Fortune

''A Wheel of Life'' [[Do I start living?]] [[Give up before it starts.]]

Hello, yes you do! Your name is Alan "Al" Morrison, you live in a dark house in a small and cold town somewhere in the North. You had wanted to get groceries but you had spent most of your paycheque on the scratch tickets at your local cornerstore and on a new car you know you could never pay back. You put the credit in the name of your closest friend, who agreed to be the co-signer for your car. You know you will never be paying it at all, and your friend would be the one paying the fees at the end of the day. You do have to do something today, what will you do? What kind of motivation will you have? [[I give it my all.]] [[I give up.]] [[I continue blindly.]]

Are you that pessimistic to yourself that you choose to never see the light of day? I fear that there is only one choice you get here, and that is life. If you do not take the chance of life, then what worth is it of you seeing this story? Why would you try to interact if your only insentive in life is to be the person who negates it all? [[I give it my all.]] [[I give up.]]

I suppose that's alright, I'm not judging you for being this way. You are true to yourself and I love you. I hope you will treat yourself better in the next life, if there is one. [[Do I start living?]]

I know in the case that I give my all, I would have to work for it but.. I had never had to do that before. I was born in a small town with few places to go, and when I was young I had gotten quite sick. I tried my best to get better, but my lungs had always given out whenever I needed them the most. I am weak. I knew it when I was in elementry school too, the more I try to walk and run; the more my lungs become excrutiatingly small. (after:5s,5s) [ [[How much more do I have to give to be worthy of life without pain?]] ]

For a few months now I thought that I would win myself over, but it never came to be. The more fixated on it I became, the more that people began to leave. I walk out onto the street, my shoes deep into the snow - letting the cold water from the cold soak in. It could numb me of the neglect of my parents. I held onto my beliefs that I would win, that I would be the person that people were proud of. (after:40s,40s) [ [[And yet I knew that I would never be enough for them.]] ] I begged everything in this world to give me the chance to do something worth it. [[Become isolated.]] [[I give it my all.]]

I become a hermit in my own house that I don't pay much for, and I refuse to clean up in. My best friend is slightly disappointed in me for not paying my car loan on time (or at all) but I say that I will give him the money at the end of the week so he does not continue to be angry with me. I will keep doing this, and there is nothing he could do about it. Otherwise, I crawl from my bed to the desk to check on my online chatboard I had set up awhile back to talk about my awful life. I festered in it, and I would use other people's posts just to know how much worse my own life was. It was far worse. I don't know how to fix it. [[A sudden knock at my window takes me out of my thoughts.]]

I never know what to do with my life after the incident, I had punctured my lung and had gotten major surgery on it. It lasted so long, I believe my parents forgot about me in the hospital. That was okay. because I didn't need them. Why would they ever give a shit about me. I am constantly in pain, but the only thing I can do now is stay inside, I am far too scared to walk out and expose my lungs to the cold. [[Stay inside.]]

Why was that? Why would nothing be enough for you or your parents? Did you dissapoint them? Did you bring evil into the world by simply being born? I walk out further, and I can feel my legs freeze bit by bit. I wasn't ready to go out but this was where my mind wanted to go. I was guided by my thoughts to continue on this path through the trees just outside of my suburban brick house. The ground through the snow starts to disappear as I carry on into the forest of brush and tall trees. There starts to be unfrozen flowers as I lose track of the... (after: 60s,60s) [Where am I..?] ...path. [[Greet.]]

"Hello?" I hear the crunching of the brush, but I wasn't seeing anyone there. I wondered if it was just me hearing things until I looked down. "Watch where you're going, you hooligan." A cat mutters, all black with a white mark in the middle. I don't exactly remember where I know something like this before, but I'm taken aback from hearing the cat. We walk for a few minutes before I look over to it. "What's your name, traveller." It asks, its toothy smile a sort of puts me off a little bit. "I know this is superstitious but I probably shouldn't tell you just yet." I tell it. "You see, I am not a fae. You have no reason to be wary of sharing your name to me." [[Share your name.]] [[Stay quiet.]]

A dog, almost as big as a cow hits its snout on the window as if it didn't hurt at all. I was personally terrified as I unlatch the window and open it for the huge dog. It sat for a moment or two before it opened its maw. "You must be Alan, yes?" It says in a language that I feel I understand. The meaning is understood in my head, even though the sounds that are made do not match that of English at all. All I do is nod at the dog, wide-eyed. I thought the dog could be enticed and sold but as I hear that it is completely conscious and knows my name.. I think otherwise. "I am afraid this will be the day that you die." I stare at the dog in awe. [[Accept Death.]]

You reach out to the large dog, merely accepting fate as it comes. What were you going to get out of life anyways? (after:5s,5s) [A career?] (after:6s,6s) [A life?] (after:8s,8s) [Repair the relationship with your family?] (after:10s,10s) [Overcome your gambling addiction?] [[It was never going to happen.]]

A lady wakes me up from my sleep, my head hurting from the desk underneath me but I couldn't exactly tell where I was. "Are you alright, honey?" She asks, holding her hand out to me but I couldn't see her properly without the curtains being drawn. I bite down on her hand as my first reaction and she screams. There goes my clean criminal record since juvenile detention. You know, since I had tresspassed onto private property and busted open an abandoned house that was full of asbestos. My mother was pissed. Why would I accept anything other than death, I don't have much to live for. I write for a living, live off of fake money, and don't do anything else. [[I let the dog bark.]]

