The world was a child's fever dream.
Skies of finger-painted blue, forests of scribbled green, and a dragon with scales like melted crayons. Its name loomed in the air, etched in shaky block letters: IGNIS.
"That's… not my dragon," Alex whispered.
Ignis's roar shook the paper trees. "YOU MADE ME WRONG!"
[System Alert (takeover rate 50%)]
New Quest: [Rewrite the Fable]
Objective: Fix Ignis's story.
Failure: Become a footnote in your own past.
***
The ground trembled as Lucien emerged from a tear in the sky, his obsidian armor clashing with the crayon hues. "Still chasing happy endings, Alex? How quaint."
Kairo's scar flared. "Thought you were rotting in the drafts."
"The Storyweaver recycles." Lucien smirked. "Even failures."
Ignis lunged, but Lucien raised a hand. Chains of corrupted code pinned the dragon. "Fix him, Alex. Or I'll feed him to the plot holes."
***
A shadow flickered—Elias, free of his edgelord trench coat, now in simple charcoal-gray. His eyes were clear. "I'm here to help."
Alex tensed. "Why?"
"Because you gave me a crayon." Elias tossed a crumpled drawing: a dragon and a boy, side by side. "Now let's save yours."
Quest Updated:
Allies: [Elias – Redeemed Edgelord] [Kairo – Glitching Ally]
***
Battle for Ignis
The trio fought through waves of Storyweaver-spawned clichés:
- Sticky-Note Goblins (weakness: papercuts).
- Trope Trolls (immune to logic).
- Lucien's Echoes (copies of his past villain roles).
Elias hacked at Lucien's chains with a dagger of pure narrative defiance. "You're not the hero, brother. But you're not a monster either."
Lucien sneered. "And you're still a failed draft."
"Maybe." Elias grinned. "But today, I'm revised."
***
Ignis's chains shattered. The dragon surged, but Lucien plunged a data-blade into Elias's chest.
"NO!" Kairo lunged, too late.
Elias crumpled, ink-blood pooling. "Finish it, Alex. Make us… real."
Alex's cybernetic arm glitched into a crayon. They redrew Ignis's story:
- Deleted the chains.
- Added a boy (Elias) riding the dragon.
- Wrote a new ending: "And they flew beyond the margins."
Ignis's scales blazed gold. Lucien hissed, dissolving into footnotes.
***
Elias faded, smiling. "Thanks… for the edit."
Kairo gripped Alex's shoulder. "He chose this."
"I know." Alex's voice cracked. "Doesn't make it easier."
Reward Unlocked:
[Elias's Legacy] – Temporary buff: Allies deal +25% damage to corrupted tropes.