text: [Themes: grimdark fantasy]
  
  Last time you were wounded and had the misfortune of running into demons. Well you aren't wounded this time and you're pretty sure you won't be running into too many more demons. You'll be able to pull it off this time. You can't do this army shit anymore, as much as you want to help your family out, you've got to live your own life regardless of what the future holds. You aren't even worried about committing an executionable offense.
  
  You easily sneak away as you hear your men call out your name looking for you. You're glad you didn't leave too much back at the fort, except your lute, but you've got your newly acquired mandolin to make up for it. Eventually you're away from civilization altogether.
  
  While you're out in the wilderness you think about your family again, and you have to at least let them know you're still alive. Maybe you can still do something about them, after all it doesn't sound like the Zalan Empire is becoming a great place to live anymore. Perhaps you could convince them to move?
  
  It takes a week of sneaking around and keeping out of sight, but eventually you make it back home. Zalan looks a lot different; hell home looks a lot different. There was a small wooded area near your farm, but most of the trees have been cut down now. You also remember fewer patrols. Your house looks in better condition however. You guess at least your family seems a lot safer, but for how long?
  
  You knock on the door in the middle of the night and your sister Randi answers, Not too surprising as she always was a night owl when she was little. At least she used to be little. The passing of the years and she's now a teenager and grown quite a bit. You've been away so long.
  
  What does surprise you is the flintlock pistol that she's currently pointing at you!
  
  "Whoa! Hold on! It's me, your brother!" you say.
  "...it is? It is you!" she exclaims and puts down the gun before hugging you.
  "What the hell are you doing with a pistol?"
  "The money you sent us allowed to buy new things you know and a traveling merchant was selling this for cheap!"
  "No I mean, what are YOU doing with one? You'll blow your damn head off with that thing! Those things are unstable." You scold.
  "What are you doing home? Are you on leave?"
  "Uh...that's a long story. Wake up the rest of the family; I have to talk to you all."
  
  Randi complies while you step inside the house and take in its new look. Eventually your Mom enters, followed by your brother Mallack and finally your youngest brother Calwin and sister Makana.
  
  You all sit down at the dining room table. (You realize you haven't done that with your family in years) and you tell them everything. You get a lot of worried reactions. More for you than the other world impending doom stuff though. At least you know that they care.
  
  "You gotta get back to the army right now! Say you got captured by something and it took you awhile to escape!" Mallack exclaims.
  "While I'm sure that MAY work, I just don't want to do it...I can't take this anymore. The whole time I've been in the damn army, my music has kept me sane. I've noticed it have an effect on others as well. Never thought it would. I mean I have talent and..."
  "...you feel like you've wasted your life?" your mother replies.
  
  You pause for a moment. You almost want to say yes, but you can't even if you wanted to. You haven't wasted it, its just you've never really had the chance to do what you've ever wanted to do.
  
  "No...I guess I haven't... it's just..."
  
  Your mother takes your hand and speaks to you.
  
  "I know. It's not fair. It's not right. Life isn't fair and it's starting to get a whole lot less fair. I know I've mentioned it in letters to you, but the Zalan Empire WILL be taking the farm...and it's looking like Mallack's going to be drafted if things are going the way they seem to be."
  "But...see that's what I'm saying! We could all move! I mean of course I have to go into hiding, maybe Mallack could come with me. And the rest of you could use what money you have left and move to Retlad! It's a nice place. It's away from most of the fighting, and there aren't anymore Quillars there!"
  
  Your mother shakes her head.
  
  "You must be behind in the news, because Retlad is finally going to become part of the Zalan Empire soon, so going there to live wouldn't make any difference. The Empire can take this farm, but in spirit this will ALWAYS be ours. The Empire has said they will allow us to continue working it and living on the land and even if they didn't they'd have have to drag us all out and stick our heads on pikes before we'd leave. Your father and his father build this farm up to what it is. Our family is going to be here until the end."
  "That's what I'm afraid of...what about you Mallack? You're probably going to be drafted. You aren't worried about that?"
  "Sure I am. But what am I going to do, run? Where? From what you described you practically think the whole world is doomed anyway! I might as well take some of the undead bastards out before I go. I was getting bored of the farm anyway. Let Randi take over! Ha ha!"
  
  Your mother addresses you again.
  
  "Son, you know our family. We've always done the right thing, even if it doesn't coincide with what we want...I think you know what you have to do."
  
  And so you do. So you do.
  
  You spend one night with your family and make the most of it. You all laugh and joke, trying to put all the problems of the world out of your mind and of course before you leave you play a song for them.
  
  Eventually you hug them all goodbye and take your leave. More than a few tears are shed on both sides.
  
  > go into hiding
  As much as you still want to help out your family, you have to live your own life while there is still time. They'll still get money from your supposed death and they know you're still alive. You figure this will be the last time you see them though, as you can't risk contacting them anymore.
  
  The first order of business is to change your identity as much as you can. And head to a place where you can play for an audience, but the probability of someone ratting you out is low if you're recognized.
  
  You head to the Garwold Confederacy. It's a relatively peaceful nation made up mostly of Halflings and Gnomes, with lush green fields and flowers. They've surprisingly managed to stay out of most of the fighting; only volunteering a few of their militia and illusionists to the Grand Alliance. They're also known to appreciate the simpler things in life.
  
  Eventually you make a place for yourself there in one of the small villages. You make a living playing at the local tavern there. Most of the patrons know that you have some sort of past that you're trying to hide from. Some of them and the owner know that you're that Zalan "hero" that they've heard about. But just like you thought, they don't bring it up or say anything about it and just enjoy your music.
  
  A year passes and you're happy. Nobody from the Zalan Empire comes looking for you, as it's assumed you're dead and everyone's too busy fighting the undead for the most part. When the Grand Alliance armies pass through, you keep a low profile though. You even meet a pretty Halfling girl to be with.
  
  The next year isn't so pretty however. The Great Lich Lord's armies have been defeating the Grand Alliance's attempts to stop them and now those armies finally turn their attention to the Garwold Confederacy.
  
  Within a month half of Garwold has been turned into a graveyard. The Grand Alliance as well as the Garwold militia have been doing their best, but it's not going to be enough. You help defend the little village that you've made your home in and you can't afford to keep a low profile anymore despite the Grand Alliance presence (Which is now mainly made up of Zalan Empire troops) but it hardly matters at this point. Survival of the living is
  
  You make plans to leave, and to try to convince your girlfriend and your other new friends that you've made here to leave as well. You know they're all very home bound, but tomorrow you're going to really try.
  
  Unfortunately a group of Blood Specters attacks the village that night. You awaken to hear blood curling screams ring throughout the village. You look out the window and see the vile red ghosts stalking the streets.
  
  You've become too attached to these people to not help; you immediately grab your weapons and prepare for battle.
  
  You head to your girlfriend's home first, but sadly she's already been killed and completely drained of blood. You don't have time to morn as you're immediately attacked by the Blood Specter that was still lingering in the house. You manage to kill it with a couple silver arrows, but its dying shrieks alert others to your area.
  
  You slay a couple more of them as you try to look for the necromancer who has to be in the area to even control these creatures, but you can't keep your eye on all the incorporeal creatures and you suddenly feel a slight pain in your back which reaches forward into your heart as one of them thrusts its hand into you to drain your blood.
  
  You collapse soon after, only to rise later to join the ranks of the ever growing undead armies.