''Older men declare war. But it is youth that must fight and die. And it is youth who must inherit the tribulation, the sorrow, and the triumphs that are the aftermath of war.' — Herbert Hoover. This is the first line that a player reads in the War for the World.'
'It's a strange quote to pick out of the many from history. But it couldn't be truer in this world. People fight continuously over insignificant details like race, gender and borders.'
'One of the most barbaric things I have witnessed. But where I come from, is no better. We fight for power and wealth. Human greed feeds war, and the greed of a few destroys the lives of many.'
'This was not something that I thought of in my youth. I admired war and all those who fought in it. That's why I joined the army at a young age. With my passion and energy I quickly went up in the ranks.'
'However, I fell short when compared to other men. I was never the biggest or the brightest. Unlike many around me who were able to improve. I fell into a rut, leading me to the bottle. This caused me to make a critical mistake, resulting in my discharge.'
'No one would hire me because of the fact that what happened was advertised everywhere, with proof of my mistake out there for all to see. I quickly turned into a introvert, with all those around me stopping all contact. My family disowned me, my friends abandoned me and my wife divorced me.'
'I was alone.'
'That's when I discovered a game that allowed me to be a normal person again. 'War for the World'. It was a real-time strategy game. This is what I spent the rest of my twenties on. The game gave me life and I was addicted. However, when it was over, I felt empty. A hollow man, with no family or friends, a minimum wage job to keep a basic living and a game which was the only thing he did.'
'I was empty.'
'A message then appeared on my phone. 'Do you require a new world?' A strange text from a number I've never seen. My heart pounded for a few minutes, until eventually I said yes..'
'The next moment I was in an old throne room. Surrounded by two men and two women. There features were blurry with their faces like a abstract painting, I couldn't work out any features.'
'Then an aura that can only be described as royalty, pervaided the room. A man was on a golden throne, atop a long flight of stairs. He looked down on us as if we were insects. I couldn't see his face as the stained glass window, behind him hid his features in a golden light.'
'The only words he spoke were 'Choose'. As he said this a screen opened with a list of races, and five artifacts. The races were just like in the game. The one of the people chose the 'Orc Race' and that was greyed out. Showing how when one chose it was locked forever. Then the others and I chose quickly. I went for the classic races that I loved, however they were chosen before by the others. As they chose the outline of their figures began to change into the races. There was a multitude of races, however the drawbacks of them were heavy. So I choose human.'
'This wouldn't of been the one I would've choosen, however it is the one with the least drawbacks and the most population. So I reluctantly chose that. Then the screen shifted to the artifacts. They all were body parts of an emperor. His heart, brain, tongue, ears, and eyes.'
'The rest of them were already greyed out except the eyes. The effect was something I couldn't read as the man on the throne struck a scepter that wasn't there before transporting us all away.'
'I awoke in a forest near a city, wearing beggar's clothes, a sword at my side. As soon as I began to stand a screen appeared in front of me, welcoming me to Permania. A county in 'War for the World'. It gave me a multitude of stats, but the main ones are Power, Mind, Perception and Charisma. This go off into a sub-set of other stats, that are independent.'
'It then gave me the main quest 'End the War'. The war I knew that was always happening in this world, the war for the Inheritance of the World's Emperor. Every race says that the emperor came from their race and have been in conflict in the decision of who is right. This was the main premise of the game.'
'The screen guided me towards the city nearby and gave me directions to different places for employment and to make money. The city was called Camelot. A clear inspiration to Arthurian Legend and the capital of one of the human countries in Gaia. The screen soon stopped to give advice, allowing me more freedom.'
'My appearance from the transition to this world was kept mostly the same. With the same hair and facial features, except the eyes.. My eyes turned into a golden colour. And screens appeared if I looked into people's eyes, showing their stats,, traits, skills and potential. This was my way to obtain power.'
'However I was the most unlucky person. Since the first person I was approached by was a terrifying, tall swordsman. He dragged me to an alley nearby. Clearly trying to rob me. My body wasn't strong enough and when I starred at his eyes I knew I was done for. His Power stat was over 50. And mine was only 5.'
'He quickly took my sword that was at my waist and beat me almost until death because he said I talk funny. The next day I woke up due to rain pouring down on me. I went to the guards nearby to report the crime, however they ignored me when I mentioned the man's appearance. I would later figure out he was the brother of a famous mercenary that had the lord of Camelot's favour. So the crime would go unpunished. This is when I figured out how cruel the world was.'
'I then had to take any odd job I could get to afford a sword. This was the minimum requirement to join the guards and get sword training something I lacked and something the system suggested. However this took several years, since I was robbed a few more times, or a sickness would keep me out of work and I would have to rely on my savings to get me through it.'
'Then after 5 years of saving I was able to buy a sword and join the guards, hoping to meet others who would become my comrades and help me on my main quest. However I was relentlessly bullied instead, because of how poor I was. The reason was that most of the guards were from lower middle classes, who were themselves bullied for being too poor to join a knighthood. So their anger was directed at me instead.'
'This caused me great difficulty for the next few years, however that was when I met Gwen. The most beautiful girl I ever laid my eyes on. She was the captain's daughter and the only one who treated me nice. Her potential was incredible, with many traits hidden. We quickly feel in love, and were soon wed, much to the chagrin of the captain who hoped to marry her to a noble.'
'He made my life a living hell after I married Gwen. Backbreaking work, constantly drilled and shouted at, with the bullying getting worse and worse. This was until I had enough and I punched him. Which landed me in prison waiting execution. I stewed in that cell for weeks. Clearly he wanted me to suffer for taking the daughter that was his way of increasing his power.'
