Hero

God was not paying attention to the Hero. He was lost in a sea of anger and fire, Seeking to prove to mortals that their lives meant nothing after what they did. Through the destruction the Hero pondered.... Do they [[defy->Inter]] their creator or [[spill->Inter.]] blood in his name?

(text-colour:red)[He never knew he could be capable of love. ] As an immortal entity, with all the power in the world at his fingertips, God simply did not care to dwell on things like feelings. What could a God possibly have to gain or lose when he already had it all? It happened during an era of peace, he and the Goddess watched over humanity on their own, this was long before other deities and higher powers. It was just them, like siblings, carrying the world on their shoulders together. Little mattered to the God, his job was done, it was all oversight from there on. Until one day God saw a mortal tending to his field of chrysanthemums and was bewitched. (text-colour:red)[God had fallen in love with a Prince. ](click-goto:?page,"Defy.pt.1")

The Hero wanted to refute the bloodshed. They looked at the sea of people and didn't know what to tell them. The Hero wanted justice, but they no longer believed their God knew what that meant anymore. But it wasn't an easy choice to make. Each time they remembered that day… They could only think about how they'd never felt more afraid in their [[life.->The.Prince]](click-goto:?page,"Defy.pt.2")

Your hands quivered. You saw the incident unravel. You saw the death of the Prince in slow motion. You witnessed the blood staining the white roses and you felt your body freeze in place. There was a sudden blight in your chest. It overpowered your own emotions and it felt like fire. Your God appeared before you and he held the body of the Prince in his arms limply. You hadn’t seen where the arrow came, but soon saw an archer from the Sun Kingdom. You continued to feel the pain and the rage of an immortal being in your soul. Every inch of your body stung with pain, but it didn't matter. Because the fear left you paralyzed and unable to breathe.

You had very few options. But you did not want to assist in the bloodshed. Even if that meant defying a power bigger than anything you could hope to be. You began to look for solutions. So far they were, to [[Pray->Pray.pt.1]] Or to [[Scheme.->Scheme]]

You had once [[fought->Fought]] in the name of the Goddess. You once met the Goddess. She was golden and covered in grapevines. She was morning dew and the essence of tranquility. She was no longer your patron but you got on your knees and prayed. You hoped the Goddess knew of your loyalty, that you hoped to save the world and keep it from collapsing. You felt like a [[traitor->Traitor]] but you couldn’t turn your back on your people. (click-goto:?page,"Pray.Choice")

No response.

You asked for strength and forgiveness. The Goddess responded. She asked you to resign. She urged you back to the city. Do you [[accept->Accept.pt.1]], or [[refuse->Refuse]]?

The Hero recalled their relationship to the Goddess. They had once fought for her sake in the Golden Kingdom. It was the right choice then, with the threat of larger conflicts rising, the best thing to do was to fend off the Sun Kingdom. The Hero knew blood then. They had hoped to escape it. The Hero stared in horror as their own God now, in a rage, forced them to set the world on fire.

“I am thankful for everything you do.” “I am but your humble servant,” you kneeled before your God. Your parents would be proud. God pulled his holy sword from his sheath and looked down at you, his most humble servant. And God knighted you because you deserved it and he turned you into his champion, his friend.

You accepted her conditions. Soon enough you reached a chaotic city. There was no blood in the streets yet. But everyone had something to fear. Even those who had no desire to flee. (click-goto:?page,"Split.1")

The Hero explored the city as the Goddess had commanded. They looked for people to lead out of the city, many refused, seeking to remain in their homes. The Hero didn’t know whether to try and [[save everyone->Save.Everyone]], or [[if it was best to save those who were ready to leave.->Flee.02]]

You couldn’t save everyone. There were too many who resisted. Many of them were the ones who believed that they could still fight. There were many who were angry. They wanted revenge for the assasination of their Prince. For their land. They too felt the rage of their God. The city came under [[fire->The.Prince.2]] much too quickly. You lost more people than you should have. The Hero realized at this moment that their God was no longer supporting them. [[The Hero wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.->Save.Everyone.2]]

The God and the Prince were very in love. On days with bright skies the God would take the Prince to the Goddess’ waterfall for picnics by the edge of the river. One day the Hero heard the sound of a man in distress and rushed toward the noise. The God, not wanting to reveal their identity hesitated, at which point The Hero dove into the water with rope and caught the Prince before falling into the rocks below. God felt as if he owed The Hero the world.

