Starburst

Death didn’t end Reedy. It prepared him. Torn apart, emptied, and discarded by powers that peel souls like fruit, Reedy wakes in a world that does not want him alive—and a universe that is watching to see how long he lasts. He is one of many Champions, dragged into a tournament where gods do not cheer, rules do not exist, and survival itself is a debt. At the center of his being hums the Starburst Engine, a parasitic miracle that devours monsters, worlds, and fragments of reality itself. Where others wield its power blindly, Reedy sees it as a wheel—one he can turn, stack, and overfeed. But power is never free. Each kill draws attention. Each gain warps the world around him. Each use pushes him deeper into Star Debt, where reality forgets you, monsters hunt you, and even your punches stop landing. The tournament calls it balance. The gods call it entertainment. Reedy calls it hunger. And hunger only ever ends one way.