The beginning was peaceful, but all that ended the day that the red, green, and blue stole that peace forever.
We begin our story in a dark, cavelike world. Dimly lit by blue fires that cast a teal shadow over the area. A misty river gently flows in the background, calm enough to assume that there were clouds drifting down the stream.
On the ground, a dark-skinned man rests his legs. His black hair gently waves in the subtle winds that blow through the area, as he takes in a breath, tasting the hints of death riding on the essence of this world.
From across the nearby bridge, a man with striking blonde hair walks towards the man on the ground. His green cloak sways too and fro, as his spear -clearly ordained for those of a warrior’s life- taps the ground in rhythm with his left heel as he walks.
Achilles: I never get tired of coming up here. I love the atmosphere.
Patroclus: (Chuckles) I’m glad the small things please you, Achilles.
Achilles: Yes, I am quite fond of the blue light. Though I would say that the light you bring to my eyes is far more valuable.
Patroclus: (Rolls his eyes) Has that stranger been giving you flirting advice?
Achilles: (Proudly smiles) Zagreus has implemented many of the combat tactics I’ve taught him. It’s only fair if I implement some of the flirting tips he taught me.
Patroclus: (Laughs cheerfully) We owe him quite a bit, do we not?
Achilles: (He sets his spear down) We do. We really do. No matter the cost, I’ll be sure to pay him back for reuniting the two of us.
Achilles places his hand gently on top of Patroclus’s. Suddenly, their attention gets drawn to a figure in a cloak approaching them from the bridge. With a smile, Achilles cups his hands around his mouth and calls out to the figure.
Achilles: Speaking of being reunited, guess who finally decided to show up! Is that our little God of Death?
The figure takes off his hood, revealing a soft face with accents of purple looking back at the two men with a proud yet awe-inspired look on his face. He says nothing, with all three young men smiling at the simple sight of each other. The beating of all three of their reborn hearts begin to beat in sync with each other, becoming one synonymous rhythm.
Suddenly, from out of nowhere. A sense of dread fills the cave. A strange warmth, followed by a sharp freeze, as if the very fabric and logic of this world were bending.
From behind Achilles and Patroclus, a portal opens up, swirling colors of red, green, and blue. With not as much as a moment passing, it begins to draw Achilles and Patroclus towards it.
Achilles stabs his spear into the ground as his legs float in the air towards the portal. His other hand reaches out and grabs Patroclus, who holds on as his cloak whips violently against the strong winds that pull him closer to the portal every second.
Patroclus: Achilles…! I’m…Slipping!
Patroclus’ hand slips out of Achilles’ grasp, and he falls into the portal, disappearing.
Achilles: Patroclus!
Without saying as much as a word, he lets go of the spear holding him in place and dives into the portal.
The portal begins to fade, slowly closing its corners as reality begins to repair itself. The last man wastes no time- grabbing Achilles' spear and jumping into the portal as it closes behind him- causing him to vanish in a flash of white light.
...
We enter a musty, dimly lit prison. The air is thick with damp and smoke, chains rattling from the walls as the faint echoes of metal-on-metal reverberate through the halls. Shadows stretch across broken cells and collapsed corridors, hinting at struggles long past.
From the gloom, a figure moves — a prison raider. His head glows with a faint grey mist, illuminating the path ahead. Around him, prisoners and guards stumble through the halls, some desperate to flee, some hurling makeshift weapons in defiance.
The raider moves with lethal precision, striking, kicking, and punching. Each attack sends a prisoner dissipating in bursts of color, their forms unraveling like smoke. Chains swing from the walls, debris falls from the ceiling — and yet, he flows through it all, dodging and striking with unrelenting force.
The assault seems endless, a tide of chaos, until the raider reaches the end of the corridor. There, he halts. A thin, skeletal figure, shackles broken and dangling from its wrists, stands silently. It regards the raider — cautious, calculating.
