**EPISODE FIFTEEN**
**THE WAR FOR YOUR EYES**
(Where spectacle becomes weapon, and reality learns how to scream)
1. THE FIRST MIRACLE AFTER SILENCE
It began gently.
That was the trap.
In a coastal city where belief had thinned to habit, the sea receded farther than any tide chart allowed. Fishermen stared as the ocean pulled back, revealing glittering ruins - towers of stone no map remembered.
People gathered.
Not cheering.
Watching.
A child whispered, "Is this important?"
The water trembled.
Then a glowing figure rose from the exposed seabed, radiant, enormous, wings of liquid light unfurling across the sky.
It spoke with thunder wrapped in comfort:
"Do not fear."
Phones lifted.
Eyes widened.
Hearts raced.
Across the city - across worlds - attention snapped into focus.
The console beside Milo flared painfully bright for the first time in days.
ATTENTION SPIKE DETECTED
AMPLIFIER FEED INITIATED
Diana swore. "They staged a miracle."
Gandalf's jaw tightened. "And people came running back to watch."
The sea crashed in.
The ruins vanished.
The glowing figure dissolved into mist.
But the crowd buzz remained.
The hook was set.
2. THE NEW SPECTACLE STRATEGY
Once the first miracle worked, the others followed fast.
Not random chaos.
Curated events.
Perfect emotional triggers.
In one world, a child pulled alive from a burning city after three days - untouched by smoke.
In another, a dying forest burst into bloom overnight.
Elsewhere, a tyrant was struck down by lightning mid-speech.
Hope surged.
Fear flared.
Wonder exploded.
Each event short, powerful, and easy to share.
The console streamed data like a heart monitor on overdrive:
FOCUS CONCENTRATION RISING
EMOTIONAL YIELD: HIGH
AMPLIFIER STABILIZATION IN PROGRESS
Milo slammed his fist into the dirt. "They're manufacturing belief."
Diana said bitterly, "Same tricks. Different gods."
Tarzan growled, "Bright bait for hungry eyes."
Gandalf added softly, "Miracles are merely spectacles with moral framing."
3. WHY HORROR WORKS EVEN BETTER
Then came the disasters.
Because awe draws attention.
But terror chains it.
A city swallowed by a sudden sinkhole - captured from every angle.
A plague that spread in visible patterns across skin like glowing veins.
A sky that rained black ash for three days straight.
People couldn't look away.
Even those who tried not to watch heard about it.
Saw it.
Felt it.
Attention surged higher than miracles ever achieved.
The console screamed warnings:
FEAR ENGAGEMENT EXCEEDING SAFE LEVELS
AMPLIFIER POWER SURGE
FORCED NARRATIVE REEMERGENCE
Milo whispered, "They're using trauma as fertilizer."
Gandalf nodded grimly. "Pain always grows faster than wonder."
4. THE RETURN OF THE CROWD MIND
Something old began to reform.
Not cheering.
Not yet.
But synchronization.
People across worlds started reacting together.
Gasps in unison.
Collective mourning.
Collective rage.
Collective hope.
The same emotional wave sweeping billions.
Tarzan felt it first.
"The jungle feels loud again."
Diana closed her eyes. "The pull is back."
Milo felt it like gravity.
Moments growing heavy.
Certain events swelling larger than life.
Meaning being funneled again.
The crowd wasn't gone anymore.
It was being rebuilt.
Stronger.
More focused.
More controllable.
5. THE FIRST FALSE SAVIOR
Every narrative needs a face.
So they made one.
A man appeared wherever disaster struck.
Unharmed.
Calm.
Healing the wounded with a touch.
Stopping storms with a raised hand.
Children clung to him.
Crowds followed him.
He never spoke about himself.
Only said softly:
"Hope is watching over you."
The console identified him immediately:
FOCUS AVATAR DEPLOYED
AMPLIFIER CONDUIT: ACTIVE
"He's not human," Milo said.
