Is he dead?

Cozy :

Nope.

I'm still alive :D And uh... Well, excuse me for my absence these upcoming months.

Y'see, I'm currently in enlistment for the SAF. For these two years, I am to serve my country like every other male citizen in Singapore.

As such... I'm afraid that the progress on this story's only going to slow down even further. It's a shame, a pity, and it's really awful, because I was really looking forward to Katachi's ass getting wiped by Milos- AAARRRGGGHH SPOILERS

Heh. Heheheh.

I really love writing this story. Even though it may remain unread and hidden from the eyes of people around the world (serves me right for using WoP Quest when Skyrim's using it as well.) I still feel that it's important. Their tale must continue, and my hands must never stop moving.

Therefore, though progress is slow, don't be disheartened - There will come a day where I complete this story... Or at least die trying. (Hopefully. I pray I do not die before this is completed.)

*** ***

In other news, well, I've been shouting and screaming my ass off so hard that my voice is changing.

It's a pity. I've always liked my old voice. Now I may have to face a reality where I say goodbye to my old voice forever, since it's a requirement for recruits to scream and respond to their superiors.

That... Upsets me. Just to meaninglessly break your throat for a bunch of men who are in a higher chain of command... Such sadness.

They would have you forgo a potential, a talent for something that could support the country in a social aspect (and thus dissuade attacks) to equip you with a militaristic method of protecting the country.

Think about it from this angle - Japan is now incredibly famous not only for their technological advances (bullet and maglev trains, automatons, water closets installed with an automated bidet, there're all kinds) but they are also admired by countries around the world for their evolving culture - Both in anime, and in actual modern culture.

Let's give a hypothesis that the U.S. attacks Japan because of, say, suspicion - The Japanese, apparently, managed to develop a chain of technology extremely similar to their own, and they suspect foul play / espionage at work.

Japan is attacked, oh no, now the anime fans in America are going to get mad because they would have lost a good source of entertainment. While Japan arms itself up and prepare for the upcoming war, civil strife erupts in the U.S. and the daily life in U.S. changes drastically - Supply lines are cut, resources are scarce, protests of unimaginable circumstances occur and the U.S. have their forces tied down by their own people.

The countries that dominate the business market in the present day are the true deciding factors of victory in today's world. So why is it that taking my voice away to satisfy my superiors helps the country?

Rather, fostering and training my voice to become professional to appeal to the social world... That would give the countries one more reason why they shouldn't invade us. Just as how nobody wants to invade Germany because of their advancements in car technology, our country needs an edge that would make attacking us bad.

I don't mean making someone in the country into a spiritual leader like Tenzin Gyatso or Patriarch Theodore II of Alexandria. A spiritual leader would have the opposite effect in a multi-racial country like ours - It makes people tense, and strife will break out here and there. Terrorists will paint a big red target on them and that only worsens things. It must be something everyone can agree on at a human-to-human level.

It will probably take time for us to discover what it is. This is Singapore's 50th year, after all, and it won't be surprising to see that we have yet established something like this. I don't expect any further wisdom from a 50-year-old government. But until then, I'll have to remain vigilant and figure out a way to protect this home not through deterrence, and not through diplomacy. There must be a way. It exists, and we've seen it from the above examples.

*** ***

... Sometimes, I truly doubt the intelligence of Man. I've read WoP Quest over and over again, countless times. And every time I read it, I think (Wow, this is amazing. All these mind games, these skirmishes, these people fighting... It's like they're truly fighting for their dear life. I wanna fight like that, and I want to die by being punished for a single mistake. It's like Dark Souls, yo. The adrenaline is real.)

And for some obscene reason, I can't seem to find the excitement found within my story in real life. Is this the limitation of humanity? Are we not allowed to explore the wonder found in literature through reality?

That got me thinking. And well, honestly speaking, it got me thinking hard. Real hard.

What if I tried my hand at fiction? No, not fantasy or anything of that sort. (Though it does have that potential.) What if I took on a different stage, and incorporated the beauty of literature to portray real life?

And so, this was born.

http://www.wattpad.com/story/17870598-alas-my-dear-annabelle

Alas, My Dear Annabelle.

If you see this story, don't panic, it's by me. Yes, the guy who wrote WoP Quest is writing something mushy and girly like a chick lit.

Though, I can assure you, you won't feel that it's a chick lit once you read the story far enough. This is not a story about romance. Though it's general fiction, I think people who've read WoP Quest can probably feel a similar vibe coming from this tale.

If you've known me long enough, you should know that I hate my stories to end in happiness.

Happiness is something you give to others. It is fleeting, and ephemeral, something to be passed around, something that comes and goes like the wind. But joy, now... Joy is the cultivation of one's mentality and maturity to become indifferent towards the negative things in life, and in turn become more appreciative of the positive things in life.

Therefore, it is entirely possible for you to have all the joy in the world... But without a shred of happiness.

Happiness is not something that is 'earned'. It runs, it flies, it's like the f-ing Mynahs outside my bunk at Pulau Tekong - They're everywhere, they can't be captured, and they keep you awake all night if you're on light duty and haven't worked out at all to make your body sore. In a sense, they symbolize happiness well. The annoying cries they produce at night before bed is like the utter abundance of happiness all around you, and yet you can never hold it within your palms. A really awkward comparison, I know, but hey, it works.

I want to instill that truth both in WoP Quest, and in AmdA. That is my endgoal in my life, or at least in my time as a writer. I can't think of what else Id become if I don't become a writer. Frankly, the future is a vast, blank canvas, and the only thing on my mind is not about painting my own life, but to use what life I have to paint the lives that could have been.

The lives of men who are not portrayed in society simply because they are a minority. The lives of people who do not get what they deserve, toyed by the cruel hand of Fate.

That is my driving force as a writer - Not to write about some empty criminal fiction story about how the good guys always win in the end, about how bad guys actually don't want to be the bad guys, that kind of thriller fiction is crude. (I got ma eye on ya, John Roswell Camp. You too, f-ing Lucas Davenport.)

My driving force is to paint darkness to enumerate the dying lights in the world. The people who you see in the mortuary, the insignificant names who simply don't matter to you (since you're not related to them) and disappear like the last sparks of fireworks. And yet, they are the ones who have the most interesting stories to tell.

It applies to all my stories. I don't like characters that live long enough to become a protagonist once more in a sequel. (WoP Quest is different - The volumes are different routes, and it's like hitting the reset button, or erasing the stuff on a magnetic toy drawing board. It's not set in stone.)

*** ***

I hate Western action stories for their coincidental applications of the convenient elements around them, and I hate Oriental action stories for giving the characters unfathomable power spikes without reason or purpose.

Messiah will show the Western world the true power of element utilization. (Recall how Katachi outsmarts Rekter in Chapter 21.) Herald will show the Oriental world the definition of a solid base. (Resound through your mind the visualization and actualization that is Image Power.) Endus Reignum will smite both of their cultures, their foundations, and prove once more that their stories are fallacious.

Glory to WoP Quest. Long live WoP Quest.

Now let me see you WoP.



(I know, it's a crude joke, but I've been neglecting it for long enough. Heheh.)