'That was until the night of my execution Gwen saved me by killing 5 guards to rescue me. We left in the night. Eventually after weeks of travel and sleeping in the freezing cold, stealing from others. We made it to Alborney, an old town for retired people. We were quickly welcomed, they were kind people and took us in with open arms.'
'Gwen and I found this old abandoned home. Which we quickly took residency in. As me and Gwen fixed the place up, we spent as much time together as we could, with the threat of capture off our backs.'
'Eventually Gwen fell pregnant with our first child, Jenny, the brightest little girl you would ever see. Always eager to learn from those around her and helped the elders. Then came the twins Hugh and Jack, sprirted boys, always bickering with each other even at birth. Then my most proud child came along I called him Emery, after Merlin because his potential was classified as legendary. The boy was intelligent as anything, spoke when he was 6 months old and read when he was one.'
'He would lead the family to prosperity. However with him came my most sick child, that I called Arthur. The boy was sickly from a young age and his potential as a result was low. The lowest I have seen. Emery must have sucked all the potential and health from his brother to thrive.'
'The years went by as my kids grew up, until one day when the kids were playing in the village square an elven woman stood at my door. She had crystal clear pale skin, long flowing golden hair and strangely enough a pair of golden eyes. She was another player.'
'Her name was Abigail or so she said, and wanted to talk to me. Apparently she found me out through her spy network. Then when I tried to figure out her stats and potential, it didn't allow me. We talked for hours, or more specifically she talked. Clearly trying to get some information out of me. However she eventually said she had to go, but stopped when she saw Emery and Arthur. With Emery holding onto Arthur supporting him.'
'She looked at them for a minute, I couldn't guess what she chose or what the effect was but she said she would give a little gift soon for Merlin and Alfred. Then a week later, a plague came. One of the worst ever seen. 'Valerie's Dream'. It was named after the first person to catch it. It spread throughout the local villages, with many not knowing they have it until they fall asleep. This is when the body falls into a coma and slowly a person would dehydrate to death.'
'The only way to cure it was to not sleep for three days. An impossible task for many, with the mortality rate being 99%. However it was thought to have been only to be contracted from humans, but it could be contracted through animals when eaten. So when many thought it to be over, there was a celebration with a large feast had in the town centre.'
'I didn't eat any. But my family did.'
'I knew that I had to keep them awake, but I could only do that for so long until my wife passed. My loyal wife, who stayed with me and fought for me, despite everything passed. My greif was immense. Exhausted from fighting off sleep. Then sweet Jenny died next, she cried in my arms all night when her mother passed and I didn't realise she cried herself to sleep. I wish I just kept her awake, that I played with her more, payed her more attention'
'I now only had my boys. But on the second day, there was a knock on my door. It was Abagail.'
'She gave me a box, saying there was only one of a kind of this. It was a pill, a cure she said that would cure those of 'Valerie's Dream'. She said I could only save one child and the rest would have to tough it out. She left soon after. I looked around at my boys, and I would like to say it took me a long time, but it didn't.'
'I chose Emery.'
'He took the pill easily, and his complexion soon returned to normal, then I allowed him to sleep. I spent the rest of my time trying to keep my other boys awake. The second day passed like that, with the boys still not sleeping. However that's when I noticed that Merlin wasn't waking up.'
'His complexion was a bad as it used to be and no matter what I did I couldn't wake him up. He was gone. By the third day, I was slowly going mad, seeing different creatures around the cabin. This caused me to lose focus and Hugh and Jack fell asleep hugging each other. It was clear to me that Jack tried to wake Hugh, with the tears that were drying on his face. Only Arthur was left.'
'I thought that he would be the first one to fall asleep. But he was the only one that survived until the fourth day, and was now immune. I thought, 'What a curse of fate to take away my heir, and leave my sickly son. The gods must be laughing.''
'I then walked into town, to the alchemist shop nearby which was open due to the owner neither partaking in the meat in the feast. I gave him the box and he inspected the dust inside. He said it was a pill called 'Life Restoration', the pill would heal the human body at an incredibly fast rate, however it would make the host fall into a deep slumber.'
'Abigail, not the gods, was the reason my precious son was taken away from me, and I would have my revenge. However I was getting old and my age would catch up to me soon, so I forced my son to train in order to complete my revenge. He studied everything and anything I put in front of him. I made him run every day until he passed out and practice the sword until he collapsed. Made him train to use mana even if I couldn't. All to fulfill my revenge.'
'Now at the end of my life, the system has shown me a message stating how I would die tomorrow, since my vitality has ran out, it was a slow acting poison and one that would kill me slowly as I age. It was called 'Abigail's Final Gift'. I now sit here writing this letter to my son Arthur.'
'Arthur I am writing this to tell you what I am and what you will become. You will inherit my system and now take over my main quest and my revenge. I'm sorry for hitting you and breaking you down until you wanted to die. At the end of my life, no throughout my life, I was selfish. And I wrote this to not cause you to stop hating me but to understand me.'
'So please bury me next to your mother and siblings, this will be the last thing I will ask of you. Go to Camelot, this will be the place you will make a name for yourself. Good luck my son.'
Arthur drops the small book from his hands. Which has been rough from years of sword practise, and slumped down next to the graves of his family members. His face is rough, with him only being 16 yet looking 26. His father's training aged him rapidly. He slowly picked up his father's sword and got on a cart to Camelot.
The only words he said as he left Alborney were, "Goodbye father".