Players who had been scattered across the world of Alfheim Online had all been abruptly teleported to Arun, the neutral city located at the base of the world tree; Yggdrasil. 20,000 players found themselves confined within the central plaza. However, before any commotion actually began, the setting sun seemed to freeze in place in the west horizon, framed between two of the mountains that straddled Butterflies Valley leading towards Sylvan land. The hue of both the sun and sky shifted rapidly towards a deep orange-red, throwing a crimson cast across the players. The air, thick with the fears of the assembled players, began to distort and a crack in space formed. From within appeared a vague humanoid form that was over a hundred meters tall.

Beta testers that were present recognized the robbed hoods the figure donned signified a GM or perhaps it was more accurate to say that the robes of a GM appeared but noone seemed to be wearing them. Although it was draped around a gigantic humanoid form, it was a form unseen and without substance: the depths of the hood were nothing but the blackest of nights. The words the figure - later revealed to be Kayaba Akihito - spoke would forever change the lives of every assembled player.

"Understand this: Alfheim Online is no longer a game. Players may no longer respawn in their home city when they die and the only means of resurrecting a player's Remain Light is through the use of rare items or high level healing magic. If your HP drops to zero and your Remain Light disapears, the Nerve Gear will destroy your brain thus ending your life forever, in this world as well as the real world."

---

Ironically, the first month of Alheim Online was rather uneventful. Although there were a considerable amount of deaths within the first week due to the ensuing panic and confusion, it ceased when the beta testers took control. Although the exact number beta testers who made it to launch were unknown, it was rumoured to be slightly under a thousand. Through sharing their information and guidance, players had begun to settle down in the digital world known as Alfheim. Regions close to the safezones were littered with players. By looking for each other, there were virtually no chances of death against the beginning mobs such as «Slime» or «Giant Rat». Though there were those who outright refused to leave the towns, they still had the blessings of being able to work on their crafting so they could generate yurudo (currency) for their living expenses such as satiating their digital hunger or paying for an inn. As such, the towns were bustling with activity.

All this was possible because of the unspoken peace treaty between the nine races. The beta testers who had revealed themselves made it known that any attempt on PKing would result in a huge negative backlash on the perpetrators. This combined with travelling between borders being frowned upon allowed the game to remain relatively PK free despite Kayaba's intentions.

However, things were reaching a turning point. An announcement had spread throughout the world notifying players that the first faction leader elections were about to begin. Faction Leaders would function similarly to guild leaders, except for the entire race; in addition they would possess additional powers over the laws and foreign relations for a given race such as the ability to formally create an «Alliance» or declare «War». The announcement also contained an alarming piece of information that the beta testers had tried to keep from spreading; should a Leader ever be killed, his or her race's territory will become the territory of the race that slayed them for a month.

Information
+Current player base: 17,768.
+Faction Leader elections have begun.
+Travelling across borders is frowned upon.

Everdark Central Square, day of election...

Matte had lied down prone against the scaly tiles of her building of residence, Poe's Respite, and despite having to share seats with the various pigeons and crows, she was in a constant grin, and for good reason.

Though her <<Hide>> wasn't high enough for the avians to not notice her, it WAS high enough to avoid the attention of most lazy fliers who weren't searching for an address or a street name. The election, for the Imps, was around 6:00 AM in the morning, a time where people had their eyes burned awake from an all-night grindfest or were half-asleep from a relatively good dream.

She had slapped on her bulkiest armor, too, to grow the leveling multiplier up by .01%. It was crafted in a tutorial sequence given by a kindly old NPC hunter, who taught her how to make leather armor. In all honesty, the end-result and process was more of a tedious chore than a lesson, but at least she could dump her poor-quality hides into some revenue, regardless if she had no EXP growth from the curve. In the scheme of things, that seemed awfully small, but it wasn't like she could spare every waking moment lying still under rotting briars or making leather armor. She had to train two very different weapon proficiencies, as well as their associated skills, to prepare to compete against other players for hunting grounds, front-line rights, party positions, etc. Simply put, she wasn't going to be slaving away in the cities if she wanted to survive, especially at the risk of politics inside the game.

And so the flying rats cooed and clucked around her, adjusting to the fact that she was harmless so long as they didn't step on her face.

Using <<Reveal>>, she strained her eyes as murky silhouettes pulsed through the various windows of the adjacent buildings. She stared and studied her neighbors' weak points, which almost always centered around the head, heart, and groin as prime targets for critical hits. Thus, these points flashed a bright red, before flickering off.

What she was really trying to look at, though, were the dozens of small dots half a mile away, three blobs resting in over 10 dozen candidates each. Sure, she could focus on an area, but at her distance, their faces were all but blobs; it was hard to tell who was who. And of course, she might be able to close in on the third building from the square itself, but the curve was exponentially lower at that distance for <<Hide>> and <<Reveal>>. Perhaps if she could just...focus on a face...

...boy, there were sure a lot of cloak-donning people, both in and out of the crowd! Was the selection that tense?