The raider charges suddenly, a blur of motion. The skeletal figure steps aside effortlessly, letting the raider trip over a stray leg. The raider crashes to the floor. The skeletal figure tilts its head, observing the fallen enemy with quiet curiosity, unafraid.
All of a sudden, from underneath the raider, a strange energy emanates. Colors of red, green, and blue begin to shine as from the floor, a portal opens up, sucking in the raider as he falls into the colorful tear in time.
Curious, the remaining figure leans over to look into the portal. Yet in a clumsy flash, he trips and falls in, and the sea of colors leads you to black out.
...
Now, our story takes us to a bright and colorful world. Full of grass, trees, and a surprisingly blocky complexion.
A village is nearby, with inhabitants with rather large noses. One of them wearing a dark purple apron walks up to one of the houses and knocks, and a very square man opens the door, yawning.
Urvine: Hrrr hr hr hr hrrrrr (Johnny! You have to come and see this!)
Johnny: Oi? What is it, Urvine?
Urvine leads him just outside the village and into the forest. The trees are spaced out from weeks of chopping them down and replanting them for a steady supply of wood. A group of white sheep munch on some grass as the two blocky blokes make their way through the woods.
As they make their way out of the forest, Urvine motions to a strange structure. Dark obsidian forms an unfinished rectangular shape as red muck gently sizzles on the soft grass around it.
Urvine: Hrr hr hr hr hr? (I found this while you were out mining, but I thought I’d investigate fully when you get back. What do you think?)
Johnny: Hmm.. I've never seen such a structure before. It looks..unfinished? Or maybe destroyed. I can't tell, mate.
Johnny carefully approaches the chest next to the obsidian.
Johnny: Hmm...There’s more obsidian in here! Do you think if we put these in the missing spaces, it’ll do something?
Johnny places the obsidian in the slots where it was missing from, and as the two hold their breaths, nothing happens.
Urvine: Hrr….(Aww…I was hoping it would do somethi-)
But all of a sudden, a portal opens inside the rectangle of obsidian. Red, Green, and Blue colors all spill out like an overflowing river, as the Urvine is dragged into it by its strong pull.
Urvine: HRRRR! (AAAAH!)
Johnny: URVINE!
As Johnny gets sucked into the portal, he gets enveloped in red, green, and blue light as it all fades to white, knocking him unconscious.
...
Next, our story takes a brisk turn, as a cold winter’s wind blows through a group of well-dressed men hiking through the snow. Two walking turrets hike at the back, guns trained on a smaller individual in chains, shivering as the cold strikes their coat-less body.
Cryogunner Legionnaire: Keep moving, men. The boss said we need to bring in the prisoner ALIVE.
Boxer Vanguard: Does being a popsicle count as alive?
The whole party of men laughs heartily as they trudge through the snow. The prisoner in chains suddenly falls to the ground- their skin a pale blue.
The legionnaire smacks the turret trained on the prisoner so hard that the barrel spins around a few times.
Legionnaire: You were ‘sposed to keep an eye on them!
The turret says nothing back before slowly turning its barrel back to the prisoner. The big man rubs his temple before sighing.
Legionnaire: Gotta do everything myself these days…These Fatui sure are making me work for my pay…
As he bends down to pick up the unconscious prisoner, the sound of ice crystals being formed and thrown erupts behind him. Without even so much as a word, the snowstorm increases around the group, obscuring vision. One by one, the soldiers get dragged by someone into the blizzard with a scream of horror. The legionnaire nervously aims his gun into the mist as his whole platoon gets taken.
Legionnaire: Come on out, whoever you are! I ain’t afraid of a little wind! You should be the one worried about gettin’ some frostbite!
Suddenly, a bright flash breaks through the storm, and a person with shiny sharp ice skates dashes skate-blade first towards the fat man. He fires his ice gun at them, but the blade slices through the beam as they deck him in the face, sending him flying into the storm with a scream of defeat.
The prisoner shudders.
Corin: Hey! Traveller! Are you okay?
