Emily's fingers trembled as she clutched her controller, the glowing fortress of Gorgoroth rising on her monitor. Her chat scrolled by so fast she barely caught the messages:
"Let's go, Em!"
"This fortress is yours!"
"Queen of Mordor!"
Her voice cracked with exhaustion, but her smile was genuine. Emily had been streaming for fourteen hours straight. It wasn't unusual for her—gaming marathons were part of her brand—but this time, her body wasn't keeping up. Her eyelids were heavy, her chest tight, her vision swimming.
When the fortress fell to her, chat exploded in cheering emotes. Emily leaned back in her chair, muttering, "Finally… mine…" before darkness claimed her.
She didn't wake up in her apartment.
The sound of war drums thundered in her ears. Emily's eyes snapped open, and instead of a computer screen, she was staring at black stone walls lit by fire. The air smelled of ash and steel. She sat up quickly, realizing she wasn't in her chair but lying on a heavy throne—her throne.
The fortress was alive around her. Orcs shouted orders, armored captains marched in formation, and banners bearing her chosen insignia flapped proudly. Her breath caught.
"This… is Mordor," she whispered. She knew these walls, these towers, this very throne room. It was the exact fortress she had just conquered in Shadow of War.
Her hands touched her body—still human, but clad in black leather armor, a sword strapped to her side. She wasn't some nameless commander. She was the ruler.
Instead of panic, a laugh escaped her lips.
"Well… I guess dying on stream wasn't the worst thing after all."
Reality hit her like a hammer when an Uruk captain stomped before her throne.
"Boss! Reports say enemy warbands are on the move. They'll be here in a few days."
Emily blinked. In the game, she could just reload a save, reassign warchiefs, and micro-manage from menus. But here? This was real. If she failed, there was no respawn.
Still, excitement pulsed through her veins. This was her fortress. She had bled hours into conquering it. And now she got to truly live it.
She rose from the throne, her voice steady:
"Summon my captains. We're not losing this place. Not now, not ever."
The orcs roared their approval, the sound echoing through the fortress halls.
Emily smirked.
Time to turn gamer strategy into survival.
This was no longer just a game.
This was war.