Smithy looked at the weapons layed out in front of him they where made of the better materials on offer of course. As nobody buys the crap stuff in a MMO, but they weren't made out of the best stuff. Mostly because currently his Smithing level wasn't high enough to forge a anything good out of the best stuff, and the fact nobody was strong enough to get the best stuff in the first place. Shaking his head Smithy looked back down at his laid out weapons he had put on a blanket.

On offer he had swords, both one handed and two handed of course. Spears for those that like to stab things out of reach and knives for those who like to get close and proper. The items had good stats after all, less then the boss drop exclusives but better then the npc weapons thats for sure. Stealing a glance at the nearby shoppers, Smithy stood up and let out a yell. "Weapons for sell, good quality weapons for sale!" he said. Clearly wanting people to notice his merchandise.

Some people actually came over to have a look, it was a pair of Slyphs wearing armor. Smithy guessed that they where the adventuring sort. Never the less their eyes were drawn to his daggers probably because a few had a green gem in the hilt. "How much is that one?" One of the Slyphs asked pointing towards one of the green hilted blades. "That will be about 3500 yurendo" Smithy said in response to the question. The Slyph looked at him funny as if he was offering perhaps a little too high a price. "How about 3000?" The Slyph bartered. "I'll go as low as 3200, no less." Smithy said staring at the Slyph. His sword was better then the NPC vendors, not to mention he had to turn a profit on the supply he used. Finally the Slyph caved in and paid the lesser price, handing over the money to Smithy the Slyph was given the blade they wanted. Smithy's money count went up to 15 702 Yurendo. He still wasn't the richest in the game but his income was stable enough. a few more transactions later both him selling and buying stuff. Selling his weapons and buying food and smithing materials to be precise, oh and not to mention, leveling his merchant skill.

Smithy came out of the market with a smile on his face, he had come out richer then he had come in. As fun as the economy is though. He would rather smith and fabricate all day and get someone else to do the selling. Never the less neutral territory and being solo was his current mainstay. Even though the dreaded elections for race leadership was going on. He wanted no part in it. Politics where gonna become a factor in this game, but let the politics be discussed by other Leprechauns. Smithy just wanted to be the resident Legendary Blacksmith yet he was still a long shot from that, and if he did become a Legendary Blacksmith he would have the ability to persuade politics but for now let some other Leprechaun become the race leader, he would just be in the background leveling up his skills but for now he would settle to just eating the food he had brought. His had worked up a appetite from selling.

Sonia was quite far from Nissengrof now, to the south-east of the town more specifically. She knew others have come this far already, she for sure wasn't on the frontier of exploration, but that was fine, she wasn't about to throw her life away for a tiny bit of glory. Although there was a reason why she decided to venture out that day, monsters hanging around the town's outskirts weren't worth hunting anymore, so it was time to start searching for stronger monsters. Luckily she was probably prepared for tougher fights, and if things happen go real bad then flying away was always an option.

Even after spending a month in this dammed game, Sonia still often times caught herself being amazed by the sheer level of detail. From actually watching her breath condense in the frosty air, to truly feeling the weight of her armor, it really hit home the idea of everything here being a very real, and breathing world. Alfheim Online is a seriously unreal experience.

While consumed by her own idle thoughts, Sonia was stoutly matching along the snowy ground. Sure flying would be much faster, even with the need of semi-frequent rests, but she still hasn't gotten used to the flight system, plus the assistant controller was pretty annoying to handle in her option. The sun was directly overhead, knowing that she set out pretty early in the morning she'll need to start her return trip pretty soon, unless she wanted to spend the night outdoors and without proper camping supplies that is. With a sigh Sonia came to a stop, then carefully she scanned the horizon looking for anything out of the ordinary, anything at all.

Wink was currently cutting through Spriggan territory, consciously keeping to the edges of the mountains that marked the start of the neutral zones. It was unlikely there would Spriggans hunting this far out because of the danger, especially this early out. Even if they were an apathetic race by nature, he didn't want to risk getting into a brawl. Fortunately for him, he knew the spawn boxes and resting spots by heart so it was relatively danger free. His destination was Domnann, capital of the Leprechauns.

They were the only race which were freely welcoming visitors. Why shouldn't they? Being the only race with an affinity for forging, they were making handsome profits and they didn't even to collect mats themselves! In fact, this was one of the reasons why Wink risked travelling across Undine and Spriggan territories; in order to upgrade his «Drill Katars». Though his main goal was to meet up with the soon to be Faction Leader of the Leprechauns. From what he gathered, the Faction Leaders of the Puca, Gnomes and Leprechauns were all set in stone. They were all notable beta testers who had built up their reputations within the past month. Rumours of a commercial alliance between the three races were spreading. It made sense, alliances would only show value if you were located right next to each other and the Leprechauns would benefit far more by teaming up with the Gnomes and Puca's than the Spriggans. The latter wasn't as capable of supporting like the Pucas and they couldn't provide mats like the Gnomes could.

His goal was confirm the existence of the alliance and if not, push for it. If the alliance ever came to be, it would serve as a powerful neutral faction that could apply political pressure and deter any aggressive nature. It was of utmost importance. If even so much as a single race declared war, it would plant the seeds of distrust across the land and cause the darker natures of humans to surface. The longer he delayed that, the more time the others had in the real world to save them. The Nerve Gear was just a small stupid contraption on their heads, no matter the measures Kayaba Akihito took, there was no way the defences on it were impregnable. The time would come where they could escape without bloodshed.

