Scene 1: Echoes Over Damascus
The Sky Citadel hummed above Damascus, a silent crown above the ancient city's skyline. From its obsidian balconies, one could see the horizon stretch into shimmering heat and memory. Inside, the air pulsed with something unspoken.
The long chamber of obsidian and gold reflected flickers of Rift energy, embedded subtly into the architecture by Zafira's design. The dinsomeoneing table, carved from star-glass, held food from every continent — untouched. The Fantastic Four sat on one side, rigid and alert. On the other side, Doctor Doom — Zafira bint Hakib — in her full regal armor, and beside her, the Scarlet Wizard, Waseem Maximoff, leaning casually with the poise of who could silence the sun.
"So," Reedah Richards said, slicing through the tension, "are you going to tell us why you summoned us here under a veil of diplomacy and hidden threats?"
Zafira leaned forward slightly. Her mask glinted, but her voice was soft. "I summoned you because something has awakened. Not just power. A warning."
Ben Grimm shifted in his seat. "You mean that 'rift' thing again? I thought that died with the experiment."
Zafira's fingers tapped the table. With a gesture, a shard of glowing energy floated upward — unstable, pulsing, like a wound in light. "This fragment was extracted from the outer perimeter of Damascus. Its signature matches the one that pulled me from your world... all those years ago."
Reedah's gaze hardened. "That experiment wasn't designed to do this. We shut it down."
"You failed to understand it," Zafira said coldly. "You tampered with something meant to remain untouched. And now it's stirring again."
Johnny Storm squinted at the energy. "What is it doing now?"
"Echoing," Zafira whispered. "It's echoing across dimensions."
Waseem stood and added calmly, "It is not only science. There is magic threaded into the pulse. Serena Strange confirmed it before we came to this chamber."
Reedah frowned. "You trust her again?"
Zafira's voice grew distant. "I never stopped. But she stands at the edge of a choice. One day, she may be against me."
The table fell into silence. The fragment hovered above them, flickering like a heartbeat.
"You're preparing for war," Reedah finally said.
Zafira nodded. "No. I'm preparing for a reckoning."
---
Scene 2: The Rift Chimes Again
The private sanctum beneath the Sky Citadel was a place untouched by time — its walls were etched with glowing sigils, a fusion of mystic inscriptions and alien calculus. Only three people stood within it now: Zafira, Waseem, and Reedah.
"This is the Veil Scanner," Zafira said, standing before a crystalline device shaped like an open lotus, its petals pulsing with faint violet light. "I created it to detect anomalies in the fabric between realms."
Reedah moved forward, scientific curiosity overtaking caution. "This is... beyond what we ever built at the Baxter Foundation. You used chronomantic layering in real time?"
"Yes," Zafira said, calmly. "And I found something."
The petals spread wider. A shimmer formed in the center, revealing a tear in space. Within it, shadows moved — flickers of battle, of cities burning, of an armored figure looming in light. It was not Zafira. It was something else. Something worse.
A voice echoed faintly from the window: "She broke time... She must pay..."
Reedah stared. "That voice— That's not just a warning. It's a verdict."
Zafira's expression darkened behind her mask. "Kang."
Waseem stepped beside her. "He is testing the boundaries of the broken Rift."
Zafira turned to Reedah. "The Rift never fully closed. It was sealed — temporarily — by fate, not finality. My presence in this world is still... paradox."
"You're a living rupture," Reedah whispered.
Zafira didn't deny it.
The shimmer dimmed.
Zafira raised a hand. "There's more."
A secondary projection unfolded — a timeline, warping violently around one axis. A pinpoint of gold marked her name. Then it splintered.
Reedah stepped back. "He's targeting you."
"No," Zafira said, "he's targeting the future I've built."
Waseem's eyes flared with violet magic. "Then let him come."
–
Scene 3: The Warning Below
Beneath the Citadel's deepest layers, there lay an ancient observatory chamber — carved not by human hands, but by mystics long forgotten. The chamber pulsed with a silent rhythm, like the breath of the Earth itself.
Zafira, Reedah, and Waseem descended together. The floor lit with every step Zafira took, recognizing the energy signature of its sovereign.
"Do you know what this place is?" Zafira asked, her voice echoing.
Reedah shook her head, awe-struck. "This predates Kamar-Taj…"
"It's the Chamber of Echoes. Built by the Time Weavers. A place meant to listen to what the future screams."
She raised her hand — and the chamber responded. Runes flared to life on the obsidian walls. A central monolith rose from the floor, its core humming with unstable Rift energy.
A transmission crackled through. It wasn't technology. It wasn't even magic. It was something older.
A voice, broken yet commanding:
"You broke time. You shattered the weave. You must repair what you destroyed... or be unmade."
Serena Strange stepped out of a side shadow — she had arrived silently.
"It's not just a message," she said grimly. "It's a countdown."
Reedah stared in disbelief. "How long?"
"Time isn't working linearly anymore," Serena answered. "That's the problem."
Zafira stepped forward, laying her palm to the monolith. Her armor flickered — energy cascading over her body. Golden filigree formed across her cloak as the system recognized the command.
"Then we begin," she whispered.
Waseem turned to her. "What are you doing?"
Zafira's voice was quiet, almost mournful:
"Activating Mark III. The God Protocol."
Reedah inhaled sharply. Serena closed her eyes. Waseem stood still — and nodded.
Zafira looked toward them, her eyes glowing from behind the mask.
"I will not face him as the girl who fell into the Rift. I will face him as what I have become…"
"Doom."