EMERGENCY SPECIAL CHAPTER
THEY'RE TALKING BACK.
...
SPECIAL CHAPTERS
ARE CLOSED.
...
That sentence
had now become
completely meaningless.
...
THE AUTHOR
sat quietly.
Reading.
Nothing unusual.
Until...
another notification appeared.
...
Then another.
...
Then another.
...
THE AUTHOR:
"Oh."
...
SCRATCH.
...
The Author stopped.
"No."
...
SCRATCH.
...
"I already know
where this is going."
...
SCRATCH.
SCRATCH.
SCRATCH.
...
A chair appeared.
Then a desk.
Then...
GAAFATAA.
...
He was sitting there
with his arms crossed.
...
THE AUTHOR:
"How are you here again?"
GAAFATAA:
"Apparently,
your readers won't let me rest."
...
THE AUTHOR:
"They're not my readers."
...
GAAFATAA raised an eyebrow.
"Not yet?"
...
The Author stared at him.
...
GAAFATAA smiled.
"Interesting."
...
"Don't start."
...
GAAFATAA stood.
Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.
"Show me."
...
"No."
...
"Show me."
...
"They're just replies
to my introduction."
...
GAAFATAA froze.
...
"Replies?"
...
"Yes."
...
"Plural?"
...
"Yes."
...
GAAFATAA slowly
pulled out a chair.
...
"Show.
Me."
...
...
The first reply appeared.
A writer welcomed
SEENEESSA
to the community.
Then came the words:
SIRNA MULTIVERSE.
POTENTIAL.
HIDDEN CLUES.
...
GAAFATAA stopped.
...
He looked at the Author.
Then back at the reply.
...
"HIDDEN CLUES?"
...
THE AUTHOR:
"Yes."
...
GAAFATAA pointed at himself.
"DO THEY KNOW
WHO I AM?"
...
"No."
...
"DO THEY KNOW
WHAT I HAVE BEEN THROUGH?"
...
"No."
...
"DO THEY KNOW
HOW MANY QUESTIONS
I HAVE?"
...
"No."
...
GAAFATAA looked back
at the comment.
...
"They're already talking
about hidden clues."
...
The Author smiled.
...
GAAFATAA:
"Don't smile."
...
"Why?"
...
"Because that's
how this starts."
...
...
Another reply appeared.
Someone else
welcomed the Author.
They spoke about
their own story.
Fantasy.
Suspense.
Drama.
A strange central premise.
A world built around
an unusual question.
...
GAAFATAA became quiet.
...
THE AUTHOR:
"What?"
...
GAAFATAA:
"They have a question too."
...
"What do you mean?"
...
GAAFATAA looked again.
...
"Their story begins
with a question."
...
A pause.
...
Then he smiled.
...
"I like them."
...
THE AUTHOR:
"Of course you do."
...
GAAFATAA:
"They understand."
...
"Understand what?"
...
GAAFATAA turned.
...
"That sometimes
a story doesn't begin
with an answer."
...
SCRATCH.
...
"Sometimes..."
...
"...it begins
with the right question."
...
The Author said nothing.
...
GAAFATAA looked
at the writer's message again.
Their first story
in a long time.
They weren't even sure
their work matched
what was popular.
But they wrote it anyway.
...
GAAFATAA's expression softened.
...
"They came back
to writing."
...
THE AUTHOR:
"Looks like it."
...
"And people encouraged them."
...
"Yes."
...
GAAFATAA nodded.
...
"Good."
...
For once...
no joke.
No mystery.
No interrogation.
...
Just:
"Good."
...
Then...
another reply.
...
Someone welcomed
SEENEESSA
to Royal Road.
They hoped
the stories
would find an audience.
...
GAAFATAA read further.
...
The Author had asked:
"What kind of stories
are you currently writing
or reading?"
...
And the response:
One day...
they hoped
to return
to a science-fiction story
they had started.
Maybe begin another.
...
But...
...
TIME.
...
GAAFATAA stopped.
...
THE AUTHOR:
"What now?"
...
GAAFATAA stared
at that word.
...
TIME.
...
Then slowly...
he turned toward
the Author.
