Los Angeles was gone...

Los Angeles was a shadow of its former self. Once the glittering jewel of the West Coast, it was now a wasteland of scorched earth and smoldering ruins. The wildfires that tore through the city didn’t discriminate—they devoured everything in their path. Skyscrapers, suburban neighborhoods, and historic landmarks all fell victim to the relentless flames.

The failing infrastructure had sealed the city’s fate. Water reservoirs had run dry long before the fires began, the aqueducts choked by years of neglect and mismanagement. When the infernos started, fire crews arrived, hoses in hand, only to find there was no water to fight the flames. Helicopters sat idle, grounded by bureaucratic red tape and a lack of resources. Building after building was left to burn, the fire consuming what it pleased.

Smoke blotted out the sun for weeks, casting the city in an eerie twilight. Ash rained from the sky like snow, coating the streets in a ghostly gray. The iconic Hollywood sign, long a beacon of dreams, stood charred and twisted, a cruel symbol of the devastation.

Governor Wyatt appeared on every screen, his polished smile unshaken as he assured the citizens of California that "everything was under control." He claimed swift action was being taken, resources mobilized, and solutions implemented. His words were hollow. Everyone knew it. People huddled in overcrowded shelters, staring at the screens with hollow eyes, as their homes turned to ash and their lives unraveled.

The truth was evident to anyone who dared look: Los Angeles was gone. The fires were only the final blow to a city already on its knees. For years, cracks had formed in its foundation—failing infrastructure, unchecked corruption, and the ever-widening gap between the rich and the poor. The infernos simply finished what time and neglect had begun.

No aid was coming, no rebuilding was planned. The city, its streets once alive with culture and chaos, would not recover. It was as if the universe had decided that Los Angeles’ time was up. The skeleton of the city stood as a grim monument to a world that had let its brightest stars fall into darkness.