AtlasVerse

In his final moments, 34-year-old Liam Carter, a burned-out indie game developer, regrets the life he lived—too many missed chances, too much fear. After dying in a freak lightning storm, he awakens in a parallel world where entertainment is stuck in the 1980s. Armed with knowledge of modern pop culture, technology, and storytelling, Liam seizes the opportunity to reshape the world from the shadows of obscurity to the limelight of global fame.

Rise of the Creative Emperor

"Nova Vellin Linked to Ex-Everline VFX Contract — Did Liam's Team Poach Talent?" "Underground Empire or Organized Uprising? Inside the Rise of Carter's Collective."

Ace read the headlines aloud while sipping black coffee, unimpressed.

"What is?" Liam asked, flipping through campaign footage Nova had edited overnight.

"Media misdirection. They're trying to paint us as chaotic. Disloyal. Dangerous."

Dangerous was fine with Liam. That meant they noticed.

But the problem wasn't the headlines — it was the source.

PulseByte, a media company under Viremont Global, had started digging.

Worse, they were using AI-assisted sentiment loops — advanced systems that could simulate public backlash to sway algorithmic favor. Paid outrage.

Nova burst in with her tablet, eyes wild.

"We've been shadowbanned on V-Stream. All our new videos — stuck at 11 views for hours."

Dex cursed from the back. "They're freezing the numbers again. I'm telling you, this is corporate warfare."

Liam nodded slowly. "Then we fight smart."

He opened a notepad and wrote four names:

VelociVibe – a rising, indie-owned video platform in Tassara.

LoopLab – audio distribution startup disrupting legacy labels.

SceneSprout – a creator incubator with no corporate backers.

Unravel – a data-clean social platform championing authenticity.

"Ace," Liam said. "Let's make some calls. We're not just resisting anymore. We're forming alliances."

That night, while his team worked in the warehouse, Liam appeared on a pirate podcast hosted by a masked streamer known only as ByteLancer.

"Everline thinks I'm building an ego," Liam said into the mic, voice steady."I'm building a mirror. So every artist sees what they could be… if they stopped being afraid."

The comments flooded in. Shares spiked.And deep in Cyndral, in the boardroom of Everline, Kara Vale watched it all unfold.

Her lips curled into a cold smile.

Chapter 17 – Rivals and Rumors