《The World We Left Behind》 Chapter One: A Glitch in the System ¡°Your Grace! The Demon Lord of Chaos is attacking us with his armies as we speak!¡± King Awephuum sat upon his giant gilded throne with a calm face of stone. ¡°Fear not m¡¯lady, I have defected Chaos and his minions a many of times, and today shall not be any different.¡± All of the girls in the room swoon at the gravelly, robust voice that echoes out of their awe-inspiring king. Awephuum stands up. His three metre frame casting shadows upon all who stand before. He begins to confidently stride towards the end of the throne room, his every step shaking the earth beneath him - due to the great weight of his armour, crafted by the wise angel queen, of whom he had¡­ relations with. All of his servants awkwardly follow their king out of the room, always wishing to be near him. As Awephuum continues his march towards battle, all of his servants gasp bashfully at the sight at the sight of him confidently striding throughout the palace. All those brave enough to approach him, received a glorious jiggle-squeeze and happily fainted onto the ground in ecstasy. Awephuum has finally reached the outside of his palace. Their waiting for him is his favorite general: Lady Tsuloli. ¡°Hmph, you¡¯re late.¡± She huffs. ¡°Sorry m¡¯lady, so many of the girls wanted me to give them ¡®special attention¡¯, I got a bit distracted.¡± ¡°You pervert! Stupid pervy perv you idiot!¡± She yells as her face flushes red. ¡°Aw, don¡¯t fret m¡¯lady, you will always be my favorite.¡± He says as he crouches down and gently ruffles her hair. ¡°It¡¯s not like that makes me happy for anything¡­ Stupid¡­¡± She mumbles. Awephuum smiles ruefully at Tsuloli¡¯s behaviour, he doesn¡¯t think he¡¯ll ever get tired of her. *BANG* Suddenly, in the distance, a volley of fireballs rain down on Awephuum¡¯s beloved city. In response to this attack, he whistles. An upbeat tune that can calm the most furious of maidens, but he isn¡¯t whistling for that, he¡¯s doing it to summon his beloved companion. A mighty roar descends from the heavens. From the clouds saws a high dragon, clad in beautiful gold scales. The beast lands gracefully in front of Awephuum. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you again Phillip.¡± Declares Awephuum. [The feeling is mutual my lord.] Replied Philip, via telepathic link. Awephuum mounts his faithful steed and takes flight. ¡°Have a bath ready for me when I return.¡± He yells to Tsuloli - with a wink. ***** Awephuum glides through the sky, quickly approaching the source of the destruction. His eyes are met with the a plague of wyverns, bellowing poisonous gas at his citizens. He raises his left hand towards the heavens and utters - ¡°In the name of that is all righteous and true! I ask thee, oh most powerful sky to aid me in my quest for justice. Let thy rain down holy light upon those who would seek to destroy all that is wonderful on thy earth. Answer my request and let my will be done!¡± Awephuum chants. Suddenly, bolts of lightning began to rain down from the sky, each only striking the wyverns and turning them into dust. Once Awephuum could no longer see any of the vile creatures, he rests his arm from its upright position - cancelling his sacred magic. [Let us continue onwards.] [Yes my lord.] ***** On the outside of the wall, as far as the eye could see, is an army of grotesque goblins, trolls, ogres, orcs and much worse. [Philip, you know what to do.] Philip responds by deeply inhaling. His chest expanding over five times its original size. When Philip has consumed as much oxygen as possible, he exhales. A gargantuan amount of fire erupts from his mouth and devours over a quarter of the Demon Lord¡¯s army. The army retaliates by unleashing a torrent of arrows at the king. However, he effortlessly creates a shield of arcane energy around him and Philip, it easily deflects the metal and wood. The Demon Lord¡¯s army became enraged by the fact that they''re unable to harm their greatest enemy. The king looks upon them smugly. Out of no where, a spear made of dark, dense smork pieces Awephuum¡¯s shield and shatters it like glass. ¡°Ah, Demon Lord of Chaos, you¡¯ve finally shown yourself.¡± Said Awephuum. ¡°You may have damaged my army king, but you shall not prevail this time.¡± Said a tall figure, suddenly materializing in front of Awephuum. ¡°You will lose Chaos. For I fight for what is true and just!¡± ¡°You are a fool Awephuum!