The children become restless first.
Rain falls softly over the alleys of Altdorf.
For one rare moment—
the district almost becomes quiet.
Then a bottle shatters somewhere nearby.
Immediately the children below start screaming and laughing again.
The noise returns like a reflex.
Mara watches from the apartment window.
Three boys throwing stones at a dead rat floating through gutter water.
Not because they’re cruel.
Because they’re bored.
And boredom frightens them more than ugliness now.
Mara:
“They can’t stay quiet anymore.”
Chibi spins a carved wooden top slowly across the floorboards.
Chibi:
“Because they grew up inside noise.”
Festival bells.
Factory thunder.
Arguments through thin walls.
Drunken singing.
Fireworks.
Crowds.
Music.
Movement.
Silence has become unnatural.
One boy climbs onto a crate pretending to conduct an invisible orchestra while the others scream random noises around him.
The game lasts less than a minute before they need something louder.
Something faster.
Something stronger.
Mara:
“Adults do that too now.”
The spinning top wobbles unevenly.
Chibi:
“Yes.”
The taverns grow louder every year.
The games more dangerous.
The crowds more aggressive.
Nothing feels strong enough anymore.
A child slips while jumping between rain-slick crates.
For one second—
real fear appears.
Then all of them burst into hysterical laughter.
Too loud.
Too long.
Relief instantly becoming stimulation.
Mara:
“They could’ve gotten hurt.”
Chibi:
“Yes.”
“But they kept doing it.”
Rainwater slides down the warped glass.
Chibi:
“Because almost falling feels stronger than standing still.”
Silence settles briefly inside the room.
Outside—
the city keeps screaming through the rain.
Workers use taverns.
Soldiers use violence.
Children use dangerous games.
Everyone searching for stronger feelings.
Not because they want evil.
Because ordinary life no longer reaches them anymore.
Mara:
“Is that how Chaos starts?”
A distant firework explodes over Altdorf.
The alley children immediately begin shouting again.
Chibi watches them carefully.
Chibi:
“Sometimes.”
A pause.
“Not because people want evil.”
Another burst of laughter below the window.
Too loud.
Too desperate.
Chibi:
“Because eventually they become afraid of feeling nothing at all.”
⚒️ Month 5 — Sacrifice & Belief
⚒️ Week 3 — Children Of Stimulation
Warhammer Fantasy Roleplaying Game — The Old World
Sigmar suffered for the Empire himself.
Later generations discovered it was easier to ask others to suffer in his place.
If you remember what this felt like —
you already know what you’re missing.
Step back into it.
Or keep missing it.
👉 https://startplaying.games/gm/dunchan
Want to go deeper?
Then don’t stop at the surface.
The full stories. The dossiers. The things behind it —
they’re waiting. Or they’re not.
👉 https://www.patreon.com/c/mythveilchronicles_bydunchanhuntergames