⚔️ EDITION 15 — "THE FIRST WAR"
Part 1: The Battlefield Awakens
Opening Scene
Silence.
Not the silence of peace.
The silence before a storm.
Dark clouds swallow the sky.
Lightning tears across the heavens.
The ground trembles beneath countless footsteps.
An endless battlefield stretches beyond the horizon.
Broken statues.
Ruined towers.
Burning forests.
Black rivers flowing with glowing embers.
Ancient banners flap violently in the wind.
This place has witnessed countless wars.
And today...
It will witness another.
Far across the plain...
Two armies face one another.
On the eastern side stand the Versions.
Barbaric Author grips his massive sword.
Futuristic Author commands mechanical constructs that march in perfect formation.
Redeemed Author carries no weapon.
The Writer stands at the very front, holding only an old fountain pen.
Behind them stand hundreds of lesser Versions.
Each represents a forgotten thought, emotion, or memory.
Across the battlefield...
Only one figure stands.
Nemesis.
His black cloak dances in the storm.
His crimson eyes glow like burning stars.
He carries no army.
No banner.
No shield.
Only silence.
The wind stops.
Barbaric Author
"So..."
"You really came alone."
Nemesis smiles faintly.
Nemesis
"I've always been alone."
Lightning crashes.
Rain begins falling.
Writer
"This is your final chance."
"Return."
"Help us rebuild."
Nemesis slowly shakes his head.
Nemesis
"You still don't understand."
He looks across the entire army.
Nemesis
"I never wanted this war."
"You brought it to me."
Barbaric Author steps forward.
His sword crashes into the ground.
The earth splits.
Barbaric Author
"Enough talking!"
He raises his blade toward the sky.
Barbaric Author
"VERSIONS!"
Thousands of weapons rise.
The battlefield echoes.
Barbaric Author
"ADVANCE!!"
The earth shakes.
The army charges.
Hundreds of Versions rush toward Nemesis.
Dust fills the sky.
The sound of armor and footsteps becomes deafening.
Nemesis doesn't move.
He simply closes his eyes.
Nemesis
"..."
The first soldier swings.
Nemesis steps aside.
The blade misses.
A second Version attacks.
Nemesis redirects the strike without drawing a weapon.
A third leaps from above.
Nemesis catches the spear.
Snaps it in half.
Throws the attacker backward.
Within seconds...
Dozens of Versions surround him.
Writer
"Don't kill him!"
"Subdue him!"
Nemesis finally opens his eyes.
Nemesis
"I'm sorry."
A pulse of black energy erupts from his body.
BOOM!
The shockwave races across the battlefield.
Versions are hurled backward.
Siege towers collapse.
The rain itself seems to freeze for a heartbeat.
Far away...
The Dreamer watches from a ruined cliff.
Beside him stands the Forgotten Version.
Dreamer
"I have to stop this."
The Forgotten Version gently places a hand on his shoulder.
Forgotten Version
"No."
Dreamer
"They're destroying each other!"
Forgotten Version
"They stopped listening long before today."
The battlefield below erupts into chaos.
Mechanical dragons soar into the clouds.
Energy cannons roar.
Massive swords clash.
The Writer desperately moves through the fighting, trying to stop both sides.
For the first time...
The Council has become a battlefield.
TO BE CONTINUED...