¡± Chaos lifts his hand, in it forms another spear of dark chaos energy, which he hurls at Awephuum. Awephuum responds by firing a beam of light out of his palm at the foal javelin - vaporising it. He then begins to hover in the air. [Go and engage the army Philip, I¡¯ll handle this.] [Yes my lord.] He replies as he flies away. Good and evil now float in the air in front of each other, both with eyes of determination. Awephuum slowly unsheathes his sword. The sword of righteous, a weapon so powerful, only the most worthy can wield it. Chaos responds by summoning the dreaded scythe of death from the depths of the underworld. They both charge at each other - going so fast, they leave a sonic boom in their wake. Their weapons collide. *BANG* The strength behind their strikes crack like thunder, makes the air unbearably hot and shakes the earth beneath them. *BANG* Again they slam their power into each other, and again, and again. Glowing blades moving so fast, it looks like nothing but a blur to a normal person. Both of their attacks are equal in strength and speed. The flurry of metal crashing, dodging and parrying is truly a sight to be behold. Awephuum lunges with his sword, the strike harmlessly passes through chaos - who has now change his state of matter into a writhing plume of chaos smoke. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. Predicting this, Awephuum unleashes a blast of holy light out of his free hand at his foe. Chaos screams in agony as his dark form is scorched by holy might. The darkness squirms and retreats to a safe distance. The smoke condenses and spins. Out of the tornado appears Chaos, once again in his physical form. ¡°Is that all you got?¡± Asks Awephuum, with a condescending grin. Chaos snarls in reply. In a fit of rage and desperation, he unleashes his most powerful attack. Across the battlefield, most of Chaos''s army collapse to the ground. Their souls can be seen being dragged out of the monster¡¯s throats. The soul''s destination is of course, their master. As thousands upon thousands of twisted souls fly towards Chaos, he opens his mouth - devouring them all with gluttonous delight. When all of the souls are consumed, he grins. His muscles spontaneously expand, his veins bulge grotesquely. Eyes glow crimson red and a monstrous black arua drips off his body. ¡°A little early for the final attack, isn¡¯t it?¡± Awephuum casually asks. ¡°Silence!¡± Chaos spits in reply. ¡°My-my, such a rude one¡­ Well I guess I should oblige you¡­¡± Awephuum begins to vigorously tense his muscles, grunt and shake - drawing forth his sealed power. His already golden armour shines even more with a beautiful golden hue. His eyes now leak a pale blue ethereal vapour. Angel wings made of pure white holy energy spring forth from his muscular back. ¡°Man I love doing that.¡± Awephuum states, now that his transformation is complete. The two rivals stare intensely at each other for what seems like an eternity. Then, travelling faster than the eye can see, Chaos appears behind Awephuum and slams his tendril fist down on him. Before it could land, Awephuum spins around and catches the fist in his own. He returns his own strike at Chaos with a thunderous boom. The world suddenly flashes and Awephuum feels a sharp pain in his head. There¡¯s now a sharp pain coming from his cheek, like someone had punched him. He is even more confused to see that Chaos is now a hundred metres away from him, charging an extremely powerful attack in his hands. ¡°What the hell just happened? Was that a new spell? I didn¡¯t sense any magic being used. Oh shit, better deal with Chaos before I start asking questions.¡± He says to himself. Temporarily forgetting the weird incident that just happened, he once again focuses his attention on Chaos. Seeing that Chaos is going to attack him with a beam-type attack, he responds in kind. ¡°Oh blessed are we. I ask of thee, of great and merciful angels. Please bless thy attack with your holy flame of justice, so I may vanquish all who dare cause blight upon your truth, justice, honesty and majesty!¡± As he recited his incantation, his arms were held forward - pointing at Chaos. When the final syllable was uttered, a storm of pure, golden light sprung forth Awephuums hands. At the same time, Chaos unleashes a giant coil of twisted, gnarled tendrils of vile chaos at Awephuum. As the two elements coiled with one another, the world creaks and the air screams. The two shake and sweat profusely as they strain to best one another. Each beam increases and decreases in length as they each fight for dominance. It wasn¡¯t until nearly an hour had passed until a winner is declared. With the power of justice behind him, Awephuum unleashed a pulse of more holy energy, which traversed through the light beam - overpowering Chaos¡¯s evil tendrils. ¡°You may have won this round Awephuum! But I will have my revenge..!