The Hero leaves the city with as many people as possible. Many perished after the futile attempt to get everyone out. The Hero is able to find a path out of the city. They hope that with enough time they can lead civilians to take refuge in [[The Gold Kingdom.->Memory]] (click-goto:?page,"Escape")

The Hero got up and left their tent. They took their sword on the way out and headed towards where the troops waited anxiously for directions. Without the aid of the Goddess, the Hero sought out the help of their [[expectant army.->Refuse.end]]

“Friends please, we must not fight. It is a tragedy that has fallen upon our Kingdom. But a war won’t change what has happened. We should seek to aid our own and strike peace with the enemy.” The Hero is met with silence. Then roars and shouts from the crowd surround them. The Hero is struck, taken down, kicked, and beaten. “We are not [[traitors.->Traitors]]”

You are bloodied on the ground. Your army and your God have forsaken you. You don’t feel like a Hero. And the realization that you never really were one comes as shocking. You remember the day the Prince died once again and recoil. Your God took you to The Sun Kingdom that day. All you can remember is God’s orders and then the fire swallowed the village whole. War was declared the following morning. (click-goto:?page,"Accept.alt")

There were two approaches the Hero could take. They looked anxiously around them for any sign of a good choice. Finding none, the Hero decided [[to head to the city on their own.->Scheme.Alone]] [[to turn the army away from war.->Refuse.end]]

The Goddess guided you to the inner city. She took pity at the sight of your crumpled form on the ground. [[She sought to humble you.->Speaking.alt]] She led you door to door to the homes of the most vulnerable so that you could do your job and truly help them. The Goddess granted you a blessing. But you could tell too, that there was anger and disappointment behind it all. (click-goto:?page,"Escape")

You were The Hero. Everyone looked up to you and sought your guidance. God had chosen you to lead an army that could exact revenge on the murderers and traitors that had ended the life of the Flower Prince. Your God was relying on you to lead an army against the Kingdom responsible. So you now stood on a pedestal as a crowd of soldiers waited for your guidance. You felt strongly about the war. The tragedy of the loss that your God felt seeped through the cracks and spilled into your soul. Your chest throbbed and your eyes stung with anger and resentment. These you used to rally the soldiers behind the cause. A cause of revenge and [[justice.->Justice]] You felt strongly about the war. Your emotions ran wild. Your God’s anger was overpowering and thunderous. You could feel the blight of pain in your chest. This filled you with determination. If you wanted your soldiers to succeed, it was necessary to view the war for what it was, an act of [[revenge.->Revenge]]

“We may not survive, but we know what our duty in this world is.” Silence. “We have served and we have been loyal. We have been given miracles and gracious lives by our creator and now we must come to his aid.” Some felt more uplifted, some still felt a darkness looming over them. Many knew they would not be returning. You knew the majority would die, you needed to persuade them that death for the right cause was necessary. “We will emerge victorious, we are on the right side of this war. The revenge we seek is just.” The moment arrived swiftly. (click-goto:?page,"Revenge.pt.2")

“We have believed, we have been dutiful, we have been honorable!” “YEAH!” “Our God knows this, and by his side, we will be his sword and we will enact justice, we will rise from fields of blood bathed in THE GLORY OF OUR GOD!” Everyone cheered. Even those too far away to hear among the sea of thousands, could see your figure on a pedestal and they roared and sang praises, believing they would survive. The moment arrived soon after and the fear returned once more. (click-goto:?page,"Justice.pt.2")

