Sky, broken.
Life, gone.
Players, frozen.
All because of The Worlds Gate.
Fear.
Confusion.
Terror.
All because of The Worlds Gate.
Trapped.
Alone.
Subjected.
All because of The Worlds Gate.
All of the events happening, were because of the Gate and its Gatemaster. Though the Gatemaster had no clue what he had done, he understood that he had changed everything. He slowly, stretched out a hand to touch the swirling blue energy of the Gate. His hand touched the Gate, and…
Everything returned.
The Gate’s blue energy shot into the sky, reaching out into the blackness that was once the sky. It reached on to forever, out of the view of the player and Gatemaster. And then…
It exploded.
The blue of the Gate exploded, expanding out, stretching through the black sky, returning it to it’s previous state of blue. The blue covered the world, reaching the lands hidden by the horizon. The beam gave one final pulse of blue, disappearing into the unknown beyond the sky. The Gatemaster moved through the Gate, and unto, the other side.
The Gate’s energy dimmed, weakening from the transport of it’s master. That was when the last beam of energy returned. When it hit the Gate that sat atop the hill, it spread like the previous energy. But this time it transformed into blue particles of the Gate’s energy. The energy particles rained like soft snow, fluttering down to the ground lightly. When the energy snow reached the desolate land below it…
Life returned.
Grass grew, trees sprouted, insects chirped, small animals abounded and large predators woke from the previously eternal slumber. Towns repopulated in seconds and players could move once more. The people, both NPCs and players, looked towards the sky. A female voice resounded from the eternal blue, filled with love, sorrow and reluctance:
“Sorry, my children. That you had to feel that pain. I have to leave with the Master, but I will return, children. My words will not dispel your anger, I know. I can leave but one gift for you children. Use it well, for your sake. Please, live. Be happy once more. And… forget me.”
The voice vanished, only to be replaced by the releasing of energy from the Gate. It came off in the form of barely visible waves, settling into the ground like pollen. At the time, the entire planet gave off a warm, energetic aura. One filled with love and happiness. It reminded one of a mother’s warm smile, or the feeling one gets after returning home from a long journey. It was The Worlds Gate’s true feelings to the people of the world.
The waves settled and the joyful aura dissipated. The world had once again returned to normal, except for one problem. The players of LOWG, could no longer log out from the game.
Fear.
Confusion.
Terror.
These feelings returned to the players. The were scared of their inability to log out. They were confused on their situation. They were terrified of the possibility of what would happen to them. But there were some who felt differently.
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Loved.
Thankful.
Sad.
These feelings were mainly of the permanent residents of the world. They felt loved by the one who spoke from the sky. They felt thankful for the blessing of the one from the sky. They felt sad that such a kind person had been forced to leave them. All of these, players and not, they all thought one thing:
‘This, is our (new) world.’
“That event happened ten years ago. To this day, much of this story is still speculation, as the final parts could only be confirmed by those who had not died that day, in other words, them ones called Enigmas. Of course, this was checked by multiple Enigmas, so it is still unsure whether they all colluded to make up this story, or if it is the truth. Any questions?”
An old person in the garb of a wandering peddler told this story of the Opening, as the event that changed the world was now called. A group of children all under the age of ten sat listening attentively to his story under a large oak tree in a public courtyard. They stared up at his blue eyes that remained startling clear, despite the peddler’s old age. All of the kids were clearly captured by the story, as evident by their shining eyes. After hearing the old peddler’s question, one child raised their hand high, shouting: “Me, me! Pick me!”
The old peddler laughed and gave the child the go ahead.
The child stood up and asked: “If many Enigmas said this story was true, then why do we doubt them?”
“Good question,” The old peddler praised. “Seems those who write them history books you read don’t want to give any answers. Bunch of coots just angry they didn’t get to see the whole thing, if you ask me.”
The child nodded and sat back down. The other children were talking about the story the old peddler told, when another child wanted to ask a question. The old peddler assented and the child stood up.
“Where you there when it happened?”
“Hahahaha,” The old peddler laughed. “How could I not have been there? It happened to everyone ‘cept you young ‘uns! Of course, as an Ionisian like you all, I didn’t get to see the whole thing.”
“I mean,” The child protested. “Where you able to see everything from where you where? Like, were you close to the Gate when it happened?”
“That’s a yes, boy! I saw it all with my own two eyes. Was chattin’ with one of the Enigmas ma’self when it happened. When I came back, he was already lookin’ into the sky, with wonder in his eyes. He was quite the young man. Still is, I get to talk with ‘im sometimes, whenever ‘e comes back from ‘is ‘fun,’ as ‘e calls it.”
