Chapter 1 - Ace
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Vast oceans, countless islands, the remains of a once great empire, and the people who stood up to oppose them. This is what has come of the world in the past 300 years since armageddon. It had been 300 years since the Great War. The United Empire, a congregation of many of the world’s most powerful nations waged a ruthless campaign to conquer the world. These nations united under a force of genetically mutated super soldiers. Developed in the USA, these soldiers had genes carefully selected and mixed from different species with humans. Soon after their development, expansion began.
After 5 years of savage conquest in the name of peace and order, unconquered nations came to a challenging decision. A new kind of bomb, more powerful than a nuclear warhead, and one which was sure to cause immeasurable damage, struck mainland Russia. These bombs left crators big enough to create lakes, even oceans. what followed was what many called mutually assured destruction. Countless advanced technologies where unleashed all over the planet; almost all modern infrastructure was destroyed, erasing the greatness of civilization, and birthing a new age. This day of destruction is referred to as the Great Calamity.
What was once bustling cities, and complicated infrastructure became nothing but ash in moments. What became of an overpopulated and polluted Earth was a new world, many islands scattered through many seas which became home to the few survivors of the war. Almost all modern technology was lost, and what survived can no longer be understood or reproduced, thus birthing a new war for the power of relics.
Today, most of what is known of the world before the Great Calamity is known from folktales, used to scare naughty children. But what everyone does know, is that before the bombs, there was incredible technology. The ability to heal deadly injury or disease, powerful mind and body-enhancing drugs, deadly weapons, enhanced ways of communication, incredible vehicles, and so much more. These are forgotten technologies which in this new world are referred to as relics. Very few know how these technologies work, and even fewer have the means of producing them. However, they bring terrifying power to those who wield them in these new primitive times. They are scarce, and those with the power to wield them have control over the masses.
Wars are now once again fought with swords and bow and arrow, except for the use of these relics. What remains of the United Empire are warlords who act independently. These warlords sometimes cooperate with each other. The people of this new world call these warlords the Scattered Empire. Many relics are sought after, and some are even reproduced by a few smart men. However, the science behind this tech is lost. Relics are things that the people of this time simply can’t understand. Powerful relics like guns, motors, and medicines are called Great Relics. And another class of relics of great technology is rumored to exist, Legendary Relics.
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Thunder boomed throughout aqs dark stormy sky. The wooden rooves shuttered as winds gusted through the village from the open ocean. Water dripped down onto Ace’s head through the leaky roof. He hated getting wet. All cats hate getting wet. Ace was a descendant of genetically engineered super soldiers that once were used to lead the world to ruin. He was a tiger-human hybrid. He stood on two legs, had humanlike hands, and human intelligence. However, he wore a striped coat and a tail, with instincts and strength to that of a tiger. He looked over to his sister, Luna. She mattered more to him than anything in this world. She appeared similar to him but was a bit more dexterious and agile. He and his sister are the only people in his village who resemble an animal, but it is known to him that other demihumans exist.
When Ace was younger a merchant ship visited his town and supplied them with necessary goods like fishing line and knives. A burly bear-man lead the troupe. He was covered in scars but possessed a dignified demeanor. He acknowledged the young Ace before departing, and that was the only other time he’d seen a person like him and his sister.
The small shack Ace and Luna lived in was located in a quiet fishing village on an island that previously would have been South Florida. Ace was aware of several islands to the south and east which they traded with, as well as more islands northwards, before reaching what was the mainland USA. Ace and his sister were both left orphaned as children. An evil band of slavers raided their home village, Dawn, and their parents were taken away in chains onto huge wooden boats. These villains left touting a sail with the design of a black sword. A sail Ace vowed to destroy one day. Ace still remembers every moment of the day his parents hid him and his sister in the woods, in hopes that they would not fall victim to these intruders' great evils.
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
This new world is nearly lawless. Slavery, murder, and corruption infest the lands. The only law is strength. The strong rule, while the weak suffer. The only sense of order is the strength.