¡± Chaos yells as Awephuum¡¯s light sends him flying out of the planet¡¯s orbit with a twinkle. Awephuum gazes down at battlefield and is slightly disappointed to see that the entire enemies army has been wiped out by his own forces. His sorry is immediately diminished when he spots his favorite girls stood in the middle of the battlefield, idly chatting. He glides towards them. ¡°Your grace! It is good to see you¡¯re okay.¡± Said one of his generals, bowing on one knee. ¡°Rise Izzy. It is good to see all of my lovely¡¯s are still beautiful.¡± He smirks, while scanning all of the girls. They all blush red and giggle in response. Truly he is blessed. ¡°Now that the battle is over and we are victorious, why don¡¯t we all go home and bathe together.¡± He asks with a devilish smile. ¡°Yes your majesty!¡± They all reply in union. They all stand laughing, basking in their blissful joy. A sharp throbbing pain penetrates Awephuum¡¯s skull. He collapses to the ground, writhing in pain. The pain is similar to the sudden headache he experienced earlier, but much, much worse. ¡°You grace, are you-you, grace, you¡­ Right, your-your-your-your-your-your-your-your¡­¡± Awephuum hazily peers at Tsuloli and is dismayed to see her body flashing, twitching, and then just disappears¡­ Then everything starts shaking, creaking and then vanishing, like they never existed to begin with. Is this a new spell of Chao¡¯s..!? The unbelievable horror and despair tortures Awephuum as he helplessly watches all of his friends and his beloveded kingdom disappear before his eyes¡­ Until he is just left, alone in a black void, neither hot or cold, or...Anything. The pain in his head intensifies and he screams the names of his beloved in response. *ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!* And then nothing. ***** The cold condensed air flushes out of the glass pod. The lid opens. Lied down inside is a hauntingly frail boy? Man? it¡¯s difficult to tell. His eyes suddenly shot open. They gaze upon the old world he long forgot... Chapter Two: Welcome Back! The man¡¯s eyes dart back and forth in a panicked motion. He tries to move his body, but his paper clad skeleton can not even twitch a single bony finger. Unable to escape, he now attempts to scream for help.... But to no avail. The several tubes lodged in his throat prevent any sound other than a slight groan that escapes his cracked lips. Where am I?! His mind screams. A minute ago I was¡­ A king? Yes a king! A powerful king. With loyal subjects, wealth and a harem of beautiful women¡­ And I was in a battle¡­ And then, I laughed, a lot¡­ Then¡­ Nothing... Where am I now? I think¡­ I think I know this place. I remember this feeling of lying inside a box, and having these awful tubes being shoved down my throat¡­ So weirdly nostalgic¡­ Ugh, asking myself questions isn¡¯t going to get me anywhere. First things first, I¡¯ve got to get up. But how? This body is so weak I can barely even feel it, and I can¡¯t even lift my head, like a baby¡­ Oh God! Have I reincarnated? I don¡¯t remember dying¡­ Nah, I doubt I did, this body feels too big for a baby. It¡¯s more like the body of an old man who decided long ago that moving is too much of a distraction from doing nothing. The man¡¯s hastily formed thoughts has brought him into a form of minor meditation, the kind that is very good at ignoring external sounds, unfortunately for him, this means that he is unable to currently hear the slow, heavy footsteps approaching him. *THUD, THUD* This is ridiculous! I want my bubble bath with my cuties..! *THUD, THUD* I can¡¯t use any magic¡­ There¡¯s no magic in the air, it¡¯s empty¡­ God dammit! How am I gonna shoot fireballs out of my hands now?! *THUD, THUD* My nose really itches¡­ As the man continues his constant blows of epiphanies, the corner of his peripheral vision notices a dark silhouette casting a shadow over his body. His eyes now pay attention to their surroundings - focusing in of the hazy figure above him. The room is dark, it has been since his eyes first opened, so making out the appearance of whatever is looming over him is difficult. The man manages to make out the outline of something that looks like a long hat on top of this creature''s head. The being leans in closer, beads of sweat form on the man¡¯s head and this bodies long dormant adrenal glands begin pumping rapidly. The strange face now mere centimetres away, from his own. It seems to be wearing a large rectangular metal helmet, and it¡¯s in terrible condition. To the man¡¯s amazement, the helmet¡¯s eye slits glow bright white and the mouth area parts like a drawbridge. ¡°Good morning Sir!