The Becoming of Master Potato

He came into being fully grown and aware of himself all at once. He simply wasn't, and then he was. Standing in a cobbled street with an understanding that he was man, that he could speak and walk and grasp things with his hands. Coupled with this came the knowledge of language and mobility came the notion that his name was 'Master Potato', and that, perhaps, it wasn't completely natural to spring into being without so much as a "poof".

Beside Master Potato a few people milled near an overloaded vegetable cart, though none so much as glanced in his direction as Potato came to be like the flame of a struck match.

The newly formed man cleared his throat. He prodded curiously at his face, discovering a wide, flattish nose, full lips, bushy eyebrows, and muttonchops. He raised those bushy eyebrows and "hmphed" experimentally. He looked down to investigate his unimpressive attire of homespun and leather, the other people still ignoring him.

"Alright, Master Potato, let's get moving." A female voice coming from... where? Potato looked up and down the street, expecting to see a woman striding towards him wagging her finger like a disappointed mother. All he saw were the nearby peasantry who continued to stare blankly at a selection of ripe pumpkins.

"I said let's go!" the voice demanded.

Potato looked to the sky. No mysterious flying task-mistresses above him either. None of the other folks in the street seemed to hear or take note of the voice any more than they did to Potato himself. Having just come into being Potato decided he didn't have any idea of what was expected or unexpected in this life. Perhaps everyone had a bossy woman in their heads demanding they get a move on. Tilting his head back, Potato asked of the world in general "Where is it I'm supposed to be going, pray tell?"

"You have to help defend the kingdom of Gilneas from the Wargen." Said the voice.

"Wait... I what?" Potato stepped back, chin still raised as he spoke to the overcast sky. At the invisible woman's words images of horrifying wolf-creatures flooded his mind, with slathering jaws and claws as long as his hand. He blinked furiously to dislodge the hateful images. "I... I can't help but feel like someone else might be better suited to such a task." Someone who hasn't been born right this very minute.

"Nope. You're my character, and we're saving the town. Let's go."

Before Potato could protest again, or even look around at the gloomy village to see if he could spot one of the aforementioned Wargen, something yanked in the pit of his stomach like someone was trying to jerk his spine out via his belly button. With a yelp of surprise Potato found himself walking. The tugging led him and he found it was far less painful if he kept his feet moving. He looked again at the villagers, still standing uselessly by in the same spot beside the vegetable cart. Perhaps he really was the only person who could save this village. Clearly everyone else was under some sort of spell.

Moments later Potato found himself jumping down the street. As his body bounced up and down at the behest of the pulling in his gut he managed to choke out, "Why. Am. I. Jumping?"

He stopped.

"Oh, sorry. It's just something I do."

"You do? You're in control of this?" Potato asked the mystery voice, planting his hands on his hips. He had just worked up his sternest glare to aim at the sky when the tug was back and he was walking again. "Can I ask where we're going?" Potato managed to ask before a particularly firm yank in his gut made him clamp his mouth shut in pain.

"Quests."

"What... what are quests?"

"You'll find out. Don't worry. We'll be doing a lot of them."