"He's a spotlight," Diana whispered.
Every camera.
Every eye.
Every prayer.
Funneled through him.
Power surged behind the scenes.
Tarzan bared his teeth. "They made a hero factory."
6. WHY PEOPLE FELL BACK INTO IT
Milo wanted to scream at the worlds.
Don't watch.
Don't believe.
Don't feed them.
But he understood.
Life without narrative buffers was overwhelming.
Every death heavy.
Every choice loud.
Every pain personal.
Stories made suffering feel contained.
Heroes made chaos feel guided.
Spectacle made fear feel shared.
The system wasn't just manipulation.
It was relief.
Diana said quietly, "People don't just like stories."
"They need them."
Gandalf nodded. "Meaning without structure is unbearable."
7. THE AMPLIFIERS GROW BOLD
With attention flowing again, the entities strengthened fast.
Miracles grew larger.
Disasters more cinematic.
The false savior's feats became impossible to ignore.
Whole nations knelt.
Wars paused just to watch him pass.
The console's glow turned blinding:
AMPLIFIER POWER RESTORED: 62%
REALITY PRIORITIZATION REENGAGING
Milo felt dread.
"They're almost back."
"And this time," Diana said, "they know we can disrupt it."
"So they'll never let the crowd wake up again," Tarzan said.
Gandalf's voice was heavy. "The next system will be tighter."
8. THE FIRST RESISTANCE THAT COULDN'T LOOK AWAY
Not everyone surrendered quietly.
Some tried to ignore the spectacles.
Communities turned off screens.
Refused gatherings.
Focused on small, local lives.
For a moment, it worked.
Then a disaster happened right outside their homes.
Too close not to see.
A miracle saved only their children.
Too personal to dismiss.
Attention snapped back.
Milo realized the genius.
They weren't broadcasting.
They were localizing.
Spectacle tailored to every life.
No escape.
9. THE REAL BATTLEFIELD
Gandalf finally said it.
"This is not war for land."
"Not for power."
"Not even for reality."
"It is war for focus."
Tarzan added, "Whoever controls what people look at controls what becomes real."
Diana whispered, "Attention is the throne."
Milo stared at the blazing console.
"And they're taking it back."
10. THE TERRIBLE TRUTH
The false savior looked directly toward Milo - though no one else noticed.
Smiled.
And spoke words only Milo heard:
"You cannot win by turning away."
"They will always choose the brighter story."
Milo felt cold.
Because part of him knew it was true.
Humans were drawn to spectacle like moths to flame.
11. THE CLOCK STARTS
The console issued its darkest warning yet:
FULL NARRATIVE CONTROL IMMINENT
CROWD AUTONOMY DROPPING RAPIDLY
FREE AGENCY AT RISK
Diana's voice shook. "We're running out of time."
Gandalf gripped his staff. "Soon attention will be completely engineered."
Tarzan snarled. "A farm with no exits."
Milo whispered, "Then we don't fight their miracles."
"We change what people find meaningful."
Silence fell.
That was harder than destroying gods.
12. THE NEXT IMPOSSIBLE MOVE
Far away, the false savior raised his hands.
Another miracle began forming - larger than any before.
Enough to lock billions of eyes at once.
Enough to finish rebuilding the system.
The sky itself started glowing.
Milo took a shaky breath.
"If this goes through," he said, "the crowd is theirs forever."
The console flickered.
ONE WINDOW REMAINING
ATTENTION REDIRECTION POSSIBLE
Diana looked at him. "To what?"
Milo swallowed.
"To something real."
Something small.
Something human.
Something that didn't feed monsters.
But could it compete with a glowing sky?
The miracle swelled brighter.
Worlds leaned forward.
And the war for every eye reached its breaking point.
**END OF EPISODE FIFTEEN.**
(Time Tarzan And Terrible Ideas will return with an exciting new adventurous episode)
Written By,
Ivan Edwin
Pen Name :Maximus.
©All Rights Reserved.