The sky was black.
Not the natural kind of darkness that comes with night—
but something deeper.
Something… frozen.
As if the world itself had stopped existing.
At the center of a shattered continent,
an enormous chessboard stretched beyond the horizon.
Mountains stood like towering rooks.
Entire cities… reduced to mere squares.
And upon them—
corpses.
Thousands of them.
A man walked forward.
Slowly.
Each step echoed like a move.
One.
Two.
Three.
His eyes did not see the world.
They read something else.
Lines.
Paths.
Possibilities.
Ahead of him—
a broken throne.
And upon it—
a dying king.
"Why…" the king whispered, blood spilling from his lips.
"Why are you doing this…?"
The man stopped.
Silence.
Then—
a faint smile.
"Because you already lost."
The king trembled.
"I'm still alive…"
The man shook his head.
"No."
He raised his hand.
And suddenly—
the world changed.
The chessboard appeared.
Real.
Immense.
Overwhelming.
Every being… every structure…
became a piece.
And him—
he was not one.
He stepped forward.
"Check."
The king screamed.
The world trembled.
Then—
the forbidden word was spoken.
"Checkmate."
Silence.
Then everything collapsed.
But just before reality faded—
the man whispered:
"Let's begin again."
A newborn opened his eyes.
And for the first time
the game began.