Little time passed between the speech and the sound of people dying by the hundreds. It was gruesome. But there was little to question. Everyone could see the blury figure of their God. There was a golden crown and a golden hilt. And when the mighty sword of justice was unsheathed and brought down, it left the masses speechless and horrified. Hundreds gone in a second. As the Hero immersed themselves in battle they thought about [[the targets ahead of them in battle.->Fight]] [[the Prince.->The.Prince.01]] [[their doubts.->SecondGuess]]

Little time passed between the speech and the sound of people dying by the hundreds. It was gruesome. But there was little to question. Everyone could see the blurs of their God. There was a golden crown and a golden hilt. And when the mighty sword of justice was unsheathed and brought down, it left the masses speechless and horrified. Hundreds gone in a second. As the Hero immersed themselves in battle they thought about [[the targets ahead of them in battle.->Fight]] [[the Prince->The.Prince.01]]

It took next to nothing for there to be a sea of blood. Rage unfiltered, beads of sweat, blades clanking against armor. Sometimes the Hero wondered if they might die in service to their God. They wondered if it really meant anything to seek revenge. Fear started to fill The Hero. [[Suddenly it all started to seem wrong.->Loop.]]

The Hero took their weapons and headed for the city before hell broke loose on the battlefield. Expectant soldiers lost in their own fears did not notice the Hero’s escape to the city. (click-goto:?page,"Flee")

The city almost seemed like a wasteland. People were panicked and scared. The Hero knew that they could not take everyone. These were the tough calls. And without any help from his God and the Goddess, they knew they had to make the most rational choice. (click-goto:?page,"Flee.1")

You weighed your options. The best thing to do was to get into the city and then get out as soon as possible. At this point you hoped your God wouldn’t just direct death your way. You were somewhat relieved knowing all the anger had yet to reach the city. But your skin crawled at the thought of death before saving the people in need. (click-goto:?page,"Escape")

You ran behind the crowd you had managed to sneak out of the city. With the head start you were lucky that you had only needed to use your sword a handful of times. But then you stopped dead in your tracks as you saw smoke billow from the homes that were being set ablaze. (click-goto:?page,"Child")

The torches were at your feet. You could smell the fire. The warmth caressed your cheeks and the light blinded your weary eyes. You had started the fire.

[[You asked for strength and forgiveness.->Pray.pt.2]] [[You asked for guidance.You asked the Goddess what should you tell your God’s troops?->End]]

You weighed your options. The best thing to do was to get into the city and then get out as soon as possible. At this point you hoped your God wouldn’t just direct death your way. You were somewhat relieved knowing all the anger had yet to reach the city. [[But your skin crawled at the thought of death before saving the people in need.->Death]]

There were three Kingdoms. The Kingdom of Flora, The Gold Kingdom, and The Sun Kingdom. Tensions were high between the Gold and Sun Kingdom. High enough that small bloody battles would erupt between them every now and again. The Sun Kingdom had always wanted the The Kingdom of Flora to take a stand with them. But they never did.

The Goddess looked down at the world. Her frustrations were peaking. She did not create the world for it to come undone so easily. She looked down at the people of her kingdom. They had no role to play in the war. [[But she made sure they’d help the Hero when they came to them.->Death.end]]

God remembered how he’d met the Hero. In true heroic manner he had saved the life of the Prince. This made God angrier. If the Hero truly cared, why then are they not seeking revenge? Why is their pain muted? [[Why is the Hero not out for blood?->SecondGuess]]

Upon seeing the smoke the Hero knew they had to continue away from the city. Many of the people already knew the path to the Gold Kingdom, but they would need a guide to help them get there through less obvious paths. And then the Hero heard a child. The Hero’s heart broke. [[The child was back in the city.->Death.1]]

The Hero swung their sword violently and slashed through their enemies swiftly. At moments where death had found itself too close the Hero knew, it was because they were their God’s champion. This was good, the Hero thought. And then there was nothing but white hot flashes of anger. They missed the Prince. This was the moment to honor him and ease the pain of his death from their heart. (click-goto:?page,"Prince.02")

The Flower Prince was lovely. He had a great smile and kind and gentle loving soul. The Prince tended to his garden as often as he could. On especially bright days he would go to Castle Town and give flowers to the people. He was well liked. That is how they knew that his death would start a war. They just didn’t know that God would give them a war they’d never forget.

