Once Upon a Time...

Alright, Ladies and Gentlefolk of Aelyria, I have a tale to tell you.

Years and years ago, back in the previous millennium (but still near the tail end of it), There was a young boy. This boy was just graduating middle school. He enjoyed writing, and he was rather proud of his brilliantly wild and unstoppable, untamable imagination, though his writing skill didn't do it justice. That young boy had a few friends--one in specific--who knew of this strange and innovative concept: Writing online.

The boy was confounded by this idea, for in those days, the internet was hardly brand new, but it was still in its toddler days of popularity. Curious at what his friends were referring to, he stopped by his friend's house, who happened to have internet at his home. The boy was shown a site his friend wrote for...a site that went by a fantastic and mystical name. That name was AIIeria (with the 'I's of course substituted with 'L's, but they auto-correct that here, so for now we shall simply refer to it as AIIeria).

Instantly drawn in and mystified by this magical cyberworld, the boy read everything he could get his hands on. He even, at one point, made a character. He hardly had time to get a feel for the game, however, before the game crashed in a grand collapse of the server that would later be known as AIIeriageddon. Having only just gotten a taste of this amazing world, the boy was disappointed and let it fall into the rearmost rafters of his mind. He'd heard word of a site trying to emulate it, a Nu-AIIeria, but it just didn't seem the same to him, so he abstained from playing.

Years passed; and the magical game had been all but forgotten. Time passed, internet became more common, and in 2002, around when the boy was preparing to graduate high school, he received a strange e-mail. That email was from the creator of the game, AIIeria, and was sent out to all the players of the old game to come back. The game had found a new home and was running once again, and as soon as characters could be created for the grand launch, the boy decided to join right away, interested in seeing what new form the game had taken.

Immediately he was immersed in the fantastic world once again, only it had been reimagined to be more resplendent and stable than before, and so it was less chaotic; the coordination making for a more fulfilling gaming experience. For two months the boy couldn't get enough of the game. He found himself on the site almost religiously, coming every day to see what new updates had found their way into this fascinating new world, and to his character, and his writing skills had improved somewhat, though not greatly.

Two months later, there were advertisements for Assistant Game Master positions. The boy, eager to learn more about the game and help out where he could; wanting desperately to be a part of this thing that had stirred him so strongly, offered his services to one Game Master by the name of Kenaz. Much to his shock, he was summarily turned down. A few weeks later, however, he spoke with another GM, Polina, and she liked what she saw. She could use no more, however, so she spoke with another GM in Frigid River who was seeking aid...Vashti.

Vashti took to the boy rather quickly, and having accepted him, he created his moderator account. And so AGM Masamune was born. Masa exploded onto the Frigid River scene, snatching up everything that came his way. Before too long he was doing as much, if not more, than Vashti herself. During that time the boy was unsatisfied with his character, and so he decided to put the character to sleep, and created a new one. A young, naive elf who was adventuring into Prime with delusions of grandeur...and elf named Motito Ivyblossom.

Two more months after heavy activity within Frigid River, and news of GM positions were announced. Curious and excited, Masa applied for just such a position, enjoying hew new character Motito and AGMing at the same time. After much consideration, and after only four months experience in the game, Masa was promoted and became the Game Master of Arconis. The city was, essentially, a blank slate and he could build it however he wished. Desiring to stay somewhat true to the original vision for the city, which was a city of the arts, he once again exploded into action, a whirlwind of activity to try and get this unheard of and locked down city back on the map.

Though he met with moderate success, it was tempered by other GMs having problems, and other cities needing someone to look after them. Masa, his desire to help still unquenched, he offered to help look after a city...Natura. So, for a time, Masa ran both Arconis and Natura, GMing two cities at once. This was a mild strain, but he loved being such a help to the game, and he loved playing with the PCs...knowing that the characters were enjoying what he was doing brought a smile to his face.

News of a second city in peril was brought to his attention, and again he extended his hand. Thus, temporarily, Masamune was GM of three cities: Arconis, Natura, and Silrosia. Unfortunately, the boy had passed his limit. maintaining three cities and a character account was more than he could afford, and so he began to break down. Luckily, GMs were soon found for Natura and Silrosia, allowing him to focus on Arconis for a while.

Now, lets flash forward a bit. Motito, with the help of the new Silrosia GM Leafsong becomes an elven noble and acquires a new last name; Gil'dae. Arconis continues to flourish, and though it never saw a single stable AGM to its name, it was enough to keep running. Unfortunately, the boy is now burdened with Real Life troubles and activities. Forced to drop in activity, he retires, but maintains his character, Motito Gil'dae. Motito continues to grow at an astounding rate, and the more he grows, the more the boy's writing evolves, slowly becoming better and better, inspired not only by his own imagination and the sweeping majesty of the game, but by other players and the great example they set, that the boy wished to be worthy of writing alongside.

Eventually, as luck would have it, the boy had the time to moderate again, and rejoins Arconis as GM Masamune, this time as co-GM with the only other moderator who the boy felt shared his dream for the city, and could make it exactly how he pictured it without even having to ask him; GM Mimesis. She was a godsend, and he adored her writing, and the two got along well. Motito, in the meantime, had found his beloved Eri'Lariel, his wife, with whom he felt he could not live without. Eri's writer and the boy grew closer and closer, and eventually fell for each other.

A while later the boy's heart was broken when she left without explaining her reason, never to be heard from again; including from Eri. Both the boy and Motito found a way to continue on, but they were both changed dramatically by the incident, even though the boy continued to moderate as GM Masamune.

Eventually, however, a combination of Real Life rearing its ugly head and the boy--now a handful of years older than when he started--had become a bit more cynical and jaded. Life was not as wonderful as he'd first mistaken it to be, he thought, and he had reached a dark time in his personal path.

The boy stayed on as Motito--who, through some miracle, had found companionship in the place he least expected it...the woman he'd invited into his family, Alicia Gil'dae--but decides he will not moderate again unless some things about the game that disturbed the cynical boy changed. Time continued to march on, and things continued to grow worse for the boy in his personal life. He grew even more bitter, angry, frustrated, and cynical, and in an attempt to free himself from the dark path decided to try and lose himself in the game, allowing his imagination to force all his real problems into the back of his mind. This was, of course, unhealthy, but the boy at the time didn't care.

[To Be Continued in Part 2]