There’s a peculiar lingering kind of grief that comes when your parents vanish in a portal with their fate unknown. Because you cannot properly mourn what might still live and you cannot truly move on while hope refuses to die. Malik Ashram bore that grief for four long years while raising his younger siblings alone. Working as a porter carrying gear for others, tinkering with monster corpses and treated as a glorified pack mule for wages that barely provided a decent life for his siblings. Nearly eighteen and still unawakened Malik has burned every dream he ever had as fuel for his younger siblings. Then on what should’ve been another routine job, he’s pushed into the storm. Hovering on the edge of death, Malik’s body is pulled into a void where a mysterious entity awaits. This ancient cosmic entity gives malik three offers. A chance to change his fate, the task of finding five others chosen like him scattered across the world and the ultimate task of defending his world from the upcoming invasions. But the problem? The world he’s meant to defend has grown comfortable over the years. After the dark ages when portals first appeared, humanity has grown to the point where the danger that once threatened them is now treated as entertainment. Portals became arenas, power became sport and the masses drown themselves in the games. Decades of peace turned vigilance into complacency and Malik must wake up a world lulled by victory. This is The World’s Gambit — a desperate, high-stakes wager made by the planet itself, shaping six individuals into its final hope. The Fourth Hand: Convergence What to expect: - Advanced chapters on Patreon. - Slow-paced at the start as I get a hang of writing. Volume 1 ends around chapter 50, and the pace will pick up significantly after that. - Daily chapters Monday-Friday - Minimum 2,000-3,000 words per chapter