Conrad hated camping, and his light armor and clothing didn’t give much when it came to cold weather resistance. Why was he so far out in the mountains then? Well, it was just too attractive. No one came out this far because the monsters became sparser and more powerful- and that was perfect for anyone who wanted to farm in peace. Kelvin focused, and began sprinting, feeling his body glow slightly as the skill activated, sending him zipping forward. It was much faster than he would have ever managed in real life, and the freedom felt amazing, watching the blur of trees and snow pass by. He could only imagine what the faster players felt like, flashing between places in an instant. He had been out in the mountains for most of the night, recording spawn times for some choice places, and then dashing between various areas, trying to level his various skills. A mile or so north, where the neutral zone split away from Spriggan territory, he had a small camp built. At noon he had needed to stop to build it, after taking a bit more damage than he was comfortable with- and needing to heat up to get rid of the <cold> debuff. Ah. There it was. Just ahead of him a monster appeared. >Snow Wolf< was just as the last three times he had come by today, a large beast, three and a half feet tall at its shoulder. Despite being a wolf, this was a lone monster, unlike the temperate-weather monster variant. That made it all the more dangerous stats wise however. It saw him coming, and growled, bunching muscles and crouching a bit as he came closer- before leaping. Conrad grinned, and shouted out his spell. “<Double Team!>” As the wolf crashed down onto him, Conrad’s body seemed to split, a clone kept running, whereas the real Conrad dived to the side in a roll.

His clone was brought down into the snow, and remained for an instant underneath the slavering wolf before shattering into numerous polygons. The wolf howled in victory for a brief instant- before being slamming into the ground, Conrad’s first strike landing atop its head and forcing it to the ground. It flinched at the surprise attack, and hunched in defense at Conrad’s next attack, the straight punch landing right on its shoulder… Unaware of the activation of his second spell- <Prior Imagery>. Only to be kicked savagely in the side, launching the wolf five feet away to sprawl in the ground, with Conrad following after. Of the enemies in the mountains, this was the one he had had the best luck with. It’s attack set was actually quite detrimental towards most weapon users, due to its <Vicious Bite> skill, which let it clamp it’s teeth down on one arm and pretty much shake a user around until they could overpower it. Which was pretty hard when you sword or shield arm are unusable. The wolf got to its feet and cautiously stalked around him taking a split second to flick its tongue over a wound. It would be more wary of his attacks now- the AI wouldn’t reset until it was killed, and it would remember his tactics until then. Conrad grinned, and then made use of his exploit, coming close until it lunged, and then thrust out his arm. The beast’s eyes gleamed as it activated <Vicious Bite> and clamped down unto his forearm. Normally, this attack would apply damage through an armor filter- but with Conrad’s skill, his gauntlets were classified as a weapon- which mean that any <weapon> contact could be parried. He activated this, and his gauntlets glowed orange and he flexed, knocking up the beasts head, before spinning and throwing an uppercut under its jaw, tossing it over into the snow. Slowly, it stood, and the wolf’s form began to glow slightly red. <Enrage> had been activated as it’s health reached critical. The first time he came to this spawn point, it had surprised him, but now he knew what to do. The wolf would begin to heal with each hit it landed while <Enrage>ed. “<Double Team>.” His body split, this time the clone stepping smoothly out of him, and Conrad circled with it, their images mirroring as they went around the wolf. Its eyes narrowed, calculating, and it moved towards his real form. Conrad calmly kept circling, while the clone behind it jumped at the wolf. The animal gave a triumphant growl and spun to savage the clone, only to be smashed through it in a shower of polygons from the real Conrad’s attack behind it.

He turned and began walking away before the wolf’s form had fully dissipated, looking at the items it had dropped. <Snow Wolf Pelt> and <Wolf Teeth> were fairly useless to him, but he might be able to get a decent market price for them. It was the experience he was really after. He grimaced, looking over his stats. He should have used more spells, and elongated the fight a bit more to squeeze more magic experience in. It just felt amazing to dominate an enemy so utterly- despite having the cheap advantage of knowing it’s tactics through and through. He would have to write a log on it later to sell to an information vendor, if it wasn’t already a well-known beast. Information was always valuable in these games. <Silver Soldier> grinned and activated <Sprint>, running across the snowy wasteland towards his basecamp. Stamina wasn’t infinite, and soon enough the monk was jogging along at a slow pace. The <cold> effect was back, and was making his <Sprint> recovery slower. If he didn’t reach basecamp in the next hour or so, it would progress into the next level, which would slow his attack as well- which he wasn’t a fan of. Ahead, a small form appeared, the clothing relatively bright against the snow- which meant it wasn’t likely a Spriggan. Conrad’s first instinct was to be wary, until he remembered the territory rules- which made him curious. Doubtless, the other had noticed him, or would soon enough. (Afterall, he had never bothered much with the hide skill anyway.) As Conrad got closer, he cupped his hands and shouted, noting the sudden change as he got closer- and could see the player’s health and name. Seeing the name meant that he had met them before, if briefly. <Wink>.
“Yo! Hey man, how is it going?”

