At the edge of the dark sand, where the water lazily ended its run, a fragile figure lay. In the pale starlight it seemed almost transparent, as if woven from sea foam and lunar glimmers. Cold waves rolled onto the shore in a steady rhythm, washing over the face and lifting long strands of silver hair in the water, trailing behind the body like living silk.
The figure did not move, and only the faint trembling of the shoulders showed that life still flickered within that graceful body, stripped of familiar features. The ocean whispered, drawing excess salt from pale skin, until at one point slender fingers twitched, digging into the wet sand.
.
.
.
I heard the steady rustle of the surf. It comes in — it goes out. It comes in — it goes out.
Instinctively, I clenched my fists, digging my nails painfully into my palms to check if I was dreaming.
When I opened my eyes, I was blinded for a moment by the clarity of the night sky. The stars shone brighter than I had ever seen.
Raising myself slightly onto my elbows, I sat up, and water slid off my shoulders with a quiet splash. That's when the cold hit me.
Something long and wet lashed across my face. I flinched, trying to brush it away, and froze, staring at my hands. My fingers were slender, pale, and somehow… unfamiliar. Too delicate, maybe. I was holding a strand of hair. But it wasn't mine. Mine had been short and dark — this was pure silver. Long, wet, heavy with water, it clung to my skin and fell into my eyes.
— What the hell… — slipped from my lips.
My voice sounded strange. Not чужим, but not entirely mine either. Too even, too soft, as if I were hearing it from the outside.
I lowered my gaze — and went cold. I was completely naked. But embarrassment didn't come right away. First came something else — a dull sense of mismatch. My body… it looked different. The skin was smooth, without familiar marks, without any recognizable details. There were no typical masculine traits. Nor feminine ones… Just a body. As if someone had erased everything unnecessary, leaving only the form.
Growing uneasy, I crawled closer to the water to get a better look at myself.
An unfamiliar face stared back at me from the reflection. Sharp cheekbones, pale skin, and crimson eyes calmly meeting my gaze. Not large, not small — just different. They seemed ordinary, yet they held none of who I used to be.
And that was what frightened me most.
— Is this… me?
My voice still sounded unfamiliar. It didn't fit any description. It wasn't rough like a man's, nor soft like a woman's. And yet it carried something of both.
Suddenly I remembered that when I lost consciousness underwater, I had awakened in a strange space where I spoke to someone.
And just before waking up in this world, that voice told me I was no longer human. What exactly did it mean? Judging by my reflection in the water, I still had familiar human features — except that now I looked slightly… different.
Tearing my gaze away from the reflection and pushing the thoughts aside, I stood up and looked around.
The shore was wide, stretching along the water and disappearing into darkness on both sides.
A little farther from the surf line, I could make out rocks.
They didn't look dangerous, but they didn't make me want to climb them either. Dying once was enough for me. I wasn't eager to die a second time scrambling over rocks.
In the distance I saw trees, and immediately understood it was some kind of forest.
I decided to walk along the shore toward the rocks and head into the forest. Maybe there I'd find something resembling civilization, somewhere I could survive the night. Maybe the beach would've been safer, but sitting around and doing nothing wasn't an option. I needed to figure out where I was and what to do next.
As I walked, it gradually began to grow lighter, and I could see more clearly.
The rocks became fewer, replaced by colossal trees. It felt like I was on some uninhabited island.
Lost in thought, I was pulled out of it by a new sensation under my feet. It was a large white piece of cloth I had accidentally stepped on. It was a pleasant find for two reasons.
First: it meant there were people here after all.
Second: I could wrap myself in it instead of wandering around naked.
Wrapping the cloth around myself like some ancient Greek god from myths or a simple monk, I continued on.
As I walked, I thought again about the voice in the void. If I really think about it, I'm alive right now because of that voice, aren't I? I'd like to somehow thank him — or her — for that, and ask in more detail who I am now, if not human.
*…*
Hm, was it my imagination, or did a thought brush through my mind like a light breeze?
