Darkness.
Then... lights. Blinding, fragmented lights.
He didn't remember how he died. Only the moments right before—a phone clattering onto pavement, the screech of tires, a scream. His own? Someone else's?
Then nothing.
And now... this.
A burning heat pressed against his skin, the stench of smoke and scorched metal thick in the air. The sky above was fractured—clouds torn apart by what looked like jet trails, glowing blue symbols etched into the sky like cracks in reality.
He gasped, sitting up.
"Move! MOVE!"
A woman rushed past him, dragging a boy no older than ten. Sirens wailed in the distance. He turned his head, sluggish and confused, just in time to see a car flung overhead—literally flung—and crash into a building behind him.
"What the hell...?" he whispered.
A shockwave knocked him flat. Shards of glass rained down like glittering death, but none struck him. Around him, people screamed. Ran. Hid.
He stood slowly, gripping a metal pole for balance. His heart pounded, his ears rang, and yet—something inside him was eerily calm.
He was in a city. Familiar, but not.
A street sign read Lexcorp Plaza. Across the street, a billboard promoted Stark Tower. Conflicting architecture. Mixed branding. It made no sense.
Until it did.
A blur shot past him—red and blue, cape fluttering. A man. No, a god. Seconds later, thunder cracked the air and a hammer spun through the clouds, colliding with a beam of red heat in midair.
Superman and Thor.
In the same sky.
"...What?"
He stumbled backward into a newspaper stand. His eyes caught the headline:
"Multiversal Mergers Continue — Council of Watchers Holds Emergency Session in Latveria"
"This has to be a dream..." he muttered. But deep down, it didn't feel like one. It felt real.
A whirring noise buzzed in his ear. Suddenly, a translucent screen blinked into existence in front of him, floating in midair.
---
[CAMEO SYSTEM INITIALIZING…]
User detected: Extra-Level Civilian (Unassigned)
Welcome to the Multiversal Nexus. Survival odds: 11%. System: ONLINE.
Beginner Pack: Acquired.
Cinematic Proximity Event: Level 3 Detected
Cameo Points Earned: +10
---
His jaw dropped.
"What the f—"
Another explosion cut him off. The last thing he saw was Thor crashing into the side of a building—and then the world went dark again.