Introduction Pages (Notes, Dedication)

Notes from the Author

This is a work of RPG fan fiction, based on the MMORPG game Myst Online: Uru Live, created by Cyan Worlds, Inc. The game, pulled from the publisher Game Tap's line up in April of 2008, has refused to die. The game and Cyan have a very loyal fan base. The fans have been grouping together for a long time - two years or longer - to create more worlds for Cyan's game and more storylines.

"Perhaps the ending has not yet been written." These words from Cyan's main inspiring character, Yeesha, spurs us onward to create more possibilities and to allow us to immerse ourselves into the Ages of Myst, even when the economy tries to stop us from enjoying our game.

Many of us hold on to hope that Cyan's loyalty to us and their perseverance will pay off, and allow us back into the cavern again. That need for hope among the players is what initiated me to create my main character here - Elpis. Elpis is named after the spirit of hope who refused to leave mankind when Pandora opened the box.

Myst Online: Uru Live was my first experience with MMORPG. I didn't expect much more other than to be able to explore more of Cyan's wonderful creations as they added them. What I found surprised me. I not only found other players, I found other people behind those players. People who became like family to me.

I've seen miracles happen within the game. People have gained courage through the love and support of their friends. People with real problems of health, grief, or desperation. Love has been found through the cavern. Friendships that would never have formed otherwise were made. People learned to express their creativity, hopes, aspirations, dreams, and loves through the community. People have 'cried on the shoulders of others' in times of distress, and found release from the pressures of life through the beautiful Ages and music.

Until you've been in this situation and really listened to the people behind the avatars, you don't understand how an online community in a safe gaming atmosphere can make a difference in someone's life. I've been blessed in my life, and through Cyan I've been doubly blessed to be able to be there for others not as lucky as I am.

Myst Online: Uru Live is not a game atmosphere like most others. There's no fighting, there's no destroying your fellow players. It's meeting one another, helping each another solve puzzles, discover a new ancient civilization. You learn the language and culture of that civilization, called the D'ni (pronounced 'dunny'). Cyan is in there with you. They take time out of their busy schedule to bring their own avatars in, meet you and talk with you.

I've met people who are whole families in the game. Mothers, fathers, their kids. Even grand parents have brought their grand children into the game. School teachers have used the game to teach socialization in their classes. It's a game the whole family can enjoy in safety.

Cyan trust their players and listen for ways to improve the games. The players in turn trust Cyan and try to say thank you on the forums or by throwing fundraisers for pizza parties and coffee for the gaming staff. Often, I've realized that Cyan and their fans have formed their own family.

At the time I write this, the game's future is uncertain. The economy has hit all businesses hard, and Cyan is no exception. Cyan had already acquired much of the rights to publish the game, and will acquire more rights to more areas in the near future. They had started work on bringing the game back with themselves being the publisher when the economy experienced the downturn.

I hold out hope that Cyan Worlds will prevail and will reset its business as the economy works to reset itself. I, along with many others I know, will be here for however long it takes. I hope 2009 is the year, but if it takes a little longer...well, I'll just have to create another Age and another storyline, then, won't I?

Come into Elpis's story with me. Enjoy. Please read the copyright notices and see where all the wonderful creations came from. I hope I didn't miss anything.



Special Note about this Edition

This is the unedited version of the story of M'nine. I wrote it as a project during November, 2008 for the National Novel Writing Month (Nanowrimo at http://www.nanowrimo.org). The story was written at speed, without regard to proper word choices - just kicking out the words as they came to me.

Typos, wrong word choices, lack of logic, repeated information, crappy dialogue and whatever else may abound in this story. In fact, I'm positive that all those things exist here.

All inaccuracies, inconsistencies, and other sources of confusion are my fault alone.

Additionally, information from this story will be available online as clues for the traveler to follow when we get around to creating the actual gaming area for M'nine. M'nine's game will be an extension of Friends of Fissure storyline, which is an extension of the storyline for the MMORPG game, Myst Online: Uru Live.

Content will basically stay the same, but setting and characters will be drawn out during the revisions. There is a good chance the finished book will be a lot longer than this revision. The title of the book probably will change.

Please understand that this is the complete story of M'nine's Exploration by the Friends of the Fissure team. This means that it contains spoilers for any future games that may or may not be created from this storyline. There are future plans of building the game for this Age, but no guarantee of it actually happening. Please use this knowledge to make your own decision whether or not to read this.


Author Dedication

I wish to thank my husband, who allowed me to ignore him for long hours while creating this story within the month that Nanowrimo ran for. My continued thanks to him for allowing me to complete the future projects that will follow.

Thank you to my bevin mates, who encouraged me to work on this. To Myss Terrie for putting me on the path of this story, to Gandhar for helping me for creating artwork for M'nine, and to the others who encouraged me - and to those who will step in and help me complete the project in full.

Thank you to others in the world of Myst Online: Uru Live. Those who helped me find my way in the game. Those who became my friends. And to those who posted on the forums their joys, aspirations, thoughts, and honest opinions about the game and what it means. Although, I'm not a huge participant and they may not know me, their words were my inspiration.

And a special thank you to Cyan Worlds, Inc. for bringing us the game that helped so many, including myself. And a current thank you for not giving up on it yet. Thank you to Rand Miller, and others who helped with writing the Myst books, for taking the leap and sharing the wonderful story with us. As a writer, I admire the courage of going beyond the bounds of the average novel writer.