He wasn’t quite sure, but this shorter guy looked familiar. Conrad started walking parallel, within easy hearing distance, but far enough away to be non-threatening.
“Any news?”

It was barely midday and already the capital of Freelia was abuzz with the news of the upcoming elections to be held later that day. The streets were cluttered and chaos reigned above as all manner of spritely Cait Sith zoomed about with their chosen companions. On this day Feera was no different. She too was consumed with the ecstatic energy which seemed to pour forth like a tidal current, infected by its energetic expanse. She was currently in a rather tenuous flight to her ultimate destination: the election hall, though it was taking quite some time with the constant dipping and rolling she was required to execute to dodge other flittering players.

For her part Feera overjoyed and immensely excited at the prospect of becoming the new Cait Sith leader and, unlike some others who were running for the position, she felt that her unique circumstances meant that she had quite a good shot at winning it. During the first month of the death game Feera had worked as both a guild member and a power-leveler, assisting a large number of lower-leveled Cait Siths in attaining their current positions both level-wise and position-wise in their guilds. She had not originally intended to play the political game, merely doing these things out of the goodness of her heart, though, now that the tables had turned and a number of those noobs had become incredibly powerful guild masters it was not difficult to see that Feera might be able to channel their appreciation into a successful election.

She'd already done the requisite work, spending the majority of the morning flying around the city calling in favors. As she approached the voting hall she could see the masses gathering and among their ranks spotted a number of prominent guildmasters. Slowing her speed Feera brought herself to a slow glide before disengaging her wings, setting down on the outskirts of the throng just as those same guildmasters approached with questions and advice. . .



The voting process had taken quite a long time, the rest of the day in fact. After casting her initial ballot Feera and sojourned with a number of her prominent supporters to a nearby inn to appraise their situation and plan their modus operandi should they be fortunate in the elections. This discussion took place in the inn's common room, an area which had, through the influence of Feera and the guildmasters, been cleared away for their personal use. Among the secretive few here was Agni Ormr, a guildmember Feera had known for quite some time.

The process of hashing out their governmental system went quickly in comparison to what might have transpired. The compromise was simple: because of the support the guildmasters had given they had demanded they have an official say in governmental decisions, this was fair enough. The government would run on a council of ten elected guildmasters with Feera as their mediator / overseer. Beneath these guildmasters a variable number of lesser guildmasters would work as aids, screening agents, and legislative constructors and, at set intervals, could be elected to replace any of the foremost ten.

The system seemed to work well enough in theory though in practice there was bound to be some form of conflict. Looking over the results of their work Feera turned to Agni asking for his appraisal of the system, "Here, Agni, what do you think of this? What would you change?"

“Yo! Hey man, how is it going?”

Wink stopped dead in his tracks. He had been thinking too hard over Alfheim's political situation that he hadn't noticed the Spriggan approach him. A green cursor floated over his head; «Silver Soldier» was the name. Wink quickly composed himself and collected his thoughts. Then the memory of first day of Alfheim Online surged back to him. Shortly after Kayaba Akihito's speech, the plaza had delved into panic and chaos. The Spriggan before him had been amongst a group he and some other beta testers had been trying to calm down only to be cut off by the sudden forced teleports which shifted every player back to their starting zone in their own territories. Did the Spriggan remember him from back then? It was plausible but he didn't fancy it. Even if he did remember, who was it to say he was an ally by this point?

“Any news?”

Once again, the Spriggan cut into his thoughts. Was he stalling? The distance he put between himself and Wink was unsettling because he was in a position to cut Wink off regardless of which direction he went. If it wasn't for the fact he knew the Spriggans didn't care about border control, Wink would have swore the person before him was a scout from a patrol. Wink brushed his paranoia off, he was probably overthinking.

"News of what? Shouldn't you be at Penwether for the elections?"

Wink was glad to see the guy doing well though. It was totally fair to assume that if he was hunting this far out and looked relatively unscathed. Wink's eyes then darted to the top right as he stared at the HUD clock visible only to him. He sighed, time was running short.

"Hey, I'd love to stick around and chat but I'm sorta in rush here."

He began swiping at the air, tapping away at his invisible menu. A friend request was sent to the Spriggan. Before waiting for a response, Wink took to the skies.

Agni had finally arrived back in the safety Freelia after the long journey back home... after he lost his father to the murder guild that had claimed his life. So frankly, the young Cait Sith was not in a very good mood. However, he had promised Feera that he would be present at her meeting thing about the way they should run their government. So he walked on towards the inn that she had rented out for their special little meaning. The door slammed open as Agni entered the building, while Shriekr move to the side of the building and curled up so she could watch the ongoings through the window. Agni had his head hung ever so slightly, still mourning the loss of his father in this world. The way the boy walked, along with the dampener on his usual outgoing attitude would have been enough to tell most in the room that the mission he had been on did not end favorably. With a small sigh he sat at the table and listened to the din of the others talking to each other, and noticed a few giving him odd looks that seemed to ask why he was even here. This was due to the fact that of all the people here, he was the only non-Guild Leader among them. Rather; he was just a member of Feera's guild... and a high ranking one at that (of course they didn't need to know that little fact). He also was here because Feera was a close friend of his, that much was not secret at all. Most knew who was friends with who when it came to politics and being popular overall in the virtual world.

