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Panteara: Ascension Empire

Bab 1: Prologue.

A man's voice cut through the night air, his desperate shout echoing down the deserted street: "The end is here!!!!!!! Repent!!!!!!!" His cries seemed to fade into the backdrop of everyday life, as people passed by without a glance, absorbed in their routines. A couple, having just moved out of their parents' house, wandered into a store where televisions flickered on display.

As they approached the electronics section, their attention was caught by the TVs broadcasting the same urgent message. For nearly two years, the news had been dominated by the countdown to the event that everyone was calling "The Convergence."

It had started one year, nine months, and twenty-eight days ago. On that fateful day, everyone over the age of thirteen had suddenly been able to view a mysterious system interface. The display was sparse but alarming: it showed each individual's level, race, and age, along with a glaring red countdown—666 days to the Convergence.

Initially, this unexpected phenomenon sparked widespread confusion and panic. People scrambled to interpret the ominous message, with many turning to their faith or seeking scientific explanations for the event. Religious leaders and scientists alike weighed in, each offering their own theories about what the Convergence would bring.

Despite the initial chaos, humanity's adaptability shone through. As the days passed, the frenzy subsided into a more subdued acceptance. People went about their lives, the countdown became a distant concern, and the once-feared end seemed to drift into the background of daily existence.

Now, with the Convergence just a few hours away, the TV channels were filled with so-called experts, each presenting their take on the impending event. Their discussions varied from speculative to insightful, but all agreed on one thing: the Convergence was a turning point that would reshape the world as they knew it.

The couple left the store with satisfied smiles, their new TV tucked securely under one arm. It was late—11 PM on a Sunday—and only a few hours remained until the arrival of the Convergence. They walked down the street, unaware that their seemingly ordinary day was about to intersect with an extraordinary event.

Meanwhile, across the city, the scene was anything but typical. In some apartments, people were fervently praying to their deities, seeking solace and salvation as the Convergence approached. For them, the end seemed imminent, a time for divine intervention or apocalyptic reckoning. Others, like the couple, carried on with their routines, trying to make the most of their final hours.

In contrast, some had taken extreme precautions. Their homes and apartments were fortified with armor, stocked with weapons, and filled with rationed supplies. Their preparations spoke of a deep-seated belief that the Convergence would bring about a cataclysmic event, one that would require them to be ready for anything. Whether they were right or wrong was yet to be determined.

As the clock struck midnight in various time zones around the world, an eerie phenomenon began to unfold. Clocks stopped, their hands frozen in place. The once-constant flow of time seemed to halt, with wall clocks, phones, and digital devices all ceasing to move. The internet buzzed with frantic theories and speculations, as people tried to make sense of the strange occurrence.

The world was now on the brink of a moment that would change everything, and as each clock stopped ticking, the anticipation and anxiety grew ever more palpable.

As the final clocks struck midnight, signaling the dawn of the Convergence, the world erupted in chaos. Massive earthquakes shook the earth with unprecedented force, sending shockwaves across continents. Giant fissures tore through the land, creating rifts that swallowed entire cities, towns, and buildings. Rivers surged through streets, turning urban landscapes into waterways, while majestic new structures appeared as if by magic, seemingly from nowhere.

Countries were reconfigured, their boundaries disrupted as new continents emerged from the oceans and existing landmasses stretched and expanded. Skyscrapers toppled into massive cracks, their once-proud structures crumbling into the abyss. Some towns were inundated by rising waters, while others were fragmented into isolated islands. Families found themselves separated by vast distances, their once-familiar surroundings transformed into alien landscapes.

From above, the view was apocalyptic and surreal. It was as if multiple worlds were colliding and merging, each bringing its own landscape and chaos. Cities disappeared, swallowed by the earth or lost beneath the waves, while others emerged from the depths, their sudden appearance as disorienting as their disappearance had been.

The destruction was relentless and immense. Mountains sprang up where there were once flat plains, and the ground itself seemed to be alive, shifting and reshaping with a power that defied comprehension. People were torn from their loved ones, some clinging desperately to one another as the world around them fractured and dissolved. The Convergence felt like an eternity, a cataclysmic event that reshaped the very fabric of reality, leaving devastation and wonder in its wake.

As the earth's violent tremors subsided, the world fell into an eerie silence. Amid the devastation, survivors emerged from the wreckage, their faces etched with shock and exhaustion. The air was thick with dust, mingling with the acrid scent of smoke and decay.

A mother, her eyes wide with fear and relief, clutched her child tightly against her chest. The remains of what had once been a lively neighborhood lay strewn around them—rubble, debris, and the grim remnants of those who hadn't survived. The mother's steps were unsteady but determined as she navigated through the ruins, her embrace a silent promise of protection amid the overwhelming desolation.

From the shattered remnants of a crumbling mountain, an Asian man emerged. Clad in traditional robes, his long red hair billowed around him like a fiery halo. His face was lined with the marks of struggle, but his gaze was resolute. He moved with a grace that belied the chaos around him, his presence a reminder of the old ways that now seemed a world apart from the new reality.

In the skies above, a dragon soared, its majestic form cutting through the lingering clouds of dust. The creature's powerful wings beat with a rhythm that seemed to herald both the end of the cataclysm and the beginning of a new era. The dragon's roar echoed through the heavens, a symbol of the ancient magic that had resurfaced in this transformed world.

By the shore, a woman dashed into the ocean, her movements fluid and urgent. As the waves lapped at her feet, her legs transformed into a shimmering fish tail. She vanished beneath the surface, her new form a testament to the mystical changes wrought by the Convergence.

A large wolf emerged from the river, limping and bloodied. As it reached the riverbank, its form shifted, the fur receding to reveal a man with a rugged demeanor. His eyes, however, retained the keen, predatory glint of the wolf, reflecting a connection to the wild that transcended his human guise.

Nearby, a massive tree stump split open, revealing a group of elegant beings with pointed ears. They stepped out with a grace that suggested both familiarity and wonder at their new surroundings. Their beauty and ethereal presence hinted at an otherworldly lineage, and their eyes took in the transformed world with a mix of awe and caution.

In a clearing, a tiger stood among the carcasses of its fallen kin. The beast sniffed at the lifeless bodies with a mournful expression. With a piercing roar that carried a note of sorrow, the tiger's form shifted, revealing a woman with tiger ears and a tail. Her eyes, reflecting the tiger's primal sorrow, held a deep, unspoken grief for the loss of her kind.

As the survivors emerged from their shelters and the new landscape began to settle, the Convergence's aftermath revealed a world in flux—a place where old myths and new realities intertwined, and where the survivors, each transformed in their own way, faced the challenge of rebuilding in a land forever altered.