False Flag

Like a lot of brutal regimes, there was a turning point early on where they gained support from the populace, to become more brutal and crack down on some scapegoated rebels, which of course led to misery for most everyone. This one was the bombing of a government building that only took out the child care facilities.

Many years later, historians would come around on the idea that the rebels were unfairly blamed, and that is was a false-flag operation.

Because the truth, that the rebels were so inept and stupid that they killed a bunch of kids, was unpalatable.

The Source Of Pain

As we approached the doors, he started walking slower.

"What's wrong?"

He sighed.

"Through those doors, I finally get the answer. All the loss and chaos in my life, has been caused by this conspiracy. And I'm finally about to find out why.

And it scares me. What if it's not some ancient society fulfilling a prophecy, but just a couple rich assholes getting kicks from ruining my life? I'm just worried my life was ruined pointlessly."

I gently patted his shoulder.

"Trust me, you need this."

He nodded, then opened the doors to reveal no-one, as I shot him.

Hick And Slicker

The two of them were born at roughly the same time, one in the biggest hospital in the fifth biggest city, the other in a bathtub in the next farm over.

They both grew up in the same area they were born in, and they both longed for the other one's life. The city slicker longed for the simple life, while the country hick longed for the big smoke.

When they got to their twenties, they both moved.

Within a few months, one had gone back home.

But only because they couldn't get a job due to the outsider hatred.

Semi-Great Minds

He was in the same guild as me in this MMO I played, and he asked for my help with a second date idea for this girl he'd met. I suggested my usual option, a bushwalk with a game of 'Forest Management' on top of a mountain.

Then one of my workmates asked me about the game after she'd played it in a bushwalk with a guy she was seeing.

I advised both her and him, hearing my ideas repeated back to me back and forth.

Eventually I met her date, who swore he didn't play an MMO.

Very confusing.

Don't Knock It

On this date, I dreaded hearing a knock on the door.

It started as a child, when the cop was there, and in what would today be considered an inappropriate approach, told me that my Father had died.

Then, a decade later, another cop was there, and she was kinder, but she still had to tell me my Mother had died.

My boss firing me, the car crashing into my fence, the lawsuit, bad things had a tendency to happen on this day.

And today, you knock on my door and declare your love for me?

Well, it's a start.

Stake Out

One of them was near retirement, the other was two weeks into their career.

They were in the car, watching the hideout.

"I still think we should go in there now."

The veteran shook his head.

"That ain't a good idea kid. We go in there and he ain't there, we're fucked. We gotta make sure that he's there, so we gotta watch until we see him."

"I don't understand how you can be so chill, what with that asshole who killed your partner in there!"

The door opened, and the cop walked out, the two criminals opening fire quickly.

Perspective

The Elves were the longest living creatures in the world, and among them, Sotrax was the oldest living one, at least that was known about.

He lived in the citystate of Terasded, in the Scholar's Quarter. He officially worked as a translator, but most of his time these days was spent answering questions about the past thousand years.

I asked him, after another series of questions about the Awons War, if he was getting tired of it.

"Oh, well, so many people lost, passed away, way I see it, these people will be joining them soon enough, same as everyone."