Assassin's Creed: A World On Fire

Part One: Chapter 1

I can't help but stare at the computer, eyes wide and blank as my thoughts are a million miles away. The bright screen lights my face, illuminating the pitch black room but only by a little. My eyes are locked on the green words on the screen without really seeing them as my mind races a mile a minute at the prospect of what I would do if this were ever to be real.

"If you could bring one video game character to life, who would you choose?"

Ah, video games.

I loved them with a passion. Though, between you and me, I am horrible at them. I can't count the number of times I've fallen off ledges while playing Batman or Sonic.

Complete and utter failure, I am.

But I just love the thrill, the excitement of just barely outliving the next boss.

I love the cold sweat I'm left in while I cry in triumph as I finally defeat the huge ghost monster in Sonic Adventures II. Or the racing heart and sweating palms as I try to gear myself up to go again after another failure, to try to finally defeat that giant centipede in Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker.

The adrenaline rush is addictive and I'm hopelessly hooked. Hell, I have the controller of my PS3 resting beside me even as said console is turned off. One never knows when the inspiration to play will hit and I don't want to be stuck looking for the controller. The remote for my Nintendo Wii sits next to my TV right by my Nintendo DS and PSP where I can keep an eye on them in case they feel like going 'poof'.

I'm a nut case, I know.

I blame my brother.

He was the one that got me hooked. He was the first one to bring a console into our home when we were just kids. I can still remember those seemingly endless days spent watching him master it. Then, after playing alone had lost its novelty, I can remember picking up the controller for the first time and giving it a go.

After that, it was all summer nights with the Sega and Nintendo, back when we were young and small and our biggest worry was just beating the game before summer was over and it was time for school again. And then, when we were just a wee bit older, I can remember a bright Christmas morning when the PlayStation One first came into our lives.

The rest is history, honestly.

After that Christmas morning, our lives became filled with the latest hit games.

Which reminds me, I need to get the latest Batman and Assassin's Creed soon but first and foremost, I need to finish Assassin's Creed III and Batman: Arkham City.

Ah, but the Xbox is busted so I can't finish Batman. I have no idea what is wrong with but, by the looks of it, I might have to start the game over because I might just get a whole new console anyways. Since, even if I pay to get it fixed, all the memory will be wiped out.

I tap my fingers against the keyboard while I think about my choices. The words on the screen are forgotten or at least they are until a sharp chime from my computer brings my attention back to them.

I wince as I realize that I've accidentally pushed one too many buttons and the computer's protesting the mistreatment. With a blush, I clear away the Error Message and once again my attention returns to the words on the screen.

Everything in me screams Batman and I have to physically stop myself from writing it in reply to the question because, really, let's think about this. Batman, the super-rich playboy that doesn't know anything but the rich life and fighting crime, in my world—supposing that I'm just bringing him to life and not all his millions—it's a plan headed for disaster. What would I do if he decides to go around playing vigilante in my sweet little town?