*No, you didn't imagine it*
— Agh! — I flinched in surprise. — Are you in my head now? And why scare me like that? You could've at least warned me…
*I tried, but you didn't pay it any attention*
Tried? Oh, right — she probably meant that feeling of wind in my head or something like that.
Well then, could you at least introduce yourself and explain where we are and what happened to my… so to speak, body? And who I am now?
*My name is Elaris*
Nice to meet you, Elaris. I'm Rein.
Elaris responded in kind, but I still had questions.
Aren't beings supposed to be born, not wake up lying in the water?
Or are people born differently in this world?
What else in this world is different? I decided to jump and check whether gravity here differed from Earth's, but it felt exactly the same.
So what about who I am? Why do I look like… like I don't even know who.
*Your body is a spiritual lifeform. Spiritual beings do not have sexual distinctions, and in principle they do not need them*
I froze, processing that. A spiritual lifeform? So what, I'm some kind of elemental spirit or demon now? Just without horns and without… well, you get it.
And besides, can spirits even smell things, feel sand beneath their feet like I do right now? My understanding of such things is completely different from reality.
Listen, if I'm a spirit now, then what kind? Spirits have races, don't they?
*You now belong to the race of angels — the highest spirits of this world*
Wait… what?
An angel? One of the highest?
She said it so calmly, as if this sort of thing happened every day.
Doesn't that mean I have to serve some god? Carry out duties in the heavens?
*No. You are an angel of free will. Moreover — you were not part of the original design*
Not part of the design?
That sounds rude. Like I'm some unwanted child.
What does "not part of the design" mean? Then why am I an angel? An angel isn't some simple being you can just create by accident.
*Calm down. In this world, only twelve angels were created. That is all. That is why I say you were not in the plan*
The history of my "kind" didn't give me much right now. Only more questions. And the feeling that Elaris was holding something back again.
*That is not the case*
Then how did I become an angel?!
*All questions should be directed to the Skill Manager*
What? What Manager?
Elaris explained that almost all beings in this world possess a support skill called "Skill Manager." It helps activate abilities in moments of strong desire or danger. It also assists in combat and daily life.
So there's magic in this world, and some kind of skill system. At least that gives me a clearer understanding of the world I ended up in.
But I shouldn't stray from the main point.
Don't shift all the blame onto it! How can some kind of system create a body… and not just any body, but that of a highest spirit?
I was confused.
It's not every day you find out you're a highest spirit.
Elaris fell silent, and I realized that trying to force information out of her this way wouldn't work.
So I changed the subject.
Listen, now that you live inside me and share one body with me, are you going to stay in my head all the time?
*Yes*
Hm… having a companion I could talk to at any moment wasn't so bad.
While I was talking with Elaris and thinking about my own things at the same time, my feet led me to the edge of the forest. My attention was drawn to a small fishing boat pulled onto the shore and covered with some kind of canvas. That was a good sign: it meant there were people nearby who fished here. Looking around, I noticed a narrow, barely visible path leading deeper into the thicket.
The forest greeted me with the scent of pine and cool air. The trees looked almost the same as on Earth, and nature itself didn't differ in the slightest. Except the air felt unbelievably clean — almost dizzying.
Even though I was barefoot, stepping on what should have logically caused pain felt like a light tickle. Probably another feature of this body. I didn't fully understand it, but Elaris explained that my skin was now far denser than a human's, and an ordinary branch or sharp stone couldn't harm me. All thanks to physical resistance. Though, looking at my slender arms and elegant fingers, I wouldn't have guessed. From the outside, I must look fragile, like a glass figurine.
*That is only an external impression*
But it really looks that way.
*Only in appearance*
Arguing was pointless. Elaris understood this far better than I did.
*That is correct*
Don't get cocky.
*…*
I kept walking until the sky above the treetops began to brighten. Night ended, and morning came. It would be very convenient to meet someone alive right about now…
And at that moment, the silence was torn apart by a sharp, dry crack, like a burst of electricity.
I didn't even have time to turn my head. Just a bright flash to the left, the whistle of air being sliced — and a strange sensation of emptiness. I took another step out of inertia before noticing that my left arm… had simply disappeared.