bad guy?
Oh well, not that he was planning to harm the dog.
The elevator let off a 'ding', announcing the stop as the door opened.
Walking back inside his studio, Veritas opened the door and is greeted by the dark cramped room.
The dog next to him barked, making Veritas turn to see the dog looking at the inside of his studio like it was seeing trash.
Veritas frowned.
"Hey, if you want to go out there and eat foods from the trashcan or somewhere on the street, then be my guest. But I'm over here, willing to take care of you, and I don't want to hear complaints."
The dog looked at Veritas before letting a huff and walking inside the studio before he could.
...
Was this damn dog a king or something?
Veritas sighed, he had a lot of things to do now...
First things first, a shower.
***
Time passed, and Veritas could be seen sitting on the floor in the middle of the studio.
He looked around his room before setting his gaze towards his own bed.
'Now... how do I use my ability?'
Veritas' brow furrowed, he reached out and touched the bed before... nothing.
He didn't know how to use his powers.
How to use an Agent's authority?
He thought of his Path, and the System responded, bringing forth a description.
[Path Description]:
[Agent of #####]: [You are bestowed upon the authority of an Agent of #####. A human, yet an Agent, an anomaly. The more information and truth you discover, the more you become stronger.]
'...'
It was too vague of a description, but if he had to guess...
He remembered how the Agent moved, touching his face before showering him with endless information.
He remembered how he was the Agent, seeing himself in the perspective of the Agent.
With that thought in mind, he allowed himself to 'open' himself, as if pouring out his information of everything he knew.
Lines of red erupts from him, towards the floor and the bed.
The dog was sitting on a corner before seeing the red lines spreading from Veritas and into the bed.
It was instantly alarmed.
It jumped back, barking at Veritas, but Veritas didn't seem to hear it.
Veritas felt it, he was the bed. He saw the parts, the time when the bed was made, and the time it was delivered, and the times it was used by him...
He felt the information flowing into his mind, and while he didn't feel any stronger... he felt something stir in his Core, as if a hum erupting from it.
But then—
BZZT!
He felt as if the connection from himself and the bed was forcefully severed.
Then...
Everything went dark.