Agni listened to their plan for how the government should work very carefully, he was watching to see who would attempt to make a powerplay later on and possibly even make a move on Feera's life. None could be trusted completely at this table, it was the nature of politics and the nature of a game where killing was acceptable. He turned towards his friend and looked her over briefly to see how she was taking things, and honestly it seemed like she was handling it all rather well.

"We need a second in command. Somebody who sits between you and our council. This will prevent any attempted powerplays from future council members, as the second in command would be able to see any of these coming much easier than you; with their time not being taken up by council meetings. This position would also act as an ambassador to our fellow races in this world, that way if a trap is sprung at some meeting of race leaders, ours still stays alive. I volunteer for this position, I promise that I won't let any harm come your way; I will not be losing another person I care deeply about to this world." He said simply, then looked at the other guild-leaders who were currently present. Quite a few of them nodded, seeing as it would keep Agni out of their hair since he would have no direct command authority. "I also think using said second in command as a sort of defense minister, who has to get all military actions approved by the council or by you, would be beneficial. Once again so we don't expose you to unnecessary danger." Once again the guild leaders nodded, they trusted Agni. The boy trusted them, he just didn't trust whoever might come after them. "We agree on this, how do you feel about it Feera?"

Red Hawk

"...We have a responsibility as the largest and strongest race to protect the others, and act as the Guardian nation of Alfheim Online. Under my Leadership the Salamanders will gain respect for not only their power, but their honor and courage. A little over a month ago we were trapped in this game of death, and today each race selects a Leader that they believe is best suited to guiding them back to the real wod. As the strongest race, we have the responsibility of breaking the others free of this virtual prison... however, first we must develop unity and trust. This, we create today. Each candidate has their own opinions on how it is to be done, but we are of one cause. We only ask that you select your leader from us wisely, and with much consideration. Hail Salamanders, Saviors of Alfheim!"

Red Hawk walked across the small stage, ignoring the loud conversing in the crowd. He had more worrisome things in mind. In truth, it didn't matter which candidate was chosen. They had all taken a hand in planning one central system; a task that would have been monumental alone. What differed between them was merely policy and opinion. His head ached from the last few days, and sleepless nights, working with his peers to fix this mess. Red Hawk passed out of the large courtyard as the next candidate began, quickly skirting some smaller alleys to avoid the majority of the crowd. Then he sat down at a large bench, leaning his head back and closing his eyes with a sigh. Now he had only to wait for the election to end. Then work would truly begin, one way or another.

Old, is that what they called him? Yes yes it was, Pembroke was probably the oldest player in Alfheim currently, with all this election nonsense it only made sense to make the most experienced Leprechaun out of all of them their head. What he meant was that fact that most people already agreed with the fact that he was fit to lead, meaning he was the favorite in the elections. Probably due to the fact that he heavily supported the idea of being democractic without bloodshed. and also believed in the idea of a trade union benefiting all races and causing the Pucas Gnomes and Leprechauns to become the Workshop of the world.

Pembroke walked outside of his Inn room his eyes glossing over at the share amount of leprechauns in the Inn, they all supported him one way or another. What could Pembroke say really, an old Smith whom is also a beta tester. It just bore semblance to a leader. He wouldn't say he was the greatest Artificer either. probably cause the artificers where on the short side, since it was a much more complex process then smithing, and was more expensive to boot.

But enough Dilly dally it was time for the Election processing and Pembroke walked out onto that stage with the other candidates, they each got one last speech, one last ditch effort to prove to the crowds if they where failing or with one speech permanently seal their place...
either way it could change it up. And so up went the first hopeful, a beautiful woman no doubt whom also knew how to mettle a blade. Sadly she wasn't very good at the whole politics thing. so She stood no chance and the crowd didn't even murmur. Up stood the other hopeful, he was a business man in real life, and a slick talker, but he only had money in his best interests so although he got a few cheers from the crowd it was nothing threatening.

Pembroke stood up and he walked to the center of the stage and cleared his throat.

"That sort of division is fine with me. As long as these things go through the guildmasters I don't see why a separation of labor isn't a good idea." Feera spoke slowly and with a more confident air than normal. It had taken only an hour or so for the meeting, but with each passing moment, with each look of approval and assenting nod she could feel herself growing more and more into her elected position. From here on out others would be counting on her to make the right decisions, she owed it to all Cait Sith's to do her best. That settles the matter then. Agni will be placed in charge of our military forces.

Rising from the table Feera swept her hand outwards in an easy motion, producing the game's player interface. A few quick button presses later had the digital command list for the race leader pulled up. With this Feera could immediately make the decisions of their little council a race wide announcement. "As first Grand Conveyor of the Cait Siths I, Feera al' Naja, make my first act as leader to be to put this legislative charter into immediate action!"