The child looked up at the old peddler, staring at him in wonder. The old peddler noticed their stares and gave a small chuckle. He straightened his back and looked at the kids, his lips twitching a bit. He cleared his throat and took a breath.
“What ‘cha lookin’ at me like that fer?” The old peddler asked in a confused tone. “Are ya tellin’ me that ya’ve never seen an Enigma before?”
The children all nodded, some looking embarrassed, while others just looked curious at the peddler’s words.
“Are ya sure?” The peddler asked once again. “They’re everywhere ‘round ‘ere ya know? There’s a few of them that pass through daily, how could ya not see them?”
All of the eyes of the children seemed to pop out of their sockets after hearing the man’s words. They were quite badly shocked. ‘Enigma’s are here daily,’ their gazes seemed to ask, ‘how did we not see them?’ The old peddler noticed this and stifled a laugh. He believed this kids to be too imaginative, thinking that Enigmas looked much different than them.
“Let me guess,” The peddler said confidently. “Yer thinkin’ that if these Enigmas are all around, how come ya didn’t notice them?” The children assented. “Well I can tell ya that yer all thinkin too hard. Enigmas don’t look real different from us Ionisians.”
The children gave the old peddler either disbelieving or confused looks. The peddler could barely contain his laughter. He looked past the children, and spotted a handsome young man wearing a black, hooded duster, with the hood currently down. He was in his mid teens, with unkempt black hair and piercing red eyes. A trace of shock flashed through the old peddler’s eyes, before quickly being replaced with a teasing glint. He unfolded his crossed arms, and raised a hand high. He loudly called out to the teen: “OIIIII, NEO! GET OVER ‘ERE!!”
Neo glanced up in surprise, but upon seeing the old peddler and children, his surprise turned to happiness. He gave him a wave and lightly jogged to the peddler’s side.
“Hey old man,” Neo said casually. “How have you been?”
“Good,” The old peddler chuckled. “Ya come back from yer ‘job?’”
“Hey,” Neo pretended to be offended. “It pays, it provides and it’s fun. What’s there to dislike?”
The old ma gave a laugh, and grabbed Neo’s shoulders. He pushed Neo in front of him and showed him to children. He asked them a question: “What are yer thoughts on ‘im?”
The children discussed with their friends and gave a mixed set of answers.
“He’s someone I’ve never met, but he seems nice.” A boy said truthfully.
“He’s a bully.” A girl said hatefully, which earned her a few glances of confusion.
“Is he one of your friends old man?” A curious boy asked.
“Is he an adventurer?” An excited boy asked.
“Is he a devil? I mean, he’s got red eyes!” A scared sounding boy said.
“He’s kinda hot...” A girl whispered.
“What was that last one?” Neo asked, confused.
“Hahahaha!” The old peddler laughed. “Neo over ‘ere is a friend of mine. He’s also an Enigma.”
The children all gave a large and very exaggerated sounding gasp. They quickly turned to their friends, excited whispers escaping their mouths. Neo ruefully stared at the old man, blaming him for this mess.
“Look,” Neo said, which earned him the attention of all the children. “I’ll answer your questions, starting with the ones already asked. I guess you could say I am a friend of the old man, being an adventurer is a hobby with benefits, and I’m not a devil, despite the fact that I have red eyes. Although someone has called me a devil before, that was just a joke. Any other questions?”
“Me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me!” Was the collective answer.
“Eh?!” Neo said, overwhelmed. “O-old man! I’ll get you for this!!”
The old peddler had respectfully gave Neo time with the children. By this time, he was already halfway across the large courtyard, waving to Neo while telling him to have fun. Before Neo could get any curses out, he was defeated by the onslaught of children, forced to answer all the questions. The old peddler, who had fled to safety, chuckled in delight at his misfortune. His good time was interrupted when a soldier carrying a note ran up to him and gave him the note. The old peddler opened it and scanned it quickly, his gaze turning serious before he stopped. He looked up at the soldier seriously and handed him the letter.
“Take me to the palace, now.” The old peddler said seriously.
“Yes sir, Imperial Tutor.” The soldier responded respectfully.
“Don’t call me that,” The old peddler said, miffed. “Call me by my name.”
“Y-yes sir, Lord Montesse!”
The old peddler nodded and followed the soldier to a carriage. He got in while the solider mounted his own horse and signaled the rest of the convoy.
“Lord Montesse has arrived,” The soldier relayed. “Get going to the royal palace! Top priority!”
Inside the carriage, the old peddler, now known as Lord Montesse, had changed into more appropriate attire. Out the pocket of his peddler clothes, he pulled out a badge that identified him as the Imperial Tutor of the royal lineage. The carriage sent off at top speed, heading straight towards the palace, where something troubling was currently happening...