From the very beginning God knew that the Hero would either help unconditionally or doubt whether his actions were just. When God had first turned to look at the Hero in battle he thought about how he’d [[kill->Anger]] them if they even just thought about leaving. After everything, when God saw the Hero run into the woods with the few that they'd saved, he knew that the days the Hero had left were down to seconds. (click-goto:?page,"Scowl")

[[A scowl formed on the face of God.->Goddess]] The Hero had gone back to the city. The Hero was trying to save people. They wanted to try and end the war. God was blinded by anger. And with a snap of his finger he aimed a stray arrow at the Hero. (click-goto:?page,"Death.end")

The goddess saw this and put her foot down. The arrow cracked in half as it made its way to the Hero. The Hero continued on smoothly. The Child lived. (click-goto:?page,"the.fire")

The arrow flew with precision. The Hero was running, keeping an eye on the civilians ahead of them. They led the people into the cover of the woods. Deciding to take the long way to the Gold Kingdom. [[When the arrow hit its mark, the Hero blanked.->The.Fire]]

You’d set the fire that night. God placed the matches and fuel in your hands. He just made sure you wouldn’t be seen. And then you set fire to everything around you. You were dying now and your lungs were not working right. You tried to get up, nothing. You felt like you were choking. You felt the smoke, then you felt like you were drowning. (click-goto:?page,"End.Bad")

“What are you doing to this world?” Said the Goddess to the God. He did not respond to her. Instead he turned his back on the Goddess and returned to his massacre in the mortal realm. The Goddess returned all her focus onto the Hero. When the moment was right the Goddess would redeem them, just as long as the Hero began to play their role right again. God would get no say in the matter. (click-goto:?page,"Alt.Escape")

From the very beginning God knew that the Hero would either help unconditionally or doubt whether his actions were just. When God turned to look at the Hero in battle, furiously grasping their sword and swinging, he thought about how he’d [[kill->Anger]] them if they even just thought about leaving.

The problem with fighting was that God didn’t care who died. And God didn’t care why anyone fought. God just wanted humanity to feel pain. (click-goto:?page,"Loop.2")

You met your end hours into battle. You had fooled yourself into thinking that any motivation or sense of justice meant anything. And your end was quick. You slowly bled out alone on the battlefield, you watched the darkened skies above. And you knew you were never really the Hero you thought you were. (click-goto:?page,"Inter")

A scowl formed on the face of God. The Hero had gone back to the city. The Hero was trying to save people. He wanted to try and end the war. God was blinded by anger. And with a snap of his finger he aimed a stray arrow at the Hero. (click-goto:?page,"Death.2")

All the pain slowly left you. You woke up and the Goddess was at your side. She knew you’d done your best so she placed a gentle kiss on your cheek. She gave you a defeated smile as she gently guided you into a field of flowers. Among the flowers you saw the Prince. At the end you were just glad that you met him

The Hero never really set out to be the Hero. Their childhood was calm and later there was a need for adventure. When the opportunity presented itself, the Hero accepted. Their kindness took them far. And now, they saw a grateful mother take back their child. She sobbed, scared and relieved. The Hero did not know how to face the war. But the Hero returned to the city when more sound of distress caught their attention. Amidst the fire, the suppressed memory of a burning returned. The pain was outrageous. You died alone in the burning city. The relief of knowing what you did the night the Prince died left you weightless. And after you passed and awoke to see the Goddess at your side you simply smiled. She led you to a field of flowers. And there you saw the Prince. And he smiled and waved. You were glad. The weight lifted from your shoulders, knowing peace at last.