Chapter 0 – The Day the World Trembled
In the near future, Earth's skyline sparkled with the marvels of human innovation. Skyscrapers of glass and steel ruled over megacities. Every structure bore the mark of progress, and digital billboards bathed the streets in light. Across the globe, news tickers blazed with a single, haunting headline:
> "Foreign Space Object: Evidence of an Abandoned Planet's Past."
Reports spoke of a dead planet—once alive with civilization—destroyed when its parent star exploded. Yet before its end, its ancient technology preserved everything: its rise, its golden age, and its collapse. This cosmic archive had now reached Earth. For many, it was a scientific miracle. For others, a grim warning.
The leak came from deep within the United Earth Council, where three senior officers—once champions of unity—chose to expose the truth. One officer, visibly shaken, took to the airwaves.
He spoke of the Synader Catastrophe.
An unprovoked alien attack by the Synaders had wiped out Earth's leadership. Leaderless and panicked, humanity had united only out of necessity.
> "This is not the end," he declared. "This is the beginning of what we must confront as a united people. But what if the threads of our destiny are woven far darker than we dare to believe?"
Even as his voice echoed across continents, the world began to tremble.
At first, it was subtle—barely a tremor. But within moments, the Earth convulsed violently. Skyscrapers cracked. Concrete and glass rained down. Sirens screamed. In one tower, a man stood calmly on a terrace, watching the city below—until the floor beneath him buckled.
He fell.
Time slowed.
As he plummeted, his vision caught something impossible: a blinding white light. The world blurred. A truck fell with him—colliding mid-air.
Impact.
Silence.
Then—he stood again.
On the same balcony.
Below, a massive crowd had gathered, chanting his name like he was some forgotten hero. He blinked. His eyes cleared. The light had vanished—but the confusion remained.
And then, the second quake hit.
Worse than the first. The tower groaned. The city shattered. He felt his body rise—suspended mid-air, defying gravity.
From the ruptured ground, a bubble emerged—growing, swelling, until it exploded like a silent nuclear blast. The shockwave hurled him farther, into chaos.
From the rubble, a gate appeared.
Ancient. Gigantic. Etched with glowing runes. And from it, they came—
An army.
Not of this era.
Medieval warriors, battered armor, swords and spears drawn. Their eyes held no recognition of the world around them—only bloodlust. They charged, striking down civilians with cold precision.
Then came him.
A solitary figure stepped through the gate—clad in regal armor, exuding power. His voice echoed like prophecy. For a moment, the world stood still. Every soldier, every eye, turned to him.
And just as suddenly—darkness fell.
A void swallowed the scene.
And in that silence, a voice—neither male nor female—echoed:
> "SUFFICIENT."
The word shook the air. The man felt his body dissolve, warmth crawling through his limbs. His eyes shut—then snapped open. Blinking rapidly, he saw flashes—explosions, like thunder from an angry god.
Cannon fire rained down.
Artillery screamed.
The wall behind him shattered.
His mind swirled between disbelief and numb acceptance. He was no longer just an observer—his body was waking to some hidden truth. His role had changed.
And then, floating mid-air, as fire devoured the land, he saw it again—
The emperor-like figure, now clearer, stepping forward through smoke and ruin.
Their eyes locked.
> "DIE ALONE OR DIE BY TAKING TRILLIONS."
Then—blackness.
A vacuum. Reality erased. And in its place, only lingering echoes of ruin.
---
The last whispers of existence hovered on the edge of void. No answers. Only questions.
Who were the medieval warriors?
Where did the gate lead?
And how would this moment reshape the future of Earth?
The answer waited—buried somewhere in the ruins of the collapse.
Are they illusion or something else