No sooner had the words left her lips than each member of the council receive a personal, race-wide message containing the complete details of their race's legislative practices. "With that settled I believe it would be wise to adjourn for today." Feera made a nod of acknowledgement towards the other guildmasters before turning to Agni and motioning for him to follow.

The flight away from the inn and towards the voting hall was quick enough, only about a minute or so of flight time through the brisk night sky. As they approached Feera reigned herself in, slowing to a hover in the air above the massive building. "What do you think Agni? Since the voting's over we have no more use for this hall, why not make it into our government headquarters?" Feera intentionally avoided the term 'palace', as she felt that might be too strong a descriptor despite the fact that this was what she was imaging for the building's future. "I'll be busy handling the guildmasters and extending notices to other races. Can you oversee the construction here?" It would be a time-consuming task, though not necessarily a difficult one.

"In addition, I'd like you to go into town and start gathering capable players. I want you to form an officer corp made up of higher-level players. As time goes on we'll work on distributing these players out to various areas so they can form defensive militias." As a race that wasn't heavy towards combat the creation of a national army simply felt too extreme. Small groups of people coming together as part-time militias meant that the government wouldn't have to shoulder the heavy burden of paying for a national defense force while still keeping its people safe.

Swiveling mid-air Feera turned to face her companion, eyes alight with both inspiration and self-doubt. "Can you do these things for me, Agni?"

Agni listened to Feera speak and watched as the race wide announcement finished on the pop-up screen in front of him. The boy smiled to himself, he had gotten a position of power over the military. Good, that meant he now had the ability to ensure Feera's safety, that of his race, and (most importantly) he now had the ability to see this death game to the end. He could escape from this hell. Perhaps one day he would meet up with his friends from this world on the outside, he certainly wouldn't mind meeting Feera out there; she had become his single best friend during their month here. He only hoped she returned the same feeling for him. So when she beckoned for him to follow her, Agni did not hesitate in the slightest. As the boy spread his wings to take flight after Feera he heard a loud thump and a low growl as Shriekr got up to follow him. Together the trio flew towards the voting center, and then Feera turned to speak to Agni.

The boy listened to the girl speak with a small smile on his lips, he wasn't going to say it but frankly she looked beautiful in this night sky. After hearing what she had to say; Agni nodded simply. "I it would be a perfect center for our government, certainly has a good view of our lands. I'll oversee construction M'lady. As for our Military, militas are simply unorganized. I plan to have a loose military structure. That way we have standard modes of communication and aren't vulnerable to a sudden organized attack or any sort of emergancy. It's a blend of our ideas and I have some people in mind. I have also decided that you will have a personal honor guard. I will handselect each member and will personally oversee them." The boy said with all the respect and pride of somebody in his position should have. Then his entire expression changed over to one of a boy in dire pain, and that a boy worried about a friend. He reached out and grabbed Feera's wrist lightly. Just something to get her attention on him before letting go. [color=f26522"Feera, promise me something before we step into this. You're going to have a target on your head... promise me that you won't take any unessesscary risks. I lost my father two days ago to a PK guild. Hence why Shriekr is now responding to me, don't make me lose my best friend as well."[/color] He said softly and looked her in the eyes, thinking about all the time they had spent together. It had barely been a few days into the event when they had met, and since then he had been her friend. Working with her on quests every now and then, and joining her guild when that came around. He wasn't going to lose somebody else he cared out.

「Here we all stand today deciding who is the best to lead the Spriggans. Each and every one of us that stand before all of you have our own motives for running for leader, but I can't tell you what their motives are, but I can tell you mine. My motive, my reason for wanting to become the leader of the Spriggans is to ensure our survival and triumph over this game. I do not have any wishes to take over other races territories or anything that relates to such actions. My wish is to ensure that each and every single one of you that stand in the crowd, make it back to the real world to lead a life, not a life that is doomed to be stuck in a video game just to meet your untimely death.」He paused for a minute as he did a quick survey of the crowd stood before him before he began to speak before them again.「I can honestly say that I am the best suited for this position because I know for a fact that I have more experience than any of my fellow candidates before you. I am sure that my name has gotten around, after all I dedicated hours upon hours to becoming the strongest and most tenacious player possible to ensure that I can lead a whole race without failure. My reputation proceeds me, but if you have not heard of my name, hear it now. My name is Kei, the Spriggan who will lead this race to the end of this death game. The one man that will provide for this race in any way possible, ensuring happiness and survival. Now you may all be asking how I am so confident. I am confident because I know this game from the countless tests I took part in, I know the best quests I know the best raids that can be monetized to give the Spriggans that boost to compete with the other races. I know secrets that not all the testers knew about. I can provide a foothold to this race against the other races. I may seem arrogant but I do not go back on my word, I vow my very life to the Spriggan race even if it means my death. I will protect this land and it's people against all adversaries no matter what.」

Kei paused again before bowing and giving a very slight bow.「Thank you for giving me your time my fellow Spriggans.」The murmurs that were coming from the crowd throughout the speech immediately ceased to exist, rendering it completely silent. The silence was broken in a matter of milliseconds though as the crowd cheered out loudly, making it seem as if it was a landslide victory, but there was still one more candidate left to give out their final speech which almost meant that Kei's victory was not locked in. He worried as the man that came after him seemed to always be close behind Kei, doing his best to take the victory away from Kei.