¡± It yells in an oddly cheerful voice. ¡°Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!¡± He screams - muffled by the tubes in his mouth. ¡°Let me get those for you Sir!¡± The metal being then starts to carefully remove all of the tubes that have being invading the man¡¯s orifices. ¡°There. It seems they have been safely removed. Please perform a vocal test Sir.¡± It asks politely. ¡°Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!¡± He screams once again, this time the volume isn¡¯t being suffocated. ¡°Wonderful! It seems your vocal chords are working fine, Sir.¡± ¡°What be you foal spawn?! Are you a new kind of golem..? Or are you a spirit possessing some kind of weird armour?!¡± He shouts - cracking his voice in the process. ¡°It seems your long exposure to your virtual simulation has caused you delirium and memory loss. I shall administer a sedative, please hold still Sir.¡± ¡°Sedative?! What does that mean? I have no heard of this word before, wait¡­ Have I..?¡± As the man continues to talk, a pale white smoke begins to flow from the inside of the box he¡¯s in, and quickly invades his senses. ¡°Hey wait! What be this sorcery? It mak¡­ me¡­ tir¡­¡± The man¡¯s eyelids close and his body relaxes. * * * * * Several hours later, the man wakes up again. This time however, he realises he is no longer inside that large box he originally woke up in. It seems that this time, he is laying on a table. He gazes in wonder at the glowing lights hanging from the ceiling above him. ¡°Good morning Sir.¡± Says the metal man - now appearing beside the man¡¯s head. The man tenses, but he is in a more controlled mental state than earlier. ¡°Who are you?¡± He asks the metal being. ¡°I am Helper-Bot T-15 N 6 14 9 Z, Edition: MARK III, or: Chappy, as that is the ¡®nickname¡¯ given to be buy my owner.¡± The being proudly declares. ¡°Chappy¡­ I remember that name¡­ Yeah, I remember¡­ An annoying British guy, who kept making messes.¡± ¡°That would be me Sir. Although, I was actually manufactured in China, my voice however is English Man#16. Lady Holly was the one who chose my voice module.¡± Informs Chappy. ¡°Holly? I had... Have a sister called Holly. Annoying brat¡­ Where is she?¡± ¡°I regret to inform you, Sir, that Lady Holly passed away sixty-seven years ago.¡± Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! ¡°Oh¡­¡± He whispered. The man wasn¡¯t sure what to feel. He could remember nothing about his sister - other than her name and blurs of annoyance. And yet, that makes him feel more empty. His brain begins to throb in pain as it struggles to unlock the memories it long ago hid away. ¡°Chappy.¡± ¡°Yes Sir?¡± ¡°What is my name..?¡± ¡°Oh dear, you have forgotten something as simple and important as that, this is worse than I calculated. Your name is Callum, Sir. Callum Maxwell.¡± ¡°Callum, huh¡­ I don¡¯t remember anyone ever calling me that¡­ I don¡¯t remember anyone¡­¡± Warm salty liquid trickles down Callum¡¯s face as he ponders his life. He remembers very little, but some memories do seem to be appearing gradually, but what of his life as king of Felidorn? He remembers his life there so well, his mind is torn between accepting it as reality of a very long dream. The battles he fought, the friends he made, the people he loved¡­ It was all fake¡­ Callum laid on the table, silently crying, and just thought; about everything. Chappy did not utter a single word and simply waited for his master to be ready. * * * * * It wasn¡¯t until over an hour had passed, that the water ran dry and Callum found temporary peace. ¡°Chappy.¡± He says, turning his head; facing Chappy. ¡°Yes Sir?¡± ¡°How long was I in Feli¡­ The virtual simulation for?¡± ¡°Three-hundred and seventy-five years, twelve hours, and thirty-two minutes.¡± Callum is speechless. He knew that a lot of time has passed due to his room and Chappy¡¯s shabby appearance. His sister also apparently died sixty-seven years ago, but he at all did not expect nearly four-hundred years. The news hit him like a physical blow, but he knows he cannot keep falling into despair everytime he receives shocking news, and he has a feeling he is going to be hearing a lot ¡®shocking shit¡¯ for a while. He exhales deeply and strengthens his determination. ¡°What year is it?