The prisoner gently opens their eyes to look at them, but it’s clear that they’re weak. Suddenly, a smile grows on their face as they mutter,
Traveller: “...warm…”
As a warm sensation both their bodies, the storm around them begins to swirl faster and faster. The streaks of white surrounding the both of them begin to show shades of red, green, and blue, as both Corin and the prisoner look up to see a massive portal at the summit of the blizzard. In an instant, it vortexes the surrounding wind and ice, sucking the both of them into it as Corin's eyes process the fast changes of colors. Going from red, green, and blue, to white before they black out.
...
We now turn to a battlefield, lasers and guns fire through the air, aiming at people rushing to get to the other side as fast as they can.
Amid the chaos and destruction, we focus on a woman ducking behind a cluster of rubble. She looks around hurriedly before noticing something. On the rooftops, someone in a hood runs with a large mechanical object in their arms.
She hears a voice over her intercom.
Brimstone: She’s got the spike! Stop her!
Everlight: On it!
Everlight dashes after the person on the roof, weaving through the broken streets as she leaps from ledge to ledge. With a quick glance, the target on the roof jumps off with a flip, landing on a laundry line interconnecting two buildings and sliding down it as they snap one of their fingers in a gun-shaped motion, sending a pocket of air rapidly flying towards Everlight at bullet speed.
In an instant, Everlight dodges the blast, running after the wind powered rogue. As she turns the corner, she finds the mysterious person strike the device into the ground.
Omega Jett: Whoops! Too Slow! Ha ha! What’s that look on your face? Have I *blown* you away?
Everlight: We're going to stop you. You can't keep doing this!
Omega Jett: Ugh, even on a different Earth you’re so annoying! Bring it on!
The two women charge at each other as the device beeps repeatedly. As the fight rages on, the beeping gets louder and faster as the ground begins to crack and crumble around it. Unbeknownst to the two fighters, a portal of red green and blue opens up above the device about 30 feet in the air, pulling at it.
With a mechanical heave, the device and the bit of ground it was stuck in began to float into the air- still ticking like a time bomb.
The beeping gets faster as the device turns red and beeps very loudly. Just as the two fighters notice it.
Everlight: What the fuck?
Jett turns around to see the device floating into the portal.
Omega Jett: Hey! Give that back!
Suddenly, as the device enters the portal, it explodes. Sending a shockwave through the whole city, it begins to suck in everything around it. Rubble, trash cans, and even the two fighters.
Jett uses gusts to propel herself forward, but the current is too strong, and she gets sucked into the portal. As Everlight holds on to the ground with all her might, she looks up to see a garbage can hit her in the face, loosening her grip and sending her flying into the portal as the sea of red, green, and blue causes her to white out.
...
Next, we turn to a city full of hustle and bustle. Bright neon signs litter the sides of buildings as hundreds of people walk the streets completing their daily tasks.
We zoom in on a small apartment off the side of a tall building. Inside, a young woman with frizzy black hair wakes up, yawning before scratching her head and then checking her phone. A text reads-
“Would you like to see something cool? Stop by the station later today”
The woman groans before texting back:
"I'm not coming in to work on my day off. -_-"
The little grey text bubble appears, as another text sends to her.
“Get here or don’t. I guess I’ll solve this case without you and get the pay bonus you’ve been working to get for months XD”
The woman rubs her temple before groaning, reluctantly changing into something more reasonable and leaving her apartment for the station.
As she arrives at the police station, a man greets her with a smirk.
Akechi: Ah, Kairi. Punctual, as always—though I must admit, I half-expected you to arrive fashionably late.
Kairi: Ugh, just ...I don't even care. What did you need to show me again?
He steps aside, gesturing toward the officer’s room with that practiced elegance.
Akechi: Please, make yourself comfortable. I promise, no interrogations…
Kairi: Good lord...
Kairi makes her way into the room, but just barely stands inside. She looks Akechi up and down with suspicion. Akechi leans casually against the doorway, tilting his head, eyes flicking over her face.
Kairi: So? Get on with it! What's this "Something Cool" I came in on my day off to see?
