He was a simple man, content with the simple goal of always having food on the table for himself and his family. He was a good person who firmly believed in not harming others. However, he soon realized that he was naive, thinking that evil wouldn't target good, simple people. This, is his story.
It was no ordinary day. Rio woke up to a stressed, sleep-deprived wife preparing clothes for their two children. She had spent two months working on their daughter's dress, doing a little each day, and had to pull an all-nighter to make it perfect on time. The girl was thrilled to wear her white dress as she was going to walk in the parade in front of everyone. She was eight years old and about to attend her first awakening ritual.
Meanwhile, the boy received hand-me-down clothes from their kind neighbors, but they needed some last-minute adjustments because he had suddenly experienced a growth spurt at 15, and the clothes no longer fit properly. Nevertheless, they were presentable.
This festival was an annual event where all the villagers from the east of the Viros kingdom had to go through a ritual to attempt to acquire a system. The entire kingdom already used the system, except for this small village of about 300 people who insisted on rejecting the system every year.
The villagers had the same plan every year: go through the motions, reject the system, and return home to celebrate their unity. Only when united could they resist the system. If one person accepted the system, all their descendants would automatically become part of it, so it was crucial for all family units to make the decision together. If even one person wavered, they might all be affected.
This had been the tradition for Rio's family for the past 20 generations. Since the system had arrived in their world, his family had resisted it yearly. They saw their resistance as a blessing because they led a simple, good life, unaffected by the system's insatiable desire for growth. However, it also meant that they had to tolerate the occasional arrogance of those who had accepted the system, unaware that they were, in fact, slaves while the "rejectors" remained free.
Roi, the brother, looked at his sister Beth and reminded her, "Today, in the awakening ritual, two things could happen. You will either be judged as worthy for the system, or unworthy. If you were judged unworthy, then you are done for the day. But, if you were judged worthy, you will be asked a question, you will be asked if you accept the System. It’s important that you reject it! You must not accept the system at any cost"
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Beth looked at her brother with wide-open eyes and said, "I'll be just like you, Mama, and Papa!"
Roi smiled, saying, "Yes, living a good, simple life—free from the slavery of the system for both you and all our future generations. Remember to reject the system at all cost! It will try to trick you, others might try to fool you, but don't listen to anything and just reject it!" beth looked around and saw her papa listening to the conversation and nodding his head, proud of his son's instructions, so she nodded along.
The time had come for the family to step toward the ceremony to get this dreaded day over with. It was Beth's first time, and they worried she might make a mistake. It had happened before when children fell into the system's trap and agreed to it, so they were slightly concerned.
***
Rio's family stepped inside the temple together, but they needed to separate for the ritual as it was an individualistic test. Rio went straight to the water fountain, he has done this 30 times already, over 30 years. He touched the fountain and immediately started hallucinating. The test could be passed by a child, let alone a grown adult who has gone through it 30 times. All he did was close his eyes and wait for the illusions to end, and once he was able to see clearly again, he stepped straight to where a podium awaited and clicked a button calling for the end of the test. It was a simple test for him, and as soon as it ended a message popped up.
The System Invites you to register with it, and become a user of the System Protocole. Do you agree? Yes No
Rio was on the verge of clicking "no" when he heard the test guard's stern command to halt.
"Congratulations on completing the test yet again," the guard sneered, his face reflecting a malicious intent. "Thank you, but if you'll excuse me, I just want to end it," Rio replied, his voice tinged with urgency.
"Before you do that, please be aware that this is the last time the test will be administered," the guard chuckled darkly, then continued, "The new king, in his great wisdom, has decided to finally put an end to this yearly event. Instead, if you refuse to accept the system now, you will be executed. And if your children don't accept it, they will be executed. Accept the system, save your life, and save your children's life" the guard's initially mocking tone transformed into one filled with empathy. "You must do this to ensure the safety of your children, I heard you have an 8 year old" he added. With that, he drew his sword and and with a stern look asked "So, what will you do?"