He and his sister were found by the neighboring villagers of a fishing village called Roft when they came to investigate the attack on Dawn. All the villagers from their homeyown were dead or enslaved in the attack. Ace and Luna were the only survivors. Their parents were taken away to far-off lands, likely to work laborious jobs due to their tigeresque nature. The town of Roft, located west of Dawn, took him and his sister in. They taught them how to fend for themselves. In this cruel world, there was some kindness. A sense of community, for the unprivileged had to work together to survive.
Rain keeping Ace and Luna in their hut did not let up until morning. When the rain stopped and the sun rose, Ace got ready for a hard day's work. Ace gathered his spear, some nets, and some food. He set out to fish while his sister went to gather water from the nearby well. While heading towards the shore he greeted some familiar faces along his way. The village was small, and everyone knew each other. It was a small community, and so they all helped each other. They were a family. Ace walked down the rocky path he traveled every day to get to the beach. An older man, in his sixties, sat outside a small shack on the beach.
“Hey old man, think we’ll get a good haul today? The rain should have the fish out bitin’!” Ace shouted.
The older man smiled and extended his hand towards Ace, offering some smoked fish.
“I'm sure with your eyes you could find some even if they were hiding!”
Joel was the man who found him on the fateful day he lost his family 12 years ago. Ace and Luna were raised by him and his wife, and they taught them everything they knew. Since then his wife passed away, and he spends his time enjoying the sun and fishing for what he can. Joel and Ace sat together and enjoyed some breakfast before Ace began his hunt.
Ace adjusted his woven sawgrass hat to keep the beating sun out of his eyes while he focused on spotting fish. He stood in the shallows, not moving even a muscle to alert his presence to fish. He loved this part, his eyes focused on his prey. A warm feeling of carnal desire filled his chest as he spotted a decently sized chub swimming towards him from under some rocks. He launched his three-pronged spear into it.
“RAAH” he roared as his prey floated to the surface. Since he had the strength and instinct of a tiger, Ace collected a great haul of fish on most days. He shared much of what he caught with Joel and other villagers who helped raise him and his sister; this left him with not much to live in excess with, so he and his sister lived humbly. He didn’t mind this, for he loved his village. They were his family.
Ace gathered his catch and started heading back towards Joel’s hut for lunch when he noticed a boat approaching his village’s docks. It was a fairly large ship, displaying a bright yellow flag. Traders weren’t all that uncommon, but his village had not much to offer other than lumber, fish, and furs. Ace couldn’t recognize the flag and something inside him made him uneasy. He didn’t like visitors because of what happened to him as a child, but he’s grown to be more trusting as many travelers have shown him their goodness since then. He decided to end his fishing for the day and collect some things from his hut, in hopes of trading them for some tools.
“I'm off to trade with the merchants, I’ll catch up with you later Joel,” he said.
“I’ll see ya there, I want to see what kind of liquor they got!” Joel answered with a grin.
And so they left Ace’s catch for the day in the beachside shack to be butchered later, then set off to collect goods to trade with the visitors. When Ace arrived home, his sister was inside patiently sewing a patch on a pair of Ace’s trousers which snagged on a rock whilst he was fishing in the shallows. She often repaired his clothes which he consistently destroyed during his hunts.
“Sister, there’s a boat docking, I’m going to see if I can get us a new hammer, nails, and some pans for cooking,”
He looked over to their sad collection of metalwear. They had a crude old knife, a hammer which was nothing but a rock tied to a stick, and one metal pan which was long past due.
“That's great” she smiled, “it’s been a while since I’ve been able to get some sewing materials, I’ll come with.”
And so they gathered what they could trade; several deer hide, a collection of miscellaneous feathers, and an alligator skin. Ace single-handedly slew the gater which was lurking near their home with relative ease a few weeks back. When he brought it home he showed his sister with great enthusiasm; he was excited to see what he could trade it for.