The 24-hour peace lasted exactly 23.5 hours before the void shuddered, replaced by a neon-drenched studio set. Stadium lights blinded the group as a jingle blared—"Welcome to Veyra's Ascendancy! Where you decide who lives, dies, or gets a redemption arc!"*
Alex shielded their eyes, cybernetic arm glitching into a Sarcasm Shield. "Oh good. More democracy."
Kairo's Admin Blade hummed, scanning for exits. "Stay close. The rules here are… flexible."
Finn squinted at a floating leaderboard. "We're trending at #3! Hashtag KillTheStoryweaver is gaining traction!"
Nyx, sync rate a fragile 3%, crouched beside a camera drone, scribbling "NO VOTING" in crayon. The drone short-circuited.
SYSTEM ALERT (Updated to 2.0)
[VEYRA'S ASCENDANCY: EPISODE 1]
Objective: Survive audience polls. Current votes: 51% demand a tragic backstory reveal!
The set morphed into a childhood home—Alex's childhood home, complete with peeling Hollows of Eden posters and a flickering desk lamp.
Veyra's voice boomed from the rafters. "Let's dig up some trauma, hero! Chat says spill the tea or lose a limb!"
A spectral Ms. Harlow materialized, red pen poised. "Chapter 3: Foster Care Arc. Let's edit."
Alex froze. "Not... this."
Kairo stepped between them, blade deflecting a barrage of Critique Daggers. "Focus on the present. Not the past."
Finn hacked the set's lighting rig, plunging the room into darkness. "Nyx—glitch the script!"
Nyx's crayon flared, rewriting foster care into space pirates. The set wobbled, Ms. Harlow now a confused cyborg parrot.
SYSTEM ALERT
[AUDIENCE DISAPPOINTED. PENALTY: LOSE A SIDE CHARACTER.]
A trapdoor swallowed Finn.
The studio became a beach resort. Scion clones in swim trunks posed with Beta Crowns (Limited Edition).
Veyra lounged on a throne of sand dollars. "Chat wants a shirtless fight scene! Who's volunteering?"
Kairo lunged, blade slicing a clone's halo. "We're leaving."
Alex's arm morphed into aNarrative Wrench, smashing a beach ball grenade. "Finn! Status?"
Finn's voice crackled from a coconut radio. "Trapped in the voting server! Also, I'm a wildcard option now!"
SYSTEM ALERT
[NEW POLL: KISS, KILL, OR CLONE FINN?]
Nyx stabbed the radio with her crayon. It screamed, "Whyyyy?!"
***
The set collapsed into a voting arena. Veyra descended, her dress a mosaic of live chat reactions. "Time for the season finale! Will our heroes…"
Alex interrupted with a Fourth Wall Break, hijacking the broadcast. "Here's the real tea: Veyra's scared we'll outshine her."
The audience gasped (digitally). Votes swung to #ExposeVeyra.
Kairo struck her crown, Admin Blade overloading with Lyra's Melody. "Enough games."
Veyra disintegrated into emojis, screeching, "This isn't over!"
***
The studio faded. The group stood in a server room, Finn dangling from a cable.
Alex: "Next time, I pick the genre."
Kairo: "No musicals."
Nyx drew a tiny skull on Finn's forehead. He groaned.
SYSTEM ALERT
[TEMPORARY IMMUNITY EXTENDED: 48 HOURS.]
Reason: Audience approval. Stay relevant.
***
The camera panned to a shadowed figure—Storyweaver Prime (a swirl of glitching story amalgamations), sipping code from a coffee mug.
"Let them celebrate. My next draft… is peer-reviewed."