Avery Rivers understood one thing very clearly.
Music could shake the internet.
But films?
Films rewrote history.
If she wanted to truly return to the top—if she wanted to crush Titan Management completely—then the big screen was not optional. It was necessary.
That was why she stood here.
The industrial district was far from the city center. Old factories lined the streets like rusted skeletons. Broken neon signs flickered above shuttered warehouses. The smell of oil and metal hung in the air.
At the end of a narrow alley stood a worn-out building with peeling paint.
Vance Film Studios.
Calling it a studio was generous.
Avery pushed open the door.
The hinges screamed.
Inside, the air was thick with smoke and alcohol. Papers were scattered everywhere—scripts, rejection letters, legal notices. The walls were covered in old movie posters, yellowed with age.
Awards sat on shelves.
Untouched.
Gathering dust.
Behind a desk cluttered with empty whiskey bottles sat a man with messy hair and tired eyes.
Leo Vance.
Once, he had been a genius.
His debut film had swept awards, earning him the title of Best New Director. Critics had called him a once-in-a-decade talent.
Then—
He refused to "adjust" a casting call for Titan Management.
He refused to give Marcus Thorne control.
And he disappeared.
Leo didn't look up as Avery approached.
"I'm here for the audition," she said calmly.
He snorted and took another drink.
"For The Last Cigarette," she added.
That made him pause.
Barely.
He glanced up at her face.
Recognition flickered.
Then disdain followed.
He laughed, a short, bitter sound.
"The lead role is a woman who's lost her soul," Leo said, waving a hand lazily. "You're just a spoiled brat who lost her handbag."
He leaned back in his chair.
"Get out."
The words were sharp.
Final.
In the past, Avery would have frozen.
Today, she smiled.
She activated her skill.
Appraisal Eyes.
The world shifted.
Data appeared over Leo Vance.
[Target: Leo Vance][Potential: S-Rank (Masterpiece-Level Director)][Current Status: Dying Flame][Condition: Creative Spark Extinguished][Key Requirement: A Muse Capable of Rekindling His Genius]
Avery's gaze softened—not with pity, but understanding.
She stepped closer.
"I didn't lose a handbag, Leo," she said.
Her voice dropped.
An octave lower.
The playful sweetness people remembered was gone.
"I lost a world."
Leo's hand froze around the bottle.
The room felt different.
Avery continued.
"I lost my career. My name. My future.""I watched people rewrite my life while the world cheered."
She looked straight into his eyes.
"And you?" she said quietly. "You lost your voice when you refused to kneel."
Leo stared at her now.
Really stared.
Something stirred behind his tired eyes.
Avery took another step forward.
"If you give me this role," she said, "I won't act like a victim."
She smiled faintly.
"I'll act like a survivor."
The silence stretched.
The clock on the wall ticked loudly.
Leo set the bottle down slowly.
"You think you understand that role?" he asked hoarsely.
Avery nodded.
"The woman in The Last Cigarette isn't broken," she said. "She's empty."
"She doesn't cry."
"She doesn't scream."
"She walks through life like she's already dead."
Leo's breath caught.
Those words—
They were his script.
The part no one ever understood.
Avery finished softly, "She doesn't need saving. She needs a reason to burn."
Leo stood up.
The chair scraped loudly across the floor.
For the first time in years, his back straightened.
"You get one chance," he said. "No cameras. No sympathy."
He pointed toward an empty space in the room.
"Act."
Avery closed her eyes.
When she opened them—
There was nothing in them.
No anger.
No hope.
Just ash.
She reached into her pocket, pulled out an imaginary cigarette, and lit it with shaking fingers.
She inhaled.
Her shoulders relaxed.
Her eyes stared into nothing.
Then she spoke.
One line.
Barely louder than a whisper.
"I kept living… because dying felt like too much effort."
The room went still.
Leo's throat tightened.
The bottle slipped from his hand and shattered on the floor.
He laughed.
Not bitter.
Not broken.
Alive.
"Marcus Thorne," Leo said slowly, a dangerous smile forming, "is going to choke on this film."
He looked at Avery like she was something rare.
A spark.
A muse.
"Welcome to the cast," he said.
The system chimed softly in Avery's mind.
[Alliance Formed: Leo Vance][Hidden Path Unlocked: Cinematic Rebirth][Warning: Titan Management Attention Level – Rising]
Avery smiled.
The war had just entered its second front.
End of Chapter 7