¡± He asks. ¡°Why, it¡¯s the year 2422.¡± ¡°So I entered Felidorn in¡­ 2147 .¡± ¡°Correct. Very good Sir.¡± ¡°How old was I when I entered Felidorn?¡± ¡°Fifteenth and five months.¡± ¡°Fuck! How the hell have I been alive for 390 years? I''m correct in remembering that people only used to live until , like a hundred, right?¡± ¡°Under normal circumstances, a human, who has access to medical care, lives a sedentary lifestyle, a healthy diet and no biological abnormalities, has an average life span one-hundred and six years.¡± ¡°Then how am I still alive?¡± The Lucid #14 is still to this day one the most advanced virtual reality/preservation chambers in existence. It¡¯s highly efficient at slowing the ageing process, preventing bacterial infection and providing a human with their energy needs, it is unmatched by any other model. Your sister for example, was using an older model - the Lucid #8 and of course as you know, she eventually perished... I noticed that you would have only lasted another year at most in your pod, so I woke you up.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ I must ask. How does removing my body from a place that¡¯s keeping me alive, prevent me from dying?¡± ¡°Bully Sir! I am not so stupid as to leave you like this. Now that your body has been exposed to the air, you¡¯ve only got approximately forty hours to live¡­¡± ¡°Okay¡­ Still waiting for you to explain how you haven¡¯t helped kill me.¡± ¡°Oh, sorry Sir. Do you remember the human drone project?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Well, to give you the short version Sir. In the of 2093, the American military created man-made humans designed to fight on the front lines of combat. The drones were created using a specimen that was created using a combination of selective breeding and minor genetic enhancements - which they then used as the module to clone on a mass scale. The result was an army of identical soldiers, stronger, faster and more resilient than your standard human. However, due to the large amounts of complaints about human ethics and the protesting of ex-soldiers having being made redundant by the new soldiers, caused the project to cease. All the remaining drones were now considered normal citizens of the state. But that didn¡¯t last long due to their lack of human empathy and would sometimes ¡®malfunction¡¯ and kill anything that was a threat to them. In the end, they were either killed or locked away.¡± ¡°That¡¯s really interesting, but it doesn¡¯t help me.¡± ¡°I was just getting to that Sir. In a nearby hospital is a drone. One that has never been realised from its pod and hasn¡¯t had a memory bank uploaded.¡± ¡°So¡­¡± ¡°So, we can unload your consciousness into this drone, and tada! You¡¯ve got a new functioning body.¡± ¡°Sounds¡­ Reasonable, I think. So, how do you get the body?¡± ¡°We. I¡¯m afraid sir. I can¡¯t take the drone out its pod until you are in it.¡± ¡°Well how the hell am I supposed to get there? Look at me.¡± Callum would gesture with his hands, if he could move them. ¡°Already thought about that on Sir. You see, that table your laying on has wheels¡­¡± What¡¯s that suppose to mean? Oh¡­¡± Callum suddenly felt the sudden strength of hands gripping the area above his head. ¡°Fuck¡­¡± Chapter Two: Welcome Back! The man¡¯s eyes dart back and forth in a panicked motion. He tries to move his body, but his paper clad skeleton can not even twitch a single bony finger. Unable to escape, he now attempts to scream for help.... But to no avail. The several tubes lodged in his throat prevent any sound other than a slight groan that escapes his cracked lips. Where am I?! His mind screams. A minute ago I was¡­ A king? Yes a king! A powerful king. With loyal subjects, wealth and a harem of beautiful women¡­ And I was in a battle¡­ And then, I laughed, a lot¡­ Then¡­ Nothing... Where am I now? I think¡­ I think I know this place. I remember this feeling of lying inside a box, and having these awful tubes being shoved down my throat¡­ So weirdly nostalgic¡­ Ugh, asking myself questions isn¡¯t going to get me anywhere. First things first, I¡¯ve got to get up. But how? This body is so weak I can barely even feel it, and I can¡¯t even lift my head, like a baby¡­ Oh God! Have I reincarnated? I don¡¯t remember dying¡­ Nah, I doubt I did, this body feels too big for a baby. It¡¯s