Doll of War

          Its the year 1759x during the reign of Sir Velnka Ozrenstanct, and the world has been tossed into a devastating event. After the planet of Ephinas had reached a certain point in its life, All countries and people upon its surface banned together to form two super countries. Each fighting for supremacy and to become the One Dominion, the planet was tossed into a nuclear and cataclysmic war that ravaged the land they had once so proudly stood for. While one side was skilled with machines and military might, the other was granted incredible strength in regards to magical prowess and tactical brutality. As the One Dominion, any side could control the entire world's resources, as well as tap into the Heart of Orion, a grid system laying deep beneath the earth that beheld a powerful treasure. With this, one was said to become a god, and thus, subject reality into their own image. This is the story of a group of renegades seeking to end this conflict, to stop a horrifying prophecy, and to bring to light something that had never been conceived before. Will they succeed and bring the Eternal Peace? Or will they fall, and give one side power over the other?

Prologue ~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

         He touched her back gently, as a lover would his mate. Her hair cascading in a wave of curls, her shoulders gentle and small. The man stood back and admired his creation with a look of pride a father would give to a newborn child. Only instead of giving life to a living being, he had given life to what he proudly called a doll. She appeared young, about the age of 18, with long auburn hair and beautifully articulated features, giving her a realistic and almost human resemblance. she stood about 5 feet, a little curvy and pear shaped, but in his eyes, pure perfection. Made of synthetic materials, she was as close to a human being as scientifically possible, in almost every way. The only thing different was on the outside was a little keyhole barely bigger than the tip of his index finger right above her heart. Should he open her up, her internal machinery would be revealed. Caressing the girl behind her ear, he whispered "Maya" and pressed a small button.
         The doll began to emit a feint whirring noise, as her gears began to move, until her chest began to rise and fall as if she were breathing. Actually, the design that he had worked so hard to create gave her the ability to sustain herself upon breathing. Maya, as the doll was referred to, began to wake, her eyes opening to reveal bright mint colored lenses. She was beautiful, and to her creator, a work of art. He knelt down and motioned for her to come to him, his expression becoming even more ecstatic as she took her first steps. At first, Maya was wobbly, and would occasionally catch herself. Plucking up the courage to move forward, the doll began to move her unaccustomed joints more successfully until she stood before him, her expression confused and observant.

         "Well done Maya! How does it feel to have entered what we call Life?"He asked, holding his hand out and caressing her cheek. She looked directly at him, her expression still uncertain.
         "Life? What is that? Who are you?" she aked, looking him in the eye. She was starting to focus more as her eyes became used to the lighting. He was a man probably within the later years of 50, his blonde hair peppered with grey. He was a stockier fellow, taller and wore in her opinion 'Tinker's clothes".The man smiled, and nodded.
         "You may call me Father, and life is the reality in which we live in. Humans and animals, everyone and everything lives and breathes."
         "Father, am I human?"She asked, looking at herself and then at him. They looked identical, except she couldn't see the keyhole protruding from his chest. He chuckled and shook his head.
         "No my dear, you are not what we call human. You are something more, something..no, forgive me. You are someone with a much greater purpose. You my dear, are a Doll."He was very intrigued by her curiosity. Dolls didn't normally pick up both human speech and thought patterns so easily, yet Maya acted like she had been around him all her life. Had something happened and created a bug in the system? She breathed evenly, watching him as his brows furrowed with his thoughts.
         "Are Dolls not human? What makes us so different? Does that make me less of you Father? Less of value?"
         "Maya, that is not it at all. The only thing that is different between you and I is that I do not have magic running through my blood as you do through your body. Dolls don't suffer the same pain we as humans do. You don't need to eat to sustain energy, don't suffer from disease that could easily kill one of us. Every now and then you'll need repairs done upon your body, but that can't happen to humans. Surgery, our form of repair work, takes practice, patience, skill, and luck because if one thing goes wrong at the right moment, it will completely kill the person in question. Maya, my dear you are no less valuable to me than my own flesh and blood. To me, you are my daughter, not just some creation. To you, I am just a man you woke up to, someone you don't recognize and haven't built a relationship with as family. But to me, I have loved you since you came to me in a dream, a dream I put on paper. I spent countless years gathering the right parts, and researching the various techniques. I didn't want just any typical doll. I wanted the little girl I saw. To me, I love you more than the stars and the moon because you are here with me. Maya, don't ever think less of yourself."
          Tears rolled from Maya's eyes, the sudden splash of saline upon her cheeks alarmed her. What was this feeling? Why were her eyes dispensing water when she didn't authorize them to? What was this burning within her chest and the shaking in her knees? And why all of a sudden, did she want to cry? Maya didn't have time to stop herself before she buckled, sobbing upon the floor in front of her father. He for a moment too was shocked. Dolls can't produce emotion of this magnitude, nor could she cry. Automatons were life-like but actually living. Something was happening right before his eyes that was much more than human comprehension. He had not only created life from metal, but had created a bio-mechanical who could honestly feel. He slowly knelt and picked her up into his arms, walking slowly towards the guest bedroom outside of the workshop and setting her upon the bed. laying her down, he pulled the covers over her shoulders and began to pet her hair gently.
         "Sleep now, my child. We will discuss more tomorrow, and will begin to teach you what it is like to be human within this world. I love you very much, and pray that the Goddess protect you when I cannot."
Maya closed her eyes and watched as her father left the room. She didn't understand what "sleep" meant, but she felt that it was something important. As she began to drift, she heard him speaking to someone, another voice calling him by the name of Cedric. But a little later she had fallen fast asleep, and for the first time, entered into what was known as a dream.