Chapter 3 - Character Select

A copy of her appeared, slowly shifting through various two-legged appearances as Sidus waved a hand. When he turned back to her, he wore a slight grin, as if a joke had been told. Truthfully, it was somewhat of a joke to offer Ash the ability to be whatever other race she wanted. She already had that so he was offering nothing new but it was required for the world in which she was going to journey.

Ash heard Luna snickering beside her at the expression she must have worn looking at herself in different guises. It had just shifted to a young human woman with the same features Ash generally tended towards when she finally glanced towards Sidus. He also wore a complicated expression, as if he'd no choice but to make an offer he didn't want to as she was one of his own creatures but also as if it was entertaining watching her react to what she was seeing.

"What options are there, really, and what will they change, lord Sidus?"

"As many options as exist in our own world, my dear," he began with a soft smile, "As for the changes, appearance mostly and a few small innate abilities. Were you to keep your current race, which is only an option because of your unique magic, you'd retain your ability to shapeshift as you wish. You'd also retain your unique magic as I doubt I could bar you from it even if we were to change your form without causing you irreparable harm."

Ash glanced once more at the image of herself and craned her neck to look up at it. It was in the guise of one of the clans of half-giant. She understood that she was playing a game, yet the purpose was to spend time with Luna and, theoretically, to find the one whose magic could stabilize her own. Beyond that, she already had the ability to look however she wanted so the only real change would be in magic. Changing her magic didn't sit right with her, even for a game.

"I'll retain my current race if you have no objections, lord Sidus."

Rather than objecting the god truly looked relieved. There were a great many things he could not speak to her about because it constituted interfering with her world. He knew for a fact that the person she was looking for played the game as well. He also knew that changing what she was internally even to such a small degree as what the game would if she chose to be something else could risk making her unrecognizable to that individual. In order to truly increase her chances of living a long and happy life, it was best for her to remain as she was.

Sidus smiled softly and stepped towards the projection of Ash once more, changing it back to what she currently looked like, "If you would like to take a good look at yourself, we can tweak anything about this shifted form that you feel does not properly suit you now. You will not begin, as most do, in your true form due to possible," he paused and scowled slightly, "Negative reactions it may bring."

Ash stepped towards the projection as Sidus made room, looking over herself with a critical eye. Her looks had originally been identical to Luna's but she'd changed the form over the years. Beyond height, the only thing that remained as it had always been was that she was also a Starlight Elf.

Her lustrous hair was white and short, cropped up to her ears, and an opalescent shimmer slid through it. Her skin tone had paled considerably with each remake of the form as she found what felt comfortable to her and she'd settled for a soft pale ivory in the end which was quite different from Luna's own grey-blue skin. She changed nothing about either.

Her eyes were sharp, an icy blue color that bordered on white with the same iridescent quality to it. She shifted the color to pink with little thought and moved on.

Her figure was modest, not too thin but not too well endowed. She also changed nothing about it. She was satisfied with having something of a chest and rear, but neither so large as to get in the way.

When she glanced once more at Sidus, he looked uncomfortable. He spoke calmly despite his unease, "I am also to offer you a chance to change anything of your true form you find yourself dissatisfied with."

With a slight wave, the projection changed to Ash's true form. She glanced at it out of curiosity more than anything else. Her alternate form was carefully curated so she knew what every bit of it looked like. She'd only ever seen the form she'd been born into in reflections and pictures. The first thing that caught her eye was the pale ivory after which her skin tone was modeled.

Sidus nervously stomped one of his feet, afraid one of his treasured creatures was unsatisfied with the form he'd built their kind.

Ash turned towards him as she shifted into her proper form and lowered her head in a bow, "If it makes you uneasy, I will happily forgo this small thing. It is just that I have never had the occasion to see myself in such a way."

Rather than providing him with a sense of ease as she had intended, Ash's response had Sidus reaching for her. His gentle hand caught her jaw to hold her steady even as the other hand stroked along her head. She could not see his expression but could judge it to be one of worry both by where his fingers lingered as well as what she could hear of Luna's reaction.

Luna, so far as she could guess, had dropped entirely to her knees in deference to Sidus, uttering a few small words with the action, "My greatest apologies. I will take care of that as soon as she wakes once more."

Sidus sighed softly, the sound conveying concern mixed heavily with sorrow, "My dear, dear Ashterra. You were never made to bear this burden alone."

What his fingers so gently stroked were two of Ash's three horns, both of them colored dark by the tainted magic she cleansed.