more like the body of an old man who decided long ago that moving is too much of a distraction from doing nothing. The man¡¯s hastily formed thoughts has brought him into a form of minor meditation, the kind that is very good at ignoring external sounds, unfortunately for him, this means that he is unable to currently hear the slow, heavy footsteps approaching him. *THUD, THUD* This is ridiculous! I want my bubble bath with my cuties..! *THUD, THUD* I can¡¯t use any magic¡­ There¡¯s no magic in the air, it¡¯s empty¡­ God dammit! How am I gonna shoot fireballs out of my hands now?! *THUD, THUD* My nose really itches¡­ As the man continues his constant blows of epiphanies, the corner of his peripheral vision notices a dark silhouette casting a shadow over his body. His eyes now pay attention to their surroundings - focusing in of the hazy figure above him. The room is dark, it has been since his eyes first opened, so making out the appearance of whatever is looming over him is difficult. The man manages to make out the outline of something that looks like a long hat on top of this creature''s head. The being leans in closer, beads of sweat form on the man¡¯s head and this bodies long dormant adrenal glands begin pumping rapidly. The strange face now mere centimetres away, from his own. It seems to be wearing a large rectangular metal helmet, and it¡¯s in terrible condition. To the man¡¯s amazement, the helmet¡¯s eye slits glow bright white and the mouth area parts like a drawbridge. ¡°Good morning Sir!¡± It yells in an oddly cheerful voice. ¡°Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!¡± He screams - muffled by the tubes in his mouth. ¡°Let me get those for you Sir!¡± The metal being then starts to carefully remove all of the tubes that have being invading the man¡¯s orifices. ¡°There. It seems they have been safely removed. Please perform a vocal test Sir.¡± It asks politely. ¡°Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!¡± He screams once again, this time the volume isn¡¯t being suffocated. ¡°Wonderful! It seems your vocal chords are working fine, Sir.¡± ¡°What be you foal spawn?! Are you a new kind of golem..? Or are you a spirit possessing some kind of weird armour?!¡± He shouts - cracking his voice in the process. ¡°It seems your long exposure to your virtual simulation has caused you delirium and memory loss. I shall administer a sedative, please hold still Sir.¡± ¡°Sedative?! What does that mean? I have no heard of this word before, wait¡­ Have I..?¡± As the man continues to talk, a pale white smoke begins to flow from the inside of the box he¡¯s in, and quickly invades his senses. ¡°Hey wait! What be this sorcery? It mak¡­ me¡­ tir¡­¡± The man¡¯s eyelids close and his body relaxes. * * * * * Several hours later, the man wakes up again. This time however, he realises he is no longer inside that large box he originally woke up in. It seems that this time, he is laying on a table. He gazes in wonder at the glowing lights hanging from the ceiling above him. ¡°Good morning Sir.¡± Says the metal man - now appearing beside the man¡¯s head. The man tenses, but he is in a more controlled mental state than earlier. ¡°Who are you?¡± He asks the metal being. ¡°I am Helper-Bot T-15 N 6 14 9 Z, Edition: MARK III, or: Chappy, as that is the ¡®nickname¡¯ given to be buy my owner.¡± The being proudly declares. ¡°Chappy¡­ I remember that name¡­ Yeah, I remember¡­ An annoying British guy, who kept making messes.¡± ¡°That would be me Sir. Although, I was actually manufactured in China, my voice however is English Man#16. Lady Holly was the one who chose my voice module.¡± Informs Chappy. ¡°Holly? I had... Have a sister called Holly. Annoying brat¡­ Where is she?¡± ¡°I regret to inform you, Sir, that Lady Holly passed away sixty-seven years ago.¡± The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°Oh¡­¡± He whispered. The man wasn¡¯t sure what to feel. He could remember nothing about his sister - other than her name and blurs of annoyance. And yet, that makes him feel more empty. His brain begins to throb in pain as it struggles to unlock the memories it long ago hid away. ¡°Chappy.¡± ¡°Yes Sir?¡± ¡°What is my name..?¡± ¡°Oh dear, you have forgotten something as simple and important as that, this is worse than I calculated. Your name is Callum, Sir. Callum Maxwell.