I shut my eyes closed, I heard about this myth from my mother. The lady I had saw knocked out the dog with the bat I had in the corner. "Begone mutt. You have no power over this land, and no power over the death of this man so far away from your home." The dog scurries off, to a seemingly dark underbrush not too far away from my house. I will avoid going there from now on. I know I had felt it calling to me before. [[Look over to the person who saved you.]]

"My name is Alan." "How peculiar, you have no self-preservation here, now do you?" The cat meows, it gets in front of me to block me of the upcoming path. "What if I was a fae?" "Even if you were, I don't have much connection to my name." "No connection to yourself, your family, or friends. No wonder every folk wants you from near and far." I joke around, waving my hand as if I was bashful. "You don't mean that, do you? I don't know, I'm sort of in my early divorced era of my life." "At 25? Whatever, no. They want your life, to be you or to steal things from you, or kill you." I think for a second. "Wouldn't that be good for me?" "Are you crazy?" [[You might as well be.]]

You stay quiet, letting the cat guide you through the forest to a place you have never seen before. The scenery changed so much from where you started, it was more surprising than anything you have ever experienced before. Flowers and bees in the winter? It was spring now where I walked, and it didn't seem to phase the cat at all. "What are you anyways?" I ask it, reaching down to pet the thing. "I cannot tell you that, it would stop my transformation where you see it." "Can you at least tell me where you are taking me?" "I have something I need done, but I cannot do it alone." [["What would that be..?"]]

"I need you to steal the skin off that tree." The cat raises its paw to a heavy flubbery looking cover. It looks as if it had been shed by something nearby, and I was not one to shy away from stealing but.. this could be the only piece of clothing someone had. It could be especially true since we were near a river. I could not see the person or thing through the trees, but taking what was right in front of me could not be difficult at all. I reach out to take it and.. [[End of Demo.]]

"No, sorry." I say, wiping my face with my sleeve. Cotton is one of the nicer feelings I've had today. "Let's get going to save your feeble life." The cat mumbled. "Unless you want to die, which works for me." "I don't, actually." The sound of dirt scattering from my shoes makes me look down as I kick my feet around. "I would.. actually not want to die." "Then keep up, I need to get you a genuinely life. As of right now you aren't even worth saving." "Excuse me?" I almost want to throw the damn thing, but I refrain from it. "You're excused. Let's get you to a bar or something around here. I don't want you summoning anything yet." The meowing almost gets unbearable to hear, my ears are ringing from it. "Whatever, let's start moving." [[End of Demo.]]

This is the end of the demo story, this will be updated overtime. Please check out any changes, prefferably once a week or so if you wish to. (after:3s,3s) [Thank you for playing.]

I look around my house, what more could I do but love the place I would never have to pay. It was cheap, robbery even. The stores here were basically closing and I didn't mind the future circumstances I'd be in - I know I would always be in some sort of misery. It was all I deserved. [[Become isolated.]]

"Are you single?" "Are you insane?" She asks, holding the bat in her hand but not threateningly. "Yes, but that is not importantt. I wouldn't be interested anyways. Think of me as the one who will guide you through life for the next year. The Court has taken an interest in your useless life." "Useless? I have done a ton in my life, I.." I pause, "you know, I uh, you know what I'm trying to say." "No I don't, and I have zero interest in the slightest." She shakes her head. "My reward for taking care of your future from the Court will be your life. I shall become you in the next year, and you only have so much time." "What if I don't want you to help?" I stand up from my desk and look her in the eyes, her glistening and enticing self draws me in no matter how much I don't want it to. "You do, because many, many thing want to take over your life or even kill you now. I am giving you plenty of time." She holds my shoulders and smiles, it's almost trustworthy. "So, what do you want to do?" [[Accept her help.]] [[Turn away.]]

"As long as you give me the full years time." "I will, you can trust that it will be done." She gives me a kiss on the cheek, but as she leans back, you can see the disgust in her face from merely having to do that. "What do I do now?" "I suppose you do a few things for yourself, and I will call up my Court to treat you fairly." "Fairly?" It's almost a laugh that comes from her mouth, her sharp teeth almost seem dangerous until she covers it with her hand. "Yes, my Court will allow you to be protected and safe until your time is done. I will guide you there." She holds out for you to hold her hand now, and you take it. You do this because you feel you have to. [[Follow her.]]

I turn away from the hands that grabbed me, I didn't want her to take over my life at the end of all of this. I don't believe that anyone would ever want that to happen. "I can't, even though I don't like the way I'm living, I don't want anyone to take over my life or my body." "Why not? I could show this body more love than you ever could have in your life?" She remarks, its almost something I feel I could accept at this point. "I don't know, but I don't want you having it. Why do you want this body anyways?" I feel her staring at me, or almost through me. It seems like a much more involved question that she may not even answer in full. "Why would I take a body of someone who is wanted? You aren't known by many, you also make people infuriated and who wish to forget you. There's nothing special about your life and that is the easiest people to take in life." She sits down on my bed, almost comfortably as if she's seen this play out before. "And I'm still saying no, I'm not letting you toy around with my life. I will fight off you and these other beasts if I have to." [[End of Demo.]]

I follow her, through the hallway and past the kitchen just to try to get my shoes on. She doesn't allow me to and I leave without any on. I can feel the cold water soak into my socks and to the skin of my feet. I don't want to get trenches foot. "Hey, hold on I didn't get my-" She tugs at my arm to carry on through the streets. The dimly lit lamps almost seem beautiful at night. I look up as she effortlessly takes me to the far side of town in almost no time at all. There's a small light pointing to a field with short grass. The light wasn't coming from anywhere as there was no lamps set up in the field but I could tell that this is where she wanted me to go. [[End of Demo.]]