Systems of Ross

Humans

Designer: Antonia Thyselius

When Humanity had finally found their place on Ross they were largely safe for decades, nearly centuries. But not even their Cloven protectors were truly safe, how could anyone be–on a planet such as this?

The reliance on others for protection chafed–where was the security in always being a 2nd priority after all? It was as fleeting as the shifting of the winds.

Nor were the Humans considered citizens, not in any true sense. Their lands were poor, but still the proper affinity, so it was merely under Cloven protection despite the Humans having been allowed to settle; the plant-life came first after all.

The only ones who earned a modicum of respect were those displaying a truly unique drive and intelligence. Through various means both [Druid]s and [Shaman]s recruited among the lesser folk, making some room for the utilising of their greatest minds.

Before this everything had been a matter of trading finished products, but now the Cloven started taking an interest in the Human mindset as it grew to match with their new environment.

Antonia Thyselius was a girl of common stock in the Cloven book, not having had any ancestors show any particularly strong magic affinity; but she was a one in a billion student.

Her ancient Cloven mentor had found her young, and taught her to teach herself rather than dive into any of his more advanced knowledge; before finally succumbing to his age shortly after Antonia had turned ten.

And then she entered the public schools of the Cloven program.

The different academies actually fought over her–after the way she performed there–and even tried to bribe her to work on her next projects in their facilities; so they could then put their stamp on any breakthrough she achieved.

It was a profitable environment, both in terms of knowledge gained and funds, not to mention rare resources for her projects–all things that were freely provided.

But she was forever an outsider, and doomed to be chained to the grinding wheel for the profit of others.

After an unknown incident where it is believed an escalating academy feud went too far, the fallout seemed to have devastated either Antonia’s projects or the woman herself. The details remain lost to time, and the Cloven records are adamant that this was the end to her tale.

But merely a few shorts years later was when another female genius showed up.

This time around she remained in Human lands, and while she gathered talents and built a solid foundation, their reputation still grew slowly, surely.

Soon enough they were attracting the Human talent away from the Cloven programs that had served to control Humanity's most ambitious candidates for so many decades.

It was an exchange after all; knowledge for service. But the terms had hardly been fair, with Humanity lacking much of an option.

Now there was suddenly someone offering the secrets of magic, somehow learned despite the lack of true magic craft provided to the Human students in all but a minimal few cases where the profits of raising them higher could not be ignored.

Those lucky Humans were obviously under tight control, most of the time, but this woman somehow fit the bill. Yet every Skill attempting to establish her true identity failed, and the Cloven were forced to reconsider their assumptions.

The movement started out as a business in Dormata, but soon it had grown to become a community centre where everything from education to research was taking place.

The Cloven evidently reacted badly to this turn of events. They were seeing their influence over their lessers slowly drain away; but their own System was still adamant that the Humans not be killed off, or treated with violence at all really–immediately providing obligatory [Quest]s to make the Cloven repent–and locking down further advancement, until the appointed protectors accepted their mistakes.

And so the Cloven response was far too peaceful and slow to contend with the true ambitions of Antonia.

Unwaveringly her power grew, and Human Casters not relying on a System remained rare but also grew increasingly common–and this was genuinely viewed as a threat. Maybe not to the Cloven as a whole, but certainly to the Realm bordering Doc Forrest. Not to mention how it was a threat to the Cloven identity.

Humanity were still mostly considered a young race, however strange, and to have their magic be successfully contended with–albeit by talented individuals, and not the race as a whole–was a huge point of political strife. With the most fearmongering using it as an argument to start the claim of it all being the mere beginning signs of further things to come.

And so the two previously harmonious populations entered a sort of cold war, no longer able to rely on a well-defined relationship of master and pupil.

But Humanity was far from ready to contend with all the soft power of the collected Cloven. The influence they started exerting grew strenuous, and factions formed to even oppose Antonia’s projects despite all that she’d provided for so many people.

Things were far from perfect after all, not all the Humans who she had trusted with power had ended up using it for good, or the betterment of Mankind.

The Cloven eventually managed to bully the Human leader into working on a new project in their lands, for the promise of exorbitant sums to be funnelled into Doc Forrest in return. Antonia had no choice but to comply or risk every Human turning against her in greed for the promised riches.

