The Dream of a Thousand Live
[Opening Scene – The Dream]
Panel 1: A vast battlefield under a blood-red sky. Fallen warriors lie scattered. A young samurai—Jin in a past life—kneels, clutching his chest, blade cracked.
Narration: "They say some souls never rest. They wander through lifetimes, shackled by bonds of blood and fate."
Panel 2: A towering enemy figure looms above him. A sword plunges into his heart.
Enemy (voice, echoing): "No matter the age, no matter the world… I will always find you."
Panel 3: Jin's vision fades. His last thought burns.
Jin (thoughts): "…Then I'll keep fighting. Until I break this curse."
---
[Scene Shift – Present Day]
Panel 1: Bright morning. A modern city skyline under the cracked moon.
Panel 2: A teenager jolts awake in his room—messy hair, sweat dripping. It's Jin, reborn in the present era.
Jin (panting): "…That dream again."
Panel 3: He grips his chest instinctively where the blade had struck in the vision. No wound, but a faint scar lingers.
Narration: "Seventeen years old… and already haunted by battles fought centuries ago."
---
[School Life – The Stranger Within]
Jin walks through a bustling high school hallway. Students laugh, chatter, shove past him. He looks detached, his eyes carrying weight beyond his age.
Classmate 1: "Hey, Jin! You coming to practice?"
Jin: "…Not today."
He passes a mirror on the wall. For a flicker, he sees not himself but the samurai version of him staring back.
Jin (thoughts): "Am I… really me? Or just him again?"
---
[Inciting Incident – The Attack]
After school, Jin walks home alone. The streets are oddly quiet. The cracked moon glows faintly above.
Shadows ripple along the alley walls. A distorted figure emerges—an Affinity Hunter, a monster that feeds on reincarnated souls.
Hunter .. "At last… the soul marked in flame."
Jin freezes. His chest throbs as though reliving the deathblow.
Jin (thoughts): "…It's real. The dream wasn't just a dream."
---
[First Fight – The Awakening]
The Hunter lunges, claws glowing with dark aura. Jin stumbles back.
SFX: SHHHK!
Jin grabs a broken metal pipe from the ground—instinct guiding him. He holds it like a sword.
Hunter: "You cannot resist. You never have."
The Hunter's claw slashes down. Jin blocks with the pipe. Sparks fly—not of metal, but of blue spiritual fire.
Jin (shocked): "…What—?"
---
[Manifestation of Affinity]
Jin's eyes flare blue. The pipe in his hands glows, reshaping for a moment into a spectral katana.
Narration: "Affinity—the soul's true weapon. Forged in one life, carried into the next."
He swings instinctively. Blue flames cut through the Hunter's arm.
Hunter : "Impossible—! You've awakened too soon!"
---
[The Ally Appears]
Aya : Just as the Hunter prepares another strike, a flash of steel interrupts. A young woman lands between them, wielding a naginata that hums with light.
Aya: "Back off, parasite."
: Aya spins her weapon, aura scattering the Hunter back. She glances at Jin.
Aya: "You. You're… the Flame Affinity."
Jin (confused): "…What are you talking about? Who even are you?"
---
[Fight Climax]
The Hunter snarls, charging again. Aya shouts:
Aya: "Focus! Don't think—just remember! Your soul knows how to fight!"
: Jin closes his eyes for a moment. Memories flood—wars, blades, lifetimes of combat. His stance shifts naturally into that of his past life.
Together, Jin and Aya strike—the naginata's arc and Jin's flaming sword cross in perfect synchrony. The Hunter explodes in a burst of shadow.
SFX: BOOOOOM!
---
[Aftermath]
Panel 1: The alley lies in ruins. Jin drops to one knee, breathing heavily. His weapon has reverted to a broken pipe again.
Jin: "…That wasn't… me. That was…"
Panel 2: Aya offers her hand.
Aya: "No. That was you. The real you. Your Affinity woke up tonight."
Panel 3: Close-up of Jin's eyes—haunted, glowing faintly blue.
Jin (thoughts): "The dream… was never just a dream."
---
[Final Page – Cliffhanger]
Full-page splash: Aya standing tall, naginata resting on her shoulder. Jin crouched at her side, aura faintly burning. The cracked moon looms overhead.
Aya: "Listen well, Jin. You've been reborn to finish a war that never ended."
Narration: "Thus begins the cycle anew… The Affinity of Jin."
TO BE CONTINUED…