Temptation

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MY STORY HIS ESCAPE IS FINISHED PLEASE GO READ INSTEAD OF THIS I PROMISE YOU ITS SO MUCH BETTER THAN THIS STORY YOU WON'T REGRET IT

News Anchors, Journalists, Government Officals, hell, the entire world all claim that 2102 is the most successful year in history, though, I beg to differ. Sure we are more technologically advanced than ever before, but that's the case with every new year. Countries are at "peace" with each other, and poverty is said to be lower, even if I still see people living on the streets.

Then some would argue that 2050 was the best year in existence. Intergalactic travel advanced far enough to find life beyond Earth on the planet we call Harpus located in our neighboring galaxy. However, most can agree the discovery of Harpus was the most detrimentally damning thing to ever happen to Earth. The most intelligent species of Harpus, Harpsapiens, or otherwise known as Harps, are a lot like humans. They communicate through language, they have concepts of basic society, and they learn to adapt to new stuff. Their bodies are like humans too. Ten fingers and ten toes. The real scary part about their hands are the claws they carry with them. 4-6 inches long, they can tear apart anything with material that gives. They stand straight up past their flesh, pointed at the ends. Their skin color can be any shade of gray, much like humans with shades of brown. Their long hair is all black, kept nicely in many tied or long styles. The faces of them, however, are quite bizarre. Each of them are so dramatically different that it made scientists wonder if they even had a genetic code. The population is roughly the same as humans from 7-9 billion, so there was a lot of science to be done.

The Harps are a complicated species we are still breaking down today, but there is one thing that we know without doubt; There is no feeling and there is no empathy towards humans. Harps want power and will do anything to get it. They are savage to no ends. Our discovery of them lead to a mutual discovery of us, and that was the first spark of Galactic Warfare. The first being GWI, Galactic War One, that took place in 2057. Neither could defeat the other due to limited space travel, so it resulted in stalemate. 100,000 dead humans, and 90,000 estimated dead Harps. 2078, GWII. Same conclusion; tripled casualties. Now in 2102, officials tell the public to prepare for the beginning of GWIII. Predicted to be the bloodiest of them all.

Our world has persisted for so long against them that many have grown tired. Veterans of GWII will tell stories of how hopeless war is, yet new generations still stand strong. Some say it's due to youth, but scientifically, it's due to the growing power of the gift.

All we know is that the gift was discovered centuries ago, and it is more used today than ever before. 94% of the population has one, but those who don't are no different than the rest. The minute someone turns 18 they are given their gift. There is no real handing or ceremony. It's just a brain chemical released when a human's body ages exactly eighteen years. 18 is the true transition year into adulthood. You finish school, you get your gift, and you start your life.

Gifts are a very complicated thing. You could have extreme gardening skills or you could be able to turn yourself invisible. It can take hours or years to figure yours out. They can be absolutely anything, however, there is a way to narrow down what yours will be because they are all genetic. You could get the same one as an ancestor, but you will always get one under the same subcategory. There are thousands of those, and your family can only have one or two. Your gift can outline your entire career and future for you.

Our family's subcategory is one of the most powerful of them all; mind manipulation. My 56-year-old father Gabriel Stefano has the gift of Coercive Persuasion, otherwise known as brainwashing. He can control anyone in his direct sight line, but they have to be in person and not on a screen. Then there is my older brother Vito. He is 22 now, and he used to be called a prodigy. He has the gift of Charismatic Persuasion. It is not direct mind control but it comes damn close to it. He can talk to any number of people and persuade them. It's not always successful, though he almost never fails. My 10-year-old sister Iris doesn't have a gift yet of course, but she is still treated with great respect in school due to her future set in stone.