Deep in the Sylph territory lays the grand city of Sylvain. On this particular day the great city prepared for its race elections. Many good officials gathered to sway the leadership in their favor but none could predict how who held the favorite for this kind of conquest. One thing was certain was that a majority of the race has lined up to witness these elections. That is unless you count a notorious PKer who is running late for this occasion.

Kashin zoomed throughout the sky with his jungle green wings beating million miles a minute. Sure he had no interest in who lead their race since most people avoided him but it would satisfy his curiosity to get a glance at the figure-head that would lead their people. Besides that small point he had people he wanted to see in Sylvain that no doubt were pretty excited over these elections that took part today. The Slyph zoomed until he could see his own capital in sight as he prepared to land safely in the city. When he landed it was rather scarce. Probably because no one was going to hold an election at the city entrance. It was more plausible to hold it in the middle of town.

Instead of journeying to the business area of town where everyone else was he made his way towards an old abandoned hut near the slums of Sylvain. "Hello, anyone home." He announced as he walked through the worn out door. As the door creaked shut a couple loud screams burst from the back room. Soon they grew louder as a group of young children tackled Kashin to the ground. "Hey,Hey, I missed you too." The Slyph said as he got up trying to keep his cool. He looked down and every single one of them appeared to be under the age of ten. Sometimes life is just cruel locking them into a world such as ALO. Damn that Kayaba. Kashin thought inside his head as he reverted his attention back to the young-lings surrounding him. "Hey I brought you guys something." He said in a cheerful voice. "But let's go watch the commotion at city hall first." He said as he picked up the youngest who was only four years old ed the pack.

Kashin and his pack arrived right in the middle of one of the speeches. Every child seem to be munching on some kind of food that Kashin had just bought them. After all it was least he could do since he never has the time to see his friends. Then their mother figure Nozle came up right behind Kashin. " Hey, you could have wait up for me she barked in a whisper at the wild Slyph. "You know I could have but they wanted to get moving." He badgered at her as the children laughed. Then he gave his attention to the elections. "It was rather sad because this whole united races only gave everyone a reason to wage war on another side that inconveniences them." Kashin whispered to himself so only the children and Nozle could hear him. It may be only his opinion as a lone PKer in the end with only two possible alliances and nine races then odds are there will will be two groups that don't get along. After all it was nothing more than human nature. But who was Kashin to protest a race leadership. "You should tell them that." Nozle urged him in a whisper. "After all we only like to vagrant like you around because you taught us to live by your beliefs."She continued to urge him. "Alright but if this turns out badly its your fault." He replied.

Kashin always donned his hood in public out of habit so there was no chance that anyone would recognize him in his relatively new cloak. Using <Sprint> he quickly left Nozle with the kids and entered the area from a different direction. Upon entering he activated <Flight> until he stood atop of the outdoor election grounds. He flew until he was standing atop of the City Hall Building. "People of Sylvain I understand your need to look for leadership but choosing one to govern you as a race can not lead to a great outcome. You may think we greater unified but that is greater power for our government to control. Before we know it there will be race wars, choosing sides,and above all slaughter. I don't know what you think but I see nothing but blind racist in uniting ourselves like this. If my statement has made no impact on you then go ahead and follow your elected officials but I do pray for those of you who do." Kashin said as he took flight and disappeared among the buildings of Sylvain. "I sure hope that doesn't turn out too bad." Kashin whispered to himself as he placed the new cloak into his inventory.

AEagaorn found himself nodding along with Kei's argument. Certainly he put out a valid point, with such an amount of experience with the game, having that shared with the rest of them would put them at a definite advantage. More difficult quests and raids can be conquered with ease if they had a leader who had already completed them, putting them ahead of the other races. Of course with them being the least populated race they could use every advantage they could get. When the speech ended he clapped like everyone else. He was curious to see if the next person could match Kei's confidence and experience. AEagaorn shifted around somewhat uneasily and waited for the next contestant to speak up.

Ariel won the Puca elections by a landslide. Amongst all the eligible candidates, she had the most qualifications and experience plus she was popular amongst the masses. Though her fellow candidates were slightly disappointed, they were all good sports and congratulated her. This was one of the main reasons Ariel loved her race. Though the Pucas were an unpopular race, peaceful and friendly individuals were attracted to the race's theme and design. Though whether or not that was a good thing in this death game, she had yet to decide.

Ariel waived away her aides that were accompanying her and opened up the faction leader menu, swiping agilely at the options. Once she was done, a global announcement sounded throughout the Puca territory notifying everyone that they had formed an «Alliance» with the Gnomes and Leprechauns. Ariel had become acquainted with the other two leaders in the past and proposed the idea through messaging when she realized all three of them were becoming influential in their regions. The three races had perfect synergy after all.

"Hopefully, this fragile peace will keep continuing," she muttered.

---

Risath chuckled to herself as the hooded figure flew off. It was meaningful speech, even if it was a tad bit naive. If everyone refused to partake in this death game like he described, it was very possible for the remaining 17,000 players to avoid any bloodshed and hope people on the outside would solve everything for them in due time. But this was originally a PvP-based game and that was more than enough to suggest the type of players that flocked to play it.