Akechi: Something cool, you say… Hm. Did I say that? Curiosity is a trait I admire, especially in a fellow detective. Though, tell me—are you here purely for amusement, or is there… another motive lurking beneath?
Kairi: Dude...I was gonna sleep in today...
He lets the words hang, a faint smirk curling his lips.
Akechi: You know, Kairi, I can tell when someone’s bending the truth—subtly, even without meaning to.
Kairi: Good for you? You're being really weird here, man. Get to the point, you're usually more efficient than this when it comes to cases.
Akechi: Efficient, yes… though efficiency often leaves gaps. Tiny gaps where one’s real thoughts slip through. I wonder… What is it you really hope to see here today?
He leans a little closer, playful yet calculating. Kairi can clearly see into his eyes, an electricity of sorts beginning to spark as their irises locked on to each other. A faint hum begins near the bookshelf. The air shimmers subtly at first, unnoticed, then grows louder and more insistent. A twisting pattern of red, green, and blue light starts bending the room in impossible ways. Akechi's eyes glint- his voice calm as ever.
Akechi: Ah… it seems our conversation has attracted an audience far more… more spectacular than I anticipated?
Kairi: What the hell...
Kairi aims her gun at the portal as it softly pulsates. Akechi walks closer to it.
Kairi: Akechi! Get the hell away from that thing! We don't know what that is!
Akechi: Precisely. And yet, it demands our attention nonetheless. Shall we see where this… anomaly leads us?
Akechi smiles before leaning towards the portal, falling in.
Kairi: God....DAMMIT!
Kairi closes her eyes as she runs towards the portal and jumps in in. As she opens them, she is immediately overloaded with the blur of red, green, and blue as she whites out.
...
Everyone wakes up in a void of white.
Elanif: …Hello?
…can you all hear me?
Oh, yes! You’re all waking up! Perfect! Hi! Oh my gosh, it’s so cool to finally meet you in real life! Are you all feeling alright? I would’ve gotten first class for you guys, but my wallet’s a little tight at the moment, ha ha!
OOOO yes I get to do the intro I practiced and everything! Okok let me make sure everything’s ready…lights…camera…Ahem.
Welcome, adventurers! You have travelled across the bounds of time and space to be here in this moment, all together! A strange set of circumstances have occurred across the multiverse, and you’re the only ones who can help solve the mystery! With your brains, your brawn, your everything in between, you’ll face challenges like no other, conquer your foes, and come out victorious! You’ll fight like heroes, come together as family, and best of all, make so many new friends! What more could you want? Are you ready? Let’s goooo!!! Uh, why aren’t you guys coming?
Everlight: What the fuck?
Elanif: OHHH right, I haven’t even introduced my corporeal form yet!
A strange green figure materializes in front of everyone- endowed with two small wings and a long green tail.
Elanif: I'm Elanif! I'm the one who brought you all here! Now I’m sure you have some questions about what just happened, so fire away! Dr. Elanif, PhD is here to answer anything and everything!
Nyronas points his spear at Elanif's neck.
Nyronas: Tell me where you took Achilles and Patroclus. NOW.
Elanif throws their hands up.
Elanif: Woah! Cool spear! But, uh... I don't think that'll do anything to me...sorry!
Johnny: Woah...Why's everyone...round?
Everyone turns and looks at Johnny, very squarely staring at everybody else.
Elanif: That'd be because you're all from different universes! I...uh...don't actually know where the other people went...I only had enough power to take one of you per portal, and you guys won the lottery, I guess...yay...?
Corin: So you brought us here but have no idea how?
Elanif: I...well...Ok, so basically, I sensed portals being opened, but didn't open them myself. All I did was kind of...redirect them. Look, if you guys follow me, I think I can explain what I know!
Elanif begins to float in the air and fly into the darkness of the void. Everyone cautiously follows close behind. Eyes dart around to the unfamiliar beings around them, and hands rest on weapons ready to strike at a moments notice as everyone precariously walks through the blackness.