She had but one condition; that she be allowed to set up her shop wherever she pleased.

The Cloven took this condition with the suspicious scepticism such a strange request deserved; and insisted on being allowed to add exceptions, eventually working over and handing in a list of over twenty five of the most potent shrines and grand arboreal palaces to be found in their lands; many of which Antonia had not even known of beforehand.

Their list missed the mark completely. Nobody could have imagined where she would choose; parked right up against their vast, holy volcano–Olympus Mons.

She worked on their proposed projects for a year, but somehow her abode kept moving closer and closer to the volcano despite the density of energy, not to mention the many other issues that arose for anyone who tried to build there. You had to deal with strange creatures popping up, flora that behaved like it was alive and wanted your soul–even magic phenomena that was sometimes destructive and sometimes strangely empowering, but always completely unpredictable and considered impossible to prepare for.

Antonia let nothing stop her.

She worked on the promised project; but she also kept moving further in with each month. Nobody understood how she was doing it, how a building could vanish and be rebuilt where it should be impossible, somehow resisting such a volatile environment.

On the day when the Cloven project was completed, and they were finally set to be given their due–and expected for her to finally leave their lands–that was when things escalated in truth.

Rather than finish up and come out from this place where nobody could come get her; she kept moving in.

Now it was a national crisis. Olympos Mons could not be allowed to be used in any way by foreigners out of their control; teams of the highest level [Soldier]s, assorted adventurers, [Druid]s and all sorts of other rare casters were dispatched and ordered to remove the interloper by any means necessary.

That was when they learned of how the building could counter-attack. They never even saw Antonia, somehow she remained behind her walls, supposedly tinkering away on something while holding a whole native race of Elderwood at bay.

Yes, she was clearly using the environment. Yet, she was clearly a potential threat.

Still, nothing below a Great Spirit should have been capable of accomplishing what was happening, and even they were known to stay clear of the volcanoes, lest they grow insane and suffer the fates of their cousins who failed to heed such dangers.

But the Humans remaining in Doc Forrest had no clue of what it was she was doing; the Cloven made sure of that by threatening anything and everything.

The stalemate put intense pressure on the leadership that had reacted with such a mobilisation but then failed to take control, and without even knowing the true extent of the threat. Weeks passed with nothing happening but Antonia’s building somehow moving further in and further in.

Then the unnatural building suddenly came up upon the slopes of Olympus Mons itself–and started sinking.

In just one more day the building had been swallowed up by the holy volcano–and no known signs of Antonia were ever seen again except for these last three words–large enough to be visible in the sky all the way over in Doc forrest; Humans, Life, Freedom.

Although some were wise enough to interpret what happened next as a sign from her as well.

Just a single day later the collective remains of Humanity–including small pockets hiding outside of Doc Forrest–woke up to be greeted by their very first System message.

[System granted: Primary functions online.]

[Potential Class Aspirants detected: Conducting Trials.]

From that moment onward they could all prompt Classes to appear, and make the decision to lock in for life.

Provided you were above a certain age.

This was inarguably the primary trigger for Humanity’s millenia-long resurgence into Empire.

The System of Humanity was different. How could it not be?

The very source technology was different. Unbeknownst to both Cloven and Yar-Sang–Humanity still held on to key secrets, guarded like what they were; the very means of survival.

Yet the overlords did not act… The story of Humanity was looking all the more compelling; and even with a System–the weapons of the space-travelling Yar-Sang remained well and good enough for arrogance; certainly in the population at large who were not privy to the deepest dangers lurking.

But even the Yar-Sang leadership saw only what seemed a vastly inferior System to their own designs; one that might allow for survival but not much else.

It wasted energy on functions like preventing traitors within the species, promoting certain Classes above others in a cycle, and all sorts of nonsense that the progenitors of Systems had no use for, with no lack of candidates to make theirs work. A few races or civilizations perishing along the way was merely the cost of doing business.

The Yar-Sang designs were fully integrated quintessential combat Systems from the very base to the towering heights of each Class.

With details added in for character, so the min-maxing did not grow out of control–since nothing was less intriguing to a betting pool than the results being fully calculable.

Humanity, and their System likewise as a result, had to be different.

We had to be better.