Even if noone said it, there was tension throughout the world of Alfheim. Everyone was worried and scared... and people commit drastic actions when cornered. The worst part was how easy it was to get detached from the reality of things in this virtual world.

With the disturbance gone, Risath resumed her speech and declared her future plans. She would serve as a figurehead as the Sylph leader and would settle all political matters through democracy. In short, she was assuming the position to prevent any sole user from being powerdrunk as well as to allow the capable players into the fields instead of hiding in the towns. It was convincing to say the least as Risath had built up her reputation throughout the past month. She was capable in all aspects and was a kind and helpful person.

When she was done with her speech, the other candidates could do little but agree with her. They trusted Risath would keep her word with democracy and this way their progression wouldn't be hampered. With unanimous support from her fellow candidates, Risath took the elections convincingly.

Arkan, Spriggan Capital

Arkan scanned the crowd, walking toward the front of the stage silently. When he reached the edge he snapped his fingers, creating the illusion of a microphone like one that would exist in the real world. He reached out and closed his hand around the illusion, being sure to have it follow the movement of his hand as he moved it toward his mouth. Finally he began to speak, his voice amplified not by the microphone but instead an enchantment on the Hall itself, "Hello, fellow Spriggans. I, as you all should know, am Arkan Light, ex-Beta Tester and Race Leader candidate. Just as my rival just before me stated, I want each and every one of you to make it to the real world. My plan differs from his in a few ways. I plan to attempt to unify all the races in an effort to complete the game together, if we can do this, EVERYBODY will survive, not just the six percent that are here. 'How will I do this?' you may ask. Well, I am already friends with several members of other races including some who plan to run for elections next time. If I am elected, I will lead an effort to storm all the raids with every player until everybody is high enough level. Then, we can take on The Grand Quest with sheer numbers. Of course, no plan is perfect, but if we all work together, nothing is impossible." Arkan left the crowd to consider what he had said for a few seconds, before walking slightly backward, "No one in this game deserves to die, join me to prevent all further death in this damned game." With that, Arkan held his illusion out and allowed it to fade, then returned to stand next to his rivals.

Kei stood and listened to the player that came after him. Arkan made a point of creating alliances with other races to make it possible to complete this game with everyone if he were to become the leader. Kei immediately began thinking to himself about how things don't always work out with alliances especially when the other races saw nothing to gain from allying with the Spriggans. After all they were the least populated and, really, down to the core Spriggans are basically pawns to other races. 'Hoping to ally with other races this early is honestly a notion that will bring the demise of our race how can there be trust in an alliance when population wise we are the weakest. Before making an alliance we need to put a foothold in this world so that other races have a reason to ally with us, and not just a alliance by word but an alliance by trust...' Kei's thoughts continued to trail off in the same pattern, he really wanted to say something to counter the things that Arkan was saying but could not as his turn was up and coming into another candidates turn would possibly mean a disqualification for him.

In the end Kei had to hope for the Spriggan race to realize how weak of a plan it is to form alliances a month into a death game would be, especially without the proper power to enforce such an alliance if it were broken by the other races. He shook his head slightly in a disappointed notion since he felt a bit of worry in that the Spriggan race might end too early in the game with such plans.

With that though the debate portion of the elections were over and now it was time for the results through a simple vote from the whole race, funny thing was that the results would be announced as soon as every Spriggan present input there vote. There was no wait time.

The crowd was waiting watching Pembroke clear his throat in anticipation of what he was going to say to them. Pembroke Began to speak, his voice as clear. "My fellow Leprechauns, as you all know, we are gathered here today to elect a leader. I believe the quality's of a Leader should not be to oppress creativity and instead let it flourish in all of its forms but I also believe that a Leader should maintain order and peace." Pembroke said taking a short break between speaking to allow what he was saying to sink in. "You may also know of the proposal between us and the Gnomes and Pucas to form a almost perfect synergy, I wholeheartedly supported this proposal as it would allow all three races to flourish. This is very important in the early game because even though it has only been a month we have yet to even scratch the surface of our true potentials." Pembroke took another pause before continuing "Potential is the main defining factor of our race, We are not equipped to do magic, instead we are masters of the forge. What we create to balance out our weakness's is what defines us as the Leprechauns. Each and every single one of you can make something great. We are a large Factory of potential. I believe its time we put it to use on clearing this game!" Pembroke finished with a roar.

The crowd was silent for a few moments to register what had happened. Then like a ripple the clapping started. Causing Smithy whom was a street away to drop his sandwich at the sudden noise much to his great annoyance. Never the less a few minutes later Pembroke was officially the Faction leader through a majority vote. Bowing to the crowd as he stood up and began walking towards the nearby Inn for the first council meeting, he opened the faction leader menu and saw the notification which had arrived only a few moments ago. With a simple tap of acceptance. The announcement was broadcast to every Leprechaun in the territory. They were now in a <<Alliance>> with the Pucas and the Gnomes. It seemed like the start of something good... hopefully it would last.