...
THE AUTHOR:
"No."
...
GAAFATAA:
"I haven't said anything."
...
"I know that face."
...
"What face?"
...
"The paradox face."
...
GAAFATAA looked offended.
"I do not have
a paradox face."
...
"You absolutely do."
...
GAAFATAA looked back
at the reply.
...
TIME.
...
Then at the Author.
...
"Speaking of time—"
...
THE AUTHOR:
"NO."
...
GAAFATAA:
"I JUST WANT TO ASK—"
...
"No paradox questions."
...
"But technically—"
...
"NO."
...
GAAFATAA threw
his hands into the air.
"THEN WHY DID YOU
MAKE ME THE QUESTIONER?"
...
The Author thought
for a moment.
...
"That was probably
a mistake."
...
Silence.
...
GAAFATAA:
"...Excuse me?"
...
SCRATCH.
...
Another presence
entered the page.
...
SEENEE.
...
He looked around.
At the replies.
At GAAFATAA.
At the Author.
...
Then sighed.
...
SEENEE:
"Again?"
...
GAAFATAA:
"Don't."
...
SEENEE:
"I thought
Special Chapters
were closed."
...
GAAFATAA pointed
at the Author.
"Tell him."
...
THE AUTHOR:
"Why me?"
...
"YOU'RE THE ONE
WHO KEEPS READING COMMENTS."
...
SEENEE:
"That's generally
what happens
when people reply to you."
...
GAAFATAA stared at him.
...
SEENEE smiled.
...
GAAFATAA:
"I don't like Narrators."
...
SEENEE:
"And yet here we are."
...
...
The three of them
looked at the replies again.
Different people.
Different stories.
Different ideas.
Different reasons
for writing.
...
Some had been writing
for years.
Some were returning.
Some were experimenting.
Some simply wished
another writer
good luck.
...
And none of them
knew where SIRNA
was going.
...
They didn't know
what Safsan would become.
They didn't know
why Nafsan
would search
across universes.
They didn't know
what waited in BAAČ.
They didn't know
what the Reality Book
could reveal.
They didn't know
why GAAFATAA
had suddenly become
very suspicious
of the word
PARADOX.
...
But they had done
something important.
...
They answered.
...
GAAFATAA looked
toward the readers.
...
Then toward
the writers.
...
For once...
THE QUESTIONER
didn't have a question.
...
He simply said:
"Welcome to you too."
...
SEENEE looked at him.
...
"That was surprisingly normal."
...
GAAFATAA:
"Shut up."
...
...
THE AUTHOR smiled.
...
Then GAAFATAA
slowly raised one finger.
...
THE AUTHOR:
"No."
...
"I haven't asked yet."
...
"No."
...
"What if one of them
accidentally predicts—"
...
"NO."
...
"But imagine
someone reads Safsan Story
and figures out—"
...
"GAAFATAA."
...
"What?"
...
The Author pointed
toward a door.
...
On it were the words:
SPECIAL CHAPTERS
CLOSED FOR A FEW MONTHS.
...
GAAFATAA stared at it.
...
Then at the Author.
...
Then at SEENEE.
...
Then back at the replies.
...
He sighed.
...
"Fine."
...
He walked toward the door.
...
Stopped.
...
Turned around.
...
"But if one of them
figures out the paradox
before you reveal it..."
...
The Author froze.
...
SEENEE looked
at the Author.
...
GAAFATAA smiled.
...
"...I am coming back."
...
THUMP.
...
The door closed.
...
Silence.
...
SEENEE:
"Do you think
someone will?"
...
The Author looked
toward the readers.
...
Then toward
all the stories
still waiting
to be read.
...
THE AUTHOR:
"Well..."
...
SEENEE:
"...Oh no."
...
SCRATCH.
...
EMERGENCY SPECIAL CHAPTER
CLOSED.
AGAIN.
...
WELCOME TO ROYAL ROAD.
...
EVERY WRITER
ARRIVES WITH A STORY.
EVERY READER
ARRIVES WITH QUESTIONS.
...
AND SOMETIMES...
THE QUESTIONS
ARRIVE FIRST.