¡± ¡°Callum, huh¡­ I don¡¯t remember anyone ever calling me that¡­ I don¡¯t remember anyone¡­¡± Warm salty liquid trickles down Callum¡¯s face as he ponders his life. He remembers very little, but some memories do seem to be appearing gradually, but what of his life as king of Felidorn? He remembers his life there so well, his mind is torn between accepting it as reality of a very long dream. The battles he fought, the friends he made, the people he loved¡­ It was all fake¡­ Callum laid on the table, silently crying, and just thought; about everything. Chappy did not utter a single word and simply waited for his master to be ready. * * * * * It wasn¡¯t until over an hour had passed, that the water ran dry and Callum found temporary peace. ¡°Chappy.¡± He says, turning his head; facing Chappy. ¡°Yes Sir?¡± ¡°How long was I in Feli¡­ The virtual simulation for?¡± ¡°Three-hundred and seventy-five years, twelve hours, and thirty-two minutes.¡± Callum is speechless. He knew that a lot of time has passed due to his room and Chappy¡¯s shabby appearance. His sister also apparently died sixty-seven years ago, but he at all did not expect nearly four-hundred years. The news hit him like a physical blow, but he knows he cannot keep falling into despair everytime he receives shocking news, and he has a feeling he is going to be hearing a lot ¡®shocking shit¡¯ for a while. He exhales deeply and strengthens his determination. ¡°What year is it?¡± He asks. ¡°Why, it¡¯s the year 2422.¡± ¡°So I entered Felidorn in¡­ 2147 .¡± ¡°Correct. Very good Sir.¡± ¡°How old was I when I entered Felidorn?¡± ¡°Fifteenth and five months.¡± ¡°Fuck! How the hell have I been alive for 390 years? I''m correct in remembering that people only used to live until , like a hundred, right?¡± ¡°Under normal circumstances, a human, who has access to medical care, lives a sedentary lifestyle, a healthy diet and no biological abnormalities, has an average life span one-hundred and six years.¡± ¡°Then how am I still alive?¡± The Lucid #14 is still to this day one the most advanced virtual reality/preservation chambers in existence. It¡¯s highly efficient at slowing the ageing process, preventing bacterial infection and providing a human with their energy needs, it is unmatched by any other model. Your sister for example, was using an older model - the Lucid #8 and of course as you know, she eventually perished... I noticed that you would have only lasted another year at most in your pod, so I woke you up.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ I must ask. How does removing my body from a place that¡¯s keeping me alive, prevent me from dying?¡± ¡°Bully Sir! I am not so stupid as to leave you like this. Now that your body has been exposed to the air, you¡¯ve only got approximately forty hours to live¡­¡± ¡°Okay¡­ Still waiting for you to explain how you haven¡¯t helped kill me.¡± ¡°Oh, sorry Sir. Do you remember the human drone project?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Well, to give you the short version Sir. In the of 2093, the American military created man-made humans designed to fight on the front lines of combat. The drones were created using a specimen that was created using a combination of selective breeding and minor genetic enhancements - which they then used as the module to clone on a mass scale. The result was an army of identical soldiers, stronger, faster and more resilient than your standard human. However, due to the large amounts of complaints about human ethics and the protesting of ex-soldiers having being made redundant by the new soldiers, caused the project to cease. All the remaining drones were now considered normal citizens of the state. But that didn¡¯t last long due to their lack of human empathy and would sometimes ¡®malfunction¡¯ and kill anything that was a threat to them. In the end, they were either killed or locked away.¡± ¡°That¡¯s really interesting, but it doesn¡¯t help me.¡± ¡°I was just getting to that Sir. In a nearby hospital is a drone. One that has never been realised from its pod and hasn¡¯t had a memory bank uploaded.¡± ¡°So¡­¡± ¡°So, we can unload your consciousness into this drone, and tada! You¡¯ve got a new functioning body.¡± ¡°Sounds¡­ Reasonable, I think. So, how do you get the body?¡± ¡°We. I¡¯m afraid sir. I can¡¯t take the drone out its pod until you are in it.¡± ¡°Well how the hell am I supposed to get there? Look at me.¡± Callum would gesture with his hands, if he could move them. ¡°Already thought about that on Sir. You see, that table your laying on has wheels¡­¡± What¡¯s that suppose to mean? Oh¡­¡± Callum suddenly felt the sudden strength of hands gripping the area above his head. ¡°Fuck¡­¡±